President Bola Tinubu is preparing to initiate a novel three-step approach for evaluating the performance of Ministers and heads of Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) as he approaches the completion of his first year in office.

This innovative strategy aims to incorporate public opinion into the decision-making process regarding the retention or dismissal of cabinet members and key agency leaders by May 29, 2024.

Insiders from the Presidential Villa in Abuja disclosed to BusinessDay that the President intends to launch the feedback platform on Tuesday.

This digital platform is designed to gather assessments from Nigerians on the performance of each minister and their contributions to the administration’s objectives.

However, the inauguration of this feedback mechanism has been postponed to the following week.

The delay allows for the finalization of necessary preparations by the office of the Special Adviser on Policy Coordination, led by Hadiza Bala-Usman.

This extension is to ensure the platform is fully operational and capable of capturing comprehensive and insightful feedback from the citizenry.

The source said, “This will be done at three different levels. First, you have members of the public who can through the platform, get relevant information on the President Bola Tinubu’s targets for each Ministry and through that give feedback on the performance of each Minister based on the targets provided.

“The next stage will be evaluation carried out by the Policy Coordination office, and lastly, a group of Consultants will also give their assessments on the Ministers performance

“So, these will be the basis for determining which Minister stays and those that will leave the cabinet because of poor performance.”

Bala-Usman had earlier in the year indicated that President Tinubu “will drop ministers who do not deliver on their mandates.”

She had stated this at the opening of a technical retreat organised for delivery desk officers of federal ministries, to train them on implementation of presidential priorities and ministerial deliverables, in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom state capital.

Usman warned that “President is serious about delivering on his promise to make life better and easier for Nigerians.

“You must understand that as ministerial delivery desk officers you are the engine room that will provide that feedback and constantly track ministerial progress and report challenges and bottle to the CDCU.”

The retreat, according to her, “was to introduce the delivery officers to the framework of the delivery chain for progress tracking and build the officers’ capacity on monitoring of the delivery plan”

The President had tasked the Special Adviser on Policy and Coordination, soon after the Ministerial retreat on November 3rd, 2023, to “immediately activate the performance tracking system in a way that maximally leverages on cutting- edge digital innovation to provide real time oversight capability for the benefit of all Nigerians.”

The President also charged the Ministers to demonstrate diligence, innovative thinking, commitment, and an unrelenting focus on resul, added that “I want to reiterate that the Renewed Hope Agenda is about more than just economic growth.

“It is also about building a more just and equitable society for all Nigerians. It is about creating jobs, improving education and healthcare, and reducing poverty. It is about ensuring that all Nigerians have the opportunity to succeed.

“I know that we have a lot of work ahead of us, but I am confident we can achieve our goals. We have a strong team in place, and we are committed to working together to build a better future for Nigeria.

“Let me remind you that our people are not interested in excuses, political games, or procrastination. Neither am I. They are interested in tangible results. They seek solutions to the problems that have long plagued our great nation. The challenge before us demands that we must put aside personal ambitions and focus on adhering to the performance bond we have all signed up to on this day. These performance bonds represent a contract we must uphold.”

The President also emphasized the importance of data in governance, saying: “Data is the life- blood of effective governance. It enables us to understand the challenges we face so that we can design and implement effective solutions as well as monitor and evaluate our progress. Without data, we are flying blind.”

It was also gathered on Monday that the Policy Coordination Office will rely mostly on the recommendations made at the first Ministerial retreat, in assessing the achievements of each Minister.

The Armed Forces of Nigeria (AFN) began a three-day national mourning period on Monday to commemorate the 17 soldiers who were killed by angry youths in Okuama, Ughelli South Local Government Area (LGA) of Delta State.

Naija News reports that the soldiers who were deployed on a “peaceful and mediatory mission” were killed during a communal clash between Okuama and Okoloba communities.

Among the deceased are Lieutenant Colonel Abdullahi Hassan Ali, the Commanding Officer of 181 Amphibious Battalion Oleh, Major Gembu Shafa, the JTF Commander in Bomadi, along with another Major and a Captain, making up the total of 17 killed.

To commemorate the lives of heroic personnel who made the ultimate sacrifice for their nation, flags will be flown at half-mast across all military installations nationwide, symbolizing respect and mourning.

According to sources, a communication has been dispatched to the Nigerian Army, Navy, and Air Force conveying this instruction.

The source said, “A directive has been issued by Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa to the three Services to that effect.

“From Monday March 18, 2024, up till March 20, 2024, all colours, (flags) are to be flown at half-mast in honour of the Armed Forces of Nigeria (AFN) personnel Killed In Action (KIA).”

Meanwhile, the Nigerian Army has warned the Okuama community in Delta State that they should brace themselves for the full force of legal repercussions.

The Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Rt. Hon. Nkeiruka Onyejeocha has appealed to the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities, SSANU and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions, NASU, to call off their 7-day warning strike, which started on Monday.

The Minister also expressed displeasure at the action of the unions, which she described as a total disregard of Federal Government’s concerted effort to address the concern of the unions.

A statement issued by Olajide Oshundun Director, Press and Public Relations, quoted Hon. Onyejeocha as saying that “the Ministry was not officially notified by the unions of their intention to proceed on a 7-day warning strike. This is contrary to the provisions of section 18 of the Trade Dispute Act.

“However, when the Ministry got wind of the intended warning strike, it reached out to the leadership of the unions for an emergency meeting in order to avert the strike. Unfortunately, a physical meeting could not be arranged between the unions and the federal government, but a tele-discussion took place between their leadership and the Ministry.

“Consequently, the Ministry suggested another date, Monday 18th March, for a proper conciliation meeting, believing that on the basis of that discussion, the intended strike would be put on hold pending the outcome of the meeting; but this date was rejected by the unions.

“The Minister has always maintained that strike does not serve any useful purpose and should only be resorted to as a last option after exhausting every conciliation effort.”

She appealed to the SSANU and NASU to step back from their hard-line stance and meet the federal government at the table for conciliation.

The Minister also appealed to all Nigerians to always take steps that are beneficial to the well-being of the country and the citizens.

The presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 election, Peter Obi, joined Muslims at the Central Mosque in Maraba-Nyanya in Abuja to participate in breaking the Ramadan fast.

In a now-viral video shared on X (formerly Twitter), the former Governor of Anambra State sat beside a child on a mat while sharing a bowl of rice with the boy.

The viral video also showed almost 1000 people at the mosque waiting to break their fast while others watched as the LP presidential candidate fed the child.

The Ramadan season is regarded as a month of charity and communal sharing, especially for people in need. During this time, Muslims also self-reflect and increase their acts of worship and devotion.

It is the ninth month in the Islamic calendar and is said to be one of the pillars of Islam. The Ramadan period usually lasts between 29 and 30 days based on the sighting of the crescent moon.

See the video below.

The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has warned Nigerians against the practice of employing underage housemaids.

Naija News reports that during a press conference in Abuja on Monday, the agency’s Director of Legal and Prosecution, Hassan Tahir, stressed that engaging in such a practice is against the law.

He offered the advice in response to employers of domestic workers facing challenges with their employees, which sometimes escalate to causing injuries.

He stated that according to Section 23 of the Trafficking in Persons Act, TIP, employing a child as a domestic worker is deemed unlawful, constituting an offense under the law.

Tahir quoted Section 23 of the TIP Act as saying, “Any person who willfully employs, requests, recruits, transports, harbours, receives or hires out a child as a domestic worker commits an offence and is liable to conviction of imprisonment for a minimum term of 6 months, and not exceeding 7 years.”

However, the director advised that those interested in employing a house help must ensure fair treatment, including providing shared accommodations and schooling with the master’s children.

Tahir said, “The domestic worker must attend the same school with your children, eat the same food with your children, wear the same cloth with your children, he or she must be treated equally with your children.

“There could be a situation whereby you employ a child and at the same time inflict injury on him or her, if you want to violate their right, please don’t do that, and if certainly you do, NAPTIP will do the needful.“

A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Mike Ozekhome, has said the country needs a new constitution rather than an amendment to the 1999 Constitution.

Ozekhome stated that no amount of amendment can cure the flaws in the 1999 constitution following the set-up of Committees to review and amend the country’s law by the National Assembly.

He said this on Monday during a National Constitutional dialogue in Lagos in honour of the late Ben Nwabueze, the Pioneer Secretary-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo.

The senior lawyer asserted that military leaders handed over the current constitution to Nigerians and that a new constitution should be created through a referendum.

Ozkehome added that a new constitution will make provisions for the creation of state police, stating that the argument for abuse of state police is not tenable.

He said: “But will their (national assembly) work amount to what we are looking for? Is it just the amendment of the constitution that is our problem? Can you amend a bad document? Can you amend a fundamentally flawed document?.

“My humble answer is that you cannot. One million amendments, multiple by one million amendments of the present fundamentally flawed constitution, cannot cure the original sin.

“What is that original sin? It was imposed on you and me militarily by a military junta led by General Abdulsalami Abubakar and 28 members of the provisional ruling council.

“It was never subjected to the referendum of the people. Guess what? The present constitution was attached as a mere schedule to decree number 24 of 1999.

“So the constitution you are using is a mere schedule attached to a decree. How can you amend it? How do you cleanse it? Nigeria must own their own constitution through a popular referendum of the people.”

A leading figure of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Imo State, Stanley Ekezie, has blamed the electorate’s decisions in the last general election squarely for Nigeria’s ongoing economic hardship.

Naija News reports that Ekezie made this comment during an interview in Owerri, Imo State’s capital on Monday.

The PDP chieftain’s comments come as Nigeria grapples with significant economic challenges that affect citizens across all socio-economic strata.

“Blame Nigeria’s electorate for the current economic crisis. Nigerians prefer to take peanuts in lieu of good governance,” Ekezie stated, highlighting a culture of vote-buying that plagued the last electoral cycle.

According to him, this practice saw voters willingly exchange their votes for immediate monetary rewards, paving the way for unqualified individuals to assume positions of power.

Ekezie argues that this phenomenon not only undermines the democratic process but also sets the stage for governance that lacks accountability and foresight, directly impacting the nation’s economic stability.

The consequence, he notes, is the widespread economic hardship currently experienced across Nigeria, a direct fallout from the electorate’s decisions.

The former aspirant for Okigwe North Federal Constituency further lamented the cyclical nature of this issue, warning that without a significant shift in the electorate’s approach to elections, the economic situation is unlikely to improve.

He warned that“The situation will persist so long as the wrong people continue to occupy the seat of power.”

The founder of the Mount of Solution Redeemed Church (MSRC), Apostle Elisha Asuquo and the pastor in charge of the church, Aniekan Ibanga, have been shot dead by gunmen, in Ikot Ekang, a community in Abak Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom state.

Naija News learnt that the tragic incident occurred when the gunmen stormed the National Headquarters of the Church at about 7:30pm at the weekend, disrupting an ongoing Parish meeting.

The unidentified gunmen reportedly left through the Abak-Ikot Ekpene Federal Highway after committing the crime.

It was gathered the late Apostle Asuquo hailed from Adiasim in Essien Udim Local Government Area, while Pastor Aniekan Ibanga, was a native of Ikot Obioikpa village, Afaha Obong Clan, in Abak LGA.

A community leader in Ikot Ekang, Bishop John Jeremiah Kpongkpong, in an interview with Leadership, described the killing of the two clerics as shocking, noting that such an ugly incident had never happened in the community before.

According to him, Apostle Asuquo was handling a crucial and heated marital reconciliation matter between a lady and her estranged husband before the sad incident.

He said, “It was around 8 p.m., I was attending a church programme when somebody called and asked me whether I had heard that Prophet Elisha and his Pastor had been shot dead. While still on that call, another person came in and told me that Prophet Elisha and Pastor Aniekan had been killed.

“I had to close from the church and rush to the palace of the Village Head to inform him of what had happened. After informing the Village Head, he instructed me to call the Police, which I did.

“On getting to the Church premises, I saw many people gathering while Policemen from Abak Division were performing their duty.”

Also speaking on the incident, the Youth President of Ikot Obio Ikpa Village, Alphonsus Alphonsus Okoro, described the killing of their son as painful and a great loss.

He further called on the two villages to cooperate and investigate the matter to bring the culprits to book, to which the Youth President of Ikot Ekang village, Godwin Adahada, agreed.

Confirming the incident, the spokesperson for the state police command, CSP Odiko MacDon, said the Commissioner of Police, CP Waheed Ayirara, had ordered a manhunt for the suspects.

He assured that the ongoing discreet investigations would culminate in the arrest and subsequent prosecution of the culprits.

Former Nigerian international, Finidi George, has been shortlisted as a potential candidate to take over the vacant position of the Super Eagles manager.

The coast is, however, not totally clear for him to take over the assignment as it is understood that the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has also shortlisted five other candidates for the same position.

The Nigerian Super Eagles have been without a permanent coach since Portuguese tactician, Jose Peseiro, who led the team to a second-place finish at the 2023 AFCON tournament, left the position last month.

Though hundreds of interested candidates applied for the job, a high-placed source at the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) Technical Committee, saddled with the responsibility of pruning down the list of applicants, has hinted that Finidi, who will be leading out the Super Eagles in the upcoming international friendly against Mali and Ghana this week, is one of the names already pencilled for the job.

The source added that five other persons are also on the NFF list but he refused to disclose their identities.

“There’s nothing much I can tell you now, but the good thing is that we have shortlisted six names for the NFF to pick one,” the official said according to The Nation.

“What I can tell you now is that Finidi is one of the six shortlisted names good enough to coach the Super Eagles,” he said.

Asked about others on the list, he said: “No, wait for the NFF to disclose the names of the five others.”

However, Basic Sports in Nigeria (BSN Sports) are claiming that Amuneke has already been recommended by the NFF Technical Committee as the new manager of the Super Eagles, while Finidi would serve as his assistant.

The medium equally reported that veteran cadet trainer, coach Manu Garba, has been picked to lead the national U-17 team, the Golden Eaglets, yet again.

The Court of Appeal in Abuja, on Monday, upheld the conviction of a watchman, earlier found guilty by the trial court of raping a female student at the Kogi State Polytechnic, Osara Campus in September 2018.

A three-member panel of the Court of Appeal led by Joseph Oyewole, in a unanimous judgement, agreed with the trial court’s findings and affirmed the guilt of Macaulay Masayete.

“My lords, I agree with the learned trial judge that the evidence of PW1 (survivor) is clear and unambiguous,” Okon Abang, a member of the panel, said in his lead judgement agrees to by other panel members

The Kogi State High Court had in 2019 found guilty of raping an 18-year-old undergraduate of the polytechnic.

Consequently, the court sentenced the convict to 10 years’ imprisonment.

But, Mr Masayete who was 39 years old at the time of the offence, approached the appellate court to have his conviction overturned.

Reviewing the evidence before the trial court on Monday, the Court of Appeal recalled the horrific experience of the undergraduate at Mr Masayete’s hands on the night of 13 September 2018.

“He (Mr Masayete) dragged me across the road and tore my clothes and forced himself and had carnal knowledge of me. After that he said I did not satisfy him and he demanded N10,000. He deflowered me, he also intimidated me with a cutlass,” the justice recalled the survivor’s testimony before the court in Kogi State.

To substantiate the allegation against Mr Masayete, the justice said the prosecution needed to prove three major ingredients of the case.

Mr Abang noted that the prosecution proved beyond reasonable that the watchman had sexual intercourse with the student whom he was meant to protect.

He further held that the sexual intercourse between the convict and the teenager was not consensual, and that there was no evidence to show that Mr Masayete and the student were married.

“The appellant failed to challenge the documentary proof and oral evidence given by PW1 (survivor) against him. The trial court was right in believing the survivor that indeed the appellant had sexual intercourse with the survivor.”

The justice agreed with the trial court that the evidence of a medical doctor corroborated the fact that the student was raped.

“At the clinic, I examined her and noticed bruises on both shoulders. I examined her vagina and observed that there was penetration,” the doctor had testified at the lower court.

“In conclusion, the appellant’s sole issue is hereby resolved in favour of the respondent against the appellant. The appeal lacks merit and it is accordingly dismissed. The judgement of the trial court dated 11 December 2019 is hereby affirmed,” Mr Abang said.

On 13 September 2018, the undergraduate was at the polytechnic’s Utility Hall reading alongside other students when there was a power outage around midnight.

As the teenager was about to leave the hall, Mr Masayete arrived and picked a quarrel with her reading partner.

In the process, there was a scuffle that led to the breaking of Mr Masayete’s torchlight.

Subsequently, the watchman insisted that his broken torchlight must be fixed by the two students.

While the male student left the hall to get some money to pay for the damaged torchlight, Mr Masayete whisked the teenage girl away from the reading hall to another building across the campus where he raped her.

The survivor testified that Mr Masayete wore a condon before he raped her.

In his analysis of evidence before the court, the justice said Mr Masayete “tortured and physically harassed” the teenager.

Mr Abang recalled Mr Masayete’s confessional statement where he admitted raping a girl four years before the September 2018 incident involving the undergraduate.

“The appellant voluntarily confessed having raped a girl four years before 13 September 2018. This statement was admitted in evidence without the objection of the appellant. This is a confessional statement that was given without any form of coercion.”

He said Mr Masayete’s conduct demonstrated “crass deprivation of moral rectitude.”

The justice said Mr Masayete was employed as a watchman to protect the students, but he decided to abuse the helpless situation of the survivor.

In his defence, Mr Masayete said he caught the teenager having sexual intercourse with her reading partner inside the hall when electricity went off around midnight on 13 September, 2018.

He told the court that the two students pleaded with him not to report the “indecent conduct” to the polytechnic authorities as they were willing to do anything to settle the matter.

The convict further said he confiscated the students’ mobile telephones and their clothes after taking their photographs.

In one breath, the watchman said he left the hall to the security office on the school campus, but in another breath Mr Masayete said he went to the school clinic for surveillance after the incident at the hall.

Evaluating his evidence, Mr Abang said the convict was not a witness of truth.

The judge said Mr Masayete’s testimony was filled with inconsistencies.

“It is my view that the appellant is not a witness of truth. He said he went to the clinic for surveillance and in another breath said he went to the security office. The appellant had the intention to have sexual intercourse with the survivor.”

On 15 May 2018, Mr Masayete was arraigned before the trial court for the offence of rape.

The offence was was said to violate section 283 of the Penal Code.

He pleaded not guilty to the offence.

In order to discharge the burden of proof placed on it by Section 135 of the evidence Act 2011, the prosecution called five witnesses including the rape survivor; (name withheld to protect her identity), Isah Jibrin, a medical doctor; and Matthew Yakubu, a police officer.