... as Amuzu donates water projects to Abeokuta communities

The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) gubernatorial candidate in Ogun State, Chief Oladipupo Adebutu has called on residents of the state to vote for candidates of the party during the 2023 general elections, saying this is the only sure way of benefiting dividends of democracy.

Adebutu, who made the call while handing over two water borehole projects donated to Omida-Isaga and Igbehin communities in Abeokuta, by the party’s House of Representatives candidate in Abeokuta South Federal Constituency, Chief Toyin Amuzu, said, lack of basic amenities in the state would become a thing of the past, when PDP takes over power in 2023.

According to Adebutu, “the problem of water shortage and lack of basic amenities in Ogun State would soon be a thing of the past, if residents elect responsible and credible candidates put forward by PDP to represent the people and man the affairs of the state, in the 2023 elections”.

Adebutu said he was not surprised at the many feats of Amuzu in Abeokuta South, describing him (Amuzu) as a selfless and responsible individual whose passion for a better society cannot be waved aside.

He said, “his passion to meet the needs of the people even when not holding any political position is worthy of emulation” stressing that “it is obvious that Amuzu is a man with a good heart and special love for the people”.

According to him, “Chief Toyin Amuzu has single-handedly commissioned about ten water borehole projects from his personal purse to ease the pains of water shortage in different communities. If such a man is given a political position, it is very sure that the people would be his major priority” Adebutu said.

He described Amuzu “as a reliable and selfless individual who has proved himself worthy of a public office”.

While the Balogun Egba, Chief Sikirulai Atobatele and the Director General of Ladi Adebutu Campaign Organization, Alhaji Semiu Sodipo commissioned the two boreholes, the Senatorial candidate of the party in Ogun Central, Chief Olumide Aderinokun thanked the donor stressing that the PDP is known for making life better for citizens.

He urged the people to support Amuzu’s good deeds and elect him and others, for them to continue touching lives and improving the communities with good policies and programmes of the PDP.

Inhabitants of Omida-Isaga and Igbehin communities could not hide their joy as they said they have suffered from water shortage before Toyin Amuzu came to their rescue and gave them succour.

The donor, Amuzu, who is the house of Representatives candidate of the PDP in Abeokuta South Federal Constituency assured that he would continue to ease the pains of the people with necessary projects, that would have positive impact on their lives.

By Dr Usama Dandare

The glaring lack of heroism in the crop of individuals called leaders in today's Nigeria often deceived the common man into making heroes out of villains, thus celebrating crime and criminals with pride, to the extent of portraying them as role models. The saddest part is that most Nigerians have failed to see the looming danger with this ‘abominable culture,’ as the same people who are impoverished go about singing the praises of the very people who impoverished them. It is like one using his own hands to dig his own grave without realizing it.

Such ludicrous Nigerian acumen was on display when Sokoto State APC gubernatorial  Candidate, Ahmad Aliyu Sokoto, was quoted to have insisted during an interview that "he will emulate the leadership style of his godfather and former Governor of the state, Sen. Aliyu Magatakarda Wamakko" if given the chance to govern Sokoto come 2023. 

Albeit one can't hold Ahmad Aliyu censurable for his trifling sense of logic going by the accompli that Sen. Wamakko stood against all odds to make him who he is today but for the collective interest of peace and development of the electorate, one must surely wringer him.

I’m not unaware of the backlog and unpleasant dust that this Article will raise especially amongst those that have had wool in their eyes for so long at Gawon Nama, Sokoto.  I’m also aware of the abuse , condemnations,  character assassination that will follow but such thin linings have been crossed severally and the heavens did not fall.

However, this piece isn't meant to shatter the glass houses in which Ahmad Aliyu and other Wamakko's apologists live, but an honest attempt to set straight record for the emphasis of learning. The travails of the then Governor Wamakko (who was the Sokoto State Governor between 2007-2015) were well documented, his style of leadership and also his achievements have all been written in the book of history. 

The series of events that unfolded during Wamakko's administration prompted several commentators to conclude that the daunting challenges that has been an Achilles’ heel for Tambuwal led administration is righting the wrongs of Wamakko's administration, these challenges are so unanimous that one will only comprehend by posing this fundamental poser: what did Sen. Wamakko achieved that's worthy of emulation?

Despite riding on the crest of an unprecedented goodwill and the collective endorsement of the masses of the people. And after being embraced by almost the entirety of the people of Sokoto state who braved the prowess of a serving government to practically hole him out of obscurity, rejection, political oblivion and financial incapacitation and gave him their mandate freely and graciously to govern them on a platter of gold. Governor Wamakko left power with series of unpleasant memories to recall.

Wamakko's style of leadership was a dubiously scripted agenda anchored on a crude welfarist system which seek as well as captured and exploited the vulnerable nature of a society that was not only educationally backward, religiously sanctimonious but more importantly, economically on the brinks. These included throwing of wads of naira to the people on the streets in a free-for-all manner which often resulted in injuries and sometimes fatalities to the weak and the elderly, without any qualms. This is in addition to pauperizing the people by lining them up in queues to collect tokens in often dehumanizing and dangerous atmosphere with undesirable consequences. Is this the voodoo leadership style that's worthy of emulation?

Wamakko will forever be remembered for his sudden attempt to desecrate our renowned and averred religious and traditional institutions that have been standing for more than 200 years by declaring a fiat order transferring two of the most senior traditional rulers in the state to junior districts, a practice that endangered the peace and tranquillity of the state in general. I wonder how our highly revered traditional and religious institutions will fare under the stewardship of a man who's hell-bent on copying Wamakko's gorilla style of leadership.

What will Ahmad Aliyu say about these vexatious issues concerning youth un-employment, immorality, the destruction of the civil service in both mien and structure and the common practice of allegedly slapping of government officials at will said to have characterised Wamakko's stewardship? Will he ditto them too?

Is Ahmad Aliyu telling us he wants to clinch power and revitalize the architecture of the so-called independent power project scam which has gulped billions of naira but remained where it started since 2008? A project which was supposed to bring power to the people but ended up becoming a conduit pipe for siphoning the collective resources of the people’s common wealth.

Was this not the same Wamakko that came into power and met our priced forest reserves that have provided leisure and shelter against desert encroachment for dozens of years but allegedly distributed them to sidekicks and left the rest of us at the mercy of the ever encroaching Almighty Sahara desert?

Wamakko was known for using white elephants to squander the state and empty its treasury, he was notorious for awarding contracts at a very exorbitant price but the funds ended up being siphoned and the projects abandoned. The Sokoto Government House fencing project which Wamakko awarded at a miraculous price of NO.7bn still rings in our minds, the fence is still as it was eleven years ago. The N5.6bn Usman Faruk Secretariat Project is yet another in the series of Wamakko's dubious contracts. Let's remember not to forget the N3bn Illela International Border Market project, the multi-billion Housing Estate project behind Gidan Man Ada and many more.

But in all of this, someone somewhere is trying to take Sokoto people back to a catastrophic era of leadership, and negative  political jinks. Wamakko's administration has arguably been thrown down the memory lane as perhaps  one of the most dubious and corrupt in the history of the state  And yet here is a gubernatorial aspirant proudly aligning himself to those failures and promising Sokoto people that he will holistically emulate them.

If Ahmad Aliyu is bereft of leadership ideas and has nothing to offer except emulating the leadership style that bastardized the good fortunes of Sokoto and expunged her chances of development, then he has no business fighting for any position of trust as he clearly lack all the requisite skills of leadership. He seems to forget that the people of Sokoto are now wiser and more oriented as than his pedestal thoughts.

Dr Usama Dandare wrote in from Sokoto State 

Data obtained from the National Universities Commission on Friday revealed that a total of 33 private universities were approved by the regime of the federal government within 16 months.

The period under review is January 2021 and April 2022.

While 21 of the private universities were approved in 2021; 12 were approved during the present strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities.

Prior to the establishment of the 33 universities, the total number of universities in Nigeria was 186 comprising 49 federal universities; 59 state universities and 78 private universities.

Private universities established in 2022 include Pen Resource University, Gombe, Gombe state; Al-Ansar University, Maiduguri, Borno state; Margaret Lawrence University, Delta state; Khalifa Ishaku Rabiu University, Kano; Sports University Idumuje Ugboko, Delta state; Bala Ahmed University, Kano; Saisa University of Medical Sciences and Technology, Sokoto state;  Nigerian-British University Hasa, Abia state; Peter University Acina-Onene, Anambra state;  Newgate University, Minna, Niger state; European University of Nigeria in Duboyi, Abuja and  North-West University, Sokoto.

Some of the private universities approved in 2021 include Opfaith University, Mkpatak, Akwa Ibom;  Thomas Adewumi University, Oko-Irese, Kwara; Maranatha University, Mgbidi, Imo; Ave Maria University, Piyanko, Nasarawa; Al-Istiq ma University, Sumaila, Kano; Mudiame University, Irrua, Edo; Havilla University, Nde-Ikom, Cross River; and Claretian University of Nigeria, Nekede, Imo.

Others are NOK University, Kachia, Kaduna; Karl-Kumm University, Vom, Plateau; James Hope University, Lagos; Maryam Abacha American University of Nigeria, Kano; Capital City University, Kano; Ahman Pategi University, Kwara; University of Offa, Kwara; Mewar University, Masaka, Nasarawa; Edusoko University, Bida, Niger; Philomath University, Kuje, Abuja and Khadija University, Majia, Jigawa,among others.

Speaking in an interview with our correspondent, Programme Director, Reform Education Nigeria, Ayodamola Oluwatoyin noted that while private universities have their benefits; they shouldn’t take the place of public universities.

“The failure of the government to efficiently manage the public university system gave rise to the birth of private universities in Nigeria. While one cannot fail to admit the importance of private universities, it is very important to note that not everyone in Nigeria can even afford payment of fees in public institutions, not to talk of private fees who charge exorbitant fees.

“However, the government should ensure that sanity is returned to the administration of our public institutions. For instance, ASUU has been on strike for months now and nothing has been done.”

The body of Happiness Odeh, a student of the Moshood Abiola Polytechnic (MAPOLY), Abeokuta allegedly raped and killed has been found in the bush along Iperu road.

Odeh, who won the Miss MAPOLY beauty contest on August 3, 2022 was said to have been abducted on her way to Ipara, in Ode Remo.

It was gathered that the beauty queen was kidnapped along Iperu road by some unknown persons who it was gathered, raped her before killing her in cold blood.

The MAPOLY Students Union (MAPSU), has confirmed the incident.

According to a statement signed by the Students Union President, Sodiq Ajani and the Public Relations Officer, Joy Okolie, the deceased was kidnapped three days ago while going to visit a movie location.

“Moshood Abiola Polytechnic Students Union (MAPSU) announces the untimely death of Miss Happiness Odeh, a Mass Communication student of MAPOLY.

“According to reports, she was abducted along Iperu road to her destination. The deceased left Abeokuta three days ago to visit a movie location at Ipara, Ode-Remo, with the consent of her parents.

“Contrary to the rumours flying around, her death is not related to her status as the new Miss MAPOLY. She won the award on the 3rd of August and the movie location she attended has nothing to do with the beauty pageantry on campus.

“We commiserate with her family, friends and colleagues. May Almighty God grant us all the fortitude to bear this painful loss. Continue to rest in the bosom of the Lord,” the statement read.

Speaking with newsmen on Saturday, the Students Union President said the murderers took away the victim’s phone.

According to him, the police have commenced investigations, making efforts to get the assailants arrested.

Ajani informed that the body of the slain student had been deposited at the morgue of the Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital, Sagamu.

“It was so pathetic. The kidnappers killed her and went away with her phone. Her body was found inside the bush along Iperu road. The body has been deposited at the mortuary. We were at the Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital, Sagamu, yesterday with the parents. May God rest her soul,”

Adding another 100 years to your lifespan might be the stuff of science fiction but scientists are working on a miracle drug that would make it a reality.

The drug, taken in pill form, works by eliminating cells that contribute to the ageing process in the human body, thus potentially doubling our lifespan.

Human ageing is hurried along by cells called ‘zombie cells’, scientifically known as senescent cells. These cells stop dividing over our lifespan, accumulate inside our bodies, and eventually release compounds that speed up ageing.

The drug has been tested on mice in a 2020 trial and the result was improved physical function and extended health and lifespan. Scientists are now working on replicating the result in humans.

British computational biologist Andrew Steele, in his book on the longevity of human life, argued that it was entirely feasible for humans to live beyond 100 with a certain kind of drug.

In the book, he states that research in the field of senolytics – drugs that work to eliminate cells that degrade tissue function – are already showing promising results and could become available on the market within the next decade.

‘I don’t think there is any kind of absolute cap on how long we can live,’ Steele told the MailOnline.

‘I can’t see a physical or biological reason why people couldn’t live to 200 — the challenge is whether we can develop the biomedical science to make it possible.’

‘Studies come out every few years that propose some kind of fundamental limit on human lifespan, but they’re always missing one crucial piece: we’ve never tried treating the ageing process before,’

The pills are reportedly already in the human trial stage and could very well hit the market within the next ten years.

However, even if science is successful, the question remain whether people would want to live for another 100 years.

Nigeria, Africa’s biggest wireless market, is moving ahead with a proposed 5% tax on voice calls, mobile data and text messages to tackle a mounting fiscal crisis.

Finance Minister Zainab Ahmed announced the implementation of the tax, delayed since last year, in an emailed statement that highlighted the government’s strained financial picture. As of April, Africa’s biggest crude producer spends more on debt servicing than it brings in revenue.

“Although Nigeria is celebrated as the largest economy in Africa, translating this wealth into revenues remains a challenge,” Ahmed said. The statement did not say when collections of the levy, which is in addition to a 7.5% value-added tax on calls and data, will begin.

Communications Minister Isa Pantami earlier this month asked the government to reconsider the tax on the grounds that it could slow the expansion of one of the country’s fastest-growing sectors.

A similar tax introduced by West African neighbor Ghana was blamed for a slowdown in mobile-money revenue by MTN Ghana in its first half results. Ghana, also facing a fiscal crisis, introduced a 1.5% e-levy in May to boost government revenue and reduce its burgeoning budget deficit.

Nigeria has one of the lowest tax-to-GDP ratios in the world, at 6% in 2019, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. The government generated 1.63 trillion naira ($3.8 billion) in revenue in the four months through April, against 1.94 trillion naira in debt service payments for the period.

Exxon Mobil Corp. renewed two deep-water leases in Nigeria for 20 years, among the first permits granted under the country’s new oil and gas law.

The US energy giant extended its rights over two oil blocks at a ceremony on Friday in the West African country’s capital, Abuja. It also renewed production-sharing contracts with the state-owned Nigerian National Petroleum Co., it said on its Twitter account.

The permits for the so-called Oil Mining Leases 133 and 138 were due to expire in 2026 and 2027, but were renewed early under sweeping legislation passed last year known as the Petroleum Industry Act. The licenses contain deep-water fields from which the Nigerian government is eager to extract more oil and gas. “These extensions enable us and our partners to unlock the potential value in these OMLs and to bring forward additional investment,” Exxon said.

Three other deep-water leases were renewed at the same ceremony in “a major step” toward boosting production, the NNPC said on its Twitter account. Output in Africa’s largest crude producer has been declining consistently over the past 18 months, with the government blaming rampant theft from the onshore pipelines that crisscross the Niger Delta.

Other companies with interests in the five extended licenses and production-sharing contracts include Chevron Corp., Equinor ASA, Total Energies SE, Shell Plc and Cnooc Ltd.

Garba Shehu, presidential spokesman, says negotiations between the federal government and kidnappers who attacked an Abuja-Kaduna train did not yield the expected result.

He said this on Friday in an interview published by BBC Hausa.

On March 28, a Kaduna-bound train was attacked by gunmen, with several persons killed, injured and abducted.

Relatives of the abducted victims have held several protests in the country, urging the government to rescue their loved ones.

President Muhammadu Buhari, on Thursday, met with the relatives of the abducted victims in Abuja, where he assured them that efforts were on to ensure the safe rescue of the 31 persons said to still be in captivity.

Speaking on the government’s efforts, Shehu said it is wrong to say that nothing has been done to secure the release of all the captives.

“The important thing is that the government, since the occurrence of the incident, has been working very hard. Some are visible, while some are not,” he said.

“It is to the advantage of the relatives and to the country at large to see all the victims are rescued.

“Whoever says the government isn’t doing anything or isn’t making any effort to rescue them perhaps doesn’t know the effort the government is putting in order to rescue the abductees.

“Don’t forget that right from the start of it, the leader of the terrorists demanded that his pregnant wife should be released from captivity.

“The federal government took the woman to the hospital where she gave birth to twins, and after she gave birth, he was shown that both his wife and children were in a good health condition and then they were handed over to his parents.

“After handing them over, they came up with a different issue that there are about six or seven of their children in Yola, Adamawa, who the government sent a plane to pick up.

“We expected that if we gave them the children, they would release all the victims in their custody. Then, they demanded money.

“So, people should not say the government is doing nothing.”

Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau State has tendered apology to Catholic faithful over a remark he made while defending his appointment as Director-General of the All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council.

Addressing reporters at Aso Rock on Tuesday, Lalong had said as a born, baptised and confirmed Catholic, who has the highest award from the papacy, Knight of Saint Gregory the Great, the Pope has not told him there was anything wrong being the lead campaigner of the ruling party, especially over the Muslim-Muslim ticket.

“For those who are talking about Muslim-Muslim ticket, I don’t even know where they are. I Hold a Papal Night and as a Catholic, everything we do, we do it and we send the advice to the Pope. The Pope has not told me that what I’m doing is bad as Director-General,” he had said.

His comment had attracted widespread condemnation, especially from Catholic faithful who blamed him for dragging the Holy Father into the murky politics.

They had called for his immediate suspension from the Church for alleged blasphemy.

But in a letter to the Catholic Church through the Bishops’ Conference, Lalong said he accepted that he erroneously linked the Catholic Pontiff with Nigeria’s politics.

While promising to be of good conduct, the governor sought the forgiveness and understanding of the church.

“I have followed with some shock and deep regret, the reactions that have trailed my appointment as the Director-General of the Campaign Council for the presidential candidate of our party, the APC, Ahmed Tinubu, and his running mate, Ibrahim Shettima.

“The appointment, understandably was received with mixed reactions across the Christian community, who genuinely feel aggrieved by the decision of our party to settle for a Muslim-Muslim ticket.

“While many people commended me for the appointment and saw it as a way of remaining within the system to fight for our own interests, others cast aspersions on it on the grounds that our faith had been insulted and denigrated.

“In the course of this, many of my opponents turned the issue into a political weapon with some spreading rumours and questioning the integrity of my credentials as a Catholic and a Papal Knight.

“In trying to make my case, I have granted interviews to justify why I believe that the appointment did not in any way undermine my commitment to the Catholic Church.

“During the week, in the course of defending myself, I had cause to make reference to my credentials as a Catholic and a Papal Knight. In the process, I made reference to the Holy Father. I now realise that this was an error on my part and has caused some level of concern and even embarrassment to many, especially Members of the family of Papal Knights to which I belong.

“I now understand that I may have overreached myself in the course of trying to defend my personal decision in accepting this appointment and thus, the reference to the holy father was not intended as an act of disrespect to his exalted and revered office.

“Your Grace, by this written letter, I wish to tender my unreserved apologies and ask for their understanding and forgiveness from my brothers in the Catholic faith and, through you, the entire members of the Bishops’ Conference, our Fathers and our leaders.

“My commitment to the Catholic faith, to which I belong, remains unreserved and undiluted. I will continue to uphold the banner of my faith in public life as I have done over the years.

“You may recall, Your Grace, that in the last five or thereabout years, I have been at the forefront of facilitating our dialogue as politicians with you our fathers in the faith. I remain committed to this and pray that you will continue to encourage us as we ascend the slippery slope of politics,” the letter read.

Bandits have attacked the convoy of the Assistant Inspector General of Police, Zone 12, Audu Madaki, killing one of his police guards.

The AIG who was said to be on his way to Abuja from Bauchi when his vehicle was ambushed also sustained injury.

Sources said the attack happened between Barde and Jagindi area in Kaduna State on Tuesday at about 2.30pm.

A source at the Zone 12 headquarters said Madaki was shot at and injured during the attack while his orderly was shot dead.

The AIG is said to be receiving treatment at an undisclosed hospital while security has been beefed up around the Zone.

Another source revealed that armed police personnel had been drafted to the area to comb the bush in order to fish out the terrorists.

Several efforts to get a confirmation from the Zonal Police Public Relations Officer, Thomas Goni, were futile as he did not answer his call.

Meanwhile, the federal government has described the attack on the convoy as an attempt by terrorists to score “a psychological point”.

Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, spoke on the incident while reacting to a question on the attack.

He said, “On the issue of the attack on the AIG in Bauchi, I need further information from the IG as to the circumstances of the attack. But what I know is that bandits would always want to make this kind of spectacular attack just to score a psychological point.

“But I know that the government is taking the job of security very seriously. As you can see, even today, the minister of the FCT has told you exactly what he is doing to ensure that security is improved.”

The minister said the success of the military had not received wide reportage as the terrorist attacks.

“I know that there have been quite a few successes by the military in overrunning the bandits around Abuja in the last couple of days.

“Regrettably, it’s like when the military is having the upper hand, they are not given the same kind of media coverage as when the bandits attack,” he said.