TheNewsGuru

Tag: New Year

  • Only 10 inmates escaped from Edo prison on New Year Day – Police

    Only 10 inmates escaped from Edo prison on New Year Day – Police

    The Edo State Police Command has reacted to viral publications suggesting that hundreds of suspected armed robbers and kidnappers escaped from the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) facility.

    Police spokesman, SP Chidi Nwabuzor in a communique on Monday said only ten suspects escaped the facility on the 1st of January, 2021 at about 2.45am.

    According to the police image-maker, two escapees have been re-arrested and brought back to custody.

    SP Nwabuzor held that the figures in the media are maliciously and falsely speculated.

    According to him, “eight (8) of the suspects were detained on the order of the court, in summary; stealing – 1, Murder- 1, Cultism-3, Robbery-3, while the other two (2) were under Police investigation for stealing.”

    He further stated that the quick mobilization and response of officers curbed further escape of the suspects.

    The PRO also noted that the policemen who failed to ensure that the escapees remained behind bars, have been identified, arrested, and detained for departmental disciplinary process, even as efforts are being intensified to re-arrest the fleeing suspects.

    “The command has the wherewithal/intelligence to re-arrest the remaining suspects who are on the run but will still appreciate any useful information from the members of the public as no stone will be left unturned in assuring that all those suspects are re-arrested.

    “The Command assures members of the public of its continued commitment to protecting lives and property of law-abiding citizens,” SP Nwabuzor stated.

  • WhatsApp sets single day record on New Year’s eve

    WhatsApp sets single day record on New Year’s eve

    WhatsApp on New Year’s eve set single day record with 1.4 billion voice and video calls, making it the most ever calls in a single day on the platform.

    This is even as people increasingly turned to technology to stay in touch and get things done in the face of social distancing and stay-at-home mandates in 2020.

    According to Facebook, owners of WhatsApp, calling on the app increased by over 50% compared to the same day last year.

    On Facebook Messenger, people celebrated with effects, and the top AR effect in the US was “2020 Fireworks”.

    “New Year’s Eve 2020 was the biggest day ever for Messenger group video calls (3+ people) in the US, with nearly 2X more group video calls on NYE compared to the average day.

    “There were more than 55 million live broadcasts across Facebook and Instagram globally on New Year’s Eve,” the social media platform stated.

    Facebook said it’s engineers worked hehind the scenes to drive unprecedented efficiency improvements and make sure infrastructures were more resilient.

    “Before COVID-19, New Year’s Eve generated Facebook’s biggest spikes in messaging, photo uploads and social sharing at midnight across the world.

    “However, in March 2020, the early days of the pandemic produced traffic spikes that would dwarf New Year’s Eve several times over — and it lasted for months. Behind the scenes, Facebook Engineering came together to drive unprecedented efficiency improvements and make our infrastructure more resilient.

    “This work includes load testing, disaster recovery testing and shuffling capacity. This year, New Year’s Eve looked a lot different, and we had engineering teams across Facebook’s apps, ready to support any issue, so the world could ring in 2021,” Caitlin Banford, technical program manager at Facebook stated.

  • Buhari’s New Year nationwide address empty, directionless – PDP

    Buhari’s New Year nationwide address empty, directionless – PDP

    Nigeria’s major opposition party, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has described President Muhammadu Buhari’s nationwide address on New Year’s Day as empty and directionless.

    The party also said the president has not demonstrated capacity to play his own part in repositioning the country.

    This claim was contained in a statement by PDP spokesman, Kola Ologbondiyan.

    In the communique written in reaction to President Buhari’s New Year address, the PDP said the president has failed to find a solution for the security and economic challenges that pervade the nation under “his incompetent and lethargic watch”.

    The PDP described Buhari’s speech as empty, directionless, and confirms that the nation indeed has become leaderless.

    According to the opposition party, “the President’s speech underscores the urgent need for compatriots to come together and salvage our nation that is fast heading to a failed state”.

    The PDP lamented as appalling that on New Year Day, all that President Buhari could offer a troubled and frustrated nation was a regurgitated script full of lame excuses and empty promises that address nothing.

    “The myriads of lame excuses in Mr. President’s address again underlines our national misfortune of weak leadership that is unable to resolutely confront and vanquish bandits, terrorists, kidnappers, and vandals who are now holding our nation hostage, ravaging our communities, kidnapping and beheading our compatriots without restrain.

    “The least Nigerians expected from Mr. President, in the New Year, was a decisive will to tackle our security challenges by reviewing his parade and heeding the demands by Nigerians to rejig our nation’s security architecture.

    “The situation at hand requires more than an armchair commander in chief who only dwells on excuses for manifest failures. President Buhari’s New Year address only points to the fact that our nation is in dire need of a leadership that is willing, able, and ready to engage from the fronts.

    “On the economy, Mr. President failed to articulate a definite economic recovery blueprint. He had no clear strategies to shore up the value of our naira, repay and end our foreign borrowings, revamp our external reserves, give hope to foreign investors, move promises of job creation from the perpetual drawing board, and guarantee food security, health care among others.

    “Mr. President had the opportunity to redeem his administration by taking steps that will address high costs of food, education, and housing deficit; address the high price of fuel, multiple taxes and tariffs that bear pressure on businesses and families as well as how to enhance national productivity and grow our Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

    “In the same vein, our party finds it lamentable that President Buhari, in his reference to the demonstration by our youths, did not make any decisive pronouncement to end the on-going persecution of EndSARS protesters or order a Presidential inquest into the reported Lekki killing.

    “Moreover, the failure by Mr. President to make a direct commitment on budgetary provisions exposes a lack of will and direction and shows that the next two years under the Buhari-led APC administration would leave our nation with forlorn hope.

    “Nevertheless our party urges Nigerians not to despair but use the New Year to reinforce their bond of unity and continue to work together in their collective resolve to use opportunities offered by democracy to rescue our nation from misrule,” the party stated.

    The PDP prayed that God will give compatriots the perseverance to outlive the pains of “APC and President Buhari’s misrule as we work collectively for a new dawn”.

  • Sowore spends New Year day in police custody for organizing protest

    Sowore spends New Year day in police custody for organizing protest

    Publisher of Sahara Reporters, Omoyele Sowore, and other activists spent the wee hours of the New Year in police custody for organizing a protest in Abuja.

    Sowore had before his detention, sent out a series of tweets calling on Nigerians to join him on a protest against the regime of the President Muhammadu Buhari

    He had tweeted, “How about a crossover protest/uprising tonight? Anyone willing to participate? Pick up a candle and a placard showing your grievances against the regime; let’s upload our short videos and photos across our social media platforms. Let’s welcome the regime to a resolute 2021!

    “#CrossoverWithProtest against tyrant @mbuhari’s regime, candlelight for #LekkiMassacre; a placard for #EndBadGovernment; procession to usher in #Revolutionary 2021, a fist for victims of repression-frozen bank accounts, malicious prosecution and detention of #Endsars activists.

    “#Crossoverwithprotest starts at 11.30 till 12.30 am across Nigeria, a candle, a placard and fireworks to usher in a RESOLUTE 2021 in Nigeria! Join with your friends and neighbours ‪#EndSARS. ‪#ObigboMassacre ‪#LekkiMassacre ‪#EndBadGoveranceInNigeria ‪#BuhariTrainwreck ‪#RevolutionNow.”

    TheNewsGuru gathered that armed policemen around midnight accosted the protesters at Gudu Junction injuring some of them in the process.

    They were then taken to a police unit infamously known as ‘Abattoir’ in the Lokogoma area of the FCT.

    TheNewsGuru recalls that Sowore, who was declared a prisoner of conscience by Amnesty International in 2019, was imprisoned for several months by the Buhari led administration for allegedly calling for a revolution.

     

    Sowore’s legal representative, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN), who confirmed the arrest, said he had not been able to find his client because the police had failed to reveal where he is.

     

  • New Year: Let us unite to confront common enemies, Atiku tells Nigerians

    New Year: Let us unite to confront common enemies, Atiku tells Nigerians

    Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has urged Nigerians to unite to confront the common enemies bedevilling all, such as the virus, terrorism, banditry and kidnapping.

    Atiku made the call in his New Year message.

    “As we embrace this New Year with brighter hopes of restoration, let us do so with even a stronger commitment to unity, cooperation and mutual love. Let us work as one people, under one God with one country to call home”.

    Atiku who enumerated various challenges that Nigeria faces locally and internationally, said we can only overcome, if we pull together as a people.

    “Just like it was with the deadly virus, we are exposed to a common threat of terrorism, kidnapping and sundry criminalities; threat of economic meltdown, unemployment and poverty; and, even our solution to the problem of climate change must be within the focus of conserving the planet we call home.

    “We cannot wholly defeat any of these threats if we refuse to cooperate and work together irrespective of our intangible differences.

    “As Nigerians, we are all aware of the challenges that bedevil the country. We need not begin to enumerate them.

    “But what we must not let happen is allowing our weakness to wall our strength. Our diversity offers a rare opportunity of plural perspectives to finding a solution to our problems.

    “If we fail to take that advantage, we would be weaker while the problems keep growing bigger and the blame will be on us.

    Read full message:

    It is with a glad heart that I welcome everyone to the New Year, 2021.

    The out-gone year was quite dramatic and it is only by the grace of the Almighty God that we survived to witness the succeeding year.

    It is cheering that we are entering the New Year with refreshing news of a handful of certified vaccines against the dreaded Covid-19 virus. And better still is news of commencement of vaccination in some parts of the world. I am expectant that the vaccine(s) would soon be available for vaccination in Nigeria. It is also hoped that very soon life would return to normal.

    As a country, we have taken our share of the blow that Covid-19 dealt to the globe. And worst still, we suffered a multi-facet downcast on account of of lazy and uninspiring leadership from the government at the center – most especially.

    But just as I often do, I pray that God should heal the hearts of families who have lost loved ones to the disease, as well as those who died on account of insecurity and ringing poverty occasioned by a poor management of our national economy.

    The damage that the pandemic had done to our lives remains, and it would take some time for us to overcome. However, bad as the virus was, the fundamental lesson that the scourge reinforces is our bond as one species of homo sapiens, in which an attack on one is an attack on all.

    Moving forward, we would require the same kind of cooperation that it takes to develop an antidote to Covid-19, to come up with solutions to many of the other ills that confront our world. Perhaps, that is the lesson to be taken from the pandemic, and it should be our pathway into the New Year.

    Just like it was with the deadly virus, we are exposed to a common threat of terrorism, kidnapping and sundry criminalities; threat of economic meltdown, unemployment and poverty; and, even our solution to the problem of climate change must be within the focus of conserving the planet we call home. We cannot wholly defeat any of these threats if we refuse to cooperate and work together irrespective of our intangible differences.

    As Nigerians, we are all aware of the challenges that bedevil the country. We need not begin to enumerate them. But what we must not let happen is allowing our weakness to wall our strength. Our diversity offers a rare opportunity of plural perspectives to finding a solution to our problems. If we fail to take that advantage, we would be weaker while the problems keep growing bigger and the blame will be on us.

    As we embrace this New Year with brighter hopes of restoration, let us do so with even a stronger commitment to unity, cooperation and mutual love. Let us work as one people, under one God with one country to call home.

    I wish every Nigerian a prosperous Year 2021 and I do pray that every family shall find renewal in the New Year.

  • BREAKING: FG declares December 25th, 28th; January 1st public holidays

    BREAKING: FG declares December 25th, 28th; January 1st public holidays

    The Federal Government has declared Friday 25 and Monday 28 December 2020 as well as Friday, January 1, 2021 as public holidays to mark the Christmas, Boxing Day and New Year Celebrations respectively.

    Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Interior, Dr Shuaib M.L Belgore who disclosed this in a statement issued Wednesday in Abuja added that the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Adesoji Aregbesola, made the declaration on behalf of the Federal Government.

    The minister felicitated with Christians and all Nigerians both at home and abroad on this year’s Christmas and New Year Celebrations.

    Aregbesola urged Christians to adopt the creed of Christ on faith, hope and love. “We must emulate the life of humility, service, compassion, patience, peace and righteousness that the birth and Ministry of Jesus Christ signified, that will be the best way to know Christ and celebrate his birth”, he said.

    The minister noted that peace and security are critical factors needed to enable Government accomplish its mission of revitalizing the economy, improving Foreign Direct Investments as well as generating employment opportunities for over 100 million Nigerian youths in the next 10 years.

    He advised Nigerians and Christians in particular, to adhere strictly to the COVID-19 protocols and guidelines, as stipulated by relevant authorities, during and after the yuletide, especially with the second wave of the outbreak of the disease.

    “The Minister who reiterated Federal Government’s avowed commitment to the fight against armed banditry, kidnappings and other crimes and criminalities in the country, called on Nigerians to support the efforts of the security agencies by providing them with information that will enhance intelligence gathering.

    “While admonishing all Nigerians to remain focused, determined, patient and patriotic, Aregbesola expressed confidence that the year 2021 would be a better year for all Nigerians and therefore urged Christians to use the period to pray for Nigeria.

    “He wished all Nigerians and Christians in particular, a happy Christmas and New Year Celebrations”, the statement added.

  • New Year Prophecies of Divination or Inspiration?, By Fr Anaweokhai O. Valentine

    New Year Prophecies of Divination or Inspiration?, By Fr Anaweokhai O. Valentine

    New Year Prophecies of Divination or Inspiration?

    By Fr Anaweokhai O. Valentine

    anavalobee@gmail.com

    As the year 2020, laden with the corona virus pandemic is gradually coming to an end, hopefully, we shall soon begin to hear the unleashing of New year ‘prophecies’ for 2021 by a host of men of God, often called prophets. This has suddenly become the norm at the beginning of every new year. Sometimes, such prophecies portend danger and tragic events that will happen and other times, they convey glad tidings. Unfortunately, it was very strange that in the series of prophecies for 2020, no one saw the corona virus pandemic, breezing in from far away China, and spreading to almost every part of the world. No one could even foresee the devastating blow and havoc the pandemic was going to visit on humanity and the number of lives it would claim.

    However, what is of concern to me is the nature of most of the prophecies. Looking at some past prophecies, the question is, do they really qualify to be so called? What makes them different from predictions people sometimes make about future events? And very importantly, are these prophecies products of divination or inspiration? Looking at prophecy in the scriptures will help to address these issues posed and give a better understanding of what prophecy is all about and what it should mean for us today.

    The word prophet comes from the Greek prophetes – meaning one who speaks for another, especially God and the Hebrew nabi – meaning one who calls, announces, proclaims a message, one who is called; a vocation to be messenger. One who acts or speaks on behalf of another. A prophet was a member of ancient Israel’s religious leadership considered to be skilled in divine and human communication. Usually, he received a word from God and announces it to those seeking that word. In ancient Israel, prophecy did not connote the future. If that was the case, then what were the sources of their prophecy? Prophecies originated either through divination or inspiration. Let me quickly throw some light on this.

    For divination, the individual took the initiative to inquire or investigate, certain technical skills were required to master the art of divination, and they were often met with mixed reception in the Bible. A good example is found in the prophet Micah 3:10-11, “Who build up Zion with bloodshed, and Jerusalem with wickedness! Its leaders render judgment for a bribe, the priests teach for pay, the prophets divine for money. While they rely on the LORD, saying, “Is not the LORD in the midst of us? No evil can come upon us!”. Also see 1 Sam. 28:8-11 and Ezekiel 21:26. In this case, it is not God who sends or gives the message, but the prophet or individual on his own goes all out in search of the information or knowledge. This use of divinatory techniques was very rampant among the counterparts of Israel’s prophets in making inquiries on behalf of their people. Even though some form of divination was practiced among the ancient Israelites, like interpretation of dreams (Gen. 37:5-11; Matt. 1;18-20; 2:13,19) and lot oracles (Ezra 2:59-63), they were still however forbidden (Cf. Deut. 18:9-14).

    On the other hand, prophecy through inspiration was a direct revelation from the LORD. God would speak directly to the prophet through dreams and visions. Usually, it was characterized by the phrase, “Thus says the Lord!” (Cf. Is. 6:1-6). Through the prophets, God communicated to the people, and the people could consult the prophets to know God’s will and intentions for them. King Jehoshaphat urges the king of Israel to seek a word of the Lord from the prophet Micaiah, son of Imlah, whether to go to war against Ramoth-Gilead or not (1Kgs. 22). King Josiah sent his advisers to go to Huldah the prophet, and consult the Lord concerning the book found in the temple (2Kgs. 22:11-20).

    Besides, there were also cases of false prophets. Those who were genuinely sent by God and those who claimed to be sent by God. We see a clear case of prophetic conflict in the Bible between the prophets Jeremiah and Hananiah. Hananiah had announced that God spoke to him that the Babylonian domination would be broken. That within two years all the vessels carted away from the temple would be returned and that king Jeconiah of Judah and all the exiles of Judah who went to Babylon would return. Within that same moment, the prophet Jeremiah also prophesied that God told him this would not be the case. Rather, as a sign, he was asked to tell Hananiah that he was going to die that same year for misleading the people. Truly, on the seventh month of that same year, Hananiah died (Jer. 28:1-17).

    So, how possible is it to recognize if a prophecy originated from God or otherwise? Looking at the present circumstances, how do we know which prophesies are from God and those that are not from Him? This brings us to what is referred to as the Deuteronomic test. In the book of Deuteronomy, we are told; “if a prophet speaks in the name of the LORD but the word does not come true, it is a word the LORD did not speak. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously; do not fear him.” (18:21-22). Apart from some of the new year prophecies in the past not coming through, the nature and content of some of these prophecies are, to say the least, highly ridiculous, and insignificant. Sometimes, I wonder if God bothers himself with such matters and be discussing them with such people. I wonder also, if God now lacks foreknowledge when some of these framed prophecies never come to pass. Or do they communicate the mind of God wrongly due to the limitation of human language? While this is not an attempt to completely undermine the fact that God still speaks to each one of us, He also speaks through certain people also, irrespective of religious, political, ethnic, and cultural background. The fact remains that some of the prophetic claims we are going to witness in the year 2021 are unfounded, never inspired by God but attempts aimed at gaining cheap popularity. Whom God has not spoken to, should not attribute his or her claims to God. God can not be manipulated or cajoled.

    As we look forward to the “2021 prophetic claims”, which will soon start flooding our print and social media platforms, I wish to invite everyone to look at some of the issues and challenges facing us both nationally and globally today. They include insecurity of lives and property, the pending ASUU strike and the prolonged stay of our youths at home, terrorism and armed banditry, the advent of a vaccine and divine intervention in curbing the corona virus, poverty, unemployment, good and empathetic leadership, social injustice, discrimination, and inequality, domestic violence and sexual abuse, suffering and oppression of the poor by the rich and political/religious elites, poor healthcare and lack of potable water, ethno-religious conflicts and crisis, racism, tribalism, ethnicism and nepotism, danger of greed, avarice and inordinate desire for wealth and riches, quest for power and positions at whatever cost and disregard for human dignity, life, rights and freedom.

    Amid all these problems, where do we find God speaking to each of us and warning us to beware and be careful? How do we hear God inviting us to join hands to create a better world for ourselves and others? Do we even realize how we have contributed to the social and moral problems we face in the world today? Do we not realize that rather than one person claiming to have heard from God, that God is also speaking to each of us from the inner recesses of our consciences, urging us to do the right thing (Cf. Rom. 10:8-9). So, as we approach the new year, let each person strive to listen to what God is saying through the persistent and unrelenting pandemic, our disappointments, failures, difficulties, and setbacks; through our children, youths, and subordinates, since some people never listen to these groups of people in their lives. This time around, let the so-called prophets listen to what God is saying to them through their own congregations, flocks, families, and followers. Let us listen to what God is saying through the tensions, crisis, and problems we have created for ourselves through unforgiveness, bitterness, malice, anger, envy, jealousy, pride, unfaithfulness, and disobedience. As Scripture says: “If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, pray, seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land” (2 Chron. 7:14).

    The year 2020 has been a tough and challenging year for everyone. The experiences have been horrendous. Yet, God permitted everything that has happened, expectedly for a good reason and purpose. As we continue to unfold the pack of lessons and morals that accompanied the year 2020, let us look ahead and see what the year 2021 holds in stock for us. While we wish the best for ourselves and for everyone, let us ask God to inspire each one of us to know, seek, and do the right thing. We do not need to wait for any prophetic declarations from any prophet to discover what God expects from us. God wants us to turn away from evil and do good. He wants us to love one another as he has loved us in Christ. May the year 2021 be better than the previous year. We look forward to the end of the corona virus pandemic and a better life for everyone. We hope for an improved style of governance that will usher in better opportunities and way of life. We hope for improved security of lives and property. We hope for much regard and respect for human life, dignity, and freedom, unlike the mindless killings and abductions we saw in 2020. We equally hope that those who prophesy through divination not inspiration from God, will not cause us unnecessary headaches and heartaches in 2021 more than we have already. May God heal our land and help us. Happy New Year of God’s peace and blessings to you all!

     

     

  • Buhari renews hope for better Nigeria in New Year letter to Nigerians

    Buhari renews hope for better Nigeria in New Year letter to Nigerians

    My Dear Compatriots,

    NIGERIA’S DECADE

    Today marks a new decade. It is a time of hope, optimism and fresh possibilities. We look forward as a nation to the 2020s as the opportunity to build on the foundations we have laid together on security, diversification of our economy and taking on the curse of corruption. These are the pledges on which I have been twice elected President and remain the framework for a stable, sustainable and more prosperous future.

    Elections are the cornerstone of our democracy. I salute the commitment of the millions who voted in peace last February and of those leaders who contested for office vigorously but fairly, submitting to the authority of the electorate, the Independent National Electoral Commission and judicial process. I understand very well the frustrations our system has in the past triggered. I will be standing down in 2023 and will not be available in any future elections. But I am determined to help strengthen the electoral process both in Nigeria and across the region, where several ECOWAS members go to the polls this year.

    As Commander-in-Chief, my primary concern is the security of the nation and the safety of our citizens. When I assumed office in May 2015 my first task was to rally our neighbours so that we could confront Boko Haram on a coordinated regional basis. Chaos is not a neighbour any of us hope for.

    We have been fighting on several fronts: violent extremists, cultists and organised criminal networks. It has not been easy. But as we are winning the war, we also look to the challenge of winning the peace, the reconstruction of lives, communities and markets. The North East Development Commission will work with local and international stakeholders to help create a new beginning for the North East.

    The Federal Government will continue to work with State Governors, neighbouring states and our international partners to tackle the root causes of violent extremism and the networks that help finance and organise terror. Our security forces will receive the best training and modern weaponry, and in turn will be held to the highest standards of professionalism, and respect for human rights. We will use all the human and emerging technological resources available to tackle kidnapping, banditry and armed robbery.

    The new Ministry of Police Affairs increased recruitment of officers and the security reforms being introduced will build on what we are already delivering. We will work tirelessly at home and with our allies in support of our policies to protect the security of life and property. Our actions at all times will be governed by the rule of law. At the same time, we shall look always to engage with all well-meaning leaders and citizens of goodwill to promote dialogue, partnership and understanding.

    We need a democratic government that can guarantee peace and security to realise the full potential of our ingenious, entrepreneurial and hard-working people. Our policies are designed to promote genuine, balanced growth that delivers jobs and rewards industry. Our new Economic Advisory Council brings together respected and independent thinkers to advise me on a strategy that champions inclusive and balanced growth, and above all fight poverty and safeguard national economic interests.

    As we have sat down to celebrate with friends and family over this holiday season, for the first time in a generation our food plates have not all been filled with imports of products we know can easily be produced here at home. The revolution in agriculture is already a reality in all corners of the country. New agreements with Morocco, Russia and others will help us access on attractive terms the inputs we need to accelerate the transformation in farming that is taking place.

    A good example of commitment to this inclusive growth is the signing of the African Continental Free Trade Area and the creation of the National Action Committee to oversee its implementation and ensure the necessary safeguards are in place to allow us to fully capitalise on regional and continental markets.

    The joint land border security exercise currently taking place is meant to safeguard Nigeria’s economy and security. No one can doubt that we have been good neighbours and good citizens. We have been the helpers and shock-absorbers of the sub-region but we cannot allow our well-planned economic regeneration plans to be sabotaged. As soon as we are satisfied that the safeguards are adequate, normal cross-border movements will be resumed.

    Already, we are making key infrastructure investments to enhance our ease of doing business. On transportation, we are making significant progress on key roads such as the Second Niger Bridge, Lagos – Ibadan Expressway and the Abuja – Kano highway. 2020 will also see tangible progress on the Lagos to Kano Rail line. Through Executive Order 007, we are also using alternative funding programmes in collaboration with private sector partners to fix strategic roads such as the Apapa-Oworonshoki Express way. Abuja and Port Harcourt have new international airport terminals, as will Kano and Lagos in 2020. When completed, all these projects will positively impact business operations in the country. These projects are not small and do not come without some temporary disruption; we are doing now what should have been done a long time ago. I thank you for your patience and look forward to the dividends that we and future generations will long enjoy.

    Power has been a problem for a generation. We know we need to pick up the pace of progress. We have solutions to help separate parts of the value chain to work better together. In the past few months, we have engaged extensively with stakeholders to develop a series of comprehensive solutions to improve the reliability and availability of electricity across the country. These solutions include ensuring fiscal sustainability for the sector, increasing both government and private sector investments in the power transmission and distribution segments, improving payment transparency through the deployment of smart meters and ensuring regulatory actions maximise service delivery.

    We have in place a new deal with Siemens, supported by the German government after German Chancellor Angela Merkel visited us in Abuja, to invest in new capacity for generation, transmission and distribution. These projects will be under close scrutiny and transparency – there will be no more extravagant claims that end only in waste, theft and mismanagement.

    The next 12 months will witness the gradual implementation of these actions, after which Nigerians can expect to see significant improvement in electricity service supply reliability and delivery. Separately, we have plans to increase domestic gas consumption. In the first quarter of 2020, we will commence work on the AKK gas pipeline, OB3 Gas pipeline and the expansion of the Escravos – Lagos Pipeline.

    While we look to create new opportunities in agriculture, manufacturing and other long neglected sectors, in 2020 we will also realise increased value from oil and gas, delivering a more competitive, attractive and profitable industry, operating on commercial principles and free from political interference. Just last week, we were able to approve a fair framework for the USD10 billion expansion of Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas, which will increase exports by 35 percent, restore our position as a world leader in the sector and create thousands of jobs. The Amendment of the Deep Offshore Act in October signalled our intention to create a modern, forward-looking industry in Nigeria. I am confident that in 2020 we will be able to present a radical programme of reform for oil and gas that will excite investors, improve governance and strengthen protections for host communities and the environment.

    We can expect the pace of change in technology only to accelerate in the decade ahead. Coupled with our young and vibrant population, this offers huge opportunities if we are able to harness the most productive trends and tame some of the wilder elements. This is a delicate balance with which many countries are struggling. We are seeking an informed and mature debate that reflects our rights and responsibilities as citizens in shaping the boundaries of how best to allow technology to benefit Nigeria.

    During my Democracy Day speech on June 12, 2019, I promised to lay the enduring foundations for taking a hundred million Nigerians out of mass poverty over the next 10 years. Today I restate that commitment. We shall continue reforms in education, health care and water sanitation. I have met international partners such as GAVI, the vaccine alliance, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation who support our social welfare programmes. I will continue to work with State and Local Governments to make sure that these partnerships deliver as they should. Workers will have a living wage and pensioners will be looked after. We are steadily clearing pensions and benefits arrears neglected for so long.

    The new Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development will consolidate and build on the social intervention schemes and will enhance the checks and balances necessary for this set of programmes to succeed for the long term.

    I am able to report that the journey has already begun with the passage and signing into law of the 2020 Appropriation Act. As the new decade dawns, we are ready to hit the ground running. Let me pay tribute to the Ninth National Assembly who worked uncommonly long hours to make sure that the 2020 budget scrutiny is both thorough and timely. The close harmony between the Executive and Legislature is a sharp contrast to what we have experienced in the recent past, when the Senate kept the previous budget for 7 months without good reason just to score cheap political points thereby disrupting the budgetary processes and overall economic development plans.

    Our policies are working and the results will continue to show themselves more clearly by the day. Nigeria is the most tremendous, can-do market, offering extraordinary opportunities and returns. Investors can look forward with confidence not only to an increasing momentum of change but also to specific incentives, including our new visa-on-arrival policy.

    They can also be certain of our unshakeable commitment to tackle corruption. As we create an environment that allows initiative, enterprise and hard work to thrive, it is more important than ever to call out those who find the rule of law an inconvenience, or independent regulation an irritation. We are doing our part here in Nigeria. We will continue to press our partners abroad to help with the supply side of corruption and have received some encouragement. We expect more funds stolen in the past to be returned to us and they will be ploughed back into development with all due transparency.

    This is a joint initiative. Where our policies have worked best, it has been because of the support of ordinary Nigerians in their millions, numbers that even the most powerful of special interests cannot defy. I thank you for your support. Transition by its very nature carries with it change and some uncertainty along the way. I encourage you to be tolerant, law abiding and peace loving. This is a new year and the beginning of a new decade – the Nigerian Decade of prosperity and promise for Nigeria and for Africa.

    To recapitulate, some of the projects Nigerians should expect to come upstream from 2020 include:

    47 road projects scheduled for completion in 2020/21, including roads leading to ports;
    Major bridges including substantial work on the Second Niger Bridge;
    Completion of 13 housing estates under the National Housing Project Plan;
    Lagos, Kano, Maiduguri and Enugu international airports to be commissioned in 2020;
    Launching of an agricultural rural mechanisation scheme that will cover 700 local governments over a period of three years;
    Launching of the Livestock Development Project Grazing Model in Gombe State where 200,000 hectares of land has been identified;
    Training of 50,000 workers to complement the country’s 7,000 extension workers;
    Commissioning of the Lagos – Ibadan and Itakpe – Warri rail lines in the first quarter;
    Commencement of the Ibadan – Abuja and Kano – Kaduna rail lines also in the first quarter;
    Further liberalisation of the power sector to allow businesses to generate and sell power;
    Commencement of the construction of the Mambilla Power project by the first half of 2020; and
    Commencement of the construction of the AKK gas pipeline, OB3 gas pipeline and the expansion of the Escravos – Lagos pipeline in the first quarter of 2020.
    Thank you very much!

    -President Muhammadu Buhari, State House, Abuja.

  • See 2 nations to be the first to enter 2020

    See 2 nations to be the first to enter 2020

    The tropical islands of Samoa and Kiribati will be the first in the world to welcome 2020 as they are located just west of the International Date Line which runs down the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

    Fireworks to welcome in the new decade will explode over the Samoan capital Apia for locals and tourists who have timed their visit to be ahead of everyone else on the planet to enter the New Year.

    In 2011 Samoa took a leap into the future by shifting its time zone west of the International Date Line in a bid to boost tourism, beating New Zealand into the New Year by just one hour.

    The island nation’s celebrations are expected to be somewhat muted by the tragic measles outbreak which killed 81 people since October.

    A six-week state of emergency was only lifted by the Samoan Ministry of Health on Saturday after successful vaccinations drive reached nearly all the approximately 200,000 people living on the island.

    American Samoa, just 220 kilometres to the east of Samoa on the other side of the International Date Line, will be the last to ring in 2020.

    American Samoa is 25 hours ahead of Samoa as Samoa puts clocks forward one hour for summer, while American Samoa does not.

  • Yuletide: Senate adjourns to Jan. 28

    Yuletide: Senate adjourns to Jan. 28

    The Senate on Friday adjourned sitting to Jan. 28, 2020 for the Christmas and new year.

    This followed a motion moved by the Senate Leader Yahaya Abdullahi during Friday’s plenary and was seconded by Deputy Minority Leader, Sen. Emmanuel Bwacha.

    In his remark, President of the Senate Ahmad Lawan, while appreciating the Clerk of the Senate, Nelson Ayewoh and his team for the unflinching support, said that their effort was fully commendable.

    “I want to thank the media generally for the wonderful job they have been doing and Nigerians for showing understanding.This legislature is yours.

    “Whatever you want us to do and do better, give us the suggestion. If you think we erred somewhere and we need to be corrected, give us that benefit of suggesting corrections.

    ”i wish everyone Merry Christmas and a very prosperous new year; we can see the sign that the new year will be prosperous,” Lawan said.