Category Metro

Freight
By Taiye Elebiyo-Edeni
Abuja, March 21, 2019 (NAN) The Nigerian Shippers Council (NSC), and Airfreight forum met on Thursday to deliberate over challenges causing low freight activities in Abuja Airport.

The First Quarter Airfreight Stakeholders Forum (ASF), meeting 2019 was held at the Airport in Abuja.

Mr Sunday Akintunde, the Chairman of the forum said that the cost of exporting from Abuja was too high with so much bureaucracy, which discouraged exporters.

According to him, for enabling environment to be created, government needs to review some policies and agencies of government must make export guidelines accessible to exporters.

He said that exporters exports goods to Ghana before taking it to other parts of the world because of the cheap import rate in Ghana.

“The cost of doing business in Abuja is on the high side, customers are complaining as well as the agents.

‘’The issuance of tariff from the Ministry of Agriculture is also too high and no machine for the analysis of CCI form in Abuja.

“We don’t have the enabling environment to make export happen in Nigeria, we need policy makers, and we want the President to know that nothing is happening in freight if we need to diversify our economy,” he said.

Akintunde, however said that at the end of the meeting, a committee would be set up headed by Nigerian Customs Service (NCS), to look into these challenges and proffer solutions.

Mr Hassan Bello, the Executive Secretary of the Shippers Council, promised that the council would look into the challenges facing exports, especially in Abuja.

Bello, who was represented by Muhammed Abubakar, Director, Abuja Liaison Office, said the councip would meet with service providers and users to address their challenges.

He said the main objectives of the council was to fastrack clearance of cargoes and ensure adequate storage of cargoes and perishable items, to attract more exporters into the business.

“This forum is very important to us because NSC is the economy regulator of Nigeria ports, the forum is organised for the service providers and users in the air freight sector to meet and interact.

“We know that a lot of international trade takes place at the airport, but freight has been low in Abuja. So, we are going to collaborate with the relevant stakeholders with the aim of improving on it.” (NAN)
TY/YI/IS
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Edited by Yahaya Isah/Ismail Abdulaziz

Corruption
By Bukola AdewumiOkeoghene Oghenekaro
Abuja, March 21, 2019 (NAN) The Bill Clinton College Students Anti-corruption Clubs (SAC) on Thursday urged Nigerian students to shun every act of corruption.

The students made this known in Abuja at the first anniversary of the establishment of the club in the school in Abuja.

The anniversary was also to help train students to imbibe the culture of integrity and transparency in order to build a greater Nigeria.

Mrs Azuka Ogugua, Assistant Commissioner Education, Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC) called on students to shun corrupt practices that had underdeveloped the country’s education system.

Ogugua said that a lot of corrupt practices that students picked up often began from homes to the school before they became adults and when holding offices in the future.

Mrs Lornumle Mureen, the proprietor of the school, commended the ICPC and accountability lab for imbibing the culture of integrity in the students, who would be the leaders of tomorrow.

She said inaugurating the club a year ago had not been easy because of the rules of do and don’ts of the club.

“When we began the club it was not easy, only few members were in the club because students see it as a difficult club to be; where it demands so much energy, where attitudes and morals were been checked.

“But today we are celebrating one year anniversary and we can say that we have grown and are also helping other schools establish SAC in their schools. By so doing, corruption will be a thing of the past if other schools establish SAC in their schools,” she said.

She urged students to always be agents of change wherever they found themselves.

Mr Samuel Emenogu, a member of the Accountability Lab, advised students to be ambassadors of integrity by effecting changes in their surroundings.

“Our hope is to see a Nigeria of our dream where there will be no corruption of any form, that is why we are raising awareness that integrity pays,” he said.

The president of the club, Precious Adam, urged students to be the agent of change in their schools, homes and the nation.

Helen Idoko, a member of the club, also promised to live a life of integrity, adding that she would shun any form of corruption. (NAN)
BOL/OKE/IS
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Bwari: Traders call for peaceful rerun polls

Peace
By Veronica Dariya
Bwari (Abuja) March 21, 2019 (NAN) Some traders in Bwari Area Council, FCT, have appealed to stakeholders to ensure peaceful conduct of the rerun elections scheduled to hold in some parts of the area council on Saturday.

The traders made this appeal in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Abuja.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had scheduled to hold the rerun elections in some of the affected polling units in the area after the declaration of the Chairmanship and Councillorship elections of March 9 as inconclusive.

INEC rescheduled the election due to violence that erupted and led to the cancellation of results at 17 polling units, including an entire 12 polling units of Kawu Ward of the district.

Mr Ali Mallam, a meat seller in the Isuwa Zamayi Market, said the peace of the town remained paramount to the entire district.

“Whatever must be done must be peaceful, because this town is already sitting on a time bomb since 2017.

“If at the end of the elections losers refuse to accept defeat and can’t control their supporters, this might affect this town.

“Henceforth, I mean even before the rerun of the elections, politicians and their supporters should be cautioned against any form of violence.

“They should please consider the ordinary citizens that just want to do their business and earn living with their families.’’

Sola Obadiran, another resident, also called for peaceful polls, saying “let’s have a peaceful process please, so that we can forge ahead and make progress.”

Similarly, another trader, Usman Yahaya called on the government at all levels to “put all hands on the deck to monitor the process in order to make it peaceful and successful.

“The politicians should stop being selfish, they should not think of their interests only; they should also think of others and how their actions might affect the society at large.

“Without a peaceful society, governance would be unproductive and development may either be slow or not available at all.’’

Mrs Doris Oyelola, who sells baby items, called on security agents to impute serious effort to ensure that the rerun election is uninterrupted and peaceful.

“There is need for security agents to ensure that measures are put in place to secure lives and property during and after the elections.

“Although, the town is still on a 10p.m to 5p.m curfew daily since 2018, it is important for the security agents to ensure tight security so that lives and property would be secured.’’

She also called on the electorate to cast their votes with wisdom, while also advising that they stay away from any form of trouble.

“If as a voter you have cast your vote, don’t bother staying around the polling units that is why we have the party agents and observers who will ensure that your vote counts.

“However, our prayer is for the elections to end well and the looser should congratulate the winner, so that we can continue to enjoy peace in the area council,” she said.

NAN reports that the affected areas scheduled for the rerun as announced by the INEC are the entire 12 polling units in Kawu Ward.

Others are the two units in Dakwa and Public Place unit, Kubwa ward, one unit at Gidan Bawaunder, Dutsen-Alhaji ward and one unit at LEA Primary School at Igu ward. (NAN)
DVK//OYE/AFA
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Edited by Celine-Damilola Oyewole/Felix Ajide

Festival
By Kabir Muhammad
Abuja, March 20, 2019 (NAN) The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Malam Muhammad Bello has said that the FCT Administration would continue to provide the enabling environment for the growth of the entertainment industry.

Bello gave the assurance when he received the Managing Director, Nigerian Film Corporation, Dr Chidia Maduekwe and his team on a courtesy visit on Wednesday in Abuja.

Bello said his interest in the Corporation grew after witnessing the last Zuma Festival held in Abuja.

According to the minister, the Corporation is doing well and the FCTA will provide the needed environment for the success of its mandate.

Earlier, the Managing Director of the Corporation had solicited partnership with FCT Administration for the annual hosting of the Zuma Film Festival.

He said the FCTA needed to hold the host status for the festival rather than the guest role it played in previous events.

Maduekwe particularly requested the FCTA to make available the International Conference Centre Abuja for the week-long event scheduled to hold in December.

“The creative industry is currently contributing 2.3 per cent of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and there is no reason why we cannot get to 10 per cent.

“It is possible and in line with President Muhammadu Buhari’s drive to diversify the nation’s economy,” he said.

Maduekwe stressed the need to showcase Abuja as an entertainment destination in the film industry, adding that the Corporation is working to ensure that Nigeria is listed in the World Calendar of film festivals.

The managing director also proposed a quarterly training of youths in the FCT on various areas in the creative industry to ensure that they become self-reliant as well as employable. (NAN)
KM/IS
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Collaboration
By Kabir Muhammad
Abuja, March 20, 2019 (NAN) The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) is collaborating with the office of the Surveyor General of the Federation to save cost and improve services to residents.

FCT Minister, Malam Muhammad Bello said this when the Surveyor General of the Federation, Mr Ebisintei Awudu and his technical team paid him a courtesy visit on Wednesday in Abuja.

Bello said the move was saving the FCTA scarce resources which can now be invested in other sectors.

“Leveraging on your facilities saves us having to do multiple investments in facilities that are already existing which we can easily utilise,’’ he said.

Bello commended the good work of Nigeria’s surveyors in the development of the territory since its inception.

The minister said the FCT Administration would continue to partner with the Surveyor General for the achievement of the individual mandate of both organisations.

Earlier, Awudu had called for more collaboration between his office and the FCTA in the areas of conducting surveys and mapping.

He emphasised the need for the FCTA to leverage on the sensitive equipment of his office in identifying earth tremor locations even before they occur and its growth direction.

He urged government agencies to handle data generated from surveys with utmost care.

“Such information should be solely in the custody of the Director of Survey in the organisation. Survey data in the wrong hands could be a threat to any organisation or state,’’ he said. (NAN)
KM/IS
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Nigeria signs Safe School Declaration

School

By Chijioke Okoronkwo

Abuja, March 20, 2019(NAN) The Federal Executive Council (FEC) on Wednesday, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, ratified the Safe School Declaration.

Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, disclosed this while briefing State House correspondents after the FEC meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari.

The Safe Schools Declaration is an inter-governmental political commitment that was opened for endorsement by countries at an international conference held in Oslo, Norway, on May 28 to May 29, 2015.

According to Adamu, there have been a number of activities on the initiative, but Nigeria is now committed to implementing the Safe School guideline.

“The Safe School initiative will come in proper focus when there is some conflict and the Federal Government will come to their aid but they themselves are doing what they are supposed to do in all the places where they are affected by the conflict.’’

Adamu said that FEC also awarded a contract for the construction of a Faculty of Arts in Adamawa State University for N630 million.

He said that the project would be funded by the Tertiary Education Trust Fund(TETFUND).

On his part, the Minister of Environment, Suleiman Hassan, said that FEC approved the award of contract for the remediation of five more lots for the  ongoing clean-up in Ogoni land, as a result of the UNEP report that was submitted to the Federal Government.

He said that in June 2016, the president launched the clean-up exercise in Ogoni land, adding that sites had been handed over to 16-member companies.

“Work is in progress as of today; we have made appreciable progress; we have now awarded five more.

“Why are they coming in phases? The first 16-member was within the threshold of the Ministerial Tenders Board but this one is far above the threshold of the Ministerial Tenders Board.

“That is why it has to come to FEC and we are glad to say that we have secured approval and the contractors will be handed over to the sites as soon as it is practicably possible.

“The contract cost for this five-number lot is N3.039 billion,’’ he said.

More so, Minister of Water Resources, Suleiman Adamu, said that FEC approved the augmentation of the contract for the Ivo Water Supply Project in Enugu State by about N136million.

He said the contract, which was awarded in 2013 at the cost of N985 million, had been reviewed upwards to N1.12 1billion.

Adamu said the approval followed a memo submitted by the Ministry of Water Resources to the cabinet meeting.

He said the approval was in line with government’s commitment to complete all ongoing projects.

“It is over 80 per cent completed but obviously because of change of scope and issue that have to do with revision of rates, we sought and got approval to revise the cost of the project,” he said.

Earlier, Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed, who moderated the briefing, said that the council had an unusually long meeting.(NAN)

CJ/JTJ

Edited by Julius Toba-Jegede

Shutdown order: Sex workers go into hiding in Umuahia

Brothels
By Leonard Okachie
Umuahia, March 20, 2019 (NAN) Commercial sex workers in Umuahia, the Abia capital, have gone into hiding to evade police arrest, following state government’s order shutting down brothels in the city.
News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) correspondent, who monitored the enforcement of the government’s directive, reports that the sex workers now lived in palpable fear.
NAN reports that Gov. Okezie Ikpeazu on Monday ordered the immediate shutdown of brothels located on Orlu, Kaduna and Arochukwu streets, among others, in the capital city.
Ikpeazu also directed the immediate prosecution of proprietors of such facilities, including joints where illicit drugs were sold.
The state government alleged that the brothels and joints had been turned into hideout for hoodlums from where they rob and molest innocent citizens, especially in the night.
It, therefore, directed security agencies in the state to urgently rid the areas of suspected hoodlums.
Meanwhile, some of the major brothels that used to be a beehive of activities were empty and under lock and key when NAN visited on Wednesday.
The facilities included Classy Guest House, National Hotel, Daba-in and Freedom Hotel, all located on Orlu Street.
Other brothels vacated by the girls are Amala Guest House, located on Lagos Street and Universal Social Centre, also on Cameroun Street.
However, at Connection Bar, located on Imo Lane, a number of the sex workers were seen attending to their male customers.
The girls said that the brothel had become a refuse to some of their colleagues from the places that were shutdown.
It was, however, a comic moment when the girls took to their heels, when they heard the sound of a siren, unknown to them that the sound came from a bank bullion van.
“Hey, na bank people o. I see those police, I think say they don come again to arrest us,” one of the girls told her colleagues.
They described their experience as horrifying, saying that security operatives had been preying on them since the order was given by the state government. (NAN)
LEO/USO
(Edited by Sam Oditah)

Bwari Rerun: PDP cautions against rigging

Election

By Veronica Dariya

Bwari (Abuja), March 20, 2019 (NAN) The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Bwari Area Council Chapter, has cautioned against any attempt to manipulate the chairmanship and councillorship re-elections, slated for Saturday.

The Acting Chairman of the party in the council, Mr Bilyaminu Sani, gave the warning in a statement on Wednesday in Bwari.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared the chairmanship and councillorship elections in the council held on March 9, inconclusive.

INEC attributed the development to thuggery and violence at some polling units.

Sani added that the warning became necessary as there were alleged attempts by some persons to disrupt the entire process, thereby, subverting the will of the people.

“We are drawing the attention of the Minister of the FCT, Mr Mohammed Bello, who has shown his neutrality throughout the election, our traditional and spiritual leaders, the Inspector-General of Police and the Commissioner of police, FCT command.

” We also call the attention of the Area Commander, Kubwa and all the Divisional Police Officers under Bwari Area Council to be watchful,’’ he said.

Sani said that that it was evident that the PDP won the March 9 elections with a wide margin against the All Progressives Party (APC).

He alleged that collated result sheets for Kawu Ward were destroyed by unknown persons during the violence that resulted in the cancellation of the elections.

The chairman called on INEC to be non-partisan throughout the entire process.

He called on the party supporters and electorate in the affected areas to come out en masse without fear of intimidation to vote for their candidates.

In a related development, the Chairman of All Progressives Congress (APC), Bwari Chapter, Mr Aliyu Shere, said that the party was ready for the elections.

Shere who stated this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Bwari, added that the party had no intention to violate the electoral process.

“INEC has told us that they are set to conduct the rerun and the APC has no option than to incline.
“We are set, if we win or lose, either way, we will take it in good faith,” Shere said.
(NAN)

DVK/JPE/JTJ

Edited by Joseph Edeh/Julius Toba-Jegede

Support

By Sumaila Ogbaje

Abuja, March 19, 2019 (NAN) The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) has commended the  Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) for its continuous support of its member states in Africa.

Dr Amos Makarau, Director, WMO Regional Office for Africa, gave the commendation when he visited NiMet on Tuesday in Abuja.

Makarau said that NiMet had done well in providing assistance to other African countries because of its capabilities and strength.

He explained that his visit was to continue with the desire to move nations of Africa forward by bridging the gap between the developing and developed countries.

“There is the need to make sure that our meteorological services in the region are more visible and I am very much aware that African countries are in various stages of development.

“While some countries are in need of assistance, some others are better off.

“Nigerian meteorological service is one of those that are very much advanced in terms of resources and capacity.

“Nigeria has been of immense assistance to other African countries in this regard.

“Our mission here today is not to only come in and assess, but to also commend the agency in what it is doing in the African region.

“We are very much aware that NiMet is assisting other countries within the region which is rare in some other regions.

“My role is to say thank you and also to see how best  we can continue to work together,” he said.

Makarau also commended the Nigerian government for hosting the WMO’s office in Abuja.

He added that his visit was to express WMO’s gratitude to Nigeria for its commitment towards the operations of the regional office.

In his response, the Director-General of NiMet, Prof. Sani Mashi, said the WMO regional office in the country had carried out its responsibilities effectively.

Mashi expressed gratitude to the UN agency for the cordial relationship with NiMet over the years, adding that the signing of the Host Country Agreement (HCA) had further confirmed the WMO’s support for the agency.

He disclosed that the Nigerian government was committed to supporting the regional office with necessary logistics required.

“We are glad to let you know that the HCA was formally signed in 2018 after 15 years and the agreement was signed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs in July while the Secretary General of WMO came and ratified it in September 2018.

“We have been giving WMO free accommodation as it is the government’s practice towards all international agencies.

“There are a lot of commitment we have made in that agreement which we are going to redeem on an annual basis,” he said. NAN

OYS/CHOM/JTJ
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Edited by Chioma Ugboma/Julius Toba-Jegede