INEC Chairman, Mahmood Yakubu

By Emmanuel Oloniruha

Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, has advised staff members of the commission participating in the Saturday Ondo Governorship election to consolidate on the INECs recent achievement by accounting for every single vote cast in the election.

Yakubu, gave the advice in his message on the election, issued on Monday in Abuja.

The INEC boss recalled that on the eve of the Edo State Governorship election, he appealed to the hardworking staff members of the Commission to rise to the occasion and deliver a free, fair and credible process in accordance with INEC established policy.

Indeed, our staff members, assisted by the security agencies and other critical stakeholders, did not spare any effort in ensuring the successful conduct of the election.

Clearly, Nigerians and friends of Nigeria are pleased with the outcome and we are encouraged by their commendations.

However, we cannot afford to rest on our oars.

Another end-of-tenure Governorship election is upon us. There is now an even higher expectation on Ondo State.

We must consolidate on our recent achievement and account for every single vote cast on Oct. 10, in a transparent manner which will ensure that only the choice of the electorate prevails.

Yakubu urged all staff members to resist any temptation and be committed to the vision and mission of INEC in carrying out their duties during the election.

I implore all of you to resist any form of temptation and let your individual actions be guided by the extant laws and good conscience.

Always remember that any unethical action by one INEC official is capable of rubbing off on all of us.

Remain vigilant, principled and committed to the mission and vision of the Commission, Yakubu said.(NAN)

Source: NAN News

Nigerias Senate under Ahmed Lawan

By Naomi Sharang

The Senate says it is committed to expeditious passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) just as it is also committed to the passage of the 2021 budget estimate of N13. 08 trillion.

The Chairman, Senate Committee on Media and Publicity, Sen. Ajibola Basiru, made this known while reacting to the 2021 budget estimate presented to the National Assembly.

While also reacting to a report by a foreign medium that the upper chamber was suspending work on the Bill until next year because of the budget, Basiru said this is not true.

This is not true because the bill is central even to the realisation of revenue and putting our oil in competitive international market.

On Oct. 20, the bill will enter second reading after which it will be sent to the relevant committees of the Senate, that is committees on upstream and downstream sector.

So that as work is being done on the 2021 appropriation, work will be done at the same time on the PIB.

On the 2021 appropriation, Basiru said, we will make sure that copies of the presented budget are made available to senators latest by Monday.

So that on Tuesday, the senators will take turns to discuss the principle of the budget and make their views and comments known publicly before it is sent to the relevant committee under the coordination of appropriation committee.

While speaking to newsmen on the proposed budget, Sen. Obinna Ogba (PDP-Ebonyi), said, Im very happy the way Mr President had spoken.

The way he has directed the ministers, the MDAs for them to come and defend their budget.

This is because why budgets have been delayed most of the time is because the ministers and MDAs find it difficult to defend their budget.

He called on the executive to find ways of tackling revenue leakages in MDAs for the country to thrive economically.

The country needs to do something about it not that the country does not have revenue but these revenues go down the drain.

What they account for in the country is not actually what is generated.

Efforts should be made that all monies generated should go directly to the federation account.

Also Sen. Yusuf Yusuf (APC-Taraba), said that the budget presentation was a usual routine.

It is a usual routine but every year we do this but like Mr President has emphasised that this time, is a very challenging budget.

You know we have a high amount of deficit and then our revenue is not commensurate with our expectation.

We have the COVID-19 challenge and so many other challenges this time that we have to contend with.

But I am pleased that we are all determined by the MDAs, by the National Assembly itself, that we are going to work round the clock to make sure we give Nigeria the budget that can be sustained, that can provide better value for the Nigerian people, he said.(NAN)

Source: NAN News

Super Eagles full squad in Austria training camp

By Emmanuel Afonne

Super Eagles management have dismissed reports in some quarters that some of the players in the teams Austria camp have tested positive for COVID-19.

Some sections of the media had reported on Thursday that four players of the Super Eagles tested positive for the deadly COVID-19 and had to undergo another round of testing.

But Media Officer of the Super Eagles, Toyin Ibitoye, expressed dismay over such reports, noting that results of the tests carried out on the players on Thursday were being awaited as at the time of this report.

He wondered how the players can test positive for the virus without result of their tests.

Ibitoye said that such reports could negatively affect the players ahead of the teams international friendly against Algeria on Friday.

Please discountenance reports that some of our players tested positive to COVID-19 ahead of tomorrows friendly game against Algeria. It is blatant falsehood.

The writer of the story, who was not part of the press conference earlier today totally misrepresented what Coach Rohr said.

Rohr said that since the outbreak of the pandemic, four of our players had tested positive, but were all now fully recovered from the virus and back in action.

The results of the COVID-19 tests carried out on the Super Eagles ahead of tomorrows game are still being awaited, he added.

Meanwhile, organisers of the Nigeria-Algeria match have changed the venue of the encounter.

The match was earlier scheduled to take place at the Jacques Lemmans Arena in Austrian state of Carinthia,which contains only 2,420 spectators, but has now been moved to Worthersee Stadium in Klagenfurt, with 30,000 seating capacity.

No reason was given for the change in match venue.

NAN reports that the Super Eagles trained only ones on Thursday ahead of the clash against the Desert Foxes of Algeria scheduled to kick-off by 7:30 p.m. Nigerian time on Friday.

The team is expected to lock horns with their Tunisian counterparts on Oct. 13. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

Nigeria Women Football League action

By Ijeoma Okigbo

The Nigeria Women Football League (NWFL), says it will soon make it mandatory for only financially buoyant clubs to feature in the league.

Faith Ben-Anuge, the leagues Chief Operating Officer, made the remarks in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja, against the backdrop of compulsory licensing of clubs initiated by the Federal Government.

The reclassification agenda of sports from recreation to business by the Ministry of Youth and Sports Development accommodates the issue of club licensing- which is concerned with welfare of players.

We, in the NWFL under the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) are working towards that initiative.

We have written to various clubs, letting them know that when they come for documentation ahead of the new season, we would like to know how they have fared over the years.

This includes level of indebtedness and profits. We want to ensure that the clubs can offset their bills in the coming season.

The clubs may not like this but it is better for us if we have fewer clubs in the league who are willing to comply, she said.

She told NAN that the league would ensure that clubs are consistent.

Football requires continuity. We dont want to have clubs that come in and out of season.

Clubs should be able to make long and short term plans. They should be able to source for sponsorships and more.

We are also trying to see how we can help them. When the money FIFA promised gets to us, we will use it judiciously to help the clubs.

We know that some of these clubs are promising and we will be more than willing to help them.

We want to see the rise of more clubs, more female participation in football but what is of more concern is players welfare.

When players welfare is settled, you get the best of them and the league itself becomes better, Ben-Anuge said. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

IGP approves 7,500 youths for community policing in Zamfara

The Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mohammed Adamu, has approved the recruitment of 7,500 youths by Zamfara Government to serve as special constabularies for community policing in their respective areas.

The state Commissioner of Police, Alhaji Usman Nagogo, disclosed this while addressing the first batch of the recruited youths in Gusau on Thursday.

Nagogo said that out of the number, 3,850 youths had been screened by the police as the first batch.

We are transporting them to Police Training Colleges in Sokoto and Kaduna states for a two-month training, after which they would return to the state in December, and after their return, we are going to send another batch for training.

All the successful candidates had been earlier selected by important personalities from their respective communities.

If we recall, last year, the IGP had launched community policing to involve members of the general public in securing their communities, Nagogo said.

According to him, Zamfara is the first state across the country to launch the programme with the highest number of members.

After their two-month training, we are hoping to see changes as regard to addressing security challenges in the state, he explained.

He urged the recruits to be good ambassadors of Zamfara state and Nigeria in general, saying that the police would not tolerate laxity, corruption or any relationship with bandits.

Speaking on behalf of the state government, the state Commissioner for Information, Alhaji Sulaiman Tunau, said the recruitment was part of the Gov. Bello Matawalle-led administrations measure to address security challenges.

According to him, the youths, whose monthly salaries will be paid by the state government, are to be recruited across the 14 Local Government Areas of the state.

Apart from supporting government in tackling insecurity, the measures would also help in providing employment opportunities for the teeming youths in the state, he said.

Source: NAN News

APC logo

By Emmanuel Mogbede

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has expressed confidence that the National Assembly will consolidate its patriotic disposition by speedily considering and passing of the 2021 Appropriation Bill.

The APC expressed the confidence in a statement issued by Mr Yekini Nabena, its Deputy National Publicity Secretary, on Thursday in Abuja while congratulating President Muhammadu Buhari for presenting the proposed budget to the National Assembly.

The APC welcomes President Buharis presentation of the proposed 2021 National Budget aptly tagged; Budget of Economic Recovery and Resilience to a joint session of the 9th National Assembly.

We are confident that the 9th National Assembly will continue and consolidate its patriotic disposition by speedily considering and passing of the 2021 Appropriation Bill, he said.

He added that the early passage of the bill would enable government to start its implementation by Jan. 1, 2021, as canvassed by President Buhari.

Nabena, however, said that President Buharis administration was not oblivious of the perseverance and continued support Nigerians had displayed in these difficult times.

He noted that the times were made difficult by the outbreak of the global COVID-19 pandemic and the crash in oil prices which had affected national revenue and individual livelihoods.

The APC spokesman added that it was, however, commendable that the Federal Government had not been found wanting in its resolve to cushion the biting effects on the citizenry.

This, he said, government was doing while delivering on key policies, programmes and critical infrastructure projects which included the ongoing national railway project, and the second Niger Bridge.

According to him, these are among other critical projects that are positively impacting our national lives.

In the face of dwindling national resources, President Buhari in his 2021 budget presentation speech has committed to intensify measures to address revenue leakages, he said.

He noted that the president had also redirected scarce resources to the poor and vulnerable.

He added that the Federal Government was doing this through deregulation of the price of petroleum products, continued verification exercise with the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) and implementation of service based electricity tariffs.

He urged members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to show patriotism by supporting governments intentions on the IPPIS especially.

He also appealed to the union to end the ongoing strike to enable students to resume school.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) had earlier approved a budget estimate of N13.08 trillion for the 2021 fiscal year.

The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, after the Sept. 30, FEC meeting, had said the proposal was designed to enable the country to attain inclusive growth.

The budget assumptions that were presented to the council today include: crude oil price benchmark at per barrel; oil production at 1.86 million barrels per day; exchange rate of N379 to ; Gross Domestic Product growth target of three per cent; and inflation rate of 11.95 per cent, she said.

The minister said the proposal was aimed at stimulating the economy, creating jobs, enhancing growth, creating infrastructural investment, and promoting manufacturing and local production.(NAN)

Source: NAN News

Dr Muda Yusuf LCCI Boss

By Rukayat Moisemhe

The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has commended President Muhammadu Buhari for the early presentation of the 2021 budget estimates to the National Assembly for passage.

The chamber said the move was a demonstration of the current administrations commitment to sustaining the return to January December budget cycle.

Dr Muda Yusuf, Director-General, LCCI said these in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Lagos.

NAN reports that the president had presented a budget of N13.08 trillion to the National Assembly.

Yusuf also commended the National Assembly for its commitment to passage of the budget before the end of the year.

He said the budget assumptions were generally okay and reasonably conservative.

According to him, the emphasis on completion of ongoing projects is laudable.

He said that the projections would save the country from the recurring incidence of abandoned projects which currently litter the country.

Yusuf, however, said that the revenue projections seemed quite optimistic, with regard to revenue performance over the last few years.

We have witnessed large negative variances in revenue targets over the last few years.

This poses a risk of bigger deficits than projected.

The ballooning recurrent expenditure and debt service is a cause for concern.

The combination of these two line items exceeds the total revenue expected.

The implication is that the entire capital budget would be funded from borrowing.

This, therefore is a cause for concern, Yusuf said. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

NEPZA Board Chairman

By Emmanuella Anokam

The Federal Government has appointed Alhaji Adamu Fanda, a former member House of Representative from Kano State as Board Chairman of the Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA) with effect from Sept. 26.

The appointment was in a memo with file number FMIT/LEG/1426/17 dated Oct. 6, signed by Dr Nasir Sani-Gwarzo, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment.

A statement released by Mr Martins Odeh, the Head, Corporate Communications, NEPZA on Thursday in Abuja said Fandas appointment was sequel to the ministrys request.

The request was through the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation to President Muhammadu Buhari on July 23 for the replacement of Mr Segun Oni who formerly held the position.

Meanwhile, the Managing Director of NEPZA, Prof. Adesoji Adesugba has commended the president for the prompt manner in which Fanda was appointed, adding that the NEPZA team was now complete.

Adesugba said the appointment of the new chairman was indicative of Buharis commitment to ensuring that NEPZA got a fresh breath of life.

According to him, Fanda has the requisite exposure, experience and credentials to help in the revitalisation process of the agency.

I am grateful to the President for the appointment of Alhaji Adamu Fanda as NEPZA board chairman.

This shows the presidents commitment towards ensuring that the Authority is not hindered in any way while performing its task of growing the economy through free trade zone development.

We are elated with this development as Fandas coming has made our team complete.

The management and staff of the authority will not hesitate to team up with our new chairman to fast track the impact of free trade zone scheme on the countrys economy, the NEPZA boss said.

Adesugba also expressed delight over the many interventions of the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr Adeniyi Adebayo made to stabilise NEPZA.

He said that the appointment of a new board chairman for the authority was geared toward giving the agency a full operation status.(NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Abujah Racheal

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) says each state in the country now has molecular diagnostic capacity for free COVID-19 testing.

The centres Director-General, Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu, made this known at the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 briefing in Abuja on Thursday.

Ihekweazu said this was one of therecent achievements in the Nigerias response to the pandemic.

Starting from just two laboratories in January, all states,plus FCT, now have at least one laboratory for free COVID-19 testing in the country.

We are pleased to announce the inclusion of the Niger State Public Health Laboratory, Minna, to the NCDC Molecular Laboratory Network.

In eight months, we have activated at least one laboratory for COVID-19 testing in all 36statesin the country, he said.

Ihekweazu also said that samples would no longer be transferred from different parts of the country to a particular centre, as states now have their own laboratories.

With 69 Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR), 22 GeneXpertand 17 private laboratories for COVID-19 in Nigeria, testing opportunities is now closer to the people.

Its now up to the public healthcare work force to utilise them to full potential and raise more awareness on their importance in the response, he said.

The director-general said that two new antigen-based rapid test kits were recently given for emergency use, licencedby the World Health Organisation (WHO) for COVID-19 response in three countries.

They both have limitations as well as benefits, but wont replace the PCR tests.

Were working to define the context of their usage, he said.

According to him, the two test kits have a shorter turnaround time and can help public health workers to initiate immediate health response.

Ihekweazu said digital surveillance tools had been activated in local government areas of the country, airports, points of entries and land bordersto help improve the surveillance of vivid and other diseases.

Meanwhile, the director-general announced the untimely death of Mr Uche Njoku, a Logistic expert with the NCDC, who was shot by unknown gunmen while on an official trip.

He commiserated with his family and all frontline workers on the painful loss of Njoku.

We also wish other workers in the vehicle that were injured a quick recovery.

This incident underscores the danger that frontline workers face in the course of fighting the virus on our behalf.

We urge all Nigerians to continue to pray for the safety of all frontline workers and their families, he said.

Source: NAN News

Committee of Wives of Lagos State Officials (COWLSO)

By Florence Onuegbu

The Committee of Wives of Lagos State Officials (COWLSO) on Thursday charged women to explore and take advantage of the opportunities that the new world, occasioned by COVID-19, has brought.

The Chairman of COWLSO, Mrs Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu, gave the charge in Alausa, Ikeja during the pre-event news briefing of the Committee of Wives of Lagos State Officials 20th National Womens Conference.

Sanwo-Olu, who is the wife of the Lagos State governor, said that there was the need to take advantage of the new world as COVID-19 had practically changed life as it used to be.

She said that the nations of the world were in the New Normal and the New Realities in all spheres of human endeavours.

According to her, in order to take advantage of the new world, the 20th Annual National Womens Conference will be dwelling on the theme: Exploring the Possibilities in a New World.

This year, we have again selected a theme geared toward equipping participants with the skills and information to cope and stay above board in these interesting times.

These are times when the world is contending with unplanned, unanticipated and unprecedented health crisis in human existence COVID-19 Pandemic.

As it is the tradition of the conference to strategically empower women to contribute positively to the development of the state and Nigeria at large.

This years theme was carefully selected in line with the New Normal that is now the order of the day.

COVID-19 has practically changed life as we used to know it. We now have the New Normal and the New Realities in all spheres of human endeavour.

As a proactive organisation, COWLSO is already thinking post-COVID where women can explore possibilities in a new world and take good advantage of an unprecedented crisis, she said.

The governors wife said that the conference would be held from Wednesday, Oct. 14, to Thursday, Oct. 15, physically and virtually, in line with safety protocols put in place to curb the spread of global COVID-19 pandemic.

She said that there would be minimal number of dignitaries, resource persons and participants at the physical venue at Eko Hotels and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos, from where activities of the conference would be beamed live to the public.

The programme would be streamed live on www.lagosonline.tv and www.COWLSO.org.ng, Twitter handle @followlasg and @WeAreCowlso, Facebook www.facebook.com/followlasg, @WeAreCowlso and @OfficeOfLagosStateFirstLady, Instagram @WeAreCowlso and YouTube/Google YouTube.com/lasgpage.

The COWLSO chairman said that about 6,000 participants were expected to attend the virtual conference, compared to 3,000 that participated in 2019.

She said that the registration fee had been reduced from N50,000 to N10,000 to give opportunity for robust participation.

Mrs Sanwo-Olu said that Nigerias First Lady, Mrs Aisha Buhari, would declare the conference open, while the Governor of Osun State, Mr Gboyega Oyetola, would be the Special Guest of Honour.

Some of the topics to be discussed include: The Womans Physical and Mental Health; Legal Rights of Women: Inheritance, Widows, Gender Quality in the Workplace and Divorce; and Investment Opportunities and Wealth Building for Todays Woman.

The topics also include Promoting Family Unit as the Bedrock of the Society; Opportunities and Importance of Agriculture, Digital Technology and Social Media; Environmental Sanitation