By Rukayat Adeyemi /Aderonke Ojediran

 The Lagos State government says 698 residents of the state will be selected through ballot to acquire homes in its various housing estates.

The Commissioner for Housing, Mr Moruf Akinderu-Fatai, said this during the 2024 Ministerial Press Briefing to mark the first year of Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s second term in office on Thursday at Alausa, Ikeja.

He further said selected workers would be entitled to 40 per cent rebate in their service lifetime.

“In order to promote transparency in home unit allocation, the state government will henceforth allocate some of its homes through ballot.

“The process will be observed by independent observers to ensure transparency and fairness.

“Some of the locations are: Idale (Badagry Division) and LagosHOM Odo-Onosa/Ayandelu (Epe-Division) come June 4,” the commissioner said.

He added that the Lagos State Mortgage Board had complied a list of applicants for home unit allocation.

“Within various schemes, we have pre-qualified 950 applicants for home unit allocation. We also have 400 applicants for LagosHOMS, Ajara, Badagry, 450 for LagosHS, Odo-Onosa/Ayandelu.

“We have 100 for Lagos State public affordable housing scheme, Idale Badagry,” Akinderu-Fatai said.

The commissioner also said the ministry was able to engage over 8,000 skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled residents of Lagos.

“In August 2023, the ministry trained additional 200 artisans under its Master Craftsman Training Programme. The six weeks programme was organised in collaboration with a consultant.

“The courses were: plumbing and pipe works, masonry, painting, decoration, carpentry and furniture making and electrical installations,” he said.

Akinderu-Fatai said the ministry had to deal with challenges such as encroachment on state owned land and housing projects, litigations, slow pace of work by joint venture partners and the current inflation trend.

“But we have been able to settle most litigations through Alternative Dispute Resolution and strategies to curb delays.

“We will encourage the use of local products, we’re leaveraging on various relationships with the academia and professional bodies to support researches into cheaper and alternative building technology,” he said. (NAN) (www.nannews)

Edited by Salif Atojoko

By Philomina Attah

The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) says the adoption of Artificial Intelligence (Al) must be guided ethical principles, in spite of its enormous benefits.

The President, CBCN, Most Rev. Lucius Ugorji said this in Abuja at the Maiden Communication Week (COMWEEK) Public Lecture by Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria (CSN).

The theme of the lecture was ” Artificial Intelligence: Challenges and Opportunities for Evangelisation and Social Development.’’

” Artificial intelligence is a subject of debate and labelling it as artificial suggests a replication or limitation, as it is derived from human intelligence.”

Ugorji, also the Archbishop of Owerri, said that in spite of its versatility and technological prowess, the AI remained a facsimile of the original, namely human cognition

“AI is a term born from advances in computer science and digital technology. It endows machines with the capacity for intelligent behaviour through sophisticated algorithms.

“Today, computers can perform tasks traditionally requiring human intelligence, such as understanding natural language, recognising patterns, learning from data, and making decisions.

“This has turned out to be a cause for joy and a reason for worry at the same time.

“It is a thing of joy because of the enormous positive possibilities as a result of the digital technology and worrisome because of the grave life-defining dangers they pose at the same time,” he said.

” We must strive for a balance that prioritises human welfare alongside technological progress, being mindful of ethical and moral dilemmas as well as risks such as job displacement.”

He said that the church had ceaselessly emphasised that collaboration between Al experts and social development practitioners was crucial.

According to him, Al could significantly contribute to the common good of the people.

“At this gathering, we hope to learn from experts the responsible and ethical use of Al not only to benefit the society but also to support the Church’s evangelisation efforts.”

He said that the Al should be a tool for empowerment and progress and not a source of division or destruction.

He said that the CBCN plans to create a forum for experts to discuss issues concerning not only the church and its mission but also the broader welfare of the society.

The Archbishop Emeritus of Abuja, John Cardinal Onaiyekan, said the position of the Pope had been in line with the constant magisterium of the church.

He said that all scientific progress was gift from God to humanity and to be used for human well-being to the glory of God.

“The latest in the world today is bringing out machines that try to imitate human thinking. We don’t know how far developments in this regard will go.

“But the warning of Pope Francis remains valid: that it is not everything that we can do that we should do. Even scientific progress must be subject to human, moral, and ethical control.

“This is a responsibility that humanity abdicates at its great peril,” he said.

Rev. Fr. Anthony Akinwale, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Augustine University, Ilara-Epe, Lagos, said that artificial was not intelligence because it lacked self-determination.

“My argument so far has been, if it is intelligent, it is not artificial and if it is artificial, it is not intelligent.

“Artificial intelligence is not intelligent because of its privation of self-consciousness and self-volition. That raises a question: Where does this lead us?

“The submission in the preceding section of this paper neither diminishes nor denies the astounding accomplishment of science and technology in the area of computational informatics.

“It only serves to call attention to a misnomer conventionally taken for granted. This misnomer, if ignored, will have, and in fact, already having precautions in the arena of ethics in which we human beings find ourselves, the arena of inter-relationship.

“The pertinence of these remarks stems from the fact that artificial intelligence is a tool and not a substitute for the human person,” he said.

He, however, added that the technology could be used properly if well understood because communication was not just about dissemination of information. (NAN)
(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Ali Baba-Inuwa

Dangote Cement offers free Malaria treatment In Edo

The Dangote Cement Plc (DCP) on Thursday began its malaria intervention programme for host communities at Okpella, Etsako East Local Government Area of Edo State as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility.

Group Head of Sustainability, DCP, Dr Igazeuma Okoroba, said the campaign was in commemoration of the World Malaria Day and to advance the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3 of the UN.

“As we observe, a significant portion of the population lacks access to vital healthcare services. Dangote Cement PLC aims to bridge this gap by addressing disparities in our host communities.

“We believe that healthy people are the foundation for healthy economies, and for this reason, countries are taking decisive actions to counteract health challenges. Our target for this campaign is Edo State.

“According to the United Nations, efforts to combat infectious diseases like HIV, TB and malaria improved between 2000 and 2015; however, progress has since slowed,” she said.

According to her, Dangote Cement’s response to this situation is to join the world in “accelerating the fight against malaria for a more equitable world.”

She said that the event was aimed at engaging the communities, make health accessible and addressing malaria risk factors as well as the company CSR programme.

While calling on the people to participate actively in the two-day activities, she commended the Edo state Ministry of Health and partners for their collaboration in making this programme successful.

Speaking at the ceremony, the Coordinator Sustainability DCP, Okpella, Sunday Adondua, said the programme was aimed at reducing incidence of malaria to as low as possible in the company’s host communities.

Adodua, a General Manager, Training and Development, added: “If the people use what we gave them in terms of drugs and mosquitos nets, we will chase malaria out of the communities.

“The essence of this programme is to make life more meaningful for the people of our host communities who are vulnerable in terms of finance and resources endowment to afford good medical establishments for treatment.

“So, we are bringing the treatment to them right in their homes. We want to reach as many people as possible, we start today, and it is continuing tomorrow. So those who heard the news of today’s event will come tomorrow. Even if 2,000, 5000 and 10,000 people visit us, they will get treatment.

“Dangote has a robust CSR programme for host communities, we have been doing this every year. Last year we have our sustainability week and at Okpella community we established a library with 10 laptops and internet connectivity for the community. The donation would be done next week.”

Speaking, Mr Victor Ojeifo, Director Community Health Service, in charge of Malaria Elimination Programme, Primary Healthcare Development Agency, Etsako East Local Government Area, commended Dangote Cement for the medical outreach.

“This is what we have been expecting to see when we preach to nongovernmental organization to try to attend to the vulnerable who can’t afford to buy drugs.

He called on communities to complement the Dangote programme by clearing bushes and stagnant water in their areas as part of efforts in eradicating malaria.

A beneficiary, Mrs Adiza Aliu, who was treated, said the programme has given her the opportunity to attend to her health without spending money.

“I was diagnosed of malaria. They gave me drugs and mosquito net. They asked me to be sleeping under the net to prevent malaria. Look at the drugs they gave me. I didn’t pay any money.”

Another beneficiary, Innocent Valetina, Dangote is God-sent to alleviate their suffering concerning health challenges.

“Drugs are expensive and not everybody can afford drug now but with this programme, we got free test, drugs and mosquito nets for ourselves and children. God should continue to bless Dangote.

On her part. Mrs Adiza Sedu, said she was happy to be among the beneficiaries of the free malaria treatment.

She added: “I was screened, I don’t have malaria, but they said my blood pressure is high. They gave me drugs and mosquito net and advise me to always go to the health centre to check.”(NAN)
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