By Ibrahim Kado

The People of Mubi, Northern Adamawa district, and Chamba Cultural Development Association (CCDA) have demanded for the creation of Amana and Gongola States, out of Adamawa.

The groups made the demand at the North East Zonal public hearing for the review of 1999 Constitution before the House of Representatives Committee in Yola on Wednesday.

Mr Ahmad Sajo, Spokesperson of Mubi Local Government Area, said that Mubi deserved to be a state, named Amana with capital city in Mubi.

According to him, originally they are part of Cameroun, but by choice, they joined Nigeria because of promises made to them by the then Prime Minister of Nigeria, Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, for peace and progress.

Hence we anchor our demand on the premise of the trust we had in Nigeria which in Hausa means Amana.

Restore our status as an autonomous region or state as it was when we joined you.

This is because the premier of Northern Nigeria promised us our continued status as a distinct entity within the Nigerian state and our capital which is Mubi, he said.

Similarly in his submission, Alhaji Yunusa Gisilanbe, State Chairman of CCDA, also demanded creation of Gongola State.

He said the new state would constitute southern senatorial district of Adamawa made up of Ganye, Toungo, Jada, Mayo-Belwa, Demsa, Numan, Lamurde, Guyuk and Shelleng Local Government Areas.

He said that if created, three additional local government areas needed to be created- Gangdu from Ganye, Yelli from Jada, Nasarawo-Jereng from Mayo-Belwa, Barrong from Demsa.

He further said that the association also supported local government autonomy in all ramifications.

In his remarks, Rep. Mohammed Monguno, Chairman, House of Representatives Constitutional Review Committee, Yola Centre, assured that all memoranda would be submitted before the house for considerations.

Mohammed, who is the Chief Whip of the House of Representatives, said that the review of the constitution would be based on wishes and aspirations of the people. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Cecilia Ologunagba

The International labour Organisation (ILO) says the economic crisis triggered by the COVID pandemic was expected to lead to the global unemployment of more than 200 million people by 2022.

ILO noted in its World Employment and Social Outlook: Trends 2021, (WESO Trends), on Wednesday, that women and youth workers were worst hit by the economic crisis.

It stated that although the nations would emerge from the ongoing health crisis, five years of progress towards the eradication of working poverty have been undone nonetheless.

Weve gone backwards, weve gone backwards big time. Working poverty is back to 2015 levels; that means that when the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda was set, were back to the starting line, said ILO Director-General, Guy Ryder.

The worst-affected regions in the first half of 2021 had been Latin America and the Caribbean, Europe and Central Asia, all victims of uneven recovery.

Theyve seen estimated working-hour losses exceed eight per cent in the first quarter and six per cent in the second quarter, far higher than the global average.

Women have been hit disproportionately by the crisis, seeing a five per cent employment fall in 2020, compared to 3.9 per cent for men.

A greater proportion of women also fell out of the labour market, becoming inactive, ILO said, noting that additional domestic responsibilities had resulted from lockdowns, which risked a re-traditionalisation of gender roles.

Youth employment has also continued to suffer the economic downturn, falling 8.7 per cent in 2020, compared with 3.7 per cent for adults.

The most pronounced fall has been in middle-income countries where the consequences of this delay and disruption to the early labour market experience of young people could last for years, ILO warned.

Pandemic-related disruption has also brought catastrophic consequences for the worlds two billion informal sector workers.

Compared to 2019, an additional 108 million workers worldwide are now categorised as poor or extremely poor meaning that they and their families live on the equivalent of less than 3.20 dollar per person, per day.

According to ILO, global unemployment will reach 205 million people in 2022, up from 187 million in 2019.

The Geneva-based organisation also projected a jobs gap increase of 75 million in 2021, which is likely to fall to 23 million in 2022 if the pandemic subsides.

The related drop in working-hours which takes into account the jobs gap and those working fewer hours, amounts to the equivalent of 100 million full-time jobs in 2021 and 26 million in 2022.

This shortfall in employment and working hours comes on top of persistently high pre-crisis levels of unemployment, labour under utilisation and poor working conditions, ILO stated.

The ILO report maintained that although global employment recovery should accelerate in the second half of 2021, it would. however. likely be an uneven recovery. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Rotimi Ijikanmi
The Federal Government has berated Prof. Chidi Odinkalu, over his fake tweet and misinformation on the death of the Registrar of National Examinations Council (NECO), Prof. Godswill Obioma.

Odinkalu, a former Chairman of the National Human Rights Commission, had tweeted that Obioma was strangled to death contrary to what the family of the deceased said.

In an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Abuja, the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said Odinkalu acted irresponsibly by the fake tweet.

Without mincing words, the action of Prof. Odinkalu is the height of irresponsibility that is at variance with someone of his pedigree.

His tweet is a clear case of fake news that could have caused a breach of public peace.

And I am told this is not the first time he is engaging in this kind of action, just like many others like him.

It was reported that the police, the family and NECO confirmed that Obioma died after a brief illness, contrary to the fake news that was willfully tweeted by Odinkalu, he said.

The minister reiterated his position that fake news and misinformation constituted grave danger and monster that might not be easily tamed.

He recalled that his ministry had inaugurated the campaign against fake news, hate speech and misinformation since 2017.

Mohammed said they would continue to call out all those who engage in disseminating fake news and misinformation.

He also assured that the laws of the land would eventually catch up with them.

Obioma was reported to have died on May 31, in his house on London Street, Dutsen Kura area of Minna, Niger, after a brief illness.

NAN reports that the late registrar, who was said to have returned from an official assignment in Abuja at about 9 a.m. and decided to rest before going to the office, slumped and died in his bedroom.

The family of the deceased in a statement issued to the Director, Human Resources of NECO, Malam Mustapha Abdul, informed the board, management and staff of NECO of the occurrence. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Emmanuella Anokam

The Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC) said it remitted N5.36 billion to the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF) from its Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) between January 2016 and March 2021.

NIPC disclosed this in a report released on Thursday on the summary of its IGR and CRF payments since 2016.

The report stated that the amount represented 46 per cent of the total IGR of N11.61 billion it generated during the period.

Following NIPCs addition to the schedule of the Fiscal Responsibility Act in November 2016, the Commission had been subject to the remittance of 80 per cent of its Operating Surplus to the CRF.

The report also stated that as part of its commitment to better governance, proactive compliance and transparency, NIPC made quarterly proactive disclosures of material, financial, legal, procurement, personnel and operational information.

It noted that NIPC generated N5.59 billion, its highest income in 2018, a result of the backlog from the lifting of the two-year suspension on the administration of its Pioneer Status Incentive (PSI).

According to it, PSI service charge accounted for 96 per cent of NIPCs IGR during the period covered by the report; with its average annual IGR over the period put at N1.93 billion.

In 2020, Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Compliance and Transparency Award, NIPC was ranked second out of 213 Ministry, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) evaluated, maintaining the impressive ranking, first attained in 2019, for the second successive year.

The commission was the most consistent among the leading MDAs ranked in 2019 and 2020, it said.

The report cited NIPCs ranking and the improvement, from its 2016 ranking of 90th out of 131 MDAs, as validating the efforts of management and staff at improving internal transparency and compliance with the FOIA. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Vivian Emoni

The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved the revised National Climate Change Policy (NCCP) and National Climate Change Programmes for the country.

A statement by Mr Saghir el Mohammed, Director of Press in the Ministry of Environment, said that the approval was given at the FEC meeting, on Wednesday, in Abuja.

Speaking on the development, the Minister of Environment, Dr Muhammad Abubakar, explained that the new Policy document captured updates of emerging issues in the sector that were not captured in the previous policy.

These, according to him, included the inclusion of the Paris Agreement, signed by Mr President in 2015, and Gender mainstreaming, which was very relevant to the national response to climate change.

The new National Policy on Climate Change, with its programmatic plan of action, is expected to run through 2021-2030.

The objective of the new policy is to implement mitigation measures and promote low-carbon, high-growth economic development.

It will also strengthen adaptation towards a sustainable climate resilient development pathway.

The National Climate Change programmes document complements the National Policy by identifying measures and actions.

The measures and actions will be implemented in a programmatic manner to address most, if not all, of the challenges posed by climate change and climate vulnerability in the country, the minister said.

The Minister thanked the President for approving the policy document and for his unparalleled commitment to climate change issues and concerns that earned him global recognition. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Stanley Nwanosike

The Progressive Students Movement (PSM), an NGO, has hailed the Senate for passing a bill seeking to end discrimination between HND and BSc holders in the country.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Senate, on Wednesday, read for the third time and passed the bill.

The bill seeks to end discrimination between first degrees graduates from universities and Higher National Diploma (HND) holders from polytechnics in the country both on cadre and point of entry to all private and government establishments.

The President of PSM, Mr Bestman Okereafor, told NAN on Wednesday in Enugu that the bill was a welcome development.

According to Okereafor, it is a step in the right direction that will help strengthen the polytechnic system and end rush for theoretical-based education.

PSM strongly believes the said bill will greatly serve as motivation and morale booster for polytechnic graduates across the federation.

We heartily congratulate all polytechnic students and graduates in Nigeria, he said.

On proposed scrapping of the National Youth Service Scheme, the boss of PSM, which is a pan-Africa students movement, however, advised the Federal Government not to consider the proposal.

NYSC remains a major bridge builder, which enhances and upholds national unity aimed at further developing our beloved country with well trained academic manpower, he said. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Kingsley Okoye

The Senate has passed the bill establishing the National Institute for Border Studies, Imeko in Ogun.

This followed the adoption of the report of the Senate Committee on Tertiary Institutions and TETFUND at plenary on Wednesday.

Presenting the report, a member of the Committee, Sen. Ayo Akinyelure (PDP- Ondo),said the institution would produce graduates with practical and theoretical knowledge in border management to reduce risks and challenges of existential threats facing the country.

Establishing the institute will reduce the ills around national borders and de-escalating chances of entrenching heinous criminal activities being perpetrated by men of the underworld, he said.

The Senate also passed the Orthopedic Hospital Management Board Act 2004 amendment bill.

This followed the adoption of the report of the Senate Committee on Health (Secondary and Tertiary).
Presenting the report, Chairman of the Committee, Sen. Yahaya Oloriegbe (APC- Kwara ) said the country was plagued with poverty and high rate of diseases.

He said Orthopedics such as musculoskeletal disorders, spine disease, cancers, tumours and congenital defects were afflicting many Nigerians without adequate care.

Orthopedics is a specialised area of medicine concerned with the musculoskeletal system responsible for many important functions including joint replacements, fractures, joint pains, sports injuries, arthritis and other injuries and conditions, Oloriegbe said.

He said that locating the Federal Orthopedic Hospital in Kuta, Niger, would ensure that healthcare got closer to residents of densely populated urban and rural communities at reduced costs.

The hospital will provide services like diagnosis and treatment from traumatic events such as accidental falls, car accidents, sports injuries and other emergencies. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Ibrahim Kado

The North East centre of the National Assembly on the review of the 1999 Constitution in Yola, says it received 40 memoranda from groups and associations for consideration.

Rep. Mohammed Monguno, Chief Whip, House of Representatives and Chairman of the Centre, said this when he spoke with newsmen at the end of the two day public hearing on Wednesday in Yola.

He assured that all memoranda would be submitted for consideration at the review of the constitution.

As representatives of the people, we assure all Nigerians that we are going to listen to them.

Whatever we are to submit to the generality of the house is going to be a replica of their wishes and aspirations of stakeholders we met in the cause of this public hearing.

We assure you on behalf of the National Assembly that all opinions expressed here will be looked into and at the end of the day, as much as possible will be reflected in the report we are going to submit for subsequent considerations by the various State Houses of Assembly, he said.

Monguno said the national assembly would amend the constitution based on the wishes and aspirations of the people as well as current realities in the country.

The constitution being an organic document is supposed to be changed in consonance with changing times so that it will reflect wishes and aspirations of the people, he said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the memoranda submitted included those containing request for states and local government creation as well demands for local government autonomy among others. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Ismaila Chafe

The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved the sum of N9.2billion as premium to insurance companies that will manage the group life insurance for federal civil servants in the country.

Minister of Information and Culture Lai Mohammed revealed this when he briefed State House correspondents on the outcome of the Council meeting which was presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari in Abuja on Wednesday.

He said: On behalf of the Head of Civil Service of the Federation, I will like to report that council today approved the award of contract for the appointment of insurance companies for group life assurance for federal government employees, public servants, para-military and the intelligence community for the year 2021-2022 in the sum of N9, 248. 995, 907.

This premium is for a period of 12 months.

This is part of the governments welfare programme for our public employees so that in case of death, they are assured that there would be compensation.

The minister revealed that the council also approved N18.1billion for development of infrastructure and Kano and Calabar Free Trade Zones, as well as the Textile and Garment Park in Lagos and the Special Economic Zone, LekkiLagos.

Mohammed said the approval was of critical importance to the infrastructure development plan of the country.

The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Dr Zainab Ahmed, who also addressed the correspondents on the outcome of the FEC meeting, said she presented the first quarter of 2021 GDP results and other performance indicators of the Nigerian economy to the Council.

According to her, the estimates and report show that Nigerian GDP has grown to 0.51% year-on-year in real terms in the First Quarter of 2021.

The minister revealed that the agricultural sector posted a strong growth at the rate of 2.28 per cent in the first quarter of 2021, compared to previous quarters.

Also, there is a further illustration that the slow, but gradual recovery process is indicative of the fact that business operations are returning to normal and that restrictions of movements and commercial activities have been relaxed after extended close-down in the year 2020.

Also, the agricultural sector posted a strong growth at the rate of 2.28 per cent in the first quarter of 2021, compared to previous quarters. This growth in agriculture signifies the resilience of the agricultural sector.

Also, the industry sector has recorded positive growth, even though a weak one, but the growth is a positive one and this marks the past quarter of growth over the past one year in the industry sector.

Services recorded a slight dip, but a small one at 0.39 per cent.

In addition to the economic activities and the reopening our businesses, growth was also boosted, in fact by increase in crude oil prices as well as increase in production in the first quarter of 2020.

We have seen this positive growth being contributed by not just the oil sector, but also by economic activities within the metal sector, the cement sector, electricity, telecommunications, food and beverages as well as human health and social services, she said.

The minister, however, stated that some sectors had recorded negative growth, saying such sectors included quarrying and other minerals, oil refinery, road transport, air transport, rail transport, education, as well as hospitality sectors.

On inflationary trends, Ahmed noted that throughout 2020 airline inflation had maintained an upward trend.

The minister also maintained that prices of food items might not come down as fast as the other aspects of inflation.

She said: For the first time in 19 months, inflation has shown a slight dip. Its a very slight dip, but its a positive point for us, we had indicated that our projection is that inflation will begin to flatten in the month of April 2021 and this is an indication.

So, subsequent periods we are looking at inflation beginning to trend downwards. Food inflation will not come down as fast as the other aspects of inflation.

But it is important to also see that the rate of food inflation also showed a slight dip and the rise in food index, which you will see if you check the detailed report, is driven by foods such as coffee, tea, cocoa, breads, cereals, soft drinks, milk, cheese, not basic food items like rice, maize and millet.

So this is what we reported to Council today.

The Minister of Environment, Alhaji Muhammed Mahmud, told the correspondents that the Council approved a revised national policy on climate change.

According to him, the revised policy is aimed at a Nigeria that is sustainable environmentally.

Its implementation strategy is to be all encompassing. We have met with several MDAs, agencies and civil society organisations and even the media because this is something that requires all hands on deck as we are all potential polluters of environment causing climate change.

Eventually and ultimately the objective is to help Nigeria that is climate resilient and also gender sensitive in the future and that is the vision of this policy intellectuals because the world is moving towards carbon neutrality.

It is assumed that by the year 2015, we should have carbon neutrality.

Now is the time to get prepared for that so that is what the policy is all about to drive towards a Nigeria that is sustainable environmentally, he added. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Ibironke Ariyo

The Women, Youth, Children and Crime Organisation, a non-governmental organisation, has solicited the support of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) in checking drug abuse and trafficking.

Dr Farida Waziri, the founder of the organisation, made the plea during a courtesy visit to the NDLEAs headquarters on Wednesday in Abuja.

Waziri, a former EFCC boss, said the spectacular achievements of the NDLEA in the past four months were commendable.

It is incredible and commendable the way the chairman, retired Brig.- Gen. Buba Marwa, had transformed NDLEA and the war against drug abuse and trafficking.

We marvel at the intelligence, the ethos and the strategies driving the new NDLEA.

In the organisation, we appreciate these efforts and also find areas of interest in the wave of new development at NDLEA.

The first is the agencys advocacy drive, an area that could be of mutual benefit for NDLEA and one of our initiatives, Concerned Nigerian Women Against Drug Abuse.

The new leadership at NDLEA has challenged the society to rise against drug abuse and many groups and organisations have since hearkened to the call.

We do not want to be left behind; the organisation has interest in curbing drug abuse.

We have plans to organise a tell- your-story event to coincide with the 2021 International Day Against Drug Abuse.

The event intends to feature individuals such as reformed drug addicts, parents, children and young adults to give accounts of their past experiences with drug abuse.

We are ready to partner with NDLEA, because with the 2023 general elections approaching, the time is almost upon us, she said.

Responding, Marwa commended Waziri for setting up the organisation.

Marwa said that the country is facing drug abuse challenge.

We have stated and we still stand on it to conduct drug test for politicians, students and other government officials.

You cannot entrust the lives and property of Nigerians in the hands of people whose heads are not straight because of the use of drugs.

I want to use the opportunity to say that the mandate is on all Nigerians to face this challenge.

I want to also urge the organisation to adress stigmatisation issue, especially against women who have drug problem, knowing that they need help but because of the fear of stigmatisation.

Equally, parenting is very important. It has to start from the primary level. I am confident that we will soon get the better out of the scourge in the country he said. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Kingsley Okoye

President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan has congratulated Mustapha Isa on his re-election as President of the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE).

Lawan said this in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media, Mr Ola Awoniyi in Abuja on Wednesday .

He also congratulated other members of the executives of the guild who were either elected or re-elected on Tuesday by their fellow editors.

The peaceful and orderly manner of the elections are a good example of how professional bodies should conduct their affairs.

You therefore deserve plaudits for living up to the high expectations that society has of you as leaders of the fourth estate of the realm.

In that light, I enjoin you to always consider the higher national interest of unity, peace, justice and progress as you discharge your critical role of gate keeping in your various media organisations.

The Nigerian media have come a long way, therefore the editors cannot afford to fail in their responsibilities to the nation in this critical period of our national development, Lawan said. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Emmanuella Anokam
The National Boundary Commission (NBC) says only boundaries of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) are captured and properly defined in the Nigerian constitution.

The Director-General of the commission, Mr Adamu Adaji, disclosed this in Abuja at the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) forum.

Adaji said that the boundaries of FCT-Kaduna, FCT-Niger, FCT-Kogi and FCT-Nasarawa were clearly defined in the constitution.

According to him, all other boundaries rely on documents which the commission got as per when they were division provinces which the commission tries to interpret.

But for others, we have tried using documents from archives with the Federal Government pronouncement and the cooperation of the state boundary committees to resolve them.

He disclosed that the commission had 86 interstate boundary disputes and had been able to resolve about 30 .

The director-general explained that some of these resolutions may not be wholly because some substantial part of it may have been resolved but there may be small segment still considered as grey areas that needed to be revisited.

He added that others being intervened on were not problematic in terms of no issues of crisis or fight but were only waiting to be properly defined and demarcated.

The cases of Kastina -Jigawa and Kano-Kastina boundaries have been resolved including few others which we intend to commence demarcation but few others are still pending, he noted.

In the case of international boundaries, he said that Nigeria-Benin Republic still had some grey areas and was still being attended to, while it was focused on making that of Nigeria-Niger boundary visible.

The Nigeria-Niger boundary is not all that contentious, we are trying to make it more visible by replacing those colonial pillars that are not up to standards with standard ones and introduce more intermediate ones.

We are cooperating very well under the auspices of the commission and its sister counterpart, the Niger Boundary Commission.

In the case of Nigeria-Cameroun boundary, we have gone far and have replaced 1,500 pillars so far trying to make the boundary more definitive and visible.

They are being handled in phases, comprising of Lots, we just concluded Lot five just last week.

It is remaining Lot six to be awarded by UN of which under its auspices, called Nigeria-Cameroon Mixed Commission the boundary is being managed, he said.

He, however, noted that there was a trust fund provided for the management and definition of the boundary being used to fund the contracts and placement of pillars.

According to him, the commission just concluded the replacement of over 300 pillars in the Lot five, and is making steady progress.(NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Ikenna Uwadileke
The National Boundary Commission (NBC) says it is currently intervening in 86 interstate boundary disputes with the determination to create a peaceful atmosphere within the boundary corridors.

The Director-General of the Commission, Mr Adamu Adaji, made this known at the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) Forum in Abuja.

Adaji reiterated the commissions commitment to ensure a peaceful boundary regime among communities, states and between Nigeria and its neighbouring countries.

We have been intervening in them and we can say we have been able to resolve about 30 of these cases though in some cases not fully.

The resolutions may be partly, some grey areas are still pending and we will look into them as we make progress.

There are so many other boundaries that are still in dispute and we are trying our best to ensure that these disputes are reduced to the barest minimum by trying to resolve them as quickly as possible, he said.

Adaji listed boundaries between Abia and Cross River, Abia and Akwa Ibom, Cross River and Ebonyi, Benue and Taraba, Benue and Ebony, Ebonyi and Enugu, Anambra and Kogi, Anambra and Enugu, Anambra and Abia as flashpoints.

Some of them, we have made some progress and we are trying the much we can to see that these boundaries are resolved as quickly as possible.

We want to have peaceful boundary regime among the communities, states and good relationship between Nigeria and her neighbours.

We want people to nurture this idea of peaceful coexistence and appreciate what boundaries are meant for, he said.

While disclosing the commissions efforts to show limits through its integrated boundary management system, Adaji emphasised the need to demarcate the boundaries physically on ground to become visible.

According to him, definition and demarcation of these boundaries physically on ground is important so that it can be very visible.

Our vision is to ensure we have a very peaceful boundary regime to have people appreciating boundaries for what they are; there are near administrative arrangement to show limits.

Over the years, we have been trying to define these boundaries in such a way that it can be understood but for people to appreciate it properly, it has to be physically established on ground.

We have an integrated system of management of these boundaries and at the Federal level is the National Boundary Commission, boundary committees at the state and local government levels to determining the local government boundaries.

They should work in synergy towards establishing and determining our boundaries and resolving all boundary issues that may arise.

The states have been cooperating so far but not without some obstacles.

There are some uncooperative attitudes from time to time occasioned by the communities resistance to some of our activities because of their wrong perceptions of what boundaries really should be.

So, we try as much as possible to sensitise these communities through the state boundary committees and local government boundary committees for them to buy into our activities and appreciate the extent and essence of boundaries generally, he said.

Adaji said that the commission relied on instruments inherited from the colonial masters, records, gazettes, treaties, agreements, maps, chats, inscriptions among others to define the boundaries.

Where some of these instruments are deficient, we resort to the principle of ground to paper.

It is a principle we had to create whereby we go on ground and rely on the communities and the states to show us what is agreeable.

We take it from the ground and transfer it to paper, try to make recommendations, analysis and description for government to accept as a boundary between affected communities and states as the case may be, he said. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Emmanuella Anokam
The National Boundary Commission (NBC) has called for synergy between the commission and the three tiers of government for effective resolution of boundary disputes across the country.

The Director-General of the commission, Mr Adamu Adaji, made the call in Abuja at the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) forum.

Adaji said that the synergy was necessary to carry them along in the commissions activities and for them to acknowledge their roles at the national and state levels to avert crisis through timely resolution of boundary issues.

He said that the commission usually organised a zonal interactive session with the state boundary committees nationwide[g1] , adding that the sessions were very helpful as a result of ideas shared and suggestions made.

Adaji, who will soon mark one year in office, said he did not see his assumption of office as the D-G as different from his normal official work engagements, adding that he imbibed the policy of continuity.

There were some things I helped my predecessors to do when I was heading departments and I wish to commend them because they cooperated and gave me free hands and support.

Being at the helm of affairs, I immediately sought for the buy-in of states on our activities to distinguished the roles expected at the national boundary commission and state boundary committees, hence the zonal interactive session, he said.

He said that the committee had engaged in many activities including resolution of boundaries between countries and demarcation of several resolved boundaries as well as laying of pillars in some states.

The NBC boss said that boundary activities required a lot of finances, although the Federal Government had its priority lists which required considerable in funding.

It is not everything we want that will be given at once but we have had improvement in our financing; we can do with more.

We make estimates and government gives us assistance on funding based on availability of fund.

The Federal Government gives issues of boundary priority because boundary issues are security issues and the earlier we get the boundaries issues resolved and demarcated, it will prevent disputes fully.

We try to create a good trans-border cooperation with these communities in terms of management of these boundaries.

So, some of the boundaries are in the stages of management, stages of disputes resolution and physically definition and we try to be proactive while engaging the communities to prevent disputes, he said.

Speaking on how long it takes to resolve a typical boundary disputes, Adaji said that it involved cooperation, funding and some due processes which usually took a while.

We will firstly converge a joint meeting of officials to be held in one of the states affected for the affected states to air their views.

The processes to follow will be agreed at such meetings, followed by the task of searching of documents which is done in collaboration with the states involved.

These documents will be articulated and submitted to the commission.

Then the commission will call for a meeting whereby the documents are jointly scrutinised and studied for us to identify relevant documents to be packaged to the team of surveyors, geographers, lawyers and others because the commission is a multi-disciplinary agency.

These documents will be given to technical experts, who will interpret them first on available maps, then go on ground to test the documents physically after that; a roundtable for discussion and presentation of evidences will be held.

After that, we will report to the internal boundary trial committee, a statutory committee of the commission headed by the minister of works, as the chairman where the outcome of field investigations will be presented.

The surveyors sometimes will go back into the field to obtain more data if there are grey areas. And if one state fails to honour it, the work will be delayed, it may spill over to many years thereby truncating the process, he said.

The D-G said that inadequate funding for a particular period, insecurity and other factors might slow down boundary resolution process.

One cannot say how long a case may stay because of the processes involved but if it is going smoothly, it would be resolved in good time, the D-G said. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Jessica Onyegbula

The Executive Secretary, Nigeria Christian Pilgrims Commission (NCPC), Rev. Yakubu Pam says that pilgrimage is not for sightseeing but a place for prayers.

Pam in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Wednesday said pilgrimage was an opportunity to pray for the country, especially now that it was facing insecurity and economic challenges.

Nigeria needs Gods intervention to surmount all its challenges.

If we need anything, it is Gods intervention. Pilgrimage is not about sightseeing but prayers it is about going to rededicate our lives to God first and then pray for our country.

The spirit behind pilgrimage is also about discovering the things you read about in the Bible and reconnecting with God. The encounter is the most important aspect of it.

This is a critical time. Those going for pilgrimage now are going to pray prayers for our president, our governors, the future of the country, that is the purpose for pilgrimage at this hour, he said.

Pam explained that NCPC had picked Jordan as one of the countries for this years Nigerian Christian pilgrimage.

He said Jordan was a symbol of the church unity going by the baptism of Jesus Christ at the River Jordan.

People will always criticise new things. People are free to express themselves. In doing such, we are able to know that they need to be educated more.

You cannot stop a Catholic from going to Rome or the Pentecostal going to Greece, the same thing with the Methodist.

There are places you can mention that may not be a pilgrimage per say, in terms of going to Jerusalem, when we talk about Jordan, one thing that really unites the church is baptism.

Jesus was baptised there, all Christians do baptism. That is the original side of baptism. So there are many places there that can unite us more. That is where Elijah crossed and God took him alive to heaven.

There is also the history of Jacob and his brother. The choice to go to Jordan is so that all Christians, Catholic, Pentecostal can unite. It is a uniform ground, he added.

The NCPC boss urged those kicking against the choice of Jordan to see it as an opportunity to pray for Nigerias unity, just as baptism unites Christians.

Some people feel that this should not be done. We made a thorough contact and tried to sample opinions within the commission.

This is not just the Executive Secretary doing it. I have a board with stakeholders who are paying the money. In all the states, we do not have up to 10 people that have complained.

We only have one or two states that felt like they would not be able to go because they are not ready for now. The conference of states has agreed that we are all going.

In those days, Jordan and Israel were all one country, there is no difference between them in the days of the Bible.

There are borders and separations now because everybody has its own territorial authority to their own government and kingdom.

These are the things one can explain about this journey, it is a spiritual journey and people should take it by faith. I appreciate those who are able to speak their minds, he said.

He called on Christians to prepare their minds ahead of the pilgrimage in Jordan so that God would answer their prayers about Nigeria. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Rukayat Adeyemi
The Lagos State Government on Wednesday said it had paid over N32 billion to 7,998 retirees of its public service in the past two years.

Mr Babalola Obilana, Director-General, Lagos State Pension Commission (LASPEC) disclosed this during the 85th bond presentation to benefiting retirees in the state.

Obilana said that the state government considered the welfare of pensioners as top priority and was committed to the speedy resolution of all pension issues in the state.

He explained that one of the targets of the present administration was to successfully conclude the payment of accrued pension rights at the end of the governors first term in office.

According to him, this will enable pensioners to receive their entitlements upon retirement from the states public service on a pay as you leave basis.

Obilana noted that in fulfilment to the governments commitment to pensioners welfare, the Retirement Saving Accounts (RSAs) of 326 retirees were credited with over N1 billion for the month of May.

The governor is committed to retirees welfare that is why in spite of all odds, retirees are still on the front burner of his agenda.

It is clear that the financial freedom of the states pensioners is paramount to this administration, he said .

Obilana advised the retirees to choose the right option for their pension needs between annuity and programmed withdrawal.

He urged the elder statesmen not to follow the decision of others but ensure that they select choices that best suit them.

Mrs Felicia Ojo who spoke on behalf of the retirees, thanked Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the management and staff of LASPEC for their unflinching support for pensioners in the state. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Emmanuella Anokam
The National Boundary Commission (NBC) says that the Umuleri-Aguleri boundary dispute is an internal boundary problem in Anambara State that should be handled by the State Boundary Committee.

The Director-General of the commission, Mr Adamu Adaji, at the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) forum, in Abuja noted that inter-local government boundary cases within the state were being handled by its boundary committee.

Adaji said that the national boundary commission would only intervene in inter-local government disputes resolution if its attention was needed or on invitation to partner with the state.

The director-general, while reacting to the age-long boundary dispute between the two communities emphasised that the commission was invited on the case few years ago by the previous administration which it partnered with to resolve it.

We made our views known, and it was left for the government to implement what was agreed upon.

Whether the government implemented the agreements, suggestions and recommendations is what we cannot say because it is a different administration.

But the present administration has not had cause to request our interventions in that case but we have had cause to intervene on that case previously, he noted.

He said that for the case to resurface, it showed that it was not perhaps conclusively resolved by the previous administration with whom it partnered to resolve it.

But now that it has resurfaced we have not had any request for intervention by the state government until we are called upon.

If we are called upon we will gladly partner with them to offer solutions and recommendations as expected.

When they need our interventions, the state government will notify us and we will partner with the state to get it resolved it, he said.

Adaji recalled that the commission has had cases where states had intervened in some inter-local government boundary cases and one side would petition the national boundary commission to disagree with the states resolution.

He further stated that, it would only give the state that first opportunity of intervening on such cases but if a community disagreed, they could write the national boundary commission.

We will request for the action taken and engage the community immediately to see how far. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

S/East
By Ifeanyi Nwoko
A South East group, Ndigbo Youth Parliament, has condemned the spate of insecurity, killing of innocent citizens as well as attacks of government infrastructure in the South East.

A statement issued in Abuja on Wednesday by Mr Rikki Nwajiofor, Speaker of the group, also condemned the gruesome killing of a former Presidential Aide, Ahmed Gulak, by yet to be identified gunmen.

With particular reference to Imo state, the group expressed sadness and called on all in the region to embrace peace.

Ndigbo Youth Parliament has continued to sue for peace across the nation, especially in the Southeast.

We highly condemn the gruesome murder of Ahmed Gulak in Owerri. In the same vein, we extremely frown at the murder of innocent citizens, who met their untimely death in the hands of unknown gunmen, as they went about their daily hustles.

The grisly killing of security personnel, who were exterminated while serving our beloved Nation, is quite heinous and atrocious.

These are atrocities that should be condemned by every patriotic well-meaning Igbo person, the group said.

The NYP stressed that the menaces of unknown gunmen were gradually turning the Southeast to a war zone, especially Imo state where people now live in fear.

We cannot afford to watch our enamoured Southeast, traditionally known for peace and tranquility, turned to a crisis-ridden zone.

We, therefore, call on all the security agencies, all patriotic Igbo personalities and all well-meaning Nigerians to join hands with Ndigbo Youth Parliament as we organize the Ndigbo Youth Security Summit.

The summit is geared towards finding lasting solutions to the insecurity that has bedeviled our cherished Southeast.

Our Youths need to be called to a roundtable for heart-to-heart discussions; a roundtable where grievances will be placated and solutions for peace proffered.

We believe that Ndigbo Youth are lovers of peace and, if given sufficient sense of belonging, will collaborate with security agencies in fishing out the enemies of our land, the group said.

It called on the people of Southeast, especially the Youths, to remain law abiding and avoid associating with any unlawful group.(NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Lizzy Okoji

Four staffers of the ECOWAS Parliament have emerged first beneficiaries of the maiden Speakers Award for outstanding contribution to community goals launched by Hon. Sidie Mohammed Tunis.

The four staffers include Secretary-General John Azuma; Acting Head of the Library Department, Chinwe Adelekan: Acting Head, Language Department, Rukka Ajanna; and the Acting Head of Conference Department, Fatima Diop.

Dr Tunis said during the presentation of the awards at the ongoing First Ordinary Session of Parliament 2021 in Abuja, that the reward was in recognition of deserving members of staff who had served through various legislatures in their respective capacities.

We will start the recognition of staff members whom I believe are doing really well to promote this parliament.

For this particular session, there are staff members who went out of their way to make sure that we are able to meet in Abuja, he said.

The speaker also noted that going forward, serving members of parliament and former members who had finished serving their terms at the community parliament would also be honored with the Speakers Award.

The award was presented by the speaker in the presence of the President of the Commission, Jean-Claude Brou.(NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Ikenna Osuoha

Mr Fred Kafeero, the Country Representative of Food and Agriculture (FAO), says Africas milk consumption is lower than 40 litres per person yearly.

Kafeero said this while delivering a keynote address at an event on Tuesday in Abuja to commemorate the World Milk Day (WMD).

The WMD with the theme: Sustainability in the dairy sector, was organised by the Commercial Dairy Ranchers Association of Nigeria.

The World Milk Day is observed every year on June 1 to recognise the importance of milk as a global food.

He said lower consumption of milk could result to stunted growth of children under five and malnutrition in women.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends milk consumption of 210 litres per person per annum but Africas average is lower than 40 litres per person.

Nigeria varies significantly especially with the North where over 90 per cent of the cattle are kept, and where they have about eight litres per person in a year, according to the World Population Review, he said.

The FAO representative who described milk as a natural source of proteins, said it was necessary for building human bodies.

According to him, milk has important minerals as calcium, magnesium and phosphorus that play important roles in maintaining strong bones and teeth as well as rich in B2, B12 and B5.

Kafeero said the FAO was determined to collaborate with the International Atomic Energy in supporting national scientists in some countries to optimise livestock reproduction and breeding practices. (NAN)

Source: NAN News