Nation
Insurgency: Give New Service Chiefs Timeline To Deliver –Senate
The Senate has asked President Muhammadu Buhari to as a matter of urgency, give a timeline to the new service chiefs to nip in the bud the problem of insurgency, kidnapping, armed banditry and other security challenges in the country.
Speaking with journalists, yesterday, in Abuja, Chairman, Senate Committee on Army, Senator Ali Ndume, All Progressives Congress (APC), Borno South, said with Buhari providing for the service chiefs all the needed tools to deliver, he should ask them to come up with a dateline of when the war would end.
According to him, government should not waste time to replace them if they fail to perform.
He also said if the new service chiefs must deliver, the National Security Adviser (NSA), Maj-Gen Babagana Monguno (rtd), should coordinate and monitor their activities and report to Buhari on a weekly basis.
He warned against the service chiefs reporting to the Chief of Staff to the President, Prof Ibrahim Gambari, for effective service delivery and professional respect.
Ndume, who advised that the NSA should serve as the intermediary between the service chiefs and the President, also called for the setting up of a Situation Room that must be domiciled in the Office of the National Security Adviser.
He asked the service chiefs to come up with a war plan to address cases of insurgency as that, according to him, is lacking in the country.
Ndume also called for quarterly release of appropriated money to the military by the Ministry of Finance, and stressed the need for effective information gathering and sharing among security agencies as well as affected communities providing the needed information to security agencies.
He said, “In fact, I have been advocating and I am still advocating that now that there is a new set of service chiefs, their requirements should be front-loaded, that is to say, if they require so, so amount to execute the war, they should be exempted from quarterly allocations and be given their money upfront.
‘’Once the government does that, I suggest that the President should now in sitting with them for the first or second time, give them a timeline, that ‘Look! You want this, I have given you, you want this, I have given you, what else?’
‘’If they say nothing, ‘okay, give me a time when they should finish the war. That should determine their tenure. If they don’t perform, government should not waste time in replacing them.
“The appointment of the new service chiefs is a welcome development and that goes to show that the President is keeping to his words. I remember in his New Year broadcast, he made a promise that he was going to rejig the security apparatus and he assured Nigerians that the war against insurgency, banditry and other forms of criminality that have been disturbing the country will be properly addressed.
“This (appointment of new service chiefs) is part of the implementation of his promise and also it is just a change of guards, so to say. But the good thing about it is that the new Service Chiefs are not only qualified but they have the field and operational experience. The CDS, I know him very well, I have worked with him in Maiduguri.
“He was a very performing officer and from there he was posted to the Joint Military Task Force in the Lake Chad region and we have seen how gallant, intelligent and humble he is. It was during his tenure that he upgraded the civil-Army relations to a next level. He is experienced enough.
“The Chief of Army Staff was also a Theatre Commander at one-time, even though his tenure was very short. He knows the terrain very well, he has the experience.
“Also, the Chief of Air Staff was at the theatre, in fact, at one-time he was the deputy commandant of the Operation Lafiya Dole. And even the Chief of Naval Staff is not new to the terrain having come from Kano; he knows the place very well.
“So, we are expecting that with this development and being conversant with the insurgency problem in the North-East particularly and in the country in general, Nigerians by the several calls they have made for the change of the service chiefs, have very high expectation on the new service chiefs. But I am confident that this crop of people will be able to deal or address this issue.
“The good side of it is that the military hardware ordered by the government have started arriving and that will give them a better capability or capacity.
“Like the ground troops need the necessary air cover or air power and with the acquisition of fighter helicopters, 23 of them, I think they are coming in or have started arriving and I think they have received about 18 of them and with expected arrival of Tucano jets this year and also the fact that the budget of the Armed Forces has been improved, we are expecting also that their performance will improve.
“The only snag now or what is remaining is for the various MDAs responsible for making the releases, especially the Ministry of Finance, should be releasing the monies that have been appropriated to the Armed Forces timely.
“The industry has awaited the passage of PlB, but the PIB must meet certain condition otherwise it will not be worth the while. We must not pass PIB that will send investors away or put on hold projects such as the Deep Offshore and Inland Basin Amendment Act that was passed by this National Assembly in December, 2019, to reduce the drive for investment in deep water.
‘’We hereby advocate that the National Assembly should always do a study on how the laws they pass helps in redirecting the industry.
“PENGASSAN and NUPENG should be represented in the commission. There should be an independent regulator of the NNPC. We must create a PIB that’s balanced,’’ he said.
Similarly, in their various presentations, some oil producing states such as Delta, Rivers, Bayelsa, Akwa Ibom pushed for inclusion into the boards of the various regulatory commissions.
The Rivers State Government recommended that in view of its strategic position in the oil and gas production scale/contribution, the headquarters of the commission and all oil producing companies should be cited in its domain, in line with presidential directives.
However, Delta State, which was represented by the Chief Economic Adviser to Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, Dr. Kingsley Emu, asked that Section 238 of the bill be redrafted to read, “Section 238 ‘failure by any holder of a licence or lease governed by the Act to incorporate the Petroleum Host Communities Development Trust within the time frame in Section 236 shall make the holder or license to be liable to a penalty of $250,000 to be paid to the trust whenever the trust fund is incorporated.’’
Section 238 of the bill read, “Failure by any holder of a licence or lease governed by this Act to comply with its obligation under this chapter may be grounds for revocation of the applicable license or lease.”
The Bishop of Anglican Diocese of Niger Delta, Dr Emmanuel Oko-Jaja, has called on Nigerians, especially those in positions of authority to uphold moral standard and integrity.
Oko-Jaja said this at a thanksgiving service to mark the 90th birthday of Prof. Sylvanus Cookey at Saint Paul Anglican Church in Opobo Town, Rivers yesterday.
The Tide’s source reports that Cookey was the second Vice Chancellor of the University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT) in 1982.
Oko-Jaja advised political leaders to always be self-aware and avoid actions that could damage their reputation.
“In today’s Nigeria, hardship has changed how the people behave, as lies have become more popular than the truth.
“We now live in a country where injustice is now celebrated and lowering moral and social standard have become the new normal.
“Leaders must follow the exemplary legacies set by our forebears by becoming upright and live a life that would not bring shame to their family and community,” he said.
He attributed the country’s current economic challenges and declining living standards to leaders failing to prioritise the well-being of citizens.
“The younger generation should emulate the virtues of our predecessors like Prof. Cookey, who prioritised integrity over material gain.
“Good reputation was the norm back then, and I hope that God will restore it to Nigeria, where leaders’ goal will be to have good names.
“If anyone wants to commit evil, they should remember that their actions can bring a bad name to their family and community,” he cautioned.
Addressing the celebrant, the King of Opobo Kingdom, HRM Dandason Jaja, praised Cookey for his impact on society and described him as a mentor and philanthropist.
He said that the celebrant was a distinguished academic, who had impacted numerous youths through vocational training, leading to their successful employment in different sectors.
Speaking earlier, Cookey expressed gratitude to God for attaining 90 years and acknowledged the support of his family and friends.
Reflecting on his contributions to the country, he encouraged leaders to leave behind positive legacies for future generations to celebrate.
Nineteen months after federal lawmakers movement to temporary chambers, the Nigerian Senate and House of Representatives would finally resume sittings in their newly remodelled main hallowed chambers tomorrow
Spokesperson of the House of Representatives, Hon. Akin Rotimi Jnr, and the Clerk to the Senate, Barrister Chinedu Akubueze confirmed the planned movement to the main chambers in separate written announcements made penultimate week on the change in resumption date by lawmakers from their ongoing recess.
Hon. Rotimi, who is the chairman, House Committee on Media and Public Affairs, in the official announcement dated April 4, 2024 to the honourable members, cited the need to resume plenary at the renovated and reconfigured main chamber, as reason for the postponement in line with the general wish of the lawmakers.
“The House of Representatives wishes to inform the public and stakeholders of the rescheduling of the resumption date from the ongoing recess, originally slated for Tuesday, April 16, 2024, to Tuesday, April 23, 2024.
“This adjustment is necessary to accommodate the completion of renovations to the main chamber of the House of Representatives to ensure its readiness for plenary sessions, henceforth,” he stated.
Two days after, the Clerk to the Senate also issued a statement, postponing resumption of plenary by the Senate from April 16 to 23, 2024.
Akubueze ‘s statement reads in part: “Distinguished Senators are hereby invited to note that the resumption of the plenary sitting of the Senate, which was scheduled for Tuesday, 16th April, 2024, has been postponed to Tuesday 23rd April, 2024”
It would be recalled that ahead of the projects delivery, the Site Engineer of Visible Construction, Tajudeen Olanipekun, had early last month informed journalists covering the Senate, that the two main chambers, would be ready for use by both the Senate and the House of Representatives in April this year.
Olanipekun’s assurance on delivery of the fully transformed and reconfigured hallowed chambers to management of the National Assembly, coincided with call by the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, to the Clerk to the National Assembly, CNA, Alhaji Sani Magaji Tambawal that both the Senate and the House of Representatives, want to move to their main chambers as soon as possible after close to two years of using temporary ones.
In carrying out the subtle marching order, the construction firm in the last five weeks has carried out the required finishings on
the upgraded and reconfigured hallowed chambers fixed with state-of-the-art chairs, parliamentary equipments, appliances and extended sitting terraces.
Physically, the entire ambience of the space in and around the hallowed chambers have been transformed, just as barricades used to restrict movements at the foyer have been removed.
The Federal Capital Development Authority, FCDA, had in March 2021 awarded a N30billion renovation contract to Visible Construction Limited to rehabilitate critical segments of the National Assembly complex.
The law makers had in September 2022 vacated the main chambers to enable the Contractors; handle the renovation work of both chambers
Some of the critical segments are the office buildings housing the office accommodation for the senators and honourable members, watertightness of the roof of the complex, the cooling system, replacement of lifts that are inoperable in the White House as well as in the House of Representatives and in the new Senate Wing among others.
By: Nneka Amaechi-Nnadi, Abuja
The Zone 13 of the Nige- rian Police Force, comprising Anambra and Enugu States, has announced the venue and time for both General Duty and Specialist Constable recruitment medical screening in the two States.
This is contained in a statement issued yesterday by the Zonal Police Public Relations Officer, SP Josephine Ihunwo, yesterday in Enugu.
Ihunwo said that prospective candidates from Zone 13 should note that the exercise would take place at Police Hospital, Awka.
She said that the medical screening would commence simultaneously nationwide on Tuesday, April 16, and end on April 30, 2024.
“Candidates are advised to visit the recruitment portal: https://apply.policerecruitment.gov.ng to know their status, specific time, date and other mandatory requirements.
“So also, qualified applicants are to appear in clean white T-shirt and short with the following requirements;
“National Identity Card/Slip; Print Out of Medical Examination Slip and all necessary documents.
“The Assistant Inspector-General of Police Zone 13 Command, AIG Godwin Aghaulor, wishes all prospective candidates success as they embark on this exercise,” he said.
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