By Sumaila Ogbaje

Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Lucky Irabor, says there is need for stronger collaboration between West African armed forces to deal with insecurity in the sub-region.

Irabor stated this when hosted the Burkinabe Chief of Defence Staff, Senior Col. David Kadre at the Defence Headquarters on Thursday in Abuja.

He congratulated the Burkinabe defence chief, an alumnus of the National Defence College (NDC), Nigeria for his appointment and assured to share experiences on how the two countries had been tackling insecurity.

Irabor said that Nigeria was proud to have an alumnus of NDC becoming the defence chief of Burkina Faso, reiterating his commitment to sharing ideas with the visitor.

No doubt the West African sub-region is experiencing the menace of terrorism and insurgency and we understand that to address this scourge, there has to be collaboration of all countries within the sub-region.

That is why I am delighted to receive you and to also let you know that we shall share our experiences.

We will indeed take action that will ensure that we redress all issues together and ensure that we stamp out every form of terrorism within our sub-region, he said.

Earlier, Kadre said he was in Nigeria to attend the graduation of the Course 30 of NDC Nigeria and used the opportunity to visit Irabor to tap from his wealth of experience.

Kadre said he also visited to seek advice on his new appointment and to also present the security situation in the West African sub-region.

He reiterated the need for deeper collaboration between Nigerian and Burkinabe armed forces to address the challenges of terrorism and insurgency.

I came also regarding terrorism and insurgency in our countries so as to seek your advice and experience since Nigeria is engaged in fighting this scourge, he said. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Alli Hakeem

Source: NAN News

By Naomi Sharang

Gov. Hope Uzodinma of Imo says the continuos theft of crude oil in the country was a direct sabotage to Nigerias economy.

He said this after a closed-door meeting with the Managing Director,
Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), Mr Osagie Okunbor in Abuja on Thursday.

Gov. of Imo Hope Uzodinma with MD Shell Nigeria Mr Osagie Okunbor

Uzodinma who expressed concern over oil theft said that the stoppage of production by the company was due to insecurity which was not good for the economy.

He described the activities by the bunkers as a sabotage to the countrys effort at boosting the production of crude oil.

We met with shell petroleum on the level of insecurity that made them shut down operation in Imo.

They left because of insecurity. We have been able to sustain relative peace and decided to invite them and discuss very well.

We are concerned about the crude oil theft in the region and we are doing our best as a government to support the producing oil company to have a very enabling environment to do their production so that Nigeria will benefit.

The governor further explained that oil theft was was part of the reasons why foreign exchange rate had gone up very astronomically.

So with what we have agreed now and by the time shell resumes production, and with our support in making sure that stealing of crude oil becomes a thing of the past, it will go a long way in ensuring that the Naira gains it real value and our capacity for earning foreign exchange is also further strengthened, Uzodinma said.

He also noted that shell would resume operations and production in the state before the end of this week.

On the high exchange rate of a Dollar to Naira, Uzodinma said:for you to have dollar cheap, you have to earn the dollar and the only way we earn the dollar is by producing enough crude oil.

The reduction in the production rate of crude oil from 2.1 million barrels a day to barely 1 million barrels is a big blow to our economy and to our capacity in terms of foreign exchange earning.

By the time we recover back to 2.1 million barrels a day, we will earn enough that will force down the dollar and give advantage to the naira.(NAN)
(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Sadiya Hamza

Source: NAN News

By Sumaila Ogbaje

Military Pensions Board (MPB), on Thursday, said it had paid the third tranche of 25 per cent of the 24 months arrears of the National Minimum Wage increment to eligible retirees.

The Chairman of the board, Rear Adm. Saburi Lawal, in a statement issued in Abuja, said that the payment was made on Thursday.

Lawal said the third installment was paid to eligible military retirees who were active on the boards data base.

He added that it was also in fulfillment of the agreement reached between the board and the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning (FMoFBNP) for quarterly release of the appropriated sum within the year.

The chairman said that all next -of -kins (NOKs) of deceased military pensioners, who were entitled to the same arrears had also been fully paid.

He advised all concerned military pensioners to contact their banks for their entitlements.

On behalf of our esteemed military pensioners, the board wishes to thank President Muhammadu Buhari for his immense support to the board and military retirees.

Also, the board extends its appreciation to the Minister of Defence, retired Maj.-Gen Bashir Magashi, the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Lucky Irabor as well as the Service Chiefs for their constant support towards achieving its constitutional mandates.

The board would also like to thank our esteemed military retirees for their patience, understanding and continued support, he said.

Lawal pledged to ensure the payment of the fourth and final tranche of the arrears before the end of the year. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Benson Iziama/Buhari Bolaji

Source: NAN News

By Naomi Sharang

Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Ahmed Wase, says the All Progressives Congress (APC), is bridging the gaps created by its primaries by reconciling aggrieved members toward a victory in 2023 poll.
Wase said this when he visited Gov. Hope Uzodinma of Imo in Abuja on Thursday.

Deputy Speaker HoR Ahmed Wase with Gov. Hope Uzodinma of Imo

Deputy Speaker Ahmed Wase with Gov. Hope Uzodinma of Imo

He said that the APC was working to ensure victory at the 2023 General Elections by reconciling all aggrieved members.
We are working hard to ensure we bridge all gaps and win with all margins, he said.
Wase also faulted propaganda by the opposition Peoples Democratic party (PDP)saying that the APC was unperturbed by the partys noise.
They are only making a mountain out of molehill so that they could sell their party.
There is nothing to worry about, he said.
Speaking, Uzodinma expressed concerns over security challenges across the country, assuring that the government would not rest on its oars until the challenges were over.
Every stakeholder is concerned. The insecurity in Nigeria is not peculiar to the country.
It is global. But we are taking particular interest in Nigeria because we are directly involved.
Part of it is national and it is also political, because the opposition has not seen any other thing to blame our government for, he said.
The governor said that the federal government was doing well in many sectors.
What the PDP think they can do now is to destabilise the polity. We are doing our best because they have nothing at stake.
We are interested in the welfare and the development of the country.
We are interested on how our citizens are protected, we are also interested in ensuring that relative security is guaranteed in the country.

We will do our best to stop those agents that want to destabilise the country to ensure they dont have their way, Uzodinma said.(NAN) ( (www.nannews.ng )

Edited by Bashir Rabe Mani/Ali Baba-Inuwa

Source: NAN News

By Angela Atabo

The Public Administration and Management Development Institute (PAMDI) has pledged to entrench the culture of accountability in Nigerians for sustainable wealth creation and economic transformation of the country.

Dr Elijah Ogboukiri, Director-General, PAMDI said this at the institutes pre-national conference briefing in Abuja on Thursday.

Ogboukiri said that the two-day national conference with the theme Accountability and Good Governance as Potent Instruments for Wealth Creation and Economic Transformation in Nigeria would hold from Aug. 11 to Aug.12.

According to him, Nigerias development is not properly managed for sustainable wealth creation because of people who cut corners and engage in corruption while citizens sit back and say nothing.

Our development is not being managed by those who are supposed to be responsible, people who are supposed to build roads dont do it with integrity and nobody is asking qustions.

We carefully crafted the theme for the conference because we think that the things that are missing in our society that is taking us backward is accountability and good governance.

Things are designed to work but we do not allow them work;people do something without consequence management.

So we are reminding ourselves and the public that accountability not only in government but even in our individual lives and private businesses matter, he said.

Ogboukiri said that Nigerians ran their personnel businesses without record because they do not feel accountable to anyone and nobody could ask them questions.

The governors are given as much as N500million for security vote nobody accounts for it,eanwhile, there are people who served the states and are not being paid pension for 30 40,60 months.

This is because there is no accountability ,the money that is released from the federal purse what do they do with it? Nobody asks questions.

I am one of those who believe that we the governed have our own problem.

Before I will say Buhari did not do well did I ask my governor in my state, what he does, or what he has done with the money he has been getting?

That is why anybody comes and do whatever they like and they go away and they go to the Senate and sit down that is lack of accountability, he said.

Ogboukiri said that all the promises made during campaigns were never fulfilled because of lack of good governance and the people bear the brunt of it.

He encouraged Nigerians to learn to demand accountability from their leaders adding that most people do not demand it because they themselves were not clean.

Good governance cannot come in a country where there is no accountability, no consequence management, anybody can do anything and go.

So the institute is saying let us highlight and remind ourselves that the only way we can have wealth creation and economic development is through accountability and good governance there is no magic about it.

Because there is no trust in the society, we are deceiving each other and live in denial and everybody is suffering so the institute is looking at how it can addressed, he said.

He said that there would be paper presenters that would xtray these points because Nigerians needed to collectively learn to hold their leaders accountable and end the way people engage in corruption with impunity.

He said that airline operators would delay passengers for hours and all the passengers would get would be sorry adding that if Nigerians begin to demand accountably and take them to court, by the time they have 10 to 20 court cases, they would sit up.

So the lesson to Nigeria is that we are not developing at the rate we wish to develop because we dont hold our leaders accountable.

Come Aug.11and Aug. 12 the national confidence will hold at 9.a.m, at Elyrose Event Place,Ebeano Road by Gudu market Junction Abuja.

Nigerians will learn about collaborative innovations in governance, challenges in public admiration and how to tackle them, promoting public service, civic leadership among others, he said.

He said that Chief Okwesilieze Nwodo ,former governor of Enugu state would deliver the keynote address, while Prof. Ignatius Onimawo ,Prof Patrick Oviasuyi and Prof. Dahida Philip would also present papers at the conference .(NAN)(nannews.ng)

Edited by Ali Baba-Inuwa

Source: NAN News

By Stanley Nwanosike

The Enugu State Government has commenced an aggressive two weeks campaign on the natural and vast benefits of exclusive breastfeeding to babies, the nursing mothers and households.

Dr George Ugwu, the Executive Secretary of Enugu State Primary Health Care Development Agency (ENS-PHCDA), told newsmen in Enugu on Thursday that the campaign was being targeted on the family as the basic unit of the society

Breastfeeding is the balanced nutritional and health-immune milk food from the mother given to the child after few minutes of being delivered and continued Exclusively without water for the first six months of life.

Exclusive breastfeeding is the right of every child for the first six months of life; while it will continue with mixed light adult foods for an onward of two years of any childs life.

Ugwu said that there would be health education and talk in various health facilities on the benefits of exclusive breastfeeding as well as sustained media programmes in local languages on the campaign.

He said that the agency would be making numerous advocacy visits to religious and traditional leaders in the 17 local government areas in the state for them to be actively involved in the campaign.

He said, Within the two weeks, between Aug. 1 and Aug. 15, we are going to use town announcers (or town criers) in various communities to spread the good news of immense benefits of exclusive breastfeeding.

He said that the agency would embark on road shows within the metropolises of the state as part of the campaign.

The executive secretary said that once a baby is fed well through exclusive breastfeeding; his or her development would be rapid in terms of physical, mental and other perimeters.

For now, from all available research conducted, exclusive breastfeeding is the most natural and best for the baby in terms of his or her development.

The babys bonding with the mother and by extension the entire starts early and grows as the child mature further.

It also helps to immune the child and preventing dangerous diseases in adulthood for the child.

Exclusive breastfeeding also helps the mothers body and reproductive system to heal fast and return to normal; thus, making her healthier.

During the period of the exclusive breastfeeding, the mother has ample opportunity to learn more about her child mannerism, he said.

The executive secretary said that for the family, exclusive breastfeeding increases bonding, check monetary wastage on canned or processed foods and help the entire family eats more of healthy and nutritious local foods.

We are grateful to the health-loving governor of the state, His Excellency Gov. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, for his numerous supports to the agency as well as this aggressive exclusive breastfeeding campaign.

We also appreciate UNICEF, WHO and other international and local health partners for supporting the agency and by extension the state in its health delivery drive, he added.

The 2022 World Breastfeeding Week, which runs between Aug. 1 and Aug. 7, is themed: Step Up for Breastfeeding: Educate and Support, (NAN) ()

Edited by Julius Toba-Jegede

Source: NAN News

Quarterly net income from continuing operations declined to 360 million from 387 million in the preceding year.

The result was supported by a one-time tax benefit of more than 100 million due to the reversal of a prior year provision.

But revenues for the second quarter grew 10 per cent 5.596 billion from 5.077 billion last year.

Revenue growth in the second quarter was driven by Western markets despite last years lockdowns in Vietnam still reducing sales, particularly in Europe, the Middle East and Africa and North America, by 200 million in total.

In the second quarter, currency-neutral revenues increased 4 per cent. Adidas continued to see strong momentum in Western markets.

The company said in July that it cut its outlook for the 2022 financial year, reflecting slower recovery in Greater China and potential slowdown in other markets.

The company now expects currency-neutral revenues to grow at a mid to high single-digit rate in 2022.

Previously, this was expected at the lower end of the 11per cent -13 per cent range.

The company now projects annual net income from continuing operations to reach a level of around 1.3 billion.

Previously, it was expected at the lower end of the 1.8 billion to 1.9 billion range. (NAN) ()

Edited by Buhari Bolaji

Source: NAN News

Ehigimetor Igbaugba

A total of 187 candidates from 12 political parties are contesting for the 25 available seats in the Cross River House of Assembly for the 2023 general elections.

This was disclosed by Dr Cyril Omorogbe, Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) of the state at a news conference in Calabar.

He also disclosed that 11 political parties fielded 69 and 28 candidates for the eight House of Representatives seats and the three Senatorial seats respectively.

He said 11 political parties would fight for the governorship position,d adding that Cross River had 322,351 new registrants in the just concluded voters registration.

The total completed registration recorded in the State at the close of Continuous Voters Registration (CVR) is 322,351 as well as 58,305 voter transfers and 20,822 PVC replacements.

A total of 73 Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Voter Enrolment Device (VED) were deployed to the 19 Registration centres in Cross River State (i.e. the 18 LGA offices and the State office) during the exercise, he stated.

On Permanent Voters Card (PVCs) collection, Omorogbe said collection would continue in all the Local Government Area (LGAs) offices of the State, while 69,016 PVCs remained uncollected from 2011 to date.

He expressed egret that the collection rate of the PVCs was low, considering that it wass just six months to the general elections.

According to him, PVCs collection will continue in all the LGA offices. PVCs collection by owners was one of the services carried out by our staff alongside the CVR.

A total of 27,158 new PVCs were received by the State Commission in April for distribution to their owners but at the close of registration, only 3,897 were so far collected by voters, leaving an outstanding balance of 23,261

This set of PVCs is for people that registered from June to December 2021.

From the old PVCs that are left over from 2011 to 2018; we have on record 57,310 PVCs but only 11,555 have been collected by their owners during this period under review with an outstanding 45,755 which is still not collected.

While appealing for support from the political parties and their candidates ahead of elections, he urged the people to collect their PVCs.

I pledge that we will continue to work hard to deliver free, fair and credible elections come 2023, he stated.

INEC had fixed Feb. 25, 2023 for the Presidential and National Assembly Elections and March 11 2023 for Governorship and Assembly elections.

According to the schedule of activities for the general elections released by the commission, campaign is expected to commence on Sept. 28 and Oct. 12 for the Presidential/NASS and Governorship/ state Assembly elections respectively.(NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Benson Iziama/Idris Abdulrahman

Source: NAN News

By Sumaila Ogbaje

The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt.-Gen. Faruk Yahaya, has reiterated the commitment of the Nigerian Army to develop its capacity for the local production and procurement of needed military equipment.

Yahaya, represented by the Director of Training, Army Headquarters, Maj.-Gen. Oluyemi Olatoye, stated this at the Army War College Nigeria (AWCN) Symposium on the Nigerian Civil War 2022 on Wednesday, in Abuja.

The symposium has the theme: Defence Production and Defence Procurement in the Nigerian Civil War: Lessons for Operational Level Commanders.

He said that Nigeria had the sad experience of civil war that brought out valuable lessons that could contribute in addressing the current security challenges confronting the nation.

According to him, the contemporary security environment is volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous.

For any nation to adequately contain such an environment, it is necessary for the nation to develop capacity for defence production in order to drastically reduce dependence.

On defence procurement, this will afford the nation the capacity to design and produce equipment required to confront its own peculiar security challenge at any point in time.

The inadequacy and risks of overdependence on equipment procurement abroad was aptly brought out during the civil war and Nigeria had to go searching for weapons and equipment from all parts of the world.

This of course resulted in unnecessary prolongation of the crisis with attendant tolls on lives, property, and finances. In view of the information, he said.

The COAS said the civil war experience informed the inclusion of Nigerian Civil War study in the colleges curriculum.

This, according to him, is aimed at modelling and grooming the capacities of operational level leaders in basic military strategic thinking as well as operational planning.

He said the objective was to make them result oriented in the increasingly challenging security environment in the 21st century.

He emphasised the need for joint operations among services, adding that the no stakeholders or single actors by themselves would achieve the desired success.

He commended troops for their doggedness and resilience and assured them of adequate support at all times, stating that success would surely come in no distant future.

The Commandant, AWCN, Maj.-Gen. Bamidele Alabi, said the Nigerian civil war study was introduced to equip participant with the understanding of the battlefield events and operational outcomes.

Alabi said the Nigerian army had made giant strides towards entrenching research and development with a view to enhancing its capacity in the local production of its defence requirements.

He said the theme of the symposium was selected believing that it was the sure way of ensuring the attainment and sustainment of the COAS vision.

It is, therefore, envisaged that this symposium will generate arrays of views, opinions and suggestions that will contribute to the objectives of organising it.

It is also expected to further the efforts of the COAS towards enhancing the capacity of the Nigerian army in the local production of its defence requirements.

A resource person, Prof. Husseini Jibrin, a Senior Lecturer at the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), Kaduna, said that there was the need to use the historical knowledge to apply in their operational activity.

Jibrin said that a number of military officers were being deployed to different operational areas across the country to address the current security challenges confronting Nigeria and in international peacekeeping.

He said that understanding the history of Nigerian civil war would help participants to be able to apply the knowledge in their operational areas.

Also, Dr Joel Ebute, a Faculty Member and Research Fellow, AWCN, said the symposium was designed use the lessons learnt from the civil war to be able to enhance defence production in the current security situation.

He said that had remained inevitable in human history hence the need to prepare, adding that preparation involved defence production such as arms and ammunition.

(NAN) ()

Edited by Dorcas Jonah/Isaac Aregbesola

Source: NAN News

The management and members of staff of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) have expressed deep sorrow over the death of Pa Daniel Yatai who was gruesomely murdered by suspected bandits on Tuesday night.

The deceased was the father of Mr Philip Yatai, a Correspondent of the News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) in Kaduna State.

A statement issued by the Managing Director of NAN, Mr Buki Ponle, on Wednesday in Abuja, described the incident as tragic and a flagrant disdain for the sanctity of human life.

Ponle, who condoled with the family of Yatai on the death of its patriarch, urged the security agencies to bring to book the perpetrators of the heinous act.

He prayed for the repose of the soul of the deceased, and also prayed to God to give the family members the fortitude to bear the loss.

NAN reports that Yatais niece, Brenda, and Mr Amos Magbon, the Rector of Federal School of Statistics, Manchok, Kaduna State, were also abducted in Kaura Local Government of Area of Kaduna State.

NAN further reports that the deceased was an 86-year-old who retired in 1991 from the Nigeria Railway Corporation. (NAN)

(Edited by Mufutau Ojo)

Source: NAN News