Flowerbud News

Blog

  • Olakunri’s Death: Leaders must weigh their utterances – Presidency

    Olakunri’s Death: Leaders must weigh their utterances – Presidency

    By Ismaila Chafe

    The Presidency on Monday cautioned leaders in the country to be mindful of their utterances and its potential consequences following the unfortunate killing of the daughter of Afenifere leader, Pa Reuben Fasoranti.

    Mrs Funke Olakunri was killed on Friday on the Kajola-Ore road in Ondo State by those the police described as “armed robbers.”

    A statement by the President’s Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Malam Garba Shehu issued in Abuja, warned against politicizing the tragic death of Olakunri.

    ”It is incumbent on all leaders across the country to consider their language and its potential consequences.

    ”Insecurity is an issue that Nigeria must face together as one nation – united.

    ”Times of tragedy like these are not the time for politics. It reveals only disrespect for the departed and her family.

    ”And we hope that those who stand in positions of influence recognise and understand this,” the statement said.

    It added that President Muhammadu Buhari had already issued a statement expressing his heartfelt condolences to the family of Mrs Funke Olakunri and followed up with a telephone call.

    ”The Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo has in addition, paid a visit to the grieving family in Akure, Ondo State.

    ”Her death is a tragedy. Our thoughts and prayers are with her family.” the statement added.


  • Banditry: Buratai pledges to support Zamfara govt on peace move

    The Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai, has pledged that the Nigerian Army will support the effort of Zamfara State Government to end banditry in the state and other parts of the country.
    Buratai made the pledge when the Governor of Zamfara, Dr Bello Matawalle, paid him a courtesy visit at the Army Headquarters on Wednesday in Abuja.
    He said that the army had achieved a lot of successes in their operations against banditry in the state and other parts of the country through collaboration with other security agencies.
    He said that in as much as the army believed in dialogue in crisis situations, the dialogue and peace effort must be holistic.
    Buratai said the army believes in dialogue with the bandits, adding that the use of force only becomes necessary if all other options have failed.
    According to him, there must be deradicalisation, there must be deindoctrination and disarmament of the repentant bandits.
    “We are quite interested in the security situation in Zamfara state and more so the democratic process that is managed by the governor.
    “We are 100 per cent in support of whatever the civil administration decide towards bringing about peace and security in our country.
    “We have remained apolitical and indeed the military is an instrument of the state for it to achieve the state objectives in bringing peace and development to the country.
    “Let me say that the political direction is key and the great leadership trait that you have exhibited.
    “Today, major success has been achieved and we are ready to go along with the step you have taken to dialogue and to ensure that the peace process does not fail.
    “Definitely as I said it is a collective effort.
    “Just about two days ago, the combined troops of the military including the police and the state services went from Zamfara into Katsina state to flush out these bandits and over 170 of them were either neutralised or captured or absconded from their camps.
    “This is one of the pressures that the army has  put on the criminals that have forced them to look for the dialogue option,” he said.
    According to Buratai, I want to say that the dialogue option must be comprehensive, there must be disarmament which is quite fundamental and also the issue of release of captives which is ongoing and you have started.
    He pledged that the army would support the government to ensure complete disarmament and deradicalisation and other political process that the government would undertake.
    He said that the army would also support other states that were facing the issue of banditry especially Sokoto, Katsina, Kaduna and Niger.
    Earlier, Gov. Matawalle said he came to show appreciation to the army chief for the effort of the army to flush out banditry activities in the state.
    He said the army commanders in the state had given the government the necessary support to address the security challenge in the state.
    The governor said that the government had recorded successes through the initiative of dialogue it had adopted, adding that, he believed that dialogue was the best option.
    He said that banditry in Zamfara had reduced by over 90 per cent, adding that the effort of the military made the bandits to opt for dialogue.
    According to him, the bandits told us that they would not have embraced peace if the army was not giving them too mush trouble.

    “So we agreed that army should reduce attack on them so that they can come out.
    “We have secured the release of over 120 captives including foreign nationals and arrangement is on ground to release another 25 captives including women and children.”
    Matawalle urged the Chief of Army Staff to direct all the sector commanders in the state on the need to key into the dialogue option of the government .
    He said that his government was ready to cooperate with the military to end banditry in the state, pledging that logistic supports such as vehicles would be made available to the army.
    He expressed his desire to return Zamfara to its peaceful state status and restore its lost glory. (NAN)

  • Nigerian pilgrims begin movement from Madinah to Makkah, Thursday – NAHCON

    The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) has contracted the transportation of 35,000 Nigerian pilgrims from Madinah to Makkah to a Madinah-based transport company, Hafil.

    The Commission’s Coordinator for the 2019 Hajj in Madinah, Alhaji Ahmed Maigari, announced this to journalists while inspecting the buses (Ankai 2019/2020 model) on Wednesday in Madinah.

    He said the vehicles had all it takes to give the pilgrims the comfort they needed, adding that they contained refrigerator, wi-fi and toilets among other facilities.

    Maigari said the transportation would begin with 3,801 pilgrims from Katsina and Lagos States with a repeat on Friday with the two states.

    Earlier, the Manager, Madinah branch of the transporting company, Talal Sheriff, assured the commission that Hafil “is 100 per cent ready to convey the pilgrims to Makkah with all the comfort attached’’.

    Later, Maigari told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that 9,735 pilgrims have so far been transported from Nigeria by air to Madinah as at Wednesday with Zamfara being the latest state to arrive in Madinah.

    The transportation of pilgrims from Nigeria started with Katsina State on July 10. (NAN)

  • ECOWAS Parliament To Find Lasting Solutions To Humanitarian Crisis In Mali

    The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Parliament said on Tuesday that it would find lasting solutions to the humanitarian crisis in Mali and the entire sub-region.

    The Speaker of ECOWAS Parliament, Moustapha Cisse Lo, said this when he led a delegation of parliamentarians on a fact-finding mission to Mopti and Bamako in Mali.

    The mission was to know the situation of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the area.

    Cisse Lo, also called on the Malian authorities to intensify its efforts in fostering peace and reconciliation among state actors to end the deadly attacks on it’s citizen.

    “This situation has informed the decision by the ECOWAS Parliament to conduct a fact finding mission to Mali to review the condition of the internally displaced, especially those in Mopti and Bamako.

    “The visit is aimed at creating an opportunity to express the Parliament’s solidarity with the Malian authorities following the large numbers of victims of terrorist attacks and communal clashes, most recently the one in Ogossagou (the Mopti region in Mali) in which almost two hundred people were killed.

    “Mali has been experiencing security challenges since March 2012, following a military coup by separatists and terrorists groups who occupied over two thirds of the country for almost one year.

    “For the ECOWAS Parliament, the representative Assembly of the people of the Community, the plight of the vulnerable population groups, including the internally displaced in Mali, has been a constant source of concern,” he said.

    Cisse Lo, however, gave an assurance that appropriate actions would be taken to come up lasting solutions to humanitarian crisis in the sub-region.

    News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that since the beginning of 2019, there has been an upsurge in insecurity in central Mali where recent deadly terrorist attacks and communal conflicts have triggered a new wave of displaced persons.

    However, Minister of Health, Mali, Mr Michel Sidibe, said that the situation was quite serious, adding that the government was making concerted efforts to ensure peace in the country.

    He said that the conflict had displaced more than 50,000 people in the region alone.

    ”These displaced people have been moving around and do not know where to go, so we have established camps for assistance, they can have access to shelter, water, food, health and also a temporary school so that children can have something to learn during this period.
    “But most of the people here want to go back home, they don’t want to stay here but I am so happy that the ECOWAS Parliament is here to help in the fostering of peace and reconciliation.
    “We believe that because we are one people from the same region and country, so we cannot be divided.

    ”I think the health situation is a very difficult one because for most of the people, access is a major problem, so what we have been trying to do is to position eight million CFA to make sure those people suffering will have access to health aid especially the children,” he said
    Sidibe, however, said that the Malian government had already begun working to bring together parties to lead the fora for reconciliation and peace building especially between the Fulani and Dogon tribes in the region. (NAN)

  • Farmers-Herders Conflicts: Miyetti Allah Seeks CAN Collaboration On Solutions

    Leaders of Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) have called for the collaboration of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in uniting the different religious groups in the country for peaceful resolution of the farmers-herders’ conflicts.

    The National Secretary of MACBAN, Baba Ngelzarma, made the call in his remark during the delegation of the association’s courtesy visit to the National leadership of CAN on Wednesday in Abuja.

    Ngelzarma said that the cattle breeders association sought partnership with CAN to demonstrate its desire toward peace and mutual resolution of the lingering conflicts.

    “MACBAN wishes to request the partnership of CAN in uniting the different religious groups in the country for peaceful resolution of the farmers-herders conflicts.

    “We should unite against hatred and support all government initiatives toward solving the conflict.”

    He said that MACBAN acknowledged the increasing tension between farmers and its members in the last five years due to scarcity of pasture over grazing reserve as a result of climate change.

    Ngelzarma said that MACBAN was duly aware of the effort by the Federal Government in conjunction with state governors to address the farmers-herders conflicts through the 10-year National Livestock Transformation Plan (NLTP) 2019 to 2028.

    He said that the association had embraced the plan fully and had already trained her national and state executives on negotiation, peace building and conflicts prevention in preparation for the plan.

    The national secretary said that MACBAN recognised the need to partner government to modernise livestock production as proposed in the NLTP.

    “We believe the 10 years plan will guarantee efficient time for pastoralists to learn new techniques of Livestock production.

    “MACBAN will require that government implements the plan as designed in order to assist the pastoralists through proper extension services and training over the plan period to properly learn how to manage livestock efficiently.

    “Both MACBAN and the umbrella body of farmers, AFAN, benefited in training organised by the Presidency on peace-building and conflict resolution.

    Ngelzarma said that MACBAN also looked forward to more engagement with CAN as a body and other stakeholders in the Nigerian project.

    “We seek the cooperation of CAN to be part of our National Campaign to reorient our youth to fear the Almighty, inculcate values of hardwork, empathy and being our brothers keeper irrespective of their faith.”

    He said that pastoralists had lived peacefully for ages with different nationalities and had learned to resolve their quarrels peacefully.

    He, however, noted that the media were making it look like the pastoralists were perpetually at war with other communities.

    “Like all other communities we have our bad eggs and we have not relented in fishing them out all across the country.

    “We have been to Ebonyi, Ekiti, Enugu, Katsina, Oyo and now Zamfara to assist in resolving conflicts with our members.

    “We are grateful with the level of understanding and cooperation we have received from the state governments in resolving some of these security issues.”

    He said that as part of effort to address the farmers-herders conflicts, MACBAN had resolved to embark on a number of stakeholder engagements which it began with the leadership of CAN.

    The engagements according to him include a summit that would involve people from all walks of live as well as multiple engagements with the media at various levels across the country.

    Ngelzarma, who condemned the killing of Mrs Funke Olakunri, the daughter of Pa Reuben Fasoranti, the leader of the Yoruba socio-cultural group, Afenifere, urged Nigerians to desist from politicising the killing.

    He also urged Nigerians to desist from dressing it in ethnic garb and allow the security to do its work.

    “We are also reaffirming our call on the Police and other security agencies to do all they can to get to the root of this dastardly killing and ensure diligent prosecution of any individual or group found to have had a hand in the incident.”

    Ngelzarma said that MACBAN as a responsible association did not condone criminals and criminalities within or outside the association but ever willing to assist the security in ensuring peace reigned.

    He  denied the allegation on the social media  that the association donated N3 billion to a candidate of a political party in Akwa Ibom in exchange for the establishment of cattle colonies in the state.

    In his response, the National Chairman of CAN, Rev. Supo Ayokunle, urged all Nigerians to be prayerful for the plan of the devil for the country not to be achieved.

    “I will urge all of us to be prayerful because I see the devil at work, provoking men to do things that are very odd, things that for years ago you cannot think can happen in Nigeria.

    “Devil is at work and it will make us to be fighting ourselves. If we are not careful we with not be able to chase him out.

    “It is with our collectivity that we can chase the devil away.”

    Ayokunlec commended MACBAN for the call for collaboration, pledging that CAN would discuss the proposal and get back to the association.

    “We have received your move with appreciation, we will sit down articulate it to be well informed on all these proposal you have raised,” he said.

    Also at the event was the National President of MACBAN, Muhammadu Kirowa, and other national leaders of both CAN and MACBAN. (NAN)

  • NDLEA Nabs 52 Suspected Drugs Trafficking In Niger State

    The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Niger Command, has arrested 52 suspected drug traffickers across the state with substances suspected to be cannabis sativa and psychotropic drugs.

    The Commander of the agency in the state, Mrs Sylvia Egwunwoke, told News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Minna on Tuesday, that the arrests were made in the first half of year 2019.

    “We have so far succeeded in convicting 27 persons while the remaining cases are pending at the courts.

    “The agency will not relent in frustrating the activities of drug peddlers and traffickers in the state, and the nation at large,” Egwunwoke said.

    She appealed to the public to always report any suspicious activity or individual to relevant authorities to enable the agency to rid the state of drug trafficking and its attendant crimes.

    ”We have reached out to traditional and religious leaders to mobilise residents to volunteer information on those engaging in illegal drug business in their neighbourhood,” the commander said. (NAN)
    AAG/AOS
    ========
    Edited by Bayo Sekoni and Olisa Ifeajika

  • FG To Empower Youth Through Trans-National Border Markets — Perm Sec

    The Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, has reiterated the commitment of the Federal Government to empower the youth through the establishment of the Trans-national border markets across the country.

    The Permanent Secretary, Mr Edet Akpan, disclosed this during a meeting with officials of Niger State Government and other relevant stakeholders on Babaana Trans-National Border market in Abuja.

    The Babaana Trans-national border market is a noble project which when completed will help in achieving many national policy goals as well as regional and international goals such as Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

    A statement issued by Mr brahim Haruna, Deputy Director, Press and Public Relations Unit, on Wednesday in Abuja said the project when completed would bring about benefits to the national policy objectives.

    Akpan listed the benefits to include job creation, wealth creation and integration of Nigerian economy to regional markets.

    He further stated that the benefits of transnational border and regional markets included mainstreaming the informal trade into the national economy, reduction of the incidence of smuggling across borders, encouraging promotion of clusters of trade and services.

    According to him, trans-national border trade will enhance the role of trade in regional integration, poverty alleviation, wealth creation and generation of employment in the border communities and source of revenue generation to government.

    The Emir of Borgu, Niger state, Alhaji Sani Muhammed Dantoro, represented by the Waziri of Borgu, Alhaji Nuhu Saadu, stated that the project would create wealth for his entire community and improve inter trade relationship with border communities.

    Dantoro assured the government of the emirate’s unflinching support for the realisation of the project at Babaana in Borgu Emirate Council, Niger State.

    The Emir prayed for God’s intervention in bringing lasting peace to the country.

    Also speaking, Mrs Caroline Adepoju, Assistant Comptroller-General, Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) expressed commitment of the NIS to ensure security within the service’s statutory roles and strengthen the prosperity by providing efficient and visa services to the people.

    Adepoju solicited for the support of the technical committee to provide the service with necessary facilities to ensure its role at the trans-border markets.

    The Trans-National Border market is a place where more than one nation trade their goods and services for mutual benefits of each country.

    The basic facilities expected to be in the border and regional markets among others include warehouses, Banking, Insurance and Lock-up shops.

    Others include Bureau de change, Hotels/Motels, Restaurants, Parking lots, Mechanic workshops, security posts, Customs/Immigration posts, petrol service station, Fire service station, medical Centre, administrative block of the market among others.

    It would be recalled that the Technical committee   which was constituted in 2008  by the Ministry for the establishment of trans National border and regional market in Nigeria identified visible markets for development in the Six Geo-Political zones.

    The blue print also identified the roles of the three tiers of government for the success of the six transnational border and regional markets, while the ministry is to provide the legal framework, enabling environment and administrative guidance for the projects. (NAN)

  • Cost Of Elections Operations, Logistics, Enormous — INEC

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has described the cost of operations and logistics in the country as enormous.
    INEC National Commissioner and Chairman of the Board of The Electoral Institute, Mr Solomon Shoyebi, said that the Commission would continues to review the cost  of elections.
     
    A statement issued by INEC Director of Voter Education and Publicity, Oluwole Osaze-Uzzi, quoted Shoyebi as making the assertion at a one-day round table held on Wednesday in Abuja.
    The theme of the roundtable according to the statement is: “Revisiting the Template for INEC’s Election Operations and Logistics Plan’’.
    It was organised by the Commission through its Training, Research and Documentation outfit, the Electoral Institute (TEI).
    Shoyebi said ‘’the cost of election operation and logistics is enormous and it’s an exercise the Commission continues to review from one election to another.”
    He added that the Commission would continue to partner stakeholders in the delivery of men and election materials to areas with difficult terrain.
    The stakeholders according to Shoyebi include the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Road Transport Employers’ Association of Nigeria (RTEAN), National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO), Nigeria Air Force (NAF) and the Nigeria Navy (NN).
    ‘’The Commission will continue to engage the services of the NURTW, RTEAN, NARTO, Air Force and the Navy especially in delivering of personnel and materials to difficult terrains to ensure the conduct of free, fair, credible and acceptable elections’’.
    Shoyebi said that the Commission was not unaware of the challenges experienced during the 2019 elections, but it rose up to the occasion and responded to the challenges.
    “That was why we had successful outings in the 2019 general elections,’’ he added.
    It also quoted  National Commissioner Amina  Zakari  as urging all stakeholders to own the process by dispensing positive and productive attitudes that could  promote an enduring electoral environment.
    Zakari said  that the trust deficit in the system was a critical issue to deal with.
    She said that trust deficit had overtime compelled INEC to spend highly in the acquisition and securing of high-quality election materials.
    This according to her was to prevent manipulations and counterfeits, adding that this was not the case in many countries.
    The Director-General of the TEI, Dr Sa’ad Idris, said that the Round Table was designed to examine ‘’factors that affected the smooth implementation of the operations and logistic plan of the Commission in the conduct of the 2019 elections”.
    The roundtable according to the statement was with a view to identifying challenges and proffering ideas for improved logistical architecture starting from Kogi and Bayelsa elections.
    It noted that the  Round Table was attended by senior members of the academic community, Civil Society Organizations, development and elections experts, as well as Consultants who made inputs into the discussion.(NAN)

  • President Buhari’s Remarks At CISSA Conference In Abuja

    KEYNOTE ADDRESS BY HIS EXCELLENCY, MUHAMMADU BUHARI, PRESIDENT OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA, AT THE OPENING SESSION OF   THE 16THCONFERENCE OF THE COMMITTEE OF INTELLIGENCE AND SECURITY SERVICES OF AFRICA (CISSA) ON 18TH JULY 2019, ABUJA)

     

     PROTOCOL;

    It is my pleasure to welcome you all to Abuja, for the 16th Conference of the Committee of Intelligence and Security Services of Africa.

    2.      When this committee was founded here in Abuja on 26th August, 2004, there was great optimism that it would help to bring down walls of suspicion and mistrust, and galvanize cooperation among Africa’s Security and Intelligence Services, consistent with the African Union’s vision for an integrated, prosperous, and peaceful continent.

    3.      This meeting today, 15 years since the founding of CISSA, is a measure of the organisation’s continuing relevance and an affirmation that the vision and hopes of its founding fathers are alive and well.

    4.      The theme of this year’s Conference, ‘Illicit Financial Outflows from Africa and its impact on National Security and Development,’ is a burning issue that this committee should focus on.

    5.      Illicit financial outflows are funds that have been obtained illegally, typically through fraud and corrupt means, and moved across international borders.

    6.      Criminals and their collaborators cheat the system through various practices, including trade mis-pricing, trade mis-invoicing, tax abuse and evasion, as well as money laundering. Several unfair commercial agreements and illegal resource extraction by multinational companies, in cahoots with their local collaborators, also create routes for illicit financial outflows.

    7.      Frankly, we may never know the true extent of the damage. Estimates, however, suggest that African countries lose over 60 billion US dollars annually due to illicit financial outflows, a staggering amount for a continent in dire need of development finance.

    8.      Corroborating this figure, a United Nations Report on “Illicit Financial Flows and the Problem of Net Resource Transfers from Africa: 1980-2009,” observed that during the period 1980 to 2009 between $1.2 trillion and $1.4 trillion was taken out of Africa. This figure is half of the current Gross Domestic Products of all the countries of Africa.

    9.      As partners in the fight against crime and insecurity, you know that terrorist networks, organized criminal syndicates of drugs, arms and human traffickers and sundry hostile non-state actors are actively undermining the security and stability of our countries.

    10.    These criminal groups not only fund their operations from the proceeds of crime, but are implicated in much of the illicit financial outflows from Africa.

    Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen,

    11.     Firm and unwavering action is required to bring this threat under control. Any evasion of rules and regulations in ways that aid corruption in its various manifestations, including illicit financial outflows, must be vigorously fought and defeated.

    12.    My role as African Union’s Anti-Corruption Champion brought me closer to appreciating more the devastating impact of corruption and illicit financial outflows on our continent. I am, therefore, pleased that this conference will boost the sense of urgency that we collectively have about this devastation and raise our response capacity at operational levels.

    13.    In Nigeria, we have risen to the challenge. The fight against corruption remains at the core of our efforts to accelerate national development. We have recorded successes even though the perpetrators are not giving up and are trying to fight back.

    14.    I would like to remind you that while the task you have set for yourselves at this Conference is laudable and essential to the future prosperity and stability of Africa, it is not an easy one. Success will require robust efforts and resolute commitment by individual services in order to lay the solid base for the collaborative efforts that are required to address this daunting challenge.

    15.    Recently in Abuja, I underscored this point at the launch of the new Transnational Security Report “Cooperating Across Borders: Tackling Illicit Flows”, put together by Munich Security Conference, where I stressed the necessity of collective, well-resourced approaches to counter illicit flows as “no government can do it alone.” Also recently in Abuja, the Fifty-Fifth Ordinary Session of the Authority of ECOWAS Heads of State and Government underlined “the need to strengthen direct exchange of information and intelligence among Member States”.

    16.    I therefore, urge you to:

    a.    develop a template of risk factors and actionable strategies to stem the flow of illicit funds from our continent;

    b.   give priority to examining the links between crime and instability on our continent; and

    c.    propose measures to ensure that terrorists and criminals are denied access to our financial systems.

     

    17.    Finally, I would like to charge this committee, to remain steadfast as a model platform of cooperation, in words and deeds.

    18.    I wish you a very fruitful conference. It is now my special honour to formally declare open the 16th CISSA Conference.

    Thank you.