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Senate President cautions regional leaders against dictatorship

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Senate President cautions regional leaders against dictatorship

Senate President cautions regional leaders against dictatorship

By: Michael Mike, Abuja

Senate President, Senator Ahmed Lawan has advised political leaders in West Africa to desist from dictatorship and allow for wide ranges of ideas as envisioned in democracy.

Speaking at the opening of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Parliament in Abuja, Lawan also appealed for regional integration noting that it would promote commerce, trade, investment, collective economic growth and the wellbeing of the region.

According to him: “Regional integration is for instance, core to us all and has demanded attention, because of its importance to our commerce, trade, investment, collective economic growth and wellbeing of our people.”

He said: “Strengthening democracy is significant for the representative qualities of the governance system, and for stimulating integration and involvement of the large spectrum of the citizenry and against the background of pockets of threats to its sustenance in some of our countries

“Democracy has become priceless as a system of government bearing in mind the weakness of dictatorship and the strengths in democracy. As parliamentarians, we 3a bastion of culture of democracy and the onus is always on us to portray its core essences, including freedom, opportunities, growth and development.”

Lawal also urged all regional leaders to adopt the system of continuity in order to improve institutions and productivity, efficiency and efficacy.

On his part, the Deputy Speaker of the Nigeria House of Representatives, Ahmed Idris Wase while speaking to journalists at the session also stressed the need for regional integration as the key essence of promoting development and growth amongst the ECOWAS region.

“Nigeria has been doing alot in calming tempers. We called on our own in Sierra Leone and other countries that have problems of insecurity and the challenge of coup d’etat. Our intervention also in Gambia can not be overemphasized. We have been there for our brothers, so Nigeria is doing it best”.

Speaking on the challenges of insecurity in the subregion, the Deputy Speaker said the Members of the ECOWAS parliament were doing their best to curb the menace.

“Security is everybody’s business, we need the support of the entirety of the subregion to be able to solve the problem. The challenges of arms from Libya finding their way into the country is another issue. Talking about collaboration, in terms of ourselves as Members of Parliament, I believe we are doing our best to stem the insecurity in the region. We are doing our best in exposing, arresting and prosecuting”.

Earlier, the Speaker of the ECOWAS parliament, Sidie Tunis, assured the parliament of its willingness to discuss the issue of direct election during one of its meetings that will take place on January 22 in the republic Togo.

Also Read: Jos Prison Attack: 11 killed, 252 inmates on the run

“In January 2022, we will be holding another meeting in Togo and we are going to deal with the issue of direct election extensively.

“I wish to report to you that we are making significant moves in our quest for Direct Election of Members into the ECOWAS Parliament. You may wish to recall that during the 2nd Extraordinary Session in Winneba, Ghana, we requested His Excellency, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, President of the Republic of Ghana and Chairman of the Authority of Heads of State & Government to serve as champion of the project. Recall also that we requested His Excellency Mohamadou Issoufou, former President of the Republic of Niger and former Chair of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State & Government, to serve as Chief Advocate, while  His Excellency Dr. Mohamed Chambas, former President of the ECOWAS Commission, former Secretary-General, Africa, Caribbean and the Pacific (ACP) and the former Special Representative for the Secretary General and the Head of the United Nations Office for West Africa was requested to serve as Assistant Chief Advocate. Having been assured of their excellencies concurrence, we set out to address the following key areas: The modalities for the conduct and financing of the election of Members to the ECOWAS Parliament; The electoral Code for the election; as well as the proposal for the code of conduct for Candidates in the election”. 

Meanwhile, the Speaker also said the main focus of the current session was to deliberate on the 2022 budget of the ECOWAS parliament and to ensure that it addresses the current realities of the people.

“This session, otherwise known as the “Budget Session”, provides the opportunity, in accordance with provisions of the Supplementary Act, for Parliament to ensure that the estimates are directed towards programs that address the needs of the people. Here, I make specific reference to Article 17.2a, which states that “after the consideration of the budget by the Administration and Finance Committee (AFC), the report of the AFC on the budget shall be presented to Parliament during the Parliamentary Budget Session.” In fulfillment of this statutory responsibility, we are expected to render opinions, including where necessary, proposals for the amendment to the draft community budget”.

Senate President cautions regional leaders against dictatorship

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Eid-el-Kabir: IPCR Calls on Nigerians to Peace, Harmony

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Eid-el-Kabir: IPCR Calls on Nigerians to Peace, Harmony

By: Michael Mike

Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution (IPCR) has called on Nigerians to promote peace and harmony in their communities, recognizing that peace is essential to national development and progress.

The advice was given by the Director General of the Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution (IPCR), Dr. Joseph Ochogwu, in his message on Eid-el-Kabir.

The Institute, while extending warm greetings to Nigerians, wished them a joyous and peaceful celebration, marked by love, compassion, and unity.

The Institute while noting that Sallah is a significant occasion in the Islamic calendar, symbolizing the values of sacrifice, gratitude, and community, emphasized that the spirit of Sallah should guide Nigerians in their interactions with one another, fostering a culture of peace, tolerance, and understanding.

The IPCR urged Nigerians to promote peace and harmony in their communities, recognizing that peace is essential to national development and progress, while
encouraging individuals to embrace the values of Sallah, including forgiveness, empathy, and kindness, in their daily lives.

According to IPCR, peace is critical to promoting national stability and cohesion.

The Institute also urged Nigerians to use this period of Sallah celebration to address conflicts and promote dialogue, which could help to build trust and understanding among Nigerians and also contribute to a more peaceful society.

It recognized that the country’s many ethnic and religious groups can work together to build a more harmonious society, celebrating their differences and promoting a culture of tolerance.
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Community Leader Seeks Tinubu’s Urgent Intervention in Incessant Plateau Killing

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Community Leader Seeks Tinubu’s Urgent Intervention in Incessant Plateau Killing

By: Michael Mike

A community leader and the Waziri Mushere of Bokkos Local Government Area of Plateau State, Chief Yohana Margif has expressed dismay over the incessant killing of innocent citizens of the community.

Margif made this known in an interview with journalists on Thursday in Abuja.

He called on President Bola Tinubu to urgently intervene to halt what he described as genocide against the people, which he said was being perpetrated by suspected herdsmen.

Margif also called on Malam Nuhu Ribadu, the National Security Adviser, and other security chiefs in the country, to rein in the alleged culprits.

He said: “I would like to draw the attention of the topmost leadership in Nigeria to the deteriorating dire security situation in Plateau, particularly in Mushere Chiefdom of Bokkos LGA.

“I urge President Tinubu to take immediate decisive action to halt these endless and senseless killings, protect lives and properties, and secure the future of the Mushere people, and other victims of obvious genocide against the people.

“Herdsmen are killing our innocent people, burning their homes, looting their foodstuff, property, livestock, and taking over their ancestral lands,” he said.

According to the Abuja-based real estate mogul, the attacks and attendant killings have intensified recently since the onset of this year’s farming season.

Margif further said that the people had been displaced from their villages and ancestral homes and were forced to become internally displaced persons in the country.

He emphasised that the situation required immediate intervention by all stakeholders in order to prevent further escalation and inflict an irredeemable harm by wiping out the entire community from the surface of the earth.

He lamented that: “Since President Tinubu’s administration began, Plateau State has witnessed an unprecedented escalation of violence and loss of lives.

“This is the current sad reality. Our people are constantly under the threat of the enemy’s bullets and can’t sleep with two eyes closed due to the perpetual unleashing of violence against them by external forces.

“Something urgent must be done to stem the tide of violence and end this war against the people in order not to
harm this administration’s reputation,” Margif said.

In the past couple of days, suspected herdsmen militia killed no fewer than 35 people in the localities of Hokk, Pangkap, Fokoldep, Kopmur, Margif, Horop, Mbor, Mushere and Kwahas localities in Mushere Chiefdom.

Chairman, Bokkos Community Peace Observers, Kefas Mallai, who confirmed the killings to newsmen, said the victims included a 70-year-old Pastor of COCIN LCC Kwakas-Mushere, Mimang Lekyil, who was attacked and killed in the church.

He said that the pastor’s wife was also shot in the leg and was admitted at the Jos University Teaching Hospital for treatment, he said.

“Bokkos has never been this insecure, with the people being butchered as we are currently witnessing,” Lilian Madaki, from the Mushere community told journalists.

The Commissioner of Police in the state, Emmanuel Adesina, also confirmed the incident in a statement saying security forces including police and military personnel, had been deployed in the affected communities.

Community Leader Seeks Tinubu’s Urgent Intervention in Incessant Plateau Killing

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VP Shettima Leads Mourners At Funeral Prayers For Late Prof. Jibril Aminu

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VP Shettima Leads Mourners At Funeral Prayers For Late Prof. Jibril Aminu

** Says Nigeria has lost an intellectual giant

By: Our Reporter

Vice President Kashim Shettima today led other Muslim faithful for the Jana’iza (funeral prayers) of the late elder statesman, renowned medical scholar and former Minister of Education and Petroleum, Prof. Jibril Aminu, at the National Mosque in Abuja.

Prof. Aminu, a one-time President of the African Petroleum Producers’ Organisation (OPEC), passed on in Abuja on Thursday after a prolonged illness.

The Vice President, who arrived at the National Mosque at 1:52 pm, commiserated with the family of the deceased and prayed Allah to comfort them and make Aljanna Firdaus the final abode of the late elder statesman.

Noting that the late Prof Aminu’s demise is a great loss to the nation, VP Shettima described the late surgeon, educationist and administrator as a man who saw it all, just as he said the deceased was an intellectual giant who can hardly be replaced.

“It is a very sad loss. Prof Jubril Aminu was the last of the great titans, an iconic figure who enormously contributed to the development of the nation.

“He was variously the Executive Secretary of NUC, Vice Chancellor of the University of Maiduguri and Honourable Minister of various ministries across the country and left his landmarks on the sands of time.

“He is irreplaceable. May Allah grant him Aljanatul Firdaus and give the family the fortitude to bear the irreparable loss. His loss is not just to the good people of Adamawa State but to the nation and Africa at large,” the Vice President prayed.

Born in Song, Adamawa in 1939, Prof. Aminu was a towering figure in Nigerian public life.

The late Consultant Cardiologist served the nation in different capacities, including as Federal Minister of Education and later Federal Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources (1989–1992), Ambassador of Nigeria to the United States (1999–2003), and Senator representing Adamawa Central (2003–2011).

He was also President of OPEC in 1991 and President of the OPEC Conference between 1991 and 1992 while he was Petroleum Minister.

Other mourners who joined the Vice President at the National Mosque in Abuja for the Jana’iza included former Vice President Atiku Abubakar; National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu; Special Adviser to the President on General Duties (Office of the Vice President), Dr. Aliyu Modibbo; former Secretary to the Federal Government, Yayale Ahmed; former Governor of Adamawa State, Admiral Murtala Nyako; former Governor of Gombe State, Senator Danjuma Goje; former Chief of Army Staff, General Tukur Buratai (rtd); former Minister of Education, Professor Tahir Mamman; former Minister of State for Health, Dr. Aliyu Idi Hong, among many others.

VP Shettima Leads Mourners At Funeral Prayers For Late Prof. Jibril Aminu

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