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Amnesty: Northern Govs Woo Boko Haram …Aliyu Urges Speaker’s Support
Four northern state governors have risen to the challenge thrown to them by some eminent Nigerians to initiate talks with members of the Boko Haram sect to embrace the amnesty offered them by the Federal Government.
The governors’ action has put an end to the growing fears that the planned dialogue between the Federal Government and the insurgents to pave the way for the amnesty proper had hit a brick wall.
Our correspondent gathered from very authoritative sources close to some northern governors at the weekend that Governor Isa Yuguda of Bauchi State, Alhaji Ibrahim Gaidam of Yobe and his Borno State counterpart, Alhaji Kashim Shettima, had made a breakthrough in their negotiations with some leaders of the group.
Governor Babangida Aliyu of Niger State has called on the speakers of the 19 Northern states to support President Goodluck Jonathan’s proposed amnesty programme for members of the Boko Haram sect.
He made the call last Saturday in Minna, at the 24th Forum of Speakers of the 19 Northern States.
“The President needs to be supported and encouraged by all Nigerians to succeed in the effort aimed at finding solution to the insecurity challenges bedevilling the nation,“ the governor said.
He said amnesty was a good step toward resolving the insecurity, and stressed the need to explore other avenues.
The governor said there might be international dimensions to the issues of Boko Haram and urged the relevant authorities to look into that aspect.
Aliyu identified child abuse as a major problem in the north, adding that the almajiri education must be integrated into formal school system.
He urged the speakers to go back to their various constituencies and articulate development plans for education, security, agriculture and health services.
Speaker, Niger House of Assembly, Alhaji Adamu Usman, urged his colleagues to give priority to passage of bills that would boost development.
Governor Muazu Babangida Aliyu of Niger State, who also spoke on the matter in Minna last Saturday, named Gombe State as the fourth state that had opened talks with the insurgents.
One of the sources declared that, “the three governors are already speaking with members of the sect. These governors reported to the last National Economic Council (NEC) meeting the progress they had made in reaching the leadership of this sect and they were mandated to continue”.
Governor Aliyu stated that the amnesty programme was not an automatic solution to the problems of Boko Haram but meaningful dialogue with the sect.
Opening the Northern States Speakers’ Forum conference in Minna, the state capital, the governor explained that the purported rejection of the amnesty offer by Boko Haram was to further widen the scope of discussion, and urged Nigerians not to be discouraged by the media report.
Aliyu specifically called on the government of the vulnerable states to intensify contact with the sect so that there would be no hitches when the Federal Government reels out the amnesty programme.
The governor, who is also the chairman of the Northern State Governors’ Forum, said that the Boko Haram members were not ghosts because the government of Bauchi, Gombe, Borno and Yobe had established contacts with them.
“I think when people hear amnesty; they think it is something that is the solution to the security challenges. No! That is the process; it is like saying come and let us discuss; all what you have done, I am not going to look at that. But people think by amnesty, the problem is solved, No! “ he stated.
According to him, “because somebody says they are rejecting amnesty, we are discouraged. No! It is part of the negotiation, raising the ante so that discussion will take place.”
While commending the Borno State Government for raising a committee on the amnesty, he said that it was a good thing also that Bauchi, Yobe and Gombe states had hitherto established contact with the members of the sect.
He stated that the effort made by the affected state governments would provide the avenue to properly organise the amnesty so that when the Federal Government is ready, the states would be ready.
On the legislative function, Aliyu described the legislature as the most powerful arm of government, and urged the state lawmakers to make laws to promote peace in the country.
Earlier, the Chairman of the Northern Speakers’ Forum and Speaker of the Kebbi State House of Assembly, Hon. Aminu Musa Jega, stated that the forum would discuss the security challenges in the north and the proposed amnesty for Boko Haram by the Federal Government during the meeting.
Vice President Kashim Shettima has arrived in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for an official State visit at the invitation of the Prime Minister, Dr. Abiy Ahmed.
Upon arrival yesterday, Shettima was received at the airport by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, Dr. Gedion Timothewos, and other members of the Ethiopian and Nigerian diplomatic corps.
Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media and Communication, Stanley Nkwocha, revealed this in a statement he signed yesterday, titled: “VP Shettima arrives in Ethiopia for official state visit.”
During the visit, Vice President Shettima will participate in the official launch of Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Programme, a flagship environmental initiative.
The programme designed to combat deforestation, enhance biodiversity, and mitigate the adverse effects of climate change targets the planting of 20 billion tree seedlings over a four-year period.
In line with strengthening bilateral ties in agriculture and industrial development, the Vice President will also embark on a strategic tour of key industrial zones and integrated agricultural facilities across selected regions of Ethiopia.
News
RSG Tasks Farmers On N4bn Agric Loan ….As RAAMP Takes Sensitization Campaign To Four LGs In Rivers
The Rivers State Government has called on the people of the state especially farmers to access the ?4billion agricultural loans made available by the State and domiciled in the Bank of Industry.
This is as the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) of Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP), a World Bank project, took its sensitization campaign to Opobo/Nkoro, Andoni, Port Harcourt City and Obio/Akpor local government areas.
The campaign was aimed at enlightening community dwellers and other stakeholders in the various local government areas on the RAAMP project implementation and programme activities.
The Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Agriculture, Mr Maurice Ogolo, said this at Opobo town, Ngo, Port Harcourt City and Rumuodumanya, headquarters of the four local government areas respectively, during the sensitization campaign.
Ogolo said apart from the ?4billion, the government has also made available fertilizers and other farm inputs to farmers in the various local government areas.
The Permanent Secretary who is the Chairman, State Steering Committee for the project, said RAAMP will construct roads that will connect farms to markets to enable farmers and fishermen sell their farms produce and fishes.
He also said rural roads would be constructed to farms and fishing settlements, and warned against any act that will lead to the cancellation of the projects in the four local government areas.
According to him, the World Bank and Federal Government which are the financiers of the programme will not condone such acts like kidnapping, marching ground and other acts inimical to the successful implementation of the projects in their respective areas.
At PHALGA, Ogolo asserted that the city will benefit in the areas of roads and bridge construction.
He noted that RAAMP was thriving in both the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; Lagos and other states in the country, stressing that the project should also be given the seriousness it deserves in Rivers State.
Speaking at Opobo town, the headquarters of Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Area, the project coordinator, RAAMP, Mr.Joshua Kpakol, said the programme would reduce poverty in the state.
According to him, both fishermen and farmers will maximally benefit from the programme.
At Ngo which is the headquarters of Andoni Local Government Area, Kpakol said roads will be constructed to all remote fishing settlements.
He said Rivers State is lucky to be among the states implementing the project, and stressed the need for the people to embrace it.
Meanwhile, Kpakol said at PHALGA that RAAMP is a project that will transform the lives of farmers, traders and other stakeholders in the area.
He urged the stakeholders to spread the information to their various communities.
However, some of the stakeholders at Opobo town complained about the destruction of their farms by bulls allegedly owed by traditional rulers in the area, as well as incessant stealing of their canoes at waterfronts.
At Ngo, Archbishop Elkanah Hanson, founder of El-Shaddai Church, commended the World Bank and the Federal Government for bringing the projects to Andoni.
He stressed the need for the construction of roads to fishing settlements in the area.
Also, a former Commissioner for Agriculture in the state and Okan Ama of Ekede, HRH King Gad Harry, noted that storage facilities have become necessary for a successful agricultural programme.
Harry also stressed the need for the programme to be made sustainable.
In their separate speeches, the administrators of Andoni and Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Areas, pledged their readiness to support the programme.
At Port Harcourt City, the Administrator, Dr Arthur Kalagbor, represented by the Head of Local Government Administration, Port Harcourt City, Mr Clifford Paul, said the city would support the implementation of the programme in the area.
Also, the administrator of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area, Dr Clifford Ndu Walter, represented by Mr Michael Elenwo, pledged to support the programme in his local government area.
Among dignitaries at the Obio/Akpor stakeholders engagement is the chairman, Rivers State Traditional Rulers Council and paramount ruler of Apara Kingdom, HRM Eze Chike Wodo, amongst others.
John Bibor
President Bola Tinubu has ordered the commencement of personnel audit and skill gap analysis across all cadres of federal civil servants.
The president gave this directive in Abuja, yesterday, while speaking at the International Civil Service Conference, reaffirming his resolve to achieve efficiency and professional service delivery in the civil service.
“I have authorized the comprehensive personnel audit and skill gap analysis across the federal civil service to deepen capacity. I urge all responsible stakeholders to prioritize timely completion of this critical exercise, to begin implementing targeted reforms, to realize the full benefit of a more agile, competent and responsive civil service,” the president announced.
Tinubu further directed all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), to prioritise data integrity and sovereignty in national interest.
He called for the capture, protection and strategic publication of public sector data in line with the Nigeria Data Protection Act of 2023.
“We must let our data speak for us. We must publish verified data assets within Nigeria and share them internationally recognized as fruitful. This will allow global benchmarking organisation to track our progress in real time and help us strengthen our position on the world stage. This will preserve privacy and uphold data sovereignty,” Tinubu added.
President Tinubu hailed the federal civil service as the “engine” driving his Renewed Hope Agenda, and the vehicle for delivering sustainable national development.
He submitted that the roles of civil servants remain indispensable in modern governance, declaring that in the face of a fast-evolving digital and economic landscape, the civil service must remain agile, future-ready, and results-driven.
“This maiden conference is a bold step toward redefining governance in an era of rapid transformation. An innovative Civil Service ensures we meet today’s needs and overcome tomorrow’s challenges.
“It captures our collective ambition to reimagine and reposition the civil service. In today’s rapid, evolving world of technology, innovation remains critical in ensuring that the civil service is dynamic, digital” the President said.
Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Walson-Jack in her welcome address told the President that his presence and strong words of commendation at the conference has renewed the morale and mandate of public servants across the country.
Walson-Jack described Tinubu as the backbone of driving transformation in the Nigerian civil service, and noted that the takeaways from past study tours undertaken to understudy the civil service in Singapore, the UK and US under her leadership, is already yielding multiplier effects.
Walson-Jack assured Tinubu that her office, in collaboration with reform-minded stakeholders, will not relent in accelerating the implementation of the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan, FCSSIP 25.
She affirmed that digitalisation, performance management, and continuous learning remain key pillars in strengthening accountability, transparency, and service delivery across MDAs.
Walson-Jack reaffirmed that the civil service is determined to exceed expectations by embedding a culture of innovation, ethical leadership, and citizen-centred governance in the heart of public administration.