Volodymyr Zelensky, president of Ukraine, has revealed the only way to end the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
Ukraine and Russia have been at war for nearly three months, and numerous casualties have already been reported.
In February of this year, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine due to political differences between the two neighbouring nations.
Zelensky stated in a Friday-recorded and Saturday-broadcast interview that the conflict in Ukraine could only be resolved through ‘diplomacy’
This comes less than twenty-four hours after Zelensky criticised Russia for the airstrikes that destroyed the House of Culture in the Kharkiv region city of Lazova.
“Ukraine will fight to a bloody victory, but the Russian invasion will end through diplomacy,” Zelensky said in a television interview commemorating his third year in office.
“We did not begin this conflict. But we must complete it.”
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Friday, 20 May, released Patricia Etteh, a former Speaker of the House of Representatives on administrative bail after three days of interrogation.
She was released Friday night at about 8:45 pm upon fulfilling bail conditions offered to her by investigators working on her matter, a statement by EFCC on Saturday says.
EFCC spokesman Wilson Uwujaren, in the statement, said Etteh would report to the commission periodically to assist in further investigations.
Part of the statement titled, ‘Patricia Etteh Released’, read, “Former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mrs Patricia Olubunmi Etteh, detained by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC on suspicious and shady financial involvement with Phil Jin Projects Limited, has been released by the Commission.
“She was released on Friday, May 20, 2022, upon fulfilling bail conditions offered her by investigators working on her matter. She is to report periodically to assist in further investigation.”
The former speaker was arrested on 17 May over suspicious and shady financial involvement with Phil Jin Projects Limited.
According to reports, in 2011 Phil Jin Project Limited was given a contract by the NDDC for the supply of solar-powered street lights in some communities in Akwa Ibom.
The company received N287m even though the contract was worth N240m.
Four kidnapped female students of the College of Education Gidan Waya in Kaduna State, have been released by terrorists.
The students were Racheal Edwin, Esther Ishaya, Promise Tanimu, and Beauty Luka who were kidnapped at Mile 1 area of Gidan Waya axis last Monday.
President of the Students Union in the college, Benjamin Fie told journalists that the terrorists demanded huge sums as ransom and the students were set free on Friday.
“They were rushed to Sir Patrick Ibrahim Yakowa Memorial Hospital in Kafanchan for a medical checkup after which they were reunited with their relatives,” Benjamin Fie said.
He was however mum on whether ransom was paid or not.
Two leaders of the Hausa community in Lagos State have warned their constituents against engaging in any form of protest against the ban of commercial motorcycles popularly known as Okada in six local government areas.
On Thursday evening, our correspondent conducted separate interviews with each leader.
In a telephone interview, one of the leaders, Iliyasu Kira, stated that no member could protest.
According to Kira, the Seriki of Shasha in the Alimosho Local Government Area of Lagos, the government’s decision will clean the system.
He stated, “Our people are complaining about the ban because it will affect them, but we are calming them down.” We will not permit protests because the government is superior and no one should oppose the government.
“There are bad eggs and good eggs among Okada riders, but the bad eggs have tainted the good eggs by disobeying traffic laws, riding Okadas in the middle of the night, using one-way streets, carrying dangerous weapons, etc. We can only continue to request that the government reconsider its decision.”
When asked if the association of Seriki Hausawa in Lagos has met since the government’s recent ban on Okada, Kira stated that they have not met to discuss the issue.
Also, while conversing with his subjects, the Seriki Hausa ruler of Ajah, Ibrahim Ngoma, stated that no protests would be permitted in the state.
Even though the affected area where the task force was operating today falls outside of his jurisdiction, he stated that no protests would be permitted.
Ngoma stated, “Right now, nobody is complaining because the law has not yet gone into effect in June. The law of Lagos State prohibits us from protesting, and we will comply. That is not permissible.”
The leaders urged Governor Babade Sanwo-Olu to reconsider the ban because many Okada riders from the northern region of the country make up a significant portion of the voting population in Lagos.
The Iyana Iba, Alaba, Agric, and Barracks ends of the Lagos-Badagry Expressway reportedly descended into chaos on Thursday as policemen and motorcycle riders clashed.
According to reports, the conflict began after members of the Lagos State Environmental and Special Offenses Enforcement Unit (Task Force) and the Rapid Response Squad visited the area to enforce state traffic law.
According to reports, the agents confiscated motorcycles along the expressway and issued eviction notices to Alaba Rago Market tenants.
Some of the motorcyclists, however, resisted the seizure of their motorcycles, resulting in an altercation between them and the security agents.
My good people of Nnewi, it is not in our culture to impose candidate on us, otherwise, it becomes force acculturation, like Napoleon in Animal Farm, all animals are equal, but some are more equal than others, I may believe in oblivion, but in contemporary democracy, it does not exist, more especially where the aspirants are from Nnewi, Nnewi agenda will not come to play. Therefore, anointing or imposing a candidate and denying others the opportunity to pursue their articulated vision in politics amounts to political rape over our knuckles. To avert impending doom, the powers that be should rethink on candidature they wish to anoint if he has the wholistic credibility to challenge other parties during the general election. Without fear of equivocation and philosophical anachronism, such practices must be abolished in our system, it does not permit competent aspirant to assume a leadership position in our town. As a matter of fact, democracy is people-oriented, hegemonic politics and favouritism is the wall of our imprisonment in Nnewi.
On Friday, the Nigeria Customs Service will begin the rollout of its Vehicles Identification Number platform for the electronic valuation of vehicles. The Nigeria Customs Service has stated that it will review depreciation on vehicle duty (today).
According to the Controller Valuation of the Service, Comptroller Anthony Udeze, the depreciation value of vehicles has not been calculated accurately up until this point. As the commission prepares to redeploy its VIN platform, he added that a large number of variables were also considered.
He stated that the platform would impose a uniform obligation on all industry participants. Thursday in Apapa, he disclosed this during a sensitisation meeting in preparation for the redeployment of the VIN platform.
He stated, “We have examined the various vehicle values. Observe the items displayed here, and you will notice that a human touch has been applied. Prior to the protest, the value had not been properly depreciated.
“Accordingly, the committee has implemented the auto policy and performed a linear depreciation from 2021 to 2013.” It must be stated at this time that the requirement of being at least 12 years old remains in effect. Therefore, if you bring in a vehicle that is older than 12 years, you will see the 2013 value.
“We have given the values a human face, and we have accounted for all possibilities, including accident vehicles and salvage vehicles. Today, we are presenting the standardisation and unification of all area command values.
“And today we are here to demonstrate and inform all stakeholders that VIN valuation is here to stay.” We are rolling out VIN valuation over the weekend, and if you capture data on Saturday, you will apply the VIN valuation by Monday.
Moreover, he assured stakeholders that they would appreciate the platform. As a result of taking into account the depreciation value of imported used cars, he asserts that the duty value of cars will become advantageous for industry participants.
The Customs Area Controller in charge of Apapa Command, Yusuf Malanta, stated at the event that the commission must embrace automation in order to keep pace with globalisation. He stated that on the platform, checks, controls, and errors will be quickly identified.
The vehicle valuation platform was not out of place, as he disclosed that automation was crucial. He added that with the platform, agents can clear their vehicles from the comfort of their own homes.
He stated, “Now some agents can process cargo clearance from the comfort of their bedrooms.” The world is digitising.
“The new digital PAAR is an additional improvement. Nigeria will not passively observe as others utilise digital technology for business facilitation. If there is anything we need to modify, please let us know and we will do so.”
Festus Okun, the Comptroller of the Ports and Terminal Multipurpose Limited command, added, “The Customs service has recently incorporated into our processes and procedures the fundamental principles of taxation, which include uniformity, fairness, and predictability, among others. With this VIN valuation, uniformity and predictability would exist.”
According to Kayode Farinto, the acting National President of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents, agents must comply so that clearance processes are expedited.
Auto-release is an agent right, and customs must address it to ensure a smooth process, he added.
According to him, the NCS’s indiscriminate increase in Pre-Arrival Assessment Reports has also allowed stakeholders to circumvent its process.
It’s that time of year again, when political parties can elect their best candidates through party primaries in order to compete against opposition parties in the General Election. All eyes are on the Anambra Central senatorial district, where the state ruling party, the APGA, failed to win senatorial elections. The upcoming election may be even more difficult for APGA, given that the party is competing against the APC and the PDP in the presidential election. Given the likelihood of Senator Uche Ekwunife receiving the PDP ticket, it is in APGA’s best interests to approach the election strategically if it is to win.
The APGA, Anambra’s state ruling party, has a mandate to be tactical in order to disrupt the election and win. To that end, the party’s leadership must educate the delegates who will vote in the primaries to vote only for candidates who can win the general election. Anyone could win the primaries as long as the party backs the candidate! However, winning primaries is not the ultimate goal.
Three candidates from Anambra’s ruling party are running for the Anambra Central senatorial seat. Hon. Dozie Nwankwo MHR, Sen. Victor Umeh, and Chief Uzuegbuna Okagbue, the youngest of the three, are the members. Without a doubt, they are all qualified to represent the party in the 10th Senate. They have political experience and, truth be told, any of them can win the party’s primary election.
The question now is who among them can win the state ruling party’s primary election. Who can quickly mobilize and amass the necessary goodwill and resources?
I met with three of them separately and discussed their chances of unseating the incumbent senator in the main election scheduled by INEC next year.
I must say that Chief Uzu Okagbue has a good chance of flying the party’s flag high in the coming election, having known Anambra people and studied the politics of Anambra Central during my 12 years in Awka, the state capital, before relocating to Abuja. He is intelligent, focused, goal-oriented, and an eloquent speaker. He is young and resilient. We all assumed that as ex-Governor Willie Obiano’s immediate past Chief of Protocol and Deputy Chief of Staff, he was effectively the governor’s minder, operations manager, cordinator, and human resource manager, all of which didn’t leave him time or require him to speak to the public. However, his dedication to the cause of the ongoing consultations has been exceptional, demonstrating his oratory skills. His consultation also covers his contacts and reach, which are important factors in determining one’s chances of winning. Sen. Umeh and Hon. Nwankwo have not been seen much in this regard. It also reflects their level of acceptance. The APGA should not take chances with Nwankwo and Umeh.
In the upcoming party primaries, which I learned will take place next week, APGA, as the State ruling party, faces a difficult choice: either give its ticket to someone who will win the general election or give it to someone who they will still finance but who will lose to the incumbent. Politics is the truth. Sitting on the fence is not an option.
I’m sure Anambra Governor Prof. Charles Soludo will not take such chances, because Anambra needs money to start development projects, not to fund individual elections.
On that note, I’d like to appeal to the APGA Anambra Central senatorial district delegates to vote wisely. My point is that our politics require a breath of fresh air.
A vote against Uzuegbuna Okagbue is one that is not in the party’s best interests. The truth is that with Uzuegbuna Okagbue on the ticket as the party’s candidate, APGA has a better chance of winning the General Election.
In a suspected jihadist attack in eastern Burkina Faso, eleven soldiers and fifteen gunmen were killed, according to the army.
On Thursday, security and local sources estimated that an attack on a military unit claimed the lives of seven soldiers, while a separate attack on a bus claimed the life of one civilian.
However, in a statement issued overnight, the military chief of staff reported that eleven service members had been killed.
“Complex attack — shells fired, followed by direct fire on the base” in Madjoari, Kompienga province, according to a statement.
It stated, “Eleven soldiers were killed… and at least 20 were wounded.”
At least 15 terrorists who were attempting to escape after the attack were “neutralised” by army warplanes, the report stated.
On Saturday, approximately 40 people, the majority of whom were civilian volunteers with the army, were killed in three suspected jihadist attacks in the same regions.
Since 2015, Burkina Faso has been ravaged by jihadist raids by Al-Qaeda and Islamic State-affiliated groups.
There have been more than 2,000 deaths and 1.8 million people have been displaced.
Lieutenant-Colonel Paul-Henri Sandiago Damiba, the new head of state, has stated that he has made addressing the security crisis his “priority.”
Damiba deposed elected president Roch Marc Christian Kabore in January, accusing him of ineffectiveness in the face of jihadist violence.
Alhaji Raheem Adedoyin, a former commissioner for Information and Education in Kwara State and member of the International Press Institute’s (IPI) Executive Board, has been named the Teacher of the Month for the Raise Life Class membership programme.
Raise is a monthly life class on career, leadership, and entrepreneurship held by a high-achiever with Kwara State’s young impact makers.
The organisers of the event released a statement in Ilorin yesterday.
“It is also an initiative to deepen social cohesion and build a network of quality new generation leaders in the public and private sectors in the state and country,” said Mr. Ibraheem Abdullateef, Kwara Central Representative in the Nigerian Youth Parliament (NYP).
“We are very excited to announce Chief Raheem Adedoyin, media executive, accomplished politician, and decorated community leader, as the Teacher for the Raise life class May edition,” Abdullateef said.
According to the statement, Adedoyin is a champion of press vibrancy who has dedicated nearly four decades of his life to it.
“Adedoyin began his journalism career in 1985 at The Guardian, a stable renowned as the flagship of Nigeria’s intellectual journalism,” according to the statement. Reporter, Correspondent, Transport Editor, Acting News Editor, and Deputy Sunday Editor were some of his titles.
“He served as the Governor of Kwara State’s Commissioner for Information, Commissioner for Education, and Special Adviser, Communication Strategy.”
“Adedoyin is a prominent member of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE), and the Nigerian Association of Journalists (NAJ).”
He has devoted much of his energy and organisational ingenuity to the International Press Institute (IPI).
“The Oloriewe of Oro Kingdom, Chairman of The Herald Newspapers’ Editorial Board and member of the Advisory Board of the London-based African Leadership Magazine, is a lecturer at the University of Ilorin’s Department of Mass Communication.”
“With such dazzling accomplishments in career and public service, we are very much convinced that young men and women will learn tremendously from his wealth of experience and knowledge, helping in grooming better and more responsible young men and women,” the statement continued.
Our society’s young people”
According to the statement, Raise, a youth development and mentorship life class, held three sessions with prominent male and female personalities from January to March, including Amb. Dr. Olufolake AbdulRazaq, the First Lady of Kwara State.
The programme was not held in April, according to Abdullateef, Executive Director of Torchbearers Impact Network (TIN), to save participants from exhaustion due to Ramadan fasting.
He expressed the organising team’s commitment to the project as it was.
It’s already having an effect.
“The program’s impact is being felt in the state.” In February, four of the six candidates we registered for the JAMB examination passed, qualifying them for higher education.
“We are very excited to expand our support for young people in education and business while also facilitating access to learning from the best in their chosen profession or business.”
“The ripple effects of the bridge we are building between generations in the coming years are impossible to predict.”
Let me thank you deeply for the honour to present to you the revised 2022 budget which we have tagged: “Taking Off from the Blocks”. I regret however that one of you, the member representing the good people of Aguata II Constituency in the House of Assembly (my own representative) – Hon. Okechukwu Okoye, is still in the custody of the kidnappers. The security agencies are working very hard and around the clock to secure his freedom. God is on the throne and Anambra will win. Let me leave it at that.
This is my second meeting with the entire House since my swearing-in two months ago (in addition to a series of meetings with the leadership of the House), and let me use this opportunity to once again commend the cordial relationship and partnership that exist between the three arms of government. Let me particularly thank the House for its patriotic sense of duty in expeditiously screening and approving the list of Commissioners. The Executive branch will never take your partnership for granted. We are also confident that your love and passion for our state as well as your patriotic zeal for a transformed and developed Anambra will continue to propel your cooperation and partnership with the Executive branch. Irrespective of political party affiliations or other differences, we all have only one agenda in government, namely: the development of Anambra state, and together, we shall get it done for our people and for posterity.
Let me also use this opportunity to thank, for the umpteenth time, my predecessor Chief Willie Obiano, all the former governors of Anambra state, as well as the present and former members of the State House of Assembly for their contributions. We pledge to consolidate your achievements, and to work hard every day to stand upon your shoulders to take Anambra State to a much higher pedestal.
As promised, we hit the ground running from day one, putting in 8hours and 45 minutes in office on the first day, reflecting the humongous challenges facing the state as well as our full consciousness that ours is an agenda with a deadline. Our vision is to transform Anambra into a livable and prosperous smart megacity—- to become the preferred destination to live, learn, invest, work, relax/enjoy. The Agenda is predicated on four strong pillars: robust economic transformation for a new industrial-tech- leisure hub; a comprehensive social agenda for a human capital bank that is productive at home and exportable abroad; governance, rule of law and new value system; and a clean, green, planned and sustainable communities, markets, and cities. The State Executive Council was constituted within three weeks, and we have been firing from all cylinders. In some weeks to come, we shall have the opportunity to give a preliminary report on some of the foundational issues we are putting in place to kick-off and propel the journey ahead. Among the challenges we inherited, a red treasury and pervasive insecurity especially with criminals taking the seven local governments of the south senatorial zone hostage were the most acute. We have chosen to confront the foundational issue of security head-on and expected that those profiting from the lucrative criminal enterprise would viciously fight back, and they have. Suffice it to say that so far, so good. They are testing our will and resolve. Let me assure you this: Anambra will win!
Mr. Speaker, Hon members! The purpose of the 2022 Revised budget is to reflect current realities, challenges, and priorities of the new administration and Ndi Anambra. We are undaunted by the state of the treasury. We have seriously started reforming our system of tax administration to significantly ramp up our internally generated revenue over the coming years. In the meantime, the dire needs of Ndi Anambra and our transformation agenda cannot wait. We are working on a mixture of financing options (including debt that is ring-fenced to fund bankable projects and/or infrastructure with impacts on the economy) to guarantee efficient and effective service delivery to our people while ensuring fiscal sustainability over the medium to longer terms. The details of these will be laid out in our 2023 budget.
The revised budget size is about N170 billion versus the existing appropriation of N142 billion (with the capital expenditure accounting for 64% compared to 57% previously). Capital expenditure increased by 33% from N81 billion to N108 billion while Recurrent expenditure increased marginally by 0.79% from N60 billion. We left the budget on security unchanged while we count on off budget resources from donations to augment. As a reflection of our Agenda, about 60% of the Capital Expenditure is targeted at delivering infrastructure that the average citizen can feel, see, use or touch and which have the highest developmental impact within the shortest possible time.
For example, we have declared a state of emergency on rebuilding our road infrastructure and traffic management. About N52 billion or about 31% of the total budget is for the Ministry of Works and Infrastructure and we intend to simultaneously invest in roads in most of the local governments, paying special attention to our urban regeneration agenda. We have requested the Federal Government to kindly intervene on emergency basis on a number of federal roads in the state that have become nightmarish death traps. We confidently expect their urgent responsive action. But in the event that the expected response does not come soon, we may have to implement urgent palliatives in some places especially at Amansea; Ekwulobia- Igboukwu- Nnobi road; Ogidi; etc where the roads are literally cutting off.
We plan to recruit qualified medical doctors and nurses for our general hospitals and upscale the infrastructure in selected ones. We have already received over 26,000 applications in response to our advertisement to recruit and train teachers for our primary and secondary schools. Visitation panels will review the operations of the State University, Polytechnic and College of Education to provide basis for our reforms to ensure that they are fit for purpose. As a precursor to our planned Entertainment and Leisure City (envisaged to be largest in Africa), we have budgeted in the interim to construct an expansive Entertainment and leisure park around the Agulu Lake. Yes, our administration is continuing with the ‘Community Choose Your Project’ initiative of my predecessor, and have raised the value of the community projects to N25 million per community.
Furthermore, to drive our “Everything Technology, and Technology Everywhere” strategy, the budget provides for a modern centralized ICT Data Centre to consolidate the State’s data and ensure business continuity in any and all circumstances. We are commencing the digitization of our land registry. Our agenda to deliberately orchestrate the emergence and empowerment of thousands of youth millionaires and a digital tribe is given its first impetus in this revised budget. We promised to reinvent the Oil Palm and Coconut revolution. We have mobilized communities and the private sector for partnership and with overwhelming demand, we plan to provide 500,000—1,000,000 seedlings this year, and millions in subsequent years. We have also provided for significant seed money to commence pre-feasibility studies and designs for bankable projects, including possible new cities. On August 27 this year, Anambra State will celebrate its 31st anniversary as a State but without a proper Government House and a Governor’s Lodge—possibly the only State with such a record. We have budgeted to correct this, to ensure the efficiency of government operations. We have also budgeted to continue the work-in-progress in our international cargo airport.
Mr. Speaker, Hon Members! In the months and years ahead, we have hard choices to make as we strive to meet the expectations of our people. Fiscal prudence will become a lifestyle as we cannot afford to waste one kobo. Transparent public finance management will be critical. That is why we have also budgeted for the full computerization of the Ministry of Finance and the Office of the Accountant-General. Managing our over N120 billion debt, especially the contractor debt and pension liabilities in the context of the paltry Federation Account receipts and burgeoning needs of our people will task our dexterity and demand hard choices and sacrifice. We just received the preliminary report of the external consultants’ review of our local government finances which confirms that the combined state and local government gratuity liabilities to pensioners over N20 billion. We are determined to clean the books over time and align Anambra’s pension administration with the Pension Act and let our pensioners smile. In the meantime, our administration has signaled a new dawn by insisting that we won’t owe new retirees under my watch, while we have also started (albeit gradually) paying down the backlog.
Our government is very serious in forging new development partnerships with the international development partners, the federal government, as well as the local government. We are reforming our processes and ramping up our active engagements to maximize the benefits of such partnerships. For example, we have budgeted to meet our counterpart funding requirements to access federal and development partner funds. We are also working hard to restructure and reform our local government administration in conformity with the relevant laws. We will actively collaborate with the local governments in the areas of waste management; cleaner, greener and more environmentally sustainable communities; street lighting; fire service; qualitative primary school education; as well as planned modern markets, and security. Community government will be strengthened and mainstreamed. Already, the State is forging new (sustainable) economic partnership with communities not only with the ‘community choose your project’ initiative but now with the new community-based but jointly owned Oil Palm and Coconut plantations that will soon adorn the state.
In weeks to come, we will be coming to you again and again with a set of legislations required as critical building blocks for the next Anambra we all envision, as well as other critical approvals and confirmations required from this Honourable House. By July we shall also start the process for the 2023 budget, and will again come to the House once completed. I sincerely do hope and pray that despite your busy political agenda, you would find sufficient time to devote to the expeditious discharge of these responsibilities required of your offices.
In conclusion, Mr. Speaker, Hon Members! This Revised Budget 2022 sign-posts some of the key deliverables for this year as we Kick-off from the Blocks. It is also a call to collective action and lifestyle of Value for Money. The foundation of Anambra as a Smart Mega City will be tasking all of us to the limit. But we are Ndi Anambra! The irrepressible Anambra Spirit and the collective action of a people that loves their homeland dearly are what we will continue to call and draw upon to move ahead. This Anambra Spirit and collective action came alive during my visits to Lagos and Abuja last week to meet with our people. The enthusiasm and generous pledges of our people towards our homeland security demonstrated once again that Anambra can be anything we desire and work that it should be. I am emboldened by the massive support and solidarity of the people as we face the threat of common but organized criminals who want to run our people out of town and take our wealth and land by force. But we are Ndi Anambra, and together, we shall overcome! Give us the budget urgently, and by the time our people come home for Christmas, we will all be proud that we are serving the people well.
