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Edo Election: INEC Register 1.9 Million Voters

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Edo Election: INEC Register 1.9 Million Voters

Edo Elections Inec announces Voters number

The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, said that a total of 1,924, 072 voters have registered for the Permanent Voters Card, PVC, ahead of the September 10 governorship elections in Edo State.

Muhammed Lecky, INEC National Commissioner, made this known at the Publication and Presentation of official Voters Register to political parties’ candidates.

He said that 136,038 voters were registered during the Continuous Voters Registration exercise which took place between June 22 and June 26, adding that 132,559 of voters attempted multiple registration.

Lecky said that Section 20 of the Electoral Act provides that the Register of Voters for an election shall be issued not less than thirty days before such an election.

The National Commissioner reiterated that the safety of its personnel would not be compromised during the elections, as well as that of voters, election observers, and journalists.

The Edo State police Commissioner, Chris Ezike, at the event gave assurance of safety for every participant in the election.

Ezike said the police and other sister agencies would ensure an enabling environment for free, fair and credible elections.

After 2 Years Of Zero Incidence, Nigeria Records New Polio Cases

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After 2 Years Of Zero Incidence, Nigeria Records New Polio Cases

Nigeria records New polio cases

Minister of Health, Isaac Adewole, has lamented the two confirmed cases of Wild Polio Virus Type 1 in Borno State, saying that the development was a setback for the nation.

Nigeria reportedly recorded two new cases of Wild Polio Virus Type 1 at Gwoza and Jere in Borno State, on Tuesday, after the country had celebrated two years of zero incidence of polio.

Speaking to journalists on Thursday on the sideline of the Family Planning Consultative Stakeholders Meeting at the Banquet Hall, State House in Abuja, Adewole said government would do everything possible to contain the situation.

He assured that emergency plans are being made to dispatch a team to Borno State to start immunization.

According to the minister, the federal government would do three rounds of special immunization campaigns to make sure that the situation is contained.

He said, “It is unfortunate that we have the development. It has set us back. But I can assure the nation that we will do everything possible to be on top of the situation.

“We are meeting again today. We had a meeting yesterday to look at the situation. We are drawing out an emergency plan and in the next 48 hours, we are dispatching a team there and we are going to start immunization.

“We would do three rounds of special immunization campaigns to make sure that we contain the situation.”

The minister attributed the outbreak to insurgents’ activities in the Northeast but promised the international community that a robust response would be launched.

New Cases In Liberated Communities

“One of the cases is from Gwoza, which is actually close to the border. The other one is Jere. We suspect that both of them are linked to the insurgents eclipse,” he said.

“Mr. President himself when we had a meeting last week observed that as we liberate more areas, we should expect challenges. But we did not expect that there would be polio. We were expecting nutrition and other problems.

“As a nation, we will rise up to the challenge. We are assured by our international partners and we will launch a robust response.

He added, “We have enough funding for immunization in the 2016 budget. We have more projections for 2017 and 2018.  We are robustly supported by international partners. We have signed on to a World Bank loan to make ensure that we have enough funding. So, I think money is not the issue. The issue has to do with the access and the insurgency operations.”

Speaking on the effect of the outbreak, the Commissioner for Health, Borno State, Haruna Mshelia said Nigeria would have to start the polio-free certification all over again.

“What that means is that the certification will start all over again. It wasn’t that we were not doing the job, a chunk of the state was out of reach, and we couldn’t reach children there.

“For this to happen now, we will redouble our effort to ensure we mop up and immunise every child that is liberated so that such a thing will not happen again.”

He maintained that Gwoza is currently still partially accessible where people are living with no access to modern health care.

“The ones in Jere were displaced from another local government called Marfa where not all places are accessible. Where we have had access in the last two years we have no had case of polio at all. All these cases are coming out of areas that were liberated by the gallant activities of our military.”

Nigeria Now A Poor Country – Buhari

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Nigeria Now A Poor Country – Buhari
President Buhari with Babatunde Osotimehin and other dignitaries
President Buhari with Babatunde Osotimehin and other dignitaries

President Muhammadu Buhari says Nigeria has suddenly become poor as a result of the drop in crude oil prices in the international market.

Buhari said this on Thursday at a meeting with the executive director of the United Nations Population Fund, UNFPA, Babatunde Osotimehin.

He said Nigerians are not feeling the exact severity of the situation due to his administration’s commitment to transparency and accountability.

“It has been a very difficult year for Nigeria,” Femi Adesina, President Buhari’s media aide quoted him as saying.

“Before we came to office, petroleum sold for about $100 per barrel. Then it crashed to $37, and now oscillates between $40 and $45 per barrel.

“Suddenly, we’re a poor country, but commitment to transparency and accountability is not making people know that there is severe shortage,” he added.

President Buhari thanked the UN agency for its commitment to saving lives in Nigeria, particularly of women and children, asking them to bear with Nigeria in any area where the country is not living up to its responsibilities for now.

Buhari said the situation in the north-east is looking up, as internally displaced persons had begun returning to their farmlands, with the guarantee of relative security.

Osotimehin, a former minister of health in Nigeria, pledged UNFPA’s commitment in promoting healthcare facilities across the country.

He said Nigeria can reduce the rate of maternal mortality in the country if health authorities pay more attention to access to health facilities, and the human resources to run them.

Nigeria Still Africa’s Number One Economy – Dangote

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Nigeria Still Africa’s Number One Economy – Dangote
Aliko Dangote
Aliko Dangote

Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest man and president of Dangote Group, says Nigeria remains the number one economy in Africa.

Dangote, who spoke at the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry 2016 presidential policy dialogue session, said the problem with the economy did not start with this current administration.

“The root cause of this economy issues clearly predates this administration,” he said.

He added that “Personally I don’t believe the numbers that South Africa has overtaken us as the biggest economy in Africa.”

Earlier on Wednesday, news broke that South Africa had overtaken Nigeria as Africa’s biggest economy.

According to BBC, a recalculation by the International Monetary Fund, IMF, using current exchange rates, put South Africa on top because the rand has strengthened against the dollar.

The value of South Africa’s economy is put at around $301 billion while Nigeria comes second at $296 billion.

FG To Expand Tax Net To Increase Revenue

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FG To Expand Tax Net To Increase Revenue
Vice President Yemi Osinbajo delivering his speech at the summit
Vice President Yemi Osinbajo delivering his speech at the summit

Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo has disclosed that the Federal Government plans to tax 700,000 more companies as part of efforts to increase non-oil revenue and address the economic challenges facing Nigeria.

Osinbajo made this known on Thursday at the 2016 Presidential Policy Dialogue Session, organised by the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

“A great effort has been made to improve non-oil revenues. This includes bringing an additional 700,000 companies into the tax net as compared to the targeted 500,000 set at the beginning of the year,” he said.

Osinbajo said that the Foreign Portfolio Investment, FPI, coming into the Nigerian economy via the capital market has declined by 85.5 percent since the first quarter of 2015; from $621 million in Q1 of 2015 to $90.3 million by Q1 2016.

Foreign direct investment also took a plunge of 56 percent of from $395 million in Q1 2015 to $175million by Q1 of 2016.

“Inflation is at 16.5%. Depreciation of the naira, increase in importation costs due to scarcity of FX. GDP declined from 6.3% in 2014 to 2.15% in 2015 and -0.36% in Q1 2016.

“Earnings from oil declined in the past eight months due to vandalization of pipelines and export assets in the Niger Delta. Power output fell from 5kMW in February to about 2.5k recently on account of over 60% loss in gas production due to pipeline vandalization,”the VP said.

According to Osinbajo, Other steps taken by government to tackle the economic recession include assisting states and local governments to pay workers and improving capital expenditure.

“We have had three such interventions including the latest loan of N90bn as part of a fiscal responsibility plan for States. These interventions have helped to boost household spending, which were key steps to prevent the economy from falling into deep recession,” he said.

The vice president noted that the government pledged to keep capital spending in the budget at a minimum of 30 per cent, adding that “Accordingly, we have already made capital releases of N332bbn, with another N100bn set to be released in the next few days,”.

He said other policy instruments used to help the economy include the Treasury Single Account, “which has brought transparency into inflows & outflows of government monies.”

He also said the country’s milled rice capacity was being increased from three million to 10 million tons annually.

Osinbajo said government was aware of the slump in Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product, Foreign Portfolio Investment into the country, and decline in power generation as well as power output, but promised that the challenges is being addressed.

He said: “Our immediate tasks to achieve our economic objectives are: 1. reduce fiscal and forex imbalances; 2. boost dollar liquidity; curb inflation; 4. lower interest rate and ensure lending to the real sector 5. increase FDIs and FPI by sustaining enabling policies.”

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Buhari, Soyinka In Closed Door Meeting

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Buhari, Soyinka In Closed Door Meeting
President Buhari and Wole Soyinka
President Buhari and Wole Soyinka

President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday held a closed-door meeting with Nobel laureate, Wole Soyinka.

Soyinka arrived at the Presidential Villa at about 11:00am and went straight to the President’s office.

After the meeting, the Professor of Comparative Literature told State House correspondents that he had come to see the President on some national, international and general matters.

When asked further questions, he promised to hold a press conference in a few days.

The literary icon had last month voiced his support for President Buhari’s fight against corruption, with a call for the imprisonment of corrupt politicians to serve as deterrent to others.

Professor Soyinka made the call while addressing journalists at the 7th edition of Wole Soyinka International Cultural Exchange Programme, held in Abeokuta, Ogun State.

He was of the opinion that the anti-corruption campaign should be more inclusive and that all other professionals should be part of the battle.

Nsukka Jailbreak: 6 Escapees Rearrested

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Nsukka Jailbreak: 6 Escapees Rearrested

Jailbreaks

The Enugu State Controller of Nigeria Prisons Service, Isaiah Amariri, said that six of the prisoners that escaped from Nsukka Prisons on Tuesday night, have been re-arrested.

Amariri gave the figure to journalists in Nsukka, but declined to give the exact number of inmates that escaped from the prison.

He said the prison service is collaborating with security agents and community groups to recapture the remaining escapees.

“There was a jail break in Nsukka prisons on Tuesday night between 12pm and 3am, in which many inmates escaped, though six of them have been re-arrested.

“I cannot give the exact figure for now as investigations are still on. We will send our findings to the Controller General of Prisons who will make public the exact number and cause of Nsukka prisons jail break.

“The service is liaising with security agents and community vigilante groups to know the hideout of those still on the run in order to re-arrest them,” Amariri said.

He also assured that “After investigations on the jail break, any person in the service found to have been involved or aided the Tuesday jail break will be arrested and prosecuted no matter his or her position.

The prison Controller said “The prisons authorities are on top of the situation and will put measures in place to avoid a repeat of what happened on Tuesday night in Nsukka.”

He called on individuals who might have any information on the whereabouts of the fleeing inmates, to report to relevant security agencies, promising that “such information will be given the confidentiality it deserves and source identity will be fully protected.”

According to Amariri, the Nsukka Prisons was established a hundred years ago with the original capacity of 168 inmates, but currently harbours 264 prisoners.

Tambuwal Raises Alarm Over Influx Of Criminals Into Sokoto

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Tambuwal Raises Alarm Over Influx Of Criminals Into Sokoto
Gov. Tambuwal with former AIG zone 10 Muhammad
Gov. Aminu Tambuwal with former AIG zone 10 Tambari Yabo

Governor Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State has expressed concern over the likely influx of cattle rustlers and armed bandits, who are being dislodged by the Army from neighbouring Zamfara and Kebbi States.

The Governor said this on Wednesday when he received the Assistant Inspector General of Police, AIG, in charge of Zone 10, Yakubu Usman and the newly deployed Commissioner of Police, Abdulkadir Muhammed.

He charged the police chiefs to increase their surveillance activities in the state, concentrating more on border Local Government Areas of the state.

“As you are aware, the massive operation embarked upon by the Nigerian Army in our neighbouring states is achieving success. Many of those bandits have been killed in action or arrested, but many ran away, and we suspect that their first port of call would be neighbouring towns and villages in the conflict areas,” he said.

“We appeal to you and other sister security agencies to double surveillance in such areas and ensure that lives and property are adequately protected. Sokoto is one of the most peaceful states, if not the most peaceful in the country.

“So we encourage you to sustain that peace for the benefit of the people,” he added.

Tambuwal promised the AIG that the three states which make up Zone 10 will support him, adding that the states had also resolved to support the Federal Government’s efforts in enhancing security and tackling corruption in the country.

“Sokoto, Kebbi and Zamfara States are fully behind President Muhammadu Buhari’s drive to rid our country of insecurity and corruption. We will work together to ensure your success in this Zone,” he said.

Bosso Killings: Air Chief Visits Niger State

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Bosso Killings: Air Chief Visits Niger State
CAS Sadique Abubakar with the Emir of Minna, Umar
CAS Sadique Abubakar with the Emir of Minna, Umar Bahago

Following the killing of 11 military personnel by illegal gun dealers in Bosso, Niger state, the Chief of the Air Staff, CAS, Sadique Abubakar, on Thursday paid a visit to the Nigerian Air Force Quick Response Force in Minna.

The slain military men comprised of 2 airmen and 9 Army personnel who were deployed on Internal Security Operation in the State, code-named “OPERATION MESA”.

Abubakar said the purpose of his visit was to enable him commiserate with the families of the slain airmen, hold durban with troops, and inspect facilities on NAF Base, Minna.

He also used the opportunity to visit the Governor of Niger State, Abubakar Bello, as well as paid homage to the Emir of Minna, Umar Bahago.

The air chief appealed to both the political and traditional leadership to call on the people to support Security Agencies in the State in carrying out their duties, noting that security is everybody’s business.

Governor Bello, expressed regrets over the unfortunate incident, and called on citizens of the State to remain calm even as his government has commenced an investigation into the incident.

He expressed appreciation for the efforts of the Security Agencies in the State towards maintaining law and order, while promising to continue to work with them to ensure that Niger State, and the Country at large, is well secured.

USAID Donates $37 Million To Nigeria

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USAID Donates $37 Million To Nigeria
NEMA DG, Muhammad Sani-Sidi
NEMA DG, Muhammad Sani-Sidi

The U.S. Agency for International Development, USAID, has donated $37 million dollars to assist Nigeria in the humanitarian crisis in the country’s Northeast region.

Director-General of the National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, Muhammad Sani-Sidi, made this known when he received, a team led by Jeremy Konyndyk, the USAID Director of Foreign Disaster Assistance in Abuja on Wednesday

Sani-Sidi expressed the Nation’s gratitude to the aid agency for its generous donation, adding that the Federal Government had done a lot to respond to the situation in the Northeast and would continue to collaborate with international agencies in that area.

He said the NEMA would also require the support of USAID in the rehabilitation of the people and their communities as well as in the reconstruction of infrastructure destroyed by Boko Haram Terrorists.

“We look forward to further collaboration with USAID in the areas of provision of psycho-social support to the traumatised people, reconciliation and peace building. Provision of assistance to the youths in form of skill acquisition, training and development of Nigerian Incident Management System,’’ he said.

Leader of the USAID delegation said that the donation was to support those in the Lake Chad Basin region and people affected by the Boko Haram insurgency in the North-East.

“I am here today with my colleagues to offer assistance, after our visit to the North-East to assess the situation of the IDPs and understand better the crisis caused by Boko Haram.

“It is a very difficult situation and we are concern and sad by the condition we saw, the U.S. government is very focus on the Boko Haram crisis,’’ he said. (NAN)

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