By Sarafina Christopher

The Rotary Club of Abuja Kubwa (RCAK), District 9125, has rehabilitated some potholes along the Gado Nasko road in Kubwa, Abuja.

The club also reconstructed a Police Traffic Post at the Aso Savings junction.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Aso Savings Junction, which was also rehabilitated, had been in a deplorable state for some time now.

The poor state of the junction was characterised with deep potholes thereby causing traffic as motorists tried to maneuver the bad spots.

The move by Rotary Club of Abuja Kubwa was in compliance with its responsibility to provide humanitarian services to communities in order to give them a sense of belonging.

Inaugurating the project, Rotarian Sagab Ahmed, the District Governor, 9125 commended the Club for fulfilling the corporate social responsibility of Rotary, which includes community development and peace building.

“This project is quite commendable, particularly looking at the community in which the project has been done, which is very useful to many people’s regular usage.”

According to him, as much as the government is doing a lot in community development, the local government also has a role to play in ensuring that these projects are carried out across board.

“The government cannot do everything on their own which is why humanitarian organisations such as the rotary had taken it upon itself to also contribute to humanity through these community projects.

“We also want to urge the local governments to be more actively involved in community development projects and the sustainability of these projects.”

Ahmed also urged the people of the area to own and maintain the projects as it would inspire the government, Rotary and humanitarian organisations to do more.

Also speaking, the President of RCAK, Emmanuel ABONTA said the execution of the project was strategic as there was the need for proper conduct by motorists and other road users.

According to him, it is very critical at this time and always for the security of human lives and property.

“Our country has continued to battle with incessant road crashes resulting from bad roads but more importantly from negligence on the part of motorists.

“There is, therefore, an urgent need to bring this disturbing trend to a record low.

“Rotary Club of Abuja Kubwa is contributing to this effort by renovating traffic control posts and potholes filling projects that promoted safety ethics for road users.

“The selected site for the project is unique and serves the above purpose perfectly considering the fact that Aso savings junction Kubwa remains one of the busiest inland transit ways in the community.

“We are convinced this project will contribute to educating road users and by extension help abate road accidents,” Abonta said.

In her remarks, the Assistant Governor of District 9125, Rotarian Jatto Bukola said that the rehabilitation of potholes, especially at the Aso Savings Junction would reduce traffic in the area.

“We believe that this project will reduce the traffic jams caused by potholes because the potholes not only cause traffic but also creates conflict among commuters due to congestion.

“It is very crucial to note that this is one of the duties of the rotary to see how we can serve humanity, regardless of religion and ethnicity.

“I really appreciate the effort that RCAK put together for this impactful project,” she said. (NAN)

Edited by Ese E. Eniola Williams

By Philip Yatai

A university don, Mr Godwin Kwalbe, has advised government at all levels against cosmetic approach to addressing multidimensional poverty affecting a huge population of the country.

Kwalbe, a lecturer in the Department of History, Kaduna State University, gave the advice while speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Sunday.

He said that the palliative approach to addressing poverty made it look like the hardship occasioned by spiralling poverty in the country was seasonal.

He said that the fuel subsidy removal did not create hardship or poverty but only pushed citizens further down the poverty line.

The lecturer pointed out that more than half of the country’s population were structurally poor, with many people born into poverty and might continue to live in perpetual poverty.

He noted that the Federal Government had implemented several palliative programmes in its efforts to address poverty.

He identified some of the programmes as COVID-19 palliatives, economic stimulus packages like market moni, conditional cash transfer, public works programme, school feeding Programme and the current fuel subsidy palliatives.

He, however, said that the programmes, except for the conditional cash transfer programme, were designed only to cushion the effect of poverty and not to address poverty itself.

“In this context, the palliatives are merely serving as pain killers and as such, they are not addressing the causes of the pains,” he said.

He advised the federal, states and local governments to go back to the drawing board and come up with well-structured social welfare and social protection programmes.

He explained that social protection covered the range of policies and programmes needed to reduce the lifelong consequences of poverty and exclusion.

“Social protection, according to the international labour organisation, is a human right consisting of policies and programmes designed to reduce and prevent poverty and vulnerability throughout the life cycle.

“It includes benefits for children and families, maternity, unemployment, employment injury, sickness, old age, disability, survivors, as well as health protection.

“As such, the Nigerian social protection programmes should be humane, comprehensive, and continuous in line with global best practices and not the current sporadic model,” he said.

Kwalbe added that the social protection programmes should specifically target the unemployed, senior citizens, Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) and other poor and vulnerable groups.

He added that senior citizens and PwDs in particular, should be placed on monthly allowances for life.

“It is absolutely below the African value system to have our aged parents, queue with youngsters and fight for pittance in the name of palliatives.

“The photos and videos of youths pushing old parents down during distribution of palliatives are embarrassing to our dear nation.

“The discourse about palliatives should not also be done in isolation of the salary package for civil servants.

“Based on our African culture, paying salary to an individual civil servant means paying for the upkeep of many members of the extended family.

“This is why the government cannot be insensitive to the calls for upward review of wages in lieu of the current national hardship,” he said. (NAN)

Edited by Idris Abdulrahman

By Perpetua Onuegbu

The Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) has tasked its members on the need to mentor younger engineers with a view to contributing to national development.

Mr Tasiu Gidari-Wudil, President of the society, gave the charge on Saturday in Abuja, while conferring Fellowship Status on 142 ‘Distinguished Engineers”.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), reports that Gidari-Wudil was joined at the conferment ceremony by the Chairman, Board of Fellows/College of Fellows, Mrs Ebele Okeke.

While admonishing the new fellows on their status, he said they have automatically assumed the responsibility of being role models and mentors to younger engineers.

According to him, they will also be expected to increase their participation in NSE activities and in making valuable contributions to the growth of the society.

He said: “In addition, it is expected that you will always uphold good character and ethical values that will portray you as a worthy NSE Ambassador as you deliver value-adding services in your respective endeavours.”

This, he said, was towards the development of the nation

Reacting to the current debate on building roads with concrete rather than asphalt, he said that though he was not a specialist in civil engineering, the choice however depended on the situations.

Gidari-Wudil.said: “Few weeks ago, a debate was sparked in the media and in engineering circles by statements made by the Minister of Works, Sen. David Umahi, over the preferred or most potent materials for building roads.

“Technically, we call them rigid and flexible road pavement, on the normal parlance, we call it concrete or asphalt. Each one of these has its own advantages and disadvantages.

“We in NSE are not canvassing for anyone, rather we are convening a national discourse where the professionals in highway, in materials engineering, geotechnic, civil engineering other stakeholders wil chat the way forward.

“These are choices that mostly depends on the situation that the engineer finds himself, so if we are going to go for one solution it cannot fix all.”

According to the president there are situations whereby the best option to use is concrete, while in.other situations asphalt is used.

Gidari-Wudil added: “I am not going to preempt that discourse because i am not an expert on that subject matter.”

The NSE president, however, said that the society was going to set up a committee to work out the modalities for a national discussion on the issue.

He added that it would be a holistic event with all the stakeholders in the field both in and outside the country including the Federal and States’ Ministries of Works would be invited

Gidari-Wudil said it would be tagged ‘National Highways: Between Asphalt and Concrete’.

He said: “As a major stakeholder in infrastructure development and maintenance in Nigeria, we take interest and lend our voice to matters that concern the engineering sector and, by extension, the wellbeing of Nigerians.

“Recently, we called a press conference to release the NSE Position Paper on the proposed increase in electricity tariff by the DisCos, which generated some controversies across the country.

“Before then, there was also a press conference on flooding in Nigeria where we proffered engineering solutions to mitigate the devastating effect of flooding.”

Gidari-Wudil explained what the society wanted was an option in infrastructure that would endure and add to national development.

In her remarks, the Chairman, Board of Fellows/College of Fellows, NSE, Mrs Ebele Okeke, commended the conferees for having scaled through the procedures, adding that the process had remained very thorough but fair.

“This is why, even though the membership strength of the society is currently about 82,000, only a few percentage had been elevated to the Fellowship grade.

“Therefore, any engineer with the appellation ‘FNSE’ is always accorded appropriate recognition and privileges.

“I welcome you all to this occasion where we will interact to celebrate the new Fellows, as well as exchange ideas on how to play active roles in the infrastructural and economical growth of our dear nation,” she said.

One of the conferees, Mr Adetunji Adenuga, Chairman, NSE, Abeokuta, Branch, said the conferment would give him more reason to be more purpose-driven in mentoring the younger generation of engineers.

Adenuga, who is also the Director, Flood and Erosion Control, Ogun Ministry of Environment, said that he would also look out for more innovations that would transform the society.

“This is especially in the areas of flood and erosion control to ensure that the country has zero ecological retardation and avert the issue of gully erosions,” he said.

Another conferee, Mr Olalekan Lateef, Chief Engineer, National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) said he felt elated being awarded the apex honour in his profession.

He said: “Having reached the peak of my profession, i will keep mentoring young engineers and delve more into research.

“If the government will implement it’s Execution Order 5, that encourages the use of local content, Nigerian engineers will be engaged.” (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

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Edited by Deborah Coker/Bashir Rabe Mani