National News
Assembly members’ commended for contribution towards the success of workshop on Child Rights Domestication in Borno

Assembly members’ commended for contribution towards the success of workshop on Child Rights Domestication in Borno
The Lead Consultant at the five days’ workshop organized for the members of the Borno state House of Assembly, BOHA has commended the Assembly members for their attention and contribution in the success of the workshop.
The Consultant, Dr. Umar Alkali, an Associate Professor at the Department of Law, University of Maiduguri in Borno state said the Assembly members were active and studying the bill passed by the National Assembly, which the government is adopting for domestication in Borno state.
Speaking on Friday after the workshop at REIZ Continental Hotel in Abuja, Dr. Umar Alkali said the Child’s Right Act is the most comprehensive legislation on child protection in Nigeria. Stating that it’s domestication in Borno state is a good omen and a welcome development.
“And with the reboust attention given by the members of Borno state house of Assembly in the 5 days’ workshop we just concluded one would say Borno state is ready to move with the pace towards liberating children from abuse. They have contributed immensely towards the success of this workshop. We read the bill from section one to section 206, which is the last section.
“All the members appreciate the fact that the law meant well. The law is meant to protect the children in Borno state without descrimination. The law has provided for rights for children and equally provided responsibilities for children.
Speaking on the law and what it meant for the Borno child especially now that the state is faced with a number of unaccompanied children returning as refugees and internally displaced persons, IDPs, Dr. Alkali said: “In addition, it has provided a ministry where the ministry in charge of the affairs children will be responsible for ensuring the implementation of the law where committees are formed. For instance, we have a Child Rights implementation committee on the bill which is a committee that serves as the watchdog to ensure that the provisions of the bill are implemented.
“One other important aspect of the law is that it has made provisions where children are kept. For instance, where a child is in conflict with the law or in contact with the law – meaning that for instance, a child commits a crime, he is in conflict with the law. So, it is improper to keep such a child in prison where adults are kept. Because the possibility for him becoming even a more hardened criminal is there. So, the law has made provisions for correctional institutions where children are kept for them to be corrected and become better members of the society.
Also Read: SERVICOM: NSCDC SET TO ENHANCE CAPACITY FOR EFFECTIVE…
“Always give the child a second chance because likely the crime he committed is as a result of the influence of an adult. Or he does not even know that what he is doing is wrong. So, always give a child a second because he will be a better member of society.”

Also speaking on the child right and the 12 years of insurgency in Borno state, Dr. Umar Alkali said the law will help greatly in cushioning the effect of the conflict on children because of the peculiarities of Borno state being a state that passes through these periods of conflicts.
According to him the law has made provisions. “Like I said earlier, children are in contact with the law. These are children that did not actually commit any crime but they suffered a trauma or they are abused. Because of all these the law has provided a place where these kinds of children can be kept for them to be rehabilitated. For them to become better persons and for the trauma to be addressed by experts.
“So, this law has made provisions because there are currently six institutions where the law has made provisions for keeping children. These are managed by the government or supervised by the government. The law also provided opportunity for the NGOs to take care of children but it shall be under supervision of the government with the approval of the ministry of women affairs or the ministry on charge of children with constant monitoring because it’s not just about approving but from time to time the government will pay unscheduled visit to see and assess the level of compliance with protection and safety of children in such institutions.
” In fact, even after an approval is given and the institution is running and keeping children, protecting children and giving all that is needed for children. If that institution or that NGO fails in its responsibilities the law has given the commissioner the power to withdraw that licence or certificate for running such an institution.” Dr. Alkali said.
Assembly members’ commended for contribution towards the success of workshop on Child Rights Domestication in Borno
National News
VP Shettima Mourns Late Alhaji Aminu Dantata, Says Nigeria Has Lost An Irreplaceable Institution

VP Shettima Mourns Late Alhaji Aminu Dantata, Says Nigeria Has Lost An Irreplaceable Institution
By: Michael Mike
Vice President Kashim Shettima has expressed deep grief over the passing of prominent Nigerian businessman and philanthropist, Alhaji Aminu Alhassan Dantata, saying the nation has lost an irreplaceable institution.
The late Dantata, an uncle of Africa’s richest man, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, passed away at the age of 94 in Abu Dhabi in the early hours of Saturday in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), according to Mustapha Abdullahi Junaid, his Personal Private Secretary (PPS), who confirmed the death.
In a condolence message, Vice President Shettima praised the late businessman for his lifetime of service, describing him as “a living bridge that connected us to our past.
“We have not just lost a leader; we have lost an irreplaceable institution,” Senator Shettima said, describing Dantata as “one of the greatest titans in Nigeria’s philosophical history” whose departure marks the end of a vital chapter in the country’s economic and democratic evolution.
“In African tradition, when such an elderly person transitions, a vital chapter of our history departs with them. He was indeed among the great titans, a living bridge that connected us to our past,” VP Shettima added.
The Vice President extended heartfelt condolences to the Dantata family, expressing hopes that they would “find the fortitude to bear this irreparable loss,” even as he prayed that Almighty Allah would grant the deceased Jannatul Firdaus.
Born into the legendary Dantata family of Kano, Alhaji Aminu built on his father’s commercial legacy to become one of Nigeria’s most influential business figures. His empire spans construction, manufacturing, banking, agriculture, and the oil and gas sectors.
Beyond business, Dantata was renowned for his extensive philanthropic work, funding schools, mosques, health centres, and supporting widows and the underprivileged across Nigeria.
VP Shettima Mourns Late Alhaji Aminu Dantata, Says Nigeria Has Lost An Irreplaceable Institution
National News
Nigeria-EU Senior Officials Meet in Abuja to Prepare for Upcoming Nigeria – EU Ministerial Meeting

Nigeria-EU Senior Officials Meet in Abuja to Prepare for Upcoming Nigeria – EU Ministerial Meeting
By: Michael Mike
The Senior Officials Meeting between Nigeria and the European Union (EU) will be held on Tuesday 1st and Wednesday 2nd July 2025 in Abuja to prepare for the upcoming Nigeria – EU Ministerial Meeting and to explore areas of cooperation.
A statement on Saturday by the Press Officer, EU Delegation to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Modestus Chukwulaka, read: “The Delegation of European Union to Nigeria and ECOWAS wishes to inform that the Senior Officials Meeting between the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the European Union (EU) will be held on Tuesday 1st and Wednesday 2nd July 2025 in Abuja.
“The agenda of the very important meeting is to prepare for the upcoming Nigeria – EU Ministerial Meeting and to explore areas of cooperation.”
According to the statement, the Senior Officials Meeting will be co-chaired by the Regions, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Nigeria, Ambassador Janet Olisa, Director, and the Deputy Managing Director for Africa Department, European External Action Service, European Union, Mr Mathieu Briens.
The statement revealed that the agenda of the meeting is expected to entail wide-ranging discussions that would focus on various aspects of the Nigeria – EU partnership, such as: Cooperation on multilateral and regional issues; Peace, Security and Governance; Humanitarian situation; Trade and Investment; Human Development: Health, Education, Social Protection; Science, technology, innovation and digital transition; Migration; Energy, climate change and green economy transition among others.
Nigeria and the European Union share a deep, long-standing partnership inspired by mutual values and interests as well as support for multilateralism and rule-based international order, the statement said.
Nigeria-EU Senior Officials Meet in Abuja to Prepare for Upcoming Nigeria – EU Ministerial Meeting
National News
Farida Waziri Tasks Benue Leaders to Unite, Act and Save Their People

Farida Waziri Tasks Benue Leaders to Unite, Act and Save Their People
…. Donates relief materials to displaced persons in Yelwata, IDP camp
By: Michael Mike
Former Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, (EFCC), Mrs. Farida Waziri has charged former governors, legislators, traditional rulers and other stakeholders in Benue state to set aside rivalry, unite and act with urgency to save their people from incessant attacks and killings.
Waziri, a retired Assistant Inspector General of Police and Principal Partner, Brookfield Chambers Abuja stated this on Saturday 28th June 2025 while donating relief materials to victims of the recent gunmen attacks in Yelwata community and displaced persons at the internally displaced persons (IDP) camp in Makurdi, the Benue state capital.
Some of the items donated under the banner of Women, Youth, Children and Crime Organisation (WYCCO), a non-governmental organization founded by her, include: bags of rice, sugar, tubers of yam and other household items.

She said: “This is no time for division. It is no time for political squabbling or ego-driven manoeuvring. Among us are men and women who have led this state — former governors, legislators, traditional rulers — individuals with influence and authority. The time has come to set aside our differences and stand united, for the sake of the ordinary Benue man, woman, and child.
“That is why I stand here today to make this urgent and heartfelt appeal to our leaders: cast aside rivalry, unite, and act. Act with urgency. Act with purpose. Because what we face now increasingly resembles a deliberate, coordinated effort to erase our people and our heritage.
“We must take heed of the words of Sir Winston Churchill, who once said:
‘Our difficulties and dangers will not be removed by closing our eyes to them.’
Another of Churchill’s warnings is just as relevant to our present predicament:
‘If you will not fight for right when you can easily win without bloodshed… you may come to the moment when you will have to fight with all odds against you and only a precarious chance of survival.”
Waziri, while stating that her call was a build up to the earlier proposal by President Bola Tinubu during his recent visit Beforehand Benue, noted that meetings alone would not solve the problem, urging that: “But let us be sincere: peace will not come from meetings alone. To end the cycle of violence, we must confront its roots. Before the Yelwata massacre, communities in Gwer West, Apa, and Guma had already endured weeks of killings, kidnappings, and raids. These horrors did not emerge in a vacuum; they are symptoms of deeper issues.
“We must therefore confront the real causes — ethnic and religious tensions, unchecked banditry, and the rise of cultism as well as the abuse of illicit drugs. These forces must be tackled, along with the herder-farmer conflict, with honesty and courage. We cannot afford to keep going in circles. And there is no room for blame games. Our leaders — and indeed, all of us — must be pragmatic. So today, let us commit, as one people, to healing our wounds, reclaiming our land, and ensuring that never again will a child in Benue grow up in a camp instead of a home”
She said the development in Benue must be of “concern to all sons and daughters of Benue regardless of whether we live within its borders or far away in the diaspora to find out the root cause of these attacks with a view to proferring solutions that will bring an end to these barbaric acts”
Farida Waziri Tasks Benue Leaders to Unite, Act and Save Their People
-
News1 year ago
Roger Federer’s Shock as DNA Results Reveal Myla and Charlene Are Not His Biological Children
-
Opinions3 years ago
THE PLIGHT OF FARIDA
-
Opinions4 years ago
POLICE CHARGE ROOMS, A MINTING PRESS
-
News1 year ago
EYN: Rev. Billi, Distortion of History, and The Living Tamarind Tree
-
Columns1 year ago
Army University Biu: There is certain interest, but certainly not from Borno.
-
ACADEMICS1 year ago
A History of Biu” (2015) and The Lingering Bura-Pabir Question (1)
-
Opinions1 year ago
Tinubu,Shettima: The epidemic of economic, insecurity in Nigeria
-
Politics3 weeks ago
2027: Why Hon. Midala Balami Must Go, as Youths in Hawul and Asikira/Uba Federal Constituency Reject ₦500,000 as Sallah Gift