Nation
THE STATES
Adamawa
Adamawa State Universal Basic Education Board (ADSUBEB) has commenced distribution of motorcycles to head teachers of the 800 rural primary schools in the state.
The Executive Chairman of ADSUBEB, Dr Salihu Bakari, made this known in an interview with newsmen in Yola.
Bakari said the measure was aimed at checking transportation challenges facing the head teachers in the rural areas, adding that the development would make them more effective teachers and managers of their respective schools.
Bakari said already head teachers of 300 schools had been provided with motorcycles in the first batch of the programme while the remaining 500 would get their own soon.
“There is a very serious problem of transportation which is affecting our managers of rural schools and that is why we decided to start by providing motorcycles to head teachers of “extremely rural areas’’
Benue
Clerics in Makurdi have urged youths to shun immoral behaviour and violence as they celebrate St. Valentine’s Day last Tuesday.
St Valentine’s Day is observed on February 14, for lovers to express love for each other, present flowers, offer confectionery and send greetings.
The clerics told newsmen in Makurdi on Tuesday that they were more concerned about youths because they are the ones mostly involved in the celebration.
Rev. Fr Titus Igyese of St. Gabriel’s Mission, Makurdi said that the love which St. Valentine stood and died for was divine and not physical.
Igyese urged youths to refrain from indulging in immoral acts under the pretext of Valentine’s Day.
FCT
The National Secretary, Democratic People’s Alliance (DPA) Mr Sam Onimisi, has urged the Federal Government to strengthen security at the country’s borders to address trans-border crime.
He made the charge on Tuesday in a telephone interview with newsmen in Abuja.
Onimisi said the security agencies must live up to the task by ensuring that the nation’s borders were secure.
“Government should make sure that movement of illegal migrants into Nigeria is restricted and I believe this would help a lot in alleviating the security problems in the country.
“The Nigeria immigration service should ensure that foreigners do not enter Nigeria without valid papers.
Kano
The Kano State Government has relaxed for the second time the curfew it imposed on the state by four hours.
Our correspondent recalls that the state government imposed the curfew on Jan. 20 as a result of the multiple bomb explosions which rocked the Kano metropolis.
The state Commissioner for Information, Dr Umar Faruk, said in a statement in Kano on Tuesday that the curfew would now hold from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m.
Faruk explained that the decision to relax the curfew followed the improved security situation in the state.
He, however, stated that commercial motorcyclists were not affected by the new order as they were expected to operate from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Kebbi
Suru Local Government of Kebbi has spent N3.5 million on the purchase of 2,800 goats to be distributed to women on loan as part of efforts to reduce poverty in the area.
The Chairman of the council, Alhaji Sahabi Dan-Baba, told newsmen in Dakingari on Tuesday that widows, divorcees and less privileged persons would benefit from the scheme.
He said 1,300 beneficiaries would receive between two and three goats to rear and generate income for their families.
Dan-Bababa also said the council planned to expand the scheme and sustain it.
Kogi
The Kogi State office of the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) has confirmed that 61 people lost their lives in 485 road crashes recorded in the state in January this year.
The state’s Sector Commander of the FRSC, Mr Michael Olapade, who confirmed the figure while speaking to newsmen on Tuesday in Lokoja, said that the crashes which occurred in different parts of the state involved 123 vehicles.
Olapade said that a total of 385 persons were involved in the accidents with 324 of them sustaining varying degrees of injuries, attributing the accidents to dangerous driving, speed limit violation, tyre burst and bad state of roads.
The statistics also indicated that 10 out of the 28 children victims of the accidents were among the dead with the Lokoja-Abuja highway accounting for most of the deaths.
Olapade said that the commission would continue to pay special attention to the road, charging motorists to comply with traffic rules to reduce carnage on roads in the state.
Lagos
Head, Lagos State Voluntary Blood Donation Organisation, Dr Temilola Alayande, has advised Nigerians to develop a more positive attitude towards donating blood voluntarily, as this could help save lives.
Alayande said this in Lagos on Tuesday at a workshop organised by the Lagos State Blood Transfusion Committee on “Blood donor recruitment and retention“. It was for youths in the state.
She said that the aim of the workshop was to recruit voluntary blood donors among the youths, as it had been observed that there was an enormous lack of adequate blood in blood banks in the state.
Alayande added that one of the major impediments to having adequate blood was the lackadaisical and nonchalant attitude of Nigerians towards voluntary blood donation.
Nasarawa
Governor Umaru Almakura of Nasarawa State has said that government is to embark on the demolition of illegal structures on government’s lands in the state soon.
Al-makura made the announcement on Monday in Lafia during the inauguration of 13 newly appointed Special Advisers.
He noted with dismay the trend whereby persons and groups converted government’s property and land to personal use, especially at Government Reservation Areas (GRAs) in Akwanga, Keffi, Nasarawa and Lafia.
“It is for this reason that all those who are in the habit of indiscriminately acquiring such property do so at their own peril”, he warned.
“Accordingly, government warns that it will soon embark on reclaiming of its lands as well as demolition of illegal structures within government’s lands,” he said.
He called on the people of the state, irrespective of political differences, to safeguard public property and work toward the overall development of the state.
Ogun
The Chief Judge of Ogun State, Justice Olatokunbo Olopade, has freed 47 prison inmates in the last one week, according to the Chief Registrar of the state’s High Court, Mr Sikiru Owodunni.
Owodunni told newsmen in Abeokuta on Tuesday that the exercise began on February 7 and February 14 and the released inmates were drawn from Abeokuta, Ilaro, Sagamu and Ijebu-Ode.
She said the judge made the release after a scrutiny of the list of the prisoners and their different case files as submitted by the prisons services.
He said some of the inmates were charged for offences ranging from murder, robbery, stealing, kidnapping and unlawful carnal knowledge among others.
Osun
Some educationists have urged the Federal Government to make Yoruba language one of the compulsory subjects required for admission into tertiary institutions by students from Yoruba speaking areas of the country.
They told newsmen in separate interviews on Tuesday in Osogbo that the measure would improve the study of Yoruba language at the tertiary level.
An official of Osun State Ministry of Education, Miss Odunayo Olawore, said Yoruba language should be made a course to be taught and spoken from primary to tertiary levels in South West geo-political zone.
She suggested that all private schools in Yoruba land should be required to have classes in Yoruba language from nursery to secondary school levels.
Plateau
The Plateau Government has donated relief materials to victims of the protracted violence in Damaturu, Yobe, who fled the violence-wrecked state to take refuge in Jos.
Governor Jonah Jang of Plateau, who donated the items worth more than eight million naira, said that more than 400 persons were taking refuge in the state.
Also offered to the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) were drugs and temporary accommodation at Tati Hotel, Jos.
Among the items donated to the IDPs are 100 pieces of mattresses, 100 bags of rice, 80 bags of maize, 100 pieces of wrapper and 250 pieces of blankets.
Zamfara
Four months after the armed banditry incident at Lingyado Community in Dansadau area of Zamfara, the state’s police command has arrested one Muhammadu Bugge, suspected to be among some bandits terrorising the area.
Bandits attacked Lingyado Village last November in a night raid, killing 19 persons.
The Deputy Commissioner of Police in Zamfara, Mr Saidu Madawaki, told newsmen in Gusau on Tuesday that Bugge was arrested by a police anti-crime patrol team at Mashaya Zaki Village also in Dansadau area.
Madawaki said that Bugge and one unidentified accomplice, now at large, were intercepted on a motor cycle by the patrol team on January 31.
The Executive Director, Sahara Group, Kola Adesina, has called on various stakeholders to promote energy access in Africa, as lack of energy costs Nigeria and other African countries over $110billion annually.
He also urged the World Trade Organisation (WTO) on the need to galvanise the interest and support of various stakeholders to promote equitable global trade relations and energy access in Africa where almost 600 million live without electricity.
Adesina, who spoke on ‘Redirecting the World Trade Organisation’ at the virtual 2021 Horasis Global Meeting, said deploying multilateral engagements would help circumvent the status quo that has made global trade relations “somewhat lopsided.”
Horasis is one of the foremost annual meetings of the world’s leading decision-makers from business, government, and civil society.
Speaking on access to power in Africa, Adesina said the WTO should explore collaborating with the various stakeholders to accelerate the pace of technology needed to make alternative power cheaper and more accessible to the consumers.
Africa is home to 17 per cent of the world’s population, but accounts for just 4 per cent of global power supply investment.
On a per capita basis, power supply investment in Africa ranks among the lowest in the world and lack of energy costs the continent over $110billion annually.
“The Environmental Impact Analysis of conventional power sources should be the focal point of conversations with African presidents as well as key political and business leaders to ensure their support and agree to a collective and sustainable solution template.
“The WTO must ensure that multilateralism guides its decision-making. The countries of the world are not all on the same pedestal, there should be consideration for the poor countries.
“The WTO should create a system where countries come together to create a united front to handle the issues the world is facing,” he said.
Adesina explained that multilateral strategies would create “elastic solutions” that can be adapted with respect to the unique challenges and opportunities across global trade blocs.
He argued that while sustainability should be the ultimate driver of development, concessions need to be in place to effectively manage the current challenges of less developed continents.
He stated, “Africa still suffers from the twin challenge of access versus affordability of electricity. We all need each other to solve the global challenges we face as individual countries and the world.
“A strong commitment is needed to maintain open and free trade; to keep open borders and to help the poorest countries, particularly least developed countries, survive the economic shock created by the Covid-19 pandemic.”
The Horasis session noted that with protectionism gaining steam globally, the WTO would need to reinforce its influence on stabilizing global trade negotiations.
Experts expect that the WTO, under the leadership of Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala would spearhead effective reforms that would make the organization play a strategic role in promoting equity and transparency in the quest for global sustainable development.
The Management of the University of Ilorin says the institution is interacting with the Association of Landlords within its communities to ensure the protection of students.
Dean, Student Affairs, Unilorin, Prof. Lanre Ajibade, at a news conference in Ilorin yesterday assured that no stone would be left unturned toward ensuring safety of students.
According to Ajibade, the University has been engaging in consistent interactions with the landlord association of the communities to ensure students who live in the area enjoy the best treatment possible.
He said that although no fresh and returning student of the University was set to resume the 2021/2022 academic session, many live off campus, particularly within Tanke and the neighbouring communities,
He recalled the recent murder of a female student of the University and said management had been working vigorously with security agencies to ensure perpetrators of the heinous act were prosecuted.
The dean noted that the University was working assiduously with all the security agencies and other stakeholders within and outside the institution to ensure the safety of the community.
The University’s Chief Security Officer, Mr Abdulwasiu Oyewo, also said that his personnel were working day and night to provide maximum security in the area.
Oyewo said that the security officers were in constant patrol of the environment, adding that vehicles with tinted glasses and without registration number would not be allowed on campus.
Also, Officer-in-Charge of the Intelligence Unit in the University’s Security Division, Mr Ali Na’Allah, said that the unit would continue to engage in discreet information gathering on campus.
A 22-year-old unemployed man, Akinwunmi Rotimi, yesterday appeared in a Magistrates’ Court in Ota, Ogun for allegedly stealing two iPhones, an Hp Laptop and other valuables.
The police charged Rotimi, whose address was not provided, with two counts of burglary and stealing.
The Prosecution Counsel, Cynthia Ejezie, told the court that the defendant also stole N240,000.
Ejezie said that the defendant committed the offence on April 3 at about 4 a.m.at No.6 Ayoola Adeyinka, off Tetiku road, Owode-Ijako, Ota.
He said that the defendant broke into the house of the complainant, Mrs Adeleye Anike.
She said that the police from the Sango-Ota Police Station, tracked one of the phones to the defendant.
The offence, the prosecutor said, contravened the provisions of sections 383 (1) and 412 of the Criminal Code Vol.11, Laws of Ogun, 2006.
The defendant, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge.
The counsel to the defendant, Mr Ambrose Aisedion, prayed the court to grant the defendant bail in the most liberal terms.
Magistrate Shotunde Shotayo admitted the defendant to bail in the sum of N250, 000 with two sureties in like sum.
Shotayo ordered that the sureties reside within the court’s jurisdiction and be gainfully employed with two-year tax payment to Ogun Government.
The case was adjourned until June 17 for a definite hearing.
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