My administration will end hunger, starvation in Edo State, says Omoragbon

Success Damian:

Pastor Peters Omoragbon, the National Conscience Party (NCP) governorship candidate in Edo State has stated that his administration will end hunger and starvation in the state if elected into power.

Omoragbon, while speaking to newsmen on his agenda for Edo people, lamented that hunger and starvation had become prevalent throughout the length and breadth of Edo State, hence his wish to take over the mantle of leadership for there to be an improvement in the lives of the people.

He stated: “Food is man’s most important need. millions of Edo people go about hungry in the midst of abundant natural resources. Although Edo State is reckoned to be one of the top richest states in the country with abundant agricultural potential,  the ordinary Edo citizens are among the poorest in the country.

“Cheap and affordable food will be made available for our people. Producing to meet the food needs of the people internally rather than producing for export shall be the primary focus of our agricultural policy in Edo State.

“The NCP administration in Edo State under my watch will ensure food security, including effective mechanisms for processing, preservation and guaranteed access by all and sundry throughout the year. The NCP government will establish a Research and Development (R&D) centre for food production in Edo State, if I am elected into power.” 

Omoragbon called on Edo people to vote for the NCP, if they really want a change in the affairs of the state, while urging them to jettison the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC), which he described as anti-people and anti-masses parties.

According to him, the people should embrace the NCP, adding that neither the APC governorship candidate, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu or Governor Godwin Obaseki of PDP have what it takes to usher in real change that will positively impact on the lives of the people of Edo State.

 

No reconciliation yet, Nwachukwu speaks on Igbo in APC leadership tussle …Hints on 2020 Iriji Festival

Success Damian:

Eze Ndigbo of Lagos, Eze (Dr) Christian Uchechukwu Nwachukwu has disclosed that there has not been any genuine reconciliation between the two gladiators in the Igbo in APC leadership tussle.

He maintained that whoever claimed that there was reconciliation was entitled to his opinion.

“We have not reconciled, reconciliation continued. We also met ourselves at the birthday party of the Chief of Staff, as part of the reconciliation, so we have not reconciled. It is only truth that can prevail, we want truth to prevail,” Nwachukwu said.

On Joe Igbokwe’s claim that he has done enough for Ndigbo and therefore better position to occupy the APC leadership spot in Lagos, Nwachukwu responded that he (Igbokwe) is entitled to his opinion, “You must not count on what he said. Igbokwe is entitled to his opinions. The traditional leaders of Ndigbo in Lagos State and all the Igbo communities have stamped that Hon Jude Idimogu, the Lawmaker representing Oshodi/Isolo Constituency 02 in the Lagos State House of Assembly should be the one to represent the interest of all. Igbokwe has been there for long, the question is, what has he done, is the community faring better or disfranchised? His leadership is that he sidelined the middle class, and local class, that is why we are losing elections.”

He put the record straight by saying that Honorable Idimogu did not come to the Ezes for the Apex leader position “Now we have called Jude, we called Jude; it is not like Jude came on his own, no. We are the ones that invited Jude, after all the appraisal of the situation of the problems Ndigbo are having in APC and the feeling of suspicion from the party leaders that Ndigbo are not complying with them with their support and trust.

 “So Jude is the only person we called and invited and endorsed, issued a certificate for him to go and do the job there and give us justice on what should be done so that party leaders will not complain,” he said.

He said that the issue of Apex leader is not a matter of competition “It is not issue of competition, in comparison, Jude was in school when Joe was in party, Jude was in school, he left school, became chartered, and a trained marketer. So you can’t compare a trained marketer and chartered. So now we have called him, we are the ones working in Lagos State not those that head everybody, we are the ones that do the job, all the Eze Ndigbo in Lagos State and Igbo communities, we are the ones doing the job.

“He should forget the interest in money; he should forget about that, what we want now is the genuine leadership of Ndigbo that can reflect people’s orientation; that is what we are after.

“We have given the party to the humble and gentleman that will be able to do that and carry Ndigbo to the masses, the masses have given him the mandate; he will go there and carry Ndigbo back to the masses; that is the authority giving to him.”

On issue of age between the two, Nwachukwu said “Age is about tradition but in politics, any man who is intelligent or with superior argument can go there and lead.”

Nwachukwu praised all the Ezes and leaders in various local governments in Lagos State saying “We appreciate all Ndigbo in various places we have visited, especially Ibeju Lekki, Alimosho, Otawoyi, Alaba International, among others, we thank them for having received the lawmaker very very well. We assure them that the promise made is promise kept. The issue of the ones we have not reached, keep waiting for us, we will meet you there. We are thankful to you, and ask you not to relent in your efforts in supporting and mobilizing your people in various local governments for the lawmaker.”

The Eze Ndigbo also spoke on his annual Iriji Festival “Now the issue of the annual new yam festival, it is fast approaching, hopefully, Gods willing, sometime in October we will be able to have our annual ceremony, iriji ceremony, and also commission the newly built Igbo Community Centre which is the Palace of Eze Ndigbo, Lagos State.

 

Consumers are development partners in journey to Nigeria’s Digital Economy, ATCON Executive Secretary

Success Damian:

Executive Secretary, Association of Telecommunication Companies of Nigeria (ATCON) Ajibola Olude has hailed Nigerian Telecoms consumers saying that they are development partners in the journey to Nigeria’s Digital Economy.

“I want to strongly advise telecom and ICT consumers that our members may not increase prices of their services and we shall not abuse consumer protection laws as we see them as development partners in the journey of developing Nigeria’s Digital Economy,” he stated.

Olude was speaking at the 2nd Webinar Series on Sustainability, Business and Human Rights themed "Consumer Protection Amidst the Pandemic – Business and Human Rights Implication" organized by International Network for Corporate Social Responsibility (IN-CSR) in collaboration with the National Human Rights Commission.

Speaking on the role of telecommunication companies in protecting consumers’ rights he said that the role of telecom companies may not be appreciated without considering or evaluating the structure of the Nigeria telecommunications when it was only NITEL that served the entire country. He said NITEL was owned by the government and during this time, NITEL could only boast of less than 500lines.

He said some of the challenges of government owning telecom companies were Depravation of telephone lines by Nigerians; Poor contribution to GDP of Nigeria; Less people were employed by the sector; Lack of professionals in the sector; Poor funding of the sector in terms of infrastructure development; Large scale corruption and embezzlement, Network rollout challenges; Restricted choices; Poor quality of service and Poor service delivery.

On Liberalization Advocacy, he said ATCON played a key role in terms of advocating for a liberalized market.

Olude appreciated the role of NCC in enhancing Telecoms growth and development in Nigeria saying, “The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) was established by law in November 1992 to regulate and put the telecom industry on the growth path.“

On Advantages of Telecom Sector reform, he disclosed that efficient and effective service delivery, migration from government owned and control telecom companies to private owned companies, increase in local and international telecom financing, high creativity and innovation were the hallmarks of private ownership of telecom companies. He also stressed the reduction in underserved and unserved areas and higher contribution to GDP of the country.

Olude spoke on the importance of Consumers saying “Consumers are kings and our member companies will continue to treat them as kings through effective service delivery “Our members are working very hard to make sure that all telecom consumers have value for every kobo spent on telecom services”

Speaking on consumer education, Olude said “All our members have been educating consumers on how they can use their data effectively.” He cautioned them on the use of applications saying “The more apps you have on your phone the quicker your data will be consumed.”

On Telecoms Consumers’ rights he enumerated various Rights Protection Initiatives which include  Per-seconds billing, Cancellation of Airtime and data validity period - Airtime and Data Roll-over, Mobile number portability, Do-Not-Disturb,  Improved and efficient customers’ complaint platforms, and Improved Customers’ experience.

He said Part of protecting the consumers’ right led to the development of the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation (NDPR) 2019 which stopped the unauthorized sharing of Nigerians data and protected Nigerians on the web.

He said Consumers are the life blood of business “So we take them with all sense of seriousness, we have not worked until consumers are satisfied,” Olude stated

 

MOWLAS 2nd Webinar series: Support women farmers to increase food production in Nigeria, experts urge government

Success Damian:

When women farmers are supported and empowered with the right resources, such as education, information, finance and land, they are capable of exponentially increasing the nation's food production capacity resulting in food security for citizens. 

This was the submission made by speakers at the Movement for Women in Lagos State Institutions for Good Governance (MOWLAS) 2nd Webinar Series titled "Post Covid-19: Role of Women in Gender Equity and Agriculture" which held on Wednesday, 26th August, 2020. 

The speakers, which included Prof. Adeola Animashaun, from Lagos State University, Dr. Olubunmi Adewusi from Caleb University and Dr. Victoria Adenle-Saheed from Lagos State Polytechnic (Laspotech) agreed that in spite of their equal participation in farming activities, women have often been marginalized in accessing farming resources, with the implication that their earning power in the sector is diminished. 

The first speaker, Dr. Olubunmi Adewusi, who spoke on the sub-topic, "Women and Food Security" said that the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on agriculture are huge and far-reaching, and have compounded the issues of hunger and food insecurity in Africa. She said that women account for about 50% of players in the agricultural sector and are directly and indirectly involved in crop and livestock farming, transportation, marketing and sales, and processing of farm produce. They also play the role of providers in many homes, and  responsible for the feeding of the household from their farming practices. 

These, she said, does not preclude them, especially those from developing countries, from facing various challenges such as gender discrimination and bias, lack of education, lack of good healthcare, low access to loan facilities, and lack of child care support system, even as 820 million of people from the affected nations are undernourished. 

She added that for the FAO goal of 2030, i.e, increase in food production by women up to 30%, to become a reality, women must receive adequate support such as access to funds and other resources in equal proportion with men, amongst others. 

Dr. Victoria Adenle-Saheed who spoke next corroborated the first speaker's assertion that more support is needed for women in agriculture as women continue to be marginalized in spite of  producing 60-80% of food in most developing countries. 

Quoting the SFA team and Cheryl Doss (2011) research, she stated that agriculture can be an important engine of growth and poverty reduction, but unfortunately, the sector is underperforming in many countries. This, for her, is connected to lack of resources and opportunities for women interested in farming. She harped on denied land ownership, low illiteracy rate, low bargaining power, and lack of access to credit facilities as the bane of women's successful participation in the sector, adding that these problems have now been worsened by the effect of covid-19. 

She urged the government and other stakeholders to address this setback by protecting the right of women as spelt out by the law, ensuring equitable allocation of land to women for farming purposes, assisting them with finance, free healthcare and farming equipments, and providing other incentives such as maternity leave and pension scheme. 

The last speaker, Director, Lagos State University Centre for Environmental Studies and Sustainable Development (CESSED), Prof. Adeola Animashaun, spoke on "Finance and Risk Management in Agriculture" added that in spite of making up to 50% of farmer worldwide, women only own 20% of farming lands, and have less access to credit and information. 

She classified the role of women in agriculture into three: Contributor, i.e, those focused only on housework, unsure of how to start and run a commercial activity, and have little mobility and no decision-making; Collaborator, i.e, those who jointly own and manage farms, participate in decision making around farm activities, have small businesses and interested in growing their businesses; and the Sole or Main Proprietor, i.e,  someone who has her own income-generating business, provides inputs into family financial decisions and wants to invest more and grow her  family business and asset. 

She added that female farmer can get financing for their for their agriculture activities through personal saving, equity, grants, commercial loans from banks, revolving funds, fintech and subsidized loans, and agric value chain and financing. 

On managing risks in the business, Prof. Animashaun advised farmers to maintain a separate bank account in the name of the business, maintain proper records on income and expenditures, and take insurance, while taking proactive steps to mitigate the risks associated with farming. 

The MOWLAS Webinar Series was convened by Former Acting Vice Chancellor, Lagos State University and Director, Directorate of Advancement of the institution, Prof. Ibiyemi Olatunji-Bello, mni, and moderated by Provost, Adeniran Ogunsanya College of Education (AOCOED), Prof. Bidemi Lafiaji-Okuneye.

 

Prof Olukorede emerges LASU new Deputy VC Academics

Success Damian

Senate of Lagos State University (LASU) has elected Prof. Wahab Elias Olukorede as the Deputy Vice Chancellor ( Academics) of the institution. 

According to a statement by Centre for Information Press and Public Relations (CIPPR), the election, which took place Wednesday, 26th August, 2020 saw Prof. Wahab defeat the other candidate for the position, Prof. Ayodeji Abari, by 88 to 43 votes to emerge winner.

Prof. Wahab a Professor of Sociology, and Dean, Faculty of Social Sciences succeeds Prof. Olumuyiwa Noah whose tenure ended on Monday, 24th August, 2020 after serving for 2 consecutive terms of 4 years.

The election of the new DVC (Academics) is to be ratified by the Governing Council of the University.

Telcos record 9,077 service outages in Q2 2020, says NCC

Success Damian:

Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has disclosed that major Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) in the country recorded 9,077 cases of service outages on their networks in the first quarter of 2020.

In a press statement the commission said that the outages resulted in unexpected disruptions to operators’ network quality of service (QoS) delivery and intermittent quality of experience (QoE) by the consumers.

The Executive Commissioner, Stakeholder Management (ECSM), NCC, Mr. Adeleke Adewolu, disclosed this in a presentation delivered during the first Virtual Telecoms Consumer Parliament (VTCP) hosted by the Commission recently.

According to Adewolu, of the 9,077 service outages recorded by the operators, 3,585 were caused by incidences of denial of access to telecoms sites for maintenance, 4,972 were triggered by incidences of fibre cuts from construction activities and vandalism while 520 cases were as a result of incidences of generator and battery theft at sites.

Adewolu, however, noted that in a proactive step to mitigate the challenges, the Commission had swiftly responded by taking some major decisions to mitigate any unforeseen challenges that may cause serious disruptions in service delivery to the consumers throughout the period of the COVID-19 pandemic.

He said, “The Commission approved resource sharing by operators throughout the period of COVID-19 pandemic.” These include fibre optic cables and other resources in the event of cable cuts and other unforeseen developments.

 

“We also ensured that the service providers meet the needs of their teeming consumers by securing Right of Passage (RoP) for all telecommunications officials and staff for easy movement during the lockdown. This was to ensure ease of movement to service base stations and other telecom facilities and equipment,” among others.

 

The ECSM called on all stakeholders to join hands with the Commission in enlightening all citizens on the need to protect the telecom infrastructure in their domain without which quality of service delivery will be hampered. He noted the numerous complaints received from consumers by the Commission since the outbreak of the pandemic were indicative of the widening gap between the consumer QoS and the QoE provided by the service providers, which, according to him, needed to be addressed.

He charged operators on the need to increase and improve their network capacity following the unprecedented increase in consumer demand.

“Also, service providers must embark on pervasive consumer education and enlightenment campaign about data usage and billing to ensure their subscribers have all the required information to make informed decisions so as get value for money spent. Operators also need to train and equip their customer care personnel on consumer complaint management as well as ensuring that consumer complaints are resolved conclusively and in line with the revised Service Level Agreement (SLA),” Adewolu said.

He warned service providers to refrain from indulging in unwholesome practices such as modification of data plan without informing the consumers, putting out promotional advertorials without prior approval by the Commission, changing the names and nomenclature of promotions from what was approved, among others to short-change the consumers, warning that the Commission will not hesitate to sanction erring operators.

The ECSM noted that the Consumer Code of Practice requires that once a contract agreement is signed, both parties should adhere to the contract terms and conditions and where a change is required, the validity period should end before any modification is effected.

 

 

Primate Ayodele speaks on CAMA Law, saying churches are neither plc nor enterprises …Unveils Warnings to the Nations 2020 Edition

Success Damian:

Founder of INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church, Lagos and Servant of the Most High God, Babatunde Elijah Ayodele has asserted that Churches are neither Public Liability Companies (plc) nor Enterprises.

Ayodele took the position at the Press Conference/Unveiling of his two publications: Warnings to the Nations: A Collection of Divine Signals, 2020/2021 Edition encapsulated in 376 pages. He also presented another 608-page masterpiece: A Compendium of Ten Thousand & More Fulfilled Prophecies between1994 and 2020. This latest is a compilation of his Warnings to the Nations since its debut till date.

“Speaking on the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) law assented to by President Muhammadu Buhari, Primate Ayodele said “The affair of the church is professional, it is divine, it is going to be a big mistake for this government and this is going to hunt the government as well, because the government doesn’t need to fight God.  They have not even settled Nigerian problems, why are they going to get solution for church matter?

“Christianity is not APC or PDP, why must they even bring somebody who does not know anything about God to take over the church? Is it EFCC or AMCON; they can only do so to Plc and enterprises, so church is not enterprises and not Plc,” Ayodele said.

He spoke further ‘The CAMA law is dead on arrival, because there will be only protest against the government, apart from taking them to court, I can go three hundred days to fast and fight government with my fasting, because it is wrong, that is why I said we don’t have a body that regulates Christianity, we need people that are very proactive, people that understand the rule and rudiments in the system.

“The tithe we collect in our church, we use it to take care of the widows, the orphans, and the vulnerable in society. I have it on record, first Sunday of the month, we distribute food to the less privileged, we have about 6,000 people that we take care of in this church, so if the government thinks that the church is a business centre, my own church is not a business center, nobody will come and take over my church from me, unless the person wants to face the annoyance of God.

Speaking on Covid-19 he said that Corona virus will kill more corrupt people in Nigeria, adding that because there is so much corruption in the system government cannot take care of the pandemic. He stated that the virus will stay for a long time.

Ayodele added that there is no leadership in Christian Association of Nigeria because they are not proactive and they don’t have vision.

He said that Buhari must sack the service chiefs as they have nothing to offer any more.

On issue of Biafra, he responded that Nigeria will break one day and that may bring about the actualization of Biafra.

While speaking on election matters in Nigeria, Ayodele said “With free and fair election in Edo State governorship election, Governor Godwin Obaseki will win but I foresee manipulation in the election.”

Ayodele gave Ondo gubernatorial Election to Akeredolu,he added that PDP will retain Bayelsa State.

The Primate his church will be 27 next year and he has plans to celebrate the Press. “By the grace of God our congregation will be 27 next year, then we are going to celebrate it a bit louder, we shall empower pressmen and their wives and families of late pressmen will be assisted also.  

“Today there is crisis in the world, we need God to resolve the challenges we are facing in the world, we also need God to help us move away from our sin, we appreciate the almighty God who started with us and many thanks to INRI family.

He stated that Nigeria as a country needs prayers, “We need more prayers for the elections coming up in Edo, Undo and in Osun. These are elections that will come before 2023 general election.

 

 

 

 

Ala-Igbo International Cultural Festival debuts, promotes Igbo personality

Success Damian:

For long there has been a widely held perception about the Igbos being fanatical about western culture and civilization to the extent of abandoning their identity.

Indeed the Igbos being a highly travelled group have been without a generally unifying platform designed for the expression and optimization of their cultural identity, even though individuals, communities and associations have various initiatives that attempt to promoting and preserving that identity, none has been able to gather the entire Igbo under a single umbrella for the purposes of cultural expression that would showcase the Biafran mindset which is not just political but a signification of a people with unique and never say die distinctiveness.

No wonder Ala-Igbo International Cultural Festival with the vision to establishing a lasting value using tourism, multicultural development through local and international partnerships was designed to change the narrative.

In a press statement issued by Evelyn Okere, the group’s Event Brand Director, the Festival was designed to resurrect in every Igbo personality the love, passion and interest in Igbo cultural heritage and values.

The statement read “The cultural festival is to resurrect in every Igbo personality the love, passion and interest for our cultural heritage and values. The festival will showcase the never say die spirit of Igbo people through visual arts, cultural displays, dance forms as well as the attire, cuisine, language, dialects and hospitality of the Igbo nation,” Okere said.

To hold on yet to be determined date, the Festival was packaged as an annual event to be hosted in any part of the world with the grand finale in one of the states of Southeast region. It was also intended to focus on creating platform for all Igbo families across the world to identify with their heritage, values, beauty and uniqueness of Igbo culture with emphasis on culture renaissance, tourism, youth development, and promotion of peace and security amongst the Igbo at home and in the Diaspora.

The statement further noted that with over 200,000 viewers and followers online, the Festival presents a perfect platform for brand visibility for corporate firms, government agencies, politicians, business community, associations, practitioners, and well-meaning personalities to have a wide reach to consumers and followers by taking advantage of the festival.

With the mission to make the Festival an avenue for the discovery of skills, talents, prowess, and showcasing the rich cultural heritage, values and investment opportunities in Igbo land, the event will present a bouquet of activities which include media parley and tour of facilities at the cultural village, Courtesy visits, Opening of cultural village and Queen of Ala-Igbo pageant; tourism summit; Industry Nite; International Cultural Dinner and Award Nite, and the Grand Finale (Brands/Street Party/Procession (one venue multiple activities). 

Expected at the event are His Excellencies, Dr Okezie Victor Ikpeazu, the Executive Governor of Abia State; Willie Obiano, the Executive Governor of Anambra State and Engr. David Umahi, the Executive Governor of Ebonyi State.

Others are His Excellencies, Ifeanyi Ugwanyi, the Executive Governor of Enugu State; Hope Uzodinma (Onwa Oyoko), the Executive Governor of Imo State; Dr Ifeanyi Arthur Okowa, the Executive Governor of Delta State; Prince Engr. Arthur Eze; Her Excellency, Deacon Nkechi Ikpeazu, First Lady of Abia State, among other crème de la crème of the region.

NITDA’s Boss, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi: 365 days after

Success Damian

Around 6:20pm on 20th August, 2019, a breaking news was scrolling on the screens of the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) - Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, has been appointed as the Director General and Chief Executive Officer of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) by President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.

The buzz in IT circles was who is this young man to fit into the massive shoes of Dr. Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, his predecessor who was also announced as Minister of Communications on the same day?

365 days after, the facts are now speaking for themselves. Nigerian and International onlookers have moved from the state of shock, doubt, skepticism to measured happiness and now ecstasy. The MIT Sloan, Cambridge, Oxford, IMD Business School trained strategist has proven that President Muhammadu Buhari’s signature of the Not-Too-Young to run bill was not a photo-op.

The task of managing the Nigeria’s apex IT Agency is arguably more than just computer, data control and management. It involves civil service bureaucracy, local and international Information Technology (IT) policies and regulations, cyber security, data protection and privacy issues, local content development and promotion on ICT, etc. And for a country at the cradle of digitizing her economy, the challenge of weaning her off the age-long inhibitives to innovation is daunting indeed. None of these, however, seems unnerving to Kashifu because of his background and rich mix of both the public and private sector experiences. If Kashifu should have sleepless nights, it is not for want of ideas but for his burning desire to reform and grow the ICT sector in line with the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy of President Muhammadu Buhari, ably being championed by the Honourable Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami. Hence, from his first day in office, he knew his goals and how best to achieve them. Indeed the country is now firmly set on a path to irreversible digital economy maturity.

So, how has NITDA fared in a year of Kashifu’s leadership?

One of the major components of the fourth industrial revolution is big data. Consequently, data has become a treasured asset, which needs to be protected. The Nigeria Data Protection sector is estimated to be over Two Billion Naira. Therefore, the protection of data asset is at no other time better than now. In line with global practice of data protection, NITDA, in January 2019, issued and published the Nigeria government’s comprehensive guidelines on data protection, otherwise known as the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation (NDPR). The NDPR is a definitive government policy on data management and regulation for entities, which deal in data. The policy seeks to enhance data security and safety.

The data protection drive by NITDA did not end at just ensuring compliance. Besides issuing a total of two hundred and thirty-five (235) compliance and enforcement notices in the last one year, it has inaugurated Data Breach Investigation Team in collaboration with the office of the Inspector General of Police (IGP). So far, eight (8) data infraction cases were initiated and deposited with the Nigerian Police, aside resolving seven hundred and ninety (790) data-regulation issues.

To cap NITDA’s effort at enforcing NDPR, the African Union Working Group on Data Protection, Harmonization and Localization, having recognized the leading role being played by Nigeria in Data Protection compliance, appointed the country, represented by NITDA, as its Vice Chair. This regulation has in turn created Two Thousand Seven Hundred (2700) jobs. This is a big testament to what has been achieved in just 365 days.

The Nigerian Government Enterprise Architecture (NGEA) and Nigeria e-Governance Interoperability framework (Ne-GIF) are the Nigeria government structures to promote government digital services. NITDA is not resting its oars in the implementation and success of both frameworks. Under the leadership of Mr Kashifu, NITDA has established collaboration with Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) to secure funding in special areas of NGEA/Ne-GIF implementation.

In an effort to assist government’s Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) in the digitization of their processes and functions, as a first step, NITDA inaugurated the National e-governance steering committee to interface with MDAs on the adoption and implementation of the government digital identity programme. It has also mandated all government MDAs to set up IT departments and units. Meanwhile, two hundred and seventy users accounts have been created to enable MDAs submit their IT projects without hassle. Mr kashifu through this approach has cleared one hundred and fifty-four (154) unique projects of seventy-three (73) MDAs estimated at 1.2 Trillion Naira. This process helped saved the federal government about five billion Naira.

NITDA has carried out auditing of the IT systems, processes, digital services and capabilities of one hundred (100) MDAs and has trained fifty (50) staff of different MDAs on digital identity and e-governance awareness, regulation and enterprise architecture. Through periodic stake-holder engagements, the Agency provided guidelines for MDAs in the drafting of Service Level Agreement (SLA) for engagement with IT service providers. Accordingly, Mr Kashifu has not failed to wield the big sticks where MDAs defaulted on government guidelines for indigenous ICT content development. In this regard, it has sanctioned one hundred and twenty-five (125) MDAs that failed to comply.

In accordance with the Nigerian Content Development in ICT, NITDA, under Mr. Kashifu, has partnered with relevant government agencies for fostering indigenous content development. Part of its partnership is with the National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP) to implement the Nigerian software strategy and partnership with indigenous computer manufacturers to enhance indigenous hardware standard for better patronage. Furthermore, NITDA has certified several indigenous IT service providers, which include companies, contractors and OEMs to raise the confidence of Nigerians in the patronage and consumption of indigenous IT products and services. NITDA has launched the consumer protection forum in order to safeguard consumer’s right in the patronage of made in Nigeria IT products and services.

To enhance the solid infrastructure for a digital economy in a digital world, NITDA has deployed over eighty (80) digital capacity training centres across all geopolitical zones within just a year. It has also deployed three (3) IT hubs, four (4) innovation and incubation parks, six (6) IT community Centers and three (3) IT capacity Building Centers in higher institutions of learning as well as in unserved and underserved communities. This is indeed a great leap.

To strengthen software development and IT entrepreneurship, NITDA, under the leadership of Kashifu, is working with various technology and innovation ecosystems, while also supporting startups and IT hub managers. So far, two hundred and forty-six (246) startups and one hundred and twenty-five (125) IT hubs and ecosystems builders have received the support of NITDA through its implementation of the Nigeria ICT Innovation and Entrepreneurship Vision (NIIEV). Through NITDA’s periodic innovation contest such as Future-Hack, participants receive funding and mentorship to develop marketable products and services.  In the last one year, prize money of Three Million Two Hundred and Fifty Thousand Naira (N3,250,000) has been distributed to winners at different startup technology and innovation clinics in Abuja and Kebbi state. Furthermore, Entrepreneurship trainings for the utilization of ICT have also been conducted for two hundred (200) women where they were provided with laptops pre-installed with the requisite e-resources as support for their startups. A total of forty six thousand and fourty-four (46,044) competencies have been developed.

On Emerging Technologies, NITDA’s boss is exploring different smart initiatives to accelerate the transition of Nigeria to a digital economy. The Agency is also exploring the use and adoption of Blockchain Technology, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and data exploration framework and strategy for adoption into the digital economy vision of President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR. Already, successes have been recorded with the National Adopted Village for Smart Agriculture (NAVSA) initiative, as one hundred and forty-five (145) farmers have been trained and empowered on how to utilize digital, smart and precision technology to improve farm yield. In furtherance of this, four hundred (400) additional farmers will be adopted this year for similar initiative.

Helping to build future entrepreneurs and innovators, NITDA organizes and provides support for events such as, HUAWEI and NMC ICT competitions, technovation and summer coding events where budding talents are revealed and afforded the foundational support for personal development. In the last one year, nineteen (19) laptops, thirteen (13) tablets and several other IT tool kits have been given to students of secondary school across FCT who participated at such events and have demonstrated innovative skills and talents.

NITDA has also begun massive online open courses (MOOC) initiative for our tertiary institutions while also six PhD and thirty-seven MSc scholarships have been awarded by Mr. kashifu in addition to six recipients of MSc scholarship on IT law.

NITDA is aware that to adapt to the emerging virtual world and to promote the digital economy concept of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration, a measure of digital literacy and skills is required. Also, with the coming of the COVID-19 pandemic which has raised the prospect of major human economic, social and professional activities to go virtual, and as this is expected to be the new normal, NITDA has not failed to show capacity and vision for its niche in the emerging digital world. Therefore, it quickly raised its extant capacity building programmes on ICT, training Nigerians through different online and physical platforms on digital skills and literacy in order to prepare the populace for the digital world ahead.

Kashifu’s achievement on youth empowerment is thus unprecedented. He has initiated and successfully carried out capacity building programmes for over four hundred (400) artisans across four geo-political zones, two hundred (200) IT Centers managers have been trained in line with the digital economy policy and strategy of the current administration. Capacity building outreach have also been extended to other individuals and members of both private public institutions which include lecturers, librarians, researchers, students of tertiary institutions, officers of the Nigeria Police Force, journalists, National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members and undergraduate on Student’s Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES). In numbers, NITDA has delivered digital skill and literacy to over twenty-five thousand Nigerians in the year 2020. A total of over 2000 laptops have been offered to various government institutions while six thousand three hundred and eighty six (6386) new jobs and roles were created.

In response to the novel corona virus that struck hard in early 2020, Kashifu, due to the closure of schools, established and launched the NITDA Academy for research and training on 29th April, 2020, to initiate the learning never stops programme for massive training of the Nigerian citizens who are currently adjusting to the new normal. NITDA has also instituted the Tech4Covid-19 Committee to proffer possible solutions on how to cushion the effect of the pandemic.

Conscious of the reality of increased cybercrime in a world of virtual activities, NITDA has not faltered in taking proactive measures at securing the Nigerian cyberspace. These include increased awareness campaign and sensitization workshops on cybercrimes for members of the public and the deployment of preventive tools and recovery mechanism to make our cyberspace more secured.

The list continues and NITDA under Kashifu is not done yet, as he has immensely contributed to the recent ICT contribution of 14.07% to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and has targeted five percent quarterly increase on every achievement in the years ahead. The years ahead look brighter for ICT development and adoption, for a digital Nigeria.

You will agree with me that Kashifu did not only achieve quite a lot at NITDA but has also restructured and extended the infrastructure by building a digital center and has rebranded the agency towards achieving a digital nation.

In-house, Kashifu is not found lacking. Cognizant of the fact that human resource is vital to reform and progress, the staff of the agency are not left behind in skills development drive of the DG, staff members are periodically sent on skills development seminars, conferences and training workshops. In the last one year, staff have been sent on capacity building workshops, training and seminars which are aimed at up-skilling staff in line with global best practice for ICT deployments. Similarly, experienced managers and seasoned administrators with international exposure have been made to take core roles at NITDA to foster efficiency and competence.

With what the NITDA’s boss has achieved in just a year, he is a born leader who turns ideas to reality, liabilities to opportunities, sees posterity and leads by example. A young man full of youthful exuberance,   Kashifu's reform mindset has earned him the nickname, “the poster boy of Nigerian youths” from the Thisday newspaper’s Assistant Editor, Funke Olaode.  It is a worthy label indeed. For NITDA’s boss, it is result or nothing.

One year at NITDA; Kashifu as a vindication of youth excellence in governance

Opinion by Hashim Suleiman:

Let me refer to my September 16, 2019 article tagged ‘Pantami, Kashifu and the beauty of vision” where I had identified Kashifu Inuwa as an individual who had understood clearly the vision of Dr Isa Ali Pantami and had equally chosen to fly with it to fruition.

It is also a practical knowledge that people could actually be good carriers of vision and supportive but may not make good leaders, however, Mr Kashifu has today proven to be good in both fronts having stayed a year in office as the Director General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA).

What Kashifu has showcased from transition to becoming DG till today sits very well with our expectation at #30PercentOrNothing because while were asking for a 30% affirmative action for the youth, we were also very clear as to the sort of youth that should be brought on board if the expected youth excellence and energy were to manifest, we therefore thank Kashifu for vindicating our message which was borne out of critical research.

I was pained the other day when I was having a conversation with an elder brother and I accused his age group for failing to provide mentorship to us and thereby leading to a scarcity of critical youths who can measure up to the leadership gaps that are being created on a daily. He responded to me by mentioning certain youths who have held leadership positions in recent past and have not done well enough to satisfy the expectations of a youth. I had to explain to him how the recruitment process mattered a lot, it never meant that simply appointing a youth was synonymous to performance but rather the careful selection and appointment of youths who have had personal history of zeal, vision and hunger for success. In this area again, Mr Kashifu has measured up and has in fact provided a template for such kinds of selection going forward in order that the big deficit being created in leadership in Nigeria and Africa can be bridged.

Remember how he was a key player in the piloting of the Dr Isa Pantami’s digital journey in 2017 and there couldn’t have been a better way of consolidating such efforts after the ascendance of Dr Pantami to Ministership than the eventual appointment of Kashifu as the substantive DG of NITDA which in my opinion is the most critical Agency in the Digital Economy campaign. Because the selection and appointment was right, the performance in one year has also matched the expectation.

From a year after Dr Pantami became the DG of NITDA, commissioning of various completed projects started and they have continued till today and we can lately see how all the other parastatals under the Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy are working to outdo each other in terms of delivery of projects to be commissioned by the Hon. Minister.

Little wonder why during the commissioning of the 11 Digital Economy projects by Dr Pantami on 11^th August, 2020, the Chairman of the Projects Commissioning Committee Mr Ayuba Shuaibu had while presenting the welcome address described Mr Kashifu as a progressive per excellence and finally referred to him as ‘Mr Progress’. This is an indication that the good things people do resonates in the minds of fair and discerning individuals.

So far, I have not gone into the crux of Mr Progress’s achievements in one year. In the beginning from his first speech to the personnel of the Agency where he appeared in a deep blue suit which was well sewn to fit and matching shoes to present a man well dressed and ready for digitization. The speech also matched dressing by declaring his wish to first turn the edifice into a smart one that was expected of an ICT Agency. Talk is cheap they say but the way to understand a serious leader is he who walks the talk and NITDA is today a smart office that could be presented to anyone as being Nigeria’s ICT regulator talk less of the improved zeal and corporate appearance of the personnel themselves. The Nigerian parlance will tell you the seriousness of an individual is in the ‘packaging’.

Basically, NITDA has become an Agency that represents a sector which it regulates; there has been introduction of dress code to ensure appearances are in consonance with the building and the ICT sector in general. The commissioning of the rejuvenated smart office structure which was performed by the Honorable Minister Pantami last Monday was well publicized and it was amongst the series of projects that the Hon Minister has been commissioning week in week out.

Further to this, the man has enhanced the Cybersecurity infrastructure through the commissioning of the new CERRT office which is more equipped to track cyber threats to the nation. Little wonder why NITDA kept alerting Nigerians on various threats and scams that were prevalent during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown period.

Furthermore, the DG had taken special interest in educating Nigerians about the opportunities the pandemic had presented. He highlighted so much how the new normal was an opportunity for the ICT sector to think outside the box and harness the opportunities to replace the vacuum created with technological tendencies. Such awareness coming from a regulator has permeated the public and has since manifested and the increased utilization of technology for activities is evidently on the increase.

Unfortunately, this space will not be enough to enumerate the ample strides that the young professional has exhibited but the one year milestone was enough for us to see an individual who looked the part regarding the ideal expectation of young people in governance. It also behooves on us to echo such to a public that is in deficit of young leadership that was capable of managing the polity following the exit of the elder statesmen. 

We shall continue to be on the lookout for young appointees who have chosen to distinguish themselves by delivering those qualities which are expected of young people especially as relates to performance and shift away from the norm but on this occasion give it up for Mr Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi for admitting himself into the Leadership Hall of Fame with his stellar performances in a one year milestone that embodies many more to come for benefit of nation.

 

 

 

Lagos State Task Force besieges Lord’s Chosen property, pull down fences

Success Damian:

Men suspected to be officials of the Lagos State Task Force have been fingered in the demolition and occupation of property belonging to the Lords Chosen Charismatic Revival Ministries with headquarters at Ijesha in Lagos.

The task force which came with caterpillars, construction materials, cement mixing equipment, was said to be aided by Mobile Policemen who were armed to the teeth to provide cover for the men of the task force and those working on the property in question.

According to an eyewitness, a Lord’s Chosen Security personnel, Mr Onuorah, he disclosed that the men of the state task force and the armed policemen arrived at the location of the property about 2 a.m. on Friday, adding that their Police patrol Van has the registration number SMK 207 EPE with the inscription Ikotun 1 and also a Black Maria.

He said “My name is Onuorah, a Chosen security man. About 2a.m., I saw a truck that carried sand, so I tried to find out where they were going, they said they were from Transerve, so I asked them the particular site they were going and they said they don’t know the exact site, that they will call their manager. So after enough phone calls the driver decided to tip the sand by the side of the road and left.

“This early morning I saw another vehicle carrying iron rod, and with caterpillar, and another one carrying mixer, they lined up, this was about 6.30a.m. to 7a.m. in the morning, so I tried to find out where they were going, they said it was from the same Transerve.”

Onuorah spoke further. “I don’t have to disturb them because anybody can go his side and work, but to my greatest surprise I saw them trying to enter our own land, so I have to inform our security, so when they came there, immediately they saw police patrol, they took off and drove all the vehicles away to the Transerve office. After 3 or four hours, I saw Lagos State Task Force, with Black Maria, Hilux vans, and uncountable number of vehicles, they lined up, even the trucks were carrying okadas that I felt they seized from the riders, they were inside the trucks.

“I was thinking it was the normal clean up they usually do on the road not knowing that they came for the same Transerve. So they went straight to Transerve office, after some minutes I saw Transerve himself leading them. They now drove down to our land, both the caterpillar and all the equipment. So Transerve pointed at our gate, and those caterpillars were controlled by Mopol, Lagos State Task Force, they asked the caterpillars to push down the gate. They pulled down the gate, started covering the gutters, they destroyed the gate and entered inside the land, pulled down our fence, from front and back.

“Right now they are laying foundation inside our land, and those police men are there with them, till now they are working as I am talking to you,” Onuorah said.

He disclosed that he reported the break and entry by the task force to the church “When I reported to the church, they told me the matter is already in court; that they don’t have anything to do with them since the matter is still in court, that the court will know what to do about it,” Onuora narrated.

Speaking to the media, the Public Relations Officer of the Church, Pastor Chidi Louis said the matter is still in court, and wondered why the other group should take the law into the hands.

He stated that the land in question was duly acquired, the document of which he made available to the press.

Louis said “We bought this property a long time ago.  Onitire sold this estate down to Okota, all these places, because he got Supreme Court judgement for it. Before the Supreme Court judgement we bought from somebody that bought from Ijesha. Before the Supreme Court judgement Ijesha was in charge. I hope you get my point, we bought from somebody that bought from Ijesha, so but when Onitire got the Supreme Court judgement, he called everybody to come and rectify their properties which we did and paid again almost the same amount at which we bought it earlier, even this place we are occupying now, we paid everything, we paid double.

“So this man (Cyprian Orakpo, owner of Transerve Technologies Limited) also claimed that he bought from somebody that bought from somebody, now when he came to us he said he bought the land, that other people sold this land, we said no, we bought this land from Onitire. We asked him, who sold the land to you? And he said he bought it from Ijesha. We said no, Ijesha has no power inside after the Supreme Court judgement. We advised him that what he should do is to go to Onitire, Onitire get the land by virtue of the judgement, but the man kept making trouble, because since its church let me know how the church would fight the battle.

“Since then the man started dragging that land, and we have the documents. When he saw we fenced the place he called the police, we took him to court, it is document that will determine who owns the land, it is not a question of gragra, it is not a question of you have money you want to fight the church.

So he went and called the police, the first police came we told them that we have gone to court, they left. Then from here to Zone 2, we told the police the same thing, from zone 2 to Abuja, we told Abuja people that the place is in court. Then Abuja people said okay, it is not something to discuss on phone that we should send somebody, actually they have seen the document of the court, but we should come to Abuja, we said Okay anytime they call us we would come and which they have invited us when this coming Monday, all of us should come to Abuja with all the documents, the church relaxed waiting to go there on Monday.

“All of a sudden all we heard is he came with task force; I don’t know when task force started grabbing land or joining people to grab land.  So we want to know,” Pastor Louis disclosed.

All efforts made by the media to gather information from Transerve and the security manning the property proved abortive.

However, from the document issued by the High Court of Lagos which the church made available to the media, being an interlocutory and mandatory injunction read "The motion was filed by the claimant (Lords Chosen) dated 11th October, 2018 for interlocutory injunction restraining the second Defendant including Transerve from, taking possession, entering, erecting, trespassing or dealing with the land described as plot 16, 18, and 52 measuring 753,308, 1204. 625 and 1080.465 situate in Idi-Apa, along the Apapa-Oshodi Expressway and shown on Survey plan No. LA/213/2012/096 dated 7th June, 2012, in any manner inconsistent with the status of the land as at the time of the institution of this suit and pending the determination of the suit."

The question in the mind of the church is who is the task force working for

 

Land tussle: Lagos State Task force demolishes Chosen property

Success Damian:

Men suspected to be officials of the Lagos State Task Force have been fingered in the demolition and occupation of property belonging to the Lords Chosen Charismatic Revival Ministries with headquarters at Ijesha in Lagos.

The task force which came with caterpillars, construction materials, cement mixing equipment, was aided by Mobile Policemen who were armed to the teeth to provide cover for the men of the task force and those working on the property in question.

According to an eyewitness, a Lord’s Chosen Security personnel, Mr Onuorah, he disclosed that the men of the state task force arrived location of the property about 2 a.m. on Friday.

He said “My name is Onuorah, a Chosen security man. About 2a.m., I saw a truck that carried sand, so I tried to find out where they were going, they said they were from Transerve, so I asked them the particular site they were going and they said they don’t know the exact site, that they will call their manager. So after enough phone calls the driver decided to tip the sand by the side of the road and left.

“This early morning I saw another vehicle carrying iron rod, and with caterpillar, and another one carrying mixer, they lined up, this was about 6.30a.m. to 7a.m. in the morning, so I tried to find out where they were going, they said it was from the same Transerve.”

Onuorah spoke further. “I don’t have to disturb them because anybody can go his side and work, but to my greatest surprise I saw them trying to enter our own land, so I have to inform our security, so when they came there, immediately they saw police patrol, they took off and drove all the vehicles away to the Transerve office. After 3 or four hours, I saw Lagos State Task Force, with Black Maria, Hilux vans, and uncountable number of vehicles, they lined up, even the trucks were carrying okadas that I felt they seized from the riders, they were inside the trucks.

“I was thinking it was the normal clean up they usually do on the road not knowing that they came for the same Transerve. So they went straight to Transerve office, after some minutes I saw Transerve himself leading them. They now drove down to our land, both the caterpillar and all the equipment. So Transerve pointed at our gate, and those caterpillars were controlled by Mopol, Lagos State Task Force, they asked the caterpillars to push down the gate. They pulled down the gate, started covering the gutters, they destroyed the gate and entered inside the land, pulled down our fence, from front and back.

“Right now they are laying foundation inside our land, and those police men are there with them, till now they are working as I am talking to you,” Onuorah said.

He disclosed that he reported the break and entry by the task force to the church “When I reported to the church, they told me the matter is already in court; that they don’t have anything to do with them since the matter is still in court, that the court will know what to do about it,” Onuora narrated.

Speaking to the media, the Public Relations Officer of the Church, Pastor Chidi Louis said the matter is still in court, and wondered why the other group should take the law into the hands.

He stated that the land in question was duly acquired, the document of which he made available to the press.

Louis said “We bought this property a long time ago.  Onitire sold this estate down to Okota, all these places, because he got Supreme Court judgement for it. Before the Supreme Court judgement we bought from somebody that bought from Ijesha. Before the Supreme Court judgement Ijesha was in charge. I hope you get my point, we bought from somebody that bought from Ijesha, so but when Onitire got the Supreme Court judgement, he called everybody to come and rectify their properties which we did and paid again almost the same amount at which we bought it earlier, even this place we are occupying now, we paid everything, we paid double.

“So this man (Cyprian Orakpo, owner of Transerve Technologies Limited) also claimed that he bought from somebody that bought from somebody, now when he came to us he said he bought the land, that other people sold this land, we said no, we bought this land from Onitire. We asked him, who sold the land to you? And he said he bought it from Ijesha. We said no, Ijesha has no power inside after the Supreme Court judgement. We advised him that what he should do is to go to Onitire, Onitire get the land by virtue of the judgement, but the man kept making trouble, because since its church let me know how the church would fight the battle.

“Since then the man started dragging that land, and we have the documents. When he saw we fenced the place he called the police, we took him to court, it is document that will determine who owns the land, it is not a question of gragra, it is not a question of you have money you want to fight the church.

So he went and called the police, the first police came we told them that we have gone to court, they left. Then from here to Zone 2, we told the police the same thing, from zone 2 to Abuja, we told Abuja people that the place is in court. Then Abuja people said okay, it is not something to discuss on phone that we should send somebody, actually they have seen the document of the court, but we should come to Abuja, we said Okay anytime they call us we would come and which they have invited us when this coming Monday, all of us should come to Abuja with all the documents, the church relaxed waiting to go there on Monday.

“All of a sudden all we heard is he came with task force; I don’t know when task force started grabbing land or joining people to grab land.  So we want to know,” Pastor Louis disclosed

From the document issued by the High Court of Lagos which the church made available to the media, being an interlocutory and mandatory injunction read "The motion was filed by the claimant (Lords Chosen) dated 11th October, 2018 for interlocutory injunction restraining the second Defendant including Transerve from, taking possession, entering, erecting, trespassing or dealing with the land described as plot 16, 18, and 52 measuring 753,308, 1204. 625 and 1080.465 situate in Idi-Apa, along the Apapa-Oshodi Expressway and shown on Survey plan No. LA/213/2012/096 dated 7th June, 2012, in any manner inconsistent with the status of the land as at the time of the institution of this suit and pending the determination of the suit."

The question in the mind of the church is who is the task force working for