SANWO-OLU APPROVES 21-YEAR JAIL TERM FOR CULTISTS, SIGNS ANTI-CULTISM BILL INTO LAW

Published

2 years ago

March 15, 2021

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•Governor Appoints Two Permanent Secretaries, Members of Procurement Agency Governing Board

•Three Other Bills Signed Into Law

Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has signed the bill for the Prohibition of Unlawful Societies and Cultism of 2021 into law, approving 21-year jail term for convicted cultists in the State.

The State’s House of Assembly, in February, passed the anti-cultism bill, which also stipulates 15-year jail term for anyone found guilty of abetting cultists and residents who willfully allow their properties to be used as meeting points by cultists.

Sanwo-Olu assented to the bill at the swearing-in event for newly appointed members of the State’s Public Procurement Agency Governing Board and two Permanent Secretaries held at Banquet Hall in the State House, Alausa, on Monday.

At the event, the Governor also signed three other bills into law. They are Lagos State Audit Service Commission (Amendment) Law of 2019, Lagos State Public Procurement Bill of 2021 and Coronavirus Pandemic Emergency Law of 2021.

The anti-cultism law repeals the Cultism (Prohibition) Law of 2007 (now Cap. C18, Laws of Lagos State of Nigeria, 2015) and provides for more stringent punitive measures, as well as makes its application all-encompassing and applicable to the general public, as against the restriction of the previous law to students of tertiary institutions.

Sanwo-Olu said the State had suffered the negative effects of unlawful societies and cultism, stressing that the new law sought to make parents more responsible and show more interest in the up-bringing of their children and wards to ensure that they do not become a burden to the society.

Speaking on the appointment of the procurement agency’s Governing Board members, the Governor said their selection was predicated on their track record of integrity, experience and professional competence.

He said the Board’s duty was to oversee the procurement process, by ensuring that public funds were judiciously expended in manner that would promote accountability, transparency and value for money.

Sanwo-Olu said: “Your major responsibility as members of the Public Procurement Governing Board is to ensure strict adherence to the provisions of the State Public Procurement Law. You hold a crucial and strategic role in preventing wasteful spending and corruption in public procurement. The State Government and taxpayers count on you to keep the procurement process as transparent as possible.”

The Governor said the appointment of the two Permanent Secretaries into the Ministry of Works and Infrastructure was part of the move to restructure the ministry into two distinct offices, as necessitated by the need to engender improved efficiency and faster delivery of key projects under the purview of the Ministry.

“I challenge you to utilise your wealth of knowledge and experience for the expedited and seamless delivery of works and infrastructure projects; you must ensure that we achieve our purpose for restructuring the two offices,” Sanwo-Olu charged the appointed Permanent Secretaries.

The bill to amend the State’s Audit Law of 2015 was initiated by the executive to address observed flaws hindering the successful implementation of the extant Audit Law, Cap. A13, Laws of Lagos State, 2015.

With the amendments, the Central Internal Audit (CIA), which was a department in the Ministry of Finance is now a department under the Audit Service Commission. This is to bring auditors under one body for effective administration and independence of internal auditors in line with best global practice.

Lagos State Public Procurement Agency Law originally enacted in 2011, forms the legal bedrock for the public procurement regime in the State. The Law was based on the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) model which is a properly regulated procurement system standard on international best practice.

The Public Procurement Agency Governing Board members are the Commissioner for Finance, Dr Rabiu Olowo (chairman), Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget, Mr Sam Egube, Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Moyosore Onigbanjo, SAN, Mr. Fatai Onafowote (General Manager), Mrs Foluso Onabowale, Mr Foluso Mustapha, and Mr Lanre Olusola.

Each Governing Board’s member has a term of three years to serve in the Board.

The two Permanent Secretaries are Arc. Adebayo Odusanya (Office of Works) and Engr. Rotimi Thomas (Office of Infrastructure).

Sport

Harry Maguire tops list of Man United players to be offloaded

Published

1 day ago

June 7, 2023

Yinka Rahman

Manchester United are set for a major clear-out this summer with defender Harry Maguire topping the list of players to be offloaded.

It is understood that both player and club would reach an agreement to part ways despite the England international having a contract that runs till 2025.

According to Italian journalist, Fabrizio Romano, United have a list of six players to be released as the club aim to shake up the squad ahead of the new season.

Aside Maguire, Wough Weghorst, Dean Henderson, Eric Bailly, Don Van De Beek and Alex Telles complete the list of the players the club considered surplus to requirements.

With the Red Devils back in the UEFA Champions League, strengthening the squad to challenge in Europe appears to be a priority for the Old Trafford board.

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Crime

Gunmen abduct 7-year-old girl in Abuja

Published

1 day ago

June 7, 2023

Yinka Rahman

Armed men have abducted a seven-year-old girl in Yangoji village, Kwali Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

Mr Suleiman Musa, a resident of the village told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja that the hoodlums invaded the community in the early hours of Wednesday.

He said the hoodlums invaded the village firing several gunshots before breaking into some houses where they adducted the seven-year-old girl.

According to him, the quick intervention of a police team forced the gunmen to scramble out of the village.

NAN gathered that the Kwali Divisional Police Headquarters responded to the distress call on the attack at about 5 am on Wednesday.

A source said it was the swift response of police personnel, hunters and vigilance members led by the Kwali Divisional Police Officer (DPO) that saved the community from further harm from the gunmen.

He said that the hoodlums engaged the security team in gun battle before escaping with the abducted girl.

The source said that the security team is currently combing the area with a view to rescuing the girl and arresting the gunmen.

When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) in the FCT, SP Josephine Adeh, said she would get back to our reporter as soon as she gets details of the incident.

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News

Fuel Subsidy Removal: Edo civil servants to work for three days a week

Published

1 day ago

June 7, 2023

Yinka Rahman

EDO State Governor, Mr Godwin Obaseki, has empathized with Edo people in the wake of the rise in prices of goods and services and overall cost of living occasioned by the fuel subsidy removal by the Federal Government, announcing measures to ameliorate the sufferings currently faced by the people as a result of the policy.

In a statement in Benin yesterday, Obaseki said the state government has reduced the number of work days that civil and public servants will have to commute to their workplaces from five days a week to three days a week, among other measures.

He said: “In the wake of fuel subsidy removal by the Federal Government, fuel prices have increased astronomically leading to a rise in prices of goods and services and overall cost of living.

“The Edo State Government shares the pains of our people and wants to assure everyone that we are standing with them in these very challenging times.

“We want to reassure our people that we will do all within our powers as a sub-national government to reduce the pains and ameliorate the sufferings our people are currently facing due to the current realities.”

The governor further noted, “As a proactive government, we have since taken the step to increase the minimum wage paid to workers in Edo State from the approved N30,000 to N40,000, the highest in the country today.

“We want to assure you that we will continue to pay this amount, while we hope to increase it even further if more allocation accrues to our State from the Federal Government in view of the expected savings occasioned by the removal of the fuel subsidy.

“We know the hardship that has been caused by this policy which has radically increased the cost of transportation, eating deep into the wages of workers in the State. Therefore, the Edo State Government is hereby reducing the number of work days that civil and public servants will have to commute to their workplaces from five days a week to three days a week till further notice. Workers will now work from home two days a week.

“Similarly, for teachers and parents, their commuting to school will be reduced as the government is working on deepening the EdoBEST@Home initiative to create more virtual classrooms, thereby reducing the cost of commuting on parents, teachers and pupils. The Edo SUBEB will provide details on this initiative in the coming days.”

He added, “To lower the rising cost of energy on our people, we will continue to work with the electricity companies in the State to improve power supply to homes and businesses.

“Similarly, fibre optic connections are being made available to help our people work remotely, thereby reducing their cost of transportation.

“While government intensifies these efforts to alleviate the burden of the fuel price increase on the people during this very challenging period, we want to call on everyone to remain calm and go about their daily businesses lawfully.”

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