Electricity power station

By Constance Athekame

The Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) says it is working with stakeholders to restore power supply to Bwari and environs.

The Management of AEDC, in a statement in Abuja on Tuesday, said that the power outage, currently being experienced in Bwari and environs, was due to technical fault on the feeder serving the area.

The management of AEDC wishes to notify its esteemed customers in Abuja, Bwari Town, Ushafa Town, Dutse, Jigo, Kuduru, Kuchiko, Bmuko, Garam, Kogo., Veritas University and environs that the power outage they are currently experiencing is due to a technical fault on the feeder serving their areas.

All responsible stakeholders are currently working hard to restore the power supply soonest, it said.

The company said that it regret any inconveniences caused by the outrage. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

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Edited by Vincent Obi

Source: NAN News

Some of the children with special needs

Parents, teachers and the burden of children with special needs

By Aderogba George, News Agency of Nigeria

As the world marks the 2023 World Down Syndrome Day, many parents are encumbered with how to tackle the challenges of children with special needs.

According the United Nations (UN) estimates that globally the incidence of Down syndrome is between 1 in 1,000 to 1 in 1,100 live births worldwide

A UN report furthers says that yearly, approximately 3,000 to 5,000 children are born with this chromosome disorder.

It is against this background that in December 2011, the UN General Assembly declared that with effect from March 21 it will mark the World Down Syndrome Day.

The aim is to raise public awareness of Down syndrome and galvanise international organisations, governments and the civil society to address the challenges of those suffering from the syndrome.

The joy of every parent is to see his/her child compete favorably with other children either in school, sporting activities or any other activities that could make them feel fulfilled.

Teachers on the other hand derive satisfaction in putting in their best to ensure they do not only meet the expectations of parents but also bring out the best in the child.

Teachers unlike parents are usually saddled with the responsibility of seeing the needs of children and being able to tackle such pronto.

This is why children with special challenges or children with special needs are often at the receiving end of parents getting to understand their plight and the appropriate measure to address such need.

Children with such special needs include; Down syndrome, Autism, Cerebral palsy and learning disability which are categorised as neuro-divergent children, while the non-challenged are neuro-typical children.

The confusion of where to place these children with such challenges is often a recurring decimal among parents, who lack the requisite sensitivity to understand how to address such needs with the necessary school environment.

Mr Philip Akpa, Chairman, Parents Teachers Progressive Forum, Safehost International Academic, Kurudu, Abuja said some proprietresses have taken up such challenges of creating the right environment to meet the social and educational needs of such children.

He said instead of locking up their children with special needs in rooms, parents should find the appropriate place that could help confront such challenges develop mentally and academically.

Akpa, said Safehost International Academy is one of the schools addressing the need by providing the right atmosphere for the children to compete with other children in the conventional school.

He said the proprietress thought it wise to have a school where children with neuro-divergent childrens needs could particularly melt.

According to him, the children are taught according to their needs, adding that the idea was to encourage inclusiveness, including the deaf and dumb and other disabilities.

There are courses for you, there are sign languages that they teach them there and other languages they communicate with these children and they understand, he said.

He enjoined parents to always ensure that experts handled their wards with special needs.

Ngozi Belolisa, Executive Director of the school, the society should embrace advocacy and inclusiveness for children with special needs.

Advocacy is talking about what the typical children can do and what the divergent children can do vis-a-vis with their strength and what they can handle, she said.

Some of the school had always encouraged the students to take sports as they help to develop their mental abilities.

The synchronisation of sporting activities in the school is actually deliberate, this is to help them to retain, as they are learning they are looking, Belolisa said.

Mrs Biboara Yinkere, Convener of the Engraced Ones, an NGO, that caters for children with special needs said with the right education and parenting, such children could become productive members of the society.

Yinkere, who is also the Director of School of Grace, a special needs school and the Gracelane Miracle Inclusive School, also in Kurudu, said she disability should not be seen as an encumbrance to productivity.

People with disabilities can thrive, we know of the Paralympians in Nigeria that are doing very well. Here, the neuro-typical children are brought together in a bid to help strengthen their resolve.

We also bring them together to foster friendship, to break down the wall of discrimination and segregation, she said.

The Federal Government said it is aware of the plight of children with special needs and will do everything it can to help them develop into citizens that will contribute their quota to the development of the country.

Now more than ever, we need to come together to support each other, and remember our most vulnerable populations, Malam Muhammad Musa the minister of Federal Capital Territory, FCT said.

He spoke during a visit to Brain Bloom Centre, Abuja which is dedicated to the care of children with special needs.

As the world once again marks this years edition of the day of down syndrome, experts urge the authorities and every stakeholder to match words with action and fast-track efforts towards making life more enjoyable and meaning for children with special needs. (NANFeatures) (www.nannews.ng)

**If used please credit the writer and News Agency of Nigeria.

Source: NAN News

By Taiye Olayemi

Chellaz Schools on Monday celebrated Mothering Sunday, commending mothers for their efforts toward societal development and nation building.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Mothering Sunday is usually celebrated every March 19 every year.

It is a celebration honouring the mothers of the family, motherhood, maternal bonds as well as their influence on the society.

Speaking during the celebration in Lagos, Mrs Adenike Johnson, Proprietress of the school, said mothers have been able to position themselves as great pillars of support to their wards.

She appreciated their various contributions to the growth of their children which are rubbing off positively on societal development.

She advised mothers on healthy living and regular checkup as they advance in age.

We want to appreciate our mothers, here present. You have been great sources of inspiration to these children and we appreciate this as a school that is interested in raising healthy and responsible children.

We appreciate your timely response to their needs.

I want us to pay attention to healthy living and take regular checkup seriously. We all need these so that we can keep being healthy to raise these children as well as enjoy our health, she said.

Also, Mrs Modupe Lawal, one of the parents, urged mothers to always cultivate the habit of making their children their confidants.
Lawal spoke on the need for mothers to communicate, effectively, with their children which also entailed giving absolute attention to them while they speak.

She commended the school for the systematic way in which knowledge and discipline were instilled on the pupils.

Lawal also advised the school management on ensuring the children were taught the African culture of respect.

Another parent, Mrs Arinola Fowowe, a businesswoman, advised mothers not to relent in their responsibility of engaging their wards on sex education early enough.

Fowowe noted that this would guide them against molestation so as not to truncate their bright future. (NAN) (nannews.ng)

Edited by Olawunmi Ashafa

Source: NAN News

Sumaila Ogbaje

Arise Monalisa Foundation (AMF) an NGO, says all is set to celebrate female entrepreneurs, who are breaking forth in a male dominated industry from diverse fields, to mark the 2023 International Womens Day.

Founder of AMF, Monalisa Chinda, who said this in a statement on Monday in Abuja, added that the foundation would be celebrating achievements and contributions of women to the country development.

Chinda said that other activities planned for the celebration of the IWD included reaching out to the less privileged ones and equally celebrating men folks who supported women agenda.

She said that the foundation had rolled out an event Tagged Equity versus Equality, Redefining Gender Roles, to celebrate the history of women in the society.

According to her, the event which will take place on Sunday, March 26, is billed to celebrate 2023 IWD, and also Womens History Month.

She said with the sub theme Embracing Equity (Empower One Woman Empower Generations), preceding the event was a Green Carpet session, followed by the main event at the Envoy Hotel Abuja.

Highlights of the event will include Networking Session, Charity Event, and Product Showcase and services.

This significant occasion will be celebrating female entrepreneurs from diverse fields who are breaking forth in a male dominated industry.

However, theres a twist to this remarkable event as it will also celebrate male folks, she said.

According to her, the foundation will also be celebrating men who have embraced their feminism sides and are proudly strutting their stuff in otherwise female dominated industries.

And, at the end of this event, we will be reaching out to the less privileged ones.

We are banking on the support of the friends and stakeholders of the foundation to donate food items, money, clothing, books and anything that you have that you are no longer using, she said.

Chinda said that IWD had occurred for well over a century, with the first IWD gathering in 1911 supported by over a million people.

acco4ding to her, today, IWD belongs to all groups collectively everywhere. IWD is not country, group or organisation specific.

Arise Monalisa Foundation is a not-for-profit organisation founded by veteran multi award-winning actress, TV Show Host and Humanist, Monalisa Chinda.

Its mission is to inspire hope, promote creativity and create opportunities. It has over the years, actively worked in association with other well-meaning organisations to provide empowerment initiatives for indigent women, youths and children in Nigeria.(NAN) ()

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Edited by Isaac Aregbesola

Source: NAN News

By Thompson Yamput

Six persons are allegedly feared missing when unknown gunmen attacked six Hummer Buses carrying INEC officials in Kogi in the early hours of Sunday.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports on Sunday that the incident, which occurred around 2 a.m of March 19 at Abajana, left several officials with gun shot wounds including policemen and drivers.

The six missing persons include two serving NYSC corps members and four ex- youth corps members.

The injured persons are already on admission at the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), now Federal University Teaching Hospital, Lokoja.

Mr Salisu Ibrahim, one of the bus drivers, who was shot on his right leg, and recuperating at the hospital, told NAN that the attackers took them by surprise.

We were on our way back to Lokoja from Abujor RAC with the results of the House of Assembly election held there, when we were attacked by some people.

All the six buses moving in a convoy were attacked and in the process many of us sustained injuries.

Thank God, none of us died in the process but I learnt some youth corps members are missing during the attack on us this early morning, Ibrahim narrated.

Mr Dare Owofadaju, a youth corps member who was shot on his left thigh, said: It is only God that kept us alive considering the way and manner the gunmen attacked us.

Owofadaju said that the election was conducted peacefully and counting was completed, and it was when we were returning to Lokoja that we were attacked at Abajana.

Thank God some security operatives came to our rescue and rushed those of us injured to this Federal University Teaching Hospital Lokoja for immediate treatment, he narrated.

NAN also gathered that the Commander, Headquarters Command Army Records (CAR), Maj-Gen. Sunday Igbinomwanhia, Kogi INEC REC, Dr Hale Longpet, and the Kogi NYSC Coordinator, Mrs Mofoluwaso Williams, have visited the injured in the hospital.

The REC and the state NYSC coordinator declined to respond to NAN enquiries on the incident.

But the Spokesman of Kogi Police Command, SP Williams Ovye-Aya, confirmed the incident, saying that the police was on top of the situation.

We are aware of the sad incident and preparing to issue a statement on the attack, he said. (NAN)

Edited by Benson Iziama/Muhammad Suleiman Tola

Source: NAN News

Gov. Seyi Makinde of Oyo State

By David Adeoye
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared Gov. Seyi Makinde of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as winner of the March 18 governorship election in Oyo State.

Prof. Adebayo Bamire, the State Returning Officer, also the Vice-Chancellor, Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, made the declaration on Sunday at the INEC State Headquarters in Ibadan.

Makinde floored his closet rival, a serving Senator, Teslim Folarin of the All Progressives Congress (APC), having won in 31 local government areas of the state, leaving only two to his opponents.

Bamire declared that Makinde polled 563,756 votes to defeat his closest rival, Folarin, who scored 256,685 votes.

The Returning Officer, declaring the final results, said, Seyi Makinde having polled the highest number of votes in the election, was returned elected as Governor of Oyo State.

He, also, said that the candidate of Accord, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, came third with 38,357 votes.

While Makinde won in 31 local government areas, Folarin won in Irepo and Orelope Local Governments.

In his reactions, Makinde said he was overwhelmed.

He, therefore, thanked the people of the state for the confidence reposed in his administration.

Makinde also thanked his friends, political associates and everyone that supported his aspiration in one way or the other.

He promised to work harder for the people of the state in his second tenure.

NAN reports that 16 registered political parties contested the governorship election in the state, some of the candidates, however, dropped their ambition few days to the election, to align with either of the three main contenders.

The margin of defeat is 307,071 votes.(NAN)

Edited by Olagoke Olatoye

Source: NAN News

Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) logo

By Lucy Ogalue

The Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), says many African countries are struggling to meet the continents development goals due to the impact of severe and mutually reinforcing shocks.

Mr Adam Elhiraika, ECAs Director, Macroeconomic Policy Division, in a statement said the continent encountered severe developmental challenges due to increased poverty, high inequality rates and lack of decent jobs.

Elhiraika said that the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ukrainian war and resultant food and energy crisis, rising inflation, debt tightening, and natural disasters were critical factors to the challenge.

The director said this while presenting an overview of recent Economic and Social Conditions in Africa at the ongoing meeting of experts.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the meeting was held to herald the 2023 Conference of African Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development in Ethiopia.

According to the Report, growth in Africa dwindled from 4.6 per cent in 2021 to 3.6 per cent in 2022.

In 2022, an additional 18 million new poor emerged in Africa, with more than half the highest proportion of the worlds poor at 54.8 per cent.

This is alarming because 546 million people were living in poverty in 2022, which is more than half of the continents population, Elhiraika said.

According to the director, women and girls remain particularly vulnerable, and the continent is facing a potential reversal of the hard-won gains made on gender equity.

He said another challenge stressed during the meeting was inequality which remained pervasive across all African sub-regions and was exceptionally high in Southern Africa.

Among the top ten countries where wealth inequality is the highest, seven of them, South Africa, Mozambique, Namibia, Zambia, Botswana, Angola and Malawi, are in Southern Africa.

While two are in west Africa, Guinea-Bissau, and Sao Tome.

ECA estimates that although the economic outlook remains bleak, Africa is anticipated to grow by 3.9 per cent in 2023, he said.

Elhiraika said the commission had cautioned that the growth might experience headwinds.

Especially with an unfavourable external environment created by the recession in both the United States and the Eurozone and expected to weigh on commodity prices, he said.

Fostering recovery and transformation in Africa to reduce inequalities and vulnerabilities is the theme of the ongoing meeting in Addis Ababa.

At the meeting, countries were urged to pursue pro-poor and inclusive macroeconomic policies and ensure access to affordable and innovative finance for an inclusive recovery. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

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Edited by Ese E. Eniola Williams

Source: NAN News

By Itohan Abara-Laserian/Stellamaris Ashinze and Millicent Ifeanyichukwu

A member of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Mr Temitope Adewale, representing Ifako-Ijaiye Constituency 01, has identified orientation as a means of curbing voter apathy in the country.

Adewale, who was seeking re-election, gave the advice on Saturday against the backdrop of the governorship and house of assembly elections and the poor turnout recorded during the exercise.

According to him, a lot of youths still fail to understand the full import of the elections.

I have also realised that it is on the election day that we have our youth doing their own inter-house sports, that is when they decide to play football on the street.

You know, it is a Saturday and you will be surprised that most of them do not even have Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs), so they are not engineered to go out and vote, he said.

Adewale stressed the need for more enlightenment of such youth on the reasons why they have to exercise their franchise.

He also expressed displeasure that the actual people that turned out to vote was a far cry from the number of PVCs collected in Lagos.

It is saddening because it is less than 10 per cent; movingforward, we need to continue to orientate our youth to get them involved in carrying outtheir civic responsibility, he said.

Adewale also berated the propagation of ethnicity and religious bigotry by some people during elections, saying these had no place in politics.

We should focus on what can be delivered in terms of the dividends of democracy to the people rather than going to religion and everything, he said, while also kicking againstpromoting the ethnic card.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the polls witnessed low turn out in many areas of the state. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Oluwole Sogunle

Source: NAN News

By Ismaila Chafe

President Muhammadu Buhari has cast his vote at polling unit 003, Sarkin Yara A in Daura, Katsina State, with a call to electorate to vote for their preferred candidates even if politicians tried to offer them money.

The president, who briefly spoke to newsmen both in English and Hausa languages after casting his vote on Saturday, said his administration had been preaching against vote-buying and monetisation of politics, calling on politicians to desist from such acts.

If they (politicians) still give you money, collect, but vote for your preferred candidates, Buhari maintained.
He again thanked the electorate for trusting the All Progressive Congress (APC) in the Feb. 25 Presidential and National Assembly elections where the partys candidate, Sen. Bola Tinubu, emerged winner.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the president, who cast his vote at about 9.55 a.m, refused to openly display his ballot paper as he did during the Feb. 25 Presidential election. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Salif Atojoko

Source: NAN News

By Rotimi Ijikanmi

The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed has described the 2023 polls as one of the most transparent and credible ever held in the country.

The minister said this on Saturday in his home town, Oro, near Ilorin Kwara while speaking with newsmen after casting his vote in the Governorship and State Assembly election.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the minister voted at about 9.45 a.m. at Polling Unit 006, Oro Ward 2 in Irepodun Local Government Area of Kwara.

Justifying his assertion, the minister saidthe introduction of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) was a game changer in tackling the issues of multiple accreditations, voting and rigging.

With what I have observed both in the February 25 and todays elections, there has been a remarkable improvement in the performance of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)

Without any doubt, the introduction of BVAS has been a game changer in the sense that with BVAS, you are able to get the actual number of people who are accredited.

Also with BVAS, it is now not possible for you to vote twice because your biometric and facial are captured.

That explained why though INEC said there were 84 million voters in Nigeria, the last election showed that only about 24 million people cast their votes, he said.

The minister said, in spite of the obvious improvements in the electoral process, he was worried about the red herring that trailed the outcomes of the Feb. 25 Presidential and National Assemblies elections.

He said most of the issues being raised about the credibility of INEC in conducting the polls were distractive.

According to the minister, the electoral law does not recognises electronic voting while the decision of a federal high court in Abuja gives INEC the power to determine the manner it collates and transmits election results.

Mohammed said he was happy that some of the aggrieved parties in the concluded elections had approached the court to ventilate their grievances.

He, however, berated the activities of some non-state actors making analysis and propositions which he said were incendiary and injurious to the harmonious and peaceful co-existence of Nigeria.

The minister said the activities of some Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) had also been very unhelpful because many of them came out to unjustifiably discredit INEC and set one ethnic and religion against the other

He said the media should also be circumspect of what they report on the elections and must show professionalism in discharge of their duties.

What we noticed is that some media houses had taken position for one candidate and this makes rubbish of most of the analysis we see on their platforms, he said.

The minister said the regulators of the media, particularly the broadcast media were doing their best by issuing warnings and fines where applicable.

He said many of the broadcast stations that were fined had refused to comply and pay up but dared the regulator.

He said the intention of the broadcast stations was to provoke the regulator to shut down their stations and by so doing labeling the government of stifling press freedom.

The minister assured that the regulators would not rest on their oars in the discharge of their constitutional duty of ensuring that the right things were done in the media industry. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Ese E. Eniola Williams

Source: NAN News