Rice, rice everywhere thanks to Kebbi deal

WACOT Rice Limited

The food sufficiency goal of the federal government is set to receive a major boost through collaboration between WACOT Rice Limited and the Kebbi State government.

The food sufficiency journey started sometime in June 2016 when President Muhammadu Buhari announced in a Ramadan meeting with members of the business community that his administration would make the country self-sufficient in rice production within 18 months.

The president was obviously not satisfied with the fact that the country was still importing food in the face of a foreign exchange crisis and Nigeria, being Africa’s largest consumer of rice, devours about six million metric tonnes of rice annually mostly imported from India, Thailand and Brazil.

The president submitted that Nigeria should be able to produce what it eats and export its excess. 14 months after the declaration, the president’s dream is gradually becoming a reality through the establishment of the West African Cotton Rice Mill (WACOT) in Argungu, Kebbi State which is expected to produce 120,000 metric tons annually and 400 metric tons of rice daily.

The multi-billion naira rice mill is said to be the largest of its kind in Africa. It was commissioned by the Acting President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, on August 1, 2017.

It has about 10 silos with the capacity to store 18,000 tons of rice paddy and warehouses for storing an additional 12,000 tons of rice paddy. The mill is stocked with machines from world renowned machinery suppliers like Buhler, Petkus, SKF, Thermax and Silos Cordoba and includes a fully equipped laboratory to test all parametres for ensuring consistent quality of the product.

Built with the economics of the environment in mind, it is expected to generate electricity from husk (the hard protecting coverings of grains of rice), thereby ensuring that all by-products from the processing are well-utilized. It will generate 1 megawatt of electricity via turbines to reduce dependence on the national grid. It also has a fully equipped water treatment plant that takes care of its liquid waste before being discharged into the community, where safely used for irrigation.

WACOT Limited is the first company to do an Out Growers Model and Farmers Assistance Scheme. The company is now extending its expertise to increase yields among rice farmers in Argungu and beyond, since more farmers need to increase their yields if the country is to meet its self-sufficiency target. Although the building of the mill only started in February 2016, since 2013, WACOT has been engaging with farmers through two training schemes- the Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) and the Yield Enhancement Techniques (YET). The company has worked with over 4,000 farmers and distributed inputs - high quality seeds, fertilizers and agro-chemicals  worth N144m.

Argungu is already beginning to witness economic transformation as a result of the establishment of the rice mill-more jobs are coming with over 3,500 people engaged as well as new businesses built around the mill.

Speaking at the commissioning of the mill, Acting President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, said: “It is the policy of the federal government that it is the private sector that must be the engine of development. But the private sector being the engine of development is not just the private sector leading growth. The growth must be growth with jobs, it cannot be jobless growth.

“We have seen a lot of jobless growth, especially around the oil economy with a lot of revenue coming but a very few jobs. One of the critical things that we are seeing today, especially the development of agriculture, is that this is growth with jobs. Several thousands of our people are farmers and are engaged in farming”.

He said the commissioning of the mill was a landmark achievement for the country in diversifying its economy and a signal to other countries that Nigeria is not just open for business but set for development. Osinbajo said the N10bn investment that was put together within 12 months shows that Nigeria is moving in the right direction.

 The story of the mill is not without the support of the Kebbi State government under Governor Abubakar Atiku Bagudu.

Bagudu recently disclosed that on assuming office and discovering the huge rice potentialities in his state, he immediately partnered with the Bank of Industry and the Central Bank of Nigeria and to show his commitment, he put down N4 billion to assist rice farmers in the state to go into commercial farming. He pointed out that with the capital outlay and agreement it entered into the with the BOI, his administration also designed a template where each farmer agrees to produce at least six tons of rice per hectare of land after being given a minimum of N210,000 per hectare to cover farm inputs and seedlings.

According to the Managing Director, Mr. Ujwalkanta Senapati, WACOT has completed several humanitarian projects in the community.

“We have renovated a school and a hospital and have organized health camps with free consultation and medicines to over 1,000 farmers. We’ve always had the aspiration to implement positive change,” he said.

The General Manger, Mr. Amit Gupta, expressed optimism on his company’s role  in the effort to boost rice production in the country.

He said WACOT can produce rice that can be compared with those produced in Thailand and India because it has the required machines, boilers and other equipment.

Source: Daliy Trust

Stop the Hoopla around Buhari’s Health, Talk of Cabal Running Govt Mere Myth, Says Tinubu

By Ibidapo Balogun

Former Lagos State governor and APC national stalwart, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, has urged Nigerians to ignore the hoopla about President Muhammadu Buhari’s health and allow the president to do his job as he deems fit.

He said President Buhari has moved the country from the path of failure to “a path where we have a fighting chance to realize a better nation. Had we stuck to the ways of the former administration, our present situation would be worse than untenable.”

Tinubu said the business of government was running and dismissed the notion that a cabal was at work in Abuja as mere myth.

In a strongly-worded statement personally signed by him, Tinubu said:

“Nigeria is a place of numerous challenges and the home of vast human potentials. Our greatest challenge has always been how to best direct our vast potentials so that we overcome the challenges that plague us. This cardinal challenge is why the APC was formed and why the party presented then General Muhammadu Buhari as its standard bearer. The people rightly chose him as their president, believing he was the best person to make Nigeria into a better nation.

His electoral victory was historic. More importantly, like most Nigerians, I believed his presidency represented a historic mission to right many of our nation’s wrongs. I still believe so. The previous administration treated Boko Haram softly, appearing to view the terrorists as part of their political equation rather than a lethal threat to national security. President Buhari has gone after Boko Haram without condition and without fear. He has pushed them back, saving lives and giving northern Nigeria a chance to breathe again the air of peace and normalcy.

“My recent visit to Borno State to inaugurate projects opened my eyes to the progress President Buhari has made in the anti-terror war. An enabling environment has been created for Governor Kashim Shettima who has taken advantage of the peaceful space to initiate laudable projects such as the provision of housing for and rehabilitation of Boko Haram victims.  The previous administration treated corruption as its co-tenant in office. President Buhari has fought it with tenacity, equal to that with which he has confronted Boko Haram.

We currently face stiff economic challenges. This is neither President’s Buhari’s doing nor choosing. The steep decline in oil prices caused the downturn which exposed our nation’s long-time failure to plan ahead by diversifying our economic base. It has fallen on the Buhari government to fix the immediate problem while also diversifying our economy so that we will no longer be as vulnerable to the price of oil again.

“His policies have begun to bear fruit. We are moving out of recession and toward the long-term reshaping of the national economy. Given the complex menu of problems he has faced, President Buhari has done well in a tough situation. While I seek not to diminish the hardship still faced by many of our people, we also must be cognizant of the important progress made these past two years.

President Buhari has moved us from the path of failure to a path where we have a fighting chance to realize a better nation. Had we stuck to the ways of the former administration, our present situation would be worse than untenable. Those who publicly speculate about the issue of the President’s health must keep all of this in mind. Much is at stake. We owe a responsibility to be wise and circumspect in what is spoken into the public ear.

“We voted for President Buhari because we trusted his ability to make decisions regarding complex issues of state. If we can trust him to handle difficult matters of governance, we can also trust him to make correct decisions regarding his personal health. The President Buhari I have come to know is an honest and responsible man and leader.

When he returned to Nigeria on March 10, he disclosed to the nation that he had been sick to the extent that he received blood transfusion and would leave for further treatment at some future date. He said he would follow the counsel of his doctors and there is every reason to believe that he has been true to their counsel. Many people have openly speculated about the President’s health. Some have done so for their own selfish reasons. These people shall be found out in time. There are many who have done so out of sincere concern for the President.

“These people should not be condemned for their heartfelt concern. However, they should be advised not to allow fear to ambush their better judgment and their courage. They should not give themselves to idle speculation. We should not buy into the myth of some cabal at work. Dwelling in empty speculation on the existence of some mythic cabal is not what the country needs at present. From what I can see, the President remains at the helm and his policies are being implemented.

The President is also showing his belief in process and partnership by assigning more responsibilities to the VP, which included presiding over meetings of the Federal Executive Council, thus demonstrating his trust and implicit confidence in him. Unfounded speculation serves no purpose other than to encourage those who would rather derail the President’s progressive agenda and who would divisively pit one aspect of this nation against another. Such chatter may foment division where there was none and this might come to impair the management of the affairs of this country.

“By fomenting animosity among groups that have heretofore been allied, those who hold to the bankrupt politics of yesterday seek to thwart the President’s mission while claiming to support him. Those who truly care about the President and the important work he still must do should not allow themselves to become the unwitting tools of these regressive forces.

We must stand with and beside our President. The unfounded speculation around his health should stop. We must not covet fear and rumor but should engage our creativity and enterprise to help the President accomplish his historic mission.  Our greatest energies should be focused on righting this economy so that it provides a decent livelihood for all people. This critical path towards economic recovery must be followed for the sake of our children.”

ASIWAJU BOLA AHMED TINUBU

Jagaban Borgu

Nigerian Woman Convicted of Unlawfully Obtaining Citizenship Through Sham Marriage in US

A nigerian woman, Euphemia Chinyeaka Okeke, 41, has admitted she unlawfully obtained citizenship by entering into a sham marriage with a Houston man, Acting U.S. Attorney Abe Martinez announced yesterday.

Okeke, a resident of Louiseville in Kentucky admitted to marrying a Houston resident and U.S. citizen while in Nigeria. She then applied for an immigrant visa and alien registration based on that marriage, claiming her permanent residence would be Houston.

 However, shortly after she arrived in the United States, Okeke conceived a child and lived in Louisville with Kenneth Okeke, a Nigerian citizen with no legal status to reside in the United States. Mr. and Mrs. Okeke have since lived in Louisville and have two children together there.

 In her application for naturalization, however, she testified under oath and penalty of perjury that since arriving in this country, she continuously lived in Houston with her purported husband and no one else, had not lived in any other place in the United States and had no children. She became a naturalized citizen on Sept. 14, 2011.

 Less than a month later, Euphemia Okeke filed for divorce. She married Kenneth Okeke two weeks later and filed a petition for alien relative in an attempt to obtain lawful immigration status for him. In that petition, she stated under oath and penalty of perjury that she was divorced two years before she actually was and that she had lived and worked in Louisville since arriving in the United States.

 U.S. District Judge Melinda Harmon accepted the plea and has set sentencing for Aug. 4, 2017. At that time, Euphemia Okeke faces up to 10 years in federal prison and possible revocation of her citizenship.

 Kenneth Okeke is currently in deportation proceedings.

 U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Goldman is prosecuting the case.

Via: Sahara Reporters

THEY LEARNT NOTHING, AND FORGOT NOTHING By FEMI ADESINA

President Buhari with the Acting President Prof. Osinbajo

They showed their pernicious hands again last Sunday, and have been on the prowl since then, roaring like a lion, seeking who to devour. Purveyors of death they are, and they have killed President Muhammadu Buhari many times over, cloned the websites of international media houses to announce the hoax, but their wishes did not become horses, so they remain stranded, with nothing to ride.

Between January 19, this year, when the President first proceeded on vacation, and March 10, when he returned, they had announced his demise many times. They even created apocryphal images and footages to back up their inhuman claims, but God showed them He was the ultimate. The Real Deal, the Special One. President Buhari came back alive, and disclosed that he would still return to London at a later date for medical follow-up. He eventually left on the night of Sunday, May 7. 

They saw the Deux ex machina, the Invisible Hands of God, between January and March, but they are so steeped and marooned in unbelief, evil wishes and malediction, that they have started all over again. Last Sunday, they cloned popular websites for the umpteenth time, using them to announce the figment of their diseased imagination. They learnt nothing, and forgot nothing from the immediate past experience. And you begin to ask yourself, just as the Good Book also asked:"Why do the heathens rage, and the people imagine vain things?" Why do they arrogate to themselves the power that belongs only to God? "I can kill, and I can make alive," says God in His word. But these purveyors of hate possibly don't know God. That is why they declare a man dead, when God has not said so. Once has God spoken, and twice have I heard it, that power belongs to God.

Millions upon millions of Nigerians love President Muhammadu Buhari. They love his simplicity, his forthrightness, incorruptibility, love of country, and many other virtues. And they are praying. Bombarding Heaven with petitions. Baba o, Baba o, Baba o. Olorun da Baba si fun wa, Baba o, Baba o, Baba o. Olorun da Baba si fun wa. Oh God, spare our Baba, the father of the country. Spare him for us, O Lord we pray. And Heaven is listening to the supplications. We await the full manifestation.

Millions of us can follow Baba blindfolded into battle. We love him that much, and it is within our rights. But have you seen a man ever loved by everybody? Show me. Even if you feed an entire city daily, some people still won't like your guts. So, those who are not Buharists have a right to their convictions. But must any human being be hateful to the point of wishing another person dead, and indeed broadcasting a death that never happened? Shame. Shame upon evil wishers, purveyors of lies and wickedness. Do they have blood running in their veins at all? Do they realize that wishing another person dead, is sin before God? Yet they go to churches, mosques, and other worship houses. Who are they worshiping? The Unknown God.

Why do some people, a tiny but vocal minority, wish the President dead? Do they know that if God wills, the man they wish dead could outlive them by many years? There was a lady who was very active on social media in 2015, before the presidential election of that year. She was in the league of anti-Buhari elements. Oh, he was too old. Oh, he was sickly. Yes, he would soon die. The lady was rabidly pontifical in her convictions, parading herself as someone with a charmed life, who would live forever. And then, it happened! Sometime last year, she died! When I saw the news online, I just shook my head, and prayed for the repose of her soul. I did not gloat. No need to. Not in her wildest imagination could she have thought that she would pre-decease President Buhari. But who has the final say? Jehovah has the final say. The breath of man is in his nostrils, and God can decide to extinguish his candle at anytime. Jehovah has the final say. It is not by age, not by how healthy you seem, or how sickly you are. It's a lesson some people have not learnt. They learn nothing, and forget nothing.

Back to the earlier question. Why do some people want their own President dead? Why do they want the eclipse of a man who is actuated by nothing other than love for his country? Why have they constituted themselves into enemies of national progress, haters of all that is good? Why do they prefer the dark jungle of infamy to the light of a clear and bright day, signposted by freedom from rapacity and lootocracy? Who then are these enemies?

"Our enemies are the political profiteers, the swindlers, the men in high and low places that seek bribes and demand 10 percent, those that seek to keep the country divided permanently so that they can remain in office as Ministers or VIPs at least, the tribalists, the nepotists, those that make the country look big for nothing before international circles, those that have corrupted our society and put the Nigerian political calendar back by their words and deeds."

Those were the words of Major Chukwuma Kaduna Nzeogwu, after the country's first military coup in 1966. You may like Nzeogwu, or you may not, depending on how you view his actions and inactions. But you can hardly deny the veracity of what he said. And 51 years later, the words still ring true.

The enemies of Buhari are the political profiteers. To them, political office is not about service, but about making profit. Ordinary people can go to hell, and stay there. Personal profit is the name of the game.

The swindlers, too. Enemies of righteousness and transparency. They swindle man, and even try to swindle God. Of course, they wouldn't want a new sheriff in town. They'd rather shoot him, and sing the reggae song:"I shot the sheriff..."

Those that seek bribe and demand 10 percent. Enemies. Only that they are not satiated by 10 percent again. They take the entire 100 percent, and leave the country prostrate. But when a Daniel comes to judgment, and hurls them before the law, knowing neither friend nor foe, they wish that he dies. Gerrout, so that business as usual continues, they shout.

Those that seek to keep the country divided permanently. Evil souls. They use all the fault lines. Religion. Ethnicity. Language. Everything. We saw it all in the 2015 elections. They cashed in on all things that divide us as a people. But Nigerians were resolute for change, and they got it. But did those people give up? Did Pharaoh desist from pursuing the people of Israel? Hell, no! Till he ended in a watery grave. The stubborn fly follows the corpse into the grave.

For the greater part of this year, President Buhari has been away from home. But whether present or absent, he still looms large. The mere fact that his shadow hovers over the land riles evil workers to no end. But what can anybody do? Jehovah has the final say.

The old order is giving way for a new one in Nigeria. In just two years, the back of insurgency has been broken, corruption is taking a shellacking, and the comatose economy is turning round. Despite it all, some people still wish the President dead. Sad and sorry. But thankfully, they don't have the final say. 

However, if they refuse to repent, we can repent on their behalf, lest judgment comes speedily on them. How dreadful it would be.

Lord, we are sorry,
We've turned around and gone astray,
Your trust for us we have betrayed,
Your power we don't recognize
Your Lordship we have all despised,
We cannot pretend
We all now repent
Forgive us Lord we pray
Bring down your glory...

May God bless Panam Percy Paul, who sang the song. May God accept our repentance on behalf of evil wishers. May God spare our President, and restore him to full health.
Baba o, Baba o, Baba o, Oluwa da Baba si fun wa. 

Lord, please spare our President. Spare him for us, to the glory of your name. Let those who learn nothing, and forget nothing, be purged of all evil. Let them turn new leaf.

Amen somebody!

Adesina is Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to President Muhammadu Buhari

AKANDE WARNS NIGERIANS ON PRESIDENT BUHARI's HEALTH!

The founding National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, (APC) Chief Bisi Akande has urged Nigerians to pray fervently for President Muhammadu Buhari's health. The health of the leader is intricately intertwine with the health of the Nation. It is more so in a delicately fragile Union of Nations called Nigeria. I did not see President Buhari at the wedding of his grand son in Kaduna last Saturday. I was sad and I wept.

When last we met at the wedding of his daughter in Abuja last December, I complained to him that I was not happy about his stressful looks. His reply connoted some allusions to circumstances where an honest man fighting corruption is surrounded mostly by unpatriotic greedy ruling class. He felt painfully frustrated. He assured me he would soon be going on vacation. I then knew that corruption has effectively been fighting back. And I prayed for Nigeria. That was why Ashiwaju Bola Tinubu and I rushed to meet him in London in February this year when he was sick and could not return as scheduled from his vacation. The rest is history but we must appreciate that his poor health is already taking a toll on the health of Nigeria as a polity.

There are two challenges facing the country today. The first and most critical is the health of the President which, unfortunately, is a development beyond his control and for which we did not prepare. The second is the disorder and lack of cohesion between the National Assembly and the Presidency. These are two great red flag dangers that have the potential of plunging the country into unprecedented chaos and of destabilising the gains of democracy since 1999," The greatest danger however is for political interests at the corridor of power attempting to feast on the health of Mr President in a dangerous manner that may aggravate the problems between the Executive and the National Assembly without realizing if, in the end, it could drag the entire country into avoidable doom.

As delicately fragile the Union of Nations making up Nigeria, so delicately fragile the democracy and the rule of laws governing the polity of the Union called Nigerian Federation. Certain Nigerian leaders, having been blindfolded by corruption, assume the possibility of using money in manipulating the national security agencies to intimidate, suppress and hold down certain ethnic nationalities or playing one ethnic nationality against the other with a view to undermining the constitution and perversely upturning the rule of law. To avoid the ugly consequences of letting President Buhari's ailments throw Nigeria into confusion, I am urging all Nigerians to begin to pray for his divine healing and perfect recovery.

Let me warn today that those who wish to harvest political gains out of the health of the President are mistaken. This is not Nigeria of 1993. We are in a new national and global era of constitutionalism and order. We hope Nigerians have enough patience to learn from history.

My greatest fear, however, is that the country should not be allowed to slide into anarchy and disorder of a "monumental proportion".

Chief Bisi Akande
May 1, 2017

Economic growth under Goodluck Jonathan was fake – World Bank Consultant

The president of Nigeria Economic Society and a World Bank consultant, Olu Ajakaiye has stated that the economic growth recorded from 2010 to 2014, under the leadership of Goodluck Jonathan, was fictitious in nature.

He further stated that the Muhammadu Buhari-led government and subsequent Nigerian governments must develop the country, even if it means stealing from other countries.

Ajakaiye, who was the keynote speaker at the 2017 edition of The Bullion Lecture organised by the Centre for Financial Journalism, said many first world nations have stolen their way to development.

Ajakaiye said the government must not leave development for the markets to handle, but combine all instruments, positions, variables and policies to drive growth and development.

“Let us therefore not be under any illusion and say the market will do it. They have to make sure they provide the market, whatever it takes, including stealing from other countries,” he said.

“The developed systems that we have now were as a result of resources taken from here, and they are ahead. Their government didn’t say we would be nice guys, we would not go and steal.

“They carried our people, young people, valuable people, and they now established the first world.”

Ajakaiye dissected Buhari’s economic recovery and growth plan (ERGP), and applauded it as a good plan, if properly implemented and funded according to targets.

The development economics specialist said the ERGP has set out 21 clear programmes, with 60 strategies and 365 key activities, which has been assigned to lead agencies across the public and private sectors.

He said N75.03 trillion will be needed to implement the plan, which runs from 2017 to 2020.

“When the economy was growing in a fictitious way — I regarded the growth of 2010 to 2014 as fictitious. Why is it fictitious, it is growth that is driven by government just deploying oil revenue into the economy.

“The structure remained dis-articulated and we are actually deceiving ourselves in a very interesting way by saying the economy leaped-frog, we have now got to a stage where we are arrived, because in advanced countries, service sector is now dominant.

“They call it tertiarisation of the economy. Our economy was prematurely tertiarised, and this was the harbinger of poverty.

“I always tell people, when you go to Europe where their economy is already tertiarised, do you see anybody running after you in traffic to sell you recharge card? Do you see anybody hanging pure water in front of you? Do you see people running 140? That is our tertiarised service sector.”

He said government must pave the way for private sector players to fund the economic recovery and growth plan.

Other panelists who spoke on the ERGP include Ibim Semenitari, former information and communications commissioner in Rivers state, Biodun Adedipe, a financial consultant, Bukar Kyari, chairman of the Nigeria Economic Summit Group.

The all called on the federal government to stay focused on the implementation of ERGP and not be distracted by the coming elections.

The president of Nigeria Economic Society and a World Bank consultant, Olu Ajakaiye has stated that the economic growth recorded from 2010 to 2014, under the leadership of Goodluck Jonathan, was fictitious in nature.

He further stated that the Muhammadu Buhari-led government and subsequent Nigerian governments must develop the country, even if it means stealing from other countries.

Ajakaiye, who was the keynote speaker at the 2017 edition of The Bullion Lecture organised by the Centre for Financial Journalism, said many first world nations have stolen their way to development.

Ajakaiye said the government must not leave development for the markets to handle, but combine all instruments, positions, variables and policies to drive growth and development.

“Let us therefore not be under any illusion and say the market will do it. They have to make sure they provide the market, whatever it takes, including stealing from other countries,” he said.

“The developed systems that we have now were as a result of resources taken from here, and they are ahead. Their government didn’t say we would be nice guys, we would not go and steal.

“They carried our people, young people, valuable people, and they now established the first world.”

Ajakaiye dissected Buhari’s economic recovery and growth plan (ERGP), and applauded it as a good plan, if properly implemented and funded according to targets.

The development economics specialist said the ERGP has set out 21 clear programmes, with 60 strategies and 365 key activities, which has been assigned to lead agencies across the public and private sectors.

He said N75.03 trillion will be needed to implement the plan, which runs from 2017 to 2020.

“When the economy was growing in a fictitious way — I regarded the growth of 2010 to 2014 as fictitious. Why is it fictitious, it is growth that is driven by government just deploying oil revenue into the economy.

“The structure remained dis-articulated and we are actually deceiving ourselves in a very interesting way by saying the economy leaped-frog, we have now got to a stage where we are arrived, because in advanced countries, service sector is now dominant.

“They call it tertiarisation of the economy. Our economy was prematurely tertiarised, and this was the harbinger of poverty.

“I always tell people, when you go to Europe where their economy is already tertiarised, do you see anybody running after you in traffic to sell you recharge card? Do you see anybody hanging pure water in front of you? Do you see people running 140? That is our tertiarised service sector.”

He said government must pave the way for private sector players to fund the economic recovery and growth plan.

Other panelists who spoke on the ERGP include Ibim Semenitari, former information and communications commissioner in Rivers state, Biodun Adedipe, a financial consultant, Bukar Kyari, chairman of the Nigeria Economic Summit Group.

The all called on the federal government to stay focused on the implementation of ERGP and not be distracted by the coming elections.

The president of Nigeria Economic Society and a World Bank consultant, Olu Ajakaiye has stated that the economic growth recorded from 2010 to 2014, under the leadership of Goodluck Jonathan, was fictitious in nature.

He further stated that the Muhammadu Buhari-led government and subsequent Nigerian governments must develop the country, even if it means stealing from other countries.

Ajakaiye, who was the keynote speaker at the 2017 edition of The Bullion Lecture organised by the Centre for Financial Journalism, said many first world nations have stolen their way to development.

Ajakaiye said the government must not leave development for the markets to handle, but combine all instruments, positions, variables and policies to drive growth and development.

“Let us therefore not be under any illusion and say the market will do it. They have to make sure they provide the market, whatever it takes, including stealing from other countries,” he said.

“The developed systems that we have now were as a result of resources taken from here, and they are ahead. Their government didn’t say we would be nice guys, we would not go and steal.

“They carried our people, young people, valuable people, and they now established the first world.”

Ajakaiye dissected Buhari’s economic recovery and growth plan (ERGP), and applauded it as a good plan, if properly implemented and funded according to targets.

The development economics specialist said the ERGP has set out 21 clear programmes, with 60 strategies and 365 key activities, which has been assigned to lead agencies across the public and private sectors.

He said N75.03 trillion will be needed to implement the plan, which runs from 2017 to 2020.

“When the economy was growing in a fictitious way — I regarded the growth of 2010 to 2014 as fictitious. Why is it fictitious, it is growth that is driven by government just deploying oil revenue into the economy.

“The structure remained dis-articulated and we are actually deceiving ourselves in a very interesting way by saying the economy leaped-frog, we have now got to a stage where we are arrived, because in advanced countries, service sector is now dominant.

“They call it tertiarisation of the economy. Our economy was prematurely tertiarised, and this was the harbinger of poverty.

“I always tell people, when you go to Europe where their economy is already tertiarised, do you see anybody running after you in traffic to sell you recharge card? Do you see anybody hanging pure water in front of you? Do you see people running 140? That is our tertiarised service sector.”

He said government must pave the way for private sector players to fund the economic recovery and growth plan.

Other panelists who spoke on the ERGP include Ibim Semenitari, former information and communications commissioner in Rivers state, Biodun Adedipe, a financial consultant, Bukar Kyari, chairman of the Nigeria Economic Summit Group.

The all called on the federal government to stay focused on the implementation of ERGP and not be distracted by the coming elections.


Source: omojuwa.com

Junior Chamber International Abeokuta annual "Police and You" seminar: Ogun Police boss assures whistleblowers of safety

The Ogun state commissioner of police, Ahmed Iliyasu, on Thursday assured that the command had put in place adequate machinery to ensure the safety of whistle-blowers who provide the force with useful information that could lead to the arrest of suspect criminals.

The commissioner  made the disclosure at the annual "Police and You" seminar  with the theme: "Combating crimes among youth in the face of economic recession' organised by the Abeokuta chapter of the Junior Chamber International.

He  maintained that the provision of such information would maximally help in the reduction of crime in the state.

The Police boss, who was represented by Inspector Olarenwaju Osohintola, however enjoined members of the public to cooperate with all security agencies in the quest to rid the state of crimes and criminality.

The police boss however,  urged   parents to  be more concerned of  their wards right from tender age and also  focus on their daily activities in order to check their excesses.

Iliyasu enjoyed the youth to desist from evil associated with crimes in the society.

"Why information is very essential in crime fighting is that without information there is no how we will fight the crime, one of our status quo as a police officer is to detect and prevent crime before it escalates  or turn into violent.

Police is now democratic unlike before when people have lost confidence in the Police, you can quote me anywhere any one given information will not be disclosed

JCI Nigeria National Vice President in charge of Southwest, Abiola Olorunisola, said that the seminar was organised to sensitise the public on their role at improving the security situation in the country.

The Vice President also representing Executive Vice President JCI, Nigeria Olori Shayo Ojo specifically urged the youths, who are the major target of the seminar, to be engaged in productive ventures rather than involving themselves in social vices.

He  said that the JCI Abeokuta deems it  fit sensitizing youth about their  role in the community.

He stated that it is of belief  that the security of the individual in the community is not saddled on the law enforcement agencies only but a joint effort of both the law enforcement agencies and the members of the society

"We want to have a better society, because our organization is basically dominated by the youth and as a result of this we believe that a young age between 18-40 can make positive impact  in our community ,we want to see a better community of ours ,he said

The 2017 Chapter President, John I. Samuel, disclosed that the organisation believed that if the youth are properly guided on the need to run away from crime, Nigeria will be a better place  for us all to live.