With 895 On-going Highway and Bridge contracts across the country, the rehabilitation of Internal Roads of 43 Federal Tertiary Institutions, construction of Six new Federal Secretariats in Anambra, Bayelsa, Ekiti, Nasarawa, Osun and Zamfara States and Construction of Housing Estates in 34 States of the Federation under the National Housing Programme (NHP) among others, the Minister of Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola SAN on Thursday rendered an impressive account of the Federal Government’s infrastructure programmes under his Ministry.

Speaking at Special Townhall Meeting organized by Business Hallmark Public Policy Forum with the theme,” Nigeria’s Infrastructure Revolution: Road to a New Future,”* the Minister explained that activities involved in infrastructure development are the sure and legitimate way of growing the economy and delivering prosperity to the citizenry.
This reality, Fashola explained, informed the decision of the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari to make massive investment in Infrastructure a matter of choice and necessitated the expansion of the budget of the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing from N18bn by the previous administration in 2015 to about N260bn despite the fact that the price of crude oil which sold at an average of $97.98 between 2009 and 2014 fell to an average of $65.23 per barrel from 2015 to 2021.

According to the Minister, the priority given to infrastructural development, informed the need to improve road transport infrastructure assets, formulate policies to address the problem of deteriorating public assets while taking advantage of the socio-economic opportunities created by the maintenance of such assets and to develop a National Strategy for sustainable Maintenance of all Public Infrastructure Assets in the country.

Fashola noted that due to paucity of fund, government had to look for alternative sources of funding which include the Presidential Infrastructure Development Fund, SUKUK fund, Road Infrastructure Tax Credit Scheme (RITCS), Multi-lateral loans/grants and collaboration with other Government Agencies like The North East-Development Commission in order to achieve the objectives of the Economy Recovery and Growth Plan ( ERGP) as it concerns the Ministry.

Fashola also listed the rehabilitation of 60 Bridges across the country, scheduled maintenance of 5,461.88KM of roads and 8,000KM of Highway maintenance which include vegetation control, desilting of drains, Sleeves and ducts by the Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA) and the rehabilitation/Maintenance of 24 Federal Secretariats across the country as some of the results of the investments in infrastructure.

Fashola explained that on the result and economic impact of the infrastructure investment of the Federal Government, Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) benefit immensely from infrastructure projects as a lot of activities such as designing, award of contract for supply, direct employment, banking and so on that take place, generate income for the people any time an infrastructure project is ongoing, pointing out that the small firms and enterprises were engaged in supplies of cements, diesel, laterites and others in the course of construction activities.

The Minister noted that the narrative in the past about no federal government presence in some state has been replaced by a new narrative about when the ongoing projects will be completed in such states.

The Minister also reminded Nigerians that the recession alarm raised in 2012 by the then Coordinating Minister of the Economy Dr Ngozi Okonjo Iweala was the recession that the Buhari administration inherited and was able to overcome it despite the impact of Covid – 19 through the massive investment to renew and expand the nation’s infrastructure at a time when the country was earning much less from oil.

The Chairman, Busines Hallmark Forum, Sir Marc Wabara disclosed that the aim of the Townhall Meeting was to ensure that public policy met the basic standard of service delivery to the public.

He expressed satisfaction that the event was holding at a time when the nation was going through the path of growth and development.

The occasion was chaired by the former Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Chief John Odigie Oyegun, the Guest of Honour was the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr Boss Mustapha. Other speakers at the occasion were the Minsters of Federal Ministries of Water Resource and that of Power; Engr. Suleiman Adamu and Engr. Saleh Mamman respectively.

The Honourable Minister of Communications and Digital Economy,Dr Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami today, August 2nd 2021 flagged off the training on e-governance and digital transformation for the members of the Kano State Executive Council. The training which is the pioneer programme at that level, is aimed at equipping the leadership of the state with the requisite skills for effective governance in line with global trends.

Speaking at the ceremony, the Honourable Minister noted that “e-governance is key to the success of any economy at all levels as it enhances transparency, cost effectiveness and accountability while ensuring the effective delivery of government digital services to the people. Kano is strategic in terms of population and commerce and the timing is apt”

Dr Pantami disclosed that the training was at the behest of the state governor Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje who had initiated talks on possible collaborations and partnerships with the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy during a courtesy call earlier this year.

The Minister, while commending the state governor for the plan to deploy fibre optics across the state within the next two years, also urged other state governors to emulate Ganduje and embrace the digital transformation training. “We are open to partnering with any state that is willing to take advantage of this laudable initiative”

BY Uwa Suleiman

• AS 4-MAN SPECIAL INVESTIGATION PANEL BEGINS PROBE

The Inspector-General of Police, IGP Usman Alkali Baba, psc (+), NPM, fdc has recommended the immediate suspension of DCP Abba Kyari, the Head of the Police Intelligence Response Team (IRT), from the Service of the Nigeria Police Force, pending the outcome of an ongoing internal investigations touching on him. The IGP, in his letter to the Police Service Commission, dated 31st July, 2021, noted that the recommendation for the suspension of the officer, is in line with the internal disciplinary processes of the Force.

The IGP further noted that the suspension is also expected to create an enabling environment for the NPF Special Investigation Panel to carry out its investigations into the weighty allegations against DCP Abba Kyari without interference.

The suspension is without prejudice to the constitutional presumption of innocence in favour of the officer.

The Special Investigation Panel (SIP), comprising four (4) Senior Police Officers, is headed by DIG Joseph Egbunike, the Deputy Inspector General of Police in-charge of the Force Criminal Investigations Department (FCID). The SIP, inter alia, is to undertake a detailed review of all the allegations against DCP Abba Kyari by the US Government as contained in relevant documents that have been availed the NPF by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

The SIP is also to obtain detailed representation of DCP Abba Kyari to all the allegations levelled against him, conduct further investigations as it deems fit, and submit recommendations to guide further actions by the Force Leadership on the matter.
Meanwhile, the IGP has reaffirmed the commitment of the Force to the Rule of Law and assured the public of the sanctity of the probe as well as the absolute respect for the rights and privileges of the officer throughout the period of the investigations.

The Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (EVC/CEO) of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta has called for ingenious ways of collecting antiquities relevant to operations of various organizations in the country in order to preserve the relics that can bridge the knowledge gap needed for sustainable development of Nigeria.

Danbatta, who was represented by the Executive Commissioner, Stakeholders Management (ECSM), NCC, Barr. Adewolu Adeleke, made the call recently in Abuja when the Commission joined in the celebration of the 2021 international museum day with the theme, “the future of museums: recover and reimagine”.

While speaking on the theme, Danbatta said it appropriately captures the reason the commission established a special museum for the telecommunications industry in the country, as it is intended to bridge the historical knowledge gap in the evolution of communication as well as   meeting the need for information by future generations.

”The NCC communications museum was established in November, 2006 for documentation of historical collections on the evolution of communications in Nigeria. Communication artifacts were identified in various locations across the Country where postal and telecommunication offices were established in order to retrieve relics for exhibition”. 

Danbatta explained further that the museum should be seen as an important resourceful centre that can stimulate critical thinking and creative ideas for expanding the frontiers of knowledge and advancement of development in relevant sectors of the economy.

“Our museum is designed and reinvented to conserve the history of the Nigerian telecommunications industry and we see it as very important to collect, exhibit and preserve telecommunications items to enlighten and educate stakeholders on the evolution of communications with a view to nudging our minds towards critical thinking that will bring about new innovations to assist in building a better future for our industry and the nation.

“The NCC Museum plays valuable roles in supporting the Commission’s agenda by providing unique information resources to cater for historical needs of the future generations, while building capacity and stimulating innovations to assist in fashioning out a better future for the Nigerian communications industry,” Danbatta added.

Speaking further at the event, Danbatta said the NCC Museum Day is a demonstration of the Commission’s commitment to facilitating learning and collaboration with relevant Museum professional bodies, in order to conserve antiquities used to develop the industry, in the best possible manner for socio-economic impact of the nation.”

The Museum generally plays important roles in the society by conserving the past and helping to shape the future through providing needed insight into history, while educating future generations and equipping them with the requisite information and knowledge for sustainable development. 

The Director General, National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM), Prof. Abba Isa Tijani was represented at the event by the Assistant Director, Museums, Kilba Zainab Uche, who presented a brief on the ‘Role of Museum in the Digital Era’.

The Lagos State Government has challenged its public affairs team to move with trends in information management. Such trends include new ideas and skills, which can elevate service delivery and enhance public confidence.

In his welcome address at the three-day Y2021 Annual retreat for Public Affairs Officers held at Orchid Hotels, Lekki, the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Gbenga Omotoso, said the moment officers, as managers of information move with trends, fake news would be a thing of the past.

Omotoso said, “I can tell you that no disease, apart from COVID-19, is afflicting the world more than fake news and this is the time all practitioners should rise and fight it. I know that if our information officers should start moving with trends, it would be of great advantage in this fight”.

Stating that the theme of the retreat, “Managing Information through the new media in a VUCAD (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, Ambiguous and Disruptive) World”, has a lot of relevance in the world today, the Commissioner congratulated the organisers as well as the participants of the retreat, which he described as the second ever to be organised by Lagos State Government for its Public Affairs officers.

The Commissioner said the place of information dissemination and management could not be overemphasised in the life of any human organisation, adding that it is hard to imagine an organisation, home, community and society where communication is non-existent.

He noted that because the Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu administration knows the essence of communication in governance, it always supported every move to reposition the Ministry of Information and Strategy as well as its affiliated agencies.

“Without an effective information management mechanism, our plan to attain a Greater Lagos might be in jeopardy, hence, we shall continue to invest in the advancement of all our information organs. I urge all the State’s information agencies to evolve a process of building public confidence in the administration’s policies and programmes”, Omotoso said.

Delivering his keynote address at the opening ceremony, the Head of Service, Mr. Hakeem Muri-Okunola, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Cabinet Office, Mrs. Tolani Oshodi, expressed appreciation to the Ministry of Information and Strategy for convening a retreat packed with programmes that will improve the skills and output of its team, just as he reflected that information management and dissemination has moved a notch higher than what was the norm.

Muri-Okunola, therefore, urged participants to take full advantage of the opportunity provided by the forum to improve their knowledge, skills and competencies as information management professionals, while making meaningful and impactful contributions towards achieving the set objectives of the exercise.

Also speaking earlier, the Permanent Secretary, Mr. Olusina Thorpe, welcomed all the participants, giving an assurance that the takeaways from the programme would linger long beyond the brainstorming sessions lined up for the retreat and encouraging officers to make the retreat interactive.

His words: “In the next couple of days, I urge all of us to be frank and sincere in our contributions about salient issues that affect our reputation and professional cadre as image-makers of the State Government. This is not a time to speak half-truths. It is not an occasion to stand aloof”.

Thorpe urged all participants to ensure the sessions are interactive and promised that despite the busy lineup, everyone should look forward to a fun-filled occasion.

LASG

ForAGreaterLagos