TheNewsGuru

Tag: Scrap

  • ‘Interpretative error’, Akeredolu denies calling for scrapping of Nigerian senate

    ‘Interpretative error’, Akeredolu denies calling for scrapping of Nigerian senate

    Ondo Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu has denied calling for the scrapping of the Senate in the review of the 1999 constitution being undertaken by the National Assembly.

    Akeredolu was represented by his Deputy, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, at the House of Representatives public hearing on the review of the 1999 constitution.

    Akeredolu described the report quoting him as calling for the scrapping of the Senate as an “interpretative error.”

    The Ondo Governor, who spoke in statement by his Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Donald Ojogo, said he had, like many other well-meaning Nigerians, identified Nigeria’s Bicameral Legislature and its full-time status as plausibly reducible weights to cut cost.

    He said: “Succinctly, Governor Akeredolu’s view, which is the official position of the Ondo State Government is that, adoption of the Unicameral Legislature, and making it part-time would not only cut cost of governance but has the potentials of enhanced performance and altruistic services to Nigerians.

    “Therefore, ascribing or misinterpreting this proposal to isolatedly, depict a call for the scraping of the Nigerian Senate is erroneous. The call for a part-time Unicameral Federal Parliament remains and shall be pursued with all vigour.”

  • FG advocates for retention of NYSC amid proposed law to scrap scheme

    FG advocates for retention of NYSC amid proposed law to scrap scheme

    Nigeria’s youth and sports minister Sunday Dare Wednesday said the NYSC remains one of the country’s greatest tools for youth development.

    “The NYSC scheme remains one of the greatest tools for National development for our youth,” Dare tweeted on Wednesday.

    The minister’s statement came at a time when legislators at the House of Representatives are debating a bill to scrap the 48-year-old scheme created by former Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon in 1973.

    The bill on the discontinuation of the NYSC reached the second reading in the House of Representatives on Monday.

    Sponsored by the lawmaker representing Andoni-Opobo/Nkoro Federal Constituency of Rivers State Awaji-Inombek Abiante, in the explanatory memorandum of the proposal, the bill listed various reasons why the NYSC should be scrapped.

    It said the NYSC has led to the “incessant killing of innocent corps members in some parts of the country due to banditry, religious extremism, and ethnic violence; incessant kidnapping of innocent corps members across the country.

    The proposed law argued that “public and private agencies/departments are no longer recruiting able and qualified Nigerian youths, thus relying heavily on the availability of corps members who are not being well remunerated and get discarded with impunity at the end of their service year without any hope of being gainfully employed.

    “Due to insecurity across the country, the National Youth Service Corps management now gives considerations to posting corps members to their geopolitical zone, thus defeating one of the objectives of setting up the service corps, i.e. developing common ties among the Nigerian youths and promote national unity and integration.”

    Despite the security concerns raised as one of the major reasons to scrap the scheme, the youth minister, who spearheads the NYSC, said the scheme will remain.

    “The commitment of the government to sustaining the NYSC scheme remains,” Dare tweeted, noting that the “dynamic Reforms and Initiatives towards current realities are ongoing.”

    While details of the reforms hinted at by the minister are unknown, some Nigerian tertiary institution graduates observing the scheme have been victims of abduction, killing, and attack in the northeast region of Nigeria.

    In January 2021, the NYSC exempted corps members posted to Borno State from the annual camping exercise.

    “2020 Batch A Corps members serving in Borno State are exempted from the camp resumption,” NYSC said when it announced the exemption in a tweet.

    Although the NYSC did not state any reason for the exemption to corps members posted to the northeast state. But events in the northeast at the time suggest that it could be for security reasons.

    Between November and December 2020 alone, more than 50 persons have lost their lives in attacks by Boko Haram, bandits, and other insurgency groups in Borno State.

    About 43 rice farmers were killed by Boko Haram in Zabarmari, about 20 kilometers from Maiduguri towards the end of last year.

    The concerns regardless, Dare said, “Nigeria will stand with her youth.”

  • Reps consider scrapping NYSC as bill reaches second reading

    Reps consider scrapping NYSC as bill reaches second reading

    The House of Representatives is considering discontinuation of the National Youth Service Corps scheme.

    The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria Alteration Bill, 2020, which is seeking to repeal the NYSC Act, is billed for the second reading.

    The sponsor, Mr Awaji-Inombek Abiante, in the explanatory memorandum of the proposal, listed the various reasons why the NYSC should be scrapped.

    It read in part, “This bill seeks to repeal Section 315(5)(a) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, (as amended) on the following grounds:

    “Incessant killing of innocent corps members in some parts of the country due to banditry, religious extremism and ethnic violence; incessant kidnapping of innocent corps members across the country;

    “Public and private agencies/departments are no longer recruiting able and qualified Nigerian youths, thus relying heavily on the availability of corps members who are not being well remunerated and get discarded with impunity at the end of their service year without any hope of being gainfully employed;

    “Due to insecurity across the country, the National Youth Service Corps management now gives considerations to posting corps members to their geopolitical zone, thus defeating one of the objectives of setting up the service corps, i.e. developing common ties among the Nigerian youths and promote national unity and integration.”

    The military regime of General Yakubu Gowon had established the NYSC on May 22, 1973, under Decree No. 24 of 1973 as a way of reconciling and reintegrating Nigerians after the civil war between July 6, 1967 and January 15, 1970.

  • Senate President kicks against scrapping of FSARS

    Senate President kicks against scrapping of FSARS

    Senate President Ahmad Lawan on Wednesday kicked against scrapping of the Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad (FSARS).

    He made this known during a session at the Senate House as lawmakers deliberated a motion on the recent extrajudicial killings carried out by some agents of FSARS.

    Lawan said; “I think that this is the situation that should be properly investigated. Those involved in recent incident should be arrested and prosecuted.

    ”The law should take its due course. This is not acceptable. Nigerians need to know what happened to those who have killed Nigerians.

    ”There are good people and bad people in SARS. Scrapping of agencies when you have mistakes may not be the best position. Rule of law should be put in place.

    ”If you scrap SARS, you lose the chance of getting those doing well to continue to do well” Lawan added.

  • #ENDSARS: Why we can’t honour Nigerians’ demand to scrap SARS – Police

    #ENDSARS: Why we can’t honour Nigerians’ demand to scrap SARS – Police

    The Nigerian Police Force on Tuesday said the much-criticised Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) cannot be scrapped because it is needed to combat armed robberies and other violence crimes.

    Several Nigerians, including Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, have condemned the excesses and brutalities of the unit on social media.

    Many had called for its scrapping, saying it has caused more harm than good with #ENDSARS and #WarAgainstSARS trending for days.

    But Public Relations Officer, Force Headquarters, Nigeria Police, Abuja, Frank Mba, in a live Instagram chat with popular musician, Azeez Fashola popularly known as Naira Marley however assured more will be done to police the policemen to prevent violations of human rights.

    Marley, who was supposed to be part of a protest to call for scrapping of the unit in Lagos on Tuesday, called off the action.

    He said the cancelled protest was to get relevant authorities to listen to Nigerians and do something about SARS.

    Mba said the police under the leadership of the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, have been proactive and would not wait for a protest before taking the proper actions.

    Mba said the fundamental job of the police is to protect lives and property and they must respect the choice of people to appear how they like.

    “There is no law that says dreadlocks, tattoos and other personal choices of appearance are offenses. It is nonsense,” Mba said.

    He assured there will be proper policing of policemen going forward, stressing they must operate within the dictates of the law and established code of conduct.

    Mba said if a policeman is doing anything wrong, citizens should take pictures and videos of the situation and send it to them for appropriate action.

    He however urged that such photos or videos be taken in a manner that does not compromise the taker’s safety.

    He said it was not a crime to record a policeman but certain infrastructure and situations should not be recorded for security purposes.

    “But if a policeman is doing something wrong, you can take pictures and record videos and send them to us. But make sure you do so safely.

    “If you feel in your interactions with the police that they are beginning to cross the line, you can take pictures and videos as long as it is safe for you to do so. When you send them to us, we will definitely follow up the matter and see it to a logical conclusion,” he said.

    He also advised against going into arguments with armed security agents.

    Mba called on government agencies, well- meaning Nigerians, as well as companies among others to support the Nigerian Police.

    He described the ongoing conversation on the activities of SARS as work in progress.

    Naira Marley, who said he was not threatened by anyone to cancel the planned protests, called for reform of the police unit.

    The musician said: “We want this nonsense to end and we would do all we can to end it. We need to reform SARS.

    “We need to get them of the roads. All we really want is for SARS to be like SWAT in the United States. You only see them when the occasion demands it.

    “They should be off the roads. In Nigeria we see SARS everywhere. They should only come out when there is a robbery or other violent crime that need their attention.”

    The live Instagram chat attracted over 30, 000 participants, including well- known Nigerians.

  • PIB controversy: FG dismisses reports alleging scrapping of NNPC

    PIB controversy: FG dismisses reports alleging scrapping of NNPC

    The federal government has dismissed media reports that the new draft Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) sent to National Assembly has recommended scrapping of the NNPC.

    Minister of State for Petroleum, Timipre Sylva allayed the fears while fielding questions from journalists at the National Assembly after an interactive session with the leadership of the assembly.

    He, however, clarified that the new PIB draft sought to commercialise and not to scrap the NNPC.

    “We have heard so much noise about NNPC being scrapped but that is not being envisaged by the bill at all.

    “NNPC will not be scrapped but commercialised in line with deregulation move being made across all the streams in the sector comprising of upstream, downstream and midstream.

    “We have said that NNPC will be commercialised.

    “But if you are talking about transforming the industry, the only new thing that we are introducing is the development of the midstream, that is the pipeline sector.

    “So we have provided robustly for the growth of the midstream sector.

    “Through commercialisation, the required competitiveness in the sector, will be achieved,” he said.

    Sylva said that the host communities would also have the best deal from the bill.

    According to him, via the PIB, the industry will be transformed and the Petroluem Equalisation Fund (PEF)and the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) will not exist in the same form that they exist currently.

    “But I don’t want to go into the details of the bill until it is read on the floor of the Senate,” he said.

  • Reps urge NPC, BPE to suspend sale of Afam Power Plant as scrap

    Reps urge NPC, BPE to suspend sale of Afam Power Plant as scrap

    From Jonas Ike, Abuja

    The House of Representatives on Wednesday urged the National Council on Privatization NPC and the Bureau of Public Enterprises BPE to immediately suspend its ongoing sale of Afam Power Plc on a fast track transaction basis and allow for repair of of the national asset in phases to enhance its value.

    The House equally mandated its Committee on Privatization and Commercialization to invite the Director-General of BPE with a view to ascertaining the status of the project and report back to the chamber in 4 weeks.

    The lawmakers also resolved that the Federal Roads Management Agency FERMA do construct and rehabilitate roads leading to the power plant and the relevant government agencies to complete the repairs in phases 4

    and 5 of the plant to enhance its value.

    These were resolutions adopted after debating a motion on the subjectmatter sponsored by Hon. Ayodele Oladimeji (Ekiti, PDP) on the floor of the House.

    Oladimeji while debating the motion noted that the BPE has resumed the Privatization of Adam as a dilapidated asset or scrap on a fast-travk transaction of Adam Power Generation Company earlier suspended as the means to finance the 2018 budget.

    He further noted that Sapele Power Plc and Ugheli Power Plc were privatized by the BPE in 2013 in the same manner as the planned privatization of Afam Power Plant Plc and both are now in dire need of financial constraints with other generating companies (Gencos).

    He hinted that the Central Bank of Nigeria CBN disbursed N701 billion as payment assurance guarantee due to expire in December 2018 to the Gencos adding that despite that they are still facing serious liquidity crisis.

    He also expressed concerns saying that the sale of the Adam Power PLC as a dilapidated asset on a fast track basis will not yeild the disired result envisaged by the Federal Government in privatizing public enterprises as it would likely join the league of 37 non performing public enterprises.

    Speaking in support, Deputy Speaker Hon. Lasun Yusuff said that the previous privatization of public enterprises in Nigeria were done awkwardly by government agencies.

    The lawmaker said that the power sector is an important sector and indeed the commanding height of the economy that ought not to be controlled by private entities.

    Also in his contributions, Hon.Femi Gbajabiamila said that as a House, we must be careful in privatizing government agencies. He said that the nation must be wary of issues of distortion in the sale of public assets.

    Other lawmakers as Hon.Sergius Ogun (Edo, PDP) and Hon.Nkiruka Onyejeocha (Abia,APC) also supported the motion saying that the Afam power plant should not be sold without due process not to talk of outright sale as scrap.

    Consequently, the Speaker Hon. Yakubu Dogara threw the matter to a voice vote and it was voted for overwhelmingly.

    Dogara also mandated the House Committee on Privatization and Commercialization to ensure it properly investigates the matter and report back to the green chamber in 4 weeks for further legislative actions.