Category General news

Eid El-Kabir: Police deploy personnel to strategic places in Adamawa

NAN-DS-10

Security

Yola, Sept. 9, 2016 ( NAN) The Adamawa Police Command on Friday said it had deployed security personnel to praying ground, markets and other strategic places across the state to ensure hitch-free Eid El-Kabir.

Alhaji Muhammed Gazzali, the state Commissioner of Police, made this known in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Yola.

Gazzali said that the development was part of precautionary measures to ensure hitch-free Eid El-Kabir in the state.

“As part of our responsibility, the command has deployed a significant number of uniform and plain clothes personnel to strategic places to monitor and ensure peaceful Sallah across the state,” Gazzali said.

He maintained that the command would never give chance to any group or individual to threaten the peaceful atmosphere been enjoyed by the people of the state.

He warned that the command was ever ready to deal with any element or action capable of breaching peace of the state.

The commissioner, however, appealed to the general public to give maximum cooperation to the police and report any strange character to the nearest security post. (NAN)
Edited by Felix Ajide

==============

Commission urges port users to key into service portal to check corruption
NAN-H-28
Corruption
By Uchenna. Eletuo
Lagos, Sept. 9, 2016 (NAN) The Independent Corrupt Practices and other related Commission (ICPC) has urged port users to key into the newly launched Port Support Service Portal(PSSP) to check corruption.

The commission’s spokesperson, Mrs Rasidat Okoduwa who spoke on the sidelines of inauguration of the portal in Lagos on Friday, urged freight forwarders to use the platform to curb incessant sharp practices in the port.

She said that the platform was not just another government policy or instrument that would not work.

“This is a carefully planned platform aid at curbing the supposedly rampant corruption in the maritime industry.

“The portal which has the Standard Operational Procedure (SOP) of all the agencies and port operators has self appraisal mechanism.

“Complaints of undue delays by one operator or agency that give rise to giving and taking of bribe before job is done can be tracked with the system,’’ Okoduwa said.
According to her, the system will show any organisation that is not keeping to the SOP and will be sanctioned accordingly.

She said that with the ICPC as part of the monitoring and implementation committee, the public and port users should be rest assured that sharp practices prevalent in ports would be checked.

She added that port users should avail themselves of the compliant box in the portal and make their grievances known to ICPC, saying that such would be treated immediately.

NAN reports that the Federal Ministry of Transportation has commenced the formal inauguration of an ICT portal for port users to facilitate trade in the ports (NAN)
EUC/GY
======

41 graduates receive training on entrepreneurship skills In Kano –official
NAN-H-26
Training
Kano, Sept. 9, 2016 (NAN) Forty one graduates in Kano state have so far benefitted from the Federal Government’s funded programme, Graduates Internship Scheme (GIS) training on entrepreneurship and employment scheme.
The GIS Project Director, Mr Dennis Chukwudi disclosed this at the launch of the training programme in Kano on Friday.
He said since the inception of the programme no fewer than 41,161 graduates had benefitted from the scheme across the country.
Chukwu, who was represented by the Head of Finance and Accounts, GIS, Mr Anthony Kalu, said out of the figure, 35,000 beneficiaries had exited the scheme with thousands of them securing jobs, credit facilities and grants.
According to him, the scheme had developed special programme for non-oil sector in view of its prospects for capacity building and job creation.
He said GIS had also entered into special partnership with governmental and non-governmental organisations for graduates to be trained on ICT, Agriculture, Construction and Community health among others fields. (NAN)

Edited by Felix Ajide

================

NAN-H-23
Concession
By Taiye Edeni
Abuja, Sept. 9, 2016(NAN) The Minister of State for Aviation, Sen. Hadi Sirika on Friday inaugurated two committees to provide general direction and steer the course of Public Private Partnership (PPP) project concessions in the Aviation Sector.

The minister in a statement issued by James Odaudu, the Deputy Director, Press and Public Affairs, inaugurated the committees on behave of the Federal Government in Abuja.

He said that the committees known as Project Steering Committee and Project Delivery Committee would kick start the concession process for the nation’s major airports.

According to him, the Federal Government’s resolve to concession the airports are for national interest in ensuring the establishment and sustenance of world class standards in both infrastructural development and service delivery.

Sirika said that the misconception about the concession was not to privatise the airports, noting that the property being concession still remained that of the Federal Government.

“The misgivings some people have expressed concerning the exercise was borne out of misconception that concession is synonymous with privatisation.

“The institutions being concessioned remain the property of the Federal Government which will generate more jobs at the end of the day.’’

According to him, members of the concession process should ensure that all their activities are in compliance with the guidelines of the Infrastructure Concession and Regulatory Commission (ICRC).

He said that the Project Delivery Committee should approve action plans, budgets, financial requests and serve as the final decision-making body on PPP, concession matters on air transport generally.

Sirika, however, charged members of the committees to be diligent and patriotic in the implementation of the decisions, as their success or failure would determine the fate of the whole process.

Mr Sabiu Zakari, the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary, responding on behalf of the two committees, pledged their commitment to the assignment, considering the importance attached to it by the Federal Government. (NAN)
TY/GY
======

Edited by Grace Yussuf

LASG maps out plans for sustainable waste water management in Lagos

NAN-H-8
Waste
By Chidinma Agu
Lagos, Sept. 9, 2016  (NAN) The Lagos State Commissioner for the Environment, Dr Babatunde Adejare, has said that the state has mapped out plans to address challenges of waste water management.

Adejare made the disclosure in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos on Friday.

According to him, the plan includes a five-year strategic infrastructure plan as well as sustainable sewage and sanitation strategy.

“The strategy is to ensure sustainable management of waste water in the state.

“’It has an infrastructural component of 10 new waste water treatment plants and the revamping of three existing ones in the five-year implementation period.

“It has also an aggressive infrastructural investment in waste water treatment facilities and development of waste water master plan.

“Environmental sustainability of waste water infrastructure and ensuring project sustainability and effective financial management will also be part of the strategy,’’ he said.

Adejare said that the institutional framework for the sustainable sewage and sanitation strategy would include enabling environment for public-private partnership.

He assured that it would be a holistic programme to waste water treatment and strengthening of appropriate local and international networks in capacity building for the sector.

The commissioner said that the five-year strategic plan would be developed in such a way that its goals and targets would be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-bound.

He promised that the plan would improve the health standard of Lagos residents by ensuring that tenements and premises pass wastewater into the septic tank system. (NAN)
ACA/TA
Controlled by Tajudeen Atitebi

Don urges support for `Change Begins With Me Campaign’

NAN-H-20

Campaign

By Monday Ijeh

Abuja, Sept. 9, 2016 (NAN) Prof. Abdulhameed Ujo of the Department of Political Science and International Relations, University of Abuja, has urged Nigerians to embrace the “Change Begins With Me Campaign’’ of the Federal Government.

Ujo, who made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Friday, said that the campaign was designed to mobilise Nigerians to address the challenges facing the country.

“I am of the feeling that what they are trying to do is to experiment the various approaches to address the problems.

“It is a philosophy of the government aimed at mobilising Nigerians and that must start with the individual.

“I have the feeling that it is a good approach because since we are in crisis, it is good we open all doors so that when one door does not open, we can try another.

“Addressing this problem from the individual level will help to rebuild the family, the community and the larger society.”

The don urged the Federal Government to ensure that Nigerians with the necessary intellectual discipline were engaged in the implementation of the campaign.

Ujo, therefore, appealed to Nigerians to support the present administration in its efforts to address the challenges confronting the country, adding that complaints and criticism would only compound the problems.

“To me, everybody has to support this administration to succeed and stop complaining because we are in a critical situation.

“The problem of the country is so big that they cannot be solved overnight; so, we must wake up to offer whatever we can to support the programme of government.

“It is not enough for us to sit down in our houses and continue to complain that we are dying,” he added. (NAN)

IMC/MO/NKO

Edited by Morayo Omolade/Nkechi Okoronkwo