President Muhammadu Buhari has renominated Mr Ahmed Kuru as Managing Director (MD) and Mr Eberechukwu Uneze and Mr Aminu Ismail as Executive Directors of the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) for the final term of five years.

According to a statement issued in Abuja on Monday by Garba Shehu, Senior Special Assistant to the President, this was contained in a letter to the President of the Senate seeking confirmation of the nominees by the Upper Chamber in accordance with Section 10(1) of the AMCON Act, 2010.

Similarly, in another letter to the President of the Senate in compliance with Sections 5(4) and 8(3) of the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) Act, 2010, President Buhari has asked the Senate to confirm the nominations of Mr Bello Hassan as the Managing Director, and Mr Mustapha Muhammad Ibrahim as Executive Director of the corporation.

The statement informed that two nominees are to succeed Mr Umaru Ibrahim and Prince Aghatise Erediuwa whose second terms end on December 8, 2020, as Managing Director and Executive Director (Operations) respectively.

It added that, Hon. Omolola Abiola Edewor is to continue as Executive Director (Corporate Services) in the NDIC until her second and final term ends on January 24, 2022.

Most Quranic education school pupils, popularly referred to as “Almajiri”, who roam the streets in the northern part of the country, are not Nigerians, Kano State Governor, Umar Ganduje, said on Monday.

“A lot of them are foreigners from Niger Republic, Chad and Cameroon,” Mr Ganduje said while declaring open, a 3-day retreat organised by the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) in Kano.

The theme of the retreat is, ”Enhancing Basic Education in Nigeria towards a Robust Institutional Strengthening and Effective Stakeholder Engagement”.

“From the survey we have conducted, most of the “Almajiri” roaming our streets are from Niger, Chad and the northern part of Cameroon.

“Once you improve the quality of ‘Almajiri’ education system, you are inviting other ‘Almajiri’ from other places to come to your state. That is another problem.

“The northern governors are putting more pressure toward having a universal legislation that will limit the migration from one state to another,” he said.

Mr Ganduje said the retreat was “very vital and important, especially at this moment that the country is gradually coming out from the COVID-19 pandemic which has affected education in the country”.

According to Mr Ganduje, the retreat is also important because it is coming at a time education has become the first victim of uncontrolled population, especially when it is not matched with appropriate economic development.

He disclosed that free and compulsory primary and secondary school education as well as the transformation of the ”Almajiri” education system were some of his major priorities in the education sector.

He said the board and management would review strategic priorities and propose workable changes in the institution’s structure to drive both medium and long term goals of the commission.

“We will also re-assess the legal framework, service delivery model, share emerging developments and trends, including global best practices, for better performance.

“This retreat could not have come at a better time than now when Nigeria and, indeed, the entire world, is facing a common enemy – COVID-19.

“The pandemic is serving as an eye-opener for all stakeholders in basic education,” he said.

(NAN)

The Lagos State Police Command have debunked reports that youths staged a protest at Lekki toll gate on Monday.

Recall that police and military personnel were deployed to the toll gate to forestall the resumption of the #EndSARS protest against police brutality.

However, in reaction, Lagos police spokesman, Muyiwa Adejobi, tweeted this to counter a video which has been circulated severally on social media with claims that it emanated from the protest ground.

Mr Adejobi said the video was from the #EndSARS protest in October.

“The attention of the Lagos State police command has been drawn to this viral video that some youths staged a protest at Lekki tollgate today 7th Dec 2020. It’s not true. This was a very old video before the tollgate was set ablaze.”

Adejobi added that “Lagos has been calm and it will remain calm. No cause for alarm in Lagos State.”

He, however, urged Lagosians to go about their businesses without fear.

Anambra State Government says all the ongoing road projects being executed by Gov. Willie Obiano-led administration will be completed before the end of his tenure in March 17, 2022.

The State Commissioner for Works, Chief Marcel Ifejiofor, made the disclosure on Monday during the inspection of Nsugbe/Akpaka road project in Anambra East Local Government Area of the state.

Ifejiofor said the government regarded road projects as very important way of developing the state, saying, “our concern is not to count the number of kilometers of roads we constructed, but the positive impact the roads make on a people.”

According to him, we hope and believe that this dry season, people living in Nsugbe area will smile because government will encourage the company handling this project to ensure it completed the work on this very important road.

“We are impressed with the contractor and others handling our road projects because they are working according to specifications,” he said.

Ifejiofor said that most of the road projects being done by the state recorded slow progress in 2020 due to the effects of Coronavirus and other environmental challenges this year.

“All that we are assuring the people of the state is that no ongoing road project would be left uncompleted before the end of this government.

“As soon as the 2021 budget is passed into law, we will add more roads and ensure that every road we started would be delivered,” he said.

Ifejiofor however, called on the federal government to step up action towards fixing failed federal roads in the state, saying that bad state of federal roads in the state was putting pressure on state roads.

“I lived almost 20 years in the United States of America and it is a serious crime to do substandard jobs over there.

“My interest is not to make excess profit and expose the masses to undue sufferings, but to ensure that this very important road is executed well,” he said.
The Nsugbe/Akpaka road is meant to decongest traffic on ’33 area’ in Onitsha for travellers to Anambra East, Anambra West, Ayamelum local government areas as well as those coming from Nsukka/Benue axis to Onitsha.

Chief Owelle Mbaso, Senior Special Adviser to Gov. Obiano on Political Matters, said the quality and number of roads done by the administration was a plus for the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) party.

Mrs Faith Ndife, a resident of Nsugbe area thanked Obiano for embarking on the Nsugbe/Akpaka road project, but appealed to him to step up action on the project to ensure its completion.

“We are happy that government is doing this Nsugbe/Akpaka road, but we will be happier if the project is completed because it would bring more development to our area,” she said.

President Muhammadu Buhari has warned that any act of hooliganism hiding behind lawful and peaceful protests will be dealt with decisively.

The president gave this warning on Monday following the resumption of EndSARS protests across the country.

Some youths stormed the streets of Lagos, Oshogbo and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja in continuation of their demand to end police brutality.

With the arson the arson and killings that accompanied the last episode, President Buhari, however, said that peace and stability must be maintained.

The president was quoted in a tweet by the presidency.

The House of Representatives has described the calls for President Muhammadu Buhari’s impeachment as illogical and mischievous.

House spokesman Benjamin Kalu said the demand for Buhari’s impeachment by Kingsley Chinda, a lawmaker representing Obio/Akpor Federal Constituency in Rivers State was the “opinion of a single member of the opposition party in the house.”

He said calls for impeachment were not logical because Buhari is yet to appear before the House to explain what his administration is doing to address the security issue.

“If this call came post-President’s visit for the failure to dialogue well enough in securing solutions or due to his inability to put our positions to use, it would appear logical,” Kalu said in a statement on Sunday.

“Unfortunately, this call is not only illogical, it appears as a tool mischievously thrown up to disrupt the agenda of the coming visit with all it sets out to achieve in the spirit of nation-building which remains the mantra of the 9th Assembly and is considered a joint task.”

Earlier on Sunday, Chinda called on Nigerians irrespective of political party, tribe, or religion to compel their representatives to commence impeachment process against the president over the rising cases of insecurity in the country.

Last week, about 48 rice farmers were killed in Zabarmari, about 20 kilometres from Maiduguri, on Saturday, November 28. Boko Haram claimed responsibility for the attack.

The killings prompted Nigerians, particularly northern groups to demand Buhari’s resignation. While the Nigerian Senate called for the sack of service chiefs, the House of Representatives summoned the president to appear before it.

Kalu said the purported call to impeach Buhari “does not in any way reflect either the minority, majority or general position of the 9th House of Representatives and should be disregarded like his other divisive, distracting, destabilizing and destructive positions.

“The motive behind this press release as well as the timing leaves a bitter taste in the mouth of most progressives who were instructed by their constituents to request for an interaction with the president.”

The House of Representatives spokesman urged Nigerians to be patient and wait for the outcome of their meeting with Buhari “before being misled by a lone voice on a frolic of his (Chinda) own, whose private opinion in no way represents the position of the House of Representatives.”