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No work No Pay: ASUU Vows To Continue Strike

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No work No Pay: ASUU Vows To Continue Strike

The Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, has vowed to continue with its over three-months-old strike action, even as the federal government has directed that salaries for lecturers be stopped.

At the end of the union’s zonal conference in Abuja on Thursday, ASUU’s zonal chairman, Clement Chup, said the union has resorted to other welfare strategies to cope with the effects of the “no work, no pay” policy.

He confirmed that the federal government has through the National Universities Commission, NUC, directed universities to stop the payment striking lecturers’ salaries effective September this year.

According Chup, the association would adop strategies to deal with the government decision.

“Part of (our) welfare strategy involve distributing food items, giving out soft loans and cash advances to members,” he said

Earlier on Wednesday in Port Harcourt, the chairperson of the union, University of Port Harcourt branch, Antonia Okerengwo, told newsmen that ASUU will continue to stand by the the agreement the federal government voluntarily entered into with it in 2009.

He debunked claims by the President Goodluck Jonathan that the union was being instigated by some politicians, insisting that it was not fighting for itself but for the revitalisation of tertiary institutions in the country.

Okerengwo expressed regret that rather than fulfill its promises to ASUU by reviving the Nigerian education sector, the government had resorted to “blackmail”.

“The resort to blackmail is not the solution to the present impasse as we cannot run away from our problems. We cannot continue to pretend or wish that these problems do not exist. Practical problems need practical solutions. The media must also begin to ask questions about the cost of governance in this country so that we can see the alternative forgone in terms of education, healthcare and infrastructure,” she added.

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Okerengwo further disclosed that the technical committee set up by NEC to review NEEDS assessment report also recommended that the sum of N800 billion would be required in the short term of two years (N400billionn per year) for revitalisation.

“This has remained a mere promise, as only N100bn for 2012, which is 20 per cent of what is due as at today, has been released. The fact is that the N100bn is the amount due and outstanding since 2012.

The question therefore is what about the N400bn for 2013?” she queried.

 

 

Niger Gov’t. Warns Against Illegal Tree Felling

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Niger Gov’t. Warns Against Illegal Tree Felling

The Niger State government has warned those violating forestry and wildlife laws in the state to desist or face the full wrath of the law.

Governor Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu gave the warning while inaugurating 486 Forest Green Guards in Minna, the state capital on Thursday.

He lamented that the laws guiding forestry were being “recklessly” flouted, leading to depletion in forests and exposure to ecological disaster.

Aliyu said the Green Guard Initiative was born out of concern for the protection of the bio-diversity of the environment and the need to take a deliberate step towards preserving the forest in their natural state.

He said a law forbidding forest burning, tree cutting and illegal hunting in the forests in the states would soon be in place.

The governor also charged local government councils in the state to give the guards maximum support in the discharge of their duties.

The guards are part of the 1,656 youth engaged in various sectors under the Subsidy Reinvestment Programme, SURE-P, in the last eight months.

Out of these, 520 were engaged as sanitary officers, while 300 were trained in fisheries and other agriculture related enterprises.

In his address, the state’s director general of SURE-P, Nuhu Hassan, said that people who degrade the environment by burning and felling trees would soon be out of jobs adding that the Green Guards would also contribute in intelligence gathering and compliment the security agencies in its activities.

According to him, N178 million has been earmarked for the salaries and allowances of the Green Guards until they are absorbed into the state civil service in January 2015 adding that more programmes are being initiated by SURE-P to give unemployed graduates a new lease of life.

The youths were drawn from 10 out of the 15 local government areas mostly threatened by encroachers, illegal loggers and hunters.

The other 15 local government areas would be covered in the second phase of the programme which would commence next year, Hassan

Embraer 120 Aircraft Crash Caused By Engine Failure – AIB

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Embraer 120 Aircraft Crash Caused By Engine Failure – AIB

The Accident Investigation Bureau, AIB, Friday in Abuja released a preliminary report on the Embraer 120 aircraft that crashed on October 3, saying that the accident was likely caused by engine failure.

Muhtar Usman, commissioner of the AIB, who briefed newsmen, said that the report was based on the findings from the “Black Box,” recovered from the scene of the crash.

From its preliminary assessment of the Flight 361 recorders, the AIB said the likely causes of the crash include, mechanical and electronic engine control issues related to the right engine and the right engine propeller system as well as the take-off configuration issues with respect to flap settings.

He listed other likely causes as “aural warnings related to auto-feather and the flap settings, required for take-off and when and how the number two engine fire handle was pulled”.

Usman listed other likely causes to include crew decision making and training with respect to proceeding with the flight, in spite of concerns regarding the aircraft’s suitability for the flight.

“The investigation is also focusing on the standard operating procedure with respect to continuing the take-off roll, in spite of continuous automated voice warnings of both take-off flaps and auto feather when there was ample time to abort the take-off,” he said.

The commissioner further disclosed that the bureau was in the process of developing a comprehensive computer reconstruction of the aircraft to assist its investigation team understand the sequence of events that led to the crash.

This, he said, will enable the bureau to come up with a comprehensive report of what led to the crash and come up with safety recommendations.

He also said that the AIB plans to release the transcript of the Cockpit Voice Recorder, CVR, which contained the internal conversation of the two pilots, radio calls and the overall aural environment in the cockpit area microphone.

According to him, the CVR is of good quality and the bureau is in the process of generating a complete transcript of all relevant information.

“However, the actual recording is under international protocol, sensitive and therefore, privileged information and will not be released at any time,” he said.

The ill-fated aircraft, with registration number 5N-BJY operated by Associated Airlines, crashed at the Domestic Wing of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos shortly after take-off.                                  

The aircraft, which was on a private charter flight from Lagos to Akure, Ondo State, was carrying 20 persons, including the crew as well as the remains of the former Governor of Ondo State, Olusegun Agagu.

Cholera Outbreak Kills 2 In Zamfara

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Cholera Outbreak Kills 2 In Zamfara

A cholera out-break has claimed two lives while more than 130 others are hospitalised in Rini Village and Bakura town in the Bakura Local Government Area of Zamfara.

The vice chairman of the Local Government, Dandare Dakko, made the disclosure on Thursday while addressing the families of victims at a camp in Rini Village.

Dakko said that the outbreak affected 102 people in Rini Village and 32 students of the Government Science Secondary School, Bakura.

He said that the sick were being treated at the Bakura General Hospital and that the local government had already released money to buy drugs for them.

The vice chairman said that the council had provided camps for the victims at Rini and Bakura, urging the families of affected people to exercise patience as government was making efforts to assist them.

The News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, reports that doctors from Medicine San Frontier, Doctors Without Borders, were seen rendering assistance to the victims at Rini Village and Bakura town.

N36m Scam: Fraudster Gets 10 Years Sentence

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N36m Scam: Fraudster Gets 10 Years Sentence

A High Court in the Federal Capital Territory,has sentenced one Joseph Morah to 10 years imprisonment without the option of fine for obtaining the sum of N36 million from Awalu Abdulrahman, a  Bureau de Change operator by false pretence in 2006.

Spokesman for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Wilson Uwujaren, said the convict was first arraigned on November 1, 2006 and re-arraigned in 2011 on an amended three count charge of obtaining money under false pretence.

He was docked alongside three others namely, John Obiamalu, who was discharged and acquitted, Sani Musa and Elvis Ezeani both of whom are at large.

Working with his accomplices, he was alleged to have convinced his victim to part with the said sum under the pretext that they were going to transfer the Naira equivalent to him.

Not suspecting foul play, Abdurrahman convinced his brother Nurudeen who resides in Ghana on the genuineness of the transaction and eventually paid the sum of N36 million to the convict.

However, suspicion grew when the person Nurudeen sent to accompany Morah and his co-accused to collect the Naira equivalent was pushed out of the car.

Three of the five accused, obiamalu, Joseph Morah, and Ezeani who later jumped bail, were initially arrested.

According to prosecution counsel, Maryam Aminu Ahmed, five witnesses were called in the course of trial.

Jonathan Tasks African Leaders on Economic Reliance

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Jonathan Tasks African Leaders on Economic Reliance

President Goodluck Jonathan has urged African leaders to intensify efforts towards total development and utilization of their countries’ comparative economic potentials over other parts of the world for the benefit of their people.

He stated this on Thursday while speaking with Botswana’s new Ambassador to Nigeria, Louis Matshewenyego Fisher, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

Jonathan, in a statement issued by his special adviser on media and publicity, Reuben Abati, urged African countries to develop and execute policies that will maximize their economic potentials and make them less dependent on the industrialized nations of the world.

He cautioned African leaders to focus more on building domestic capacity around the strengths of their economies, instead of wasting their efforts on areas in which they lack a competitive edge.

The President pointed out that the growing youth population in Africa was an advantage for the continent, adding that Africa’s largely youthful population gives the continent a competitive edge over other parts of the world by providing a vast labour pool for investors and a huge market for
products and services.

With reference to the inter-connectivity of the world economy, Jonathan said that globalization will work better if African countries fully utilize their resources to enhance their ability to compete effectively with other regions of the world.

He posited that competitiveness could be further boosted through increased regional trade and horizontal investment partnerships.

“I want to insist that our diplomacy should be based more on trade and economic relations. We
must encourage trade between our people and I see that relationship as the bedrock for diplomacy,” Jonathan added.

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He congratulated all the new ambassadors on their posting to Nigeria and wished them success in their efforts to boost bilateral relations between Nigeria and their countries.

Responding, the ambassadors assured the President to be diligent and enhance existing trade, economic and cultural cooperation between Nigeria and their countries.

The President also received letters of credence from some new ambassadors to Nigeria including ambassador from Czech Republic – Pavel Mikes, Republic of Kuwait – Abdulla Ahmed Al-Sharrah and the Canadian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Perry Calderwood at the State House.

23 Anambra Gubernatorial Candidates To Be Quizzed – NEDG

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23 Anambra Gubernatorial Candidates To Be Quizzed – NEDG

The Nigerian Election Debates Groups, NEDG, comprising of media organisations, Non Governmental Organisations, NGOs, Civil Society Groups, CSO, and the Nigeria Bar Association among others are to stage debates for the 23 candidates vying for the Anambra governorship seat on November 16.

The chairman of NEDG, Aremo Taiwo Allimi in a news briefing on Thursday told journalists that though the debate will feature all the candidates from the various political parties in two segments and will also include a grand finale for the few candidates who will  emerge as the leading ones as chosen by registered voters in Anambra.

Allimi said, “NEDG is a non-partisan, non-political and independent group, designed to ensure that political debates become a permanent feature of Nigeria’s democracy and culture.

The debate is designed to present to Anambra state electorates the opportunity to have firsthand information on the plans of governorship candidates and the strategies of implementation before radio/TV and live audience.

“The debates will be issue based and issue driven, aimed at setting public agenda which may form the basis of policy formulation and direction of government. The debates would be transmitted around the country and globally through television, radio and webcasting,” he said.

The debates have been scheduled to hold on October 27 for all governorship candidates and October 29 for deputy governorship candidates, at the Women Development Center and will feature two sections -morning and afternoon.

Researchers from the group would through the registered voters in the state select the leading candidates who will participate in the grand finale which also comes up in two segments on October 31.

Allimi said all the candidates have expressed willingness to attend the debate and that the participating audience would be barred from wearing party branded clothes or cheering the candidates during the debateates.

The NEDG had last Tuesday met with chairmen of the political parties endorsed by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to field candidates for the governorship elections, with the aim of getting their candidates to participate in the debates and to acquaint them with the rules of the game.

Court Remands Freight Forwarder Over $22,800 Scam

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Court Remands Freight Forwarder Over $22,800 Scam

Justice S.S Ogunsanya of a Lagos High Court sitting in Ikeja, has ordered that one Aderemi Aderounmu, a supposed freight forwarder, be remanded at the Kirikiri maximum prison for obtaining money from a client by false pretence.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, had arraigned Aderounmu on a 3-count charge bordering on conspiracy to obtain money by false pretence, contrary to Section 8 (a) and 1 (3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act, 2006.

He was alleged to have collected $22,800 from one Simeon Iwunor, as part payment of air freight for the shipment of his cargo to Liberia without delivering the goods.

Count one of the charge reads, “that Aderemi Aderounmu and Michael Nnodu (at large) on or about 21st day of July, 2012, at Egbeda, within the Ikeja Judiciary Division of this Court, with intent to defraud, obtained the sum of $10,000.00 (Ten Thousand United States Dollars) only, from Simeon Iwunor, being part payment of air freight for shipment of his cargo/ goods to Liberia.”

Count two reads, “that Aderemi Aderounmu and Michael Nnodu (at large) on or about 26th day of July, 2012, at Egbeda, within the Ikeja Judiciary Division of this Court, with intent to defraud, obtained the sum of $12,800.00 (Twelve Thousand, Eight Hundred United States Dollars) only, from Simeon Iwunor, being part payment of air freight for shipment of his cargo/ goods to Liberia.”

When the charges were read to the accused person, he pleaded not guilty.

The prosecuting counsel, I.O Daramola asked for a trial date and prayed the court to remand the accused person in prison custody.

But the defence counsel, J.O Ololo prayed the court to allow the accused to continue to enjoy the administrative bail initially granted him by the EFCC. This plea was however opposed by Daramola who pressed for the remand of the accused person in prison custody.

Justice Ogunsanya, while adjourning the case to October 21, ordered the accused person to be remanded in Kirikiri maximum prison, Lagos.

Delta Bye-Election: No Corps Members For Kokori, NYSC Warns

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Delta Bye-Election: No Corps Members For Kokori, NYSC Warns

From Jessica Tamaradonye, Asaba

Authorities of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), have directed that no Corps member should be posted to Kokori and other towns in Ethiope East Local Government Area of Delta State by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), for Saturday’s bye-election for Delta Central Senatorial District.

This, apparently in fear of loosing any its members to kidnappers, might not be unconnected with recent security challenges being experienced in Kokori following the arrest of kidnap kingpin cum armed robber, Kelvin Ibruwe also known as Oniarah.

Some unidentified gunmen who were allegedly in symperty with the arrested kidnapper, had attacked the campaign team of candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), in the bye-election, Emmanuel Agwariavwodo.

Delta State Director of NYSC, Mrs. Olive Etukudor, made this known to journalists in Asaba, the state capital. She appealed to political gladiators and community leaders to ensure a safe atmosphere in other council areas where corps members would acting as election officials.

Meanwhile, the National Commissioner of INEC in Delta state, ismail Igbani, has expressed readiness by the Commission to conduct a free, fair and credible bye-election for Delta Central.

Igbani made this known in Asaba while presiding stakeholers’ meeting. He disclosed that all personnel and logistics requirements have been put in place for the election.

He urging political parties and their candidates to caution their supporters and to be of proper behaviour before, during and after the election.

According to Igbani, a total of 2,782 voting points have been created for the election in the 85 registration areas across the eight local government areas of the senatorial district.

“A total of 819,118 registered voters are expected to participate in the election that will be manned by 4,224 election officials. The electronic voter register and 19 addendum registers have been printed for the election,” he said.

He gave the breakdown of the election officials as 1,263 presiding officers; 2,782 assistant presiding officers all from NYSC; 85 supervising presiding officers from federal agencies; 85 LGA collation officers; and one senatorial district returning officer from federal university.

For the troubled Ethiope East, Resident Electoral Commission (REC) in Delta State, Dame Gesilia Khan told the stakeholders that the electoral body would opt for students in tertiary institutions in conjunction with INEC staff to conduct the election.

Libyan Prime Minister Abducted By Gunmen

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Libyan Prime Minister Abducted By Gunmen

Libyan Prime Minister Ali Zidan has been abducted by gunmen early Thursday Morning from a Tripoli hotel where he resides.

Government officials have confirmed that the 62-year-old was snatched from the Corinthia Hotel along with two of his guards, and “taken to an unknown destination for an unknown reason”.

A government official who spoke to the Associated Press (AP) on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation, said the gunmen broke into the luxury hotel in downtown Tripoli where Zidan lives and abducted him and two of his guards who were beaten but later released.

The government’s official website said Zidan was taken at dawn to an “unknown location for unknown reasons” by a group believed to be “revolutionaries” from a security agency known as the Anti-Crime Committee.

However, the abduction appears to be in retaliation for the U.S. special forces’ raid on Saturday that seized a Libyan al-Qaida suspect from the streets of the capital.

The militants were angered by the capture of the suspected militant known as Abu Anas al-Libi, and accused the government of colluding in or allowing the raid.

A spokesman for the Operations Room of Libya’s Revolutionaries, a group of former rebels, claimed responsibility for Zeidan’s abduction and blamed the U.S. operation which captured suspected terrorist al-Liby.

Meanwhile, Abdel-Moneim al-Hour, an official with the Anti-Crime Committee, told the AP that Zidan had been “arrested” on accusations of harming state security and corruption, but the public prosecutor’s office said it had issued no warrant for Zidan’s arrest.

On Tuesday, Zidan said the Libyan government had requested that Washington allow al-Libi’s family to establish contact with him.

Zidan insisted that Libyan citizens should be tried in their homeland if they are accused of crimes, stressing that “Libya does not surrender its sons.”

Al-Libi is alleged to be a senior al-Qaida member and is wanted by the United States in connection with the bombing of American embassies in Tanzania and Kenya in 1998, with a $5 million bounty on his head.

Immediately after the raid, the Libyan government issued a statement saying it was carried out without its knowledge and asked Washington for “clarifications” about the operation.

“The U.S. was very helpful to Libya during the revolution and the relations should not be affected by an incident, even if it is a serious one,” Zidan said at a press conference in Tripoli.

U.S. officials said al-Libi was immediately taken out of the country and is now being held on a U.S. warship.

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