FG, States To Join Resources In Resolving Border Communities’ Problem ~ VP OSINBAJO

One of the measures the Federal Government would undertake to address the deplorable conditions of border communities in the country is to engage State Governments in tackling the challenges, according to Vice President Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, SAN.

 

According to him, “our border communities are in a state of despair, we need to pay a lot attention to them.”

 

Prof. Osinbajo however observed that “without the states we will not be able to achieve much either with the border communities or the boundary commission”, offering to make presentation to the Govovernors at the National Economic Council (NEC), in order to highlight the enormity of the challenges.

 

Speaking today when he received the Senate Committee on States and Local Governments led  by its Chairman, Senator Abdullahi Gumel and the Chief Executives of Border Communities Development Agency and the National Boundary Commission at the House, Abuja, the Vice President said “border communities are places where you need to ensure are stable.” He noted that phased approach will be taken in solving the problems, considering government’s lean resources.

 

He also noted that roads, markets, schools and other social basic infrastructure must be provided at the border communities, to avoid intrusion by foreigners.

 

Earlier, the Chairman, Senate Committee on State and Local Government, Senator Abdullahi Gumel, told the Vice President that they were at the State House to brief him on the result of their oversight conducted on some of the border communities with the finding that facilities at the border communities are in the state of disrepair.

 

APC, PDP Reps clash over Amaechi

                                               Minister of Transportation, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi

All Progressives Congress members of the House of Representatives clashed with their Peoples Democratic Party colleagues today over the Minister of Transport, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi.

Amaechi appeared before the joint Committee on Marine/Land Transport to defend the 2016 budget proposals of the ministry, but lawmakers tried to turn the session into a venue for political party supremacy battle.

APC members, who control the majority of 213, out of the 360-member legislature, felt that the former Governor of Rivers State deserved some protection from the committee, as he came under a barrage of questions, The PUNCH reported.

The APC lawmakers complained that too many questions were being thrown at the minister.

However, some PDP members suddenly flared up, arguing that the minister could be asked any questions.

The PDP members were led by Mr. Pat Asadu (Enugu State) and Mr. Nnana Igbokwe (Imo State).

The development came as the House Committee on Aviation rejected a proposal by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority to spend N130m this year to conduct a security audit on the nation’s airports.

The Chairperson of the committee, Mrs. Nkeiruka Onyejeocha, recalled that in 2015, a similar proposal was submitted by the agency.

She noted, “I can see you people have brought this matter of security audit again, and I remember querying it last year.

“How can you spend this much on the airports even when 22 out of the 32 airports are shut down with no operation going on whatsoever?

“The committee expressed dissatisfaction with the performance of the capital projects of the NCAA, rating them as “below average.”

But, the Director-General of NCAA, Capt. Mukhtar Usman, informed the committee that the agency improved on the training of personnel to meet global standards.

Similarly, the Committee on Foreign Relations declined to approve a proposal by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to spend N9bn for connectivity projects to link Abuja with all foreign missions.

Teacher in Saudi Arabia shoots dead 6 colleagues, wounds 2 more at education building

                                                                                KIRKLANDPHOTOS/GETTY IMAGES

The massacre happened in the city of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

A teacher in southern Saudi Arabia opened fire on colleagues Thursday, killing at least six people and wounding two, state television reported.

The brief reports on the state television channel’s website and Twitter account did not elaborate or offer a reason for the shooting at an education department building. It quoted an unnamed police spokesman for the information and said the suspected shooter was in custody.

The state-run Saudi Press Agency did not immediately report the shooting.

State TV posted a still photograph that showed ambulances gathered outside the building where the shooting took place in Jazan province.

Mass shootings are rare in the kingdom. Saudi Arabia has faced a series of recent attacks by Islamic State militants.

Saudi Arabia is leading a coalition of countries conducting airstrikes and ground operations in neighboring Yemen in support of the deeply impoverished country’s internationally recognized government. It is fighting against Iranian-backed Shiite rebels and supporters of a former president, who control the capital and other parts of the country.

Jazan, on the kingdom’s southern border with Yemen, has been targeted by missiles and cross-border fire since Saudi Arabia intervened in the conflict. On Tuesday, authorities said they shot down a ballistic missile targeting the city and that a police officer in the surrounding province was killed in a separate shooting incident.

In October, two people were killed and another two were wounded when a gunman opened fire inside a bank in the city of Jazan.

'We are all Africans really': Meryl Streep comes under fire for her response to film festival diversity

Meryl Streep's comments have caused controversy Photo: AFP

Meryl Streep has added to the recent Oscars diversity race row after"dismissing" a race issue by saying "we are all Africans really".

She made these comments at The Berlin International Film Festival, where she was asked about the fact she was chairing an all-white panel.

She added that the festival is determined to include "all genders, races, ethnicities, religions." Its 2016 jury is made up of seven white people: actor Lars Eidinger, British film critic Nick James, French photographer Brigitte Lacombe, British actor Clive Owen, Italian actress Alba Rohrwacher and Polish director Malgorzata Szumowska.

The actor was also asked by an Egyptian reporter if she "understood films from the Arab world and North Africa," according to AP.

Meryl Streep responded by saying: "I've played a lot of different people from a lot of different cultures."

"There is a core of humanity that travels right through every culture, and after all we're all from Africa originally," she said. "Berliners, we're all Africans, really."

The actor also pointed out the panel is female-dominated: "This jury is evidence that at least women are included and in fact dominate this jury, and that's an unusual situation in bodies of people who make decisions," Streep said. "So I think the Berlinale is ahead of the game."

After these comments, she faced backlash on Twitter, where people aired their grievances about the issue.

This comes as celebrities boycott the Oscars for the lack of racial diversity in the nominations.

Only white actors were nominated for Oscars, with mostly white nominees in other categories as well.

Jada Pinkett Smith, Spike Lee, Will Smith, Mark Ruffalo, Tyrese Gibson and Snoop Dogg are among those supporting the boycott.

Others have said they are not going to do so - Charlotte Rampling came under fire for saying the boycott was "racist to white people", Helen Mirrendefended The Academy and Kate Winslet has claimed she is attending to see Leonardo Di Caprio win his first Oscar.

German President Pledges $50 Million To Fight Boko Haram

German President, Joachim Gauck, has pledged $50 million to fight Boko Haram insurgency in Nigeria.

Mr Gauck made the pledge after a closed-door meeting with President Buhari at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.

The German President commiserated with Nigerians on the recent attacks by the Boko Haram in Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps and promised to do all it can to ensure that the IDPs are returned to their homes and rehabilitated.

During a visit to Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, Mr Gauck had pledged that Germany would assist Nigeria with the technical know-how to successfully fight terrorism, Channel News reported.

The German President, however, called for good governance and development if Nigeria must conquer terrorism on the long term.

President Buhari met with President Gauck a day after he returned from his 6-day vacation in London.

The Nigerian President returned to the country on Wednesday night and was received at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport Abuja by top government officials.