Explosions rock Jos, killed at least six people in Potiskum,Yobe State.

Two explosions occurred on Sunday night in Jos, the Plateau State capital.

A OPINIONVOICES correspondent reports that the first explosion occurred at Bauchi road, just before the University of Jos main campus, while the second explosion occurred around Yantaya, Nasarawa Gwon area, both in Jos North Local Government Area of the state.

The News Agency of Nigeria later reported that Tafsir (Islamic preaching session) was ongoing around the scene of the second explosion.

The twin explosions occurred hours after a suicide bomber killed at least six people in a church in Potiskum in Yobe State.

The police in the state could not be reached for comments at the time of publishing this report.

Chocolate City announces MI as the new the CEO

After being the chief executive officer of one of the prominent hip hop record label in the country, Chocolate City Music for 10 years, Audu Maikori has stepped down, paving way for the appointment of the label’s most visible artist, Jude ‘MI’ Abaga as the new CEO.

The announcement was made by Maikori himself via his Twitter handle on Tuesday.Maikori himself became the president of Chocolate City Group (CCG), a parent company of Chocolate City Music as from July 1, 2015. CCG has other business arms including Chocolate City Distribution, Chocolate City Events and Chocolate City Media.

Other appointment announced by the music label was of Paul Okeugo who became the chief operating officer of CCG. Hakeem Bello Osagie and Yahaya Maikori are expected to be part of the board of CCG.

The new appointments became necessary as the group plans to spread its tentacles across Africa.

Chocolate City was established 10 years ago by Audu Maikori, Yahaya Maikori and Paul Okeugo.  In 2012, Hakeem Bello-Osagie joined the board of Chocolate City Group as its Chairman.

While MI and Ice Prince are  the soar-away artists of the label, it has, however, 15 artists on its bill including Afrobeat legend Femi Kuti, returning Jesse Jagz, DJ Caise, Pryse, Nosa, Victoria Kimani, Dice Ailes,  and Koker. Others are Kahli Abdu and VHS Safari, DJ Lambo, Loose Kaynon, Ruby Gyang and Milli.

In ten years of its existence, the label and its artists have won over 250 individual awards and with 10 albums released.

Buhari appoints Zakari INEC acting chairman

PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari yesterday appointed Amina Bala Zakari the acting chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), following Professor Attahiru Jega’s completion of four-year term.

Zakari’s appointment, which took immediate effect pending the appointment of a substantive chairman, was disclosed in a statement signed by Haruna Imrana, the director of communications for the Head of Civil Service of the Federation. Zakari, who hails from Jigawa State (North West), had served as Federal Capital Territory (FCT) as Health Secretary (the equivalent of a state commissioner) under Nasir El-Rufai, the current governor of Kaduna State, when he was FCT minister.

Until her appointment as acting chairman yesterday, Zakari was one of the commissioners working under the supervision of Prof. Jega. Her tenure, as INEC commissioner, was to expire on July 21, 2015.

However, if appointed in substantive capacity and approved by the Senate, she may serve as chairman for, at least, five more years. Jega, who was appointed by former President Goodluck Jonathan in 2010, served out his five-year term, having conducted two general elections in 2011 and 2015.

He officially bowed out of office as chairman of INEC yesterday and handed over the leadership of the electoral body to Mohammed Wali. Wali, a national commissioner of the commission from Sokoto State, is also expected to retire on August 11, 2015. Meanwhile, six national commissioners whose tenure has also expired are leaving the commission with Jega.

The commissioners are Col. M.K. Hammanga (rtd), Adamawa State (North-East); Dr. Ishmael Jikiri Igbani, Rivers State (South-South); Prof. Lai Olurode, Osun State (South-West); Dame Gladys Nne Nwafor, Abia State (South-East); Mrs. Thelma Amata Iremiren, Delta State (South-South) and Mr. Dr. Nuru A. Yakubu, Yobe State (North-East).

Apart from Zakari, the new acting chairman, three other national commissioners are to leave the Commission in July and August this year. They are Dr. Abdulkadir S. Oniyangi, Kwara State (North-Central), whose tenure will expire on July 21, 2015; Dr. Chris O. Iyimoga, Nasarawa State (North-Central), whose tenure will expire on August 11, 2015; and Ambassador (Dr.) Mohammed Ahmad Wali, Sokoto State (North-West) whose tenure will also expire on August 11, 2015.

At the end of the closed-door ceremony, Prof. Jega expressed optimism for a brighter future for the country and the commission, even as he thanked the authorities for the opportunity to serve Nigeria in that capacity. He said: “We feel great; we thank God Almighty for the opportunity to serve the country. The future is bright for the commission and the country.”

Oando sells shares in downstream sector for N54.9b

OANDO Plc, an integrated oil and gas company, has agreed to sell an equity stake of its downstream business to HV Investments for $276 million.

As part of the deal, the HV Investments II B.V. (HVI), a joint venture owned by a fund advised by Helios Investment Partners and the Vitol Group, and Oando, would each have a 49 per cent voting rights; and a Nigerian Helios affiliate two per cent.

The deal, according to Oando, in a statement yesterday, was brokered at $276 million, conditional upon the receipt of regulatory approvals and subject to customary purchase price adjustments, including working capital. It added that: “Pursuant to the acquisition, a special purpose vehicle will hold 100 per cent of the economic interests and 49 per cent of the voting rights of Oando Downstream.

“The total consideration of $461.3 million will be funded by a $276.8 million cash contribution from HVI, and $184.5 million in preference shares issued to Oando Plc, subject to customary purchase price adjustments, including working capital and long-term debt.

At closing, HVI will own 60 per cent of the special purpose vehicle, while Oando Plc will hold a 40 per cent stake,” it stated. Commenting on the transaction, Chief Executive Officer, Oando Plc, Wale Tinubu, stated, “This transaction is an exciting development in downstream West Africa.

By working with Vitol – a global energy and commodities company and the largest independent trader of energy products; and Helios – a premier Africa-focused private investment firm; Oando Plc has repositioned Oando downstream for a new era of investment growth and profitability.

“Importantly, the divestment enables Oando Plc to focus on its upstream and midstream businesses. Even as proceeds of the sale will be applied almost entirely to reducing Oando’s leverage, we underscore the portfolio rationalization achieved alongside the balance sheet optimization,” he said.

Oando downstream businesses primarily consist of; Oando Marketing Plc (OMP); Oando Supply and Trading Limited (OS&T); Oando Trading Limited (Bermuda) (OTB); Apapa SPM Limited and Ebony Oil and Gas Limited. During a mid-year teleconference with investors and analysts in July 2014 to announce the conclusion of Oando’s game-changing $1.56 million acquisition of ConocoPhillips Nigerian assets, Tinubu had hinted at the probability of a shift in Oando’s strategy to focus on the implementation of a three-pronged approach to reduce debt, diversification into the higher margin upstream, and an increased growth margin value for shareholders through an augmented production portfolio and cash flow.

‘Cybercrime law will bring sanity to Nigeria’s online space’

THE Information Security Society of Africa-Nigeria (ISSAN) has commended the signing into law of the bill on cyber-crime by the former President, Goodluck Jonathan, saying it would save the nation billions of Naira being lost to cyber criminals every year while also helping to sanitise the country’s cyberspace already riddled with a web of frauds and malpractices.   

According to ISSAN President and General Manager, Union Bank, Dr. David T Isiavwe, the society expressed delight that with the law now in place, it will no longer be business as usual for criminals whose business is to defraud innocent people of their hard earned money and resources through the internet and other electronic means. 

“We are delighted that Nigeria has joined the few countries in Africa and indeed, the world at large, to have a law which provides effective, unified and comprehensive legal, regulatory and institutional framework for the prohibition, detection, prosecution and punishment of cyber-crime in the country, while also ensuring the protection of computer systems and networks, electronic communications, data and computer programs, intellectual property and piracy rights. We now expect that the law will be implemented under the new government of President Muhammadu Buhari, given his antecedents and tough posture on corruption and other crimes.

“ISSAN has, in the last few years, championed the call for an appropriate law and regulations to save Nigerians from cyber criminals who are increasing by the day in the country. It is indeed gratifying to note that this law is now in place”.   ISSAN disclosed that it will soon embark on a massive public enlightenment on the new law to prevent Nigerians from falling victims to cyber criminals and also help discourage people from indulging in cyber crime to avoid stiff sanctions imposed by the law.   “For sure, it is no longer business as usual for cyber criminals.

From the petty criminals operating in cybercafés to the big time hackers, email scammers and other computer-based fraudsters, the law stipulates heavy penalties which the criminals should be made aware of before they embark on their ‘suicide’ mission. “Also the new law will help individuals to know their rights as well as the appropriate use of their computer systems and the need to protect themselves against the activities of fraudsters in electronic communications.”

Mobile payments to rise by 58.5% in 2015

BARRING any unforeseen circumstances, the mobile payments platform in Nigeria and other part of the globe, is expected to have witnessed about 58.5 per cent growth by the end of the year.
 

Besides, a revenue value of about $712 billion has also been projected to accrue to operators’ within the same period.
 
Speaking at the 2015 Card Expo Forum in Lagos, Vice President and Area Business Head, West Africa, MasterCard, Omokehinde Ojomuyide, said the world is changing and attention is shifting fast to mobile technologies.
 
Ojomuyide noted that today, 90 per cent of users now move between devices to accomplish a goal, be it on smartphones, Personal Computers, tablets and televisions.
   
According to her, 52 per cent of all online shopping are now done from mobile phone and tablets, stressing that this projects huge values for retailers, which include that through contactless payments, retailers can benefit from increased global transaction values and volumes.
   
She said the mobile payment ecosystem is expected to see 35 per cent average yearly growth from 2012 to 2017. .
   
But if the mobile money/payment ecosystem must champion expected growth in the drive towards financial inclusion, the Chief Executive Officer, Airtel Nigeria, Segun Ogunsanya advocated a review of the current mobile money model in Nigeria. He said a telecommunications company-led model will help expand retail banking, thereby driving financial inclusion in the unbanked segment.
   
Currently, telecommunications companies are not permitted to provide their own mobile money services as the current model approved by the financial regulator, Central Bank of Nigeria, empowers banks to provide mobile money services while telecoms companies play only a supporting role.
   
Speaking at a forum in Lagos, Ogunsanya said for the mobile money market to reach its full potential, it is important that restrictions on telecommunications companies activity in m-money are lifted. .
   
According to him, Agency/Agent Banking as well as mobile money can help deepen penetration in retail banking in the country, suggesting that the mobile money sector is rather slow at this time because they are led by banks.
   
Furthermore, the Vice President and Area Business Head, West Africa, MasterCard, said today 66 countries accept MasterCard contactless payments, with about 2.5 million retailers worldwide. .
   
She disclosed that 33 per cent shoppers abandoned an online transaction if not optimised for mobile.
   
On security, she said that making mobile payments more secure has become extremely crucial if there must be more users. She disclosed that MasterCard Contactless transactions are just as secure as using chip and pin
   
“MasterCard Contactless cards, Near Field Communications (NFC)-enabled-phones and other devices allow consumers to make secure payments everyday. Two in three phones will come with NFC (near field communication) by 2018. MasterCard’s new Digital Enablement Service (MDESI) is designed to tokenize a consumer’s financial information”, she stressed. .
   
While she revealed that consumer interest in new payment solutions is high, Ojomuyide said 85 per cent of users find multiple platforms confusing. .
   
She disclosed that consumers are looking for simpler way to pay no matter where they are. .

48 countries beat digital migration deadline

FORTY-eight nations, out of the 119 member countries of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), have successfully transit from analogue to digital migration.

The deadline date was June 17, 2015. It was a date agreed to by ITU and member nations after the 2006 Geneva agreement, which Nigeria was signatory to.

According to ITU, a United Nations arm in charge of global telecommunications regulation, 58 countries, including Nigeria have the project as ‘on going’, while 20 countries were designated as not ready. 48 countries however, met the deadline. No information was provided on the status of the remaining member nations.

ITU, in a document titled: ‘Status of the transition to Digital Terrestrial Television Broadcasting’, obtained by The Guardian, said June 17, 2015, heralded the development of ‘all-digital’ terrestrial broadcast services for sound and television for 119 countries belonging to ITU Region-1 (Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia) and the Islamic Republic of Iran.

In the Europe, America, Middle East and Central Asia, the ITU listed United States of America; Portugal; Poland; Japan; Germany; Malta; Belgium; Greece; Italy; United Kingdom; France; Netherlands; Sweden; Israel; Canada; Latvia; Iceland among other countries that met the deadline. The report said the countries achieved this feat between 2007 and 2012.

In Africa, countries including Mozambique; Tanzania; Rwanda; Mauritius and Malawi have migrated successfully. They achieved this, according to the report between 2010 and 2015.

Countries that have been designated as on-going, which include Nigeria, are India; Zambia; Zimbabwe, South Africa; Togo; Mexico; Korea Republic; Kenya; Cameroon among others.

According to the body, June 17 June deadline for switching off analogue television broadcasting in the UHF band was set by ITU Member States at the Regional Radio communication Conference in 2006, known as the GE06 Regional Agreement.

It disclosed that several countries that are party to the GE06 Agreement, as well as many which are not, have already made the transition.

ITU explained that the new digital GE06 Plan provides not only new possibilities for structured development of digital terrestrial broadcasting but also sufficient flexibilities for adaptation to the changing telecommunication environment.

According to ITU Secretary-General Houlin Zhao, “Today, 17 June, marks a historic landmark in the transition from analogue to digital television broadcasting. The process, which began in June 2006, has re-envisioned the way the world watches and interacts with TV and opened the way for new innovations and developments in the broadcast industry.”

Zhao explained that digital TV broadcasting offers many advantages over analogue systems for end-users, operators and regulators.

He pointed out that apart from increasing the number of programmes, digital systems can provide new innovative services, such as interactive TV, electronic programme guides and mobile TV as well as transmit image and sound in high-definition (HDTV) and ultra-high definition (UHDTV).

Lagos Needs to pursue special status by State Assembly

Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Mudashiru Obasa on Tuesday declared that one of the major agenda for the 8th Assembly of the state would be the pursuit of a special status for the state.

To make this achievable, Obasa said the lawmakers would work with their colleagues at the National Assembly.

According to Obasa, who presided over the first sitting of the House after its inauguration recently by the state Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, the need for Lagos to have a special status is long overdue.

Mudashiru Obasa, Lagos State House of Assembly Speaker

He said the demand had become imperative because, apart from being a former federal capital, Lagos still remains the economic and commercial nerve centre of the country and the destination of so many Nigerians seeking better life.

“It is therefore important that the federal government takes a special interest in the state by according it a special status and making necessary provisions to cushion the pressure on infrastructure in the state,” Obasa said.

Obasa’s declaration came after the Majority Leader of the House, Sanai Agunbiade, presented a report on the June 12 Anniversary Lecture which took place in Lagos in commemoration of the annulment of the June 12, 1993 election acclaimed to have been the freest and fairest election and won by the late Chief M.K.O. Abiola.

Agunbiade had said one of the recommendations at the ceremony was that since the All Progressives Congress, APC, has formed the government at the federal level, the state should seize the opportunity to ensure that it is granted the status.

He said almost all participants at the event agreed that there is no better time than now to push for special status since the state will have a listening ear now that the APC is in control at the centre.

Bart Nnaji’s Geometric Power to build 1,080MW plant

Nigeria’s Geometric Power will build a 1,080 megawatt power plant jointly with General Electric , with the first phase of the project generating 500 MW expected to be completed in 2019 at a cost of $800 million.

Geometric Power CEO, Barth Nnaji said the firm had also appointed London-based Standard Chartered Bank as financial advisers for the first phase of the plant.

Africa’s biggest economy broke up its monopoly on power generation and distribution by privatising the sector two years ago, hoping to attract foreign investors, but the amount of power produced has stagnated at around half total capacity.

“We have a 1,080 megawatt project … (in partnership) with General Electric. The power goes to the national grid. What we are doing is to build up power projects in this way,” Nnaji, a former Nigerian minister of power, told Reuters late on Tuesday on the sidelines of a power conference in Lagos.

Nnaji said the firm was in discussions with some Chinese, European and U.S. investors and expected financial close by year-end. Construction would start early next year.

Geometric Power, which has a 141 megawatt captive power for industrial use in Abia State, said the new plant would also be located in Abia State, southeast Nigeria.

Nigeria, with a population of around 170 million, has installed power capacity that fluctuates between around 6,000 to just over 7,000 MW, but experiences severe electricity shortages that are crippling its growth.

Some of the older plants, sold in October 2013, are in dire need of an upgrade while the fledgling generating firms lacking the cash as distributors struggle with non-paying consumers and inadequate gas supplies required to keep the plants running.

Jonathan created 5,400 young entrepreneurs.

Former President Goodluck Jonathan has stated that his government created 5,400 young entrepreneurs in Nigeria, noting that, the first 2,400 entrepreneurs have created an average of nine jobs each.

Jonathan made the remark at Youth Entrepreneurship Strategy and the Nigeria Youth Entrepreneurship Network launch held at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.

He said since the inception of this administration that, it clearly identified unemployment, especially among the youths, as one of the biggest challenges. “We recognized that the transformation of our economy from an oil-based economy to a non-oil economy presented the greatest opportunities for job creation in our country, and as a result, we embarked on diversifying our economy. Today, I am happy to report to Nigerians that this effort has yielded positive results to date, with the creation of about 1.4 million jobs on average per annum for our youth, and we are working hard to improve on this.

He said given the depth of the unemployment problem, his government understood from the onset the need to directly intervene in job creation through a number of carefully designed programs. “As you all know, our labour market is stratified, consisting of youth with different skillset and capacity. So to ensure no group is left out, we designed programs tailored to the various skill-sets.

“We started with the implementation of the Community Services Scheme, under the SURE-P Program to cater for unskilled youth, and so far over 120,000 young Nigerians, including 42,000 women and 4,700 physically challenged youth across our country have been engaged in various projects like road maintenance, community security, sanitation, and so on. Several of these youth are also being trained in various skills so that they can succeed in the labour market.

“In the same spirit, we started the Graduate Internship Scheme, targeting university graduates with one year internships in private sector led enterprises, so that they can acquire requisite skills and experience that can improve their long-term employability.

“So far, about 22,000 young graduates have been placed under this program, and we are ramping up efforts to ensure that many more graduates are supported.

“We also have programs like YouWin and Nagropreneurs to support highly skilled youth and budding entrepreneurs. These programs have been designed to ensure that young Nigerians get training, mentoring, and more critically access to finance through grants, which had been difficult for them to access in the past, to set up their own companies, which will then employ their fellow youth.

“Today I am proud to say that this will be the first government in the history of Nigeria that will directly create 5,400 young entrepreneurs through the YouWin program.

“I am also proud to say that the first 2,400 entrepreneurs have created an average of nine jobs each, with a total of 22,000 jobs so far. Nagropreneurs program will also support 750,000 young farmers across our nation. These programs have demonstrated that a lot can be achieved through entrepreneurship.

We know that Entrepreneurs are the engine room of Nigeria’s economy. Our Entrepreneurs are responsible for more than 60% of our $510 billion dollars GDP, and our Micro, Small and Medium business sector is responsible for almost 98 per cent of the new jobs created in our economy on an annual basis. This simply means that Nigeria is truly a Nation of Entrepreneurs.

“I am therefore particularly excited that we are launching a broad-based public private partnership called the Youth Entrepreneurship Strategy that will redefine the way we engage and support the empowerment and employment of our young people and women going forward. The goal of this Strategy is to speed up an already fast moving train called Entrepreneurship, running across our NATION to empower our youth and women. That is why the Federal Government of Nigeria is proud to partner with the Anabel Group to promote and manage theNYENET.COM portal.

“NYENET.COM, an online portal, is a one stop shop to empower and support Nigerian youths. By going to one online portal, NYENET.COM, our young people can access hundreds of Federal and State Government empowerment programs.

“Besides enhancing the ability of our young people to choose the program that is right for them, this portal will also enhance the Federal Government’s ability to reach out to our young people.

“So whether you require education or you require funding for your business, or in some cases all you require is a mentor to guide you through the tough economic conditions, you can find support with this strategy and by using this portal.

“The Youth Entrepreneurship Strategy goes further to fill the gaps in many of our entrepreneurship programs by providing bankable business ideas to support young people that do not have ideas, or those that their great ideas have not found interest with the banks and financing institutions.

“I am particularly pleased by the fact that the Youth Entrepreneurship Strategy does not leave the support work for Government alone. A major pillar of the strategy is the partnership with the private sector, in which private organizations and private successful business people can support youths in their own communities by signing up and providing funds for selected young people to own and operate their own businesses.

“I also want to encourage all of us here today and the privileged ones all across Nigeria to support our young people all over Nigeria by signing up and joining the coalition of Super Mentors on the NYENET.com portal. I already consider myself a Super Mentor and I expect that many more of us will follow in this direction, as it will improve the lives of millions of our young people.

“I acknowledge the efforts of the Anabel Group in driving entrepreneurship, empowerment and the employment of our youth, and we expect more of such efforts from our private sector.

“On this note, distinguished ladies and gentlemen, I hereby adopt this Youth Entrepreneurship Strategy, and formally declare OPEN the Nigeria Youth Entrepreneurship Network portal for our young people and Super Mentors to SIGN UP, to the glory of God and the advancement of our dear country,” Jonathan said.

Ambode meets Dangote, to attract more investors to Lagos

Governor Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State on Wednesday said his administration was willing and ready to make investors have comfortable business profile in the state.

Ambode spoke at the Lagos House, Alausa, during a courtesy visit by President of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote.

He said his administration was ready to support the Dangote Group, where it was necessary, to ensure that investors had comfortable lives.

“I will just call on other investors that wherever it is that we can assist, we are willing and ready to make sure that investors have comfortable life and comfortable business profile in Lagos state,” Ambode said.

The governor described the visit as very significant and promised that his administration would open up the state for greater businesses.

Ambode said that the state government was also interested in attracting foreign investors through its creation of an Office of Overseas Affairs and Investment.

“This visit is highly significant; we said it that we are going to open up Lagos State for greater business

“And we also said we are interested in bringing in foreign investors and also create an Office of Overseas Affairs and Investment.

“This visit is symbolic in the sense that the bottom line is creating jobs for our youths and he (Dangote) has shown full commitment as a great Nigerian that he is interested in investing in any part of this country,” he said.

Ambode said that the government was ready to support him and his businesses because he was adding value to the state.

The governor also thanked the Dangote Group president for donating N400 million through the Dangote Foundation to 2,000 women in each of the 20 local governments in the state to improve their businesses.

In his response, Dangote said he was at the Lagos House to congratulate Ambode on his victory at the polls as well as his swearing-in as the 14th governor of the state.

He said the visit also afforded him the opportunity to assure the governor of his commitment to finish ongoing projects currently being embarked upon by his company.

Dangote said he would as well continue to support initiatives geared toward securing lives and property.

“I’ve assured the governor that we really love doing business here; it’s a friendly state for doing business.

“I also assure him that the projects we are doing, are on course; that is building the largest ever single refinery of 650,000 barrels per day.

“This is far more than the consumption of Nigeria and that will satisfy our consumption at least for the next seven to 10 years by the time we finish,” Dangote said.

The industrialist also said that his company was building the largest fertiliser plant of two to three million tonnes of Uranium and Amonia in the Lekki Free Trade Zone.

“I also assure the governor that we are going to do a gas pipeline from Bonny to under the sea, in which when we finish, Lagos state will never ever experience blackout; there will be electricity 24 hours a day.

“There are quite a lot of things that we will come along with that will create so many jobs.

“I think Lagos will be one of the fastest growing cities in Nigeria and Africa as a whole.

El-Rufai appoints Inuwa and Woje for rural development.

Malam Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai, the governor of Kaduna State, has approved the appointments of Mrs Balaraba Aliyu-Inuwa and Dr. Clement Woje to help drive the government’s rural and community development agenda.

In a statement signed by Samuel Aruwan, Special Assistant on Media and Publicity , the both appointee are to work in the office of the Deputy Governor as Special Adviser and Director-General respectively.

According to the statement, the new government recently announced that the former ministry of rural development will henceforth be a department in the deputy governor’s office.

Balaraba Aliyu-Inuwa was the Education Specialist and Deputy Programme Director for the Earth Institute, Columbia University on the Nigeria MDG Scale up Programme based in Abuja.

She is a development practitioner specializing in education, and has worked in the public and private sectors as well as civil society.

For four years, she was the Technical Advisor to the Senior Special Assistant to the President on MDGs in Nigeria. She has also worked as the International Education Programme and Shared Learning Coordinator for Actionaid International and was a consultant for the Federal Ministry of Education on the Education for All Initiative.

A graduate of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, sheis a trustee of the Centre for Policy Research and Development Solutions and serves as an advisor to numerous NGOs.

While Dr Clement Woje, a public health specialist, has worked in public institutions and in the organized private sector. He graduated from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, in 1987 and attained higher qualifications at the University of Lagos, the University of Nairobi, Kenya and the University of Aberdeen, Scotland. He worked at various times with Ahmadu Bello University, National Oil and Chemical Marketing Company, Millennium Villages Project and theKaduna State University.

Dr. Woje led the health sector at Pampaida Millennium Villages Project as health coordinator and later led a multi-sectoral team that implemented an integrated rural development project in Pampaida, Ikara LGA, Kaduna State.

This brings to three the appointments that have been announced this week, following the elevation of the permanent secretary, Culture and Tourism, Mrs. Alisabatu Dada-Onazi to the position of Head of Service.

I’m not aware of N9bn wardrobe allowance, says Sen Murray-Bruce

Senator Ben Murray-Bruce representing Bayelsa East has stated that he is unaware of the alleged N9billion earmarked for wardrobe allowance of National Assembly members.

Murray-Bruce was reacting to calls by Nigerians that he sheds more light on the report. It would be recalled that Murray-Bruce has repeatedly said he would fight corruption and unnecessary spending by the National Assembly.

“I’m fighting the corrupt elite. I’m 59. You only live once. What do I tell God when I die? The worst they can do is to take me out, so what?,” Murray-Bruce wrote on his Twitter page on May 31.

Responding to the hundreds of tweets directed to him on Tuesday, 16 June, Murray-Bruce said: “My attention had been drawn to news reports about intended payments to be made to federal legislators. To the best of my knowledge, these payments were not discussed at plenary or in private,” he wrote on Twitter.

Adding that: “My investigations establish that payments to be made are those independently decided upon by the RMAFC. There is such a thing as collective responsibility. As a senator, I share responsibility of decisions taken by the 8th Senate.”

He noted that he might not be able to stop his colleagues from enjoying the largesse. “I only control my actions. The best I can do is influence the actions of my colleagues in the Senate. Nations change over time not overnight”

“This fight can only be effective if I build coalitions with my colleagues. This fight will be dead on arrival if I alienate them,” he said, adding that, he was going to fight in the interest of Nigerians.

“Let me assure my constituents and the rest of Nigeria that I remain committed to fighting for their interests. I urge patience and understanding from all Nigerians even as I assure you that I, Ben Murray Bruce, will continue to be on your side,” he stated.