The 7th Osun State House of Assembly led by Speaker Timothy Owoeye of the All Progressives Congress(APC) is ending abruptly as Governor Ademola Adeleke announces proclamation of the 8th Assembly.

The 8th Assembly will not be led by the APC because the party performed abysmally in the last state assembly elections which resulted in its candidates losing all the seats to members of the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) except for the Boripe/Boluwaduro State Constituency seat retained by the APC.

Following APC’s loss of power in the state in 2022, a crisis rocked the 7th assembly over a Christmas largess that almost resulted in the impeachment of Owoeye by lawmakers before it was settled.

The last sitting of the house was held last week as the lawmakers held a brief meeting to end their tenure without any celebration.

Governor Adeleke signed and sent a letter to the Clerk of the house dissolving the 7th Assembly while a proclamation order on the 8th Assembly was equally signed by the governor on Friday.

The governor invoked Section 105, sub-section 3 of the Nigerian constitution in announcing the dissolution of the 7th Osun State Assembly and issuing proclamation for the 8th Assembly.

Adeleke’s letter titled, ‘DISSOLUTION OF THE 7TH ASSEMBLY OF OSUN STATE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY, reads as follows: “Whereas it is provided in Section 105 Subsection 1 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, as amended, that a House of Assembly shall stand dissolved at the expiration of a period of four years commencing from the date of the first sitting of the House.

“Now, therefore, I, Senator Ademola Jackson Nurudeen Adeleke, the Governor of Osun State of Nigeria, in exercise of powers bestowed upon me by Section 105 Subsection 3 aforesaid, and of all powers enabling me in that behalf, hereby proclaim that the seventh (7th) Assembly of Osun State House of Assembly is hereby dissolved with immediate effect.

“Given under my hand and the public seal of Osun State of Nigeria at Osogbo, this Friday, 2nd Day of June, 2023”.

Subsequently, the proclamation order as contained in letter titled, “PROCLAMATION FOR THE HOLDING OF THE FIRST SESSION OF THE 8TH ASSEMBLY OF OSUN STATE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY” read, “I write to convey my proclamation for the holding of the 8th Assembly and it reads as follows:

“Whereas it is provided in Section 105 Subsection 3 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, as amended, that the person elected as Governor of a State shall have powers to issue a Proclamation for the holding of the First Session of the House of Assembly of the State concerned immediately after his being sworn in.

“Now, therefore, I, Senator Ademola Jackson Nurudeen Adeleke, the Governor of Osun State of Nigeria, in exercise of powers bestowed upon me by Section 105 Subsection 3 aforesaid, and of all powers enabling me in that behalf, hereby proclaim that the First Session of the Eighth (8th) Assembly of Osun State House of Assembly shall hold on Tuesday, 6th June, 2019 at 10am in Osun State House of Assembly.

“Given under my hand and the public seal of Osun State of Nigeria at Osogbo, this Friday, 2nd Day of June, 2023”.

…Orders Imo SUBEB to refund N482m paid illegally to unqualified contractors

THE Senate has indicted the Office of Accountant General of the Federation over its refusal to repay short term loans given to Ministries, Departments and Agencies, MDAs, from special funds accounts totaling N910 billion.

It uncovered this after investigation by the Senate Committee on Public Accounts, led by Senator Matthew Urhoghide, Edo South, following the submission of 2017 Auditor General’s report.

According to the query, the loans and debts arose from Special Funds Accounts totaling N910,039,557,742 and showed that the balance remained unpaid throughout the year, though they were designed to be short term.

In its response, the Office of the Accountant General claimed that several letters were written to the then Minister of Finance to authorize the settlement of the loans granted against allocations of various MDAs.

The AGF office further said it had requested the minister to include the loans repayment in 2017 budget.

Urhoghide’ committee observed that there was continous abuse of the special funds by the executive as the withdrawals were continually made for political expediency outside the purpose for which the funds were meant .

The report read: “ There is continous abuse of the special funds by executive as the withdrawals are continually made for political expediency outside the purpose for which the funds were meant.”

The Senate, therefore, ordered that all outstanding loans be recovered by the Accountant General of the Federation and evidence of recovery presented to the Auditor General and Senate Public Accounts Committee within 60 days .

Meanwhile, the Senate, after considering the report, directed the Executive Chairman of Imo State Universal Basic Education Board, SUBEB, to account for money paid to companies not financially capable, contrary to requirement of extant rules.

The chairman of the board failed to appear before the committee to defend the allegation of payment without due process.

The National Industrial Court sitting in Kano state has ordered the state government to reinstate sacked Chairman of the state Public Complaints and Anti-Corruption Commission, Muhuyi Magaji Rimingado with immediate effect.

The court presided over by Justice Ebeye David Eseimo ruled that the removal of Rimingado from office as the state anti-corruption boss was “illegal, null and void.”

Rimingado was appointed the state anti-corruption commission’s head by the Abdullahi Ganduje administration which later sacked him over corruption allegations and illegal appointments of some of his staff.

Seeking redress, the sacked chairman dragged Kano State Government, the House of Assembly and Attorney General of the State to court challenging the legitimacy of his removal from office.

The court presided over by Justice Ebeye David Eseimo granted his three prayers against the defendants.

The judge ruled that the second defendant has no right to recommend the dismissal of the plaintiff without first hearing from the claimant.

The Ondo State Deputy Governor, Mr Lucky Aiyedatiwa, has denied the allegation that he was fond of beating up his wife, Mrs Oluwaseun.

A group, under the auspices of the Society for Women Empowerment, alleged that Ayedatiwa had physically assaulted his wife twice in four months which, according to it, was against the ethics of his office.

However, the deputy governor in a statement issued through his media aide, Mr Kenneth Odusola, said he had never raised his hand to his wife since they got married.

Aiyedatiwa, who described the women’s group as faceless, said the media report that he engaged in domestic abuse and assault on his wife was baseless and false.

The statement read,” The said allegation of domestic abuse is a figment of the imagination of those behind it and their ungodly intentions to cause a crisis in the state had been known for weeks and therefore such falsehood did not come as a surprise.

“While His Excellency reserves the right to privacy on issues pertaining to his family, it is pertinent to state clearly that there has never been any domestic violence between the Deputy Governor and his lovely wife, Mrs. Oluwaseun Aiyedatiwa, who at the moment is outside the shores of the country.

“It is not a secret that Mrs. Oluwaseun Aiyedatiwa has lived and worked in the United Kingdom for many years before her husband became an elected public official in Nigeria and since then she has been shuttling between the United Kingdom and Nigeria to take care of the home and the children who are also in the United Kingdom.

“Therefore, any report of alleged domestic issues within the family should be taken as the handiwork of the enemies of the state who are bent on causing a crisis where there is none and we therefore warn those spreading such falsehood to desist or face the consequences.”

Yesterday, the Federal Government had a meeting with the Trade Union Congress(TUC) on the fuel subsidy removal. Mr Dele Alake, Spokesperson to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu spoke on the outcome of the meeting.

What is your reaction to the meeting between the FG and TUC?

Well, as you all know, we had this reconvened meeting today as we promised you few days ago when we had the initial meeting with the Labour movement.

We said we were going to reconvene today to keep the engagement on in order to diffuse the tension in the land as a result of the withdrawal of subsidy, which is a reality.

Now, we are very happy to announce to Nigerians that this engagement has been very productive. The TUC that attended today’s meeting presented a list of demands and those demands we have studied and we are going to present to Mr President, for his consideration. But those demands we can announce to Nigerians that a lot of the items on the list, are not impracticable. What we need to do is to study the numbers very well. Then, we have asked the TUC to also give us a leeway to consult very exhaustively and reconvene on Tuesday to actually look at the numbers, viability, practicability of all the items that have been presented to us.

Now, most important and top priority on the list which the government is also looking at very seriously and the president has announced before, is the issue of the minimum wage which the Labour movement has demanded is the consequential impact of this removal of subsidy.

So, Mr President is most likely going to constitute a tripartite committee, that is a committee of Federal Government, including the state and then the organised Labour and the private sector.

Now, this is a tripartite arrangement, it will be a committee that will study all the dynamics of a wage increase in percentages, the numbers and the categories that will be affected.

So, by Tuesday when we come back to reconvene, to meet with the TUC again, we should have very concrete items to present to the world. But the most important thing for today is that we are making appreciable progress with the Labour.

What are the other demands beyond the minimum wage?

It is a list but we are not going to be listing all of them now. The most important is the minimum wage, that is increase of minimum wage. Because, when this thing is removed, the argument of Labour is that there is an immediate impact on the workers, on the purchasing power because price of fuel has gone up. So, that will necessarily reduce the purchasing power of the average worker. So, the next thing of immediate consequence is to increase the purchasing power of the worker. So that to me and to all of us on this side is the top most priority on the list. There are other things like the tax holidays which some categories of workers will be beneficiaries. But the most important is the minimum wage.

Are you negotiating separately with NLC?

No we are not but we are making efforts to reach NLC. We all agreed that we are going to meet here but again, in this game there are dynamics, sometime they could be meeting with their own executive and not able to meet with us, or they could want to postpone or they have not actually articulated their list of demands as the TUC. But we cannot second guess why they are not here. But efforts are being made to reach them, we are not isolating them at all.

How soon will the committee be set up?

Very very soon. We are going to meet Mr President now and we are going to give him a feedback on this and he is going to take an immediate decision. And like I said, Mr President himself, you all reported him, he has said that there will be a review of the minimum wage, you reported it.

So, we are not in disagreement with labour at all on that on that particular issue.

One of the President’s spokesman, Bayo Onanuga accused the NLC of pandering to the wishes of Peter Obi, did that come up in the discussion?

No not at all. It has no relevance to the discussion on the concrete terms of the welfare of the workers. Our discussion was majorly on the welfare of workers, how to cushion the impact of this subsidy removal on workers; that’s all. Not on any political partisanship.

Who is leading the government team in this negotiation?

Of course you can see all of us here, you can see the GCEO of NNPC, you can see some of us who have been mandated by the president. And don’t forget that a presidential system of government is executive in capacity. The president can appoint anybody, he can even appoint consultants to act on his behalf, so there is no issue about that. It is not actually germane.

Were you able to convince them to shelve the strike?

Of course we discussed that, and that is why we are still going to reconvene on Tuesday and that is appreciable progress.

Earlier Labour said you must revert to status quo, did you attempt to touch on that?
Of course we did. We touched on that, everybody looked at the practicability of that, the viability and otherwise. Now, the issue is that we will close all of those ones on Tuesday when we reconvene. Concrete decisions will be taken about that and then we will reach logical conclusions.

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) is winding down crude oil swap contracts with traders and will pay cash for petrol imports as private companies could begin importing petrol as soon as this month, according to a Reuters report.

This means that NNPC is in the process of ending crude swap contracts with traders. Instead of exchanging crude oil for refined petroleum products, the state-oil company will now make cash payments for petrol imports.

The move is part of President Bola Tinubu’s plans to deregulate the petrol market and reduce the burden on government finances, the statement said.

President Bola Tinubu on Monday during his inauguration announced that “subsidy is gone” sending the market into a tailspin as those who had the products quickly shut their pumps and long queues emerged across the nation.

NNPC has been importing petrol from consortiums of foreign and local trading firms and repaying them with crude oil via what is known as Direct Sale Direct Purchase (DSDP) contracts since 2016 because it does not have enough cash to pay for the purchases, the statement said.

“In the last four months, we practically terminated all DSDP contracts. And we now have an arm’s-length process where we can pay cash for the imports,” Mele Kyari, group chief executive officer, NNPC told Reuters in an interview late on Saturday.

“This is the first time NNPC has said it is terminating crude swap contracts. By importing less gasoline as private companies import the bulk, NNPC will be able to pay for its purchases in cash.”

Nigeria is Africa’s biggest crude producer but imports most of its refined products after running down its refineries. Nigeria’s petrol import bill hit N5.2 trillion in 2022, the highest in six years, as the quest by the country to wean itself off imported fuel drags.

A significant drop in oil production last year coupled with high global fuel prices due to the war in Ukraine pushed NNPC’s debt to traders higher. It owed the consortiums about $2 billion, a September 2022 NNPC report to the Federation Account Allocation Committee shows, the statement said.

“An industry source with direct knowledge of the matter said NNPC was still allocating crude for fuel swaps for July loading, though less than in previous months. In its report detailing March crude oil loadings, NNPC also allocated crude to the swap contracts held by the consortiums,” Reuters said.

Kyari told Reuters that NNPC’s monopoly on petrol supplies was ending and private firms could start importing as early as this month.

“Nigeria’s total crude and condensate output was at 1.56 million barrels a day (bpd) as of Friday. Nigeria has struggled to meet its Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) oil quota of 1.742 million bpd due to grand oil theft and illegal refining,” Kyari said.

That has raised doubts on whether Nigeria can meet supplies for the 650,000-bpd newly commissioned Dangote Refinery. NNPC has a contract to supply 300,000 bpd to the refinery.

The Kano State Governor, Abba Yusuf, has announced the revocation of the sale of Hasiya Bayero Pediatric Hospital.

The hospital was allegedly sold during the administration of a former governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, to an All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain.

Governor Yusuf made this announcement during his visit to the hospital, reaffirming his commitment to enhancing healthcare services, particularly for women and children.

During his visit, Governor Yusuf expressed his concern for the well-being of the people, emphasizing the significance of accessible and quality healthcare.

He stated, “The health of our citizens, especially women, and children, is of utmost importance to my administration. We are determined to provide the necessary infrastructure and services to ensure their well-being.

“Revoking the sale of Hasiya Bayero Pediatric Hospital is a crucial step towards achieving our healthcare goals.”

Governor Yusuf further assured the public that his government would prioritize healthcare delivery, pledging to invest in improving medical facilities across the state.

He said, “We will not relent in our efforts to develop and upgrade healthcare infrastructure. Our aim is to provide comprehensive and efficient medical services, enabling every citizen to access the care they need.”

While the details of the revocation process are yet to be disclosed, the state government is expected to initiate an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the hospital’s sale.

Governor Yusuf emphasized the importance of transparency and accountability, stating, “We will conduct a thorough review to ensure that such incidents do not recur. It is crucial that public assets are protected and utilized for the benefit of the people.”

The Anambra State Government has unveiled electronic identity card for civil servants and other government employees to curb impersonation, ghost workers and other ills in the system.

The card was unveiled at the weekend by the Head of Service of Anambra State, Mrs Theodora Igwegbe, at the Jerome Udorji State Secretariat in Awka, the state capital.

While unveiling the identity card, Igwegbe said it would strengthen the identity management of workers in the state by enabling the government and citizens to easily identify civil servants and all other government employees.

She said: “This scheme can significantly enhance service delivery for Anambra State civil servants. By digitizing identification processes, civil servants can access government services more conveniently, reducing paperwork and minimizing the need for physical presence.

“This digital transformation empowers civil servants to engage in online training, access relevant resources, and collaborate remotely, thereby facilitating professional development and fostering knowledge-sharing within the civil service.

“Moreover, streamlined processes and faster turnaround times result in improved public service delivery, ultimately benefiting the citizens of Anambra State.

While explaining the processes involved in getting enrolled, the managing director of Anambra State ICT Agency, Fred Agbata whose office built the electronic identity card database said every civil servant is expected to enroll as not doing so may amount to excluding oneself from several benefits, including salaries.

“The card has a QR code, and all you need when you present it anywhere is for anyone who is in doubt to scan it using an Android device.

“Once done, the data of the said card holder will be revealed, even though only limited information will be revealed. This will curb identity theft, loss of revenue, ghost workers among others.

“Government is also providing free internet for all workers, and only civil servants that have requested and received their Anambra State government email will be able to access the WiFi.

“All civil servants will only be able to use the government email to transact government businesses and keep their personal email for personal use. Those are the innovations we are bringing,” Agbata said.

A private firm, Lamash Property Limited, which entered into a Public Private Partnership (PPP) with government of Kano State on the redevelopment of Daula Hotel, has demanded N10 billion compensation following the demolition of the property by Governor Abba Yusuf-led team on Saturday.

In the same vein, another firm White Nig Ltd that have a Public private partnership arrangement with the kano state government to develop the Hajj Camp in the state said there were taken aback by the primitive action of the confused government of Kano state.

The Managing Director of the organisation Hassan Yusuf Baba said.

“The most unfortunate thing is that we were not notified we only wake up to see on the social media that all structures were demolished this is a gross injustice which we will not fold our arms to see it happening in our state we have concluded all arrangements to go to court to seek redress.

In the same development, a developer Dan Asabe Abubakar whose building was pull down Saturday before the demolition of Daula Hotel and Hajj Camp who had developed the Race Course shopping complex that houses a gymnastic, medical laboratory among other vital sections laments how he expanded over N1:4billion on the project.

He frowned at the brazen manner the state government is going demolishing public properties without recourse to the Land d used Act.

Lamash Property Limited, in a statement titled ‘KANO GOVERNMENT DEMOLITION OF DAULA HOTEL: OUR STAND’, signed by its management on Sunday, said it would institute a legal action to claim the N10 billion-which is the amount already invested in the project and to stop the Kano government from further taking actions that will negatively affect its activities.

The firm, which expressed surprise that the new Kano government could go as far as to demolish a multi-billion naira hotel owned by it under any guise, said the project was initiated under the administration of the then governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, through PPP, to create jobs for the people and generate revenue for the state.

Lamash Property Limited further said the move by the Abba Yusuf-led government will send negative signals to investors, adding that it never claimed ownership of the land that Daula hotel was located.

The statement obtained made available to newsmen read in full : “Lamash Properties Limited is a property development company that was invited by Kano State government alongside other companies sometimes in the late 2020 to bid for the redevelopment of the old Daula Hotel under a Public Private Partnership (PPP).

We submitted a bid of three components:

1- Residential – to comprise 25 luxury apartments
2- Commercial Hub – Various sizes of lettable commercial space
3- Daula Boutique Hotel – A 90-room five star hotel

Our bid like every other bids submitted, went through all the processes including going before the State Executive Council after which we won the bid. We were issued the letter of award and we signed a PPP contract agreement with the Kano state government after which we began work on the project.

The value of the land being the equity contribution of the Kano State Government into the project plus the agreed profit share of the state government all in the sum of Two Billion Two Hundred and Ninety Seven Million Sixteen Thousand Six Hundred and Twenty Two Naira Eighty Nine Kobo (N2,297,016,622.89) only was converted into the Hotel and its ownership was given to the Kano State Government as its share into the project under the PPP arrangement.

On May 27, 2023, the immediate past governor of the state, Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje performed commissioning ceremony of the hotel and it was handed over to the state government as its share in the project.

To our utmost surprise, we received a call around 2am on Sunday June 4, 2023 that officials of the state government led by the new governor Abba Kabir Yusuf have mobilized to the site of the project with bulldozers and were tearing down all the buildings on the land including the already completed 90-room 5-star Daula Boutique Hotel, the 90% completed commercial area (malls) as well as the ongoing residential apartments.

It was to say the least a development most appalling that in this era of paucity of funds available to government and high rate of unemployment in the country, the state government under whatever guise, decided to demolish a property (the Daula Boutique Hotel) that belongs to it and was supposed to bring in huge revenue to the government and also help reduce unemployment in the state, among others.

We wish to put it on record that at no point did the state government or any of its officials notified us or invited us for clarification on the project and thus negating the globally acceptable principle of fair hearing.

We have made it clear on several occasions that we did not purchase the supposed land but that it was made available to us to provide facilities, one of which was the Daula Boutique Hotel which formed the equity of the state government in the project. This action of the state government is a minus and a negative development which will scare away other potential investors willing to invest in the state.

We have instructed our legal team to institute legal actions against the state government to claim compensation to the tune of N10billion already invested in the project and to stop the state government from further taking actions that will negatively affect us based on the PPP contract agreement we signed with it.

We appeal to the general public in Kano state and beyond to not only understand the nature of our business as against what is being erroneously portrayed but also to know that the action of the new state government on investors that invested hugely in the state under the previous administration is going to affect the perception of other potential investors coming to put their money into Kano state economy. It will also affect employment generation, wealth circulation and urban development of the state.

For us, we are resolute in seeking redress in the court of law and we are optimistic that justice would be served.”

The Police Service Commission (PSC) has said junior police lawyers would be placed in appropriate positions in the Nigeria Police Force (NPF).

The chairman of the Police Service Commission (PSC), Dr Solomon Arase, a former inspector-general of police, stated this in Abuja over the weekend, when he received in audience the leadership of the Unity Bar, (Nigerian Bar Association Abuja branch).

He promised to look into the status of qualified lawyers serving in the Nigeria Police Force and appearing in courts with the ranks of corporals, sergeants and inspectors.

He also said the cases of other junior police officers who acquired additional certificates in other disciplines while in service will also receive the attention of the commission.

Arase said it would give the officers the required self-confidence to perform better.

Chairman of the association, Barr. Afam Okeke, who led the delegation to the PSC chairman had complained that lawyers who came into the police as junior officers but improved their qualifications are currently appearing and defending cases in courts for the Nigeria Police Force but still wearing junior ranks.

The PSC chairman told the delegation that the commission may decide to send these categories of police lawyers and other junior police officers with additional qualifications on a short service training after which they would be properly placed as officers.

He said the Nigeria Police needs the services of more lawyers, stressing that the commission will come out with a decision that will leave all parties in a win-win situation.

Arase used the opportunity of the courtesy visit to call on the Nigerian Bar Association to advise practicing lawyers to stop criminalising civil matters.

He said, “ It is wrong and should be discouraged, civil matters should be treated as civil matters and arbitration should serve the parties and the society better.

“We should avoid wasting time in criminalising civil matters and sending them to the police when it can be better handled outside of the police.”

Arase called for a robust legal system in Nigeria that inspires the citizens to seek redress and justice.

He said offenders must be arrested and prosecuted to restore confidence in the system and informed his visitors that the commission is setting up a Compliance Monitoring Unit to ensure the Police Complaints Response Unit promptly attends to public complaints. This new unit, he said, will be directly under his supervision for effectiveness and efficiency.