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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.
The Nigeria Immigration Service has officially ended passport production at multiple centres, transitioning to a single, centralised system for the first time in 62 years.
Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, disclosed this yesterday while inspecting Nigeria’s new Centralised Passport Personalisation Centre at the NIS Headquarters in Abuja.
He stated that since the establishment of NIS in 1963, Nigeria had never operated a central passport production centre, until now, marking a major reform milestone.
“The project is 100 per cent ready. Nigeria can now be more productive and efficient in delivering passport services,” Tunji-Ojo said.
He explained that old machines could only produce 250 to 300 passports daily, but the new system had a capacity of 4,500 to 5,000 passports every day.
“With this, NIS can now meet daily demands within just four to five hours of operation,” he added, describing it as a game-changer for passport processing in Nigeria.
“We promised two-week delivery, and we’re now pushing for one week.
“Automation and optimisation are crucial for keeping this promise to Nigerians,” the minister said.
He noted that centralisation, in line with global standards, would improve uniformity and enhance the overall integrity of Nigerian travel documents worldwide.
Tunji-Ojo described the development as a step toward bringing services closer to Nigerians while driving a culture of efficiency and total passport system reform.
He said the centralised production system aligned with President Bola Tinubu’s reform agenda, boosting NIS capacity and changing the narrative for better service delivery.
The Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) has disbursed N2.225 trillion as federation revenue for the month of August 2025, the highest ever allocation to the three tiers of government and other statutory recipients.
This marks the second consecutive month that FAAC disbursements have crossed the N2 trillion mark.
The revenue, shared at the August 2025 FAAC meeting in Abuja, was buoyed by increases in oil and gas royalty, value-added tax (VAT), and common external tariff (CET) levies, according to a communiqué issued at the end of the meeting.
Out of the N2.225 trillion total distributable revenue, FAAC said N1,478.593 trillion came from statutory revenue, N672.903 billion from VAT, N32.338 billion from the Electronic Money Transfer Levy (EMTL), and N41.284 billion from Exchange Difference.
The communiqué revealed that gross federation revenue for the month stood at N3.635 trillion. From this amount, N124.839 billion was deducted as cost of collection, while N1,285.845 trillion was set aside for transfers, interventions, refunds, and savings.
From the statutory revenue of N1.478 trillion, the Federal Government received N684.462 billion, State Governments received N347.168 billion, and Local Government Councils received N267.652 billion. A further N179.311 billion (13 per cent of mineral revenue) went to oil-producing states as derivation revenue.
From the distributable VAT revenue of N672.903 billion, the Federal Government received N100.935 billion, the states received N336.452 billion, while the local governments got N235.516 billion.
Of the N32.338 billion shared from EMTL, the Federal Government received N4.851 billion, the States received N16.169 billion, and the Local Governments received N11.318 billion.
From the N41.284 billion exchange difference, the Federal Government received N19.799 billion, the states received N10.042 billion, and the local governments received N7.742 billion, while N3.701 billion (13 per cent of mineral revenue) was shared to the oil-producing states as derivation.
The Governing Council of Kenule Beeson Saro-Wiwa Polytechnic, Bori, has decried the inadequate power supply and poor state of infrastructural facilities and equipment at the institution.
The Council also appealed to the government, including Non-Governmental Organisations, agencies, as well as well-meaning Rivers people to intervene to restore and sustain the laudable gesture, dreams and aspirations of the founding fathers of the polytechnic.
The Chairman of the newly inaugurated Council, Professor Friday B. Sigalo, made this appeal during a tour of facilities at the Polytechnic, recently.
Accompanied by members of the team, Prof Sigalo emphasised the position of technology, technical and vocational education in sustainable development.
He noted that with the prospects on ground, and the programmes and activities undertaken in the polytechnic, there is no doubt that the institution would add values to the educational system in our society and foster the desired development, if the existing challenges are jointly tackled.
This was contained in a statement signed by Deputy Registrar, Public Relations, Kenpoly, Innocent Ogbonda-Nwanwu, and made available to The Tide in Port Harcourt.
The chairman who restated the intention of his team of technocrats to ensure that KenPoly enjoys desirable face-lift, said the Council would deliver on its core mandates, accordingly.
Earlier, the Rector, KenPoly Engr. Dr. Ledum S. Gwarah, commended the appointment of Professor Friday B. Sigalo as Chairman of the KenPoly Governing Council.
He described him and his team as seasoned technocrats and expressed confidence in their ability to succeed.
The Rector pledged the management’s support to the Council to ensure that KenPoly resumes its rightful place in the comity of polytechnics in the country.
Facilities visited by the Governing Council include KenPoly workshops, laboratories, skills acquisition centre, library, hostels and medical centre.
Chinedu Wosu
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