Good morning Nigeria. Welcome to the NATURENEX roundup of top newspaper headlines in Nigeria for today, Monday, 8th July 2024
1. Tinubu Re-Elected As ECOWAS Chairman
President Bola Tinubu has been re-elected as the chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), about one year after he took over the regional bloc’s leadership.
Naija News reports that on Sunday, Tinubu hosted the ECOWAS heads for the 65th Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.
The Nigerian leader who rose to power in May 2023 was re-elected as the ECOWAS chairman during the meeting.
2. Nigeria Has Become Worse Under APC – Ex-APC Vice Chairman, Lukman
A former National Vice Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Salihu Lukman, has accused the ruling party of failing to deliver its campaign promises to Nigerians.
According to Lukman, the failure of the APC has surpassed that of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which was ousted in 2015.
Recall that former President, Goodluck Jonathan of the PDP lost the 2015 presidential election to Muhammadu Buhari and has continued to govern the country.
However, amid the numerous challenges facing the country at the moment, Lukman, in a press release handed to journalists in Abuja on Sunday, expressed concern over the current state of affairs in the country.
The former Director General of the Progressives Governors Forum (PGF) criticized the APC for failing to fulfil its promise of leading the fight against corruption, instead allowing corruption to thrive and endorsing the concept of ‘state capture’ across various levels.
3. NELFUND Approves Students Loan For 36 State Tertiary Institutions
The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) on Sunday announced that approval has been given to students from state-owned tertiary institutions to access the federal government loan.
NELFUND, in a statement on Sunday via its official X account, listed 36 state-owned tertiary institutions that can now apply for student loans.
The statement disclosed that the management of these institutions have successfully submitted their student data to the NELFUND Student Verification System (SVS).
It also urged all other state-owned tertiary institutions to submit their complete student data to the NELFUND Student Verification System timely to enable their students benefit from the scheme.
4. Political Leaders Should Take A Strong Lesson From The Kenyan Experience – Peter Obi
The Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate in the 2023 general election, Peter Obi, has advised Nigerians to learn a lesson from the recent Kenyan experience.
He stated this while reacting to the recent rally against proposed tax hikes by Kenyan citizens.
Speaking via his X account on Sunday, Obi asserted that when the citizens of Kenya realised their leaders were not prioritizing resources, they spoke out and demanded change.
He lamented that Nigerian political leaders are more interested in using public funds to pay media thugs to insult and abuse those who speak truth to power.
He challenged Nigerian leaders to refrain from such habits and start making sacrifices for the greater good of the suffering masses.
5. Kano Governor, Yusuf Remains Suspended – NNPP
The New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), is set to hold a strategic stakeholders meeting in Abuja later this month to address pressing internal matters affecting the party.
The National Secretary of the party, Oginni Olaposi Sunday, confirmed this in a statement released on Sunday, noting that all party leaders and elders across the country are expected to attend.
According to Sunday, critical issues affecting the party would be discussed and strong decisions taken to further reinforce the expulsion of its Presidential Candidate in the 2023 general election, Rabiu Kwankwaso, Buba Galadima and the entire national working committee led by Ahmed Ajuji.
He added that the stakeholders meeting is very important to the leadership of NNPP for the advancement of democracy and the development of the party ahead of the 2027 general elections.
6. Details Of Tinubu’s Meeting With ECOWAS Heads Emerge
President Bola Tinubu has called on Heads of State and Government of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to work towards establishing and sustaining a regional standby force for the security and economic advancement of the community.
Naija News reports that Tinubu made the plea on Sunday, during the opening of the 65th Ordinary Session of the Authority of ECOWAS Heads of State and Government in Abuja.
Tinubu, who was re-elected at the meeting as the Chairman of the regional bloc, highlighted the practicality of a standby force in the face of growing security threats.
He also urged member states to commit more to providing the needed resources for securing the region.
Speaking further, Tinubu advised ECOWAS leaders to leverage the capabilities of Nigeria’s National Counter-Terrorism Centre (NCTC), which has been widely acknowledged as one of the best on the continent.
The President urged the management of ECOWAS to re-align and reposition its priorities by reducing overheads and setting up in-country steering committees.
7. Strike: SSANU, NASU Issue Fresh Directives To Members As Meeting With FG Ends In Deadlock
The Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities, SSANU and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions, NASU, have directed all branches to convene a meeting on Monday to sensitive members for a one-day protest on Tuesday in all the branches, which will be followed by a national protest on July 18 in Abuja and thereafter, a full-blown strike.
Naija News reports that this comes after a meeting convened by the Federal Government through the Ministry of Education over the strike threat by the union ended in deadlock.
Recall that the two University-based unions, SSANU and NASU under the Joint Action Committee, JAC, had issued a two-week ultimatum to the government to pay them the four months withheld salaries which President Bola Tinubu had approved for the four University unions.
The four unions, including the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU and the National Association of Academic Technologists, NAAT had embarked on a prolonged strike in 2022, which resulted in the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari to invoke the ‘No Work, No Pay’ policy.
After President Tinubu had granted amnesty to the university workers for payment of four months of the withheld salaries, ASUU was paid in October last year, leaving behind the other three unions, a development that has generated bad blood and tension in the universities.
The two-week ultimatum expired on July 4, but the federal government, through the Minister of Education, Professor Tahir Mamman, summoned a meeting with the two unions to avert the strike.
According to Vanguard, the meeting did not achieve anything as the Minister only promised to take their matter to a higher authority, perhaps President Tinubu.
Angered by the development, the General Secretary of NASU, Prince Peters Adeyemi and President of SSANU, Comrade Mohammed Ibrahim, JAC, in a circular to all branch chairmen of University and University centres on the outcome of their meeting with the Ministers of Education Labour and Employment, said the government had not shown any convincing commitment on the payment of the four months withheld salaries.
8. Political Orphans: Osinbajo, Amaechi, El-Rufai Must Bury Presidential Ambition – Ex-APC Chieftain
A former national vice chairman (North-West) of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Salihu Lukman, has described former Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo and the likes of former Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai as political orphans.
Lukman, who spoke of a proposed coalition among top political bigwigs in the country, listed El-Rufai, Osinbajo, former Minister of the Interior of Nigeria – Rauf Aregbesola, former Governor of Ogun State, Ibikunle Amosun and former governor of Ekiti State, Kayode Fayemi, among others seeking to occupy the nation’s top political seat via merger.
According to him, the APC leaders have been sidelined by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s government and have been pushed to the peripheral edges of Nigerian politics.
Lukman, however, in a press release issued to the media in Abuja on Sunday, said the APC chieftain must bury their presidential ambition and focus on pushing for a better Nigeria.
He emphasized that as long as the goals of Nigerian politicians are confined to winning elections and installing new elected officials, Nigerian democracy will be incapable of combating the phenomenon of ‘state capture’, which is currently at an advanced stage of infiltrating the Federal Government.
9. Court Orders Buhari’s Minister To Account For ₦729 Billion Meant For Poor Nigerians
A Federal High Court in Lagos has ordered a former Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disasters Management and Social Development, Sadia Umar-Farouk to account for the payments of ₦729 billion to 24.3 million poor Nigerians for six months.
Umar-Farouk was also ordered to provide the list and details of the beneficiaries who received the payments, the number of states covered and the payments per state.
The judgment was delivered in June by Hon. Justice Deinde Isaac Dipeolu following a Freedom of Information suit numbered FHC/L/CS/853/2021, brought by the Socio-Economic Rights And Accountability Project (SERAP).
SERAP disclosed that it obtained the certified true copy of the judgment last Friday.
Justice Dipeolu dismissed the objections raised by the minister’s counsel and upheld SERAP’s arguments. Consequently, the court entered judgment in favour of SERAP against the minister.
10. TCN Announces Restoration Of National Grid After Nine Hours Of Nationwide Blackout
The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) on Sunday announced the restoration of the national grid, which experienced a partial disturbance on Saturday.
Naija News earlier reported that the grid, which collapsed for the fourth time this year, had thrown Nigerians into total darkness.
However, TCN in a statement issued by its General Manager of Public Affairs, Ndidi Mbah, in Abuja, said the grid disturbance was triggered by the unexpected tripping of three units at a power generating station, resulting in a sudden loss of 313MW from the grid.
She said the restoration efforts began immediately after the incident, adding that by 21:57 hours on the same day, the affected sections of the grid were successfully restored.
