POLITICS
Lagos Graduates 76-Year-Old Brick Maker, 1,999 others in Up-Skilling Programme
The Lagos state government on Tuesday graduated a 76-year-old brick maker and 1,999 others from its up-skilling programme for tradesmen and artisans in the informal sector.
For Pa Fawole Alade, the 76-year-old concrete and block craftsman, from Igbogbo-Baiyeku Local Council Development Area (LCDA), age was no barrier to learning.
The 2,000 artisans from all traditional divisions of Lagos had their skills modernised and upgraded in an eight-week intensive training organised by the Ministry of Wealth Creation and Employment.
Speaking at the graduation ceremony in Ikeja, Lagos state Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, said that the trainees were empowered with tools and technical equipment, to further facilitate their transition to modern practice in their respective vocations.
The event also commemorated the annual Tradesmen and Artisans’ Day.
The trainees were nominated for the capacity building programme by the Lagos State Council of Tradesmen and Artisans (LASCOTA), the umbrella body for all trade associations in the state.
Sanwo-Olu said that the government embarked on the up-skilling and trade enhancement programme for the artisans, given the contributions of the informal sector to the state’s economic growth.
He said that the training was to equip the participants with contemporary skills and tools, in order to make them attuned to the changing dynamics in their chosen vocations.
According to him, the present administration placed premium on participatory governance, just as it strongly believed that government and the private sector must work together to transform the state’s economy.
”It is not in doubt that technology and innovation are the bedrock of economic development.
”The transition from the agricultural age to the industrial age, and to the digital age, has been underlined by waves of innovation that emerge to disrupt an established order and replace it with new ways of doing things.
”As a forward-looking government, we cannot afford to ignore the rapid pace of change in the 21st century. Lagos artisans cannot afford to be left behind.
”It is our abiding commitment to ensure that our Micro, Small and Medium-scale Enterprises (MSMEs) grow and flourish.
”This is why we are equipping our artisans with contemporary skills and incorporating technological innovation into their practice, to stay in tune with emerging trends from around the world,” he said.
Sanwo-Olu said that there was the need for optimisation of values provided for skilled workers, while also training the under-skilled segments of the workforce.
He said that his administration would continue to create an enabling environment for artisans and tradesmen to thrive, and also to invest continuously in programmes that would impact their lives and improve earnings from their crafts.
”For the 2,000 re-trained tradesmen and artisans who are graduating today, let me remind you that the strategic position of Lagos offers you limitless opportunities to achieve your dreams, as the state contributes a quarter of the national GDP, and is by extension the fifth largest economy in Africa.
”Your training has, therefore, been designed to provide you with the right mix of skills needed to service the rapidly growing industrial needs of our state,” the governor said.
Sanwo-Olu donated three hectares in Badagry to LASCOTA to build its secretariat and industrial skilsl hub.
The Commissioner for Wealth Creation and Employment, Mrs Yetunde Ariobeke, said that the up-skilling programme was part of the empowerment opportunities initiated by the Sanwo-Olu administration for residents in the informal sector, in which 4,500 had benefited.
Arobieke said that the training was packaged with technical support from BOSCH Nigeria, which taught the participants how to use various technological tools.
She said that the training and provision of equipment were meant to address the challenge of obsoleteness of equipment at the disposal of artisans in the state.
”The informal sector is the engine that drives the economy. It, therefore, becomes imperative for Lagos artisans to work towards the realisation of a common purpose, which is creating 21st century artisans for sustainable economic growth.
”In line with our mandate, we have continued to foster the creation of an enabling environment for our artisans through access to market, capital and capacity building, by partnering with the private sector by way of impact investment,” Arobieke said.
The President of LASCOTA, Mr Nurudeen Buhari, said that the capacity building would provide competitive advantage for the participants in their vocations.
Buhari commended the governor for the opportunity of the programme, while reminding him of the association’s request for a secretariat and an industrial skills centre for the artisans.
The best graduating artisan from the Ikorodu centre, Mr Ariwoola Olagoke, an estate management technician, conveyed the participants’ appreciation to the state government for the empowerment that also afforded them the opportunity to upgrade their skills. (NAN)
POLITICS
Poverty, Behind Deadly Stampedes Across Nigeria, says Falana
By Mike Odiakose, Abuja
Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, SAN, on Sunday attributed the deadly stampede that claimedmore than 105 lives in stampedes during food and cash distribution events to “poverty-induced neoliberal economic policies” and “criminal negligence.
”In a statement released on Sunday, Falana, who chairs the Alliance on Surviving COVID-19 and Beyond ASCAB, demanded justice for victims of the tragic events, saying, “These tragic events are a national shame, the victims were not just statistics but human beings driven to desperation by systemic poverty and the gross incompetence of those entrusted with their safety.
”On December 21, 12 people died and 32 others were injured in Okija, Anambra State, during a scramble for rice distributed by a philanthropist.
On the same day, a stampede at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Maitama, Abuja, resulted in the deaths of 10 individuals, including children, as over 3,000 people jostled for palliatives.
Just two days prior, on December 19, 35 children lost their lives in a stampede at a Christmas funfair at an Islamic High School, Basorun. in Ibadan, Oyo State.
“The loss of these innocent lives is heart-wrenching,” Falana lamented.
“It underscores the indignity that poverty imposes on our people.”
Falana also criticized the elite for their treatment of the poor during such events, stating, “No member of the elite invites others to lunch by throwing the food,” and condemned what he termed “class prejudice” in the distribution of humanitarian aid.
He also announced plans to mobilize lawyers to pursue civil suits against the organizers of these events.
“We will ensure survivors and families of the deceased are adequately compensated,” Falana affirmed. “Those responsible for these avoidable tragedies must be held accountable.”
POLITICS
2025 budget: LP Chieftain Lauds Tinubu for Diving Priority to Security, Others
Dr Ayo Olorunfemi, National Deputy Chairman of the Labour Party (LP) ,has commended President Bola Tinubu for giving priority to security and other key sectors in the 2025 Appropriation Bill .
Olorunfemi gave the commendation while speaking with newsmeon Thursday in Lagos.
NAN reports that the President had on Wednesday presented the N47.
9 trillion 2025 Appropriation Bill , christened “Budget of Restoration, Securing Peace and Rebuilding Prosperity” , to a joint session of the National Assembly .The President listed highlights of the 2025 budget allocations to include: defense and security: N4.91 trillion; infrastructure: N4.06 trillion; Health: N2.
48 trillion and Education: N3.52 trillion.Reacting , Olorunfemi described security as an enabler of development.
He called on the President to ensure proper implementation ,saying budgets had always been well-crafted but usually lacked monitoring and implementation.
“There is nothing that can happen if there is no security. This is good if the budget is properly utilised for the purpose.
“Our problem is not about policies and budgets, it is about monitoring and implementation.
“There is nothing wrong in bringing a budget proposal forward in terms of expectation, what we want to do, how we want to do it, and how much we want to spend.
“Now, the most important thing is the implementation,, budgets in Nigeria have always been properly crafted,” the LP boss said.
Olorunfemi called on the President to build strong institutions to prevent sabotaging of his policies.
“If this government wants to do anything, it must wake up to the responsibility of monitoring policies and ensure severe penalty for anyone who attempts to sabotage such policies.
“We need institutions that no one will be able to interfere with. We must allow these institutions to work, that is what we expect.
“Once we have strong institutions, most of our problems are solved,” he said.
He also called on the President to take steps to address the problems experienced by Nigerians in the banking sector.
Olorunfemi decried the inability of many Nigerians to get cash at bank’s Automated Teller Machines and the high charges paid to get cash from Point of Sales (POS) operators.
The LP boss also urged the President to devise ways of ending multiple taxations and high fuel price, describing them as major causes of hardship .
Recalled that the President said that the budget was a demonstration of government’s commitment to stabilising the economy, improving lives and repositioning the country for greater performance.
He also said the budget sought to consolidate the key policies instituted to restructure the economy, boost human capital development, increase the volume of trade and investments and bolster oil and gas production. (NAN)
POLITICS
Atiku hails Ndimi’s Oriental Energy on commissioning of first FPSO
By Mike Odiakose, Abuja
The former Vice President of Nigeria and PDP Presidential flag bearer in the 2023 general elections, Atiku Abubakar has congratulated the Chairman of the Nigerian Independent producer, Oriental Energy Resources (OER), Muhammadu Indimi, on the successful completion and commissioning of the Okwok Field’s Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel/platform in Dubai.
In a statement in Abuja by his Media Office in Abuja on Wednesday, the Former Vice President described the commissioning of the FPSO as one of the most gladdening news coming out from the upstream subsector of Nigeria’s oil industry in recent times.
“The vessel’s deployment at the Okwok field is expected to significantly increase Nigeria’s crude oil output, contributing to the government’s revenue growth and economic development objectives,” he said.
According to Atiku, “This is the first FPSO entirely funded by an indigenous Nigerian company and this landmark achievement being championed by OER showcases the rising capability of Nigerian firms in conceptualising and successfully executing complex projects in the nation’s upstream oil industry.
The successful building and commissioning of the FPSO marks a significant step toward enabling an indigenous oil and gas company to independently develop a marginal oil field.
This development marks an important milestone for Nigeria and its indigenous energy sector, he said.
“No doubt, this latest investment would boost economic growth, generate job opportunities for Nigerians, and ensure steady growth and development of not only the oil sector but the nation’s economy in general.”
He described Indimi as a man who so much believes in the capabilities that exist in the Nigerian oil and gas industry.
“From onset of his foray into the nation’s oil sector, his vision of standing out as a player of reckon in the nation’s upstream oil business has been top-notch,” he said.
As he said, Oriental Energy’s significant investment in the oil sector has set a new standard in local investment and operational excellence in the nation’s oil business, benefiting both the company and its partners.
The 40,000 barrels per day capacity facility constructed by the Singaporean firm HBA Future Energy will commence sailing to Nigerian waters beginning February 2025 for hook-up on the Okwok Oil Field. Production is expected to commence on the oil field in the first half of next year.
Okwok Oil Field, discovered by ExxonMobil in 1967, is located in Oil Mining Lease(OML) 67, in 31 metres water depth in shallow marine, southeast offshore Nigeria with estimated recoverable reserves of 45 million barrels. OER has an ongoing multi-well drilling campaign on the field that commenced in October 2023.