By Emmanuel Mogbede

The President-elect, Sen. Bola Tinubu, has travelled out for lesser Hajj in Saudi Arabia, as well to marshal out his transition programme, ahead of the May 29 inauguration.

Mr Tunde Rahman, his Media Aide said this in a statement on Wednesday in Abuja, adding that the President-elect left the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos enroute to Europe on Tuesday night.

“The President-elect decided to take a break after the hectic campaign and election season to rest in Paris and London.

“Preparatory to going to Saudi Arabia for Umrah (Lesser Hajj) and the Ramadan fasting that begins Thursday.

“While away, the President-elect will also use the opportunity to plan his transition programme,” Rahman said.

He cautioned media organisations against publishing rumours, fake news and unsubstantiated claims, urging them to always seek clarifications from the Tinubu’s media office before publishing.

Rahman said the President-elect had directed that all his senior aides and campaign staff to go for a short rest. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

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Edited by Benson Iziama/ Ali Baba-Inuwa

From left: Hajiya Halima Hassan-Tukur; Fmr member House of Reps, Mrs Jummai idonije; Senior Special Assistant on Technical to Minister of Women Affairs; Hajiya Lami Adamu-Lau; National President, NCWS and Hajiya Binta Sulaiman Ibrahim, 2nd VP, NCWS during a press briefing in Abuja

By Justina Auta

The National Council of Women Societies (NCWS) has stressed the need for peace and justice to prevail over the governorship election in Adamawa State.
The National President of NCWS, Hajiya Lami Adamu-Lau, made the call on Monday at a news briefing in Abuja.
Adamu-Lau urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to release the Adamawa state governorship result and ensure that the will of the people prevailed.
She said that the call became necessary to ease tension that was currently building in the state.
”We want the umpire to uphold the election guidelines and do everything possible to ensure that the result is not manipulated.
“The people have spoken through their votes, it should be allowed to stand, ” she said.
She said the council was monitoring the progress and know that the exercise was postponed to enable verification of the results from Fufore Local Government Area.
“We want INEC to do the needful and release the result for peace to prevail in the state.
“I urged INEC to ensure justice in collating the results before the declaration,” she said.
Lami said that the Nigerian Women still had faith in INEC to do the needful and and ensure that justice prevailed.
Also speaking, Mrs Pauline Tallen, Minister of Women Affairs, stressed the need to end all forms of injustices, violence against women and rape to the Nation’ s democracy.
Tallen, represented by the Senior Special Assistant, Technical, Mrs. Jummai Idomije, said: ” We must get it right this time.
” Enough is enough. Nigerian women believe in the capability of INEC to release a just result so that Nigerian women can have a voice in national development.”
NAN reports that various women groups were in attendance to show solidarity to the APC Adamawa State governorship candidate, Sen. Aisha Binani. (NAN) www.nannews.ng

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Edited by Ben Ezugwu/Isaac Aregbesola

By Vivian Emoni

Stakeholders have expressed commitment to provide Solar Mini-Grid Electricity to some communities without electricity in the Niger Delta to tackle pipeline vandalism and crude oil theft.

The Executive Director, Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre (YEAC-Nigeria), an NGO, Mr Dumnamene Fyneface said this in a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Abuja.

He said that YEAC-Nigeria and YEAC-UK Ltd engaged NXT GRID Netherlands and its Nigeria subsidiary to develop the project.

According to him, the project will commence from Umuolu community, Ndokwa East Local Government Area of the state, and will be extended to other communities.

He said the commitment was part of measures to address pipeline vandalism, crude oil theft and artisanal refinery pollution including soot in the state.

“The effort will reduce the use of illegally-refined petroleum products by communities which hitherto depended on the products, especially fuel for their generators and kerosene for their lanterns as energy sources.

“The project will also support the communities to power their homes since they do not have access to electricity.

“The project is expected to discourage oil theft, reduce fossil fuel extraction, fight environmental pollution and climate change while providing clean, renewable and affordable energy to households.

“Those other communities that are also hard-to-reach and have not had access to electricity for a long time will definitely benefit from the project being rolled out in phases” he said.

Fyneface said that the project would as well discourage those youths that were engaged in illegal artisanal refineries and other unauthorised activities, because people would no longer patronise them.

He said that the development would provide job opportunities to the communities, thereby, giving them alternative livelihoods away from various environmental crimes.

“It will also provide the communities other business opportunities that the electricity can power through what we call `Productive Use,’ thus reducing environmental pollution.

“It will also help in the fight against climate change as the communities that are engaged in such illegal activities will have their minds disabused.”

Fyneface said that the Productive Use was a project meant to support the youth, women and persons with disabilities by providing grants, soft and revolving loans to the community.

He said that the essence of the project was to assist the people by engaging them in various businesses using the renewable energy system.

According to him, the objective of the organisation is to reduce pipeline vandalism, crude oil theft, artisanal refining and environmental pollution.

“The organisation tries to discourage families from patronising illegally refined petroleum products as energy sources to power their homes through generators, thereby, making artisanal refineries unattractive.

“We believe that if we can provide alternative livelihood opportunities for artisanal refiners, pipeline vandalism, artisanal refining and associated environmental pollution will automatically be reduced.” (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

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Edited by Ese E. Eniola Williams

By Vvian Emoni

The United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO), the Federal Government of Nigeria and Japanese government have expressed commitment to implement a project to create job opportunities.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the project is also aimed at protecting the environment.

The Regional Director of UNIDO, Nigeria, Mr Jean Bakole said this at a Stakeholders’ Awareness on Circular Economy Practices for Plastic Value Chains project in Abuja on Tuesday

Bakole said that UNIDO would be providing necessary support to Nigeria to effectively implement multilateral environmental agreement, including adopting cleaner production policies and methodologies to create job opportunities.

He said that the effort would be achieved through the development and implementation of regulatory frameworks, strengthening national institutional capabilities for eco-balanced and promoting resources use efficiency and green industries in manufacturing production.

According to him, it is on that context that the project is being developed to promote sustainable management technologies, identify new business models and accelerate capacity-building process.

“The project also creates awareness-raising on sustainable plastic value chains through circular economy approach in Nigeria.

“At the same time, this circular economy approach will contribute to protecting the environment from hazardous wastes and will help to generate decent jobs,” he said.

Bakole said that the meeting was focused on development of guidelines on plastic wastes management policy under UNIDO`s Project on “Promoting sustainable plastic value chains through circular economy practices.”

He said that plastics waste continues to be a major environmental and social problem in many countries.

According to him, to manage the problem has become a major topic for innovators, policy makers, researchers, business owners and even specific sectors like the agricultural, marine and tourism sectors.

“Though plastics waste management is gradually beginning to gain prominence, the manufacturing and usage of new plastics is still at an exponential rate.”

He also said that the project implementation model promotes cooperation between the federal and state governments including the FCT, and the organised private sector with the technical support of UNIDO.

“In response to the environmental challenges in Nigeria, UNIDO’s ongoing formulation of the Programme for Country Partnerships (PCP) is making provision to focus on environment management component.

“Through this component, UNIDO will provide necessary support to Nigeria to effectively implement the project,” he said.

The Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Permanent Representative to ECOWAS, Amb. Matsunaga Kazuyoshi, said the essence of the meeting was to discuss how to develop a guideline on the policy with various stakeholders.

Kazu Yoshi of the Embassy of Japan to Nigeria, said the partnership with UNIDO and Nigeria would strongly support in the implementation of the project, as it would create job opportunities in the country.

He said that the Japanese government was committed to collaborating with the Nigerian government and UNIDO, adding that the country had developed a recycling culture on how to manage waste effectively.

“The concern and challenges of Nigeria is our concern and our challenges as well, no single country or organisation can tackle the issue of waste management, accept when we work together.

“Therefore, it is important to have various stakeholders to work on this issue. So that this three years project which will be ending in 2025 can be effectively implemented to enable it achieve its goal,” he said.

The Project Manager of UNIDO, Ms Nishio Nahomi, said that the meeting would help the government to come up with a guideline that would support it in promoting waste management in the country.

Nahomi said that about 52.5 million dollars had been provided in the execution of the project, adding that the collaboration of various stakeholders would go a long way in the implementation of the project.

She called on stakeholders to support UNIDO, the Federal Government and Japan government in the execution of the project, adding that the effort would help to reduce waste pollution and create job opportunities in the country.

The Minister of Environment, Mr Mohammed Abdullahi said that plastic waste had become an integral part of the society due to its wide range of uses and economic benefits.

Abdullahi said that the volume of plastic waste being generated in the country presents circular economic business opportunities across the plastic value chain which should be properly harnessed for job creation.

He said that the government of japan funded a study on available sustainable alternative materials for plastic innovative packaging and recycling technologies that market needed in Africa to reduce plastic leakages to the environment.

He said the study showed a very low level of recycling activities in the country and only 45 per cent of wastes were collected.

“About 80 per cent of plastic waste goes to dumpsite while only 10 per cent is recycled, alternative material to plastic are yet to be introduced in the market and recognition of bioplastics are low.

“It is because of these challenges that the project on promoting sustainable plastic value chain through circular economy practices to be piloted in Lagos and Abuja was developed to address these gaps and its being implementing by UNIDO,” he said.

The minister was represented by Mr Charles Ikeah, the Director overseeing the Office of the Permanent Secretary of the ministry. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

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Edited by Yakubu Uba/Ese E. Eniola Williams

By Christian Ogbonna

Hoodlums suspected to be political thugs have set ablaze a state High Court in Owutu-Edda, Afikpo South Local Government Area of Ebonyi.

Mrs Oluchi Uduma, the Registrar of the court confirmed the incident to newsmen in Owutu-Edda on Tuesday.

She said that the hoodlums invaded the court on Tuesday and set the building ablaze.

Uduma explained that the court building, documents and other valuables were completely burnt.

The Chairman of Afikpo South Local Government Area, Mr Chima Nkama also confirmed the incident, adding that the matter was reported to the police. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

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Edited by Auwalu Birnin Kudu/Maharazu Ahmed

By Emmanuel Afonne

The National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) has introduced e-ticketing platform ahead of its 20th anniversary slated for March 25.

The Vice-Chancellor of NOUN, Prof. Olufemi Peters, said in Abuja that the platform was introduced to resolve challenges encoutered by students real-time.

“This helps us track the students’ challenges ,” he said.

Peters noted that the institution had achieved so much in ensuring that Nigerians irrespective of their tight schedule, obtain quality education.

He said that 28,740 students would be graduating on Saturday as part of activities for the anniversary.

“The university want to use the opportunity to showcase what it has achieved especially its exploits during the COVID-19 era.

“We have 21,339 undergraduates and 7,101 postgraduates students graduating.

“Among this number are 58 inmates out of which seven are postgraduate graduands.

“We have 14 centres in our prisons and we have been mandated to expand it.

“In all, we have 28,740 students graduating during our 12th convocation,” Peters said.

He disclosed that the graduating inmates were under scholarship adding that there were criteria to be among the beneficiaries.

Peters said the gesture was NOUN’s own way of discharging its corporate social responsibilty to help the inmates lead a normal life after leaving the correctional centres.

He added that the first female Vice-chancellor of University of South Africa (UNISA), Prof. Puleng LenkaBula, would be attending the convocation as the guest lecturer.

“Students of the five study centres in Abuja, first class and Masters students will come to the headquarters for the convocation, while others outside Abuja will join from the study centres in their various states.

“We have 141,000 active students and about 250,000, when you combine active and inactive students with 118 study centres nationwide.” (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

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Edited by Chinyere Joel-Nwokeoma

By Taiye Agbaje
Mr Olufemi Odubiyi, former Commissioner for Science and Technology, Lagos State, has given Chief Olabode George a seven-day ultimatum to retract the alleged defamatory comments made against him.
Odubiyi also said that George, a former Deputy National Chairman, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), must also tendered an unreserved apology and published same on the cover pages of three prescribed national dailies.
He stated this through his lawyer, Ayodele Akintunde, SAN, in a letter addressed to George dated March 17 in Abuja.
In another letter written to the Managing Director of a media group, Akintunde threatened to slam a N1 billion suit against the media house and George as damages for the defamatory comments if they fail to comply with the demand.
The lawyer alleged that the PDP chieftain, in an interview on TV on March 10, accused Odubiyi of being a mole planted in the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) by the President-elect, Sen. Bola Tinubu of All Progressives Congress (APC) to subvert the will of the Nigerian electorate in the Feb. 25 presidential election.
The lawyer said his statements meant that his client was criminally minded and had been involved in criminal activities such as election rigging.
“In their natural and ordinary meaning, your said words meant and were understood to mean that our client is an enemy of democracy; an election rigger,” he said.
Akintunde said contrary to George’s remarks, Odubiyi was never INEC’s head of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) Department.
He also said he was not responsible for the hitches with INEC’s computers during the presidential poll which resulted in the commission’s inability to transmit results electronically.
The senior lawyer, who corrected the erroneous assumption that Odubiyi was commissioner for Science and Technology during Tinubu’s administration, said his client was commissioner between October 2015 and January 2018.
He described Odubiyi as “a right standing and reputable member of the society and a well-meaning citizens of Nigeria with numerous years of experience locally and internationally as an IT expert without any blemish.”
He said he also served meritoriously as Lagos State commissioner.
According to him, our client’s reputation has been seriously injured and has suffered considerable distress, anxiety and embarrassment including threats to his person and that of his family members.
In a letter to George, he said: “Our client’s instructions are therefore to demand from you the following:
“Within seven days of the receipt of this letter, you personally retract live on Arise News and Arise News YouTube channel all the defamatory words/statements made against our client.
“And tender an unreserved apology to our client for the damage to his reputation.”
He also demanded from the media station a retraction and unreserved apology “on the cover page of ThisDay Newspaper in no less than three issues within the seven-day ultimatum.”
He said all the defamatory broadcasts and comments made by George be deleted from the TV station YouTube channel and any other platform under its control.
He asked them to give an undertaking in writing to desist from broadcasting or further broadcasting the defamatory statements or similar statements concerning his client in future.
He said failure to comply and provide them with proof of compliance within seven days of the receipt of the letter would lead to commencement of legal action against them for monetary damages in the sum of N1 billion.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that INEC had, on March 14, denied the claim by George that Odubiyi was the commission’s director of ICT Department.
According to INEC, there’s no iota of truth in George’s claim as no member of its ICT staff or personnel across its state offices bears the name “Femi Odubiyi” as referred to by the PDP chieftain.(NAN)(WWE.nannews.ng)

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Edited by Sadiya Hamza

By Olatunde Ajayi

The Nigerian Institution of Surveyors (NIS), Oyo State branch, has called on Nigerians to stop patronising quacks in order to tackle menace of land grabbing.

The call was made by the Chairman, NIS, Oyo state branch, Surveyor Waheed Lamidi, at an event organised to mark the 2023 Global Surveyors’ Day, on Tuesday in Ibadan.

The Global Surveyors’ Day celebration which started in 2018, takes place annually on March 21, to celebrate the impacts of surveyors globally and to bring to the front burner developmental issues underpinned by the profession.

Lamidi said that the NIS had put in measures to fight quackery while advising the general public to always engage the services of qualified surveyors.

He said that all registered surveyors had unique membership practicing numbers which distinguish one genuine surveyor from another.

Lamidi urged citizens to always verify with registered surveyors whenever they want to do anything partaining to land.

“We want people to be aware of the importance of carrying out a genuine survey on their land because without survey, there is no way government can plan well for the citizens.

“Members of the public should be watchful such that they will not patronise quacks, anybody that is not license by the Surveyors’ Council of Nigeria is a quack in the profession,” he said.

Lamidi appealed to the traditional rulers who oversee lands in their various domain in the state to cooperate, collaborate and patronise only registered surveyors to drastically reduce the issues of land grabbing.

He advised the members of the NIS both in public and private practice in the state to embrace its ethics in order
to protect the good image of the profession.

Also speaking, the Chairman, Association of the Private Practicing Surveyors of Nigeria (APPSN), Oyo State, Surveyor Olatunji Egberinde, said that surveying remains the bedrock of meaningful development of any nation.

“Citizens could only ascertain that a land is free from government acquisition, ascertain the size of the land and carry out a survey plan that has record copy by engaging the services of genuine surveyors,” Egberinde said.

He also enjoined surveyors to upgrade themselves with modern tools in line with evolving technology and innovations so as to be able to deliver a globally acceptable services.

Earlier, the Oyo State Commissioner for Lands, Housing and Urban development, Mr Emmanuel Olayiwola, said that the Surveyors’ Day calls for reflection on performance especially in the area of overall development of the state.

Olayiwola who was represented by the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Mrs Mofoluwake Adeniyi, said that surveyors remain strong pillars in the national development due to the relevance of the Geographic Information System (GIS) in all sectors of the nation.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the event featured the inauguration of the Continuously Operating Reference Station (CORS) that enables surveyors to differentially correct static Global Positioning System (GPS) measurements at NIS State Secretariat, Ibadan, road shows and lectures.(NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Chinyere Joel-Nwokeoma

By Ruth Oketunde

Data-Lead Africa Foundation (DLAF) has emerged as one of the winners of the 2023 Uplink Corporate Change makers Challenge, for its innovative approach to bridging the gap between the deaf community and the technology industry in Africa.

This is contained in a statement issued by Mr Nkpecha Franklin, Head of Operations, Data-Lead Africa, on Tuesday in Abuja.

He said that the DLAF’s Deaf-In-Tech project, which won the challenge, organised by the Schwab Foundation Social Entrepreneurship, was recognised based on its ability to contribute to social and environmental equity.

He said that the project is an ed-tech inclusion programme focused on strengthening diversity, equity and inclusion in STEM, data analytics, higher education and employment.

“It seems to close the existing skills gap among marginalised people, particularly people living with disabilities (PWDs).

“In low and middle income countries, PWDs are one of the key marginalised groups, while many initiatives have focused on gender equality and racial diversity, initiatives working to improve inclusion of PWDs are abysmally low.

“DLAF has created the first tech community of deaf people in Africa, with over 200 deaf persons learning and working on different tech and innovative solutions,” he said.(NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Sadiya Hamza

Parents, teachers and the burden of children with special needs

By Aderogba George, News Agency of Nigeria

As the world marks the 2023 World Down Syndrome Day, many parents are encumbered with how to tackle the challenges of children with special needs.

According the United Nations (UN) estimates that globally the incidence of Down syndrome is between 1 in 1,000 to 1 in 1,100 live births worldwide

A UN report furthers says that yearly, approximately 3,000 to 5,000 children are born with this chromosome disorder.

It is against this background that in December 2011, the UN General Assembly declared that with effect from March 21 it will mark the World Down Syndrome Day.

The aim is to raise public awareness of Down syndrome and galvanise international organisations, governments and the civil society to address the challenges of those suffering from the syndrome.

The joy of every parent is to see his/her child compete favorably with other children either in school, sporting activities or any other activities that could make them feel fulfilled.

Teachers on the other hand derive satisfaction in putting in their best to ensure they do not only meet the expectations of parents but also bring out the best in the child.

Teachers unlike parents are usually saddled with the responsibility of seeing the needs of children and being able to tackle such pronto.

This is why children with special challenges or children with special needs are often at the receiving end of parents getting to understand their plight and the appropriate measure to address such need.

Children with such special needs include; Down syndrome, Autism, Cerebral palsy and learning disability which are categorised as neuro-divergent children, while the non-challenged are neuro-typical children.

The confusion of where to place these children with such challenges is often a recurring decimal among parents, who lack the requisite sensitivity to understand how to address such needs with the necessary school environment.

Mr Philip Akpa, Chairman, Parents Teachers Progressive Forum, Safehost International Academic, Kurudu, Abuja said some proprietresses have taken up such challenges of creating the right environment to meet the social and educational needs of such children.

He said instead of locking up their children with special needs in rooms, parents should find the appropriate place that could help confront such challenges develop mentally and academically.

Akpa, said Safehost International Academy is one of the schools addressing the need by providing the right atmosphere for the children to compete with other children in the conventional school.

He said the proprietress thought it wise to have a school where children with neuro-divergent children’s needs could particularly melt.

According to him, the children are taught according to their needs, adding that the idea was to encourage inclusiveness, including the deaf and dumb and other disabilities.

“There are courses for you, there are sign languages that they teach them there and other languages they communicate with these children and they understand”, he said.

He enjoined parents to always ensure that experts handled their wards with special needs.

Ngozi Belolisa, Executive Director of the school, the society should embrace advocacy and inclusiveness for children with special needs.

“Advocacy is talking about what the typical children can do and what the divergent children can do vis-a-vis with their strength and what they can handle”, she said.

Some of the school had always encouraged the students to take sports as they help to develop their mental abilities.

“The synchronisation of sporting activities in the school is actually deliberate, this is to help them to retain, as they are learning they are looking”, Belolisa said.

Mrs Biboara Yinkere, Convener of the Engraced Ones, an NGO, that caters for children with special needs said with the right education and parenting, such children could become productive members of the society.

Yinkere, who is also the Director of School of Grace, a special needs school and the Gracelane Miracle Inclusive School, also in Kurudu, said she disability should not be seen as an encumbrance to productivity.

“People with disabilities can thrive, we know of the Paralympians in Nigeria that are doing very well. Here, the neuro-typical children are brought together in a bid to help strengthen their resolve.

“We also bring them together to foster friendship, to break down the wall of discrimination and segregation”, she said.

The Federal Government said it is aware of the plight of children with special needs and will do everything it can to help them develop into citizens that will contribute their quota to the development of the country.

“Now more than ever, we need to come together to support each other, and remember our most vulnerable populations”, Malam Muhammad Musa the minister of Federal Capital Territory, FCT said.

He spoke during a visit to Brain Bloom Centre, Abuja which is dedicated to the care of children with special needs.

As the world once again marks this year’s edition of the day of down syndrome, experts urge the authorities and every stakeholder to match words with action and fast-track efforts towards making life more enjoyable and meaning for children with special needs. (NANFeatures) (www.nannews.ng)

**If used please credit the writer and News Agency of Nigeria.