FG reinstates NIPOST Postmaster General, Sunday Adepoju
The Federal Government has reinstated Mr Sunday Adepoju as the Postmaster General (PMG) and CEO of the Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST). NIPOST took to its official X handle to make this announcement in a statement. The statement reads, “Mr Sunday Adepoju conveys his appreciation to President Bola Tinubu and other key supporters. “He pledged to redouble his efforts to elevate NIPOST into a world-class digital postal service and align his vision with that of the Federal Ministry of Communication, Innovation & Digital Economy in contributing significantly to Nigeria’s socio-economic development. Adepoju was first appointed by former President Muhammadu Buhari in October 2022. According to the post, the reinstatement is a testament to Adepoju’s leadership skills and unwavering commitment to service. It urged Nigerians to anticipate enhanced value & quality services from NIPOST. The post listed some of Adepoju’s achievements in the last one year to include; development of modern digital postcode system and the integration of the Address Verification System (AVS). Others include; procurement of 20 operational vehicles and 100 motorbikes to enhance last-mile delivery, remodeling of several post offices for e-government and financial services.
FG To GenCos, DisCos: No More Excuses Over Poor Power Supply
The Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, has warned electricity generating and distribution companies over the poor distribution of electricity to Nigerians stressing that the government will no longer listen to their excuses. Adelabu, who made this known to Discos and generating companies during a meeting Saturday in Abuja, said the meeting was to find a lasting solution to the issues surrounding power distribution. According to a statement signed by the Minister’s Special Adviser, Strategic Communication and Media Relations Bolaji Tunji, Adelabu said: “We called this meeting to learn from you and the only way to salvage a bad situation is to understand the real issues on the ground. “Power is one of the most important things we need to energize the economy in terms of achieving the desired economic growth and Industrial development. ”The President has identified the power sector as a major driver of economic growth; therefore no excuse will be entertained for non-performance.” The minister also said that the meeting will become regular to create a stable and accessible environment that will enable discussions surrounding the generating, transmitting, and distribution value chain of electricity to be reviewed and decisions reached. He added that this development will make an impact in the power sector within two to three years.
FG Reiterates Suspension Of Workers’ Salaries Not Listed In IPPIS
Federal civil servants who fail to verify their details or enlist their information in the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) will face salary suspensions starting from November 2023. This announcement by the Federal Government comes following a grace period of one month granted by the office of the Head of Civil Service of the Federation. As per reliable sources, the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation temporarily suspended salaries of non-compliant civil servants for the month of August 2023. A highly authoritative source, who wished to remain anonymous, emphasized the importance of the given grace period and stated, “A grace period was given, and the deadline ends by October 27, 2023. Anyone who fails to make use of this opportunity will have themselves to blame as their salaries will be suspended from the end of October. This means no salaries from this month.” This decision was further reinforced by a letter issued by the Office of the Head of Service of the Federation, dated October 3, 2023, and addressed to all Permanent Secretaries. The letter explained the background of the verification exercise conducted by the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, which began in May 2017 and concluded in April 2023. The letter outlined the two categories of officers affected by this measure: those who did not update their records online and those who updated their records but were unable to complete the process or print the registration slip. The registration portal (https://verification.jopis.gov.ng) was open for officers from October 3rd to October 10th, 2023, and physical verification is scheduled from October 16th to October 27th, 2023, at the Public Service Institute of Nigeria, Kubwa Expressway, Abuja, between 10 am and 4 pm each day. All concerned officers have been urged to take this final opportunity for verification and not risk the suspension of their salaries.
FG Denies N50bn Plea Bargain With Emefiele
The Federal Government on Sunday, distanced itself from a purported N50 billion planned non-prosecution plea bargain with the embattled former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele. The detained ex CBN Boss was reported to have entered into a plea bargain with government on condition of surrendering N50b to facilitate his early release from the custody of the Department of the State Service DSS and cancelling his trial on charges comprising money laundering, breach of Public Procurement Act and abuse of office. However, on Sunday, the Attorney General of the Federation AGF and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Olasunkanmi Fagbemi said neither his office or the Presidency have had anything of such nature with Emefiele. The position of the Federal Government was made public in a statement by the Director of Information in the Federal Ministry of Justice Mrs Modupe Ogundoro. The statement reads in part: “The attention of the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice has been drawn to a report by Sahara Reporters alleging that the former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Godwin Emefiele and the Federal Government of Nigeria, have agreed to a non-prosecution plea bargain arrangement. “The report further alleges that Mr. Godwin Emefiele and the Federal Government of Nigeria, represented by the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, have signed a non-prosecution plea bargain agreement and that the agreement is awaiting the signature of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, “The Office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice hereby states clearly that these reports are completely false. “It would be noted that the legal team representing Mr. Godwin Emefiele had expressed their intention in court at the last hearing to initiate a plea bargain arrangement. “However, no such arrangement has been reached with Mr. Godwin Emefiele or his representatives. “We wish to advise the media and members of the public to kindly disregard the said false report. “The Office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice will continue to take all actions in the interest of the Nigerian public,” Fagbemi assured.
Blue Economy: Prof Pauli Tasks FG On Private Sector Partnership, Job Creation
The creator of Blue Economy, Prof Gunter Pauli, has said that, for the policy to succeed, the Federal Government must aggressively collaborate with the private sector to attract investment into the sector. While hailing President Bola Tinubu for creating the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, Pauli said in six months the ministry can facilitate the creation of a hundred thousand jobs by exploiting opportunities provided by the blue economy. Prof Pauli, who listed shipping, paper conversion from wastes and maggot farming for poultry and fishing as low hanging fruits, urged the ministry to embrace job and wealth creation. In his remarks, the Minister of Blue Economy, Gboyega Oyetola expressed happiness on the interest shown by Prof Pauli in assisting the country tap its idle capacity from the oceans and the blue economy, while also promising to work with private investors in opening up the sector. “I want to say that it’s not by accident that this ministry was created. It was part of the economic diversification policy of our country. We believed so much in oil but we now realize that 70% or so of the resources available actually come from the ocean and we have it in abundance here but neglected it for long. “I must commend the president for creating the ministry. I want to assure you that we are up to the task and I believe so much in the PPP arrangement because government has no business in business. Government should just provide the enabling environment for business to thrive,” the minister said. He disclosed that efforts have been stepped up to improve transportation infrastructure, including automation of port operations for efficiency and increase in revenue. “We now have sufficient control over insecurity and I want to tell you that for the past two years there has been no record of piracy on our shores. That is re-assuring to investors. I also assure you that we are ready to collaborate with investors, we are willing and ready and we will support all the initiatives that will bring all this to reality,” the minister promised,” he said.
FG Decries CCECC’s Slow Pace Of Work On Port Harcourt-Maiduguri Railway
The Minister of Transportation, Sen. Saidu Alkali, has expressed disappointment over the slow pace of work on the reconstruction of the Eastern Railway Corridor by the Chinese Civil Engineering Construction Company (CCECC) Ltd. The minister made his feelings known at the weekend when he inspected the progress of work done on the reconstruction of Eastern railway corridor to Port-Harcourt, Rivers State. Alkali expressed sadness that between Port-Harcourt and Aba Section, only 47 per cent completion stage had been achieved, instead of achieving 47 per cent completion of the entire stretch from Port-Harcourt to Maiduguri. “If you cannot complete Port-Harcourt to Aba which is 63km in 12 months, how would you be able to complete over 2000km in 36 months?” Alkali expressed dismay on the use of manual alignment processes by the CCECC in laying the track in the 21st Century. According to him, in a project that is 85 per cent funded by the Chinese and 15 per cent by the Federal Government, it is only the 15 per cent fund provision by the Federal Government that financed the project so far. The minister said that he would go back to the ministry to look at what was doable within the ambit of the law and that whatever the law provided on the issues observed, he would enforce it. Alkali however, identified one of the striking benefits to be the linking up of the two Sea Ports in Port-Harcourt to Maiduguri as well as promotion of regional trading at a highly reduced cost. The minister assured the people of the zone that by the time the passenger train services commenced, it would go a long way in cushioning the effect of the petroleum subsidy removal on Nigerians that would make use of the train services. Briefing the Minister and his delegation, representative of the CCECC, Mr C. Ching, promised that the first section of the project which was from Port-Harcourt to Aba, would be delivered by December, 2023. The CCECC assured the minister that enough materials were on ground to meet the target date, adding that the project with a special kind of bolts and nuts that were ‘anti-theft’ had been introduced to make vandalism difficult. Onovo said the Consultant handling the project, Khairi and Jamub Global Services Limited as well as the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Transportation, Dr Magdalene Ajani, Directors from the Ministry, the Managing Director, NRC, Fidet Okhiria and others attended the inspection. On March 10, 2021, the Federal Government began the $3 billion repair and reconstruction of the 1,443 kilometres Eastern Railway Line from Port Harcourt to Maiduguri. The railway, when completed, will link Rivers, Abia, Imo, Enugu, Benue, Nasarawa, Plateau, Kaduna, Bauchi, Gombe, Yobe and Borno States.
Looming Strike: NLC Criticises FG’s Lack of Progress on CNG Buses, Cash Transfers, Others
Amid the economic hardships triggered by the removal of fuel subsidies, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has expressed deep dissatisfaction with the apparent lack of commitment from the Federal Government to address its demands. Following an unsuccessful meeting with government officials on Monday, where both sides failed to reach an agreement to avert an indefinite strike, the NLC President Joe Ajaero spoke out about the government’s reluctance to address several critical issues during an appearance on Channels Television’s which was monitored by NIGERIAN ANCHOR. Among the NLC’s key demands are the need to mitigate the consequences of petrol price hikes, review the minimum wage, establish a viable roadmap for the adoption of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) as an alternative fuel, rehabilitate the country’s refineries, and settle lecturers’ salary arrears. Ajaero expressed frustration, saying, “Even the issue as simple as cash transfer or bringing buses on the road, nothing has happened to them. So, it’s a lack of willingness, and we can’t muddle up all these issues. Then you call a minimum wage as wage award. If anybody is looking at the issue of wage award as minimum wage, then there’s confusion within that class of people.” He referenced a 2021 agreement on CNG vehicles reached with the then Minister of State for Petroleum, Timipre Sylva, highlighting that it was evident a million vehicles could be converted to CNG within three months. Ajaero criticized the Federal Government’s 2024 projection to deploy CNG buses for a more affordable mass transit system, questioning the delay, saying, “What is so peculiar about next year when these processes will start? Is it that there are no CNG vehicles that can hit the road, or we can’t have some stations, even with IPMAN saying that their filling stations are available?” Ajaero also criticized the Federal Government for its failure to meet the union’s demands despite having over four months to do so. The NLC is now preparing for an indefinite strike due to the ongoing economic difficulties in the country. “We agree that the Federal Government has had more than enough time for the past four months, and that even if there is a commitment, between now and the next four days, issues will be resolved,” Ajaero said. “And we hope that the minister [Simon Lalong] will work with us within these next few days to make sure we resolve the problem.” Regarding the possibility of resuming negotiations on Tuesday, Ajaero stated that if invited, the NLC would participate in the discussions.
FG To Construct Super Highways On Abuja-Lagos, Port Harcourt-Lagos Roads -Minister
The Federal Government is planning two super highways across the country through a Public Private Partnership scheme. Minister of Work Dave Umahi disclosed this to the State House Correspondents on Sunday after a meeting with President Bola Tinubu in Abuja. He said that the highways would be from Abuja to Lagos and Port Harcourt to Lagos, adding that they would be provided with state of art facilities for the comfort of the travelling public. The super highways are designed for travel at high speeds, having more than one lane for each direction of traffic, a safety strip dividing the two directions. The minister said that the government has got commitments from stakeholders to make the project a success within reasonable period. Umahi also disclosed that the president was briefed on the need to seek better appropriation for the funding of road projects to avoid unnecessary variations in cost and specifications. He said that the National Assembly would be carried along to see the necessity of providing enough fund to road project that are beneficial to the people. He also said that due to inappropriate funding, he has asked the president to direct the termination of road projects that have taken more than 10 years without completion. The minister assured Nigerians that no project initiated by the past administration would be abandoned by government. He said that the Tinubu administration inherited 2,604 projects worth N14 trillion covering 18,000 kilometres of roads, adding that a commitment was got for payment of four trillion out of this amount. The minister added that the government was also committed to the use of reinforced concrete for road pavements across the country. Concrete, he said, is capable of withstanding heavy loads, such as heavy vehicles, with less deformation and serves for years without major repairs. Several factors affect concrete pavement performance, such as traffic, soil, environmental, economic and stress distribution factors. He said that the merit of these would be the use of local materials and elimination of imported items which has been the cause of contract variations in the country. On the structural defects on the Third Mainland bridge, Umahi said that work has started and articulated vehicles had been stopped from plying it for now.
FG Inaugurates Freight Services On Apapa-Ibadan Cargo Rail
The Federal Government has finally inaugurated the first cargo movement from the Lagos-Ibadan rail corridor after initial concern over the under-utilization of the standard gauge rail line 2 years after its commissioning. The inauguration was performed by the Minister of Transportation, Saidu Alkali, during his first official tour of the rail corridor on Tuesday, September 12, 2023. The minister kicked off the tour at the Ebute Meta station before proceeding to Apapa for the launch, then travelled to Ibadan using the 157 km rail corridor. Three coaches of 30 wagons were loaded as the inaugural freight movement was kicked off. The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) said it would start with 3 coaches per day with its Managing Director (MD) noting that the corporation had the capacity to scale up the numbers. This effort is expected to decongest the Apapa port as shippers moved 92.28% of Nigeria’s total exports and 60.77 percent of imports through the facility in the first quarter of 2022 (Q1’22).
FG to extend social register to fallen soldiers’ families -Minister
The Federal Government of Nigeria has announced plans to broaden the national social register and include the families of wounded and deceased soldiers in its poverty alleviation programs. Dr. Betta Edu, the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, revealed this during a meeting with Gen. Christopher Musa, the Chief of Defence Staff, in Abuja. Edu emphasized the importance of supporting military families and stated, “We want to expand our social register to accommodate military personnel who have been wounded or impacted by war, including soldiers who have left their families behind. We need this data from the military so that we can include them in the social register.” The minister’s visit to the defense headquarters aimed to seek the Nigerian military’s cooperation in addressing humanitarian crises nationwide. She emphasized that alleviating humanitarian crises and poverty was a top priority for President Bola Tinubu’s administration. “Our goal is to discuss humanitarian crises across the nation and the need to collaborate with the military to prevent more individuals from falling into the humanitarian bracket. We also aim to effectively reach those affected by humanitarian crises wherever they are, with the military’s support,” Edu explained. In response, Gen. Musa assured the minister of the Nigerian military’s commitment to supporting her in achieving the ministry’s mandate. He acknowledged the direct link between military operations and humanitarian aid, highlighting that successful organizations directly benefit military efforts. Gen. Musa expressed gratitude to the humanitarian ministry for considering the military community’s needs and expressed optimism that the collaboration would yield positive results. The engagement aimed to establish a strong alliance between humanitarian efforts and the military to swiftly address the growing crisis and provide immediate assistance to those affected.