No more faction in the House, say Dogara, Gbajabiamila

House of Representatives Speaker Yakubu Dogara has said the Eighth House is set to work for Nigerians.

He said lawmakers in the lower chamber knew that Nigerians were tired of the prolonged face – off over leadership in the House.

Dogara spoke yesterday at the conclusion of a meeting of the All Progressives Congress (APC) caucus on Wednesday night. The meeting ended about 12.15am yesterday.

He said: “There are no more factions in the House. What we have today is a group of lawmakers loyal to the House leadership and our great party.

“It is only in unity that we can positively contribute to the change we all worked for and move Nigeria forward towards our desired dream of a greater nation”.

He also said the Southeast geo-political zone, which was not represented in the new leadership because it has first-time lawmakers would be taken care of.

“We are working on that to see how the zone will be compensated,” he added.

Majority Leader Femi Gbajabiamila said the division in the House was over.

He assured that those perceived to have lost out, especially the Southeast, would be compensated.

“There are no longer factions in the House; whatever happened earlier is now behind us and we are ready to serve Nigerians to the best of our ability. It is not right to play the ethnicity or regional card for now but they will be compensated.”

Abiodun Faleke (Lagos) said:  “We are no longer fighting as you can see; we are now ready to work with other legislators and move our country forward.”

Abdulmunin Jibrin (Kano) said: “This meeting has healed all wounds. There is nobody here that is nursing any anger or ill-feelings any longer.”(THE NATION)

Microsoft unit fires 85% of Nigerian workers

Microsoft on Thursday sacked 34 (85 per cent) of the 40 employees in the Nigerian office of its phone division.

The sacking came 24 hours after the company’s latest Windows 10 was made available in Nigeria and 189 other countries.

Although, Windows 10 is now available as a free upgrade for Windows 7 and 8.1 operating systems or with new personal computers and tablets, industry experts said it would leave about 15 million Nigerian payments cards prone to hacking.

Employees at the Nigerian office were silent on the matter, but a source said that the downsizing was part of the global decision of Microsoft to streamline its phone division.

The source said the sacking was in line with the massive layoff of workers “sweeping through the global offices of Microsoft’s phone division.”

The Chief Executive Officer, Microsoft, Satya Nadella, had said in a memo to all Nigerian employees in late June that the company needed to make some “tough choices” in areas that were not working.

The memo had stated that 7,800 jobs would be cut from the mobile division working on Windows Phone hardware.

The e-mail from Nadella to all employees, which was made available to our correspondent, read, “We are moving from a strategy to grow a standalone phone business to a strategy to grow and create a vibrant Windows ecosystem, including our first-party device family.

“In the near-term, we’ll run a more effective and focused phone portfolio, while retaining capability for long-term reinvention in mobility.

“Microsoft was committed to our first-party devices, including phones, but needed to focus its phone efforts in the near term.”

According to him, the company will also write off $7.6bn from the acquisition of Nokia, despite it only paying $7.2bn for the company in 2014.

“The future prospects for the phone hardware segment were below original expectations due to the new plans,” he added.

Nadella said that the news would “surely leave an unclear future for Windows Phone.”

Although he said that in the near future, the company would run a “more effective” phone portfolio, he added, “But that doesn’t exactly throw the company’s weight behind the platform.”

Nadella said that the move would not give partners reassurance that the platform was a good choice to build new hardware or apps for the future.

“Microsoft is also pushing ahead to release Lumia flagships this year and is still actively developing Windows 10 mobile,” he added. (PUNCH)

Power transmission hits 4662MW

The Federal Government said, Wednesday that power transmission from the national grid has increased to 4662 megawatts.

Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN, which disclosed this in a state signed by the General Manager, Public Affairs, Seun Olagunju, noted the new peak was attained at 08.00pm on Tuesday, 28th July, 2015.

It would be recalled that TCN Management had announced the attainment of the previous peak transmission of 4656MW on Wednesday, 15th July, 2015.

Power generation and transmission have been recording new peaks above 4500MW following improvements in gas supply to the generating stations as well as equipment/infra-structure upgrade and enhanced human capacity of system operators.

TCN assures that it would continue to work at enhancing the capacity to transmit more quality power to the electricity distribution companies.(VANGUARD)

I was once a danfo driver- Fayose

Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, has appealed to members of the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria against allowing themselves to be used by kidnappers to perpetrate evil.

Speaking on Thursday during the swearing-in of the new State Executive of the union in Ado Ekiti, the governor, who said he was once a ‘danfo driver’ appealed to the drivers to be orderly and not to be desperate.

He said, “Please, I want to commend you for contributing immensely to the development of the state’s economy, but don’t allow yourselves to be used by evil doers. You can see that some kidnappers were paraded recently. Information from them revealed that they have been using some of your members.

“I was once a driver like you. I used the money I got from driving to sponsor myself for HND at Ibadan Polytechnic, but I did not get desperate. All I’m saying is that being a driver you can make it in life. You will become what you want to become in life with hard work. Don’t join evil gang for you to get rich overnight, try and rise through the ladder like we did.”

He cautioned drivers against reckless driving, reminding them of the ‘don’t drink and drive’ rule.

“Though I am part of you, if you breach the law, I won’t save or spare you. You will be arrested and prosecuted by the security agents,” he said.

The governor, who recalled that he united the two unions — RTEAN and National Union of Road and 

Transport Workers — during his first term, said the occasion was a sign that good things were coming to Ekiti.

“We should emulate this kind of occasion. This is very good. We will always identify with this kind of achievements. You are doing a good job for this country. I don’t want to be the enemies of drivers, I want to be your friend.”

He also thanked the unions for standing by him during the failed impeachment plot against him by the former 19 All Progressives Congress lawmakers.

Fayose, who had earlier spoken at the 2015 Annual Conference of the Institute of Strategic Management, appealed to leaders to focus attention on how to banish poverty that is killing the potential of many Nigerians.

Speaking on the theme, ‘Strategies for Poverty Alleviation’, Fayose said his desperate bid to banish poverty in the land had propelled him to pioneer the stomach infrastructure concept that had become a brand in the country.

“In tackling poverty, the first thing to do is to empower the people. But before empowerment, you must make them look healthy through provision of food. Let them get access to you as a leader, this will give them a sense of belonging and relief.

“Some of the projects being executed by MDGs centred on poverty alleviation. Poverty has become a serious issue in Nigeria. That was why my government made the payment of salaries the first thing, because this will keep the people and the economy going.

“I receive close to 200 to 300 calls and messages daily on stomach infrastructure thing. Though 90 per cent of it is about money, we should not shy away from the fact that the concept has become a way of life in Nigeria as a good weapon to tackle poverty among the common people.”(PUNCH)

I’m not expecting ministerial appointment from Buhari —Bakare

The General Overseer of the Latter Rain Assembly, Pastor Tunde Bakare, has said that he is not expecting a ministerial appointment from President Muhammadu Buhari.

Bakare, who spoke in an interview with Sahara TV however, parried a question on whether he would accept a ministerial appointment if offered by the President.

Bakare, who was the running mate of Buhari on the platform of the Congress for Progressive Change in the 2011 presidential election, defended the President’s style of governance, saying, “slow and steady wins the race.”

The cleric said, “As far as I am concerned, I am not expecting to be named a minister. If I am offered an appointment, when I get to that bridge I will cross it. I am already a minister of the gospel. Ministry is my calling and my life. The word minister means servant. When you expect nothing, you cannot be disappointed. I keep on doing what I am doing, to be a solid supporter of the Buhari movement and what he stands for in public life. I have no regret on what I did in 2011. If an opportunity presents itself, I will do it again. I am not seeking anything.

“Let’s not count chickens before they are hatched. The bible says the expectation of the righteous will not be cut off. That is when the expectation of the righteous is in tandem with God’s expectation. If you are expecting from God, the flesh can fail. Who knows tomorrow? In the next two months, when the ministers would be named, what if nobody is here or alive? ”

He, however, said he would continue to support the President in any capacity.

The cleric said President Buhari’s visit to the United States has improved the relationship between the two countries.

On whether former President Goodluck Jonathan should be probed, he said, “I will not advocate that President Jonathan should be probed or not be probed. A day or two before the inauguration of the President, the transition committee received a report. They worked on it for weeks.

“The President has looked into those reports. If there are anomalies, President Buhari will call the former president   and say things are irregular and the law should take its effect. But as for the witch-hunt of others, that is a waste of time. If you keep on chasing the wrong things, you will not do the right things. But that does not mean anyone who has done evil should get away with it.

Bakare said he would not support the restitution of stolen funds as amnesty for corrupt government officials, noting that this would promote a wrong attitude.

He added, “What Nigeria needs now are not so much of restitution. Some stolen funds that were sent back to Nigeria in the past went into wrong hands. What Nigeria needs is a clear example of good governance, the rule of law as against the rule of men.

“On the rule of men, might is right. On the rule of law, right is might. So if you can get ‘right is might’ in place, if you do something wrong and you are punished for it, those who have the desires to do similar things will know that there are consequences for their choices, that is where we are going. I can tell you that witch-hunt is not something that President Buhari would support. Perish the thought, it is not his character.”

BREAKING NEWS !!! Oni Ife is not dead- Royal Traditional Council

Controversy has trailed the death of the Ooni of Ife, Oba Okunade Sijuade, Olubuse II as the Royal Traditional Council,RTC, of the town, Wednesday, said  the paramount ruler is alive and in good state of health.

The RTC, which comprises of all traditional chiefs and title holders in Ile-Ife, said Oba Sijuade is not only in a good state of health but added that the royal father was preparing for his son’s wedding holding Sunday, next week, in Lagos.

Addressing newsmen in the House of Chiefs located within the premises of Ile-Oodua palace of the Ooni, Lowa of Ife, Oba Joseph Ijaodola who spoke in Yoruba, said the report in the media that the monarch died in a London Hospital of an undisclosed ailment,was untrue.

Also speaking, the secretary Royal Traditional Council of Ife, who is also the Ladin of Ife,  High Chief Adetoye Odewole, said the Ooni is hale and hearty and he even spoke to the chiefs on the phone few hours earlier.

He added “those behind the death story are enemies of Ife and as I speak with you, the chiefs have not heard anything like that. This is not the first time such rumour will be carried about our father.

“They did it in 1984, also in 2004 and now, these people are coming up with another rumour. Oba Sijuade remains in sound state of health”.

Chairman, Ife Development Board, Prof. Muib Opeloye, said Ife as a town with a rich tradition has its way of managing its affairs.

Opeloye maintained that the royal father was preparing for his son’s wedding, urging people not to panic and go about their normal daily activities.

Meanwhile, the entrance of the Ooni’s palace was shut to visitors, as only newsmen, chiefs and relations of Oba Sijuade were allowed into the premises.

Many indigenes and residents of Ife had converged on the palace but were prevented from going in by the guards.

Meanwhile, the Osun state government is yet to make official statement concerning the demise of the monarch.

But the Osun State House of Assembly has expressed its sympathy to Governor Rauf Aregbesola, state council of Traditional rulers and chiefs, the good people of ancient city of Ile Ife and the immediate and extended families of the late Oba Okunade Sijwade Olubuse, the Ooni of Ife as the great King joined his ancestors.

In a statement issued by the Speaker’s spokesman, Mr. Goke Butika, the parliament “in a condolence message by the Speaker, Mr Najeem Salaam “expressed his regret and shock over the transition of the natural ruler to the silent land of his forebear, saying the engine room of royalty and the custody of Yoruba cosmology has just been temporarily grounded by the clog of death”.

“We celebrate the life and time of the great king, Oba Sijuwade, attesting that the monarch exuded unique royalty almost equivalent of imperial culture that could not be rivaled while he called the shot on the revered stool of his fathers”.

“The parliament then sent its condolence to the governor over the loss of the monarch and prayed that the Supreme Eludumare, the Cherisher of Aiye would rest the late natural father”,the statement added. (VANGUARD)

How Buhari got House leader job for Gbajabiamila

Speaker Yakubu Dogara of the House of Representatives yesterday succumbed to pressures from his All Progressives Congress, APC, and named Rep. Femi Gbajabiamila House Majority Leader, and by that, drew the curtain on the lingering crisis that has trailed the chamber since its inauguration last June.

Among those who put pressure on the Speaker, it was learnt yesterday, was President Muhammadu Buhari who reportedly put in a phone call to Dogara following a last-minute meeting with party leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Presidential spokesman, Garba Shehu, however, denied knowledge of any interaction between the President and the Speaker prior to yesterday’s pronouncement.

Following yesterday’s resolution of the crisis, Speaker Dogara charged the legislators to proceed to discharge the issues that brought them to Abuja, saying that they had wasted enough time on issues of personal aggrandisement.

Prior to the sitting yesterday, tempers had reached feverish pitch upon the resolution of supporters of the Speaker to adopt what they termed as the party’s “position as amended,” which would have led to the exclusion of Gbajabiamila, the party favourite who lost out in the leadership contest to Dogara on June 9.

Security was tightened within the precincts of the National Assembly with the Divisional Police Officer, DPO, leading the screening of visitors into the Assembly complex.

The Speaker also had arrived the Assembly complex with the National Security Adviser, NSA, Maj.-Gen. Babagana Monguno (rtd).

Allies of Speaker Yakubu Dogara who had in recent days consolidated their superiority over the camp of Gbajabiamila following defections from the camp of the latter, had at the end of a caucus meeting that ended around 12.30 a.m. in Abuja yesterday resolved to push ahead with their permutation of Ado Doguwa (Kano) for House Leader, Bala Jibrin (Kogi) for Deputy Leader, Pally Iriase (Edo) for Chief Whip and Chike Okafor (Imo) for Deputy Leader.

That plan was aborted midway into yesterday’s session following pressures from the Presidency, urging Dogara to kowtow to the party’s earlier stance on Gbajabiamila for House Leader.

Speaker Dogara who was presiding over the affairs of the House had to step down from the chair to allow his deputy, Rep. Yusuf Lasun to take over deliberations while he conferred with Gbajabiamila and Doguwa in the office of the House Clerk.

Following the deliberations that lasted for about one hour, the Clerk returned to the chair and announced the complement of principal officers of the ruling APC.

He announced Iriase as deputy whip, Jibrin as Deputy Leader, Doguwa as Chief Whip and Gbajabiamila as Leader, immediately throwing majority of the members into celebration mode as they congratulated the Speaker for reaching out to his rival.

Speaker Dogara also announced the complement of four officers to represent the minority Peoples Democratic Party, PDP as principal officers. Those announced were Rep. Leo Ogor (PDP, Delta) — Minority Leader, Rep. Wilfred Chukwuma (PDP, Anambra) — Deputy Minority Whip, Rep. Yakubu Badre (PDP, Kaduna) — Deputy Minority Leader and Rep. Binta Bello (PDP, Gombe) — Minority Whip.

The announcement of Gbajabiamila as House Leader was a departure from the earlier stance of the Speaker that doing so would violate the spirit of federal character given that Gbajabiamila is from the South-West which had already filled the position of Deputy Speaker. The development left the South-East as the only geopolitical zone not to have a representative in the APC’s complement of principal officers.