CAN Flays Buhari’s Claim That 90% Boko Haram Victims Are Muslims [PUNCH]
The President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), has said that it is not true that Boko Haram insurgency has claimed the lives of more Christians than Muslims.
He argued that the contrary was the case, insisting that “90 per cent” of deaths from attacks by the terrorists were Muslims.
Buhari gave his position in an op-ed published in Speaking Out, a guest opinion column for Christianity Today, a United States-based magazine.
The op-ed was a tribute to the Michika Local Government Area Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria in Adamawa State, the late Pastor Lawan Andimi.
The cleric was executed by Boko Haram. The op-ed was titled, “Buhari: Pastor Andimi’s faith should inspire all Nigerians.”
Buhari in the op-ed said it was not true that Christians were the primary targets of Boko Haram insurgents.
The President of CAN, Reverend Supo Ayokunle, had in Ibadan on Sunday, urged Buhari to rise up to his responsibility of protecting lives and property in the country.
Citing the killing of Andim and a student of the University of Maiduguri, Ropvil Dalyep, he said there was no doubt that the Boko Haram insurgents were targeting Christians.
Reacting to the notion that Boko Haram targeted only Christians, Buhari disagreed, urging Nigerians to see the insurgents as common enemies they must team up to fight collectively.
He also wrote that since he assumed office in 2015, his regime had not relented in fighting the insurgents, adding that to a large degree, the insurgents had been weakened by the Nigerian Armed Forces.
Buhari wrote, “Boko Haram are no longer one, unified threat, but fractured into several rivals. These splinters are themselves degraded: reduced to criminal acts which—nonetheless no less cruel—target smaller and smaller numbers of the innocent. We owe thanks to the Nigerian defence forces, bolstered by our partnership with the British, American military and other countries that we are winning this struggle in the field.”
Community Policing Gets N31m, South-West Govs, IG Meet Thursday [PUNCH]
The Federal Government has budgeted N31.08m for procurement of tools for community policing activities in 2020.
Check by The PUNCH in the Federal Government’s 2020 budget showed the provision for the expenditure under the Ministry of Police Affairs’ estimates.
Although the budget did not state items to be procured for community policing, it simply said the funds were meant for procurement of tools.
But there were indications on Tuesday that the Federal Government had yet to release funds for the implementation of the community policing scheme.
It was gathered that the delay in the release of the money was partly responsible for the slow take-off of the policy which was meant to complement the conventional police in tackling the insecurity in the country.
The Federal Government had last month directed the Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, to begin the process of recruiting constables for the community policing scheme.
On January 23, Adamu, in a wireless message to state commissioners of police, ordered them to liaise with traditional rulers and community leaders with a view to setting up screening committees for the recruitment.
There have been discordant tunes at state police commands as some said they had begun the recruitment, while others said they were awaiting guidelines from the Force Headquarters.
But sources in the police told one of our correspondents on Tuesday that funds for training and purchase of accoutrements for the 40,000 volunteers that would be engaged ought to have been released to the police by the Ministry of Finance.
The source said, “We need money for their kits which would be provided by us. The special constables’ shoes, belts, batons would all be provided by the police. So these are all tied to the release of funds.
“I believe the police high command has submitted a budget for the policy implementation, but we are yet to get a kobo from the finance ministry. This is part of the reasons for the slow pace of the implementation.”
But the force spokesman, Deputy Commissioner of Police Frank Mba, when asked to react to the non-release of funds, said, “The policy is on course.”
Sanwo-Olu Inaugurates Ferries, Says Okada, Marwa Ban Irreversible [PUNCH]
The Governor of Lagos State, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Tuesday inaugurated 14 commercial ferries at the Badore Ferry Terminal, Ajah.
The boats, according to a statement, can take up to 40 to 60 passengers at a go and will commute to Ikorodu, Ebute Ero, CMS, Badore and Ikoyi areas of the state.
While assuring Lagosians that before the end of the year the boats would be increased to 30, Sanwo-Olu said more than 500 buses would be injected into the state transport system to ease transportation problems.
The governor said the decision to ban motorcycle and tricycle riders in some parts of Lagos was irreversible for safety and security reasons.
While speaking at the Badore Ferry Terminal, where he also inaugurated the Lagos Ferry Service (LAGFERRY) and a mobile app, Sanwo-Olu said no responsible government would allow security breach in the state.
“Let me tell you about the ban which we just enforced. We will sustain the ban on okadas and tricycles, mainly because of security and safety reasons. Security and safety of citizens are paramount to any government. As a responsible government, we will not fold our arms and allow security breach in the state.
“We will continue to ensure the safety of our people on all fronts. There have been reports of serious security breaches and safety concerns in areas where these operators ply. We had to respond to these concerns because life and safety matter to this government,” he added.
Why Govt Is Seeking $17b Loan From China, By minister [NATION]
Multilateral lending institutions including the World Bank and the African Development Bank (AfDB) are no longer willing to grant credit facilities to Nigeria, the Federal Government said on Tuesday.
It said that informed its decision to approach China for the bulk of the external loans.
Minister of Finance Budget and Planning Mrs. Zainab Ahmed the Federal Government resolved to borrow $17 billion from the China-Exim Bank as part of its external borrowing plan.
She appeared before the Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Debts to defend President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration decision to borrow $29.96 billion to execute critical infrastructure projects across the country.
With her were: Ministers of Information and Culture (Lai Mohammed); Federal Capital Territory (Mohammed Bello); Works and Housing (Babatunde Fashola); Minister of State for Transportation (Senator Gbemisola Saraki).
Mrs. Ahmed explained that the Eight National Assembly had approved about $6 billion out of the $29.96 billion loan, leaving a balance of $22.718 billion.
The minister told the committee that the federal and some state governments are jointly requesting the loans from various international lending institutions.
She said that a larger part of the loan (about $17 billion) would come from the China-Exim Bank while others would come from Islamic Development Bank and other lending institutions.
The senator representing Niger South Zone, Birma Enagi, had expressed worry at the level of loans being sought from China alone, which he put at $17 billion, representing 70 per cent of the $22.718 billion of the Federal Government’s external loan request.
But Mrs. Ahmed explained: “Of the $22.718 billion, $17 billion is indeed from the China-Exim Bank. I can tell you that in 2016 when we went into recession, we went out to borrow to be able to fund even the National Budget.
“So, we went to the World Bank and made a request and the World Bank jointly with the AfDB, I think it was $2.6 billion.
“After a while, the African Development Bank came through with $600 million within six months and I think about a year and a half later the World Bank came in with $400 million.
“So, there is a question of response. It is not that we don’t ask from other institutions, but the question is which ones are able to offer us what we are trying to raise.
“For China-Exim Bank, why it is so large is because most of our rail projects are funded by the China-Exim Bank and they are the largest component of this borrowing plan.
“We would have wished to borrow from other multilateral institutions, but when we make a request and you are not getting response, you go to the ones that are more amenable and that respond positively and more timely.”
Assuring that the funds would be channeled to the provision of infrastructure that will boost the economy, the minister.
$318.4m Recovered Abacha Loot For Lagos-Ibadan Road, Others [NATION]
- Nigeria, U.S., Jersey sign agreement
Nigeria has hauled $318,460.329 million cash starched away by a former Head of State, Gen. Sani Abacha, and his family.
On Tuesday, in Washington D.C, the Federal Government signed an agreement on the repatriation of the money with the United States and the authorities of Jersey Island.
The tripartite pact brought to an end the 20-year legal tussle over the loot discovered in Jersey Island, a British Crown dependency located near the coast of Normandy, France.
Gen. Abacha was Head of State between 1993 and 1998 when he died in office after illness.
The Island, with 10,000 population is one of the worldwide offshore financial centres and often described by some as a tax haven. It attracts deposits from customers seeking the advantages on offer, like reduced tax burdens.
The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami (SAN) described the agreement as a major victory for Nigeria.
He said the $318.4m would be used for the Lagos – Ibadan Expressway, Abuja – Kano Road and the Second Niger Bridge.
The minister added that civil society organisations with expertise in substantial infrastructure projects, civil engineering, anti-corruption compliance, anti-human trafficking compliance, and procurement would be engaged to provide additional monitoring and oversight on the use of the funds.
His Special Assistant on Media and Public Relations, Dr. Umar Jibrilu Gwandu, said in a statement that Malami signed the agreement on behalf of Nigeria while the Attorney-General Designate of Jersey, Mark Temple, signed on behalf of the Island.
The Deputy Assistant Attorney, Brian Benczkowski, did on behalf of the U.S.
Malami said: “The agreement has culminated in a major victory for Nigeria and other African countries as it recognizses that crime does not pay and that it is important for the international community to seek for ways to support sustainable development through the recovery and repatriation of stolen assets.
“Without the commitment of the three parties to the agreement, the legal experts and attorneys representing Nigeria, it would have been impossible to achieve the success recorded today.
“As you are aware, the government of Nigeria has committed that the assets will support and assist in expediting the construction of three major infrastructure projects across Nigeria: the Lagos – Ibadan Expressway, Abuja – Kano Road and the Second Niger Bridge.
“These projects are being executed under the supervision of the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority as a Public Private Partnership that will boost economic growth and help alleviate poverty by connecting people and supply chains from the East to the West and to the Northern part of Nigeria, a vast area covering several kilometers with millions of the country’s population set to benefit from the road infrastructure.”
The minister called on civil society organisations and the public to be involved in the monitoring of the usage of the recovered funds
“The Nigerian government, in consultation with the other parties, will also engage CSOs who have expertise in substantial infrastructure projects, civil engineering, anti-corruption compliance, anti-human trafficking compliance, and procurement to provide additional monitoring and oversight,” he said.
The Jersey Island Attorney-General Designate said: “This agreement represents the culmination of two decades of intensive work by Law Officers in Jersey, the U.S. and Nigeria.
“The return of the assets to Nigeria had been delayed by a number of hard-fought challenges by third parties, which were defeated in the courts in Jersey and the U.S.
“The agreement establishes a framework based on fruitful co-operation, trust and respect so that the forfeited funds can be repatriated to benefit the people of Nigeria, from whom they had been taken.
“The use of the funds will be subject to monitoring and reporting obligations. This is a very significant achievement and, once again, demonstrates Jersey’s commitment to tackling international financial crime and money laundering.”
Much Ado Over Service Chiefs [NATION]
These are not the best of times for the Service Chiefs as federal lawmakers and others are pushing for their removal. The Presidency does not seem in a hurry to accede to this request, OKODILI NDIDI reports.
These are certainly not the best of times for Nigeria’s Service Chiefs. Many are asking for their removal over worsening insecurity across the country.
The new thinking is that the realities of the moment demand that they should be relieved of their duties and fresh hands engaged to reinvigorate the counter-insurgency and counter-terror campaign.
Chief of Defence Staff Gen. Gabriel Olonisakin; Chief of the Air Staff Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar; Chief of Army Staff Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai; and Chief of the Naval Staff Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas are in the eye of the storm. Nigerians, more than ever before, are having nightmares over the spate of killings across the country. While the Boko Haram insurgents have scaled up their mindless attacks in the Northeast, bandits and other terror groups are wreaking havoc in many parts of the Northwest and Northcentral zones. Bandits, kidnappers and other criminal elements have also been haunting residents of Abuja, the nation’s capital city, and its environs. The opinion of many citizens is that the Service Chiefs are tired hands and legs and that it is time for them to go.
The call for the retirement of the Service Chiefs has also echoed in the two chambers of the National Assembly. Many senators and the House of the Representatives’ members have called for the removal or voluntary resignation of the military chiefs. The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) and two of the leading socio-cultural groups, Ohanaeze Ndigbo and the Afenifere have also joined the call.
Senate President Ahmad Lawan, while addressing reporters a few days ago, declared that the nation’s security architecture, as presently constituted, could not produce the desired results in securing the nation and its people. Lawan stressed that the Senate owed Nigerians the responsibility to rise above political partisanship and intervene and change the country’s approach to the handling of security matters. At the resumption of plenary shortly after, over 50 senators called for the sacking of the Service Chiefs, insisting that they have served too long and are already “bereft of ideas” to tackle insecurity. The military chiefs were appointed in 2015. About the same time, the House of Representatives called on the military chiefs to voluntarily resign. The lawmakers had urged President Buhari to sack the military quartet if they failed to resign.
Only last Sunday, the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Pastor Enoch Adeboye, led members of the Church across the country on a peaceful march to condemn the spate of killings across the country.
Apart from the growing attacks Boko Haram, which Nigerians are blaming on the delayed restructuring of the security architecture, others believe that the continued stay in office of the Service Chiefs poses another serious threat to the health of the country’s military.
Security experts and analysts have also learnt a voice to the call on the military chiefs to quit. In an open letter to the President, the founder of PRNigeria, an online news platform, Yushau A. Shuaib, said the retention of the Service Chiefs would jeopardise the careers progression of other senior officers. This, according to him, has induced premature retirements of senior officers without being allowed to reach the peak of their careers.
In the letter to the President, Shuaib pointed out that the Service Chiefs have exceeded their Run-Out-Dates (ROD), which is the mandatory 35 years of military service, and the additional discretionary extension, which he said, is generally time-bound.
Shuaib’s letter reads: “As you may be aware, Mr. President, apart from attaining the ROD, the tenures of the Defence and Service Chiefs have since expired, going by the revised Armed Forces of Nigeria Harmonised Terms and Conditions of Service (HTACOS) for officers.
“In Section 09.08 of the said HTACOS, which is the authoritative and official service order in the military, it is stated that an officer appointed to the substantive appointment of the Chief of Defence Staff, Chief of Army Staff, Chief of Naval Staff and the Chief of Air Staff will hold the appointment for a continuous period of two years. The appointment could be extended for another two years from the date of expiration of the initial two-year period.
“The service chiefs were first appointed in July 2015 and their tenures were extended for an additional two years in 2017, which finally expired in 2019. It has always been the standard practice, since the return of democratic governance to Nigeria in 1999, for Service Chiefs to be in office for a maximum term of two years, except on a few occasions of discretionary extension by Mr. President, after which replacements are made.
“As in the practice in the past, the exit of a service chief automatically impels the departure of their course mates from the service, such that officers who are next in seniority, such as the Chiefs of various corps and departments at the service headquarters; general officers commanding; commandants; brigade commanders; and directors then experience an upward movements in their careers.
“As it is now, at least five sets, and generations of regular course (RC) members, including those in the 27th, 28th, 29th, 30th, 31st, 32nd and 33rd Courses, with the exception of Lt. General Adeosun, have left the service without any of them attaining the highest military positions in their various services. There is the likelihood that those of the 33rd and 34th Courses may also not have the privilege of producing a service chief among them if this trend continues. With limited vacancy, only a few officers can be promoted, while several other brilliant officers would be forced to go on retirement.”
He argued further that “With adequate resources provided to the military chiefs for procurements, recruitments and the training of personnel, they have performed to the best of their abilities; yet recent developments call for more strategic thinking, fresh ideas and a change in the administration and style of managing generations of military talents.”
Amid the deafening call for their removal, the military chiefs met with the President. There was no word from the President after the meeting, suggesting that the Commander-In-Chief was still pleased with the performance of his military appointees.
Speaking shortly after a joint security meeting at the State House, the National Security Adviser, Babagana Monguno, said the matter of the military chiefs was not discussed at the meeting. The meeting held barely 24 hours after the federal legislature called for the removal of the officers.
Monguno said: “The meeting made an appraisal of the current security situation in the country and took a look at the possibilities, the opportunities available to government in addressing most of the recent challenges.
“There were discussions, and at the end of the day, the most important thing that we came up with was the need for collaboration; both between governmental agencies and the larger Nigerian society, because of the type of the insurgencies we are faced with, the complexities, the multiplicity of all kinds of issues.
“There is a need for parties, governmental agencies on one hand and the larger society, to collaborate more vigorously. There is a need for us to deal with these problems in a comprehensive manner.
“Therefore, the Council has decided to take a closer look at issues that will help us, not just at the federal level or at the state level, but right down to the local government level. But this is going to be done after due consultations with the relevant stakeholders”.
Vice President Yemi Osinbajo also spoke along the same line when he spoke on the security situation on Monday. Without a word concerning the military chiefs, Osinbajo announced plans for increased equipment and personnel for the Armed Forces to enable them to tackle the growing insecurity in the land.
Osinbajo said: “Osinbajo, who spoke during the visit to the Villa, of clergymen under the auspices of Arewa Pastors Forum for Peace, was quoted by his spokesman Laolu Akande, as assuring Christians that the Federal Government was “handling security well”.
The Vice President said: “We are doing everything that needs to be done.
“We are handling security well, and as you know, including military deployment in diverse fields, like the Boko Haram in the Northeast.
“We have to now recruit more into the army, and much faster than we ever did because we need men on the ground; resources also – to buy more arms, to buy more platforms.
“At the last meeting of the National Security Council that was held on Thursday, we had discussions on how to beef up the military’s platforms. How do we beef up the numbers? How do we recruit more men and women into the army? How do we collaborate more with local vigilante, the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) and all that,”
“So, there is a lot going on in terms of trying to beef up security. The security situation is one that is very challenging. We are also looking at aspects of surveillance – how we can do more aerial surveillance using drones and electronic devices to improve surveillance.”
However, some stakeholders in the security sector do not believe that the security situation would improve simply by removing the Service Chiefs.
A few of them are of the view that a solution lies in enhanced inter-agency collaboration and citizens’ participation. They also canvased robust intelligence gathering and sharing in the counter-insurgency and war against terrorist campaigns.
For instance, Interior Minister, Rauf Aregbesola believed that effective management and maintenance of peace and security could only be achieved through cooperation among security agencies and citizens. Aregbesola spoke while addressing the Service Chiefs and Heads of para-military agencies during a workshop organised by the Ministry of Defence in Abuja recently.
According to the minister, “We cannot but work together to achieve the desired objective of acquisition of peace. You must acquire peace before you can maintain peace. We are in a special period as a nation considering the spate of economic and consequential security challenges that we are grappling with. For effective containment of the security challenges, we cannot overlook the need for leadership and synergy in the administration and management of the resources which are institutional, material and human that we deploy to neutralize the threat and their promoters. There cannot be any other way. We must respect one another, we must seek to coordinate our activities, we must collaborate and cooperate.”
Speaking after a meeting with the president on Monday, House of Representatives Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila said the generality of the opinion “is that the service chiefs should go”.
“That was evident in our debates in the House of Representatives and the Senate, but, sometimes, you don’t want a knee-jack reaction.
“Many of us identify that something drastic has to be done, there’s also the school of thought that says since we are talking about banditry, kidnapping and murders, what have the armed forces got to do with that, anywhere in the world? So the question then arises that if he changes the service chiefs, does that address the issues of kidnapping and banditry? The army, navy and air force are outfits set up to tackle external aggression. It is the police that is set up for internal security, such as we are all witnessing.
“That’s talking about Service chiefs, has the Inspector-General of Police met up with his responsibilities? The question is if we now narrow it that to the Inspector General to Police, many will argue that he has done a very good job and many will argue with you that he’s hamstrung, straight-jacketed, there’s very little he can do in the face of no equipment, no funding and we explained to Mr President that we have to increase funding, we have to recruit more,” he said.
Lawan, who was also at the meeting, said the country should do everything for the security agencies to perform better, concluding that “we have reached a tipping point that everybody in Nigeria is concerned about the security situation”.
Operation Amotekun: NLC, Bishops Back Security Outfit [NATION]
Governors, IG to meet
Attorneys-Gen. fine-tune bill
Clerics slam Fed Govt
Southwest Governors will meet on Thursday with Inspector-General of Police Sulaiman Adamu to fine-tune the operational plan for the Western Nigeria Security Network (WNSN) Operation Amotekun.
Also tomorrow, the Attorneys-General and Commissioners of Justice of Lagos, Oyo, Ogun, Osun, Ondo and Ekiti states will meet in Ibadan to perfect the bill to give legal backing to Amotekun.
on Tuesday, Catholic bishops in the zone and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) gave their support to the security outfit.
Operation Amotekun was launched on January 9 to secure the Southwest states but on January 14, Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice Abubakar Malami declared it illegal.
His action drew the ire of many Nigerians, who criticised him for being legalistic in the face of unabated killings and resurgence of insecurity.
The Catholic bishops chided the Federal Government for its approach to tackling insecurity.
Chairman of the Southwest Governors Forum and Governor of Ondo State, Mr. Rotimi Akeredolu, announced the meeting with the IG in Abuja on Tuesday after a parley with President Muhammadu Buhari.
He said: “I did not discuss about Amotekun with Mr President in any way. We didn’t even mention it. He wouldn’t have asked me, I was not there for that purpose. The issue of Amotekun is a matter having to do with security and as you know, Mr Vice President had come into this, we have held meetings, we are having subsequent meetings and we know that on Thursday, the governors will be meeting with the Inspector-General of Police to sort out a few things and to smoothen edges.
Customs Seizes $8m Cash At Lagos Airport [LEADERSHIP]
The Muritala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) says it intercepted $8,061,000 (about N2.9 billion) from suspected currency traffickers.
Speaking at a press briefing in Lagos yesterday, the Comptroller General of the Service, Col Hameed Ali (rtd) said the currency was intercepted in a bus belonging to the Nigerian Aviation Handling Company (NAHco) at the airport tarmac.
But, NAHCO, in a statement made available to LEADERSHIP by the spokesman, Tayo Ajakaye stated that they have no connection whatsoever with this alleged act.
The company, however, disclosed that they have initiated contact with the Nigerian Customs Service’s hierarchy to provide it with details of the incident. The CGC who said after the preliminary investigations, the money will be handed over to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for further investigations stated that a suspect has been arrested so far.
According to Col Ali, “While provisions are made for various forms of international electronic transfers, exceptions are made for those who prefer to travel across borders with cash and other monetary instruments.
“When this happens, those who carry physical cash across borders are obliged by law to make declaration of such movement once the value is above the approved threshold,” he said.
“Currently, the value of the threshold in Nigeria is the equivalent of $10,000 and above. Therefore, all travelers in and out of Nigeria must declare any physical cash in excess of this threshold of $10,000 or its equivalent in any other currencies or monetary instruments.”
Ali said acting on such credible information, the MMIA Command of Customs on the 16th of January, 2020 intercepted illegal movement of foreign currency at the ‘E’ Wing of the airport Tarmac.
“The consignment packed in a coaster bus belonging to NAHCO Aviance was loaded in six Bagco bags and were found not to have been declared at any approved point of entry or exit where voluntary declarations are recorded and maintained,” Ali said.
“One suspect, the driver of the bus, Chimezie Okonkwo was immediately arrested and taken into custody with the intercepted consignment.
“On Saturday, 18th of January, 2020, an inventory of the consignment was taken and was witnessed by representatives of the Directorate of State Security (DSS), Customs Intelligence Unit, Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Terrorism Financing Unit, Customs Police and the suspect.”
“At the end of the inventory, a total number of 20 sealed wraps of Bagco bags were opened, counted, re-sealed and re-wrapped under video coverage from the beginning of the exercise to the end, and the total amount intercepted stood at $8,065,612 only.
“The consignment remains in safe custody while preliminary investigations have commenced on the seizures. The CGC, however, commended the Customs Area Comptroller of the command, Compt Wale Adeniyi and his officers for a job well done and the acting CAC of the Federal Operations Unit, Usman Yahyah who seized 147 bags of pangolin worth N10.2 billion.
16 States Yet To Implement New Minimum Wage [LEADERSHIP]
Sixteen states are yet to begin implementation of the new wage includes, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) said yesterday.
President of the NLC, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, who made this known during the National Administrative Council (NAC) meeting of the Cognress, said the states include Benue, Cross River, Ekiti, Enugu, Gombe, Imo, Kogi, Kwara, Nasarawa, Ogun, Osun, Oyo, Plateau, Rivers, Zamfara and Taraba.
He said the NLC has already empowered its state councils to mobilise their members to withdraw their services once there was no show of commitment by their respective state governments towards implementing the new minimum wage of N30,000 for workers in the states.
He disclosed that 14 states have commenced implementation of the new wage, three states have only implemented the wage for workers in level 1-6 while four states were awaiting implementation.
He also announced that 16 states have signed an agreement, three states have reached an agreement but yet to sign, negotiations of the new wage was still ongoing in 17 states while Taraba state was yet to commence negotiations.
While calling on the Taraba State government to respect the provisions of the new minimum wage Act and begin negotiations immediately, he warned that no state government has an excuse not to pay the new wage, he maintained that the NLC was not forcing Nigeria to do something strange as majority of countries around the world have a minimum wage law implemented.
Nigeria, US Agree On Return Of $308m Abacha Loot [LEADERSHIP]
Nigeria has recorded another major breakthrough in its efforts to recover stolen assets as the federal government signed a tripartite Asset Recovery Agreement with the United States and the government of Jersey.
Under the deal, the two countries agreed to return over $308 million of forfeited assets to Nigeria.
The money, according to a joint statement issued by the three parties, was laundered through the US banking system and then held in bank accounts in Jersey in the name of one of the sons of the late head of state, Gen. Sani Abacha.
The agreement was signed by the solicitor-general and attorney-general designate of Jersey, Mark Temple QC, Nigeria’s attorney-general and minister of justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN) and the US Department of Justice.
As part of the agreement, the parties identified three major projects the funds will be expended and also stipulated that it should be administered by the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) and independently audited.
The projects are the Lagos-Ibadan expressway, Abuja-Kano expressway and the second Niger Bridge.
It was also agreed that Nigeria will establish a monitoring team to oversee the implementation of the projects and to report regularly on their progress.
The federal government, in consultation with the other parties, will also engage civil society organisations (CSOs), which have expertise in substantial infrastructure projects, civil engineering, anti-corruption compliance, anti-human trafficking compliance, and procurement to provide additional monitoring and oversight.
Malami was quoted in the statement as saying that the agreement was a major victory for Nigeria.
Buhari Unveils New Visa policy [SUN]
- Journalists, clerics, sport stars, others to get single entry •5 airports for visa on arrival
President Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday, unveiled a new visa policy for Nigeria, with 79 visa classifications.
The President also said five international airports with sufficient technology and devices that make it impossible for persons who are threats to pass through had been approved and designated as the ports of entry where visa on arrival could be obtained.
He listed four of the functional airports as Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano; Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja; Port Harcourt International Airport, Port Harcourt; and Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos. The Akanu Ibiam Airport, Enugu, is, however, under rehabilitation.
President Buhari said the Nigeria Visa Policy (NVP) 2020, which is a revised version of the country’s visa policy, is intended to attract innovation, specialised skills and knowledge from abroad to complement local capacity. There are 79 visa classifications in the revised policy, one of which is the visa-on-arrival.
The policy is a follow-up on Buhari’s pronouncements in November 2019 that a new policy of visas on arrival would be granted to all African travellers, starting from January 2020. He said the policy would also enhance business opportunities and achieve African integration.
The new policy favours Africans with valid passports who wish to visit Nigeria for businesses and tourism as they are granted 90 days legal stay.
Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, explained that this would boost the African Continental Free Trade Agreement, a treaty seeking to establish a continent-wide marketplace with increased trade and freer movement among member states.
Aregbesola also said the visa programme was cardinal to the Ease of Doing Business in Nigeria.
Aregbesola explained why the classes of visas moved from six to 79: “We want to be very detailed in the classification of people who we have to bring into our country so as to limit the chances of any one of them escaping our watch. It is to enhance security, that is the number one consideration. Secondly, it is to expand our economy.”
Comptroller General of Immigration, Mohammed Babandelde, explained that all classes have procedures that will be strictly adhered to.
He said: “First it is important for you to know that there are procedures for entry and stay for different categories of persons and there are up to five for Nigeria.
“First class is ECOWAS citizens, ECOWAS citizens can enter without visa but there is a condition, they must enter through an approved and recognised ports of entry and with a travel document. On arrival, their document will be endorsed for 90 days, that is why we say they cannot enter in the night but from 6am to 6pm. “Second category are African citizens with African passport, from any part of the world, you can travel to Abuja for example and you will be issued visa at the port of entry. We have explained that visa at point of entry is stronger than those you get at the missions because, we have only 18 biometric issuing centers in the world.
“The third category are frequent business travelers. When you log into our website, when you click on visa on arrival, you will see only one opportunity, African or business traveler. If you are a business traveler you will click and upload your letter of invitation, pay, complete the application online and submit. We will look at it and send you an approval email, on arrival at the airport you will be issued your visa.
“The fourth category are those who want to take residence either temporary or long term, you have to go to the embassy to get the visa.”
On the complains about the number of foreigners in Nigeria, Babandelde said: “I want you to consider the number of Nigerians outside also. Nigeria must export its labour in the next decade, we are going to be the most populous nation in the world. If you know the number of Nigerians in other ECOWAS countries and the business the control, you will not develop hatred for migrants. As long as they live legally and do their jobs correctly, we should consider there are Nigerians elsewhere, it is important for us to know this.”
US May Lift Visa Ban In One Month –Onyeama [SUN]
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, yesterday, expressed optimism that the United States might lift the visa ban on Nigeria in a month’s time.
Onyeama stated this on the sidelines of the fifth Nigeria-United States Bi-National Commission (BNC) in Washington D.C., United States. He said the U.S. was apprehensive over the variations of Nigerian data system and third party involvement in the management of the passport system, particularly information and data on lost and stolen passports.
According to him, after deliberations on the visa ban, the U.S. government had assured Nigeria that it was possible to lift the ban if the Federal Government could resolve issues raised in one month.
The U.S., last week, slammed a visa ban on Nigeria, Eritrea, Myanmar, Kyrgyzstan, Sudan and Tanzania on account of performance metrics for identity-management and information-sharing criteria.
The U.S. was piqued that there was lack of credible background investigation system that security groups like Interpol could rely on in vetting and certifying originality of prospective immigrants to the U.S. from the affected countries.
Onyema said, after the ban, President Muhammadu Buhari had inaugurated a committee to resolves the issues that led to the ban on immigrant visas to Nigerians.
He said, in line with the presidential directive, the Nigerian government had taken steps to address the issues raised by the U.S.
Coronavirus: 65 Nigerians Trapped In Chinese City Run Out Of Food, Medicine [SUN]
- FG says it has no letter of distress from Nigerians •China denies suspension of visa section •Death toll rises to 425
The 65 Nigerians trapped in Wuhan, China, following the outbreak of coronavirus, have cried out for help, lamenting that they are starving and sick, having run out of food and medicine.
Some of the Nigerians told Daily Sun that their situation had become precarious since they were forced to remain indoors to avoid being infected. They have appealed to the Federal Government to take steps to evacuate them as they cannot survive the many weeks of being quarantine in a foreign country without any form of economic assistance because they were mostly students and artisans.
President of Nigerians in Diaspora, China branch, Mr. Festus Mbisiogu, who is also the chairman of Blue Diamond Logistics, China, said his businesses had been shut down, with his Nigerian employees asked to remain indoors.
Mbisiogu said Nigerians in China needed to be evacuated urgently by the Federal Government as most of them cannot afford to weather the hardship associated with being quarantined for days without any source of income, food and medicine.
“Something urgently needs to be done. There are about 65 Nigerians trapped in China. They are indoors and they have run out of food and medicine; they cannot remain indoors without food and medicine. They should be evacuated. My businesses in China, just like other Nigerians, had been shut since the coronavirus outbreak. I am in touch with Nigerians trapped in China. I know that their situation is bad,” he said.
A Nigerian student in Wuhan who preferred to remain anonymous said: “We are in trouble here; we are not going out to get our necessities and nobody is making supplies to us. We have run out of food, medicines, toiletries. The Federal Government should come to our aid and evacuate us to Nigeria, pending when this deadly disease is eradicated.”
Another Nigerian in Guangdong Province said he was stuck and needed government intervention to leave China.
“We are not doing anything. Our businesses have been closed, as we are not venturing out. This is a time for the Nigerian government to prove that it cares for its citizens. They should help us before we start dying of hunger and other sicknesses,” he said.
The Nigerian community in China also faulted the position of the Minister of Information, Mr. Lai Mohammed, that “16 Nigerians in Wuhan had not indicated their interest to come home” as untrue.
Meanwhile, the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM) has denied receiving a letter from NIDO in East Asia for evacuation of Nigerians.
NIDCOM’s spokesperson, AbdurRahman Balogun, said the commission only saw the letter on different social media outlets.
“However, we have been in constant touch with Nigerian Students Association in Wuhan (NSAW) whose president is Okoye Chiamaka and Vandi Kamaunji (secretary general), several Nigerians resident in China as well as our mission in Beijing. All communication and suggestions we have received so far have been forwarded to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, who will take appropriate decisions,” Balogun said.
In a related development, the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Nigeria, has denied reports of the suspension of its visa section as a result of the outbreak of the virus.
In a ‘Newsletter on Fighting 2019-nCoV’ the Embassy said: “On the issuance of visa, the Ambassador said the embassy was in full operation and very effective.”