Flowerbud News

Month: November 2023

  • Appeal Court sacks Kaduna Speaker, orders rerun in 5 polling units

    Appeal Court sacks Kaduna Speaker, orders rerun in 5 polling units

    The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja has sacked the Speaker of the Kaduna State House of Assembly, Hon. Yusuf Dahiru Liman of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

     

    Liman was a member representing Makera Constituency in Kaduna South Local Government Area.

    The Court also ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to withdraw the certificate of Return given to the speaker and conduct fresh elections in 5 polling units.

     

    Hon. Solomon Katuka of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had filed a petition before the tribunal challenging the election of the Speaker, Hon. Yusuf Dahiru Liman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) representing Makera Constituency in the Kaduna State House of Assembly.

     

    Katuka said that there were gross irregularities regarding the election of the Speaker and insisted that he won the election.

     

    The Tribunal had in September, nullified the election of the Speaker and ordered a rerun in 42 polling units in 5 Wards.

     

    However; the Speaker, the APC and INEC appealed against the judgment of the tribunal and Solomon Katuka of the PDP filed a cross-appeal seeking an outright declaration.

     

    The three-member panel led by Justice I. O Adejumo, Justice A. O Oyetula, and Justice P. A Obiora in a unanimous decision quashed the decision of the tribunal ordering a rerun in 42 polling units.

     

    The Appeal Court granted the prayers of the PDP candidate, Hon. Solomon Katuka, and ordered a rerun in 5 polling units in the constituency

  • CSO trains 50 youths on halting cyber-facilitated GBV

    CSO trains 50 youths on halting cyber-facilitated GBV

     

    Abuja: A civil society organisation (CSO), Sustainable Gender Action Initiative (SGAI), has trained no fewer than 50 youths on checking cyber-facilitated sexual and gender based violence (CFSGBV).

    The Executive Director of SGAI, Mufuliat Fijabi, in her welcome address, said the participants were selected across the country through their call for application online.

    She said the importance of the training was to educate the youths more on issues of CFSGBV.
    She said SGAI, in conjunction with Voice of Women Empowerment Foundation, collaborated to increase an advocacy about the occurrence of the menace in the society.

    “Before now there has been a lot of concerns about Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV) but not so much attention has been given to those acts of SGBV committed within the cyber space.

    “It is important to speak about it in line with the ongoing 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence which is an annual celebration from 25th of November to 10th of December,” she said.

    Fiji, while sharing a personal experience, said on Jan. 4, she had similar encounter.

    (A cross section of participants at a capacity building on cyber-facilitated sexual and gender based violence organised on Monday in Abuja.)

    “I experienced a cyber attack. I was intimidated.
    “People started calling me from different parts of the world because somebody; a woman, managed to entre my Whatsup account,” she said

    Fijabi, who said she was able to block and retrieve the account through the police intervention, said the capacity building was imperative because many Nigerians were not ICT-compliant.

    The Chief Executive Officer of Voice of Women Empowerment Foundation, Toun Okewale-Sonaiya, said the aim of the training was to make the youths the vanguard and advocate against CFSGBV.
    She said different stakeholders were also invited to continue to be the lead organisations to ensure the menace was well managed, ensure access to justice for survivals and ensure adequate punishment for perpetrators.
    Isah Abdulkarim, the Chief Intelligent Officer, National Agency For The Prohibition Of Trafficking In Persons (NAPTIP), described CFSGBV as “any act that is commited or amplified using digital tools or technologies which cause physical, sexual, psychological, social, political or economic harm to people.”
    Abdulkarim, therefore, gave some tips on how to maintain cyber hygiene, which include “the use of complex passwords, change of passwords for one’s accounts periodically and ensure never to use same password for different accounts, keeping your system updated.
    “Scrutinise emails properly before clicking to open them, use social media with caution, avoid using public WiFi networks as much as possible, keep visitors away from your main network, use corporate email account (i.e email with a .gov.ng domain) for official purpose and protect your systems with anti-virus.”
    The officer, who said sextortion was a form of CFSGBV, said where one’s “nude picture is online, the picture should be sent to https://takeitdown.ncmec.org/, and it will be taken down.”

    He said his office recently set up NAPTIP Cyber Security Response Team to work in conjunction with the Federal Ministry of Justice with a view to arrest and prosecute culprits of CFSGBV cases reported to the agency.

    Yewande Gbola-Awope, Head of SGBV Response Unit, Federal.Minustry of Justice, said the unit, which was created in 2021 and began its full operations in 2022, had been facilitating sub-national and national issues on access to justice for gender-based violence in the country.

    She said the ministry does capacity building for judicial officers, investigators, prosecutors, directors of public prosecution, commissioners of justice and commissioners of police across the 36 states, including FCT on gender-based violence.

    Mr Henry Uche, Commissioner of Police and Director National Cybercrime Centre, said the police had put in place strategies and measures to help in the fight against the menace and many arrest had been made while culprits were facing prosecution.(NAN)(www.nannews.ng) / Flowerbudnews)

  • Breaking: Tinubu presents 2024 budget Wednesday

    Breaking: Tinubu presents 2024 budget Wednesday

    Barring any last-minute changes, President Bola Tinubu will, on Wednesday, present the 2024 budget to a joint session of the National Assembly.

    Details later

  • Breaking: Protests rock Kano, environs Over Appeal Court Judgement

    Breaking: Protests rock Kano, environs Over Appeal Court Judgement

     

     

    By Aminu Garko
    Kano:  Protests erupted in Kano city and its environs on Monday afternoon with the demonstrators denouncing the recent judgment of the Court Appeal that sacked the state Governor, Abba Yusuf.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that uneasy calm pervaded the state capital following a contradictory Certified True Copy of Appeal Court that affirmed the prayers of both the appellant and the respondent in the contentious Kano governorship, though the judiciary had since cleared the air.

    In what appeared like a coordinated action on Monday, huge crowd of protesters had stormed strategic positions in the city as it visited temporary hiccups on commercial activities.

    Kano- Zaria road, Maiduguri road by Muhammadu Buhari’s interchange, and Kantin Kwari (Kano textile market) were taken over by hundreds of youths who called for justice for Abba Yusuf.

    The placard reads “Kano my city my state”, “Justice for Kano”, ” Justice for Abba”, “Abba’s mandate was stolen in 2019, we will not allow it happen in 2023”.

    The protest came on the heels of discovery by the Police that “some faceless group are bent on unleashing violence in Kano”, stressing that the police were on top of the situation.

    Cp Hussaini Gumel told newsmen in Kano on Monday that already 7 suspects had been arrested and would be arraigned soon.

    CP Gumel revealed that “we have the understanding with the leadership of the contending political parties, and they have signed a peace pact, in view of that therefore, any one found outside this arrangement will be treated as common criminal”.

    However, normalcy had since returned to the ancient city following the peaceful protest that lasted several hours. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)/ Flowerbudnews
    Edited by Idris Abdulrahman

  • Nigerian Free Trade Zones are Not Free, They are Biz Anchorages Fetching FG Revenue – NEPZA Boss

    Nigerian Free Trade Zones are Not Free, They are Biz Anchorages Fetching FG Revenue – NEPZA Boss

     

    By Biola Lawal

    Abuja (Flowerbudnews): The Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA) says the country’s Free Trade Zones are business anchorages that are generating revenues for the Federal Government.

    Dr Olufemi Ogunyemi, the Managing Director of the Authority who made the remark on Monday in Abuja, said the widely held notions that the scheme was a `free meal ticket’ for the investors thereby denying government revenues were incorrect.

    This was disclosed in a statement by Martins Odeh (Ph.D), Head, Corporate Communications, NEPZA, a copy of which was made to Flowerbudnews on Monday.

    Ogunyemi said that the public clarification was essential to correct the misunderstanding by various individuals and entities, in and out of government, on the nature of the scheme.

    Ogunyemi, also the Chief Executive Officer of NEPZA, said the Authority was more than ever prepared to enhance public knowledge on the principal reason for the country’s adoption of the scheme by the NEPZA Act 63 of 1992.

    He further explained that a policy shift on the operations of the scheme might hurt the economy badly, adding that the incentives and waivers enjoyed by the investors were backed by law.

    “The Free Trade Zones are not hot spots for revenue generation, rather they exist to support the social-economic development which include but not limited to industrialization; infrastructure development; employment generation; skills acquisition; foreign exchange earnings as well as inflows of Foreign Direct Investments,’’ Dr Ogunyemi said.

    The NEPZA’s managing director also said: “The NEPZA Act provides exemption from all federal, state, and local governments taxes, rates, levies, and charges for FZE, of which duty and VAT are part.

    “However, goods and services exported into Nigeria attract duty, which includes VAT and other charges. In addition, NEPZA collects over 20 types of revenues ranging from 500,000 USD-Declaration fees, 60,000 USD Operation License (OPL) Renewal Fees between three and five years.

    “There is also the 100-300 USD Examination and Documentation fees per transaction which occurs on a daily basis. There are other periodic revenues derived from Vehicle Registration, Visa among others. The operations within the free trade zones are not free in the context of the word.’’

    Ogunyemi reiterated that the global business space had contracted significantly, adding that to win a sizable space would require the ingenuity of the government to either expand or maintain the promised incentives.

    “These incentives, coupled with NEPZA’s streamlined approval processes and investor-friendly policies, will encourage more multinational corporations and local investors to leverage on scheme which has a cumulative investment valued at 30 billion USD.

    “The scheme has indeed caused an influx of FDIs; it has also brought in advanced technologies, managerial expertise, and access to global markets. For instance, the 52 FTZs with 612 enterprises have and will continue to facilitate the creation of numerous direct and indirect jobs, currently estimated to be within the region of 170,000,’’ Dr Ogunyemi said.

    According to him, the scheme should be seen as a tool for economic and social security as skilled, semi-skilled, and unskilled citizens are continually lifted above the poverty levels through its employment channels and infrastructure development across

    Furthermore, the managing director however stated that: “as we approach the first quarter of the 21st Century, we might want to consider dropping the misleading word `free’ from the title.’’

    He said an adjustment in title and introduction of current global business practices would greatly advance the scheme with an ever increasing forward and backward linkages with a greater market offered by the Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCTA).

    “We have commenced negotiations across the board to ensure that the NEPZA Act is amended to give room for the adjustment of the scheme’s title from `Free Trade Zones to Special Economic Zones respectively. This will open up the system for the benefit of all citizens,”he said. (Flowerbudnews)

     

  • Over 1,000 Ulamas pray for Tinubu, Kwankwaso in Kano

    Over 1,000 Ulamas pray for Tinubu, Kwankwaso in Kano

     

    By Aminu Garko
    Kano:   More than 1,000 Islamic clerics have offered special prayers for President Bola Tinubu and the NNPP National Leader, Sen. Rabiu Kwankwaso, for peace, progress and political stability in the country.

    Rep. Abdulmumin Kofa (NNPP-Kiru/Bebeji), who hosted the clerics at Kiru, prayed for the success of Gov. Kabir Yusuf of Kano State at the Supreme Court.

    This is contained in a statement issued by the lawmaker’s Media Aide, Malam Sani Paki, on Monday in Kano.

    During the prayer session, the clerics recited the holy Qur’an 1,101 times and prayed for peace, progress and political stability in the country, the statement said.

    In his brief remarks at the event, Kofa said his relationship with Tinubu is no secret, it stated.
    He explained that Kwankwaso is his mentor and would continue to support and promote harmonious relationship between Tinubu and Kwankwaso.

    Kofa said the NNPP is a very promising party and still opened to collaboration, alliance and merger with the APC and even with the PDP, LP or any other party that showed interest, so long as it is for the good of Nigerians.

    He also promised to deploy his modest political network to reach out to gladiators in Kano politics towards resolving all resolvable issues and to de-escalate the current tension in the state as a result of the Kano governorship seat.

    Also, after the prayer session, the legislator hosted 5,000 primary school kids across his constituency, as he often does, and provided them with school kits.

    Kofa assured the pupils of the good plans of the federal and state governments, especially on free education and school feeding programmes, according to the statement. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng) / Flowerbudnews

  • Edo deputy Gov, Shaibu formally declares interest in 2024 governorship

    Edo deputy Gov, Shaibu formally declares interest in 2024 governorship

    The Edo State Deputy Governor, Comrade Philip Shaibu, on Monday formally declared his intention to contest the 2024 Edo governorship election under the banner of Peoples’ Democratic (PDP).

     

    Shaibu, in the early morning declaration, alluded to his political travails in the last couple of months, especially, and declared that he remained unbowed even as he forged ahead against the unfavourable disposition of his principal, Governor Godwin Obaseki.

     

    The declaration event which was earlier scheduled to take place at Eterno Hotels, GRA, Benin, was shifted late Sunday night when information flittered in that one of the Governor Obaseki’s support groups, “Obaseki ending well”, also scheduled an event at the same venue for 7.30 pm on Monday. The development forced Shaibu to look for an alternative venue and he chose the sacred ground of a Catholic church in Benin City, the state capital.

    Addressing his supporters at the Bishop Kelly Pastoral Central, the new venue the deputy governor secured, Shaibu said that despite his present predicament, his antecedents in the struggle for democracy were parts of the propelling factors for him to move on to actualize his ambition.

     

    Describing himself as “100 percent Home Boy”, an allusion to the clamour that the next governor of the state must be someone who knows the state very well, and not someone imported, a veiled reference to the touted candidate of Governor Obaseki, Shaibu hinged his campaign on five pillars that include: infrastructural development, economic diversification, Education, Sports.

     

    Others are Skills development and job creation, healthcare, social welfare system, agriculture, rural development, poverty alleviation, environmental sustainability, and transparent governance.

    He said while working closely with Governor Godwin Obaseki in the past seven years, a solid foundation for progress had been laid in the state.

     

    “Under our administration, we have seen remarkable achievements and milestones, but there is still much work to be done. I am aware of the need by the greater Edo people for a more inclusive government, a government of the Edo people, by the Edo people, and for the Edo people.

     

    He reiterated that his administration would be “A government of individuals who have been there and know the pains and wishes of an average Edolite”

     

    Shaibu maintained that under his supervision, the state Internally Generated Revenue (IGR), grew impressively, which he attributed to the introduction of digital and cutting-edge ideas.

     

    “Back in the day, you didn’t just call me “Mr Constituency Project” for nothing. In my time as a legislator, I delivered 49 constituency projects at the state level and 13 solid constituency projects within my short stint at the federal level.

     

    “I have fought the good fight for you my people, Along the way, suffered humiliations and enjoyed many moments of victory but I am thankful in all things. I have been pressed but not crushed, persecuted but not abandoned, badly hurt but not destroyed. I resonate with the tireless and irrepressible Spirit of the Edo People. By the grace of God, nothing and no one can stop us. After all, I be original Edo son; your 100 percent home boy.

     

    “This is why today, I stand before you with great conviction and resolve, as I declare my intention to run for the office of the governor of Edo State under the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the upcoming 2024 election”, he declared.

  • FG plans full autonomy for varsities

    FG plans full autonomy for varsities

    President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has indicated that the Federal Government is considering reintroducing the Policy of University Full Autonomy to promote progress and minimize external impediments.

    This decision is consistent with the government’s belief that university autonomy allows institutions to develop at their own pace.

     

    Tinubu expressed confidence in the proposed strategy while speaking through the Minister of Niger Delta Development, Engineer Abubakar Momoh, during the University of Benin’s 48th convocation event over the weekend.

    University autonomy will no doubt, transfer the responsibility of performance directly to the individual institutions rather than the current state of uncertainties,” he said.

     

    In his speech, the President highlighted university employees’ concerns about unpaid salaries.

     

    He announced a four-month wage payment for all university employees to ameliorate the problem.

    Furthermore, Tinubu pledged to keep the government’s commitment to improving university circumstances by providing critical facilities like lecture theatres, student hostels, administrative offices, and learning tools.

     

    These facilities, established through the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), are meant to incentivize staff and students to achieve success.

     

    Tinubu pledged, “As a responsible government, we would continue to dedicate tangible resources to education and to formulate sustainable policies that would outlive this administration.

    Our universities have the multiple responsibilities of helping to expand horizons through research and technological breakthroughs, impartation of relevant skills and by being more entrepreneurial in outlook

  • Lecturers shortage hits varsities, ASUU blames japa, IPPIS

    Lecturers shortage hits varsities, ASUU blames japa, IPPIS

    Universities in Nigeria are facing a severe staff crisis as hundreds of teachers leave to seek greener pastures in foreign countries despite a high number of retirements at the varsities.

    In separate interviews with newsmen on Sunday, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) chapters corroborated this, saying the scarcity was caused by a surge in lecturers leaving Nigeria and concerns about the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System.

     

    ASUU at Usmanu Danfodiyo University in Sokoto said about 100 teachers had departed, while the union at the Federal University of Gusau in Zamfara said the institution needed about 1,000 academics to cover the gaps left by those who had left.

     

    The union at the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Ogun State, said the institution had over 350 academic vacancies, while 27 lecturers left two faculties at the University of Lagos and 100 workers at the University of Uyo fled the country.

     

    According to the union, there are over 500 academic openings at the University of Ilorin in Kwara State, and both academic and non-academic workers at the Olusegun Agagu University of Science and Technology are fleeing the country.

     

    Dr. Rotimi Olorunsola, Chairman of the union in Olusegun Agagu University of Science and Technology in Okitipupa, Ondo State, stated that many of the university’s workers, both academic and non-academic, had gone.