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Tag: Democracy Day

  • Anambra shuns Democracy Day celebration

    Anambra shuns Democracy Day celebration

    The Anambra Government wants residents of the state to use Democracy Day to reflect on the state of the nation, rather than engaging in lavish celebrations.

    The state’s Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Mr C-Don Adinuba, gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Awka.

    Analysts have criticized some state governments for marking the Democracy Day with lavish celebrations at a time millions of their citizens go to bed hungry from day to day.

    Adinuba said that instead of the usual merry-making, dinning and wining that had characterised the event in the past, the Anambra Government wanted its citizens to have sober reflection on the journey so far.

    Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation returned to popular democracy 19 years ago after a brutal military era that was characterized by looting.

    Adinuba said that Anambra had just hosted the second term inauguration of Gov. Willie Obiano on March 17, and had also hosted the Ohaneze Summit on May 21.

    “So we reasoned that it is not good enough for the state to get involved in another round of celebrations today. It is not worth it.’’

    He said, however, that the state had recorded achievements in security, social harmony and promptness in the payment of workers’ salaries.

    “Anambra State Government is the only state that has reviewed salaries of workers upwards and pays salaries of workers on 25th of every month in addition to other welfare plans for workers.

    “As we talk, government has started handing over brand new cars to all directors, based on seniority and we challenge other states to emulate Anambra State in terms of workers’ welfare and promotion of peace and security.’’

    Adinuba said that the State Government was waiting eagerly for the announcement of a new minimum wage for workers by the Federal Government in August, saying: “we will be the first to implement the new minimum wage’’.

    The spokesman also told residents of the state to disregard the planned sit-at-home order by the pro-Biafra group, IPOB, describing the group’s directive as an illegality.

    Commenting on the decision of the Anambra Government not to celebrate, a resident of Awka, Mr Chidi Agim, said that he was surprised that the State Government could not observe the Democracy Day because of the significance of the day to Nigerians.

    Agim argued that even if the government did not want to mark the event with ceremony, the governor should have addressed the people to enlighten them on what they should do in the face of mounting challenges confronting the nation.

  • Democracy Day: Capital market operators laud Buhari administration

    Democracy Day: Capital market operators laud Buhari administration

    Capital market operators on Tuesday urged the federal government to focus more on infrastructure development to boost local employment and consolidate the achievements of the past three years.

    The operators stated this in separate interviews with newsmen in Lagos, while appraising the three years of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.

    Rasheed Yussuf, a former President of Association of Stockbroking Houses of Nigeria (ASHON), said the government should invest more in power, roads and railway.

    Yussuf said the challenges in the past were due to low oil production, low oil price and low foreign reserves which led to recession.

    He said these three critical economic conditions depressed the economy, but that the government had been able to evolve the appropriate economic policies to deal with them.

    According to him, the government used the ban of 41 items to stimulate local production. He urged the government to sustain the ban to strengthen the growth and development of the economy.

    Yussuf said Nigerians needed to understand that they must pay a price for the economy to improve accordingly.

    “If you are moving from an import-oriented economy to export-oriented economy, you will see unemployment along the line because you have adjusted the employment circle.

    “There is no way we will not go through pain given the economic situation we went through in the last three years because there is a complete change of economic situation.

    “If we develop our own local capacity, we will be better off than being import dependent. Being import-dependent means we are providing employment for foreigners.

    “If we can develop our own, it means we are providing employment for our own people,” Yussuf said.

    According to him, government has managed to do its best in economic management.

    He, however, tasked the government to invest heavily in education and health to improve economic growth.

    “If you have a healthier and well-educated population, the economy will grow better,” Yussuf said.

    He said Nigeria needed national economic goals that every government must focus on irrespective of the political party in power instead of changing economic goals regularly.

    Garba Kurfi, the Managing Director, APT Securities and Funds Ltd., said the government should come out with robust economic policies that would touch all aspects of the economy including power and transport to address unemployment.

    Kurfi said the government should tackle insecurity in the country to boost investors’ confidence.

    He said the eventual listing of MTN Nigeria on the Nigerian Stock Exchange would increase the depth of the market as well as the market capitalisation.

    “We hope more efforts will be put in place to ensure the listing of companies in the power sector and refineries in the capital market as well,” Mr Kurfi added.

    He also called for downward adjustment of the Monetary Policy Rate by the Monetary Policy Committee for achieve stability in the capital market and strengthen the real sector.

     

    (NAN)

  • Akwa Ibom Govt. constructs 1, 701km roads, 35 bridges

    Gov. Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom said his administration has constructed about 1,701 kilometers of roads and built 35 bridges across the state in the last three years.

    Emmanuel disclosed this in his broadcast to mark the 2018 Democracy Day in Uyo on Tuesday.

    He said the administration has kept the promise he made in 2015 to be a servant leader and make the state hub of industrialisation in the country.

    The governor appealed to politicians to be tolerant and ensure that their actions and utterances engender love, unity and togetherness to the Akwa Ibom project.

    He urged politicians to remember that they were brothers and sisters before the advent of partisan politics and would remain brothers and sisters after they have finished their careers in public service.

    According to the governor, there is need for political office holders to leave an indelible mark after office.

    “As the political season dawns, let us remember that we were brothers and sisters before the coming of partisan politics, and we will remain brothers and sisters long after we had finished our careers in public service.

    “Let us show love to one another even when we don’t agree or share same political orientations.

    “May the actions of our leaders inspire us to become more loving, less rancorous, and more united and faithful believers in the immutable essence and definition of the Akwa Ibom spirit.

    “As your Governor and Leader, these are the values I embody and will continue to project them, now and in the future, with your prayers and support,” he said.

    The governor added that security of lives and property had been improved since 2015 when he took over power in the state.

    He said that one by one those who have become menaces in our society have faced the full and merciless wrath of the law.

    The governor urged Akwa Ibom people to keep faith with his government, adding that he would continue to provide more infrastructure dividends of democracy to the people.

     

  • Democracy Day: Nigeria needs to change economy through ICT – Expert

    Democracy Day: Nigeria needs to change economy through ICT – Expert

    Mr Gbenga Sesan, the Executive Director, Paradigm Initiative, an NGO says the country needs radical change through the use of Information Communication Technology (ICT) to improve the economy.

    Sesan said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria on Monday in Abuja as the country is preparing to celebrate another Democracy Day on May 29.

    He urged the government to utilise the opportunities in technology to bring about a radical change in the economy for the benefit of citizens.

    “Countries of the world that are taking advantage of technology are moving faster; and government should focus on it properly and make sure that the promises that have been made are carried out,’’ Sesan said.

    He said the country needed change to move forward, adding that Nigeria could not afford to have small gains but radical progress and this could be done quickly though ICT.

    “We need a radical change terms of the economy and security, which is a major focus of the government.

    “We call for progress in securing the country, which should be the focus as we celebrate another democracy day.’’

    Sesan said he would rate democracy in Nigeria as six out of 10 because the framework of democracy was already present, which had given citizens the opportunity to participate and express their opinions.

    “But government can do better in this coming year to make democracy what it should be.’’
    Paradigm Initiative Nigeria is a non-profit social enterprise that connects Nigerian youths with ICT-enabled opportunities.

    It works with Nigerian government, civil society, private institutions, and international organizations to achieve its objectives.

     

  • Don’t bother addressing Nigerians on Democracy Day, PDP Tells Buhari

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has advised President Muhammadu Buhari and his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) not to address Nigerians on the occasion of the 2018 Democracy Day scheduled for Tuesday.

    The PDP in a statement by its publicity secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, said “in the last three years, such addresses had contained deceits, falsifications and unfulfilled promises”.

    Nigerians have become frustrated with these “lies,” said the party.

    Democracy Day in Nigeria is usually celebrated yearly on May 29 to mark the restoration of democracy in May 1999 after decades of military interregnum.

    Nigerian presidents usually use the occasion to enumerate the strides recorded in the democratic sojourn and achievements by their administrations.

    But the oppositon party which lost to the ruling APC in 2015 advised Mr Buhari via its statement Sunday not to bother to use the occasion to “feed Nigerians with lies” over its percieved lack of achievements.

    It said the Buhari Presidency and the APC since assuming power “has only violated all tenets of democracy, and trampled on citizens rights”.

    The PDP said the APC should not be associated with democracy under any guise.

    “Indeed, this administration should not come close to the emblem of democracy, as such would be an unpardonable spat on the faces of millions of suppressed Nigerians and the graves of victims of extra-judicial executions under this administration, as catalogued by international bodies including, Transparency International (TI), Amnesty International (AI) and even the United States Department of State.

    “Where is democracy when government tends towards military fiat: where citizens are wantonly arrested, locked up and dehumanised just for expressing political opinions considered to be at variance with views held those in power?

    “Where is democracy when our National Assembly, the very bastion of our democracy, is under siege; where federal lawmakers are daily blackmailed, hounded, harassed, intimidated, detained and dehumanised; where strange elements invade the hallowed chambers of the Senate, threatened our senators and forcefully cart away the mace, yet nobody has been prosecuted?

    “Where is democracy when court judges are arrested in the middle of the night by agents of state; top government officials engage in actions and speeches that promote division, hatred and bloodletting; when journalists and media houses are being harassed and intimidated and our nation, in the last three years, ranking among the most hostile to free press?,” the party asked.

    However the PDP saluted the courage and resilience of Nigerians in the face of “despotism, drive towards anarchy and totalitarianism”.

    The party called on Nigerians to use this year’s democracy celebration to reinforce commitment to rescue the nation and “restore democratic rule”.

    “We are collectively strengthened by the fact that this year’s Democracy Day signals the reinvigorating of that democratic march by the citizens to end APC’s misrule and abuse of our rights.

    “Nigerians must therefore, use this year’s occasion to reinforce their commitment to rescue our nation by restoring democratic rule on the platform of the repositioned PDP, come 2019.”

     

  • Democracy Day: Criticism of leaders cannot transform Nigeria – Enugu Catholic Bishop

    The Catholic Bishop of Nsukka Diocese, Rt. Rev. Godfrey Onah, says no amount of criticism of those in authority will transform the socio-economic fortunes of the country.

    Onah, in a homily on Sunday during the 2018 Democracy Day thanksgiving mass at the Holy Ghost Cathedral, Enugu, said that good governance required visionary leadership and self-sacrifice.

    The bishop said it was sad that the current democratic experiment which started in 1999 had not changed the fortunes of majority of Nigerians due to corrupt leadership.

    The clergyman said that the 2019 general elections would provide another opportunity for the electorate to make their choices of the type of leadership they want.

    He said that all those in elective positions that had not performed needed to be shown the exit door, adding that the electorate should only vote those they were convinced would do well.

    Onah blamed the decay of institutions, including the education sector on self-serving leaders whom he said had destroyed the future of up-and-coming ones.

    “The only way to protect the future of our children is to give them good education, but because we have stole our country dry, we can no longer guaranty their future,” he said.

    The bishop said that Christians were expected to show good examples which would lead to a positive change in the way things were done in the country.

    “As Christians, rather than blame people about the state of affairs in this country, we should ask ourselves what we have done to engender love and equality of all human race.

    “What have we done to show respect, leadership, service and real concern for others? These values need to become part of our culture if we must survive,” he said.

    Onah said it was sad that the numerical strength of Christians in the country had not had any positive impact on the way things were done due to how some had made merchandise of the gospel.

    “I believe that whatever will happen to Nigeria tomorrow will depend on how Christians will take their vocations, “ he said.

    The clergyman said that Gov. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, was an example of what a Christian could do in governance.
    The highlight of the event was a special prayer for Nigeria by the worshippers.

     

  • To whom it may concern! These are Buhari’s achievements in three years – Presidency

    The Presidency on Saturday released detailed achievements of President Muhammau Buhari’s three-year-old administration.

    This is in commemoration of the country’s annual Democracy Day celebrations scheduled for May 29.

    Recall that President Buhari was elected into office under the platform of All Progressives Congress (APC) after defeating then incumbent President Goodluck Jonathan of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    He was sworn into office on May 29, 2015. In his inaugural speech, the president stated that his administration will focus on the economy, fight against corruption, and provision of security.

    See details below:

    ECONOMY

    The presidency says the Nigerian economy is back and is on the path of growth after the recession of 2016-17.

    It said the Buhari administration’s priority sectors of agriculture and solid minerals maintained consistent growth throughout the recession.

    It said inflation has fallen for the fifteenth consecutive month while the nation’s external reserves are at their highest levels in five years, currently double the size of October 2016.

    “The new FX Window introduced by the CBN in April 2017 now sees an average of $1 billion in weekly turnover, and has attracted about 45 billion dollars in inflows in its first year, signalling rising investor confidence in Nigeria

    “Nigeria’s Stock Market ended 2017 as one of the best-performing in the world, with returns of about 40 percent,” it said.

    It also said five million new taxpayers were added to the tax base since 2016, as part of efforts to diversify government revenue.

    Also, tax revenue increased to N1.17 trillion in the first quarter 2018, a 51 per cent increase on the first quarter 2017 figure.

    The government said N 12.7 trillion was spent on infrastructure in the 2016 and 2017 budgets, “an unprecedented allocation in Nigeria’s recent history.”

    Other economic achievements, stated by the presidency, include the revitalisation of 14 moribund blending plants under the Presidential Fertilizer Initiative, and the tripling of revenue to the Federation Account from solid minerals.

    It said the revenue tripled from N700 million in 2015 to N2 billion in 2016, and again rose to N3.5 billion in 2017.

    The presidency also said its Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP), which was launched by Mr Buhari in April 2017, has stabilised the macroeconomic environment; achieved agricultural and food security and has also ensured energy efficiency especially in power and petroleum products.

    It also said the ERGP has improved transportation infrastructure and industrialisation primarily through the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).

    “To fast-track the implementation of the ERGP, the federal government launched the ERGP Focus Labs, as a targeted 6-week intervention (March to April 2018) to unlock medium-scale and large-scale investment projects held back by bureaucratic bottlenecks.

    “The just-concluded Phase 1 of the ERGP Focus Labs identified projects worth about $10 billion for fast-tracking, and the bottlenecks holding them back are now being resolved,” the government said.

    In the area of monetary, fiscal and trade policies, the document stated that the APC administration created a new Foreign Exchange window for investors and exporters in April 2017 which has helped stabilise the market and increase appetite for Nigerian stocks by foreign portfolio investors.

    “The new Window has attracted inflows of more than $45 billion in its first year of operation,” it said.

    In the area of debt management, the document reveals that government adopted a strategy that seeks to achieve its goal by replacing Treasury Bills borrowing with lower-cost, longer-term external financing (via Eurobonds and Concessional Loans from China)

    “The Buhari Administration inherited N12.1 trillion in debt, with N5.4 trillion annual servicing cost, and had reduced the debt service on this inherited debt to N3.9 trillion by 2016,” it said.

    Under the Bond Issuance programme, the government said $7.3 billion was issued in Eurobond in 2017/18, to fund the 2017 Budget as well as to refinance maturing treasury bills and lower the cost of borrowing for the government.

    “This debt refinancing strategy is paying off as treasury bill rates have dropped from 16-18% to 10-12% over the last year.

    “The oversubscription of our recent Eurobond (the first issuance in 2017 saw orders in excess of US$7.8 billion compared to a pre-issuance target of US$1bn) demonstrates strong market appetite for Nigeria, and shows confidence by the international investment community in Nigeria’s economic reform agenda,” the government said.

    Other debt related issues raised in the document include Nigeria’s first Sovereign Sukuk Bond which raised N100 billion used to fund 25 major road projects across the country.

    There was also Nigeria’s first ever Diaspora-targeted Eurobond that raised $300 million used to fund part of the 2017 Budget and Africa’s first Sovereign Green Bond Programme that raised N10.69 billion used to fund infrastructure projects that tackle climate change.

    Support To State Governments

    The Buhari administration also said it has extended more than N1.9 trillion to state governments, to enable them meet their salary and pension obligations, especially in the face of dwindling oil revenues over the last two years.

    The support, it said, has come in the form of Budget Support Facility (Total of N606.55 billion extended to the states as of May 2018; in exchange for reforms in budgeting, IGR, debt management, overheads, etc.)

    Others are Paris Club refunds, infrastructure loans as well as loan restructuring for facilities with commercial banks.

    Other economic related achievements include the Anchor Borrowers Scheme of the Central Bank of Nigeria which, it said, has substantially raised local production of rice in 2016.

    It said yields from rice farming improved from 2-3 tonnes per hectare to as high as 5 – 6 tonnes per hectare.

    The programme, it said, has also produced a model agricultural collaboration between Lagos and Kebbi States.

    “Over N300 billion investments in the rice value chain. Between 2016 and 2018, eight new rice mills have come on-stream; and Nigeria’s paddy production and productivity has doubled compared to 2014 levels

    “Nigeria’s milled rice production has increased from 2.5MT to about 4MT, and rice exports from Thailand to Nigeria dropped from 1.23 million MT in 2014 to 23,192 MT as of November 2017,” the document said.

    The administration said it has launched a series of funding and capacity development initiatives designed to support small and medium businesses (MSMEs) across the country.

    It said the new Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN) has finally taken off, with initial funding of $1.3bn (provided by the World Bank, German Development Bank, the African Development Bank and Agence Française de Development) to provide medium and long-term loans to MSMEs.

    The DBN, it said, has already disbursed N5 billion to 20,000 MSMEs, through three microfinance banks.

    The government said its Ease of Doing Business reform programme through the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (inaugurated by Mr Buhari in August 2016) and the Enabling Business Environment Secretariat (EBES) resulted in Nigeria moving up 24 places on the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business rankings in 2017, and earning a place on the List of 10 Most Improved Economies.

    “The Buhari administration has, since 2017, issued three Executive Orders that positively impact Nigeria’s small business environment,

    “They include the Executive Order on Improving Efficiency in the Business Environment, Executive Order on Promoting Local Procurement by Government Agencies and Executive Order on planning and execution of projects, promotion of Nigerian content in contracts and science, engineering and technology.”

    The government also said it is “doing more with less” resources.

    It said N1.219 trillion was released for capital expenditure in the 2016 budget, and N1.476 trillion so far in the 2017 budget, making a total of N2.7 trillion (about $9 billion) in two years.

    “This investment has enabled the resumption of work on several stalled projects — road, rail and power projects — across the country,” it said.

    The government said even at a time of low oil prices, Nigeria’s external reserves have doubled since October 2016, from $24 billion to $48 billion.

    It said the Sovereign Wealth Fund has seen inflows of $500 million in 2016 and 2017 (the first inflows since the original US$1 billion which the fund kicked off with in 2012).

    Infrastructure

    The Buhari administration said it has demonstrated a “single-minded commitment: to upgrading and developing Nigeria’s transport, power and health infrastructure.”

    It said in May 2018, the federal government launched the Presidential Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF), under the management of the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority.

    The PIDF is kicking off with seed funding of $650 million.

    It also said the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) in March 2018 invested $10 million to establish a “world-class” cancer treatment centre at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), and $5 million each in the Aminu Kano University Teaching Hospital and the Federal Medical Centre, Umuahia, to establish modern diagnostic centres.

    The centres, it said, should be completed before the end of 2018.

    “In 2014, the federal government invested the following: Transport (N14 billion), Agriculture & Water (N34 billion), Power, Works & Housing (N106 billion). In 2017 those figures jumped to: Transport (N127 billion), Agriculture & Water (N130 billion), Power, Works & Housing (N325 billion).

    “Abuja’s Light Rail system has been completed and will go into operation in 2018. The first line to be launched will connect the city centre with the airport, with a link to the Abuja-Kaduna Railway Line.

    “The Buhari Administration successfully completed the reconstruction of the Abuja airport runway within the scheduled six-week period (March – April 2017),” the document stated.

    Power Sector

    In the Power sector, the government said there was more than 2,000MW of additional power generation capacity by the end of 2018.

    Some, it said, were via publicly owned plants (Afam Fast Power, 240MW) while others are through private sector investment supported by the federal government (Azura, 450MW).

    The government said it launched a N701 billion Payment Assurance Programme designed to resolve the liquidity challenges in the power sector by guaranteeing payments to generating companies and gas suppliers.

    It also said there was transmission expansion and rehabilitation programme which has resulted in a 50 per cent expansion in grid capacity since 2015, from 5,000MW to 7,125MW as at December 2017.

    It said it also launched the Distribution Expansion Programme (DEP) which was approved by the Federal Executive Council in February 2018 to deliver 2,000MW of unused power capacity to consumers in need.

    “Implementation of the DEP has commenced, with the issuance, in May 2018, of a call for tenders for the procurement of distribution substations and electrical equipment,” government said.

    Investing In People

    The Buhari administration says all four components of the Social Investment Programme (SIP) have now taken off.

    “The SIP is the largest and most ambitious social safety net programme in the history of Nigeria, with N140 billion released and more than 9 million direct beneficiaries so far,” it said.

    Under the SIP, government said 200,000 N-Power beneficiaries are currently participating and receiving N30,000 in monthly stipends.

    It said another 300,000 new enrolments are being processed, to take the number to 500,000 this year.

    It said as for the Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP), N15.183 billion has been disbursed in interest-free loans ranging from N50,000 to N350,000 to 303,420 market women, traders, artisans, farmers across all 36 States of the country and the FCT.

    It said under the GEEP, 56 per cent of the loans have gone to women.

    “In terms of advancing the financial inclusion goals of the Buhari Administration, GEEP has led to the opening of 349,000 new bank accounts/wallets for beneficiaries and intending beneficiaries.

    “In November 2017, GEEP was chosen as the pilot programme for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Policy Innovation Unit in Nigeria,” the government said.

    The Buhari government also talked about its Home Grown School Feeding Programme (HGSFP).

    It said the programme currently feeds a total of 8.2 million pupils in 45,394 public primary schools across 24 states.

    The states include Abia, Anambra, Enugu, Ebonyi and Imo (South East); Akwa Ibom, Cross River and Delta (South South); Osun, Oyo, Ondo and Ogun (South West); Benue, Niger and Plateau (North Central); Kaduna, Katsina, Kano, and Zamfara (North West); Bauchi, Taraba, Borno, Gombe and Jigawa (North East).

    “Over 80,000 direct jobs have since been created from the School Feeding Programme; with 87,261 cooks currently engaged in the 24 participating states.

    “All 36 states of the Federation and the FCT will eventually benefit from the Programme.

    “The Health aspect of the programme has seen over 3 million pupils dewormed in six states, the deworming programme is a bi-annual programme aimed at eradicating and reducing the burden of worms,” it said.

    Under the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT), the administration says 297,973 families are benefiting from the CCT Scheme.

  • Democracy Day: FG declares May 29 public holiday

    The Federal Government has declared Tuesday, May 29, as public holiday to celebrate the 2018 Democracy Day in Nigeria.

    The Minister of Interior, retired Lt.-Gen Abdulrahman Dambazau, made the declaration on Friday in Abuja on behalf of the Federal Government in a statement issued by Dr M. Umar the Permanent Secretary.

    Dambazau congratulated Nigerians on the occasion and pledged government’s continued dedication to entrenching democracy in the country.

    He also urged all Nigerians to trust and support the government in its commitment to building an indivisible, peaceful and greater nation based on the tenets of democracy.

    The Minister wished all Nigerians a Happy Democracy Day celebration.

  • Democracy Day: FG announces four-day celebration, appoints Jega guest speaker

    The Federal Government has outlined a four-day series of activities to mark the 2018 Democracy Day, from May 25 to May 29.

    Lawrence Ojabo, Director Press, Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF) made the announcement in a statement on Thursday in Abuja.

    He said that the celebration would begin with the Friday (Juma’at) Prayers at the National Mosque, Central Business District, Abuja, on May 25.

    He noted that the theme for this year’s celebration is: “Peace Building and Good Governance for Sustainable Development”

    “Prayers will be offered for the nation and its leadership at various levels tomorrow (Friday) at the National Mosque.

    “Similar prayers are to hold at the National Worship (Ecumenical) Centre, Central Business District, Abuja, on Sunday, May 27.

    “Former Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Attahiru Jega will be the Guest Lecturer at this year’s Democracy Day Lecture on Monday, May 28 at 10.00a.m at the International Conference Centre, Abuja.”

    Mr Ojabo said all the events are expected to draw participation from all arms and tiers of government, including past Presidents, Heads of State and traditional rulers.

    Others are the Diplomatic Community and Non-State Actors, members of the National Assembly, Ministers, Permanent Secretaries, Heads of Agencies, Extra-Ministerial Departments and Agencies of Government, Captains of Industries, and the General Public.

    He noted that Nigeria’s Democracy Day is held on May 29 every year to commemorate the return of democratic governance in 1999 after long years of military rule in Nigeria.

    He added that the day offers a unique opportunity to celebrate giant strides as a nation as well as abilities as a people to triumph over daunting challenges in nation-building.

    “It also presents an auspicious opportunity to celebrate the return and observance of fundamental human rights with the citizens having the sole responsibility of electing their leaders through democratic processes at all tiers of government.

    “On democracy day, Nigerians celebrate freedom, leadership based on the will of the people, fundamental human rights and accelerated development,” he said.

     

  • Deltans have a lot to celebrate – Gov. Okowa

    Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, few days to Democracy Day, marking his third anniversary as governor of Delta state, has said the people of the State have a lot to celebrate.

    The Governor who spoke with enthusiasm on Tuesday shortly after inspecting some projects executed by his administration, told journalists that three years after, Deltans have a lot to celebrate and thank God for.

    “From 9 am on Tuesday, May 29, we will gather at the event centre to celebrate peace, to thank God for the peace and progress we have made as a state, the programme will be beamed live for Deltans who may not be able to join us at the event centre to participate in giving praise, dance and dance to the glory of God for His goodness,” the Governor said.

    “We have just inspected the Stephen Keshi Stadium, the Asaba Airport and the storm drainage projects and we are happy with the level of progress made in the execution of the projects, we have adopted regular monitoring of the projects to ensure that the jobs are done to specification and delivered on time,” he added.

    The Governor who was accompanied by all the members of the State executive council as the inspection commenced immediately after their meeting, disclosed that the contractors have been ordered to work day and night to ensure that they deliver the projects before scheduled dates.

    He noted that the runway of the Asaba International Airport will be completed before May 29, observing that the runway was very critical for the effective functioning of the airport.