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Buhari: Afenifere, ACF, MASSOB State Expectations In 2020
Cross sections of socio-cultural groups in Nigeria have given their expectations of the regime of the President Muhammadu Buhari for 2020.
Afenifere, Arewa Consultative Forum and the Movement for the Actualisation of Sovereign State of Biafra, in separate interviews with The Tide’s source, said the performance of the Buhari regime over the last four and a half years had left a lot to be desired.
Among the areas enumerated for improvement by the Federal Government were the rule of law, Federal Character, education, agriculture and health.
Afenifere’s National Publicity Secretary, Yinka Odumakin, stated that the current regime had been characterized by unmerited appointments and disregard for the rule of law, more of which he said could be expected in 2020.
Odumakin said, “If the past four years have been anything to go by, we expect more nepotism in terms of appointments, concentrating every critical appointment in a section of the country. Don’t forget that he (Buhari) just promised some two weeks ago that he could now afford to be reckless.
“If they did all they could so that all major and critical appointments are concentrated in a section of the country, now that they can afford to be reckless, I would expect an overdrive of that to continue to happen.
“If the belated compliance to court orders on (Sambo) Dasuki and (Omoyele) Sowore is anything to go by, then there will be more suppression of fundamental liberties in the coming year because, as the economy bites harder, the situation becomes more unbearable and there is more reaction from the people.”
The Afenifere spokesman added that the $29.9bn loan request by the Federal Government could spell more debts for the country in the new year.
“From the way they have been pursuing the new $30bn loan they said they want to take, we expect that they will put Nigeria into more indebtedness this coming year.
“So, clearly, with what is on the ground today, Nigerians should expect a tough year,” he added.
However, MASSOB Spiritual Leader, Chief Ndubuisi Igwekani, told our correspondent that the regime had proved that it did not have much to offer the Igbo.
Igwekani said, “I don’t have anything I’m expecting from this government. For a long time, we decided to work underground to know where we are heading to in this country and, at the end of the day, we have discovered that Nigeria as a nation has a lot of challenges and problems.
“The reason we are agitating for a separate nation is not because we lack the capacity or ability to struggle with other ethnic groups; it is that we find that each ethnic group has its own ideology. And for us to survive as a people, we need to look for what is the best for us.”
According to Igwekani, the Igbo have contributed a lot to the prosperity of the country.
He stated that in every state of the federation, the south-easterners were present and contributed to the improvement of lives and economies.
The Igbo leader added, “We lost some of our people in the June 12, 1993 election of Abiola because we wanted to forget about the past and forge ahead. It was not an Igbo man that annulled the election. And it was an Igbo man that conducted that first, best election that we have conducted in this country.
“Today, we talk about Buhari, what do you want me to contribute to this government? A government that never obeys the rule of law, the constitution or court orders; a government that is so tribalistic, and under whose watch the Fulani (herdsmen) slaughtered thousands of innocent people?”
Igwekani noted that all Nigerians see in the regime of Buhari are insincerity.
But he expressed disappointment in the President in terms of regard for Federal Character, saying it was nothing to write home about.
“I am totally disappointed with the system. He said this is his last term, so he is ready to do anything. If a president can say this is his last term and he’s ready to do anything in this ‘next level,’ I have seen the next level of this term.
“I am not among the people who are calling for a revolution against the government. I believe that if the country cannot accommodate me and my people, the best thing is for me to seek self-determination by any means within the constitution. Self-determination and freedom of association are in the constitution.
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.