By Bukola Olaifa

Mr Daniel Okafor, National President, Potato Farmers Association of Nigeria (POFAN) has called for the establishment of farmers security outfit to combat the incessant killings of farmers by herders and bandits.

Okafor said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Abuja.

He said that the recent increase in the high cost of food items was as a result of farmers not going to farms, as they should because of activities of herders and bandits.

We have lost some of our farmers while working on their farms both men, women and youths.

This is impacting negatively on production and economic growth, he said.

He said there was need to also train farmers on security tips and more training on agricultural best practices to improve production.

Okafor appealed to the Federal Government to make special budget available to farmers to boost production in the face of post-COVID-19 recovery. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng).

Edited by Dorcas Jonah/Joseph Edeh

Source: NAN News

By Nabilu Balarabe

The Yobe Government says it will utilise N10.8 billion of the N18 billion refund received from the Federal Government on road construction projects.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the recent N18 billion refund covers payment of five major roads constructed by the state on behalf of the Federal Government.

The Commissioner for Works, Alhaji Umar Dudaye, stated this ON Tuesday during the ministerial briefing organised by the state council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ).

He said that N10.8 billion, representing 60 per cent of the refund would be spent on road construction to enhance transportation and ease movement of goods and services in the state.

Dudaye said the ministry had completed 15 road and drain projects, covering about 50 kilometres across nine local government areas from 2019 to 2022.

The commissioner, however, said five other roads covering about 90km were under construction.

The commissioner listed the roads to include 30km Bulanguwa-Kumagannam, 18km Danchuwa-Garin Bingel and 5.7km NTA Potiskum-Gujba.

Others were four Kilometre Buni Yadi road, 3.7km Nguru township road, 2.7 km Potiskum township road, 2.5km Obasanjo-Mallamatari-Gujba road, 2.5km Jaji-Maji township road, among others.

Dudaye said two pedestrian bridges had been completed at Damaturu Modern Market and Damaturu Cattle Market, while three others were under construction at Nguru, Gashua and Potiskum markets.

The commissioner said the ministry had renovated the partly damaged Katarko bridge, adding that it would rehabilitate Kaliyari and Jajere roads damaged by flood. (NAN)( www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Rabiu Sani-Ali

Source: NAN News

By Ugonne Uzoma

The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) on Tuesday began specialised skill development programme for 40 retirees in Imo.

The SMEDAN Director-General, Mr Olawale Fasanya, who started the programme on Tuesday in Owerri, said it was aimed to promote skills development and financial independence among retirees.

Fasanya who was represented by the Assistant Director, Enterprise Development and Promotion, Mr Tunde Oloidi, said the programme would be on Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME).

He said this would not only alleviate poverty but also promote self-reliance.

He added that the programme would enhance participants engagement in productive ventures as they would be provided with starter packs in vulcanising and food processing at the end of the training.

Oloidi noted that the decision to focus on food processing and vulcanising stemmed from the assessment exercise conducted by the state manager of the agency.

It is a programme designed to provide entrepreneurship skills, refresher vocational skills and provision of empowerment materials to fill capacity gaps of the target group.

This will ensure they earn income through filling the artisanal gap in Nigeria and consequently promote skills development among retirees, he said.

He further commended the state Governor, Hope Uzodimma, for providing an enabling environment for MSMEs to thrive in the state.

Also, Mr Paul Ozumba, the Commissioner for Labour, Productivity and Employment, commended SMEDAN for promoting job creation and empowerment in the state.

Ozumba, who was represented by Mr Kelechi Ekomaru, a staff member of the ministry also commended the agency for including Imo in the programme and urged beneficiaries to make the most of the opportunity.

Earlier, the State Chairman of the Nigerian Union of Pensioners, Dr Josiah Ugochukwu, said the programme was a welcome innovation and perfect for pensioners.

He said most pensioners had nothing to fall back on after retirement and as such, would greatly benefit from the programme.

This is a well thought out programme and it is a welcome development; most of us have been idle because we have nothing to fall back on after retirement.

This will go a long way in alleviating the idleness while giving us a chance to earn a little more in addition to our pension and help us with our responsibilities, he said.(NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Nick Nicholas/Idris Abdulrahman

Source: NAN News

By Bridget Ikyado

Chief Vincent Ighile, President of Edo Community Leaders Association in the FCT, has urged the Federal Government to complete the dualisation of the Benin-Auchi-Okene road, which has turned into a death trap.

Ighile made the appeal in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) after a stakeholders meeting of the association in Abuja.

He said that the government should hasten work on the road project to save lives of commuters using the road.

According to him, the road has completely broken down and required immediate intervention.

The terrible state of the road is causing untold hardship to our people back home and has prevented them from pursuing their day-to-day activities.

Most crops get bad due to the delay in transportation from the source to its destination while commuters now lose quality hours as a result of the traffic gridlock, he added.

The association president said it was more cheaper now to travel by air than drive through the dilapidated Benin-Auchi-Okene road.

Ighile said that they have made several appeal on government to repair the road before it becomes completely impassable.

The road has become a death trap and spot for kidnappers to carry out their evil activities, the association president added.

He, therefore, appealed to the Minister of Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola and members of the National Assembly to save the situation.

Look at the sufferings and untold hardships of the good people of Edo and commuters who hold their hearts in their hands when using the road.

Commuters at times spend days on the road when heavy trucks fall or vehicles break down, he said.

Ighile also said many commuters have died as a result of accidents on the road while some were abducted by gunmen who take advantage of the bad state of the road to perpetrate their criminal activities.

He advised the government to have a sincere culture of road maintenance instead of waiting till the complete collapse of a road before intervening.

The cost of maintaining roads is cheaper than constructing new ones, well continue to engage with the government to ensure the completion of the dualisation of the road, he added. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

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Edited by Maharazu Ahmed

Source: NAN News

By Emmanuella Anokam

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulations Commission (NUPRC) says it will ensure that regulations and key policies necessitated by the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021 are developed and gazetted.

The commission said this would enable the industry operators to align their operations with the PIA 2021 provisions as quickly as possible.

Mr Gbenga Komolafe, Commission Chief Executive, NUPRC, said this on Monday in Abuja at the opening of second phase of its consultation with stakeholders on regulations development as mandated by Section 216 of the PIA.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the seven draft regulations to be considered include Acreage Management (Drilling and Production) Regulations and Upstream Petroleum Environmental Regulations.

Others are Upstream Petroleum Environmental Remediation Fund Regulations; Upstream Petroleum Safety Regulations; Unitisation Regulations; Upstream Petroleum Decommissioning and Abandonment Regulations and Frontier Exploration Fund Regulations.

Komolafe, represented by Capt. John Tomla, Executive Commissioner, Health, Safety, Environment and Community, NUPRC, said that the consultation was in furtherance of the initial regulations reviewed in April.

He recalled that six draft regulations were presented for discussion in April during the first phase of its consultations with stakeholders which included Nigeria Upstream Petroleum Host Communities Development Regulations and Royalty Regulations.

Other regulations reviewed were Domestic Gas Delivery Obligation Regulations; Nigeria Conversion and Renewal (Licence and Lease) Regulations; Petroleum Licensing Round Regulations and Upstream Petroleum Fees and Rents Regulations.

He said that stakeholders inputs from the engagement were incorporated where necessary, in the draft regulations which were forwarded to the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice for vetting, legislative standardisation and approval.

According to him, one of the regulations, the Nigeria Upstream Petroleum Host Community Development Trust regulations, has been gazetted while the remaining five have been finalised and ready for gazette.

Our commitment to create an enabling environment for growth and investments in the Upstream Oil and Gas industry in Nigeria has steered our focus towards working with all stakeholders, he said.

He reiterated that the process of formulating the above regulations had been rigorous because they were products of critical evaluation and hard work by the commissions regulation development team and the Presidential Implementation Committee on PIA.

He called for robust and intellectual discussion on the regulations to come out with robust regulations with best international best standard.

Dr Joseph Tolorunse, Commission Head of Compliance and Enforcement, said that the forum served as an avenue to listen to stakeholders views on the regulations and secure their buy-in which would determine PIAs implementation.

Tolorunse said for theory and practice of administrative rule making had poignantly shown that if regulation entities were part of regulations making, compliance would be achieved by more than 100 per cent.

With this procedure of rulemaking, it is believed that consensus will be built, trust between the regulator and the regulated entities will improve and ultimately the regulations will be easier to implement and sustained.

The three-day forum has in attendance officials from the oil and gas operators, World Bank, Indigenous and International Oil Companies and other stakeholders in the industry.(NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

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Edited by Kayode Olaitan

Source: NAN News

By Joan Nwagwu

The Federal Government says it will adjust workers salaries to meet the current realities in the economy of the country.

Sen. Chris Ngige, the Minister of Labour and Employment said this at the public presentation of the NLC of 40 publication titled, Contemporary History of Working Class Struggles on Monday in Abuja.

Ngige said that the Federal Government was very much aware that the N30,000 National Minimum Wage had depreciated.

Yes the inflation has increased worldwide and it is not confined to Nigeria, that is why in many jurisdiction, it is an adjustment of wages right now.

We as the Nigerian government, we shall adjust in confirmative with what is happening in wages.

More importantly, the 2019 National Minimum Wage Act, right now has a clause for the review, which we started then, I do not know whether it is due next year or 2024.

But before then, the adjustment of wages will reflect what is happening in the economy,just as government has started the adjustment with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), he said.

The minister also explained that the Federal Government did not take ASUU to court over the prolonged strike of the union as some people claimed.

Ngige said he would have failed in his duties if he did not refer the matter to the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN) after seven months of protracted discussions and negotiations with the union, which failed.

He recalled that ASUU was at the stage of Collective Bargaining(CBA) negotiation with their employers, the Federal Ministry of Education when they embarked on strike.

He regretted that the ASUU leadership did not even understand the import of CBA negotiation because they lacked the nutrients of labour unionism.

According to him, we have to counsel our brothers on negotiation. No negotiation is forced. You cannot say it is either you give me 200 per cent or I will continue my strike.

There are laws guiding strike. There are ILO principles on right to strike. Nobody can take it away.

But, there are things that follow it when you embark on strike as a worker and they are enshrined in the laws of our land.

It is written in Trade Dispute Act. The ILO principles of strike talks about the right of a worker to withdraw services. There is also right to picket. These are things that are done.

Nigeria is respected in ILO. Some people said Federal Government took ASUU to court. No. I referred the matter after seven months of protracted discussions and negotiations that failed, he said.

Ngige recalled that he conciliated the dispute twice, first on Feb. 22, one week after the commencement of the strike and some agreements were reached, and he brought everybody back on March 1 for another conciliation.

He added that the only thing left was going back to the Federal Ministry of Education for the renegotiation of the 2013 agreement.

Some people are saying 2009 agreement. The 2009 agreement has been renegotiated in 2013/2014 with the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan. It is an anathema to use 2009 agreement.

What is left is the renegotiation of their conditions of service, which is their right. It should be done but they are negotiating it under the principle of offer and acceptance and it broke down irretrievably there at the Federal Ministry of Education.

That kick-started Section 17 of the Trade Dispute Act whereby the Minister of Labour and Employment, whoever it is, if you dont transmit according to the dictates of Section 17, TDA, 2004, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria.

This means you would have failed in your function. Therefore, I had to transmit, he said.

Ngige, however, said the transmission did not mean that the matter could not be settled out of court.

He said either of the parties involved; the Federal Ministry of Education and ASUU could approach the NICN for out of court settlement.

He maintained that Nigeria must be guided by laws and nobody should use the dispute to harass anybody.

The pro-chancellors said they want to do counter offer. I told them to do it as quickly as possible. Those are ingredients of labour relations.

It is not enough if you misinform your membership. That should be a disservice. We should read through things as it is and interpret same way. If I leave them in education, they will stay there two years,Ngige said.

On the 40 years of NLC, Ngige said: A fool at 40 is a fool forever. A wiseman at 40 is a wise man forever. NLC is a wise man forever. (NAN)(www.nanews.ng)

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Edited by Grace Yussuf

Source: NAN News

By Tosin Kolade

A Development Training Institute, Coinmac International, on Monday advised the Nigerian Government to adopt Geographic Information System (GIS) to improve tax collection in the country.

Coinmac Managing Director, Mr Ayo Salam spoke at the opening of a training workshop on Tax Policy, Fiscal Analysis and Revenue Forecasting for FCT Internal Revenue Service (FCT-IRS) in Abuja.

Salam said there was the need for all business owners, informal sectors, service providers and organisations to be forced to pay tax, saying an effective tax administration is knowing who the taxpayers are, where they are located.

He said that every citizen must be subjected to the law to pay tax from their income.

According to him, there is the need for all tiers of government to diversify its revenue base by seeking alternative means of revenue generation as the dwindling oil revenue is worrisome.

Government needs to practically shift attention from oil to development of other revenue sources, especially non-oil exports to support Internally Generated Revenue from taxes.

The reliability of the institutional framework for tax processing and enforcement must not be questionable to ensure sustainable development through taxation.

GIS can provide an efficient and improved system to not only increase revenue collection, but to monitor the prices and identify defaulters.

Salam said that most revenue service organisations had adopted GIS in implementation of their duties, adding that an efficient GIS could store accurate information on tax payable and monitored virtually.

He said FCT was a reference point for tax administration in Nigeria as tax collection stood at N188 billion, surpassing projected revenue target of N109 billion in 2021.

He said implementing blockchain technology for tax compliance would be an opportunity for taxes to be collected on goods and services consumed on different electronic platforms.

Training Facilitator, Mr Muhammad Sabiu, said the FCT-IRS had made huge strides in tax system with enrollment of more than 1.2 million people into its revenue collection system.

He said that had led to the collection of the highest revenue since inception, saying there was a Withholding Tax of N26 billion in 2021.

Sabiu said Nigerias continued reliance on oil was not sustainable as the global market dwindled, calling for more Nigerians to pay taxes for economic growth and development.

Nigerians keep complaining about poor infrastructural development and others, we can do more by funding all we want ourselves when we pay taxes.

Nigerians should pay taxes if they do not want government to borrow, in the UK, you pay 40 per cent on inheritance tax, and so many other things.

Lecturers are calling for more funding for the institutions, if we have a good tax system, all these things can be sorted out. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Ese E. Eniola Williams

Source: NAN News

By Ahmed Ubandoma

Three-days after the alleged gruesome murder of a 22-year-old Kano lady Ummukulsum Buhari by her Chinese lover, a public affairs analyst Mr Abdul-Aziz Yusuf, urges parents to always monitor their daughters dealings with male.

Yusuf gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), on Monday in Abuja.

He also emphasised the need to caution parents, especially mothers to guide their daughters properly in their quest to choose their future husbands without recourse to the material things.

Parents, especially mothers should put extra efforts in seeing that their female children dont fall into relationships that are capable of harming them and they should lead by example.

Its worrisome that many of the bad habits some children learn come from their parents because they usually follow our footsteps.

Ladies should learn to report cases of harassments, as it can harm them in the process of the relationship, Its sad that Ummukulsum is dead.

Her death should serve as a lessons to our other ladies who are in such kind of relationships, he said.

The analyst also enjoined parents to take close-watch on the interactions of their daughters with their male friends to be in the know and put them on the right path.

NAN reports that, the deceased was allegedly stabbed to death on Sept. 16, by her Chinese lover, Geng Quanrong, 47 years, at Janbulo quarters, Kumbotso Local Government Area of Kano after a series of misunderstanding (NAN)(www.nannews.ng).

Edited by Grace Yussuf

Source: NAN News

By Mustapha Yauri

Mr Sunday Dare, the Minister of Sports, Youth and Social Development, has urged tertiary institutions to review and update the curriculum for the training of physical health educators towards harnessing the entrepreneurial opportunities in sports.

The minister made the appeal during the 50th National Conference of National Association for Physical, Health Education, Recreation, Sports and Dance (NAPHER-SD) in Zaria.

The conference was titled: Business potentials and tapping in the profession of physical, health education recreation, sports and dance.

The minister said the draft National Sports Industry Policy developed by the ministry in collaboration with Nigeria Economic Summit Group has re-classified sports from recreation to business.

Dare, represented by Prof. Olawale Moronkola, Director-General, National Institute for Sports, said the intent of the policy was to turn sport into a vehicle for empowerment, development and growth through sports industrialisation agenda.

He, therefore, described sports as a big-time business with many entrepreneurial opportunities to explore in the areas of selling and marketing of (products, rights and services) and running gym/fitness centres.

Other areas include sports media, sports equipment manufacturing, sport clubs and consultancy services, among others.

The minister, who restated the commitment of the government to provide an enabling environment, urged tertiary institutions to tailor their curriculum in line with new trends in the sector.

Earlier, Prof. Rafiu Okuneye, the President NAPHER-SD, said the theme of the conference was a wake-up call; the association believed in and keyed into.

Through this forum, the association would enhance the propagation further that sports is business, recreation is business and dance is business. The time to identify and explore all business potentials in our profession is now, he said.

The Vice-Chancellor, Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, Prof. Kabiru Bala said physical education was one of the disciplines with numerous job opportunities such as teaching, sports coaching, sports management and exercise science, among others.

Bala, represented by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor Academics, Prof. Danladi Ameh, said there was a need for a transparent and credible manner to engage the private sector to collaborate, ensure deliverables to the practitioners in the sector.

For his part, Alhaji Ibrahim Galadima, Chairman, National Institute for Sports, also urged the association to redouble effort and work closely with state governments toward reviving sports in primary and secondary schools.

We used to have Physical Education and later physical health education, but this component of education is almost gone in schools.

Go to our primary and secondary schools you will not see facilities for physical education or physical health education classes.

I think this association has a role to play in bringing this lost glory back in schools, Galadima said.

He also tasked the association to have strong and vibrant state chapters with a view to promote sports and education to enable the younger generation come up with sound education and sports together.

He said the association in collaboration with its key stakeholders need to do more in promoting sports and education towards harnessing the business potentials in sports. (NAN)

Edited by Muhammad Suleiman Tola

Source: NAN News

By Ibironke Ariyo

Nineteen persons have been confirmed killed while eight others injured in a Sunday auto crash at Yangoji-Gwagwalada Road in the FCT.

Mr Dauda Biu, Acting Corps Marshal of the Federal Road Safety Corps, confirmed the figures to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) when he visited the accident scene.

Biu said the crash which occurred minutes into Sunday involved three vehicles two Toyota Hiace buses with registration numbers MUB- 30 LG and DWR-985 XJ and an articulated vehicle.

Biu said 31 persons were involved in the accident comprising 11 males, one female and 19 others who were charred beyond recognition.

Out of the 31 victims, eight persons comprising of seven males and one female sustained varying degrees of injuries, while 19 others were burnt beyond recognition.

Investigation showed that the main causes of the crash were speed limit violation and wrongful overtaking which eventually resulted in loss of control, he said.

According to him, the Toyota Hiace bus with Registration Number MUB- 30 LG, crashed into the Citroen articulated vehicle and burst into flames, killing everyone on board.

The second bus hit the first bus from behind and also caught fire. Fire melted the second bus with Bauchi State number plate.

It was coming from Takai, Kano State while heading to Benin. The Citroen vehicle loaded chicken feeds from Zaria in Kaduna State and was heading to Akwa Ibom.

The nineteen corpses were trapped but extricated by rescue operatives, Biu said.

He added that police had taken over the investigation and met with relevant authorities for the mass burial of 18 of the mutilated corpses.

The bodies could not be preserved for identification as they were burnt beyond recognition.

Clearing of obstructions for free flow of traffic is still ongoing as you can see and we will do our best to ensure we have a crash-free society.

Injured victims were taken to a nearby hospital in Kwali in the FCT and one identified male corpse was deposited at the mortuary at Kwali General Hospital, he said.

Biu cautioned road users to always avoid excessive speeding, wrongful overtaking and other bad driving behaviours.

He also admonished commuters to always plan their trips to fall within day time and avoid night trips because of hazards associated with dark hours.

He also re-emphasised that the Corps would step up both sensitisation of the motoring public and enhance its patrol activities to deter traffic violators.

He admonished the public to always call the FRSC toll free line 122 and the National Traffic Radio 107.1 FM which were always available for all road users to report emergencies at any given time.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Acting Corps Marshal was accompanied by the management team and other rescue operatives. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Alli Hakeem

Source: NAN News