Criminalising out-of-school children phenomenon

The increasing number of out-of-school children in the country has become so alarming that the Federal Government now plans to criminalise the conduct of parents who promote the abuse. The move appears to tick all the right boxes. From 10.5 million children as of 2010, the figure has jumped to 13.2 million, going by UNICEF statistics.

The Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, who hinted at this last week, said government’s intervention in basic education in the last four years had gulped N350 billion.  He said, “Unless not sending children to school is made a crime, and parents who refuse to send their children to school are prosecuted, we may not see the desired changes.” But the concern is the lack of political will in Nigeria to enforce extant laws. Basic and secondary education should primarily be the responsibility of state and local governments.

This social disaster is dominant in the Northern part of Nigeria. It is a fact some of its elite and UNICEF often decry. A UNICEF Communication Specialist, Godfrey Njoku, said in November last year that the region accounted for 69 per cent of the 13.2 million out-of-school children, adding that only 45 per cent of girls were  enrolled in schools. Lamido Sanusi, as Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, in 2013, presented a scarier account. A report credited to him said 93 per cent of girls from the region hardly completed secondary school.

A spade must be called a spade: anti-progressive religious and cultural practices are at the root of the anomie. Without uprooting them, any remedial measure will be a mere placebo. There are more than seven million children in the Almajirai system, according to the National Council for the Welfare of the Destitute. These are unfortunate, innocent victims of reckless procreation. Throwing underage children into the streets to fend for themselves, toleration of paedophilia and child marriage of girls constitute the toxic mix of the scourge, which the minister must address first, for the campaign to reverse this embarrassment to gel.

But make no mistake about it: the burden of out-of-school children is not borne by the North alone. In the South, giving out girls of school age as home helps is still rampant, just as children hawking sachet water, groundnut, soft drinks and other consumables in major cities while their mates are in school are familiar ugly scenes.  Only irresponsible parenting promotes such vagrant and dangerous early childhood life.

The Child Rights Act expressly states that no girl child should be given out in marriage until the age of 18. This is the “full age” of consent, according to Section 29 (4) of the 1999 Constitution. It is sacrosanct. The case of abduction of 14-year-old Ese Oruru, a schoolgirl from Bayelsa State, in 2015 and her forcible initiation into marriage in far away Kano, which provoked national outrage, underscore this point.

The free primary education programme introduced in 1999, reinforced with the Universal Basic Education Act 2004, should not be undermined in the national interest. Under it, nine years of formal education, comprising six years at primary and three years at junior secondary, was made free and compulsory for every child of school age. The policy was also complemented by the CRA of 2003, which discourages child abuse incidents such as child labour and girl-child marriage.

Yet, these laudable policies have been rendered ineffectual by the abysmal failure of governance in many states of the federation. Some governors, by their conduct, do not give meaning to the life of the Nigerian child. For instance, only 23 out of the 36 states have in the past 16 years domesticated the CRA. This means that 13 other states are indifferent to the social protection of the child. Those who have done so, hardly enforce it.

As of October last year, N67 billion was not accessed by some states at the Universal Basic Education Commission. The money is meant to assist them improve their basic education. Unwilling to provide counterpart funding and abide by other due process imperatives that guide the expenditure of the fund, Adamu said that defaulting states’ counterpart funding was deducted from the last tranche of the Paris Club refund to states.

While the action is commendable, such compulsion alone will not tackle the crisis until the state chief executives begin to appreciate the challenge as a priority concern and act accordingly. If the implementation of the UBE policy had been so treated, the idea of considering out-of-school case as felonious could not have arisen in the first place. This is so because the UBE law provides punishment for such delinquency. According to Section 2 (2) of the UBE Act, a parent who fails to enrol a child or withdraws him or her from school faces a fine of N2,000 or one month imprisonment; or both. A N5,000 fine or two months’ imprisonment or both, await any parent that is subsequently convicted of the same offence.

This drift should be halted as it is ominous for the society. To do otherwise is to continue to grow an army of illiterates, hoodlums and bandits for the immediate future. Nigeria, Afghanistan, Sudan and Republic of Niger are among the 10 countries that account for the highest global burden, which UNICEF considers a humanitarian crisis. These obviously abandoned children belong to the group our political leaders often volubly refer to as Nigeria’s future. But they are not. Where they are left to be anywhere, other than the classroom, during school hours, any attempt to extol them as future leaders is irresponsible and the height of hypocrisy in governance.

https://punchng.com/criminalising-out-of-school-children-phenomenon/

Saving Nigeria from building collapse

After a period of momentary lull, the familiar spectre of collapsed buildings has reared its ugly head once again, prompting the usual clamour for a stricter enforcement of standard building codes. Barely 72 hours after the tragic Lagos incident that claimed no fewer than 20 lives, a good number of them schoolchildren, disaster struck again in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, where another three-storey building caved in on Friday. The Ibadan dust had hardly settled when Lagos reportedly recorded yet another building collapse on Monday; it has been an embarrassment coming in quick succession.Thankfully, the Ibadan episode did not claim lives; but frequent building collapse incidents should not be allowed to become a norm in a country that professes to be run under the rule of law. As the rainy season returns, it promises to be the beginning of another eerie period of buildings caving in after the usual downpours. But buildings that are constructed with strict adherence to guidelines of internationally acceptable best practices cannot just be coming down so routinely, like a house of cards. It is therefore the duty of the government to institute a thorough investigation to uncover the immediate and remote causes of the collapse, and how to stop future occurrences.The first incident in Lagos was particularly very painful because the building in question was one of those already marked down for demolition, having exhibited visible signs of distress. Besides, the state Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, said it was a residential building in which a section was illegally converted to a school. How did this manage to escape the attention of the relevant authorities?This remiss shows that the relevant authorities are not doing their job diligently. For instance, an agency such as the Lagos State Building Control Agency has the responsibility to identify and remove distressed and non-conforming buildings. But the agency went missing completely during the period that the school owners risked the lives of scores of innocent children by packing them into a wobbly structure, which they passed off as school premises. Therefore, the state government should be held responsible for the lives that were lost.In a rush to fill the educational gap created by lack of sufficient number of public schools, people turn virtually every building into a school. It is the duty of the Ministry of Education to ensure that such illegal operations are not only uncovered, but are promptly sealed off and those promoting them dealt with according to the law. If the regulatory agencies had acted swiftly, the building would not still be standing until it eventually crumbled and buried many innocent schoolchildren alive. This is especially so that the fact of its distressed nature was already a public knowledge.A newspaper report quoted a certain Bukola Salami, who claimed to have worked as a teacher in the school, as saying, “When I was in the school, I used to hear sounds as if someone was throwing stones from the walls. The building cracks and the walls shake at times.” Although she reportedly left the school as a result of her feeling of insecurity, she could perhaps have achieved more if she had sounded the alarm louder so that others would also follow in her footsteps.Aside from being an embarrassing nuisance, building collapse in many parts of Nigeria has led to the loss of many lives. One of such incidents was in 2016 when a church building that was at the last stages of completion, caved in, claiming about 200 lives, according to reports. In that particular incident, which took place in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital, the Governor, Udom Emmanuel, was among the 186 lucky ones that escaped with injuries.Prior to the Uyo incident, the guest house of the Synagogue Church of All Nations in Lagos had also buckled under the weight of its multiple storeys, resulting in the death of no fewer than 115 worshippers, more than 80 of them South Africans. Another report had it that 272 lives were lost in incidents of building collapse in the 17 months to August 2017.In that same year, a report by the Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing, said 54 buildings collapsed across the country between 2012 and 2016, while a tribunal set up by former Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola, discovered that 135 cases of building collapse were recorded in Lagos alone between 2007 and 2013.The use of substandard materials, activities of quacks and the cutting of corners in order to save cost have been identified as some of the reasons for the collapse. In many cases, buildings with foundations for one storey are later elevated into three or even four storeys. In such circumstances, it will only be a matter of time before such buildings with obvious weak foundations, come tumbling down.To buck this trend, government regulatory agencies have to be more rigorous in enforcing the laws and punishing culprits in building collapse cases. For instance, when the Morandi Bridge collapsed in Genoa, Italy, in 2018, the Transport Minister, Danilo Toninelli, did not only call for the resignation of top officials of the company operating the bridge, but promised to start proceedings against the company, which could result in sanctions of up to $169 million.Nigeria has to be tough on those responsible for building collapse, especially those found guilty of dereliction of duty; otherwise the ugly incident will continue to plague the country.

https://punchng.com/saving-nigeria-from-building-collapse/

Restructuring the housing sector

A  new initiative by the Central Bank of Nigeria to strengthen mortgage financing in the country highlights the crisis in the country’s housing sector. Though short on details, the bank said it was collaborating with the Nigerian Mortgage Refinance Corporation specifically to address challenges in delivering affordable housing in the country. Bridging the huge housing deficit requires a new multi-faceted approach by the three tiers of government.

The Deputy Governor, Financial Systems Stability of CBN, Aisha Ahmad, says the collaboration with NMRC targets effective mobilisation of credit for housing. Efforts to remove the constraints in the provision of cheaper homes would also be crystalised alongside the expected passage into law of the Model Mortgage and Foreclosure Bill. This seeks, among others, the dismantling of some of the administrative and legal constraints in achieving the goal of housing for all Nigerians, a target set by the government four decades ago but missed. Instead, the gap has widened.

From only a few million units short in the 1970s, the World Bank puts the current deficit at 17 million housing units. In contrast, faced with similar housing shortage in the wake of rapid urbanisation, South Africa delivered over three million housing units between 1994 and 2017 to fill the gap, establishing itself as a country with one of the world’s most ambitious housing programmes. Egypt, Africa’s third largest economy after Nigeria and South Africa, identified a national emergency situation when, by 2011, it had a deficit of 1.5 million housing units!

According to Ahmad, Nigeria currently has a stock of only 13 million housing units for a population variously put at between 180 million and 193 million, while eventual demand is estimated at between 38 million and 44 million units.

Housing is critical in every economy and usually assumes crisis dimension in emerging economies where rapid urbanisation often outstrips the capacity of cities to provide new housing, according to economists. Shelter is a basic necessity after food and clothing. A report in South Africa’s Mail & Guardian newspaper said inadequate housing posed both security and development threats to the society. The United Nations Development Programme says housing is central to human development and impacts on health and productivity. Provision of housing or lack of it has also been linked to poverty and is adopted by the United Nations as a poverty-reduction strategy.

With poverty rate variously put at over 61 per cent by the National Bureau of Statistics and 80 per cent by the African Development Bank, Nigeria’s housing deficit is not surprising. Think of Lagos, where 86 persons are said to relocate to every hour and swelling its 23 million-strong population. Other cities like Abuja, Onitsha, Port Harcourt and Kano are feeling the pressure for new housing. State provision of housing is patchy and lending rules are prohibitive.

Confronted with urbanisation, responsive governments adopt multi-pronged approach. In South Africa, all of the central, provincial and city governments are involved. Government’s assistance targets low-income earners. Durban, a major city in South Africa, provided 174,000 new units between 1996 and 2014.

The United Kingdom provides a template to be emulated. There, private investment provides housing, while local councils supply the bulk of low-income housing with the central government’s support. Housing associations are also formed as non-profit organisations to provide housing for low-income earners and the needy. Like the UK, India has also been promoting strong mortgage financing through reforms sector to house its 1.2 billion people.

Apart from sheer incompetence, successive Nigerian governments miss their targets through wrong strategies and lack of the needed political will and strong regulation to see through good ones. A repeated blunder is the forlorn attempt by the Federal Government to build houses directly. Without unlimited funds and by the sheer magnitude of the logistics, this is ridiculous. A current plan to build 2,736 units across 33 states is typical: how can this redress the 17 million deficit? It is the states and the local governments that are better placed to do this. The United States city and county councils are constantly partnering private developers to provide affordable housing through regulations, policies and subsidies.

The Federal Government should strengthen its partnership with the states and LGs, who in turn should enter into corruption-free arrangements with the private sector and non-profits. Land acquisition and building approval processes should be streamlined and home ownership made easier for the low- and middle-income segments through less red tape, low licensing fees and low-interest credit. State governors should stop building houses for civil servants alone: they are elected to serve all, not a few.

The government should muster the political will to implement the National Housing Policy and make the National Housing Fund and NMRC effective. Non-enforcement crippled the mandatory subscription of 2.5 per cent of every worker’s pay to the NHF specified by law. The system has also been assailed by the prevalent culture of corruption and nepotism, translating to low repayment of the low-interest credit provided by the Fund through primary mortgage institutions. Solving the problem will require a thorough reform of the mortgage finance sector that currently contributes less than one per cent to Gross Domestic Product, unlike OECD countries where it averages over 50 per cent.

But the daunting task is how to tackle the macroeconomic environment side where interest rates to the productive sectors average 22-28 per cent and lending rates to the real estate sector range between 28 and 36 per cent. Statutory requirements that banks and insurance firms reserve a percentage of their credit and investment respectively for real estate are ignored.

Construction is a major job creator and housing provision alleviates poverty: with this in mind, the three tiers of government should rouse themselves today to reform the housing sector.

an average makurdi house

BENUE STATE ASSEMBLY poll: ZLP Candidate QS GYIGYA ANDE FANEN PAUL Thanks supporters, Congratulates all winners in the State

A win for one is a win for all
(THE MANDATE FOR A BETTER REPRESENTATION)

Saturday the 9th day of March, 2019 history was made as the people turned out in their numbers to vote and give their mandate to who they believe is best fit to affect legislation in the next four years on behalf of the good people of Konshisha state constituency.

The mandate/mantle of Service and leadership to a people should be given by the people willingly and not forcefully demanded or collected because in the long run, we (both leaders and the led) have a part to play in making sure a conducive atmosphere is provided for good governance, development and progress to thrive thus elections are conducted for the people to exercise their civic responsibility and playing their own part towards birthing the leadership which will stir the ship of development for her constituency.

May I therefore use this opportunity to thank my party the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP) for giving me the platform needed to reach out to my people by presenting myself to serve them selflessly, dedicatedly and guide their mandate jealously.

To my teeming supporters, family, friends, men and women of principles, dignity and courage who stood by me against all odds, worked tirelessly, bravely and courageously for the campaigns through the elections and not allowing the discouraging words from naysayers to deter them, I say I'm humbled by this great show of love and comradeship.

We indeed joined this race barely ONE MONTH ago yet you joined the LIBERATION MOVEMENT, preaching the gospel/message across villages, communities, political wards, etc with all strength and vigor even without been given a dime. You all proved beyond words that we are out to change the narrative and change the status quo.

This patriotic decision of yours has yet again inspired me and I pray and hope it inspires enough people in our generation and beyond to realize that we can achieve greater things when we stand up for ourselves, and stand together.

Even though the electoral process wasn’t void of some challenges and observed pockets of violence, I can’t help but give kudos to the electoral umpire (INEC) for carrying out their duties believing that they will improve on all loop holes witnessed and strengthen the process.

The people made their choice by electing my brother HON. Cephas T Dyako-Ashwa to represent them in the green chambers of the National assembly and as a law abiding citizen of our  Nation and Constituency, I join to say congratulations to Hon. Dyako-Ashwa for his victory at the polls.

This is indeed victory for all of us as a people. I therefore urge all stakeholders to work together in building the constituency of our dreams as the progress, unity and development of Konshisha is our collective responsibility.

Hon.  Cephas my brother, I will plead you run an all-inclusive representation devoid of rancor and sentiments. The electioneering period are gone, now is time to face the crux of the matter by delivering the promises you made to the people. I need not tell you the challenges involved as this is a shoe you are already wearing: all I can do is suggest, appeal and pray God grants you the grace not to disappoint on the mandate given as tomorrow is very pregnant.

I hope one day to celebrate the fact that the developmental strides been achieved in our state Constituency will be used as a Template by others to impact on their constituency.

To all my friends supporters and well-wishers, We must build this movement and sustain the momentum.

Thank you and God bless us all
Hon. GYIGYA, Fanen Paul
ZLP CANDIDATE
BENUE STATE  HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY (KONSHISHA)

Ooni Of Ife Receives 2face And Wife, Annie At His Palace, 2face Sings For Them

Tuface Idibia was at OAU Ife where he bagged an award and later went with his wife, Annie Idibia to pay homage to the Ooni of Ife, Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi.

2baba and Annie were well received as 2baba sang his song 'Brother' at the Palace to the delight of the people around.

Watch the video as shared by Ooni's official page


Source: http://www.thefamousnaija.com/2019/03/2face-and-annie-idibia-visit-ooni-of.html

Mchi Akaawase Alexander

Personal life

MCHI Alexander Akaawase was born in 1962 in Mbausu-Mbara,  Vandeikya . His father, Tsavwua Mchi., is a community leader. In 1970, when young Akaawase was eight years old, he was known for his hard work and his love for humanity.

Education

 Akaawase started primary school at the Roman Catholic Mission primary school Zegekwen, Vandeikya, then he proceeded to, St. Andrew`s Secondray School, Adikpo.  He attended the Rivers State University of Science and Technology, Port Harcourt  where he earned bachelor's degree in Urban and Regional planning. He obtained his master's degree in urban planning from the University of Uyo. He later proceeded to obtain a Ph.D.  from the same University of Uyo.

Career

TPL Mchi was a distinguished Planner. Mr Mchi joined the service of the Benue State Government in 1980 as a technical Officer at the Ministry of commerce and industry. He started his professional career as a Cooperative officer, and rows through the ranks to retire as a deputy Director with the Benue State Ministry of Lands and Survey Makurdi.  

He then went on to create a successful  private business with his firm. Speatel consult as a member of the  Nigerian Institute of Town Planners and member, Town Planners RegistrationCouncil of Nigeria.

 He is  actively involved in the socio-economic development of his community. In addition to his many public service roles within his community. As a planner he undertook several projects which include

Baseline studies on Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas(NLNG) pipeline project in Bony Rivers state. 1998

Landscape design of Eleme petrochemical Industrial Estate Apajo, Port Harcourt, River State in 1998

Design of NNPC housing Estate layout plan

 Preparation of Yenagoa structural plan, Bayelsa State in 1999.

Design of Residential Neighborhood Layout plan (TPS303) in the year 2002

Advice Local Governments within Adikpo Zone on land issues that was between 2002-2004

Real Reason I Was Removed As Benue Police Commissioner - Fatai Owoseni.

Former Lagos Commissioner of Police, Fatai Owoseni has said that the real reason he was redeployed from Benue State was that he refused to obey orders from his superiors that could have led to chaos and further killings in the troubled state.

Recall that Owoseni was posted from Lagos by the then Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris to Benue State to quell the herdsmen and farmers crisis that led to the death of more than 100 persons including policemen in the state.

However, less than a year, he was redeployed out of Benue for reportedly failing to stop the impeachment of the then Speaker of the Benue legislature, Hon. Terkimbi Ikyange.

However, in an interview with Sun newspaper, he said: “I was deployed to Benue in the heat of the farmers–herdsmen crisis and to the best of my ability, I discharged my responsibility within the ambit of the law.

“In police work, we are the most endangered. Instructions will be given to you and you will be caught in-between obeying superior instruction and respecting the constitution of the country.

“I held that as a principle that my loyalty is to the constitution of Nigeria, not to any human being. Where there are conflicts like that, if you are not able to balance what you do, any mistake of judgment can cost you your job. It’s just for you to be matured enough to know where your obligation lies, to be able to differentiate between what is lawful and unlawful instruction.

“I can tell you that I discharged my responsibility to the best of my ability. Someone will sit in Abuja and give you instruction, it is for you that is on the ground to know the implication of that instruction. Instructions that will lead to killings and disturbance in the state.

“Whatever that might have happened, that has become history now. The most important thing is that I have my integrity intact.”

On the factors responsible for the crisis in Benue, Owoseni said: “These clashes are not new within that axis; it’s just that we are a country without institutional memory. Way back, once you have dry season, the herders, look for water and that axis you have what is called Fadama land which has rich foliage, in the process, they move the cattle towards that area.

“While doing that, they can encounter people who are using the same land to farm. They fight over limited resources. But at a point in time, just as we do about everything in this country, every challenge is always given a religious, tribal and political connotation.

“When the former Inspector General of Police, MD Abubakar was there, he set up a committee led by a retired DIG to go and address those crises which were more in Plateau, Taraba, and Benue axis.

“But because we don’t keep a record, and no lessons learnt at all, instead of us to apply these findings, the leaders will be reckless in their talking. Sometimes they exaggerate, sometimes, they live in denial. We more or less, govern by deceit.

“The fact remains that they had a problem there, it was the way things were handled and how they politicized the whole matter that escalated it.

“The solution is not farfetched; you simply work with the people. When you look at the anti-open grazing law, there were a lot of rooms for both parties to work together.

“It is for the two parties to work together and for the state to create empowerment for the herders. If you say that they should confine the animals to a certain area, how do you help them especially with regards to water? Basically, I think the manner in which all those things were translated did not help the situation at all. A lot of people were killed and we lost about 20 policemen in the process."

Dailypost.ng http://dailypost.ng/2019/03/09/real-reason-removed-benue-police-commissioner-fatai-owoseni/?fbclid=IwAR1dBNCi9hRx0uPXnSSh8YY_z3o99haXliVU_ZGtIykXWbt6yIjx0uaJPR0

NCEE 2019/2020 Registration Form for Federal Unity Colleges

This is to inform the general public that the sales of form of the National Common Entrance Examination, NCEE Into JSS 1 Of Federal Government Unity Colleges/Federal Science and Technical Colleges for 2019/2020 has commenced.

The registration period is from Monday 4th March 2019 to Wednesday 10th April 2019 

The National Common Entrance Examination for admission into Junior Secondary School (JSS 1) of Federal Government Unity Colleges for 2019 will be held throughout the country and other interested foreign countries.

Only Final year pupils of Primary Schools are eligible for the exams

summary of procedures for successful NCEE Registration:
Register an account
Activate the account
Login to Your Account
Make Payment
Register Candidate
Print Photo Card
NOTE: No More Sales of Registration Cards or Scratch Cards as Registration and Purchase of Registration Quota is Strictly Online.

The National Common Entrance Examination for admission into Junior Secondary School (JSS 1) of Federal Government Unity Colleges/Federal Science and Technical Colleges for 2019 will be held throughout the country on a date to be announced soon

1. ELIGIBILITY:-

Final year Pupils of Primary Schools who shall NOT be less than 10 years or more than 13 years by September, 2019.

2. STRUCTURE OF THE EXAMINATION

The examination will consist of the following:

PAPER I
Part A – Mathematics and General Science
Part B – English and Social Studies

PAPER II
Part A – Quantitative and Vocational Aptitude
Part B – Verbal Aptitude

3. LIST OF FEDERAL GOVERNMENT UNITY SCHOOLS

Candidates are to choose any two of the following Federal Government Unity Colleges i.e. First (1st) and Second (2nd) Choices.

However, qualified candidates that chose oversubscribed Colleges are liable to be placed at any available alternative Colleges in line with the approved carrying capacity of the Federal Government Colleges.

See Full List of Federal Government Colleges Here.

4. ENTRY PROCEDURE:

a. Registration: Strictly On-Line

b. Candidates within Nigeria:
i. Heads of Primary Schools should follow the registration guidelines below to purchase their registration quota for registration at the sum of N2,500.00 (Two Thousand Five Hundred Naira) only and Stamp Duty of N50.00 (Fifty Naira) per Candidate. No More Payment into any Bank as Registration and Payment are Strictly Online using the Remita Platform.

ii. Private Candidates should also follow the guidelines to purchase their registration slots at the rate of N2,500.00 (Two Thousand Five Hundred Naira) only and Stamp Duty of N50.00 (Fifty Naira)
per Candidate. No More Payment into any Bank as Registration and Payment are Strictly Online using the Remita Platform.

c. Overseas candidates (Europe and other overseas Countries)
High Commissions, Embassies or Consulates should follow the registration guidelines below and make payment of $400.00 using the Remita Platform.

RECOMMENDED: NECO Registration Fees / Charges for SSCE, BECE & NCEE 2019/2020.

5. METHOD OF APPLICATION

1. How to Register an Account on NCEE Registration Portal

How It Works
Register as a parent
Pay the registration fee
Fill in the application
Submit

To pay and register your candidates to sit for the NCEE examination, you need to create account on the NCEE Registration portal. To register an account, follow the steps below:
1. Go to https://ncee.neco.gov.ng