Author: mopress

For a police officer’s wife who spoke under anonymity, the demolition was overdue as kiosks and other structures were gradually overtaking the estate but it should not extended to those that were not close to the roads…..

Yet another police who would not divulge his identity, also cried out against the situation. “Now that they have come and demolished structures that were constructed within compounds, how do the federal government want us to feed and send our children to school with salaries that can barely sustain a family”, he queried….

The estate houses quarters for the Nigerian Police, Nigerian Navy, Union Bank, NICON Insurance and Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). A similar exercise took place recently at the FESTAC village, equally owned by the federal government.

–Residents of Gowon estate cry foul over demolition, By Stella Odueme, Reporter, Lagos, Daily Independent [Nigeria] July 15, 2004.

In the E-9 group of countries as they were called, which included Nigeria, Brazil, China, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Mexico and Pakistan, only an average 32 per cent of the pre-primary age children were registered in primary schools, according to the report.

But the four worst off countries include Indonesia (19 per cent), Nigeria (18 per cent), Egypt (10 per cent) and Pakistan (eight per cent).

—Childhood care inadequate in Nigeria, says UNESCO report, By Bolaji Adepegba, Senior Correspondent, Lagos, The Daily Idependent [Nigeria] July 15, 2004.

[Trade Union Congress of Nigeria] TUC in a statement signed by its General Secretary, John Kolawole, stated that it was set to picket filling stations that have refused to comply with the new directive on the price of petroleum products. “The congress hereby advises the State councils of TUC to meet with the State Governors and leaders of thought in the states to prevail on the erring marketers to comply with the new directive on the sale of petroleum products.”….

Condemning the assassination attempt on the life of the National President of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association (PENGASSAN), Dr. Brown Ogbeifun, in his Abuja residence last week, TUC called for full-scale investigations by the law enforcement agencies into the motive of the perpetrators.

“The congress wants the Police to spread its dragnets to fish out people who are on the trail of the PENGASSAN president to forestall further attempt on his life.”

The Congress also said, “The TUC is in total support of the planned action of NUPENG and PENGASSAN in forcing the government to rehabilitate the refineries before July 26, 2004, or face a nation wide strike action. We believe that the two unions are fighting a just cause and no amount of blackmail or intimidation will make them soft-pedal as the action is in the best interest of Nigerians.”

—TUC to picket filling stations, By Bimbo Kesington Labour Reporter, Daily Independent [Nigeria] July 15, 2004.

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has declared that it would not accept any other university autonomy bill except the one signed into law by President Olusegun Obasanjo in July 2003….

The National President of ASUU, Dr. Abdullahi….Sule-Kano said the assembly in 2002 organised a public hearing on the proposed autonomy and later came up with a bill that was sent to Obasanjo who signed it into law on July 10, 2003.

He said one year after, neither the government nor the vice-chancellors has implemented a section of it.

The ASUU president said before the Act could be replaced, it has to be implemented for some time after which an amendment could be sent to the lawmakers for approval.

“An autonomy bill exists. The bill has not been allowed to operate before the talk of a new one. ASUU is using this medium to call on the Federal Government and managers of the universities to start implementing the bill before a new one can emerge,” he said.

—ASUU condemns plan to pass new varsity autonomy bill By Fabian Ozor Senior Correspondent, Lagos, Daily Independent [Nigeria] July 15, 2004