Following President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s request for a speedy passage of the 2024 budget, the National Assembly has laid out plans to meet the December 31 target for the passage and signing of the 2024 Appropriation Bill.
Naija News reports that Tinubu had urged the lawmakers to give it speedy passage to ensure the continuation of the January to December financial cycle.
To continue the cycle, NASS has summoned ministers, heads of departments and agencies, security chiefs, and chief executive officers of institutions to which funding is appropriated for a parley tomorrow.
Speaking to The Nation, Chairman of the Senate Appropriation, Solomon Olamilekan Adeola, said a no-nonsense approach will be adopted to pass the N27.6 trillion Budget of Renewed Hope.
The Senate committee chairman warned that heads of ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) who fail to defend their votes would run on zero allocation next year.
He said: “We are sitting as a joint committee (Senate and House of Representatives), and what this means is that only one report will come from the Appropriation Committee.
“Unlike in the past when we had to sit together for harmonisation and concurrence, what we will have from the joint committees is the harmonised report. This will save considerable time.
“What we don’t expect from the Executive is the introduction of a new item that had not been accommodated in the budget that is already with us for consideration.
“The strategies we have adopted will make the deadline achievable.
“President Tinubu himself is aware of the exigency of time, and he has warned his ministers and heads of MDAs to cooperate with us.
“We believe that nobody from the executive arm of government will flout the directive on this.
“If any agency fails to defend its vote, nothing will be appropriated for such agency for next year.
“We need maximum cooperation from the heads of the MDAs to achieve the set target.
“Any minister who fails to honour our invitation will operate on zero allocation next year.
“So, we are putting a lot of sacrifice into the task to deliver the budget on schedule. This is the only way to sustain the January – December budget cycle.”
A one-day retreat will be held tomorrow with members of the Senate standing committees and their House of Representatives counterparts expected to attend.
“They are going to have something like a retreat on Tuesday, to be attended by all Senate and House of Representatives committee chairmen and all heads of MDAs.
“The planned retreat by the Senate Committee on Appropriations will enable an interaction on the quick passage of the budget before the National Assembly goes on recess for the Yuletide,” a source said.
On the invitation list are chief executives and heads of MDAs; Service chiefs (Army, Navy, and Air Force); Inspector-General of Police (IGP); Commandant-General of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC); and Comptrollers-General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS).
Others are royal fathers, heads of Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs), and Community Development Associations (CDAs).
[[NaijaNews]
An analyst on the Channels TV Sunday Politics Show, Jideofor Adibe, who is a Professor of Political Science has knocked the Presidency over its “bloated” number of delegates at the COP28 Climate Summit in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Adibe said that 1411 Nigerian delegates that accompanied President Tinubu to the ongoing Climate Summit in Dubai cast doubt on the Federal Government’s ‘compassion’ for the suffering masses.
The professor said that going with over a thousand delegates to the summit was a clear depiction of the high cost of governance that the President has repeatedly vowed to cut down.
He said, “Amid the binge on loans and borrowings, and the increasing hardship and increasing emigration of Nigerians, these things happening, is not just that it raises the question about fidelity to cutting down the cost of governance, but also the question of whether there is even compassion for suffering Nigerians because if there is compassion for what is going on in the country at the moment, people (government officials) should also be sensitive to the optics about the whole thing.”
Adibe asserted that the government funded the transportation of the delegates from Nigeria to Dubai.
Also, the analyst said that the government will pay daily “Estacodes of about $900” for the delegates, as well as hotel costs for them for about two weeks of the summit.
According to the professor, delegates that ought to accompany the President should be experts on specific roles and no more than three ministers should accompany the president to international events such as the COP 28 Climate Summit in Dubai.
Adibe urged President Tinubu to walk the talk of cutting down the cost of government by sanctioning officials responsible for the large delegation in Dubai.
Meanwhile, data from Statisense has revealed that Nigeria’s GDP ranks lower than 12 countries with fewer COP28 delegates.
Nigeria sent 1,411 delegates to COP28 while maintaining a $477.37 billion gross domestic product (GDP). Indonesia follows closely with 1,229 delegates, marking a substantial $1.32 trillion in economic size.
Japan took 1,067 delegates boasting a significant $4.24 trillion in economic strength. Turkey has 1,045 delegates, representing an economic volume of $905.84 billion.
India follows with 948 delegates, showcasing an impressive economic worth of $3.39 trillion. France with 800 delegates has a robust $2.78 trillion in economic value.
The USA has 770 delegates with an immense economic scale of $25.46 trillion. Canada with 742, has a $2.14 trillion economy.
Israel has 718 delegates but possesses a considerable economic volume of $525 billion. The UK, with 697 delegates, exhibits a substantial economic scale of $3.08 trillion. South Korea follows closely with 689 delegates, and showcases an economic value of $1.67 trillion.
Russia secured 590 delegates, showcasing a significant economic worth of $2.24 trillion. Meanwhile, Italy has 533 delegates boasting an economic scale of $2.01 trillion.
According to Carbon Brief, this year’s COP28 climate summit in the UAE has the highest number of registered delegates ever. Over 97,000 people have badges to attend the conference in Dubai, which is almost twice as many as last year’s COP27 in Egypt.
[NationalDaily]
Despite agitations by both serving and retired officers of the Nigeria Police Force to exit the current Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, has rejected the move, saying it is not in the best interest of the force.
Daily Trust reports that a bill to set up the Police Pension Board to administer pensions for the force, which will see the police exit the contributory scheme was passed in the last National Assembly.
Actuarial evaluations, according to experts, indicate that it would cost the federal government an additional N2 trillion in pension liabilities for the 300,000 police personnel.
The bill, tagged “A Bill for an Act to Establish Police Pension Board to handle pension matters for personnel of the Force and Connected purposes, 2022 (SB,1009),” sponsored by Senator Elisha Abbo, was first read on the floor of the Senate on June 14, 2022.
The bill excludes the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) from the CPS and returns the force to the old Defined Benefit Scheme (DBS) which the pension board will now oversee just like what is obtainable with the military.
Leading the debate on the bill, Abbo who has been sacked by the Court of Appeal and is now out of the National Assembly, noted that the current pension arrangement of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), was under the Pension Commission by virtue of Section 5(1) of the Pension Reform Act 2014.
According to him, the Nigeria Police, though a premier law enforcement and security agency, is left on the CPS, unlike the Army, Navy, Air Force and other security agencies that had their pension boards.
Consequently, the Senate in June this year passed the Bill for the Establishment of a Police Pension Board, even though experts had warned that the government’s pension liabilities would increase by N2 trillion if the bill gets presidential assent
However, the Bill did not see the light of the day as former President Muhammadu Buhari declined assent to it.
It was however learnt that many retired and serving officers, especially those of the rank and file, are still calling for its reintroduction in the 10th Senate.
We’ll go back to square one – IGP
Addressing officers at the Kwara State command in Ilorin recently, Egbetokun said the officers advocating to exit the contributory pension scheme were being misled and had not read the bill.
He said: “The officers who raised the issue of pension said that we should exit the present contributory pension scheme. Yes, it is true that a bill has been passed by the National Assembly to exit the current pension scheme and awaiting presidential assent but have any of you seen the content of the bill? Have you seen the details of that bill?
“Everybody is shouting let us pull out! let us go! Where are you going? You must know where you’re going before you start shouting. When I became IG, I set up a committee to look at the pension issues and I discovered that the bill does not favour us. If we leave the Contributory Pension Scheme, we are going back to square one and our pensions will be in the hands of politicians.
“It also means that our pension will be subject to budgetary allocations every year when the government does not have money, you will not be paid,” the police chief said.
He reminded officers that exiting the scheme would return them to the days of queuing for months without their pensions being paid.
He however assured that he has spoken to President Tinubu on how to improve the current contributory scheme for officers, adding that he his “working on a pension scheme where officers can retire with their salaries paid as pension.”
Operators react
Speaking to Daily Trust on the development, the Chief Executive Officer of the Pension Fund Operators Association of Nigeria (PenOp), Oguche Agudah, said the position of the IGP has been the association’s stand from the day the exit agitations started.
“The position of the IG is what we have stated all along. Our overall aim is to ensure that Nigerian workers get their pension payments as and when due.
“Those on the defined benefit schemes in the states and even the military are not having it rosy. What you see from those schemes is that retirees have to wait for months, perhaps even years for them to have their pension paid because of budgetary constraints.
“Under the contributory pension scheme, your pension payment is not tied to anyone, but to what you have in your retirement savings account. This promotes dignity and flexibility and enables you to plan ahead,” he explained.
[DailyTrust]
Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag reportedly wants the Red Devils to sign Brazilian youngster Estevao Willian, who is also on the radar of Real Madrid, Chelsea and Barcelona.
According to a report by Fichajes, Man United are also keen to sign the 16-year-old winger, who currently plays for Palmeiras.
Man United’s recent additions to the wings, Antony and Jadon Sancho, have failed to leave an impact on the Premier League club.
However, Ten Hag’s side will also have to compete with the likes of Real Madrid, Chelsea and Barcelona for Willian’s signature.
Willian scored three goals and provided the same number of assists in five appearances in the 2023 FIFA U-17 World Cup before Selecao were eliminated by Argentina in the quarterfinals on November 24.
[DailyPost]
Ten directors heading different departments at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) have officially retired from service.
This came after they attained the mandatory 60 years of age or 35 years of service.
The retirees are: Mrs. Blessing Obidiegwu (Gender and Inclusivity); Anthony Abarowei (Finance and Accounts); Micah Lakumna (Administration); Alhaji Idris Aminu (Election and Party Monitoring); Olayiwola Oyeniyi (Finance and Accounts); and Chima Duruaku (Planning and Monitoring).
Others are: Mr. Leonard Lortsor (Estate, Works and Transport); Ayodele Aluko (Voter Education and Publicity); Samson Lebari (Security); and Mrs. Oluwatoyin Babalola (Legal Services and Drafting).
Speaking at the send forth for the directors yesterday in Abuja, INEC National Commissioner, Prof. Mohammed Adams, congratulated the retirement for serving the commission well.
“As you retire, you shouldn’t at any time worry yourself about the past but the future.
“Don’t think this is the end of the road. This is actually the beginning of another journey of your lives because you are all professionals in your respective fields,” Adams said.
The INEC national commissioner urged the retirees to engage in meaningful activities that would yield good income for them.
He also advised people in active service not to be scared of retirement but to create a niche for themselves in whatever capacity they found themselves.
“We should be happy with whatever position you find yourself; be grateful to God and create a niche for yourself,” he said.
The INEC Secretary, Mrs. Rose Oriaran-Anthony, hailed the retired directors for their hard work and dedication to service.
Oriaran-Anthony, who was represented by the Director of INEC Secretariat, Mrs. Maryam Musa, congratulated them and whished them well in their future endeavours.
The INEC Director of Training, Dr. Binta Kasim, encouraged the retirees to engage in whatever they derived pleasure from.
“We have a lot of people who have who still made a lot of achievements after retirement including the owner KFC, some others wrote books that fetched them good money,” Kasim said.
Speaking on behalf of the retirees, Mrs. Blessing Obidiegwu said they represented the last batch of INEC pioneer staff.
The retired director expressed appreciation to the commission for the opportunity given to her and the others to serve the nation.
She advised those in active service to continue to render their best for the commission, saying the gender policy of the commission should be sustained.
“I am very happy that the gender struggle I started is moving on. With the number of women I am seeing here as directors the commission is doing well,” Mrs. Obidewu said.
Another retiree, Mr. Chima Duruaku, praised INEC for the opportunity given to them to make modest contribution to its development and the electoral process.
He also appreciated the recognition from the commission.
[TheNation]
A retired fighter who knows what it takes to become a three-time world champion doubts whether Anthony Joshua has the ability to repeat his feat.
Joshua is about to fight for the third time in a year for the first time since 2016. The contest is out in Saudi Arabia on December 23 against Swede Otto Wallin and, following wins over Jermaine Franklin and Robert Helenius already, represents AJ’s toughest fight of the year.
Southpaw Wallin pushed Tyson Fury hard and inflicted a huge cut above his eye in their 2019 contest and has since had solid wins over the likes of Murat Gassier and Dominic Breazeale.
Should two-time world champion Joshua come through that test, many are hoping that all roads will then lead to a fight with Deontay Wilder in 2024. A former champion himself, Wilder fights on the same bill against Joseph Parker.
One man who has already secured his legacy by becoming a three-weight world champion is James Toney, who held multiple world championships including the middleweight, super middleweight and cruiserweight titles.
Speaking to ESNEWS, Toney was asked who would win should Joshua and Wilder come to blows.
“Wilder because right now, Joshua, he’s totally shot man. Joshua showed his true stature.”
Toney is likely subscribing to the theory that the Brit’s mindset has change since his loss to Andy Ruiz Jr in 2019, with many fans saying he is now a tentative fighter. The man himself disagrees, claiming he is just a better, smarter boxer.
Should he and Wilder win this month in Riyadh, the a match-up with the hard-hitting American will be the ultimate test of ‘AJ’s fortitude.
[Punch]
Criticisims yesterday, greeted the high number of delegates Nigeria sent to the ongoing Conference of the Parties, COP28 climate summit in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, UAE, at a time of austerity that the Federal Government was urging the citizenry to make more sacrifices.
Nigeria accounts for 0.319 per cent of global carbon dioxide emissions but her 1,411-delegation is joint third largest with China, after the host nation-UAE with 4,409; and Brazil, 3,081, followed by Indonesia 1,229; Japan 1,067 and Turkey 1,045.
The highest global carbon dioxide emission countries are China (32.88 per cent); United States of America (12.6 per cent); EU 27 (7.28 per cent); India (6.99 per cent); Russia (4.99 per cent); Japan (2.81 per cent); Iran (1.782 per cent), Indonesia (1.797 per cent); Germany (1.75 percent); Canada (1.51 per cent) and Brazil (1.21 per cent).
The official delegations of some top countries to COP28 are USA 159; Canada 187; Japan 255; India 725; United Kingdom 75; and European Union 124.
Recall that Africa accounts for only 4 per cent of global carbon emissions, despite being the continent that will suffer most from climate change.
However, the Federal Government, yesterday, said it was not footing the bills of the 1,411 delegates as COP-28 records put Nigeria’s official figure at 590 and the other 821 as “overflow” participants.
Picking holes in the number of delegates Nigeria sent to the summit, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, demanded roll call and cost incurred by Federal Government delegates, and also urged the National Assembly to probe the incident.
In like manner, the Labour Party, LP, and its 2023 Presidential Candidate, Mr. Peter Obi described the action as wasteful noting that it was sad that the Federal Government which ought to be cutting the cost of governance was being wasteful.
It should also be noted that speaking on global warning at the Arewa Joint Committee’s forum in Kaduna during the presidential campaign period, President Bola Tinubu had said: “It’s a question of how do you prevent a church rat from eating poisoned holy communion.
“We need to open our eyes. We need to tell the West, if they don’t guarantee our finances and work with us to stop this, we are not going to comply with their climate change. They will do it.
“For Nigeria, climate change is not about the perils of tomorrow, but what is happening today.”
FG not funding all COP28 delegates, says Presidency
However, the Presidency clarified yesterday that only a handful of the 1,411 Nigerian delegates, who registered to attend the COP-28 Climate Summit in Dubai are sponsored by the Federal Government.
It said a bulk of the contingents comprised private sector players such as business people, Civil Society Organisations and delegates from Nigeria’s oil-producing Niger-Delta region.
But Vanguard learned the Federal Government sponsored 589 of the delegates to the summit.
It also argued that the delegates are at the Summit to promote their respective causes and not for a jamboree.
“It is important to state here that delegates from all countries, whether from government, private sector, media and civil society groups, attend COP summits and conferences as parties and the number of attendees are registered against their countries of origin. This does not mean they are sponsored or funded by the government,” a statement signed by President Bola Tinubu’s Senior Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Temitope Ajayi, read.
The response follows social media uproar over the significant presence of Nigerian delegates at the ongoing United Nations Climate Conference (COP28) in Dubai.
While noting that the large contingent from Nigeria is not solely government-funded, Ajayi said: “It is important to state here that delegates from all countries whether from government, private sector, media and civil society groups attend COP summits and conferences as parties and the number of attendees are registered against their countries of origin.
“This does not mean that they are sponsored or funded by the government. It must also be said that the fact that people registered to attend a conference does not mean everyone who registered is physically present.
“As the biggest country in Africa, the biggest economy and one with a bigger stake in climate action as a country with a huge extractive economy, it is a no-brainer that delegates from Nigeria will be more than any other country in Africa.”
He pointed out that because of the significance of the climate conference, stakeholders from Nigeria beyond government are also involved.
They include UBA Chairman, Tony Elumelu; Chairman of BUA group, Abdul Samad Rabiu and other billionaires “whose businesses are promoting sustainability and climate actions through their philanthropies.
“These businessmen and women and their staff who came with them to promote their own business interests are part of the 1,411 delegates from Nigeria. Their trip to Dubai is not funded by the Federal Government.
“United Nations Climate summit, by its very nature, commands attendance of big names from across the world – statesmen and women, politicians, lawmakers, corporate titans, journalists and activists, etc. who promote big global agenda. So, people attend the summit for many reasons,” the Presidency clarified.
Ajayi also explained that when the world comes together to take action to achieve a common goal and proffer collective solutions to a nagging global concern, there are parties involved from government, private sector, civil society, media and multilateral institutions.
He noted: “In Nigeria like so many other countries, interested parties comprising government officials from both the Federal and sub-national governments, business leaders, environmentalists, climate activists and journalists are present in Dubai.”
Also participating are agencies of government such as the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited and its subsidiaries, the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs, the Niger Delta Development Commission and many youth organisations from Nigeria, he explained.
“The President of Ijaw Youth Council, Jonathan Lokpobiri, leads a pan-Ijaw delegation of more than 15 people, who registered as parties from Nigeria.
“Among delegates from Nigeria are also over 20 journalists from various media houses.
“Their participation is very important. It is not for jamboree as it is being mischievously represented on social media,” he noted.
Defending Tinubu’s participation at the global summit, the aide said” “President Tinubu and other officials on the Federal Government delegation are in Dubai for serious business not jamboree.
“Our President has been very busy representing our country well. Since Thursday morning when he arrived Dubai, President Tinubu has spent not less than 18 hours daily in attending very important sessions, pushing our national agenda whilst holding bilateral and business meetings on the sidelines.”
The Presidency highlighted the logic behind Nigeria’s participation, stating, “Africa that is battling problems of poverty, security and struggling to provide education and healthcare to her people cannot be told to abandon its major source of income which is mostly from extractive industries without the West providing the funding and investment in alternative and clean energy sources.”
A list of 198 parties (197 countries and the European Union) published by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change showed that the participants include Ministers, Governors, heads and directors of agencies, presidential aides, officials of the National Council on Climate Change, the SDGs office and the members of the organised private sector.
Among those names are President Bola Tinubu, his Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, business magnate Mr. Gilbert Chagoury, who was designated as ‘Confidante of Mr President’ and Special Adviser to the President on the SDGs, Mrs Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire.
Around 84,000 on-site and online participants have badges for this year’s Conference of the Parties from November 30 to December 12, 2023.
Closer observation of the document showed that these include 24,488 parties, 880 UN Secretariat observers, 886 UN specialized agency observers, 1,897 IGO observers, 14,338 NGO observers and 3,972 media participants, 28,338 overflows, 6,268 categorised as “other/staff” and 3,074 virtual attendees.
This is nearly double the 50,000 who travelled to Sharm El-Sheikh in Egypt for COP-27 in 2022.
Delegation a waste of taxpayers’ money, Obi, LP blast Tinubu
In separate reactions to the number of Nigeria’s participants at COP28, the LP and Obi kicked.
In a series of tweets on his X (formerly Twitter), Peter Obi urged Nigerians to strive to compete with China in the area of production and not on the size of delegations to a specialized conference of experts.
He described the size of Nigeria’s delegation as a misplaced imitation of a country dutifully pulling their people out of poverty.
“In a twist of sad irony, let me congratulate the giant of Africa, Nigeria, for matching the great China, with the same number of contingents at the ongoing COP28 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Nigeria’s contingent to COP-28 totaled 1,411, the same number as the Chinese contingent.
The LP standard bearer noted that while China’s budget for 2024 is about $4 trillion, about $2,860 per head; Nigeria’s budget is about $33 billion, about $165 per head.
China has a high Human Development Index, HDI, with a ranking of 79 out of 191 countries measured, and Nigeria has a low HDI, with a ranking of 163 out of 191 countries measured. Nigeria has more people living in ‘Multi-Dimensional’ poverty than China, despite China having seven times our population.
He further said: “Most importantly, the vast majority of those in the Nigerian delegation to COP-28 are either non-relevant civil servants or relations, friends, and hangers-on of high government officials. Most of them hardly understand or have anything to do with Climate Change.
“This huge contingent is at public expense and at a time when most Nigerians can hardly afford food and basic needs as a result of economic hardship. I pray earnestly that a day will come soon enough when we can focus on competing with China on productivity and the miracle of migrating the highest number of citizens out of poverty over a relatively short time.
“As we have kept emphasizing, we must stop waste as an addition to our government and nation. We urgently need to cut the cost of governance and invest in production.
“We need to de-emphasize unnecessary ceremony and showmanship as a mode of government behaviour. We need to tie spending to necessity and national priority, pointing out that a New Nigeria is possible but we only need to do the reasonable and the necessary.”
Speaking in like manner, the LP Spokesman, Obiora Ifoh described Nigeria’s huge delegation to the event as a continuation of the culture of waste which the All Progressives Congress, APC, administration has become infamous for.
He lamented that the administration is yet to convince Nigerians on what the nation stands to benefit from the Supplementary Budget which President Tinubu signed.
Ifoh said, “It is sad that a government which has been preaching to Nigerians to tighten their belts and sacrifice for the economy to pick up is involved in this wasteful venture. There is no moral justification for the Federal Government of Nigeria to deplete our scarce foreign reserves to sponsor over 1,411 persons on what is obviously a shopping spree for cronies and government apologists.
“Why would a government which is currently engaged in approaching lenders to borrow money to pay salaries and meet other obligations embark on such a waste?
“Nigeria has diplomatic ties with the UAE, we have an embassy, trained and efficient diplomats who if allowed to do their jobs, can provide all the support Mr. President and the ministers of Trade and Investment as well as Foreign Affairs and a number of captains of industries need to fully represent Nigeria at the summit.
“But no. This wasteful administration must fulfill the fantasies of its cronies who are on a constant look out for opportunities to waste public funds.
“Like our presidential candidate in the 2023 election Mr. Peter Obi, has always said, we must end this culture of waste and improve our capacity for production in order to compete at the global stage. We must begin to look inwards to improve our productivity by supporting local businesses, cut the cost of governance and operate a lean bureaucracy in order to ensure Nigerians get real value for money. Then and only then can we be on the path of real growth.”
PDP demands roll call, cost incurred by FG delegates
On its part, the PDP queried what it described as President Tinubu’s bloated delegation of 1,411 individuals to the COP28 in Dubai.
According to the PDP, the delegation is reportedly brimming with his cronies, political minions and their mistresses at huge expense to the nation.
National Publicity Secre-tary of the party, Debo Ologunagba, in a state-ment, said: “The PDP holds that this incidence is a further validation that the Tinubu-led APC administration is wasteful, frivolous and reckless in the application of the scarce resources of the nation, especially at a time Nigerians are yearning for prudent management of resources to achieve the desired infrastructural regeneration, job creation and revamping of the economy.
“The PDP dismisses the feeble attempt by the Presidency to rationalize the over-bloated delegation by trying to hide under genuine sub-national officials, businesses, journalists and civil societies, who are travelling at their own expense to cover the baggage of cronies, mistresses and other hangers-on associated with the Presidency, who are reportedly attending at government’s expense and have no relevance whatsoever at the Conference.
“Our Party and all well-meaning Nigerians are appalled by the level of profligacy inherent in the APC administration whose actions and policies so far are skewed towards the promotion and institutionalization of corruption.
“The attempt to deceive Nigerians even when the list of the delegation is in the public domain, shows that the APC administration is irredeemably depraved.”
Ologunagba further said: “We ask, why would a country whose citizens are dying daily from inability to purchase necessities be willing to fritter its resources and scarce foreign exchange in such a manner?
“It only points to the fact that this administration is not interested in the good of the generality of our citizens but for a select few positioned to fleece the nation’s resources.
“Our Party challenges the Presidency to come clean by making public the names of the official delegation sponsored by the Federal Government to the Conference, the relevance of such individuals to the Conference and the total cost of such sponsorship on the nation.
“Of course, Nigerians have the list and they know the genuine officials of sub-national governments and other self-sponsored entities at the Conference.
“The PDP calls on the National Assembly, pursuant to its Constitutional duty under Section 88 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) which empowers it to investigate and expose corruption by any organ of Government, to immediately commence investigation into this embarrassing revelation and impose appropriate sanctions on anyone or Institution found culpable in that regard.
“Our Party also demands that President Tinubu should be ready to refund any Federal Government fund improperly spent to sponsor any individual who has no relevance at the Conference. Such funds should be channeled to projects that have direct bearing on the well-being of Nigerians.”
UK commits £100m to assist Nigeria and other countries
Meanwhile, the UK government has committed £100 million to help Nigeria and other vulnerable countries strengthen their resilience to the increasingly frequent and severe effects of climate change at the COP28 Summit.
UK’s International Development and Africa Minister, Andrew Mitchell, said in a statement yesterday that the fund was to support some of the most climate-vulnerable countries tackle climate change.
He said: “The devastating effects of climate change hit the most vulnerable the hardest. These funding commitments will help countries and people be better prepared and protected against extreme weather events and natural disasters.
‘’They will help roll out measures such as early warning systems, and open up access to climate finance to build resilient health services.
“The UK will continue to press for a bold and ambitious approach to support those on the frontline of our changing climate, and to create a safer planet for us all.
“ This will support an initiative to strengthen early warning systems in countries on the front line of climate change, giving people advanced warning of cyclones, flooding and other extreme weather so they can move away from danger, saving lives and protecting vulnerable communities.
“The funding will also help make health care in these areas more resilient and able to withstand disasters, like floods, and ready to deal with spikes in infectious diseases, like cholera and malaria, due to floods caused by climate change.
Recognising the urgency of the situation, which forces 26 million into poverty every year, the Government also joined calls for bolder collective action to protect the lives, health and livelihoods of those most impacted by climate change.
[Vanguard]
About 1,197 Nigerian-trained doctors moved to the United Kingdom since May 29, 2023, to date, PUNCH Online’s investigation has revealed.
At the moment, Nigeria is set to overtake Pakistan and become the country with the second-highest number of foreign-trained doctors in the UK.
Currently, India remains the country with the highest number of foreign-trained doctors in the UK.
This is according to the register of the General Medical Council of the UK.
The GMC is a public body that maintains the official register of medical practitioners within the UK.
Though about 1,197 Nigerian-trained doctors were licensed between May 29, 2023, and December 1, 2023, the total number of Nigerian doctors licensed to practise in the UK is now 12,198.
This figure, however, excludes Nigerian doctors who were trained in other countries.
Presently, there are 73 Nigerian-trained doctors in the field of anaesthetics and Intensive Care Medicine, 61 in the field of emergency medicine, 241 for general medicine, 207 for obstetrics and gynecology, 17 for occupational medicine, 16 for ophthalmology, pediatrics field with 164, and 50 for pathology.
There are 35 of them for public health, 357 for psychiatry, 29 for psychiatry and 135 for surgery.
The rate of migration of medical doctors has recently become a matter of concern. The Nigerian Medical Association, while lamenting the high rate of medical brain drain, had said Nigeria might import doctors in the future.
In 2015, only 233 Nigerian doctors moved to the UK. The number increased to 279 in 2016, while the figure was 475 in 2017. In 2018, the figure rose to 852, while it further increased to 1,347 in 2019.
In 2020, the figure was 833 even though the GMC closed operations during the COVID-19 pandemic. The figure for 2021 was put at 932.
The Chairman, Committee of Chief Medical Directors of Federal Tertiary Hospitals, Prof. Emem Bassey, commenting on the brain drain recently said, “Some African countries are also beginning to poach from Nigeria.
“The West Coast is looking for our specialists. So many people are now going to places like Sierra Leone and Gambia and the wages they earn are $3,000 to $4,000. It is about three to four times what they earn back home. So we are beginning to see that people are leaving for other African countries too.
“The health sector is currently undergoing a major crisis in terms of manpower. What we are seeing is that medical specialists, not just doctors, even nurses even more nurses are leaving. Doctors, nurses, laboratory scientists, physiotherapists, radiographers and all manner of health professionals are leaving the country in droves.”
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The size of revenue, however, depends on the level of clicks or viewership on the contents.
Economy&Lifestyle discovered that because the revenues come in hard currencies, which if converted to local currency, transforms the lives of these young Nigerians,there is a flood of content creators who crave for captivating contents that will generate millions of views, comments, likes and shares.
Funnily,one of the contents found to attract both the young and old alike, and rake in huge clicks for the creators is anyone exposing female genitals like breasts, buttocks and other private parts.
This realisation has taken content creators to adopting the use of artificial breast and buttocks
Seeing these tricks, some Nigerian business men have also taken to importing or creating elastic silicone breasts and buttocks to help creators.
These content creators now patronize them making their bodily endowments look real and floppy.
They create such things to make online viewers watch them more than twice and help in sharing, liking and commenting on them.
Mrs. Celestina Maduka, a thrift and lingerie seller, confirmed the high patronage saying: “I am a thrift and lingerie seller.
“Recently, I added silicone breasts and buttocks to the list of my business seeing the craving of some content creators wanting to have large floppy buttocks and dangling breasts.
“The increased demand for artificial body enhancers by many young women and crossdressers has flooded the market with various types of brassieres, butts and hip pads.
“Now, there is a real fake breast and buttocks with different body colours and sizes. Its price is from N100, 000 above.
“They come in different qualities and sizes. When worn, you can hardly detect if it is elastic and it is very soft like the human body which does not give room for heat.
Miss Ayomide Coker, an undergraduate and upcoming content creator said: “I am not that floppy in the breast and buttocks. So I use artificial breasts and buttocks. You will never know because I make sure my dress doesn’t leave a space for suspicion.
“Instead of using needles or artificial. It is very safe because I don’t wear it outside the house except when I am shooting a video outside. So it doesn’t stay long on my body.
“Many of my friends who are content creators adopt this means to get lots of followers. As you know when viewers see a dangling breast and floppy buttocks they get carried away pouring all kinds of sentiments.
“With their comments, I am earning more. So it is what makes my business bloom including my skills and creativity.”
Mr. Thomas Akinduro, a lecturer, said though various fun and money is derived from using such artificial breasts and buttocks, care should be taken as one doesn’t know what chemicals were used to produce them.
“Many people, especially women and cross dressers, are artificial nowadays. When some pull off their fake breasts, buttocks and tuck in tight you will discover that such a person is empty.
“Using them for content creation is not a big deal, but caution should be applied when using such products as one doesn’t know the kind of chemicals used in manufacturing them.”
According to Christopher Olamide, an online content creator, revealing buttocks and breasts through such videos is what is in vogue now.
“Even some content creators will also share these videos on their page.”
Explaining the process of earning money through content creation using facebook as an example, Olamide said: “the first step is creating a page and building your live tower by posting up to live videos and already filmed videos on your page thrice in a month.
“You will need to have up to 10,000 followers, 50,000 post engagements or 180,000 watch minutes in 60 days to put up a paywall.
“A paywall is a digital gate that is used to monetize content.
“Your viewers can also support you by giving you stars.
“The payments are sent to your payout account when the total balance reaches $100 or 10,000 Stars.
“Many earn up to 1,000 Euros monthly through digital content posted on social media platforms. That is why you see them putting in their best at all costs including wearing fake breasts and buttocks.”
Big Brother Naija reality star Tolani Shobajo, popularly known as Tolanibaj, has claimed that there are no good men in the current dating pool.
According to her, what is now left in the dating pool is “remnants” as the good ones are married already.
The 30-year-old disc jockey made this known in the latest episode of the Bahd And Boujee Podcast co-hosted by her and actress Moet Abebe.
She added that all the men she had dated in the past ended up not marrying her.
She said she has dated seven and thought every one of them was her future husband, but they always left her.
She said, “I feel like in the dating pool, we are left with remnants. The good ones are married. We hopped on the train too late. I have dated like seven guys and I thought they were the ones…”
The guest on the podcast, actor Daniel Etim-Effiong, inferred: “Tbaj, the problem can not be all these seven guys. Maybe, the problem is you.”
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Troops of Operation Desert Sanity in Maiduguri, Borno State, have arrested three soldiers for allegedly stealing ammunition.
They were arrested during a covert operation at the motor parks along Njimtilo Road in Maiduguri.
A military source told our correspondent that two of the soldiers were heading to Markudi, while one was travelling to Abuja.
One of the soldiers was said to have concealed the ammunition in a bag of rice.
The source said, “On December 2, troops conducted a convert operations at motor parks and along Njimtilo Road at Njimtilo, three soldiers were arrested. One was en route to Makurdi with 250 rounds of 7.62 MM.
“Another en route to Makurdi was arrested with four fully-loaded magazines and 110 rounds concealed in a mudu of rice.
“The last soldier was going to Abuja. He was arrested with 14 rounds of 7.62MM. The suspects are in custody for further investigation. “
The Director, Defence Media Operations, Maj. Gen. Buba Edward, could not be reached for comment as calls to his line were not answered. He had also yet to respond to a message sent to him on the matter as of the time of filing this report.
Chargé d’Affaires of the U.S., Embassy in Nigeria, Mr David Greene, has revealed that they have interviewed over 150,000 Nigerians while further noting that the embassy has interviewed about 30,000 students this year.
Greene made this statement during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja. He said, “What folks do not know is that this year we have interviewed more than 150,000 people.
“This is in addition to 30,000 students. Hundreds of thousands of students have had the opportunity to seek visas from the U.S. We are doing the best we can to get proper ways for all the categories after having an enormous backlog as a result of COVID-19, and all that.”
“We have made great progress though. In March we instituted a five-year term for visas to the U.S.,” he added.
However, he assured visa applicants of the mission’s commitment to tackling all visa-related hitches. According to him, issues related to visas would fully become a thing of the past, saying the mission is doing everything within its power to tackle such challenges.
He urged persons desiring to travel to the U.S. to apply early and ensure that the visa requests are tied to events.
“Folks that are seeking visas should apply early, make sure that the plan is for an event as they can. This is because we do acknowledge that there is a backlog and we will do what we can to make sure people that need a warrant visa to the U.S., can get them,” he said.
The Nigerian Military Wrestlers at the ongoing 36th World Military Wrestling Championship in Baku, Azerbaijan, have clinched gold and silver medals, respectively.
This information was conveyed in a statement made available to Defence Correspondents in Abuja over the weekend by the Director of Defence Information, Brigadier General Tukur Gusau.
The statement explained that female wrestler Corporal Hannah Reuben achieved the feat on Friday, defeating her Italian contender in the 68-weight category of women’s freestyle wrestling to secure the gold medal.
According to the statement, “The Armed Forces of Nigeria wrestling team made an indelible mark on the global stage, setting a record and garnering widespread acclaim. The medal was presented to Cpl Reuben by the Vice President of the International Military Sports Council (CISM), Mr. Dirk Shwede.”
Recall that this is the first time the Armed Forces of Nigeria have secured a gold medal since participating in the CISM World Wrestling Championship. Another commendable performance was by Lance Corporal Ojolaide Esther, who earned a silver medal in the 72-weight category earlier at the event.
According to the statement, the Chief of Defence Training and Operations, Major General Emmanuel Onumajuru, who represented the Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Gwabin Musa, and the Director of Sports, Defence Headquarters, Air Vice Marshal Abidemi Timothy Marquis, were present to witness the glory.
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It added that the senior officers respectively maintained that the historic victory wouldn’t have been possible without the unwavering support of the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen CG Musa, acknowledging his crucial role in the team’s success.
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have thwarted crooked attempts by drug syndicates to export illicit substances including various quantities of methamphetamine and opioids concealed in hems of new jeans trousers, dolls, buttons, local soap and tins of milo beverage at some courier firms in Lagos State to Europe, United Arab Emirate and Asia.
Some of the consignments intercepted by the NDLEA operatives of the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation (DOGI) at courier houses in Lagos include: tramadol 225mg concealed in hems of new jeans trousers heading to Cyprus; shipment of cannabis sativa hidden in heads of dolls going to Dubai, UAE; sachets of tramadol 225mg buried in tins of milo beverage going to UAE and another set of same drug hidden in local soap also going to UAE, as well as a consignment of methamphetamine concealed in buttons heading to Hong Kong.
Spokesman of the NDLEA, Femi Babafemi, who revealed this on Sunday in a statement, said that a shipment of another illicit substance coming from Florida, USA was equally intercepted at a courier firm while the recipient, Daniel Ogi was tracked by NDLEA officers and arrested at 5 Akeem Shittu street, Ajao Estate Lagos on Friday.
Also, operatives in Lagos on Friday arrested a drug kingpin, Okechukwu Ogala, 56, who specialises in exploiting and recruiting young citizens to export meth to Asian countries.
“He was arrested at Blue Moon Hotel in Okota area of Lagos with 60 wraps of methamphetamine weighing 1.009kgs.
In another operation in Lagos, operatives on Friday recovered 393kgs of cannabis in a shop at Akala, Mushin while a suspect, Justin Enuonye, who deals in Canadian Loud, was arrested by the police at Victoria Island and transferred to the Lagos Command of the NDLEA with 154 parcels weighing 92kgs,” Babafemi said.
A team of NDLEA operatives also intercepted a vehicle at Oyingbo area of Lagos and recovered 108kgs of cannabis from it, while 675kgs of the same substance were recovered from the store of a wanted dealer, Wahab Olota, at Adedoja area of Mushin, Lagos.
In Edo State, NDLEA operatives on Wednesday, November 29, stormed the Ujiogba forest, Esan West LGA where they recovered 5,988kgs of cannabis already processed and ready for distribution while a 22-year-old, Mson Bunde, (a.k.a Tete Peter Joseph) found in a hut on the cannabis farm was arrested.
No less than 120,000 capsules of tramadol concealed in new sound systems packed in a Jos, Plateau State-bound bus were seized by NDLEA officers acting on intelligence along Onitsha-Awka road, Anambra State on Monday 27 November While 123 blocks of cannabis weighing 73kgs were recovered from a suspect, Abdullahi Muhammad Bello along Gombe-Bauchi road, Gombe State on Wednesday 29 November, while operatives in Abuja seized 168 blocks of same psychoactive substance with a total weight of 101kgs from the store of a fleeing drug dealer in Kabusa area of the FCT.
No fewer than 8,000 bottles of codeine syrup were recovered by NDLEA operatives on Friday 1st December when they intercepted a vehicle transporting the opioid along Abuja- Kaduna road, with the driver, Shamsu Isiyaku and his conductor, Muhammad Maina arrested. Same day, operatives also arrested Ernest Esechie, 30, with 44.4kgs of compressed cannabis sativa along Gwantu- Sanga road, Kaduna.
In Kogi State, NDLEA officers arrested Ahmad Umar, 18, with 46.4kgs cannabis at a check point in Kabba, while Jamilu Zakari, 32, was nabbed at Kofar Idi, Kandahar, Bauchi town, Bauchi State with 125 blocks of same substance that weighed 146kgs.
At least, 542.3kgs of cannabis were recovered from a suspect, Festus Egeogoli, 32, when his base at Jakpa road, Warri, Delta State was raided by NDLEA operatives on Wednesday, while 125.9kgs of same substance were also seized from a store in the same area.