Oyebanji Implores Newly Inaugurated Local Government Chairmen to Prioritize Local Content for Sustainable Development.

Oyebanji Implores Newly Inaugurated Local Government Chairmen to Prioritize Local Content for Sustainable Development. 

Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji, urged the 38 newly inaugurated Local Government Chairmen and their Vice to prioritize local content in their project executions. 

The call was made during the inauguration ceremony of Local Government Areas and Local Council Development Area Chairmen today.

Governor Oyebanji who was represented by the Deputy Governor, Chief Monisade Afuye, emphasized that while direct labour might be necessary in specific situations, it should be the exception rather than the norm. 

He highlighted the administration's commitment to equitable distribution of socioeconomic opportunities, advocating for engaging local contractors with a proven track record and providing training for local workers.

The Governor underscored the importance of government-business partnerships to foster economic growth, emphasizing that prioritizing local content not only creates jobs but also stimulates the local economy, leading to sustainable development and improved living standards for the people of Ekiti state.

Oyebanji expressed satisfaction that the government's commitment to local content in project execution demonstrates dedication to empowering local communities and building a prosperous future for all residents. 

The event was attended by dignitaries, including the Governor's wife, Dr. Olayemi Oyebanji, Members of the House of Representatives, the Speaker of the House of Assembly, members of the state executive council, the state House of Assembly, traditional rulers, the Director-General of the Bureau of Local Content, Hon. Lekan Ijidale, and chieftains of the All Progressives Congress (APC), among others.

Bill to establish 47 new universities scales second reading.

Bill to establish 47 new universities scales second reading.

A bill proposing the establishment of 47 new universities has successfully passed the second reading. This will make the number of federal-owned universities in Nigeria hit 99 in the coming months.

Concurrently, around 56 bills, aiming to establish Federal Medical Centres in various regions of the country, have also advanced through the second reading.

As of now, Nigeria has 52 federal universities, and certain states within the federation host more than one of these institutions.

The House is also considering various bills to establish about 32 Federal Colleges of Education, 11 Federal Colleges of Agriculture and five Federal Polytechnics in addition to the already existing institutions.

In addition to the 52 federal universities, there are 22 federal medical centres, 27 federal colleges of education and 40 polytechnics in Nigeria.

Some of the bills were either passed during the 9th Assembly but lacked the necessary concurrence at the Senate to proceed or were not signed by the President.

When established, some of the institutions will include Universities of Science and Technology, Agriculture, Aviation, Medicals, and Engineering, among others.

Findings revealed that the House is also considering various bills to establish Colleges of Vocational and Skill Acquisition, Cancer Research and Entrepreneurship.

A study of the House order paper listing the institutions and other bills under consideration revealed that Lagos State, for example, has requested the establishment of three new Federal Medical Centres in addition to the already existing one.

Recall that Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, in his address to House members on December 30, 2023, highlighted that the Green Chamber received and deliberated on 962 bills, 500 motions, and 153 petitions within a span of six months.

Five S’West States Amotekun Corps Hold Walk For Akeredolu.

Five S’West States Amotekun Corps Hold Walk For Akeredolu.

Operatives of the Western Nigeria Security Network, known as Amotekun, from Ekiti, Oyo, Osun, Ogun, and Ondo states organized a walk on Thursday in Akure to pay tribute to the late Ondo State governor, Arakunrin Rotimi Akeredolu.

Akeredolu’s successor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, joined Amotekun corps during the walk from the Cathedral area of Akure to the Governor’s Office.

The Global News had previously reported that Akeredolu passed away on December 27, 2023, following an extended struggle with prostate cancer. He was 67 years old.

In his capacity as the Chairman of the South-West Governors’ Forum, Akeredolu played a pivotal role in rallying his counterparts from the six South-West states to establish Amotekun, a regional security outfit. This initiative was a response to the increasing insecurity, specifically addressing attacks on farmers and kidnappings perpetrated by criminal elements.

Despite initial opposition from the Federal Government, spearheaded by then Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami (SAN), Akeredolu, who was also a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), guided his fellow South-West governors in successfully establishing Amotekun.

During the walk on Thursday, Aiyedatiwa said South-West governors would continue to work together to ensure the continuity of Amotekun.

He said, “I can assure you that Amotekun will be sustained because of its role in society; because the security of lives and property of the people of the South-West zone is very important to us; we will use whatever is in our possession to support and sustain it.”

He commended the Amotekun corps and commanders for honouring Akeredolu, “whose passage was a monumental loss to the state and Amotekun as a whole.”

Responding on behalf of his colleagues, the commander of the Ondo Amotekun, Adetunji Adeleye, said Akeredolu would continue to be remembered for his legacy.

Adeleye, who is the Chairman of the South West Amotekun Commanders, appreciated the officers and men of the corps for their unrelenting efforts.

“We have met all the governors and all of them have shown their solidarity with the people of Ondo State.

“All the corps commanders travelled all the way from their various states today; that’s the essence of the 5km walk we embarked on today.

“The good work he (Akeredolu) did, mainly in the security system in South-West, is worth mentioning.

“We all knew what the security situation was before the creation of Amotekun; that’s about three years ago, and we are a living testimony to the fact that security in the South-West has greatly improved.

“We are resolute to continue the good work that he (Akeredolu) started. That’s our own contribution to immortalising him as our great leader.

“Akeredolu was resolute and sincere at making sure that Amotekun corps became a reality,” he said.

Also, the Corps Commander from Oyo, retired Col. Olayinka Olayanju, pledged that the corps would continue to operate.

Port Harcourt refinery to complete test run this month – NNPCL.

Port Harcourt refinery to complete test run this month – NNPCL.

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Ltd has revealed that test-run at the Port Harcourt refinery will be completed before the end of January, in a major step towards resuming operations five years after the plant was shut.

“Testing will conclude shortly, ensuring the refinery’s efficient operation. That phase will be completed this month,” NNPC spokesperson Femi Soneye told Reuters on Thursday.

Soneye added that the test run was a major step towards resuming operations five years after the plant was shut.

The refinery, which is undergoing an upgrade, will begin by processing 60,000 barrels per day, and NNPC expects to operate at the full capacity of 210,000 barrels per day later this year.

The state-owned oil company announced in December the mechanical completion of rehabilitation work on the Area-5 Plant of the facility.

Port Harcourt is among Nigerian state-owned refineries that have been mothballed for years, but which the government is trying to revive to end the country’s reliance on imported refined product.

Tinubu congratulates Funke Akindele on historic box office record.

Tinubu congratulates Funke Akindele on historic box office record.

President Bola Tinubu has celebrated the creativity and sheer artistic talents driving Nigeria’s entertainment industry, following the success just recorded by ace Nigerian artist, Funke Akindele, with her movie, ‘A Tribe Called Judah’.

The movie, produced and co-directed by Akindele, was released in cinemas in Nigeria in mid-December last year, and after two weeks, it was reported to have grossed over N1 billion, becoming the highest-earning Nigerian movie ever.

In a statement issued by his special adviser on media and publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, President Tinubu celebrated the ingenuity, creativity, and immense artistic talents of Nigeria’s thriving entertainment industry.

Read Also: Funke Akindele breaks record as “A Tribe Called Judah” hits N1b at box office

According to the statement, the President congratulated Akindele on her record-setting film and commended the ace thespian for her contributions to the growth of the industry.

He extolled the excellence of the Nigerian creative industry, acknowledging its pivotal place as a medium, not only for artistic expression but also a source of enormous soft power and viable export.

Tinubu said: “The creative industry is one of the high-employment sectors, providing jobs for our able and talented youths. It is an industry that is crucial to my administration. I salute Nigerians for their enduring support and patronage of home-grown creative efforts. We will provide the conducive environment for the industry to thrive further.”

Biden kickstarts 2024 bid with speech targeting Trump.

Biden kickstarts 2024 bid with speech targeting Trump.

President Joe Biden will seek to fire up his 2024 campaign Friday with a major speech warning that democracy is at risk from Donald Trump, three years after the deadly January 6 US Capitol attack.

Either trailing or neck and neck with Trump in recent polls, the 81-year-old Democrat will frame his likely Republican rival as a threat to the nation in an address near the historic US independence war site of Valley Forge in Pennsylvania.

A looming winter storm forced the speech to be brought forward a day from Saturday, the third anniversary of the Capitol assault by a pro-Trump mob trying to overturn Biden’s 2020 election win.

The effort to boost Biden’s campaign by painting him as a defender of democracy will continue Monday when the president visits a South Carolina church where a white supremacist shot dead nine Black parishioners in 2015.

Campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez said Biden’s election pitch four years ago that he was leading a “battle for the soul of America” was more relevant than ever.

“The threat Donald Trump posed in 2020 to American democracy has only grown more dire in the years since,” she said in a statement.

– Symbolism –

Trump was impeached but acquitted over the January 6 riots, while the 77-year-old now faces a criminal trial on charges of trying to subvert the 2020 election.

The US states of Colorado and Maine have barred him from standing in presidential primaries on the grounds that he had engaged in “insurrection” over the Capitol events. Trump has challenged both rulings.

But January 6 has become increasingly polarized in US politics — a quarter of Americans believe that the FBI instigated the attack, a Washington Post-University of Maryland poll showed this week.

The venues for Biden’s first speeches of 2024 are deliberately symbolic — the first, at a school near Valley Forge, where George Washington, the first US president, regrouped American forces fighting their British colonial rulers during the bitter winter of 1777-8.

“We chose Valley Forge as George Washington united the colonies there,” said principal deputy campaign manager Quentin Fulks.

“Then he became president and set the precedent for the peaceful transition of power — something that Donald Trump and Republicans refused to do.”

The push at the start of 2024 comes after criticism from some Democrats that the Biden campaign has got off to a slow start.

Biden has failed to convince voters that the economy is improving despite favorable numbers, with Americans saying they are still suffering from high food and housing costs.

Migration across the Mexican border remains a major headache, while there is division in his party over his support for Israel’s war on Hamas, and Congress is blocking his bid for more funds for Ukraine.

Biden’s refusal to mention Trump’s multiple criminal cases, to avoid the appearance of influencing the judiciary, has also deprived him of one of his most potent weapons.

– ‘Horrific’ –

But perhaps Biden’s biggest vulnerability is his age: as America’s oldest-ever president, he has suffered a series of trips and verbal slips.

Biden lags behind Trump in some polls, and also has the worst approval rating of any modern president at this stage in his term of office.

“If the election were held tomorrow, President Biden would lose,” William Galston, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, told AFP.

Yet the Pennsylvania and South Carolina speeches show the Biden campaign will now portray the race as a straight choice between him and the twice-impeached former president.

The campaign is already treating Trump as the presumptive challenger despite the fact that the battle for the Republican nomination doesn’t even get underway until the Iowa caucuses on January 15.

Democrats are also targeting Trump on issues such as abortion access and health care.

Biden’s first TV ad of the year warns of an “extremist” threat to democracy, featuring images of the Capitol attack set to dramatic music.

“It was a sight that was horrific,” White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters on Thursday.

“The president is going to continue to speak about this and continue to be very vocal about this.”

AFP

INEC issues notice of bye-election to replace Gbajabiamila as Rep.

INEC issues notice of bye-election to replace Gbajabiamila as Rep.

The Independent National Electoral Commission in Lagos State said it has published the Surulere Federal Constituency I bye-election notice as required by law.

The INEC Public Affairs Officer in the state, Adenike Oriowo, on Friday, said the notice was pasted on Thursday at the commission’s headquarters in Sabo-Yaba for public viewing.

Oriowo said, “The notice has also been posted at the commission’s Surulere Local Government Area Office.

“Section 28 (3) of the Electoral Act 2022 provides that this should be done not later than 14 days before the election.”

She revealed further that INEC had commenced the implementation of activities and timetable for the elections, adding that the preparations were on top gear to ensure strict adherence to relevant laws and guidelines for the poll.

She, however, assured all that the commission will not fail to deliver a credible bye-election in the constituency.

INEC has fixed February 2024, for the conduct of re-run and by-elections in nine states, including Surulere Federal Constituency in Lagos State.

According to the timetable for the poll, the conduct of party primary elections including the resolution of disputes that may arise from the primary elections has been fixed to hold between January 5 and January 9.

The public campaigns by political parties will commence on January 18 and end on February 1.

The Surulere seat became vacant due to the resignation of the former occupant, Femi Gbajabiamila, who after winning, was appointed by President Bola Tinubu as his Chief of Staff.