Home Blog Page 1896

Nigerian Army Honours 52 Generals, Salutes Sacrifices To Nation

By
Koko Lawrence
-
0

The Nigerian Army on Wednesday held a valedictory dinner in honour of 52 generals, comprising 23 major-generals and 29 brigadier- generals who have retired and will be retiring before the end of the year.

It was reported that the one-star and two-star generals were presented with their records of service certificates by the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt.-Gen. Faruk Yahaya.

Yahaya said the event was designed to honour and appreciate the officers for their services to the Nigerian Army and the nation at large.

He said there was need to celebrate and be grateful to God for reaching the peak of their careers, adding that a number of their colleagues who joined the service with them had died.

“It is, therefore, my honour and privilege to most sincerely appreciate you all for your sacrifices and meritorious services to the nation and this gesture will in future be replicated at divisional and brigade levels for our retiring officers of the rank of colonel and below.

“It will also be designed for our soldiers and in the end this culture of appreciating and honouring our personnel on exit from loyal and meritorious service to their fatherland will be entrenched and institutionalised as being witnessed today.

“The culture of loyalty, dedication, hard work, commitment, courage and integrity that we all imbibed in the course of our careers are noble virtues that we should continue to cherish and uphold.

“We should all continue to cultivate, nurture and nourish them and lie on them in and out of service,“ he said.

The COAS said the daunting security challenges facing the nation currently required that all hands should be on deck toward arresting the situation.

He said the high command of the Nigerian Army would continue to consult the retired generals and tap from their wealth of experience.

“On our part, we shall continue to explore avenues with a view to meaningfully engage, appreciate and support our retired colleagues in whatever way possible.

“I would like to assure you of my commitment to improving the welfare of your families as our health facilities and other welfare packages will be available to you in various barracks and cantonments across the country.

“You are also welcome to attend our functions and sessions to extend your mentorship to the younger personnel who have always looked up to you for guidance and direction,” he said.

The Chief of Administration (Army), Maj.-Gen. Usman Muhammed said the valedictory dinner was the first of its kind in the history of the Nigerian Army.

Muhammed said in the past it was only the service chief and a few senior officers who held strategic appointments at the time of their disengagement that had hitherto been treated to such a ceremony.

According to him, most senior officers retired without being treated to any ceremony to mark their official exit from the service.

He said it was against that backdrop that the COAS directed that a more befitting disengagement process be explored for retiring senior officers of the Nigerian Army.

“These distinguished Nigerians, alongside their spouses, are being honoured today for their meritorious service to the nation.

“The senior officers have dedicated a better part of their lives to the defence of the territorial integrity of our dear nation.

“It is, therefore, appropriate to honour them and appreciate their service to the nation,“ he said.

Muhammed also disclosed that the COAS had approved that the sendoff ceremony be held annually in the last quarter.

Persons with disabilities lament stigmatisation, call for prosecution of rapists

By
Cleopatra Okohai
-
0

People Living with Disabilities in Bauchi State have lamented that the stigmatisation and maltreatment they encounter in their homes, which often leads them to beg for alms, thereby making them vulnerable to sexual abuse.

The representative of a Non-Governmental Organisation, Heal Initiative Development, Aisha Adamu, stated this in a goodwill message during a one-day programme to mark 16 days of activism organized by the Development Exchange Center, Bauchi.

She said, “Most of the challenges we often face, first come from our parents and then the community. For example, when parents give birth to a disabled child, they begin maltreating them as if they are not humans. Their needs are not being catered for and they are treated with disdain.

“It is from there that we start facing this stigmatization in our hearts and low self-esteem that since we are not being catered for even by our immediate family, then, we are not useful in the society. When a child faces such stigmatization from home, he’s not sent to school, his needs are not provided for and because he is humiliated and despised at home, they end up begging on the streets especially the female child.

“The moment she starts begging for alms, that’s when miscreants will take advantage and abuse her sexually, emotionally and sometimes even physically. This happens because they see you cheaply looking dirty without help and they take advantage of you.

“Even if they rape you and impregnate you, nobody will fight and get justice for you because you are a disabled person as if it was your making. So, we call on the government to also prosecute perpetrators of sexual and gender-based violence to serve as a deterrent to others,” she stated.

Also speaking, the Coordinator, National Human Rights Commission, Bauchi State office, Yachi Dala, lamented the rising cases of violence in the home pointing out that children end up being affected.

Read 5,340 babies undergoing HIV/AIDS treatment in Gombe –Agency

“We have rising cases of domestic violence. Most of the cases we have are spouses beating their spouse; apart from physical violence, there is also psychological, emotional, and economic violence where a spouse is deprived of going out to work or intentionally depriving them of the upkeep of the family. The children are most affected because of their vulnerability.

“When there is an issue between a father and a mother, the children may not be directly involved but it will always affect the children. Denial of access to children is also another form of violence,” Dala stated.

Dala called on the government to be proactive saying, “it’s a call to action and it’s not just the government but every stakeholder. For the government, where there are laws, they should implement them and they should have the political will to ensure that those laws are implemented and hold perpetrators accountable.”

President Buhari Vows Justice For Sylvester Oromoni

By
Koko Lawrence
-
0

President Muhammadu Buhari Wednesday said anyone found guilty in the death of Sylvester Oromoni will be made to face the full wrath of the law.

Oromoni was a student of Dowen College, Lekki in Lagos before his death. His parents said he died after being bullied by his senior schoolmates in the school dormitory.

The school, however, claimed Oromoni sustained injuries while playing football.

“The President assures that it [Oromoni’s death] must act as a trigger leading to a permanent solution to this recurring problem,” Buhari’s special assistant on media and publicity Garba Shehu said in a statement.

“This incident will be thoroughly investigated and the appropriate punishment meted out to all those who are culpable.”

Lagos State police commissioner Hakeem Odumosu said on Tuesday that key suspects in the case have been arrested. He, however, did not disclose the names of those arrested.

Before his death, Oromoni had named five students who he claimed attacked him in the dormitory, inflicting on him multiple internal injuries.

The late student’s father earlier said that his child was beaten and fed a liquid chemical which led to his death.

State government has since shut down the school while the police continue investigation into the matter.

Kogi Governor Unveils Council On Tourism

By
Koko Lawrence
-
0

Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, has inaugurated a nine-member advisory council in Lokoja, the state capital, to enhance the state’s tourism potential.

Bello, who was represented by the Deputy Governor, Edward Onoja, said a number of historic sites are in the state to make Kogi one of the country’s most viable tourism hub.

He said these tourist sites would boost the internally generated revenue (IGR) of the state. Some of these sites are Lord Lugard Rest House on Mount Patti (1900-1914 AD), British Flag Hoisting (1900 AD), European Cemetery (1896 AD) and the confluence point of rivers Niger and Benue.

Director-General of the National Council of Arts and Culture (NCAC), Otunba Olusegun Runsewe, was appointed Chairman of the council.

Chief Executive Officer of La Campagne Tropicana Resort, Badagry, Wale Akinboboye; Nike Okundaye of Nike Art Gallery; Ronke Bello; Joseph Makoju and Kehinde Quadri Adu, were named members of the council.

Kogi State Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Salifu Idachaba, is Alternate Chairman of the council, while Femi Bolaji, will serve as Secretary.

How It Is Celebrated – Christmas In Canada

By
Angel Gimalo
-
0

Canada is a very large country and people of many different cultural backgrounds live there.

Because of this, there are lots of different Christmas traditions in Canada. Many of the traditions and celebrations come from French, English, Irish, Scottish, German, Norwegian, Ukrainian and native/first nation influences.

People in Canada send Christmas Cards to their friends and family.

Many Canadians open their gifts on Christmas Eve. Some only open their stocking on Christmas Eve. Others choose one gift to open, then save the rest until Christmas Day.

Canadians like to decorate their houses with Christmas Trees, lights and other decorations. There’s often Christmas stockings hung by the fireplace, ready for Santa!

The main Christmas meal is often roast turkey with vegetables and ‘all the trimmings’ like mashed potatoes and vegetables.

Traditional favorite Christmas desserts include Christmas/plum puddings and mincemeat tarts. Christmas crackers are popular with many people in Canada as well. A rich fruit Christmas Cake is also normally eaten around Christmas time!

However, people from different backgrounds and cultures have their own favorite foods at Christmas.

Going skiing, skating and tobogganing are also popular if there’s snow at Christmas!

Many Canadian families have cookie-baking parties. They bring a recipe for Christmas cookies, bake them and then exchange them with the members of their family.

Gingerbread people and houses are favorites, along with cheese straws. At the end of the party, each family goes home with a variety of different cookies to enjoy over the Christmas season.

Many families of French descent have a huge feast/party on Christmas Eve called a ‘Réveillon’ that lasts well into the early hours of Christmas morning after taking part in Christmas Eve Mass.

The traditional Christmas meal for people in Quebec, is a stew called ‘ragoût aux pattes de cochons’ which is made from pigs feet! However, many people now have a ‘Tourtière’, a meat pie made from venison (or pork or beef).

A popular cake, especially in Quebec and for those of French decent is the Bûche de Noël – a chocolate log.

There is a large Ukrainian community in Canada (the third largest in the world following Ukraine and Russia). Canadian Ukrainian families will have the traditional 12 meal dishes for Christmas.

Once Upon A Time – Dec. 9 – 1868 – First Traffic Lights Are Installed Outside The Palace Of Westminster In London

By
Angel Gimalo
-
0

536 Byzantine General Belisarius enters Rome while the Ostrogothic garrison peacefully leaves the city, returning the old capital to its empire.

1212 Frederick II (later also Holy Roman Emperor) crowned King of Germany in Mainz.

1621 Deacon Robert Cushman preaches the first recorded sermon on American soil and the first printed there.

1793 Christian journalist Noah Webster publishes the first issue of American Minerva, the first daily newspaper in New York City.

1896 William Henry Sheppard, an African-American missionary to Africa, writes to supporters at home, promising to prove that he merits the trust they have placed in him. Finding little success as a missionary, he explores the Congo and exposes Belgian atrocities.

1968 NLS (a system for which hypertext and the computer mouse were developed) is publicly demonstrated for the first time in San Francisco.

1990 Lech Wałęsa wins Poland’s 1st direct presidential election in Poland.

1992 Operation Restore Hope: US Marines land in Somalia.

Today’s Historical Events

Today In Film & Tv

1960 1st Broadcast Of “Coronation Street” On British ITV.

Today In Music

1964 John Coltrane’s Quartet records their greatest work “A Love Supreme” at Van Gelder Studio in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey.

Today In Sport

1978 1st game of Women’s Pro Basketball League (WBL), Chicago Hustle vs Milwaukee Does.

Do You Know This Fact About Today? Did You Know?

1854 Alfred Tennyson’s poem “Charge of the Light Brigade” is published in “The Examiner”.

Would You Believe?

1868 The first traffic lights are installed outside the Palace of Westminster in London. Resembling railway signals, they use semaphore arms and are illuminated at night by red and green gas lamps.

Throwback Thursday – Almamy Suluku, The Limba Ruler From Sierra Leone

By
Angel Gimalo
-
2

Almamy Suluku (1820 – 1906) was a Limba ruler from Sierra Leone who maintained his independence as long as possible through political strategy.

Early life
Almamy Suluku was born in 1820 in Kamabai, Biriwa country, in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone. He was the son of Sankailay, a great Limba chief of the Biriwa country, with its capital of Bumban.

As a young man, Suluku became the war captain, and under his military leadership, Biriwa became one of the largest kingdoms in Sierra Leone. When his father died, Suluku replaced him as the chief of Biriwa.

Political strategy
But Suluku was not satisfied with territory alone, and he set out to make his kingdom wealthy as well.

He fostered the trade in gold, ivory, hides, and foodstuffs that passed through Bumban on the way to Freetown, and he gave effective police protection to the traders in his realm.

His progressive rule impressed the British administration in Freetown, which sent him annual gifts throughout the 1880s.

When Samori Toure’s Mandinka forces occupied Biriwa in 1884, Suluku pretended to co-operate with the Mandinka, while sending urgent messages to the British in Freetown warning of a disruption in trade.

The British accepted Suluku’s arguments, persuading the Mandinka to leave Biriwa country.

Thus, while other Sierra Leonean kings suffered costly defeats in futile military resistance, Suluku managed to have his way through political strategy alone.

In the 1890s, as British power increased, Suluku pursued his own independent policy while making the British believe he was their loyal ally.

He sent frequent messages of friendship to the British Governor and entertained royally every British delegation that arrived in Bumban, but did exactly as he pleased. Some lower ranking officers warned of Suluku’s deception, but Freetown was convinced of his loyalty.

When the 1898 Rebellion led by Bai Bureh broke out, Suluku sent warriors and weapons to Bai Bureh, but when the British complained, he sent them a letter expressing his support for their position and offering his services as mediator.

After the Protectorate was established, the British wanted to break up Suluku’s kingdom into small chiefdoms, but Suluku’s subjects refused to cooperate as long as the old Gbaku was still alive.

When he was very aged, a British official asked Suluku to name his successor under the new and tightly controlled colonial structure. The old Gbaku’s reply: “Suluku will never die”.

Norwegian Archaeologists Discover Typical Iron Age Longhouses

By
Angel Gimalo
-
0

Norwegian archaeologists say they have found a cluster of longhouses, including one of the largest in Scandinavia, using ground-penetrating radar in the southeastern part of the country — in an area that researchers believe was a central place in the late Nordic Iron Age.

The longhouses — long and narrow, single-room buildings — were found in Gjellestad, 86 kilometers (53 miles) southeast of Oslo near where a Viking-era ship was found in 2018 close to the Swedish border.

“We have found several buildings, all typical Iron Age longhouses, north of the Gjellestad ship.

The most striking discovery is a 60-meter (197-foot) long and 15-meter (49-foot) wide longhouse, a size that makes it one of the largest we know of in Scandinavia,” archaeologist Lars Gustavsen at Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research said in a statement.

The importance of Gjellestad during that time period wasn’t immediately known. But the body, known by its Norwegian acronym NIKU, said it was working on finding that out.

This autumn, archaeologists covered 40 hectares (about 100 acres) south, east and north of were the Gjellestad ship was found with the radar system, and one of the next steps are archaeological excavations, NIKU said.

The surveys are the first part of a research project called “Viking Nativity: Gjellestad Across Borders” where archaeologists, historians and Viking age specialists have examined the development of the area during the Nordic Iron Age that began at around 500 B.C. and lasted until approximately A.D. 800 and the beginning of the Viking Age.

“We do not know how old the houses are or what function they had. Archaeological excavations and dating will help us get an answer to this,” said Sigrid Mannsaaker Gundersen, another archaeologist.

They have also found several ploughed-out burial mounds in nearby fields.

“We are not surprised to have found these burial mounds, as we already know there are several others in the surrounding area,” Gustavsen said. “ Still, these are important to know about to get a more complete picture of Gjellestad and its surroundings.”

National Environmental Standards And Regulations Enforcement Agency Seeks Solution To Environmental Challenges

By
Angel Gimalo
-
0

The National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) has identified some challenges hindering effective implementation of agency environmental programmes, which are its core mandates.

Part of the challenges, as listed by NESREA were: poor enforcement infrastructure, insufficient funding and poor budgetary allocation for environmental compliance monitoring.

Prof. Aliyu Jauro, Director-General of the NESREA, disclosed this at a press conference on the activities of the agency, in Abuja.

Jauro said that the aim of the parley was to discuss some of the plans, challenges and achievement of the agency made so far in 2021 and a way forward.

“The agency is being faced with some of these challenges such as insufficient funding and poor budgetary allocation for environmental compliance monitoring and enforcement programmes.

“Poor enforcement infrastructure; incessant delay of environmental crime cases in courts, poor adaptation of green technologies by the industry.

“Also, multinational companies applying weaker operational standards in Nigeria different from their parent companies and poor inter-agency cooperation and partnerships.

“The agency need more vehicles to move around for monitoring and enforcement as well as equipping the staff with adequate training to enable them carry out the work effectively.

“We need to equip our personnel at least, each staff should have a computer for effective service delivery, these are what we need to acquire, if adequate funding and good budgetary allocation is provided,” he said.

Jauro said that environmental issues were cross-cutting with effects on all segments of the economy, adding that sustainable development could only be achieved in an atmosphere of good environmental governance.

He said that the agency carried out environmental compliance monitoring exercises in 24 states, adding that about 89 facilities were sealed.

He said that some of the facilities were dragged before the court of law for appropriate sanctions.

“The agency undertakes regular compliance monitoring visits to facilities. These exercises are carried out with the primary objective of keeping industries and facilities abreast with their environmental responsibilities, advising them on how to better carry out their operations.

“It also encourages voluntary compliance by the regulated community. NESREA also steps in to investigating and resolving environmental petitions brought in by members of the public against individuals or facilities,” he said.

The director-general said that the agency had seized several specimen such as elephant tusks, worked, semi worked ivories, pangolin scales, rhino horns among others.

He said that exercise was in collaboration with some relevant enforcement agencies such as the Nigerian Customs Service, National Center Bureau (NCB) and Interpol.

“Presently, about 2,972 pieces of elephant tusks and ivories weighing 1,3851.55kg, as well as 74 pieces of non-elephant ivories weighing 98.50kg and 27 sacks plus leather bag weighing 290.05kg are in the agency’s custody as seized items.

“Culprits of these items have been prosecuted by the agency in the court of law.

Jauro said that the agency in collaboration with the Global Environment Facility (GEF) was currently implementing a special intervention programme, titled: “Circular Economy approaches for the Electrical Electronic Sector in Nigeria”.

He said that the programme was a major aspect of the agency’s drive towards the implementation of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) programme in the electrical electronics sector.

He said that the agency had concluded arrangement for the take-off of the National Vehicular Emission Control Programme (NVECP) and the National Generator Emission Control Programme (NGECP).

He said that the programmes aimed at compliance to some national environmental regulations to do with the control of gaseous emissions and ensuring the attainment of Nationally Determined Contributions of reduction in the emission of greenhouse gases.

Lagos State To Launch App For Monthly Rent Payment

By
Angel Gimalo
-
0

The Lagos State government under the leadership of Governor Babajide Sanwolu is set to launch an app where low-income earners can pay monthly for their house rents.

This assertion was made at the 2nd Lagos State Real Estate Market Place Conference and Exhibition.

The two-day (December 7 – 8) conference which held at Eko Hotel and Suites saw captains of industry, Real Estate Developers and Consultants talking about the way forward concerning the Real Estate Market in Lagos State, Nigeria’s south-west.

Also speaking at the occasion, Commissioner for Finance, Dr. Rabiu Olowo promised that Lagosians will have access to affordable housing as so desired.

Also speaking to LN247, Korede Adeyemi, MD/CEO, Nobleserve Capital assured that all was in place to make the app work.

Chief Organiser of the Occasion and Special Adviser to Lagos State government on Housing, Mrs. Adetoke Benson-Awoyinka told environment correspondent that the government will concentrate more on locally made housing materials which will, in turn, reduce the cost of building a house.

Participants, which cut across the Real Estate industry said they were ready to use the proposed platform when Lagos State government launches it. They referred to it as a win-win situation.

1...1,8951,8961,897...2,704Page 1,896 of 2,704