Gov. Ugwuanyi receives Helpshere Foundation founder, endorses ‘Values For Daily Living’ - ITREALMS

ITREALMS:

The cases of armed conflicts, killings, wanton destruction of lives and properties, kidnappings, lootings, pipeline destructions among other vices in the present day Nigeria can be tackled by laying solid moral foundation for the children, reports ITREALMS.

The Executive Governor of Enugu State, His Excellency, Rt. Hon. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Gburugburu), stated this when he played host to Mrs. Sandra Ani, the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Helpsphere Foundation; a child and youth empowerment Organization.

Gov. Ugwuanyi stressed that problem facing the nation is how youth restiveness can be curbed; adding that his administration is determined to curb the excesses through youth empowerment.

This trend of events, he said demands for urgent and timely intervention citing guidance and counselling and moral instructions in schools as compelling necessity for the Nigerian youths.

The Enugu State Governor said, “Youth restiveness stems from thinking (cognition), the use of cognitive behaviour restructuring is eminent.

“Undoubtedly, parents are expected to possess fundamental skills to teach their children distinguishing right from wrong, thereby fostering proper moral values, and guaranteeing fairness and justice.

“Moreover, because children always learn from what their parents do, whether it is good or not, I am definitely convinced that the more positive examples parents impart, the fewer crimes our youths commit. For instance, the polite children who can yield their seats and join the queue are attributed to the upbringing of civilized parents. It does not cause a young man anything to assist an old woman returning from the market with heavy load on her head.

“However, the circles of society is a critical factor to affecting behaviours of young people. The young often reckon that friendship is important to them, and sometimes even ambitious brotherhood is reduced to criminality due to unconditionally supporting their friends. I believe that this book is critical in redirecting the cause of our young people to emulating such Values for Daily Living.

“This administration is very much committed to partnering with this organization to tackle bad influence among the youths thereby eliminating crime in our society. Yes, bad company is the main culprit of juvenile delinquency over parenting. Young people sometimes go astray because of so-called friendship. However, while I don't deny the importance of friendship, we should recognize that to watch the friends we keep is more significant.

“Nevertheless, I have seen the future in our youths. They possess such skills that when fully harnessed they will contribute much more to the development of our dear State in the areas of tourism, entertainment, technology, agriculture, transportation, security, health, housing, commerce and other sectors”.

Governor Ugwuanyi, therefore reiterated the administration’s resolve to create more avenues and opportunities for the young people to re-discover themselves; become more useful to themselves, their families and the society at large.

Thanking the Governor for his youth-focused programmes, especially as they impact rural dwellers, Helpsphere Foundation founder, Mrs. Sandra Ani, said that the administration has demonstrated understanding on best ways to empower and engage the youths.

“Your Excellency, we align with your firm believe that ‘Enugu State is in the Hand of God’. Yes, this is because we have seen the hand of God in most of the things you have been able to achieve. At the time, this country’s economy receded to recession, this State was up and running; fulfilling mandates. Thanks, Your Excellency.

“So, I penned down this book: ‘Values for Daily Living’ as a manual to help parents, schools and the society at large to constantly remind the youths that we have norms, culture, and values we cherish and no civilisation will wash them away. Thank you for endorsing the book.

“We are committed to joining hands with your administration to win back our society totally by winning back the youths. So, as a youth-loving Governor we crave your support in our quest to reach every nooks and crannies of Enugu State with that singular message: values for daily living.”

Mrs. Ani added that the cause of the NGO’s activities they have come to realise that youth restiveness is mostly caused by illiteracy, unequal distribution of national resources, poor child upbringing among others.

“The effects include upsurge of social vices and destruction of lives and properties while the result also revealed that it can be curbed through skill acquisition programmes and enlightenment against the phenomenon”, she concluded.

Uj. N. Dominic/Editor

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Revealed! Police names five Igbos kidnapped @Ogbere, hope raises for RCCG – ITREALMS

ITREALMS:

Ogun Police Command has identified five Igbos among those kidnapped on Thursday evening at J3/J4 Area, Ogbere, along the Benin-Ijebu-Ode-Sagamu Expressway, on their way to Lagos, reports ITREALMS.

The General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Pastor Enoch Adeboye, ITREALMS recalled, had on Friday, disclosed that five ministers of the church were kidnapped on their way to the ministers’ conference in Ogun State.

The five passengers, ITREALMS gathered were travelling from the Eastern Nigeria before the incident at J3/J4 Ogbere. They included Chidioze Eluwa, Chiemela Iroha, Okoro Ohowukwe, Ndubuizi Owuabueze, and Ibeleji Chidinma.

According to the Police in a press statement available to ITREALMS and endorsed by the Public Relations Officer in Osun State, Abimbola Oyeyemi, the abductors reportedly emerged from the forest and forcefully stopped a commercial vehicle with registration number KW 230 XA belonging to Abia Line Transport Company and took the passengers into the forest.

Oyeyemi, also disclosed the Commissioner of Police would lead the rescue operation team, with all the tactical operations in the Command.

The abductors, he said, numbering about 10, used the J3 Forest at Ogbere as their hideout, which is some 114 kilometres away from Lagos destination.

Part of the press statement read:

“On the 1st of August 2019, at about 3:30 pm, the Ogun State Police Command received information that a commercial vehicle with registration number KW 230 XA belonging to Abia Line Transport Company was coming from the Eastern part of the country, heading towards Lagos.

“On getting to J3 area of Ogbere, some hoodlums numbering about 10 suddenly came out of the forest and forcefully stopped the vehicle.

“Five among the passengers, namely, Chidioze Eluwa, Chiemela Iroha, Okoro Ohowukwe, Ndubuizi Owuabueze, and Ibeleji Chidinma, were abducted and taken to the forest.

“The Commissioner of Police, Bashir Makama, is leading the operation to rescue the victims, with operatives from the Command’s tactical squads combing the entire area.

“The hideout of the hoodlums has been geo-located, but our men are trying to be tactical and professional in order not to jeopardise the lives of the victims we are making efforts to rescue.

“With the operation going on presently, we are rest assured that the victims will soon regain their freedom and the hoodlums will definitely be brought to book,” he assured.

Although Oyeyemi could not confirm if those abducted were RCCG pastors as at press time.

ITREALMS recalls that earlier Friday, Pastor Adeboye, told his church that five ministers on their way to the ministers’ conference were kidnapped on Thursday.

Speaking at the Church Ministers’ Conference at the Redemption Camp in Ogun State, Pastor Adeboye appealed to the congregation to pray for the release of the captives.

“As a father, how do you think I should feel to hear that five of my children have been kidnapped while on their way to attend the Ministers Conference?” he bemoaned.

Ayo Midele/Editor

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Kenneth Ize redefines African luxury designs - ITREALMS

WeekendStyle@ITREALMS:

CNN Style spoke to Nigerian fashion designer, Kenneth Ize about how he is redefining African luxury.

On how he makes a busy schedule work by enthusiastically embracing multi-tasking, Ize told CNN Style: “As a younger brand and as a millennial, I am in the space to do more things ... and not have anybody (telling me) how to do it," he said. "The actual beauty people can see in the work is (because) we have freedom to create what we want to create. And the whole point for me is about being really real."



Ize explains the importance of authenticity and heritage to his work, including him modernizing the ancient craft of aso oke handweaving, a technique developed by the Yoruba people of south-western Nigeria. He describes his hopes for the craft to be taught more widely: "The goal now is to actually bring weaving into the Nigerian school curriculum… But we also want to train adults, so we are building a site in Ilorin, as I want people to be able to come to my home country and learn something."



Speaking about the benefits of educational and cultural exchanges, with his experience of studying at Vienna’s Institute of Design, and the need for more diversity in fashion Ize said: "At the same time we are teaching people ... we are shifting the narrative." He continues, highlighting the importance of his garments to demonstrate "the stories that we as Nigerians have to tell."



Citing the experiences and stories from Nigeria influencing his designs, he explains the narrative behind his latest men’s collection: "For this season's menswear, it's a story about what happens after Christmas, a time when our parents -- I mean the privileged ones -- gave us pocket money, so there are new coats in the wardrobe."





CNN Style highlights that for lots of his customers, Ize's clothes might be their first engagement with high-fashion made in Africa, which, as a continent, has long been excluded from conversations about luxury. Ize said: "I believe I am a professional in this industry and I force myself to do more each season… I am telling the international audience it's possible here."










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Centre LSD lend voice on World Day against trafficking in persons - ITREALMS

ITREALMS:

The African Centre for Leadership Strategy and Development, Centre LSD, a non-profit/ non- governmental organization in Nigeria join organizations and people across the world to lend voice to the call against the trafficking of persons the world over, reports ITREALMS.

Press release made available to ITREALMS by Mr. Nyong Essien, the centre stated, that trafficking in persons, an act where persons are recruited, transported, transferred and received through the use of force, threat or other forms of coercion, abduction, fraud or deception, through the abuse of power or giving and receiving of payments is against section 34 of the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the united nations protocol to prevent, suppress.

In addition, Essien noted that the constitution tends to punish trafficking in persons and the protocol against the smuggling of migrants by air, land and sea both protocols adopted in the year 2000 and brought into force in 2003 which supplements the united nations convention against transnational organized crime (UNTOC) the Palermo declaration, a protocol certified by Nigeria in the year 2005 which criminalises this act. 

Statistics from the global slavery index show that 40.3 million persons are trafficked worldwide with India, China and Pakistan ranking tops across the world with 71% of persons trafficked being women/ girls and 25% being children.

Quoting the United States Department trafficking report (2019),he said Nigeria ranks number 32 out of 167 countries with the highest number of slaves and have been upgraded to a tier 2 country on the slavery index.

The National Agency for Prohibition of trafficking in persons (NAPTIP) an agency under the Ministry of Justice, he said, is saddled with the responsibility of preventing the trafficking of persons and all forms of human degradation in Nigeria places the average age of persons being trafficked at 15 years with 75 per cent of this persons being trafficked locally across states and 23% within the state with just 2% outside the country and with human trafficking being the 3rd most common crime in the country(UNESCO, 2016) with most trafficked persons being children and women who are deprived of education, decent forms of lively hood, used for forced labour and most at times forced into prostitution.

The centre calls on the government to address the menace by making provisions to reunite trafficked persons with their families and adequately re-integrated them into society.

Uboshe Uboshe/Editor

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FirstBank concludes 2019 Digital Lab Open House - ITREALMS

ITREALMS:

In an effort to stimulate innovation through synergy, First Bank of Nigeria Limited hosted the Digital Lab Open House on Wednesday, 31 July 2019 at Digital Lab in Yaba Lagos, reports ITREALMS.

The Digital Lab Open House is amongst the many events lined up for the group Innovation Week held 29 July – 2 August 2019.

The event themed; “cultivating an innovative mindset” is an initiative designed to provide opportunities for staff across its parent company/group, FBN Holdings Plc, to learn from one another whilst showcasing innovative tools and ideas that are supportive to the continued contribution of the FBNHoldings group to the growth and development of its host communities across over half a dozen of its business operations notably in Nigeria, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Senegal, Gambia, DRC, United Kingdom and China. The week-long event was designed to provide a forum for discussions focused on and for staff to be aware of internal structures and tools available to support an innovative culture.

The activities lined up for the week included; demo fair, workshops, panel sessions as well as the launch of an innovation platform. Gbenga Agboola, Co-Founder and CEO Flutterwave, Odunayo Eweniyi, Co-Founder and CEO Piggybank and Funlola Jide-Aribaloye, CEO Reliance HMO were amongst the thought leaders in the digital eco-system that were in attendance.

According to the Bank’s Chief Executive Officer, Adesola Adeduntan, ”FirstBank has at different times since it was founded, 125 years ago, pioneered the introduction of new technologies and innovation, notably ATM and Western Union in the Nigerian Banking industry which are driven to promote ease of Banking and encourage banking across borders regardless of where one may be at any point in time. The Group Innovation week is a framework to identify with opportunities for all entities in the group to leverage on as we remain committed to reinforce our leading position across markets in sub-Saharan Africa.”

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Fr. Paul Offu killing: Catholic priests protest in Enugu - ITREALMS

ITREALMS:

Catholic priests and religious of Enugu Diocese, on Friday protested the killing of a Catholic Priest, Rev. Fr. Paul Offu, yesterday at Awgu, Enugu State by Fulani herdsmen along Ihe-Agbudu Road in Awgu Local Government Area of the State, reports ITREALMS.

Fr. Offu, ITREALMS gathered was reportedly killed by Fulani herdsmen on his way back from a burial in Ihe and who went to see his friend at Agbudu in Awgu-Enugu State and was shot on his way.

The deceased clergy, ITREALMS also gathered, was until his death, the Parish Priest of St. James Greater Catholic Church, Ugbawka in Nkanu-East Local Government Area (LGA) of Enugu State.

ITREALMS reports that on Friday, hundreds of Catholic priests and religious staged a protest to denounce the killing of their colleague, Reverend Fr. Paul Offu, on Thursday night.

The angry Catholic priests matched to the Government House, brandishing placards with various inscriptions like “enough is enough”, “government should rise to defend Nigerians”, ”Fulani Herdsmen should go” to name a few.

Also, ITREALMS gathered that the protesting religious matched through the major streets in the state capital to the police headquarters, chanting “God save Enugu people from murderous Fulani herdsmen”.

Confirming this, the Catholic Diocese of Enugu said that tragedy strikes again in Enugu diocese with the killing of Rev. Fr. Paul Offu who was shot dead on the evening of August 1, 2019 by some hoodlums suspected to be the notorious and murderous Fulani herdsmen, along Ihe-Agbudu Road in Awgu LGA, hailed from Okpatu in Udi LGA of Enugu State and until his death, was the parish priest of St. James the Greater Parish, Ugbawka.

“May perpetual light shine upon his gentle and illustrious soul,” a press statement available to ITREALMS from the diocese read.

Ozo Nweke Ozo/Editor with addition reports from Choice Flame

*Video credit: Choice Flame and Doscom ICT (Catholic Diocese of Enugu Social Communications Directorate)

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Tech innovation can solve Nigeria’s educational challenges says Verraki - ITREALMS

ITREALMS:

Verraki Partners, a business solutions company focused on accelerating the development and transformation of Africa has outlined solutions that can bridge the knowledge gap and expedite mass affordable, accessible and quality education for most Nigerians, reports ITREALMS.

Speaking during the sidelines at the grand finale of the national design competition, Professor Ayodele Awojobi Design Competition (PAADC) held at the University of Lagos recently, Kelvin Balogun, Senior Partner and Head of the Ventures Unit of Verraki, asserted that the reason why Nigeria has seemingly intractable challenges is because the country has not sufficiently applied new technology thinking to them.

Spotlighting Nigerian education, Balogun opined that the frayed education system in Nigeria can prove to spur innovation in how to deliver ad-hoc education, especially to the country’s lost generation. He noted that building brick and mortar schools may never catch up to Nigeria’s rapidly expanding student population and proposed a new way to tackle this aged problem.

“We can tackle our education problem by applying new thinking, leveraging technology such as the mobile phone and broadband internet. According to the Nigerian Communications Commission, internet subscribers in Nigeria are about 114 million as at February 2019, largely via mobile phones. The mobile phone has become the preferred device of choice for payments, ride-hailing and healthcare in Nigeria; it can be used for education and learning too. Education via mobile phones is a leveler and will guarantee access to quality education for everyone, irrespective of financial status or social class, language or tribe. It also ensures access to low-cost teaching resources, added value compared to traditional teaching and a complementary solution for teacher training”.

Continuing, Balogun said “Across levels, we can develop applications that give certificated education, fit-for-purpose and pragmatic, while complementing current education realities. Students can access online lectures, compressed for mobile phones with exercises, theory, games, peer-to-peer support, ranking competitions, tests, self-assessment, online resources and incentives for those that complete their classes. Asides the 10.5million primary school age children currently out of school in Nigeria, mobile learning brings education to our underserved people and communities; people who would otherwise not have had access. It is highly scalable, low-touch and addresses the bottom of pyramid with the basic core – English, Mathematics and Social Studies/African History. An example is Nokia’s MoMaths (Mobile Mathematics) programme, which gives South Africa children from low-income families access to high-quality education. MoMaths was launched by Nokia and the country’s Department of Science and Technology, aligned to its CAPS curriculum and provided a complimentary mobile learning platform to all South African high school Maths learners in Grade 10 -12. To leapfrog connectivity challenges, we can explore a similar model to Rwanda, which partnered with OneWeb to launch a satellite (named Icyerekezo) which will bring internet connectivity to students in rural Nkombo Island.”

Balogun expressed confidence in Nigeria’s ability to apply new thinking to solve perennial problems efficiently, in the absence of legacy systems and infrastructure, and empower its teeming population and opined that, just like Africa has done with mobile payments, the next solutions and breakthroughs will come from Africa, where the multiple challenges will foster newer, more nimble innovative solutions.

Verraki is focused on implementing technology and business solutions designed inherently for Africa and specifically fit for purpose, while also curating business ventures to unlock new sources of growth across the continent. Led by foremost corporate professionals as well as former Accenture leadership in Nigeria, Verraki will apply its global expertise and local insights to partner with enterprises and governments to accelerate the development and transformation of Africa by providing business solutions uniquely tailored for Africa.

Ayo Midele/Editor

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MRA inducts NNPC into enhanced ‘FOI Hall of Shame' - ITREALMS

ITREALMS:

Media Rights Agenda (MRA) Thursday, named the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) the first inductee into its enhanced Freedom of Information (eFOI) Hall of Shame, vowing to take legal action to compel the corporation to abide by the FOI Act. MRA described the NNPC as unrepentant in its violation of the Act and said it would not allow the corporation to continue acting with such impunity.

In a statement in Lagos, MRA said although the NNPC had previously been inducted into the FOI Hall of Shame on July 10, 2017 as the second of 70 inductees during the 18 months that the initiative ran for, the corporation had made no significant effort since then to reform itself apparently because of the lack of consequences for its bad behaviour as nothing had changed two years after that naming and shaming,

In the statement, MRA’s Programme Manager for FOI, Mr Ridwan Sulaimon said: “It is worrying that both the Board and the Executive Management of NNPC are so incapable of feeling any shame. Despite several allegations of corruption as well as the naming and shaming of the corporation, the management of the company and the Federal Government have failed to take effective measures to ensure that the NNPC is transparent and accountable to Nigerians by complying with the FOI Act”.

According to him, “We find it noteworthy that despite the Federal Government’s very public and supposedly aggressive war on corruption and despite the serial indictment of the corporation and its management for untoward practices after virtually every investigation or audit, not a single person in the NNPC is facing criminal charges for corruption. One gets the embarrassing feeling that these people are untouchable and hence, they have no incentive to do better.”

Mr. Sulaimon noted that the huge resources at the NNPC’s disposal and the various allegations of corruption hanging over it should have inspired a more responsive management to put in place the proper measures and structures for the effective implementation of the FOI Act, a situation which makes the corporation’s repeated failure to comply with the law difficult to excuse.

He said: “In the light of the failure of the management of the NNPC itself, the Federal Government and its regulatory and anti-corruption agencies as well as the National Assembly, which has oversight responsibility, to perform their duties, we have no choice but to step in and take legal action to compel the NNPC to comply with its obligations under the FOI Act in the hope that we can make it a more transparent and accountable institution for the benefit of Nigerians”.

Mr. Sulaimon explained that the NNPC was selected for induction into the Hall of Shame after being assessed, alongside other public institutions, on their levels of compliance with their various duties and obligations under the FOI Act, and that while the performance of many public institutions is generally poor in terms of implementation of the Act, “MRA found ironically that the NNPC, which is perhaps the most well-resourced public institution, demonstrated by far the worst performance.”

He said the NNPC was assessed on its level of compliance with its obligations to provide information to members of the public on request, submit annual implementation reports to the Attorney General of the Federation, proactively publish defined sets of information, train its staff and officials on the public’s right of access to information as well as to designate and publish the contact details of an FOI Desk Officer.

According to him, following the assessment, MRA found that: “The NNPC did not make even an inch of progress in the implementation of the FOI Act over the last two years. In the eight years since the enactment of the Act, the NNPC has not submitted any annual report to the Attorney General of the Federation as required by Section 29(1) of the Act and no one has held it accountable for this arrogant and continuing breach of its statutory duty.”

Mr. Sulaimon added that the NNPC “has persistently failed to comply with virtually all of its proactive disclosure obligations under Section 2(3) and (4) of the FOI Act as it has only published one of the 16 categories of items it is required to proactively publish; and has repeatedly refused to disclose information to requesters, but has instead expended millions in public funds in payment of legal fees to lawyers in defence of its corporate strategy of secrecy.”

In addition, he said, although Section 13 of the FOI Act requires every government or public institution to ensure the provision of appropriate training for its officials on the public’s right of access to information and records held by the institution for the effective implementation of the Act, the NNPC has again failed to comply with this provision.

Mr. Sulaimon observed that the Database of FOI Desk Officers available at the Federal Ministry of Justice, which is the oversight institution for the implementation of the FOI Act, indicates that the NNPC has not designated any official to whom requests for information should be made and has not published the name of any such official as required by Section 2(3)(f) of the Act and as directed by the Attorney-General of the Federation in his Implementation Guidelines issued pursuant to his powers under the Act.

He said: “Two years is a long enough time for any responsible organisation to improve on its practices after it has been called out for failing to do. The insistence of the NNPC on secrecy in defiance of the Law, while it sits atop the huge resources of this country coming from the petroleum sector is unacceptable. It is a mystery to us that the Federal Government has chosen to remain silent and take no action in the face of this slap on the collective faces of Nigerians. As citizens, we obviously cannot follow this bad example of the Federal Government.”

Mr. Sulaimon promised that MRA would explore all available legal means to ensure that the NNPC is compelled to comply with its duties and obligations under the FOI Act.

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Nigerian democracy: Osadolor charges media to be watchdog, not lapdog - ITREALMS

ITREALMS:

A Fellow of the Nigerian Guild of Editors, Mr Kingsley Osadolor, has identified the phenomenon of media capture as a primary threat to the ability of the media to exercise its constitutional and professional powers to foster best practices in democracy in Nigeria, reports ITREALMS.

Other encumbrances include failure to deploy the tools of journalism adequately, failure to utilise the legal backing to the media and inadequate rigour in reportage of issues in Nigeria’s democracy all resulting in lack of credibility of the media as a driver of citizen participation in democracy.

Osadolor was the best graduating student of the University of Nigeria class of 1984. He delivered the 2019 Jackson Annual Lecture of his alma mater, the Department of Mass Communication, on the subject, “Media Freedom: Utilitarian Imperative and the pursuit of democratic ends” on Thursday, August 1, 2019. Osadolor is also a lawyer and broadcaster and has served as Commissioner for Information in Edo State and advisory capacity at the federal level.

Osadolor is a former Editor of The Guardian on Sunday and East Africa correspondent of The African Guardian. He declared, “Perhaps the greatest impediment to the full realisation of the watchdog role is media capture, which results in deference and subservience to the other Realms and influential citizens, including powerful corporations, over whom the Fourth Estate is supposed to play the role of sentinel. Ownership, commercial influence, ideology, governmental and partisan political pressures, as well as advertiser blackmail, are key factors in media capture.”

While many external factors impinge on the profession, Osadolor submitted that the media needs to strengthen its ranks by deploying the tools of the trade as well as existing legislation that empowers it to hold the government accountable to the people.

Osadolor recognised the damage done to media credibility by fake news often peddled by social media platforms but held that the solution lies in better journalism by professionals. 

“Good journalism … will further drive social media purveyors of fake news, hate speech, and blatant exaggeration into the periphery. The Fourth Estate must constantly remind itself of its mission, which is to be a watchdog and not a lapdog”, Osadolor stated.

Significant failings on the media side include failure to follow up on stories of significance, inadequate attention to matters at the state level as well as in the local governments and state assemblies.

Osadolor identified three principal sources of “media enablement” in legislation to be the 1999 Constitution, pieces of municipal law; and Treaties, International Agreements and Protocols which Nigeria has ratified. He cited the Act establishing the National Broadcasting Commission, the Nigerian Communications Commission and the Freedom of Information Act as containing provisions that empower both the media and citizens.

International laws include Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 9 of the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights, Article 66 of the ECOWAS Treaty and Goal 16 of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).

Nenye Dom/Editor

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Zenith Bank launches high interest-yielding savings account - ITREALMS

ITREALMS:

One of Nigeria’s leading financial institutions, Zenith Bank Plc, has introduced a high interest-yielding target savings account named “SAVE4ME”, which enables customers plan and save towards their aspirations and needs conveniently, reports ITREALMS.

The new product is designed to support flexible savings for predetermined purposes such as asset acquisition or even marriage, and offers a higher interest rate than a regular savings account. Customers can operate multiple “SAVE4ME” accounts for the different things they want to achieve at the same time.

Commenting on the new savings product, the Group Managing Director/Chief Executive of Zenith Bank Plc, Mr. Ebenezer Onyeagwu said “the bank is focused on providing its customers with premium financial solutions that meet their lifestyle needs and ‘SAVE4ME’ is just one in a plethora of retail banking offerings it would be introducing over the next few months.”

He further explained that the product is very important because Nigerians have a lot of aspirations, but most times these are truncated by the absence of a suitable savings plan that allows accumulating funds for their actualization.

Zenith Bank Plc is recognized as one of the most innovative financial institutions in Nigeria and was voted the most customer-focused bank in Nigeria for the Retail and SME segments in the 2018 KPMG Annual Banking Industry Customer Satisfaction Survey (BICSS). The bank’s commitment to world-class service standards has led to several product innovations over the last few weeks including the “Zenith Timeless Account”, which allows Nigerians aged 55 years and above bank for free and the “Dubai Visa Service” on the Zenith Bank internet banking platform, which allows convenient application and payment for visa to Dubai.

Interested persons can get more information about opening a “SAVE4ME” target savings account by engaging with the bank on social media or calling Zenith Direct on +234-1-2787000.

Nenye Dom/Editor

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Oyo to partner agribusiness investors to boost economy - ITREALMS.

ITREALMS:

Oyo State Governor, Engineer Seyi Makinde, has expressed the readiness of his government to partner with and encourage investors in the agriculture sector in order to expand the economy of the state as well as surmount challenges facing their operations in the state.

The governor stated this during a visit to inspect the abandoned 10,000 metric-tons silo project embarked upon by the immediate past administration and the Ajila Value Adding Ventures Limited in Aawe.

In the governor’s entourage were the Chief of Staff, Chief Bisi Ilaka; the Head of Service, Alhaja Amidat Agboola; and the Executive Adviser to the Governor on Agribusiness, Dr. Debo Akande, among others.

Governor Makinde, according to a statement signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Taiwo Adisa, while speaking at the Ajila Value Adding Farms, Aawe, where he was conducted round the poultry, hatchery, egg powder processing plant and palm trees plantation of the farms, described the facility as world-class.

The Governor, who was received by the Alaawe of Aawe, Oba Cornelius Abiola Taiwo; Chairman of Ajila Farms, Mr Philip Olutayo; Managing Director of the farm, Mr Dotun Odekeye; president of Bond Group of Companies, Chief Debo Omotoso, and a foremost poultry farmer, Chief Lai Amoje, expressed his joy at the developments he witnessed at the Ajila Farms.

He maintained that it was the intention of his government to encourage Ajila Farms and other investors in the agriculture sector by addressing their challenges and, where necessary, providing incentives to help them expand their operations so that they could provide employment for the teeming youths of the state.

“Just as we have said in our manifesto, we want to drive our economy through agriculture and agriculture value chain. Most of the things I have seen and heard here are music to my ears: they want to process eggshells into egg powder and export it; they want to generate foreign exchange for the state and that is consistent with our idea of expanding the economy.

“We will encourage them. Some of them may have challenges; security challenges, some of them may have challenges with access to the market. We will look at their challenges and make sure that we solve them. And we may even give incentives to some of them to expand their operations and employ our youths,” Governor Makinde said.

The governor, while speaking at the site of the abandoned silo project, expressed displeasure at the pace of work, which he noted should have been completed within 10 months, making it clear that his government was ready to explore all options to make sure the project is delivered so that farmers and the state could derive value from it.

“We have had court cases over the project, so we intend to solve all these challenges because the state has expended so much money on that project and we have not been able to get any value from it. So, if we will need to spend a little more to make sure that we derive value from it, we will do it.

“The case is in arbitration right now, but I will encourage the contractor to come to sit down with us so that we can explore options of out of court settlement. We are not arrogant about this thing. This is a project that should bring value to our farmers and to the economy of the state and that is what we set out to achieve", he stressed.

Earlier, Phillips, chairman of the company, stated that the farm was focused on agriculture value chain and backward integration to provide direct and indirect employment for youths and other business concerns.

He maintained that the company was ready to partner with the Oyo State Government to boost agricultural development in the state, explaining that “our business is focused on agricultural value chain and backward integration, providing direct and indirect employment for youths, growing numerous other business concerns as the hub to ensure sustainable development and other indirect employment for our youths, vendors, suppliers, and contractors.”

Ayo Midele/Editor

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Violence Against Children costs Nigeria N1.42trn - ITREALMS

ITREALMS:

Unabated Violence Against Children (VAC), has costed Nigeria the sum of N1.42 trillion, says 2019 Financial Benchmark and Economic Burden of Violence Against Children report on Lagos, ITREALMS can report authoritatively.

Presented today by the chief protection specialist at the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF), Juliane Koenig and conducted by the duo of Prof. Obinna Okwudili and Dr. Emmanuel Nwosu, both of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), the report was supported by UNICEF in collaboration with the Federal Government of Nigeria, United States AID (USAID), Ministero Dell Interno, European Union (EU), and UN Women.

Koenig said, on the average, that Nigeria loses N1.42 trillion annually associated to deaths and disability resulting from acts of violence against children.

“This is equivalent to 1.6 per cent of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP),” she said, stressing that the economic burden of violence against children has a tripartite burdens based on physical, sexual and emotional violence respectively.

She pointed out that on physical violence, Nigeria’s economic burden is worth N1,008 billion, which amounts to 52 per cent of boys and 50 per cent of girls in Nigeria being victims of physical violence prior to age 18.

On the sexual violence, the researchers said that Nigeria losses N307 billion based on the 11 per cent of boys and 25 per cent of girls in Nigeria being victims of sexual violence prior to attaining the age 18, which on average cost Nigeria N307 billion annually.

Nigeria, the researchers noted lost some N91 billion to emotional violence meted to some 20 per cent boys and 17 per cent of girls in the country.

“On average, emotional violence against children costs Nigeria N91 billion annually,” part of the economic burden revealed.

The launch held at the Dover Hotel, Ikeja-Lagos, saw in attendance some Permanent Secretary Ministry of Youth and Social Development, Lagos State, Dr. (Mrs) Bola Balogun, and Permanent Secretary Ministry of Economic Planning and Budget, Lagos State, Mrs. Funmi Balogun, Chief of Field Office, UNICEF Lagos, Mr. Dennis.

Also in attendance were stakeholders from the Lagos State Bureau of Statistic, Lagos State Ministries of Education, Justice, Health and Lagos State Office of the Accountant General, in addition to the Lagos State Basic Education Board (SUBEB) and Health Service Commission. Representatives of the Domestic Sexual and Violence Response Team (DSVRT) Lagos and Assistant Director Social Development Department from the Federal Ministry of Budget and Planning, Mrs. Grace Obi-Ukpabi.

The study which came in two part study included the Economic Burden of Violence Against Children, which was a study of Nigerian selected analysis on health and education outcomes.

While the second part entitled a Financial Benchmark for Child Protection, was tagged Benchmark Report Volume 1 of Main Report.

Remmy Nweke/DoP

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NITDA explains efficacy of new logo - ITREALMS

ITREALMS:

NITDA new logo @ITREALMS

The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has given detail explanation on its new official logo, reports ITREALMS.

NITDA, ITREALMS gathered changed its pioneer logo since foundation last November, unannounced to reflect its mandate, according to officials.

In a detailed explanation exclusively to ITREALMS in inquiry, the Head, Corporate Affairs at NITDA, Mrs Hadiza Umar, noted though that the new logo was a slight alteration from the earlier.

She also told ITREALMS that the new logo has “010” symbol depicting digital relevance, while the whole speaks to the cybersecurity.

Mrs Umar equally explained to ITREALMS that the lines around the represents data, whereas the logo’s coat of arm shows the presence of the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) as an agency.

Further, ITREALMS gathered that why the agency did not proclaim this in the media on the change of the logo, was because of its plan to review the 2007 NITDA’s Act.

ITREALMS recollects that NITDA is a Federal Government agency established in 2001 to development policies for the Nigerian Information Technology sector.

Precisely, ITREALMS gathered that Section 6 (a,c) of the Act mandates NITDA to- create a frame work for the planning, research, development, standardization, application, coordination, monitoring, evaluation and regulation of Information Technology practices, activities and systems in Nigeria and develop guidelines for electronic governance and monitor the use of electronic data interchange and other forms of electronic communication transactions as an alternative to paper-based methods in government, commerce, education, the private and public sectors, labour, and other fields.

Remmy Nweke/DoP

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Nweke urges media patriotism on dotNG, says pros are original social influencers - ITREALMS

ITREALMS:

Remmy Nweke, making his presentation @NIRA Academy 2019

The Lead Strategist and Group Executive Editor at DigitalSENSE Africa Media, Mr. Remmy Nweke, has urged Nigerian media practitioners to be patriotic about the country’s code Top Level Domain (ccTLD), reports ITREALMS.

Speaking at the 2019 Media College on .NG on his paper entitled “Media as catalyst for change in Domain Name System (DNS) industry, Mr. Nweke, urged at the weekend, that Nigerian media practitioners to own this country resource beginning with their becoming individual registrants on .NG string like ITREALMS.com.ng.

He told participants at the 2019 “Media College on .NG” organized by the Nigeria Internet Registration Association (NiRA) on the overarching theme of ‘The Role of Media in DNS Industry’ that by the fact of becoming a registrant, an end-user, media practitioners are drawing nearer to understanding the modus operandi of NIRA as the registry for dotNG.

Nweke, a former Executive Director at NIRA, pointed out that by associating with the dotNG brand by media practitioners should be reciprocal with requisite industry supports like instituting a direct reward for the media foot-soldiers such as reporters and editors alike, especially for those playing active positive roles in sustaining the Nigeria’s DNS industry, as those media entities need to be sustained too.

Also, Nweke, who doubles as the Editor-in-chief of multiple award-winning ITREALMS, advised that media practitioners could leverage the resellership of domain names to empower themselves knowledge-wise on DNS industry, whilst adding up a new income stream, as well as offering online writing and editing services, webdesign, Voice Over services to name a few.

By developing new online products, he said, media practitioners should ensure they build strong media brands on the internet and consistent with their dreams, so as to be seen as adding value by making money.

Remmy Nweke ... in session at 2019 NIRA Media Academy

With this notion, he said, DNS industry in Nigeria will thrive for the benefit of all Nigerians including media professionals.

Drawing attention to the importance of new media, Nweke said, it’s a form of media that are native to computers, computational and relying heavily on computers for redistribution, stressing that new media nowadays comprises telephones, computers, virtual worlds, single media, website games, human-computer interface, computer animation and interactive computer installations.

He defined DNS as the Internet's system for converting alphabetic names into numeric Internet Protocol (IP) addresses, citing for instance that a web address’ Uniform Resource Locator (URL) is typed into a browser, DNS servers return the IP address of the web server associated with that name, within nanoseconds.

Further, Nweke, who is a multiple award winning author and techmediapreneur, said that as a catalyst, Nigerian media should reawake their watchdog role with focus on the DNS industry, so as to precipitate the needed change by making certain that .NG receives the attention it deserves thereby making the difference a change agent.

Describing well-trained media professionals as the original social influencers, who have contributed immensely in every burgeoning society and advised them not to let that role be swept away by fades in the name of ‘social media influencers.’

This, he said, they can be done by enmeshing themselves with the knowledge of the new media, through avalanche of open sourced education opportunities like Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) among others.

In addition, he called for closer collaboration between NIRA and likes of Nigeria Information Technology Reporters Association (NITRA) and Guild of Corporate of Online Publishers (GOCOP), to name a few.

Emphasizing that NiRA is the registry for .NG Domain Names and maintains the database of names registered in the .ng country code Top Level Domain (ccTLD), just as NIRA is a Not-for-Profit, Non-Governmental Self-Regulating body and managers the .ng national resource, in the public interest of Nigeria and global internet community.

Uj. N. Dominic/Editor

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Rape Allegations: Prof Bayo Adebowale replies detractors, SaharaReporters - ITREALMS

ForTheRecords@ITREALMS:

My attention has been drawn to a rumour and insinuations that a Professor of Creative Arts had canal knowledge of his daughters. The grave allegation has been wickedly and maliciously linked to my person on social media. This includes a satanic and libelous story in an online newspaper, SaharaReporters, which published the grave information without bothering to get the fact.

To say the least, I am alarmed and traumatised by the insinuations. I would have responded to the wicked rumour immediately it broke out but I did not get to know about it on time. A part of the reasons is that I’d been indisposed for some time. As a matter of fact, I had been hospitalised and so many people could not reach me. Even on their part, many of my family members, are equally traumatised by the allegation, deliberately kept away the information from me because they feared that it could worsen my health and even lead to a sudden death. I can only thank God that I am still alive to be able to boldly deny the shocking rumour, because if one had died in the last few days, the same wicked people would have said that one committed suicide to cover up the sacrilege.

Apart from having reached the climax of my profession and talent as some people have noted in their hasty, malicious and ungodly comments, I am truly blessed with children that include daughters who know me as a true father, who has never contemplated any unholy relationship with them for whatever reason. While I lost a daughter to the cold hands of death some years back, I still have daughters who are alive and doing well as individuals, as professionals and also as wives in their various matrimonial homes. The identities of my daughters are not hidden and if anyone bothers to know them and speak with them there is an opportunity to do so.

This, indeed, is what one expects any responsible person, whether as an individual, citizen journalist or a so-called online publication like SaharaReporters, ought to have done. Whatever stopped anyone from going after my children to ask them questions about the allegation that has nothing to do with me? Instead of doing so, the wicked ones went for my profile, which I built through the thick and thin, with a dint of hard work crowned by God’s mercy, and sought to establish me as that ruined person said to have raped her own daughters. Let me ask this question: if this kind of grave allegation is levelled against the father of any of those who have been mentioning my name in the context of the indicated sacrilege, will they just jump into attacking his personality or they will try to find out the fact of the matter? I could say I leave all of them to their consciences if such consciences are still alive, but I believe such a decision will not prevent nemesis from playing its role in the theatre of their lives.

I will not labour to begin to an analyse one after the other the issues raised in the stories circulating on social media. The reason is that they are definitely not my stories. They are not the stories of my families. I can only advise those who are truly agitated to go after seek the identity of such a man if he truly exists. Yet, I want to note that one of the things said about the man is that he has four daughters, that he impregnated the four daughters and caused them to have broken homes.

Well, I am happy to note that this is not the statistic of my own God-given family. I have no daughters who've been raped and my own daughters are happily married and are in their husband’s homes.

Of course, I know there will be further insinuations despite this statement of mine. Why I believe so is that some people who could be behind the genesis of the attempt to destroy my reputation may not stop at anything. While assuring anyone who may genuinely want further facts about me that the book of my life is a open one, I will also invoke the law to the last letter to protect my name and that of my family. My lawyers are studying everything that has been said about me concerning the matter and necessary actions are bound to be taken.

I thank everyone, within and outside the country, who have shown concern over the matter. A lot of people have reached or attempted to reach me. Some are even more devastated than I am, shattered not just by the heaviness of the allegation, but by the fear that such could be true. I however categorically say I am the Bayo Adebowale you have always known: a true father, a true teacher and cultural person who is alive to his moral responsibility within and outside his home. I have never sought or got any canal knowledge of my daughter.

Thank You and God bless all.

*Bayo Adebowale

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Re-Order revenue allocation formula says Fayemi - ITREALMS

ITREALMS:

Ekiti State Governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi, has stressed the need for the Federal Government to allocate more fund to the states in order to make them more responsible and responsive to the yearnings of the people, reports ITREALMS.

Fayemi who expressed his displeasure on the present revenue sharing formula where the larger chunk is allocated to the Federal Government, leaving the federating states and local governments with low allocation, said approval of the new minimum wage by the Federal Government required that government make moves to increase states’ funding to enable them effectively take up the responsibility.

The Governor, who spoke on a Television/Radio network programme in Ado-Ekiti on Monday evening, however, assured workers that his colleagues in the Nigeria Governors’ Forum are committed to the payment of the new minimum wage as soon as the Federal Government releases the template.

He reiterated the need for government at all levels to diversify the economy and think of ways to generate more revenue to enable them effectively address the socio-economic challenges facing them.

“We have a bigger issue, which does not necessarily apply to workers, it’s about re-ordering the revenue allocation formula in the country, because you cannot continue to impose on states a tyranny of unfunded mandate. If you want us to take responsibility for certain things then it’s only fair that we are funded to take responsibility for them. So, right now, 52 percent of the Nigerian resources goes to the Federal Government; 26 percent to state governments; and 20 percent to local governments. We feel that this ought to be revisited and the allocation formula needs to be reviewed.

“The ability of the Federal Government and the federation account to also respond to this would depend largely on the capacity of the Nigerian state to generate more resources, so everybody has a role to play in baking the pie if we want the pie to provide the resources that would be available to all Nigerians particularly workers”. Governor Fayemi said.

On the issue of minimum wage, Fayemi said “Governors were part of the negotiations, there is no uncertainty around government’s commitment. It’s been signed into law, so, governors definitely would honour the law as it is. The issue that needs to be addressed fundamentally by workers and employers is one clear issue, is a minimum wage review also a general wage review?

“What do I mean by that? Minimum wage apply to anyone earning anything less than N30,000 now. It should not apply to people who are earning above that. However, because the increase is going to have an implication on those who already earn above N30,000, there necessarily ought to be some adjustment to make provision for that shift, that is where the sticky point is. From what I gathered, Federal Government that is supposed to provide the template for the implementation of the minimum wage review has offered a general increase of, I think, 5 percent to workers that may not fall within the minimum wage category but who might be affected by the increase that the junior workers would benefit from.

“ I have reassured the union leaders in Ekiti that once we get the template, difficult as it might be for us, we are committed to honouring the minimum wage review that we have signed up to at the Governors’ Forum and I can assure you that my colleagues in the governors’ forum are also committed to doing this”.

While assuring workers that his government would continue to ensure prompt payment of their salaries, the governor urged them to improve on their level of productivity to justify the huge resources government was expending on them

He further assured that his administration would fulfill its promise to pay all outstanding arrears owed by the immediate past administration within one year.

He said, “A labourer deserves his wage and that is why we’ve made it a duty to ensure that workers earn their salaries as at when due so that they can plan their lives, part of the problem that we met on ground when we came to office was that workers had not received their salaries in some cases for about ten months, so how do you plan your life if you don’t even know when your next salary is going to come, but that has become a thing of the past now.

“In the course of that period, we also said we would clear the outstanding arrears owed workers by the previous administration and we are on course to doing that. I gave a year of clearing arrears and we are working assiduously to ensure that we would clear the arrears We’ve made sure that workers earn their salaries every month since I came into office. But I don’t think this is extraordinary anyway, that is what it should be. I know Ekiti people are appreciative because this was a problem in the past, but really, if you work, you should be paid, it’s not something to praise the governor for frankly and I’m not being modest about it, I just think it’s a duty, it’s not a favour done to workers.

“What they need to do in response is to ensure that the level of productivity increases so that Ekiti people can also feel the impact of the improvement in the regular payment of their salaries, to whom much is given, as they say much is expected” he said.

Ayo Midele/Editor

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OrderPaper vs Tony Nwulu: MRA condemns threat to publisher, demands Police investigation - ITREALMS

ITREALMS:

Media Rights Agenda (MRA) has condemned the harassment of Mr. Oke Epia, publisher of the online newspaper, OrderPaper Nigeria, by a former member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Tony Nwulu,over fraudulent constituency project, reports ITREALMS.

MRA also called on the Nigerian Police to thoroughly investigate the alleged threat to the life of the journalist.

Programme Director at MRA, Mr. Ayode Longe, reminded the Police that  as a journalist, Mr. Epia has a constitutional right and duty to hold the government and government officials accountable to the people.  

"The Police is duty-bound to protect him as a citizen and as a journalist as well as to refrain from harassing him or interfering with the performance of his professional duties, while thoroughly investigating any threat to him or any attempt by any individual to harass him with a view to bringing the culprit to justice,” he said.

Mr. Epia and his colleagues at OrderPaper are reported to have received a series of telephone calls from Hon. Nwulu and other “strange persons”, some of whom refused to identify themselves, threatening to hunt down Mr. Epia and his colleagues at all costs.

Mr. Longe noted that the report published by OrderPaper regarding the collection and expenditure of funds meant for the execution of constituency projects in Hon. Nwulu’s constituency and the allegation that the project was not implemented is well within the professional duties and obligations of the online newspaper and its publishers, adding that if the former legislator feels that the story had defamed him or in any way unfairly portrayed him in bad light, he has recourse to the courts in a civil action for defamation.

He said: “We are shocked that the former legislator, who ought to know that as an elected official, he is accountable to the public,  has chosen to include the Police in his arsenal of tools for harassing and intimidating a media organization and its publisher rather than explaining to the public what has happened to the funds in question and demonstrating that the project for which the money was meant was actually implemented as specified.  It is even more shocking to us that Police are allowing themselves to be used to harass and intimidate a media organization, its publisher and staff for carrying out their professional and constitutionally mandated duties.”

According to him, if Hon. Nwulu is alleging that he is being blackmailed by the news organization, then it seems very likely that he has done something wrong that he is trying to prevent from coming out. Otherwise, a simple explanation from him on whether the constituency project has been implemented and details of how it was implemented, the cost and satisfactory proof of these would show if the report by OrderPaper was inaccurate or completely false and would likely lay the matter to rest.

Mr. Longe observed that “Rather than provide the public with a credible explanation, Hon. Nwulu is leaving the substance of the issue and trying to use his power as a politician to silence the media while throwing up a lot of smoke in the process.  It will not work; we can see through these antics.”

He added: “Mr. Epia says given the rate of attacks against journalists in Nigeria in recent times, he is fearful for his life as a result of the threat by Hon. Nwulu to hunt him down.  We share his concern and call on the Nigerian Police to protect the journalist from an obviously angry individual who is determined to punish the publisher of the media outlet that dared to examine his performance in office.  Hon. Nwulu feels that because he was once elected to the National Assembly, he is above the Law and cannot be questioned or asked to give account of his performance in office.  Any demand on him to be accountable is viewed as blackmail.”

Nenye Dom/Editor

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