Abuja (Nigeria) – The Presidency on Wednesday said over 756 people were killed by herdsmen in two years under former President Goodluck Jonathan.
It said it would, therefore, be wrong to insinuate that the recent killings happened because President Muhammadu Buhari is a Fulani man.
The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, disclosed these in a video he posted on his Facebook page. He insisted that the recent spate of killings by herdsmen in parts of the country had nothing to do with Buhari being Fulani.
The presidential spokesman said, “Something that is disturbing that I have heard about it is linking those developments to the fact that a Fulani man is President and so, he is brooking such kind of evil acts.
“I think that is very unkind. And I will try to back my position with statistics.
“In 2013, particularly, there were nine cases of herdsmen invading communities in Benue state alone and more than 190 people were killed.
“In 2014, there were about 16 of such tragic developments with more than 231 people killed. And then there was a change of government in May 2015.
“But between January and May 2015, there were six attacks which left about 335 people dead.
“Now, the question is, during that period, did we have a Fulani president?”
According to him, this shows that the issue of herdsmen attacking settlements is something that government must deal with.
“It is the duty of government to preserve the lives of the citizenry. It is the responsibility of government to maintain law and order and that this government is determined to do.
“Therefore, let nobody say that all this is happening because we have a Fulani president.
“We have had many Fulani presidents in the past and this issue of herders and local communities at loggerheads has predated this government.
“But I will just like to appeal to Nigerians that the Muhammadu Buhari government is determined to crack this issue, is determined to get to the bottom of it and it will get done,” he added.
Some Youth In Kaduna Hold Rally In Support Of Gov. El-Rufai
By our Correspondent
A rally and procession was held in Kaduna on Friday to show solidarity to Governor Nasir El-Rufai of the state. Participants were seen carrying placards inscribing support to the governor.
The rally may not be unconnected with the one conducted on Thursday by over a hundred thousand workers drawn from various states of Nigeria, who protested the sacking of 36,000 workers in the state.
The Friday rally received the protection of officers of the police, as against the Thursday rally which was initially banned by the Nigeria Police.
There was no clear identity of the people involved in the rally, but majority of the people who witness the rally procession concluded that participants were youth members of El-Rufai’s political party, All Progressive Party (APC).
Some Youth In Kaduna Hold Rally In Support Of Gov. El-Rufai
Some Youth In Kaduna Hold Rally In Support Of Gov. El-Rufai
Some Youth In Kaduna Hold Rally In Support Of Gov. El-Rufai
Some Youth In Kaduna Hold Rally In Support Of Gov. El-Rufai
Some Youth In Kaduna Hold Rally In Support Of Gov. El-Rufai
National President of Nigerian Labour Congress, Comrade Ayuba Wabba
National President of Nigerian Union of Journalists, Ayuba Wabba
By Our Reporter
Nigeria Labour Congress, the umbrella body of workers union in the country, has alleged that Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State in northern Nigeria, sacked over 36,000 workers in the state in order to fulfil conditions set by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank to acquire loans.
The NLC statement was contained in a text of speech delivered by the National President of the Congress, Ayuba Wabba. in a media briefing in Abuja.
Below is the full text of the conference
Being text of the press conference by the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Ayuba Wabba, mni on Tuesday 9th January, 2018 at Paschal Bafyau Labour House, Abuja
Gentlemen of the Press
As you are aware, the trade unions and their members have been having a running battle with the Kaduna State government over the premeditated and callous sack of about 36,000 workers from the state public service. Affected in this odious act of the governor, Mallam Nasir Ahmed El- Rufai, are 21,000 teachers, 4000 local government workers, and 8000 workers from various state Ministries, Departments and Agencies, including tertiary institutions.
These acts of impunity against workers have been committed by the state government under the guise of a so-called competency test that was deliberately programmed to fail teachers and a spurious programme that goes by the name the Public Service Revitalization and Renewal Project, which are all a smokescreen by the state government to fulfil conditions for accessing a World Bank loan that will be paid back by the working people who are tax payers for generations to come.
In conformity with international best practices and recognised industrial relations engagement, the trade unions had taken the path of conciliation under the auspices of the Honourable Minister of Labour and adjudication at the National Industrial Court (NIC). To our consternation, Governor El-Rufai did not only jettison the conciliation process which was bogged down by his unreasonable tirades, but brazenly refused to obey the order of the Court that all processes in the sacking of teachers should be put on hold until the determination of the case.
Comrades and Gentlemen of the Press,
Immediately after the New Year on 3rd January, 2018, the elected Governor of Kaduna state, in obvious disregard and fragrant abuse of the existing court ruling and the legal process, issued letters of disengagement to thousands of teachers and back dated them to November 3rd, 2017 ostensibly to circumvent the court order. This perfidy is not only irresponsible and unbecoming of a governor elected under the revered Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, but a criminal act and an affront to the well cherished principles of law and natural justice.
Our concerns, and indeed those of well-meaning Nigerians include the illegal and unacceptable processes employed by the Governor and their direct impact on thousands of dependants of 36,000 workers and their families thrown in one fell swoop into the unemployment market. More worrisome are the grievous and negative implications of this in a state grappling with social tensions and societal ills such as kidnappings, armed robberies, killings among others.
Comrades, Gentlemen of the Press
The actions of Governor El-Rufai are largely propelled by his rabid obsession to access a loan and mortgage the lives and livelihood of thousands of workers, and indeed the people of Kaduna state to the IMF and World Bank.
We make bold to say that no sane and humane society will contemplate such inconsiderate policy as a mass sack, talk less of implementing it at a time everyone, particularly policy makers have made us believe that the country is barely out of recession. Seriously minds in both the public and private sectors are focused on reflating the economy, creating jobs and curbing all forms of social insecurity. Thus, we find the actions of El-Rufai totally inhuman and economically illogical, and not worth venturing into.
It is apparent that El-Rufai’s approach is a clear violation and abuse of the tenets and provisions of our labour laws and well known international best practices, and are capable of exacerbating social tensions and societal ills in the state.
Having exhausted all processes aimed at constructive engagement with the state government, it is clear that El-Rufai has to be stopped by all means with all means lawful for the sake of Kaduna State and Nigerian people.
Consequently, we shall commence a series of actions with the first phase of protests in Kaduna on 11th January, 2018 to constitutionally defend the rights of the affected workers in the state.
We once again call on Mr. President and all well-meaning Nigerians to please intervene.
Abuja (Nigeria) – Nigeria’s Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Administration is set to address critical issues arising from the implementation and abuse of the FCT master plan.
Consequently, a stakeholders conference on “Repositioning Abuja for the Development of a Sustainable City,” is planned to hold within the first half of this year.
Similarly, the Abuja Metropolitan Management Council (AMMC) and other concerned agencies of the Administration have been given a matching order to implement the report of the Committee set to look into the problem of uncompleted and abandoned buildings in the FCT.
These decisions were part of the resolutions of the FCT Exco meeting held on Thursday, the 11th of January.
A memo to the Exco, the Director of Urban and Regional Planning Department, Zaliha-U Ahmed (Mrs.) was said to have identified challenges in the implementation of the Abuja Masterplan by past Administrations which resulted in a myriad of problems.
Some of these problems the memo noted include: unprecedented population explosion, land use conversion and distortion, non-adherence to the provisions of planning laws and regulations, funding challenges and resettlement issues among others.
It was against this background, FCT Exco resolved to proffer what it called practical, realistic, achievable and sustainable solutions to these identified problems.
Addressing members of the Exco, the FCT Minister, Muhammad Musa Bello noted that what had happened to Abuja master plan was nothing new. “Every city goes through a process that requires constant review of its master plan. The good news is that it is not too late to salvage the situation.”
Bello bemoaned the challenge of funding and noted that this was why the FCT Internal Revenue Service (FCT IRS) has been reconstituted and therefore tasked the agency to focus on generating revenue to fund the provision of infrastructure in the FCT.
The Minister urged all members of the Exco to rise up to the challenge of running a working city where the laws are enforced and revenues due the Administration are collected.
AFRICA PRIME NEWS reports that the Abuja Masterplan was designed based on certain assumptions, philosophies and objectives including prevailing economic and social realities. Some of these, according to experts, have changed over time and put a strain on the continued use of those parameters for developing the city, hence the review.
In the same vein, the Administration had over times expressed concern over the spate of abandoned plots and uncompleted structures in the FCT compounding the security challenges in the city.
Members of Peace Corps of Nigeria, a voluntary organisation
Members of Peace Corps of Nigeria, a voluntary organisation
By Peter Usman
Abuja (Nigeria)–National Youth Council of Nigeria, in collaboration with the National Association of Nigerian Students, NANS have made a passionate appeal to President Muhammadu Buhari to expeditiously assent to the Nigerian Peace Corps Bill transmitted to him in 2017.
The National Presidents of the groups, Murtala Mohammed Garba of NYCN and Aruna Kadiri of NANS, who made the appeal at a joint press conference in Abuja, said if the NPC Bill was assented to, it will go a long way to tackle youth unemployment in the country.
The groups which enumerated some of the mandates of the Corps, such as provision of employment for the youths, facilitate peace, community services, neighbourhood watch, national building among others, noted that if youths in the country were properly empowered and strategically positioned, they will be able to contribute their quota to national development.
According to them, “No doubt, NPC which is essentially a youth based organization, hold the vital key to tackle youth unemployment in Nigeria. Unemployment is a bad development that has consistently frustrated the nation’s youths from contributing their quota to national development and fulfillment of their God-given destinies”
“Other ancillary, but highly essential functions of the Corps are: to train Nigeria youths with good virtues, strong passion and commitment to the art of patriotism; to train and equip the youths with knowledge for peace education, conflict resolution, mediation, reconciliation and confidence building, to give distinct orientation to the youths and engage them in the provision of essential services”
The groups stated that the Nigerian Peace Corps is a voluntary Youth Organisation, which was duly affiliated to the National Youth Council of Nigeria and has been partnering with the Federal Ministry of Youths and Sports alongside its education counterpart since 1998.
“Because of the important roles it has been playing in the development of Nigerian youths and in the promotion of peace, the Nigerian Peace Corps was granted a special consultative status by both the United Nations and African Union under their Economic and Social Affairs Council that hold global mandate on the youth issues”
The group asserted that the function of the NPC do not in any way overlap with that of other security agencies in the country, saying that their functions have been designed to complement the efforts of the existing agencies by increasing their efficiency through preventive and intelligent gathering measures.
The group leaders emphasized that if the NPC bill is assented and signed into law, it will definitely increase the expertise of the existing security agencies to focus on major issues.
Gombe (Nigeria) – Gombe State chapter of All Progressives Congress (APC) in the northeast of the country, has endorsed President Muhammadu Buhari to contest for a second tenure come 2019.
The party officials from the ward, local and state government levels made this position known on Thursday in Gombe.
The party commended Buhari-led administration for initiating laudable development projects particularly in the Northeast political zone and that it has no other presidential candidate come 2019 other than President Buhari.
The APC officials who passed a vote of confidence on Buhari’s leadership qualities stressed that “he must seek re-election to continue with his good works.”
Addressing the officials at the meeting, Deputy Chairman, Gombe South of the APC, Julius Ishaya, said the meeting was purposely organised for the party to strategize towards 2019 general election. This is with a view to clinching all elective positions, particularly, wrestling power from the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP) in Gombe State.
Ishaya disclosed that the meeting was covenened by a stalwart of the party in the state and governorship hopeful, Alhaji Habu Muazu in conjunction with party leaders in the state.
In his speech, Alhaji Abubakar Habu Muazu declared support for President Buhari’s re-election bid come 2019.
While urging party officials to ensure they support Buhari to continue with his fight against corruption among other initiatives aimed at repositioning the country for good, Mua’zu urged for unity among members of the party in order to become victorious.
He announced his decision to open offices for the Buhari campaign organisation as well as the APC across the 114 wards and 11 local government areas.
Mua’zu equally provided campaign posters for President Buhari to be displayed at the various offices, with the cost of renting the offices and posters estimated at over N11m.
The APC guber aspirant used the opportunity to take a swipe at the presidential ambition of Governor Ibrahim Dankwambo, stressing that the people of Gombe State would not be fair to Nigerians if they fail to support Buhari come 2019.
He advised Dankwambo to jettison his presidential ambition as the people of the state would not support him against President Buhari.
Mua’zu commended leaders of the party at the national level, singling out Senator Danjuma Goje for changing the face of the state while he was governor.
He however cautioned party officials against being lured with political appointments by the PDP government.
“We here of plans to break our ranks by luring our officials with political appointments. We must resist this attempt so we can be strong enough to sent the PDP government packing come 2019,” he said.
Mua’zu equally urged other aspirants to also come to the assistance of the party through sustenance of its activities to keep the party alive and active preparatory to the commencement of political activities.
Responding, Gombe State coordinator for the Buhari Support Group, Alhaji Hussaini Kumbi, commended the party for endorsing the re-election bid of President Muhammadu Buhari.
He expressed appreciation to Alhaji Abubakar Habu Muazu for opening offices for the organisation and the APC across all the 114 wards and 11 local government areas.
Nigerian Labour Congress protesting sacking of 36,000 teachers in Kaduna
Nigerian Labour Congress protesting sacking of 36,000 teachers in Kaduna
By Amos Tauna
Kaduna (Nigeria) – The Nigeria Labour Congress has kicked against the sacking of 36,000 primary school teachers by governor Nasiru El-Rufai of Kaduna state, saying the governor is executing anti labour policies.
According to the union, the competency test which was conducted and used as basis for the sack was false because government had a predetermined number of workers they want to sack.
Speaking in Kaduna Thursday in a peaceful protest against the sacking of the workers in the state said, “We will continue to strategise even if we have to come here every month, we will not be tired until the right thing is done. Evil cannot succeed over goodness and truth. Nigerians must know and hear the story of Kaduna workers.
“So we know it is work in progress and no worker in Kaduna is safe. But we are confident that we can not be defeated, they can use force but we can use our number. Injury to one must be injury to all.
“We will continue to strategise even if we have to come here every month, we will not be tired until the right thing is done. Evil cannot succeed over goodness and truth. Nigerians must know and here the story of Kaduna workers.
“Before our protest, we wrote to the IGP because it is a constitutional rights, what the law says is that they need to give us security, and so we wrote to them, the law did not say we should seek for permission because it is a fundamental human rights.
“The same rights Kaduna State government has used to bring thugs on two occasions to demonstrate in support of his policies. So why should it be different for Nigerian workers, why should Nigerian workers be prevented, including using security operatives who are supposed to be in Benue, Adamawa, Rivers where we have killings going on.
“We are harmless workers, we don’t carry arms, but see the security agencies with arms, this is not what we bargained for. Some people in government today use protest to be where they are today.
“In 2012, El-rufai joined us in the struggle and we gave him a T-shirt and a cap, after using protest he cannot come and deny citizens. If we don’t respect the rule of law then we are working towards anarchy.
“We wrote to the IGP that we are going to gather here today and to the Governor that we are going to deliver a letter to him.”
“We cannot keep quiet, this is not the democracy we bargained for. Let me assure you comrades that this is just the beginning. We have now tested the waters and the struggle would be carried to every state in Nigeria and Abuja to tell the powers that be where the problem is.”
He explained that the organised labour was in Kaduna to stand with the workers, adding, “I have also seen Presidents and General Secretaries of all our industrial unions here present to support Kaduna workers.
“Let me once again salute Kaduna workers that have come out in large numbers despite the intimidation, despite all obstacles, despite the use of maximum force, including bullets that was used today in the entering from Abuja to Kaduna.
“This is to say that democracy has come to stay, this is to say that citizens have their rights to freedom of association. It is a fundamental human rights that no force on earth can stop.
“Am aware that about 8,000 forces including the military, police and civil defense were deployed this morning to intimidate us and use maximum force against us. Am aware that a lot of workers were also intimidated and others shot.
“Our leader in ASUU movement Dipo Fashina who is leading the intellectual angle of our discuss on his entry into Kaduna was manhandled. This is not the democracy we bargained for. Democracy is about the rule of law, about respecting human beings.
“In the history of our movement this is the only time that maximum force has been used to intimidate workers for fighting for their rights.
“We are fighting for the rights of 36,000 workers and their families who were disengaged from Kaduna civil service. The last time we were here we were talking about 21,000 teachers, but as we speak over 4,000 local government workers have been issued sack letters. Over 8,000 workers from ministries, departments and Agencies including tertiary institutions have been served letters.”
A team of young conservationists from the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF)
A team of young conservationists from the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF)
By: Stephen Aina/Somtochukwu Udo-Azugo
An energetic team of young conservationists from the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF) is changing the face of conservation in Africa through innovation and science. The aim is to create positive impacts, extend supports and build collaboration at local, national and international levels for the conservation of vultures.
No doubt, sporting events are veritable tools in bringing together people, especially youths, of diverse background to support a common course of action. It has the unifying powers to neutralize barriers imposed by religion, culture, race, gender, and language on shared values and goals.
Leveraging on the overwhelming influence of football; BirdLife/Birdfair (UK) has brought together a team to redefine existing approaches to advocacy campaigns and forge a long-lasting partnership among rural communities. The first of the Conservation-Oriented Soccer Tournament successfully held in Gashaka Gumti National Park (GGNP), with the support of the local communities.
The Young Conservation Leaders Award, an initiative of BirdLife/Birdfair (UK) is empowering young, energetic nature enthusiasts to drive contemporary conservation efforts in Africa.
Starting with the Serti and Goje communities of Taraba state, the group’s Vulture Ambassadors organized a Conservation Soccer tournament to capture the young indigenes. According to the team lead, Stephen Aina: “Our experience so far in the communities visited showed that a vast majority of the people see vultures as just another bird with high nuisance value and of little consequence to their well-being.
“We are therefore engaging the community through the soccer initiative to educate, train and empower young vulture ambassadors to work closely with the officials of the national park to protect the remnants population of vultures in the communities.
“For us, the idea is Sports for Education, Empowerment, and Development (SPEED). Necessity has given birth to innovation
critical to endearing the young and old to jointly protect the rapidly declining vulture population.”
The team has proven the effectiveness and feasibility of using sport as a tool for conservation education in fostering collaboration and partnership among the participating communities for vulture conservation, as well as for other biodiversity.
With more than 1800 people in attendance, including eminent personalities such as the Emir of Gashaka – His Royal Highness Alhaji Zubairu Sambo, Seidu Yohanna (Conservator of Park – GGNP), Ismail H/Gabdo (Special Adviser to the Governor of Taraba State), Jerry Mora (Nigeria Prison Service, Serti-Gashaka) amongst other dignitaries from the royal chamber, security agencies, political class and the national park management. Conservation efforts in Nigeria have received a boost.
