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Tag: Interior Minister

  • Ukraine’s top govt officials killed in helicopter crash

    Ukraine’s top govt officials killed in helicopter crash

    The three main figures in Ukraine’s interior ministry have been killed in a helicopter crash beside a nursery in an eastern suburb of the capital Kyiv.

    Interior Minister Denys Monastyrsky, 42, died alongside his first deputy minister and state secretary.

    Nine people were killed when the helicopter came down in Brovary and another nine died on the ground, including three children.

    Mr Monastyrsky is the highest profile Ukrainian casualty since the war began.

    The deputy head of Ukraine’s presidential office, Kyrylo Tymoshenko, said the minister had been en route to a war “hot spot” when his helicopter went down.

    There is no indication the crash was anything other than an accident, although witnesses said Russia’s war was to blame for the disaster.

    “It was very foggy and there was no electricity, and when there’s no electricity there are no lights on the buildings,” local resident Volodymyr told the BBC.

    The 42-year-old interior minister was a prominent member of President Volodymy Zelensky’s cabinet. He played a key role in updating the public on casualties caused by Russian missile strikes since Ukraine was invaded in February 2022.

  • Aregbesola urges LGs to generate revenue, drive development

    Aregbesola urges LGs to generate revenue, drive development

    Interior Minister Rauf Aregbesola has urged Local Governments to generate revenue to drive development at that level.

    This is contained in a statement issued by Aregbesola’s Media Adviser, Mr Sola Fasure, on Tuesday in Abuja.

    Speaking at a one-Day dialogue with the theme, “2023 and Beyond: Tracking Campaign Promises for Good Governance” organised by NPO Reports in Abuja, the minister said:” local governments, though closest to the people are dependent on the federation account for funding.

    ”They really have no business waiting from handouts every month from the central government.

    “The Local Councils must generate revenue to drive development at that level. No local government will be accountable with handouts. Charity doesn’t make people responsible.”

    Aregbesola advised that people of a locality must fund their local government.

    This, he said when done, would enable them not to exact responsibility and accountability from that government.

    “People can hardly hold a government accountable, whose funding they are not responsible for. This applies to state governments too.

    ”I ask myself, is local council a tier of government in a federation. Examples abound world over of countries that practice federal system like ours.

    “In Australia, Germany, the U.S. and many others, there are only two tiers in a federal system which is usually the central and the regional governments. The local government is not one of them.”

    The minister commended the organiser of the dialogue, Alhaji Semiu Okanlawon, CEO, Proumou Media Consulting Nigeria Ltd Editor-in-Chief/Publisher, NPO Reports for his professionalism.

    He urged Okanlawon to continue to stand for the best tradition of responsible journalism.

    ”I am here in my capacity as ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, and not as the Minister of Interior, and I will expect to be quoted as such.

    “I came here because of my personal relationship with Semiu. The topic he has chosen to celebrate at this One-Day Dialogue on the 12th anniversary of his publication, is very apt.

    “All the erudite scholars who spoke have done adequate academic justice to the topic.

    “When I was the governor in Osun, I created a government department called the Bureau of Social Services with the acronym ‘BOSS’, to track government programmes, projects and interventions.

    “I also had a Policy and Economic Team (PET) to track projects and initiatives of my office.

    “I also engaged private social, political and economic consultants to do the performance monitoring and perception review.”

    The minister, however, added that beyond the tracking of these projects, the next thing was tracking productivity.

    “Before we can track productivity, we must mobilise Nigerians for productivity. I heard some speakers talking about tracking the productivity of all tiers of government.

    ”President Muhammadu Buhari is investing rightly in infrastructure so Nigerians can be mobilised for productivity.

    “With his promise to lift 100 million Nigerians out of poverty, if half of that number can be mobilised for productivity through the different initiatives the government is championing.

    “Nigeria will in no time be competing with the first world nations,” the minister added.

    Earlier, the former governor of Ekiti, Dr Kayode Fayemi, said that while in office, he had a very efficient Monitoring and Evaluating Unit that tracked all government projects.

    “But according to the topic of the day’s dialogue, sometimes politicians cannot fulfil their campaign promises due to factors totally out of their control.”

  • Minister of Interior, Aregbesola advocates for release of 30% of prison inmates

    Minister of Interior, Aregbesola advocates for release of 30% of prison inmates

    Minister of Interior, Mr Rauf Aregbesola, has announced that he would meet with state governors over release of 30 percent of inmates from Nigerian Prison across the country.

    Aregbesola made this announcement during an interview with Newsmen on Sunday

    The minister said the interface was necessary as more than 90 per cent of the inmates were being held for contravening various state laws.

    He also said that over 70 percent of the 75,635 inmates at present were awaiting trial.

    The Osun born  minister added that  the federal offenders in the system were far less than 10 per cent, adding that the bulk of people in custody were those who have run foul of state laws.

    He said they were therefore being kept under the legal jurisdiction of their respective states.

    The minister further explained that the decongestion of the 253 custodial centres nationwide was necessary as some of the inmates have no reason to remain in custody.

    Aregbesola called on all stakeholders to work towards a “better-structured criminal justice administration, otherwise, we will just be left with congested and overcrowded facilities”.

    He said, “I have written the Nigerian Governors Forum to allow me to come and address them on how they can support the process of decongestion.

    “Because the governors must buy into this system for us to do a massive decongestion, especially of Awaiting Trial Inmates.

    “If we get the buy-in of state judicial authorities and the government of the states, we can pull out 30 per cent of those who are there.”

    He said some of the awaiting trial inmates have stayed longer than the punishment provided by law for the crime they were arrested for.

    “If you look at a man that is caught for petty theft and you are trying him for three years, even if you convict him for that crime, how long will he stay?

    “How long will that fellow stay, probably six months, but without trial, he will be there for three years.

    “Again, you arrested a boy under the bridge, there is no fixed crime and he is there forever and so on and so forth.

    “So, we need the buying in and support from state governments.

    “This is for them to critically know the situation and let them set up committees that will profile all those who are there.

    “And help either to convict, release them or see if they have overstayed their required time,” the minister said.

  • Danbazau seeks collective efforts to tackle insecurity

    Danbazau seeks collective efforts to tackle insecurity

    A former Minister of Interior, retired Lt.- Gen. Abdurrahman Danbazau, said the fight against insecurity was the collective duty of all Nigerians.

    Dambazau, who made the assertion in an interview with newsmen in Daura urged every Nigerian to rise up to the challenge.

    He said that members of the public should be willing to support the security agencies with reliable intelligence to track down criminals.

    Dambazau, also a former Chief of Army Staff, said it was unpatriotic for members of the public to support bandits and other criminals with information.

    ”We cannot fight insecurity if they are being provided with information. It is also unpatriotic to send food, water and other needs to them.

    ”When they get support from us, we are only telling them to continue with their heinous crimes against society.

    ”It is the duty of every Nigerian to play their roles towards stamping out insecurity in the country,” he urged.

    The former minister urged Nigerians to always report suspicious movements around their environments to law enforcement agencies.

    He said that President Muhammad Buhari-led’s government was doing everything possible to fight insecurity in the country.

    ”I don’t agree when people say that not much is being done. The government is doing its best within the laws to protect the lives and property of Nigerians.

    ”I urge Nigerians to be patient and hopeful. The issue of insecurity will be a thing of the past one day,” he said.

  • Jailbreaks: Senate summons AGF, Interior minister

    Jailbreaks: Senate summons AGF, Interior minister

    The Senate, on Tuesday, summoned the Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami; and the Minister of Interior, Mr Rauf Aregbesola, over the incessant jailbreaks in the country.

    This followed a Point of Oder raised by Sen. Istifanus Gyang (PDP-Plateau) during plenary.

    Gyang came under matter of urgent public importance on “terror attacks on two communities in Plateau North and jailbreak at the Jos Medium Security Correctional Centre Jos, Plateau’’.

    The upper chamber also directed its Committee on Interior to invite the Controller-General of Nigeria Correctional Service (NCS), Haliru Nababa.

    It said the invitation was necessary in order to carry out a full scale investigation into the state of correctional centres nationwide.

    Raising Orders 42 and 52 of the Senate Rules, Gyang said nine inmates were killed in the Jos jailbreak, while 252 inmates escaped and reamined large.

    The lawmaker decried the incident, saying that the Jos custodial centre was well fortified and surrounded by major security formations.

    He, therefore, called for the reinforcement of physical protection system and security mechanism at correctional centres by the ministry of interior to forestall further jailbreaks.

    Contributing, Senate Leader, Yahaya Abdullahi, said that correctional centres were the weakest link under the criminal justice system in the country.

    “We have challenges, of course with the police, the judiciary but the correctional centres are the ones in which this country has not made the kind of investment required.

    “We must look into the entire system of this kind of recurrent attack and look at the entire disposition of our prison system. The prison system is porous.

    “Some of the correctional centres were those created since colonial days. About 60 per cent of them were prison systems that were established during the colonial system,’’ he said.

    Similarly, Sen. Rochas Okorocha (APC-Imo) said: “The issue of insecurity has remained a recurring event that seems to have no solution in spite of all government’s effort, in spite of all the military effort.

    “What will be the interest of somebody attacking a correctional centre in Jos, could he say it is as a result of poverty or hunger?

    “I think if we do not trace what are the causes of this development, we may be chasing shadows.

    “ Time has come that this nation has to retreat and restrategise to find out what is truly causing the insecurity, who is responsible and how did it come about.’’

    In his remarks, the Deputy Senate President, Ovie Omo-Agege, who presided over plenary said, “we have a serious issue regarding this security breach.

    “The question becomes why are we having these challenges? Everything Mr President has requested from the National Assembly by way of funding, we have obliged him.

    “So the fault is not that of Mr President clearly. But to whom much is given much is also expected.

    “Now, having given all of these funding to the security agencies, why are we still having these challenges?

    “I think it is something we need to sleep over. But in the interim, it is clear that we have a serious intelligence gathering gap”.

  • Interior Minister decorates new fire service CG

    Interior Minister decorates new fire service CG

    The Minister of Interior, Abdulrahman Dambazau on Tuesday decorated, Mr Liman Ibrahim, newly appointed Controller-General (CG), Federal Fire Service (FFS).

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the appointment of Ibrahim took effect from March 26, after the retirement of Joseph Anebi, former FFS CG.

    During the decoration at the Minister’s office in Abuja, Dambazau urged the CG to educate the public on fire prevention and control measures.

    “Ensure to educate Nigerians on the prevention of fire incidents in their environments.

    “Also, in cases of fire incidents the public should know how to control fire.

    “ I know that these areas are not new to you but they are just a reminder on how to win the confidence of the public.

    “Remember that most of your responsibilities are practical,” he said.

    Dambazau reiterated the need to ensure proper maintenance of fire equipment and vehicles provided within the last four years.

    According to the minister, the challenge now is not the procurement of fire equipment but to ensure proper maintenance of these equipment.

    “These fire equipment should last for at least a period of 20 years before renewal.

    “In the last 20 years before this administration the fire service has never had it this good with the acquisition of lots of equipment to help provide adequate service to the country,” he said.

    Responding, Ibrahim, thanked President Muhammadu Buhari for saddling him with the responsibility as the new CG.

    “I promise to do my best and will not disappoint Mr President with this task.

    “I will do my best to move with Mr President to the next level with the fire service,” he said.