All posts by emiola ibukun

Tribute
By Ibukun Emiola
Ibadan, Aug. 21, 2018 (NAN)The Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Saliu Adetunji, has been described as a monarch who embodies the virtues of leadership.

Chief Yemi Soladoye, the President General of the Central Council of Ibadan Indigenes (CCII),   stated this in Ibadan at a forum to mark the  90th birthday anniversary of the monarch.

Soladoye, who said all Ibadan indigenes were happy to celebrate with the Olubadan, prayed God to grant him good health, long life and prosperity.

“He never cursed, threatened or exhibited anger at anybody in the past one year. Oba Adetunji can only be described as  his own person, a man of  Spartan discipline.

“The CCII knows that while Kabiyesi is not against reforms, considering the peculiar situation of Ibadan chieftaincy arrangement, he has identified three areas to be addressed,’’ he said.

Soladoye said the three areas of authorisation, jurisdiction and code of conduct must be looked into for any review of the Olubadan Chieftaincy Law to succeed.

“CCII will look into this and come up with an all-embracing and sustainable blueprint that will give a no-victor-nor-vanquished position within the next three months,” Soladoye said.

NAN reports that the event, which featured a prayer session,  was attended by various Ibadan groups as well as traditional chiefs. (NAN)
IBK/OJO
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(Edited by Mufutau Ojo)

Celebration
By Ibukun Emiola
Ibadan, Aug. 20, 2018 (NAN) Ahead of the Eid-el-Kabir celebration on Tuesday,  commercial drivers in Ibadan on Monday lamented the low patronage by travellers.

A correspondent of the  News Agency of Nigeria (NAN),  who visited some motor parks in Ibadan, reports that there was low turnout at many motor parks in spite of the stable fares.

Some of the drivers,  who spoke with NAN at the NURTW parks at  Iwo road, Akinyele Unit One and Two, Ojoo, Olodo and  Ajimobi Garage, all lamented the low patronage.

“We are grateful to God for sparing our lives to see another Sallah celebration, though patronage has been low.

“Our union has instructed us to transport passengers at the normal rate in spite of what we expect to be an upsurge in passengers traffic due to Sallah.

“We will lose more customers if we increase the price because of the present economic reality; Ibadan-Ogbomoso is still N1,000 by car while by bus is N800.

“ Ibadan-Ilorin route is N1,500 by car and N1,200 by bus while fare to  Oyo town by car is N500 and N300 by bus. These are the normal fares.

“We know that the masses are suffering due to the paucity of money in circulation;  in fact, it does not look as if there is festivity in the air,”   Hassan Akanbi, a driver,  said.

The Oyo State Chairman of the  Road Transport Employers Association,  Kehinde Adeyemo, told NAN that members of the union had been directed not to increase fares.

“We don’t normally increase our fares, we don’t demand extra money from our workers during festive seasons.

“Rather,  we have cautioned all our members to be very careful on the road as to be late is better than to be dead,” he said..

A passenger, Alhaji Ayinla Akani, told  NAN that there was no increase in transport fares, saying this was a welcome development.

“Nigerians are resilient people; when workers get paid,  it will have a ripple effect on every sector of the economy as money passes from one hand to another.

“The economic hardship is felt in every area of life most especially as people are unable to afford the basic things of life,” Akande said. (NAN)
IBK/NNO/OJO
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(Edited by Nick Nicholas/Mufutau Ojo)

Politics
By Ibukun Emiola
Ibadan, Aug. 15, 2018 (NAN) A presidential aspirant, Prof. Kingsley Moghalu,  has called on all Nigerians to be involved in politics in order to effect  the desired  change in the country.

Moghalu, a former Deputy Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) , made the call  on Wednesday at a book reading event organised by the  Ibadan School of Government and Public Policy (ISGPP).

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the ISGPP Book Readers’ Club was formally inaugurated on Aug. 8.

Moghalu’s book, ‘Build Innovate and Grow ‘(B.I.G), was the first to be read.

The author  said the book, which  had four parts spread across 25 chapters, was  seeking to provide answers to the myriads of challenges facing Nigeria.

He said the book was a product of his 17 years experience at the United Nations and five  years at the CBN.

Moghalu  added that the book was focused  on leadership and governance, nation building, economy and foreign policy.

“Politics first defines the human condition in any society

“How it is managed and run, whether it has good outcome, free or fair among others;  these determine  whether a society can prosper.

“Nigeria is very poor;  it is amazing how Nigerians still fold their hands and allow the set of people who plunge them into poverty to still call the shots  and dictate even to the educated and informed minds on the direction to go.

“Nigeria is the poverty capital of the world, having the highest number of people with absolute poverty; 87 million people in a  200 million population.

“Nigerians must be propelled to make the necessary change in 2019 through their votes. As it is now,  Nigerian  politics is not based on policy or intellectual understanding but based on sentiment and pride,” he said.

Present at the event were the Executive Vice-Chairman of  ISGPP,  Prof. Tunji Olaopa, Chairman of the Governing Board of  ISGPP, Prof.  Akin Mabogunje,  and veteran journalist, Chief Felix Adenaike.(NAN)
IBK/GOM/OJO
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(Edited by Gregory Mmaduakolam/Mufutau Ojo)

Donation
By Ibukun Emiola
Ibadan, Aug. 12, 2018  (NAN) The wife of the Oyo State Governor, Mrs Florence Ajimobi,  says  every child must have access to education and  Information Communication Technology (ICT) at an early stage.

A statement issued by Ajimobi’s  Special Adviser on Media, Mrs Yemisi Owonikoko, said she spoke at an event  organised to redeem  her pledge of   internet-enabled facility equipped with personal computers to   St. Annes School, Molete, Ibadan  on the occasion of its  149th Founder’s Day anniversary.

The statement said the e-library, which is fully air conditioned, has 25 personal computers  all enabled with internet facility and has educative software  installed.

The computers, it added,  are also gateway to lots of e-textbooks to prepare students for all external examinations.

The computer room, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports,  started off as a project by the 1970-1974 Old Girls’ Association of  the school.

It, however, received support from the wife of the governor to enable the room serve more students.

In her remarks, the Set’s  President, Mrs Bukunola Orekoya, lauded  the governor’s wife for supporting the project  and promised to ensure that the facility was put to good use. (NAN)
IBK/OJO
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(Edited by Mufutau Ojo)

Girl-child

By Ibukun Emiola
Ibadan, Aug. 9, 2018, (NAN) All over the world societies that are great are those that pay attention to their girl-children because they are unique and exceptional; capable of transforming a generation, a cleric, Pastor Bridget Kolade has said.

Kolade, the Coordinator of August Girls’ Assembly, an outreach of the Vine Branch Ministries, made the disclosure on Thursday in Ibadan at the 2018 annual August Girls’ Assembly.

August Girls’ Assembly is an annual event organised by Worth-In-Womanhood, an arm of Vine Branch Ministries and it is one of the largest gatherings of girls in Ibadan.

“For 15 years now, God has put it in our hearts to pay attention to the girl-child because unfortunately the society, culture and tradition and religion have not benefited the girl-child.

“We have been losing out a lot, in fact, humanity has been losing out on this great treasure that God has given us.

“All through the scriptures we know how God sees the girl-child, we see how there is so much worth in womanhood; male and female, God made them and put so much of greatness in them, which we see in Genesis 1:27.

“Over the years, we have been encouraged because we see God’s works.

“We see changed lives; about 1, 000 to 1, 800 girls between the ages of Eight to 19 have been in attendance for 15 years now.

“Some of these girls are now married, others are mothers whose children now attend the August Girls Assembly,” she said.

Contributing, Prof Millicent Obajimi, a Consultant Radiologist at the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, spoke on “The Exceptional Woman”.

She advised girls to embrace sound education and never allow anybody to hinder their progress no matter the challenges faced.

“There is an excellent spirit in every one but all must be done for an optimal performance in life.

“Try your best not to be a mediocre in life, you have to burn the midnight candle to excel in life.

“God did extra work on you so He expects you to be exceptional; emulate a decent life and follow God in humility and obedience,” she said.

Obajimi also urged girls to identify their passion and be resourceful as well as pay the price of greatness and be committed to a life of continuous greatness.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that 2018 August Girls Assembly began on Aug. 9 and will end on Aug. 11. (NAN)
IBK/ESAN/PDE
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(Edited by Abiodun Esan/Peter Ejiofor)

Books
By Ibukun Emiola
Ibadan, Aug. 8, 2018 (NAN) Government needs to create a climate for talents and intellectualism to thrive through instituting merit as the basis for appointments.

Prof. Tunji Olaopa, the Executive Vice-Chairman of  Ibadan School of Government and Public Policy (ISGPP),  said this at the launch of ISGPP Book Readers Club in Ibadan on Wednesday.

Olaopa said the government needed to invest more in the funding of learning infrastructure like public libraries to restore education to its place as a pillar of progress in the society.

“We need to do more than celebrate our best and brightest as a news item; we need to invest in their talent and expand available opportunities for them to make contributions.

“We need much more friendly policies to support the local publishing industry and better author-publisher partnership within the framework of improved intellectual property protection policy.

“A man cannot achieve or ever discover the potentiality of what he is capable of unless he continues to learn only so can he make the most of him or herself,” he said.

In his keynote address, Dr Kolade Mosuro,  the Chief Executive Officer of  Booksellers Limited,  urged the government to ensure that teachers from their training schools embrace reading as a core subject in their curriculum.

“We should encourage literary hour in various schools; let them read whatever they like, just let them read and with time they begin to sieve and they get to know that the book is a friend of theirs.

“A book doesn’t write itself, it is somebody’s idea and as a matter of fact, once they have discovered books,  half of their schooling is done,” he said.

The event had in attendance a former governor of the old Western State, retired  Gen. Oluwole Rotimi, the Maye of Ibadanland, Chief Adebayo Akande, the Chairman of ISGPP,  Prof.  Akin Mabogunje,  and Prof.  Olabode Lucas of the ISGPP Book Reader Club Steering Committee. (NAN)
IBK/OJO
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(Edited by Mufutau Ojo)

ECOWAS
By Ibukun Emiola
Ibadan, Aug. 8, 2018 (NAN) Experts on Wednesday urged President Muhammadu Buhari to take his anti-corruption effort across the African continent to sensitive the member states of the Eonomic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) on the evil effects of corruption on societies.

An economist, Prof. Olanrewaju Olaniyan, the Director, Centre for Sustainable Development University of Ibadan and Mr David Olojede, a council member of Ibadan Chamber of Commerce and Industry made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Ibadan.

Olaniyan however said among the things on the front burner for President Buhari to tackle in ECOWAS are the issues of corruption and accountability at the ECOWAS secretariat and also in individual countries that made up ECOWAS.

“Another thing that he should tackle is that of free movement of persons especially as it concerns the movement of herdsmen and their cattle; so as to check the insecurity challenge in Nigeria; though, there is a protocol in ECOWAS that allows herdsmen to move from Senegal across Mali, Burkina Faso, Ghana to Nigeria.”

The director also enjoined President Buhari to look into the issue of single currency by energising the West African Central Bank and ensure it come to fruition as it has been long overdue.

Olojede in his contribution urged the president to ensure Common Economic Tariff and also consolidate on economic integration, adding that it will boost income of member States if fully implemented.

“The common economic tariff is 20 per cent then we added the adjusted economic tariff which is 50 per cent meaning there is 70 per cent tariff on any goods in Nigeria.

“This implies the goods will be expensive in Nigeria and it will encourage smuggling, as people don’t want to pay 70 per cent tariff on goods in Nigeria.”

They however, urged President Buhari to improve on Nigeria’s infrastructure and provide required leadership in ECOWAS so that members clamouring for Morocco to join the community can believe in Nigeria.

NAN reports that President Buhari was  on July 31 in Lome elected the new chairman of the Authority of Heads of State and Government of the ECOWAS.

The president’s election was one of the highpoints of the 53rd Session of the Authority of Heads of State and Government of ECOWAS which held in the Togolese capital.

IBK/SH

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edited by Sadiya Hamza