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Tag: Osinbajo

  • Osinbajo: AIB commences investigation, deploys team to crash scene

    Accident investigators have been deployed to the scene of the weekend helicopter crash involving Vice President Yemi Osinbajo in Kogi State.

    The Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB) is investigating why and how Agusto Westland AW139 helicopter crash-landed in Kabba.

    AIB spokesman Tunji Oketumbi who confirmed the development said that that besides the assessment of the crash scene, the AIB team will ascertain the cause(s) of the accident.

    The team will also interview the crew – pilots and engineers and other professionals from Caverton Helicopters – that operated the ill-fated chopper.

    The investigators will examine the chopper’s wreckage and other relevant materials connected to its operations.

    Oketumbi said a preliminary report on the accident will be released “in a matter of days”, adding that relevant aeronautical agencies have swung into action to unravel the cause of the crash.

    The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) reported the crash to the AIB.

    Its General Manager, Public Relations, Mr. Sam Adurogboye, said: “The NCAA has been notified about the incident and we have notified the AIB to begin investigations in line with its mandate.”

    Caverton Helicopters, in a statement by its Managing Director, Capt. Josiah Choms, said aviation agencies had been informed about the incident.

    Choms said: “An Augsto AW139 Helicopter under management by Caverton Helicopters was involved in a mishap on landing in Kabba, Kogi State on February 2, 2019 as a result of unusual weather conditions.

    “There were no injuries to the passengers or crew on board and they were all quickly and safely evacuated. The relevant authorities have been duly informed and an investigation into the incident has commenced. We will, of course, support the authorities as required.

    “We wish to reassure the public and our various stakeholders of our unwavering commitment to safety in all our operations.”

  • Osinbajo: Presidency orders probe of crashed helicopter

    …says all 12 on board the crashed helicopter safe

    The presidency on Sunday hinted that a procedural investigation by the aviation authorities will be carried out on Vice President’s Yemi Osinbajo’s helicopter that crash-landed at Kabba, Kogi State on Saturday.

    This was revealed by the Vice President’s spokesman, Laolu Akande.

    According to Akande, a total of 12 people were on board the Vice-President’s chopper.

    Apart from Osinbajo, there was the Minister of State for Labour and Productivity, Prof Stephen Ocheni, senior presidential aides and the crew

    Akanded stated, “Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, departed Abuja around 1pm today on a chopper ride to Kogi State in continuation of the Family Chats & Next Level engagements.

    “Prof Osinbajo headed first to Kabba, and while landing at the Kabba Stadium, the helicopter suddenly skidded sideways until it halted on its side few metres away from the intended resting spot.

    “Alongside VP Osinbajo, the Minister of State for Labour and Productivity, Prof Stephen Ocheni, senior presidential aides, security officials and the crew; there were a total of 12 people on board. Everyone came out safely after the incident.

    “We are grateful to God for His protection and safety, and we thank the crew and security personnel for their prompt response and service. We are also grateful for the tremendous expressions of concern and affection, as well as prayers from all.

    “As is procedural, a full investigation into the causes of the incident would be conducted by aviation authorities.

    “The Vice-President is continuing the planned engagements in Kogi State according to plan.”

  • [UPDATED] Scary moment Osinbajo, others were rescued out of crashed helicopter [Photos/Video]

    A major national disaster was averted on Saturday afternoon as a Presidential Fleet helicopter conveying the Vice President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo and his team crashed near Kabba in Kogi State.

    After the incident, Osinbajo confirmed that he was fine and thanked everyone who expressed concern over the incident.

    “We are safe and sound! Thank you to everyone who has expressed concern and thank you to the crew who managed the situation well.

    “We believe that God will continue to keep us and Nigeria safe even as we go higher.

    We continue #NextLevelEngagements in Kabba, Kogi State,” the Vice President wrote on his Twitter page.

    See videos from the incident as obtained by TheNewsGuru.com:

     

     

     

  • I’m happy you are safe, Atiku tells Osinbajo after helicopter crash

    Former Vice President and Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Atiku Abubakar said he is happy that Vice President Yemi Osinbajo survived helicopter crash.

    Osinbajo was on his campaign train when his Chopper crash landed in Kabba area of Kogi State on Saturday, but he and other crew were safe.

    Abubakar, on his twitter handle said he just received the news of the crash in Kabba, but that he was happy that everyone was safe.

    “Dear Vice President @ProfOsinbajo, I just received news of the crash of your helicopter in Kabba, Kogi State. I am happy to note however that all is well with you and your delegation,” he said.

  • Osinbajo reacts after helicopter crash

    A major national disaster was averted on Saturday afternoon as a Presidential Fleet helicopter conveying the Vice President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo and his team crashed near Kabba in Kogi State.

    After the incident, Osinbajo confirmed that he was fine and thanked everyone who expressed concern over the incident.

    “We are safe and sound! Thank you to everyone who has expressed concern and thank you to the crew who managed the situation well.

    “We believe that God will continue to keep us and Nigeria safe even as we go higher.

    We continue #NextLevelEngagements in Kabba, Kogi State,” the Vice President wrote on his Twitter page.

  • FG to establish entrepreneurial banks across Nigeria – Osinbajo

    Vice President Yemi Osinbajo says the Federal Government has plans to establish an Entrepreneur Bank to provide flexibility in provision of facilities to businesses.

    Osinbajo disclosed this while fielding questions from a cross-section of women traders at a programme tagged `Next Level Conversation’ on Monday in Abuja.

    The women, who were mostly entrepreneurs, were drawn from the education, environment, agriculture, real estate, hospitality among other sectors.

    The vice president said that the issue of giving cheap loans to small businesses had featured prominently in the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration.

    “We have been able to deal to some extent with small and micro businesses; we have TraderMoni, MarketMoni, FarmerMoni; which are basically very small credit schemes.

    “We are also looking at an Enterprise Bank or an Entrepreneur Bank which is one of the types of establishment we are looking at.

    “We think there is a need for a bank that will be a bit more nimble about entrepreneurship; a bank that has a bit more flexibility.

    “That is why we are talking about Entrepreneur Bank; of course, we will need a bill in the National Assembly. In the meantime, we think we can start with a bond to put a lot around it without necessarily building another big bureaucracy,’’ he said.

    Osinbajo said there was need to properly fund education as efforts were being made to get the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) to also fund the private sector.

    He reiterated that the issue of funding education lied with the Federal, State and Local Governments.

    The vice president added that the Federal Government would collaborate with state and local governments to curb multiple taxation which had adverse effect on businesses.

  • Obasanjo’s comments on ‘Tradermoni’ shows he’s ignorant, mischievous – Osinbajo

    Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has described as unfortunate the attack on the Federal Government’s TraderMoni microcredit scheme by former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

    Prof Osinbajo, who reacted through a statement by his Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media & Publicity, Mr. Laolu Akande, said the former president was misinformed to have described a programme designed to lift Nigerians as “idiotic”.

    The alleged comments by the former president “smirk of outright mischief as it regurgitates blatant falsehood”.

    In the response to media inquiries regarding the former president’s comments over the weekend, Akande said: “It is either that the former leader is ignorant of the true workings of Trader Moni and the role of the Vice President in its implementation or perhaps he is on a mischievous mission.”

    According to him, the former President has demonstrated “a surprising but complete misunderstanding of the workings of TraderMoni, that is if we assume there is no mischief intended.

    “Firstly, the Vice President does not personally distribute money during his visits to the markets. He goes there to assess the progress of the implementation and to create awareness for a programme designed to meet the financing need of two million petty traders across the country in the first instance.

    “Secondly, while one will not bother to further address the issue of timing of the implementation since such issues are now known to be political posturing, it is important to note that TraderMoni is being actively implemented across all states of the federation and the FCT. It is not only in Lagos and Abuja as was insinuated.

    “These petty traders at the bottom of the economic ladder, with an inventory often less than N5,000, are beneficiaries of the TraderMoni scheme which provides N10,000 collateral/interest-free loans to them, empowerment that improves their small businesses, their families, while also contributing significantly to the economy.

    “Thirdly, in what is certainly a curious comment, the former President has also been quoted as describing the TraderMoni scheme as idiotic. To label such people-friendly scheme as idiotic is not only an absurdity, it is also an affront to the sensibilities of these hard working Nigerians, the beneficiaries of the micro-credit scheme.

    “For emphasis, the Bank of Industry implements the Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme, (GEEP), one part of our Social Investment Programme. Enumeration Agents have been engaged to visit the markets and other points where petty traders are found to confirm that they are traders and also take their biometric information for recording purposes. After the enumeration, the N10, 000 collateral free loans are then disbursed electronically through the petty traders’ phones.

    “TraderMoni is designed to meet the needs of the larger population of petty traders at the bottom of the pyramid who do not meet the more stringent criteria of BVN, bank accounts, market associations, cooperatives, required for bigger Market Moni loans.

    ”Under GEEP – which has MarketMoni, FarmerMoni and TraderMoni, at least 1.5 million Nigerians are already beneficiaries of the three-pronged approach of GEEP, while N-Power has created jobs for 500,000 young Nigerians graduates, besides non-graduates. Also, almost 300,000 Nigerians have benefitted from the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT), which is given to the poorest and most vulnerable among us, and over 9.2 million school pupils are being fed a free meal daily in 26 states under the Home Grown School Feeding Programme.

    “It bears repetition that higher economic growth potentials are associated with lower income inequality. This makes a most overwhelming case for welfare payments like the social investment schemes like the TraderMoni/MarketMoni schemes. Such a micro-credit scheme provides a higher rate of inclusion into the financial bracket and is crucial in lifting hardworking people out of poverty as has been the case in other countries like India and Brazil.

    “Fourthly, the former president also rehashed discredited claims suggesting that TraderMonibeneficiaries were required to tender their PVCs, and questioned the timing of the implementation.

    “Let me, therefore, state again that beneficiaries of TraderMoni are not required to show their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) or any document indicating their political affiliations to qualify for the loans.

    “This is why the enumeration is done in the open markets and wherever the traders ply their trade. This issue has been addressed several times by the Presidency in the public space. Therefore, the former president’s alleged comments smirk of outright mischief as it regurgitates blatant falsehood.

    “Equally, if the former president had conducted a simple act of diligence, he would have found that the National Assembly had approved this programmes and budgeted for them duly.

    ”When President Muhammadu Buhari came into office, one of the major hinges of this administration was to uplift the common man out of poverty and ensure the welfare of ordinary Nigerians. TraderMoni is one of such schemes conceived in 2016 under the Social Investment Programme of this administration.

    “Being a former president, Chief Obasanjo ordinarily should appreciate the impact of such far-reaching social investment schemes, which has provided what is now the largest social safety net for millions of Nigerians and is unprecedented in the nation’s history.

    “Again, the former president’s attack on TraderMoni and the person of the Vice President is an indicator that he may be wittingly or unwittingly playing to the sinister script of the opposition party to spread falsehood and attack the social investment programmes of the Buhari administration, which champions such impactful schemes, and which is now attracting the praise and commendation of Nigerians everywhere.

    “It is pertinent to state that the false allegations against TraderMoni raised again by the former president, is sadly a rehash of baseless claims previously made by leading chieftains of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), whose record of profligacy, corruption and mismanagement clearly show it has no agenda to uplift the common man or improve the lives of Nigerians.

    ”Finally, attacks such as this on a scheme that benefits the masses of our people is a direct attack on the people and this kind of conduct does not reflect very well on a former president but is only self-denigrating and of no public value.

    “As is already now obvious, the generality of the Nigerian people will not only reject that attack but will also condemn its source. We, therefore, urge the former president to be far more circumspect and more public-spirited in his utterances going forward.”

     

  • NIS launches 10-year validity international passport, Buhari, Osinbajo receive theirs

    NIS launches 10-year validity international passport, Buhari, Osinbajo receive theirs

    The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) on Tuesday President Muhammadu Buhari and Vice Yemi Osinbajo with the new 10-year diplomatic passport.

    The passports were presented by the Minister of Interior, Abdulrahman Dambazau, and the Comptroller General of Nigeria Immigration Service, Mohammed Babandede.

    Officials of NIS had earlier captured the biometrics of the president and the vice president shortly before the commencement of an extraordinary meeting of the Federal Executive Council inside the council chamber of the presidential villa.

    Apart from the 10-year validity, the new passport, according to the NIS has enhanced security and is ”weather friendly”.

    The Immigration Service said the new passport has polycarbonate technology that eliminates damage and that it now saves Nigerians in diaspora the time needed to frequently visit Nigerian embassies for new passports.

    Last October, Babandede announced that Nigeria will begin using the new passport by December 2018.

    Speaking in an interview with Channels Television, he said “ten years after the enrollment of the e-passport system, we need to improve the security features”.

    “You can’t keep documents for 10 years without seeing decreased values in them, so we are improving the security features which would raise the standards of the passports,” he said.

  • Osinbajo, Akeredolu, Fayemi, others attend Fasehun’s burial in Ondo

    Osinbajo, Akeredolu, Fayemi, others attend Fasehun’s burial in Ondo

    The remains of the founder of the Oodua People’s Congress (OPC), Frederick Fasehun, were on Thursday laid to rest in his home town in Ondo City, Ondo State.

    Political personalities, activists, friends and well wishers were on hand to bid him farewell amid praises for his accomplishments while he was alive.

    Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, the State Governor, Rotimi Akeredolu; his Ekiti State counterpart, Kayode Fayemi, and former Governor Olusegun Mimiko were some of the eminent Nigerians who attended the burial programme held at the St Stephen’s Anglican Church, Ondo.

    In his sermon, the Arch-Bishop of Ondo Anglican Province, Gabriel Akinbiyi, said death is a necessary end for every human being.

    He advised the people to always do good, while they are alive.

    Osinbajo, in his eulogy, described the late OPC founder as a dogged fighter and a highly principled personality.

    He said Fasehun would be greatly remembered for his contributions to the development of Yoruba people and Nigeria at large.

    Akeredolu on his part, described the late Mr Fasehun as a unique and special leader.

    Faseun, a medical doctor and pro-democracy activist, was 83 years old. He died on December 1 after a brief illness.

     

  • PDP protests as APC mandates N-Power beneficiaries to attend ‘thank you rallies’ for Buhari, Osinbajo

    The Peoples Democratic Party in Plateau State has protested against the invitation of the beneficiaries of the N-Power programme to attend a campaign rally of the ruling All Progressives Congress in Jos on Friday.

    Our correspondent learnt that text messages were on Friday sent to the beneficiaries of the scheme, an idea initiated by the Federal Government to address youth unemployment, inviting them to attend a “thank-you rally” at the Rwang Pam Stadium.

    But the PDP State Campaign Council described the development as unacceptable as “there was never a time” the previous administrations subjected beneficiaries of empowerment programmes to “such ridiculous acts”.

    It stated, “It is no longer news that the ruling party has lost every chance of victory in the 2019 general elections; defeat is obvious and imminent at all levels.

    “Knowing full well that it has been rejected and facing total disgrace, it has deployed ways to cunningly attract innocent Nigerians to participate in its powerless campaign activities.

    “This can be seen in its design to tie the N-Power to the APC and to unwittingly turn innocent beneficiaries into campaign agents. N-Power, just like the SURE-P, YOU-Win and GIS of the previous administration, should be a form of empowerment geared towards reducing unemployment and building the capacities of the beneficiaries, not being funds paid to them in return for participating in APC campaign activities in Jos.

    “This is totally unacceptable and should be rejected by all well-meaning Nigerians because it defeats the purpose of the programme.”

    However, an APC Youth Leader, Alex Pam, denied that the invitation had a political undertone.

    Pam said, “These (N-Power beneficiaries) are people who have been empowered by the Federal Government and Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, who is directly involved in the scheme.

    “So, there is nothing wrong for them to come and identify with their principal. We have non-APC members who were also beneficiaries of the scheme. So, there is nothing political about it.”