Mercy Salawu

The Oyo State Government has embarked on the rehabilitation of water pipelines in Eleyele and Sango axis of Ibadan.

The Chairman, Water Corporation of Oyo State, Hon. Elias Adeojo stated this in his office after a meeting with the Engineers of the Corporation saddled with the responsibility.

He reiterated that the Government has devised means of segmenting the rehabilitation of the moribund pipelines in phases across the State, due to paucity of funds.

He added that supply of water has met a brick wall before the advent of the current administration.

He added that Eleyele drawing point has been facelifted by adding more treated water drawing points to cater for the yearnings of the Corporation’s customers and boost its revenue drive.

The Chairman expressed his appreciation to Governor Seyi Makinde for giving the Corporation necessary support in carrying out the rehabilitation across the State.

Mohammed Shosanya

The Oyo State government has ordered the reopening of 23 schools in Atiba, Afijio, Oyo East and Oyo West local government areas of the state.

The Deputy Governor, Barrister Bayo Lawal on Thursday, waded into the boundary crisis that led to

a 10-year closure of the schools in the local government areas.

Speaking during a stakeholder’s meeting held at the Western Hall, Secretariat, Ibadan, to fashion out ways of resolving the age-long land dispute, Barr. Bayo Lawal, who doubles as the chairman of the State Boundary Committee, charged the chairmen of Atiba, Afijio, Oyo East and Oyo West LGA to ensure security and peace in their domains.

A statement quoted him as warning that if there are any breaches of security, the Chairmen will be held responsible.

The Deputy Governor also stated that the Ministry of Education will oversee the schools, after reopening.

He added that the Ministry will do whatever is required to put the children back to school.

He also enjoined the members of Oyo state House of Assembly, representing the affected constituencies to work with community leaders, to ensure that children go back to school.

He appreciated the president, Oyo Global Forum, a non-partisan group of professionals from the four LGAs that constitute the Oyo federal constituency, noting that their interest in the progress of the affected schools are commendable.

Barr. Bayo Lawal, who assured the stakeholders that the office of the Surveyor general will wade into the boundary dispute among the communities, appealed to the community leaders to adhere to the Oyo State Government’s verdict on the schools.

He said:”I appeal to you our elders and chairmen of the affected local governments to consider the future of these children. The primary reason this meeting is held is for the schools that were closed for 10 years to reopen immediately. That is the message from the governor himself”.

“We have engaged all the stakeholders, community leaders, Honourable members, the chairmen of the various local governments, and we have agreed that schools must reopen in the interest of those children”, he said.

The affected schools include Community Basic School Obananko, Oyo; Community Basic School Laagbe, Oyo; Pinnock Memorial Bapt School Aba Epo Oluwatedo, Oyo; Baptist Basic School Oluwatedo, Oyo; St. Luke Anglican Bada Idiyalode, Oyo; L.A. Basic School Ago Oyo; Community Basic School Igbo Olose, Oyo in Oyo West LG.

Others are Community Basic School Adebimpe, Oyo; Community Basic School Obasere, Oyo; St. Thomas Anglican School Alabi Olorunda, Oyo; St. Michael RCM Apaara Village, Oyo; Methodist Primary School Ajagba, Oyo; Bapt Central School Oniyanrin, Oyo; Bapt Primary School Aguo, Oyo; ADS Primary School Baba Elesin, Oyo in Oyo East LG.

Also affected are L.A. School Lannite, Oyo; L.A. Primary School Gudugbu Orile, Oyo; L.A. Primary School Gudugbu, Oyo; ADS Primary School Aba Olori, Oyo; ADS Primary Abujakan, Oyo; L.A. Basic School Alagbon, Oyo and L.A. Basic School Imeleke, Oyo also in Oyo East LG.

———- Forwarded message ———
From: Ministry of Information
Date: Thu, Feb 1, 2024, 4:06 PM
Subject: Boundary Dispute: Oyo Gov’t. Orders Reopening of 23 Schools
To: Oyo State Universal Basic Education Board

Good afternoon dear colleagues. Below is a statement on a 10-year old boundary dispute that has led to the closure of 23 schools in Oyo. Kindly help publish. Thank you for always.

Press Release

Boundary Dispute: Oyo Gov’t. Orders Reopening of 23 Schools

The Oyo State government has ordered the reopening of 23 schools in Atiba, Afijio, Oyo East and Oyo West local government areas of the state.

The Deputy Governor, Barrister Bayo Lawal on Thursday, waded into the boundary crisis that culminated into a 10-year closure of the schools in the local government areas.

In a stakeholder’s meeting held at the Western Hall, Secretariat, Ibadan, to fashion out ways of resolving the age-long land dispute, Barr. Bayo Lawal, who doubles as the chairman of the State Boundary Committee, charged the chairmen of Atiba, Afijio, Oyo East and Oyo West LGA to ensure security and peace in their domains.

He warned that if there are any breaches of security, the Chairmen will be held responsible.

The Deputy Governor equally stated that the Ministry of Education will oversee the schools, after reopening.

He added that the Ministry will do whatever is required to put the children back to school.

He also enjoined the members of Oyo state House of Assembly, representing the affected constituencies to work with community leaders, to ensure that children go back to school.

Barr. Lawal appreciated the president, Oyo Global Forum, a non-partisan group of professionals from the four LGAs that constitute the Oyo federal constituency, noting that their interest in the progress of the affected schools are commendable.

Barr. Bayo Lawal, who assured the stakeholders that the office of the Surveyor general will wade into the boundary dispute among the communities, appealed to the community leaders to adhere to the Oyo State Government’s verdict on the schools.

His words, “I appeal to you our elders and chairmen of the affected local governments to consider the future of these children. The primary reason this meeting is held is for the schools that were closed for 10 years to reopen immediately. That is the message from the governor himself”.

“We have engaged all the stakeholders, community leaders, Honourable members, the chairmen of the various local governments, and we have agreed that schools must reopen in the interest of those children”, he said.

The affected schools include Community Basic School Obananko, Oyo; Community Basic School Laagbe, Oyo; Pinnock Memorial Bapt School Aba Epo Oluwatedo, Oyo; Baptist Basic School Oluwatedo, Oyo; St. Luke Anglican Bada Idiyalode, Oyo; L.A. Basic School Ago Oyo; Community Basic School Igbo Olose, Oyo in Oyo West LG.

Others are Community Basic School Adebimpe, Oyo; Community Basic School Obasere, Oyo; St. Thomas Anglican School Alabi Olorunda, Oyo; St. Michael RCM Apaara Village, Oyo; Methodist Primary School Ajagba, Oyo; Bapt Central School Oniyanrin, Oyo; Bapt Primary School Aguo, Oyo; ADS Primary School Baba Elesin, Oyo in Oyo East LG.

Also affected are L.A. School Lannite, Oyo; L.A. Primary School Gudugbu Orile, Oyo; L.A. Primary School Gudugbu, Oyo; ADS Primary School Aba Olori, Oyo; ADS Primary Abujakan, Oyo; L.A. Basic School Alagbon, Oyo and L.A. Basic School Imeleke, Oyo also in Oyo East LG.

The meeting was attended by the Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Prof. Salihu Adelabu; the Executive Chairman, Oyo State Universal Basic Education Board, Dr. Nureni Aderemi Adeniran; Chairmen of the four local governments; traditional leaders, among other stakeholders.

—

E-signed:

Prince Dotun Oyelade,

Commissioner for Information and Orientation,

Oyo State.

February 1, 2024.

Mayowa Balogun

A Lagos Federal High Court,Thursday, convicted and sentenced one Oluwadarasimi Omoseyin, an actress, to six months imprisonment for spraying and stepping on the new Naira notes at a social event in Lagos.

She was first arraigned on February 13, 2023 by the Lagos Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on two-count charges, to which she pleaded “not guilty”.

She was subsequently granted bail on February 15, 2023.

One of the court reads: “That you, Oluwadarasimi Omoseyin, on the 28th day of January, 2023, at Monarch Event Centre, Lekki, Lagos , within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, whilst dancing during a social occasion tampered with the sum of N100, 000.00 (One Hundred Thousand Naira) issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria by spraying same in the said occasion and you thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 21(1) of the Central Bank Act, 2007.”

At the resumed hearing on Thursday, Omoseyin, however, changed her “not guilty” plea to “guilty”, in view of the overwhelming evidence against her.

Following her “guilty plea”, the prosecution counsel, Z.B. Atiku called Abubakar Mohammed Marafa, an operative of the EFCC, to review the facts of the matter.

Marafa recalled that, “the defendant was arrested by officers of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, ICPC, on February 1, 2023, and was handed over to the Commission on February 2, 2023 for further investigation”.

According to him, the defendant’s statement was taken under caution, where she stated that she attended a friend’s wedding on January 28, 2023, and that she sprayed N200 and N100 Naira notes on the occasion.

“The defendant was processed and the videos of where she sprayed the money was found on her phone. Also, further investigations were carried out and the management of the event centre was invited. They also brought in the video footage of the said event.”

The prosecution counsel, thereafter, further applied to tender, in evidence, the letter from the ICPC and other accompanying documents , including the extra-judicial statement of the defendant, forensic report of her phone, a CD of videos showing her spraying the naira note, a flash drive from the event centre together with the statement of the representative of the centre.

Chukwujekwu Aneke admitted them as exhibits and convicted the defendant, as charged. The defence counsel, Afuye Adegbola pleaded for leniency, saying, “ she’s a first-time offender; she is a mother of one; she is remorseful and pleads for mercy.”

He further pleaded for a non-custodial sentence on behalf of the convict.

Delivering judgment, Justice Aneke sentenced the defendant to six months imprisonment, effective from Thursday, with an option of N300,000 ( Three Hundred Thousand Naira only) fine to be paid into the consolidated revenue account of the federation.

Omoseyin bagged her jail term when she was arrested by operatives of the ICPC along Awolowo Road , Ikoyi, Lagos, after the video of her spraying and stepping on the newly redesigned Naira notes at a party surfaced online.

In the viral video, she was also seen flaunting wads of the new Naira notes. In her statement to the Commission, she claimed that she received the new Naira notes from her fans at the party and that she did not know the persons who gave her the money.

Mohammed Shosanya

A coalition of West African civil society organisations (CSOs) have implored President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the leadership of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to intervene by lifting the sanctions the regional bloc imposed on Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso over the coups that rocked the three countries for amicable resolutions of the crises.

Executive Director, CISLAC, Auwal Musa Rafsanjani; General Secretary, West African Civil Society Forum (WACSOF), Kop’ep Dabugat; and Transition Monitoring Group (TMG) representative, Najaatu Mohammed, made the call at a news conferenc on Thursday in Abuja.

The CSOs urged dialogue to mitigate disintegration of ECOWAS and ensure speedy restoration of democratic rule in Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso.

They said that while they continue to condemn military rule in the region rather than resorting to constitutional measures, the threat of gradual disintegration of a community which had hitherto served as best practice template for regional integration in Africa cannot be overlooked.

“It is imperative for Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso, and indeed the rest of the member states of ECOWAS to have a deep reflection over the collective milestones of the regional integration collectively achieved, including peace missions to member states; free mobility of people, goods and services.

“Trade enhancement through the removal of customs duties and tariffs on commodities; as well as collective infrastructural development efforts such as the West African power pool leading to the construction of Diama and Manatali dams in Senegal and Mali respectively.

“At a time when the region is advancing discussions of a single market to further boost trade and development, it is completely disheartening to see leaders shun the channel of diplomacy and dialogue and instead attempting to disintegrate the community,” they said.

Mohammed Shosanya

Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar has said that Federal Government directive to Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to take over crude oil sales proceeds from Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) is not legal.

He said that the directive undermines the operational independence of the national oil company.

Atiku, in a statement said: “Without prejudice to the possibility of any good that was intended in the decision of the Federal Government to make the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) take over the responsibility for crude oil sales proceeds from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), it must be clearly stated that the action is not legal in its application.

“Although, as usual, of the current administration, little has been communicated to the public about explaining details of the decision.

“According to what is publicly available, the President has issued a directive that henceforth, the NNPCL would submit receipts for crude oil sales to CBN for vetting and documentation.”

The former presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) said that whatever may be the merit of the new arrangement, the presidential directive is a violation of the legal status of the NNPCL.

He said that it is an arbitrary order capable of undermining the operational independence of the NNPCL.

“By this order, Mr. President has wrested control of the finances of the NNPCL and donated the same to the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank of Nigeria.

“This is an unprecedented act, without any legal or ethical basis. It is also a violation of the principle of due process in public administration.

“State-owned enterprises are not subject to such arbitrary orders and have full control over their finances within the confines of their respective establishment laws,” Atiku said.

Atiku explained that the NNPCL is a creation of the Petroleum Industry Act 2021 (PIA), which was signed into law by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria on 16 August 2021.

He further explained that the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) makes extensive provisions for the formation, structure, governance, and operation of the NNPCL as an independent limited liability company in Sections 53 to 65 of the Act.

“The government must, therefore, respect the provisions of the law and allow the NNPCL to run as an independent company based on sound commercial objectives and in line with international best practices and standard principles of corporate governance.

“Only then would the new NNPCL grow into a formidable institution with track records, requisite technical and financial capacity, and readiness to operate in public space.

“Any attempt to undermine the operational independence of the NNPCL will be a hindrance to any chances of attracting investments and attaining global relevance in the Petroleum Industry.

“Let it also be stated that the Central Bank Act 2007 does not confer on the Central Bank of Nigeria, any responsibility for vetting the transactions of, or formulating and maintaining the internal controls and internal audits in state-owned enterprises, public or private,” Atiku pointed out.

He insisted that the CBN should be allowed to perform its core functions as provided in the extant law.

“To enhance transparency and accountability in the operation of the NNPCL, its bank accounts for crude sales proceeds (for example at Morgan Stanley) and the entire crude sales conversion circle can be trailed by Nigeria Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (NEITI) and CBN.

“Amongst other supportive measures to enhance transparency, the NNPCL board members can be better selected and reconstituted to include, if desired, representatives of the CBN and NEITI,” he said.