More trouble for PMB: NAPF demands for Piggery colony

NaijaAgroNet:

There seems to be more headaches coming the way of Mr. President, Muhammadu Buhari as the National Association of Piggery Farmers (NAPF) has written him, alleging marginalization and demanding for a start, piggery colonies in 19 northern states, reports NaijaAgroNet.

NAPF in the letter addressed to the Presidency, and sighted by NaijaAgroNet which was signed by one Ogbuefi Animam Eze, who claimed to be the National Secretary of NAPF, also sent copies to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Ministry of Defence, Ohaneze Ndigbo, Afenifere, Aka Ikenga, Oodua Peoples' Congress (OPC), Ijaw National Congress (INC), Middle Belt Forum (MBF), Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), and Nzuko Umunna deplore the marginalization of the association by the Federal Government.

“Our pigs have been variously targeted for elimination in several Northern states. Those Sharia compliant states have refused to allow our legitimate businesses to thrive. Our members have been hounded and harassed by the Hisbah Police and others. We deplore this,” the group said.

They also alleged that the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD) led Chief Audo Ogbeh, has paid deaf ears to our plight, as members demand that the marginalization must stop in order to forestall any breakdown of law and order.

Based on the foregoing, NAPF raised a six-point demand top on agenda being the demand for a 20-hectare Piggery Colony in the 19 Northern States especially Katsina, Kano, Kebbi, Sokoto, Yobe, Bauchi, Niger, Borno and Gombe.

NAPF insisted that equal opportunities should be given to all farmers and herders throughout the federation and went on to demand from the National Assembly the passage of a law on “Piggery Colonies in all Northern states.”

Further, NAPF demanded that a section of the Nigerian Army be employed in the protection of pigs and pig farmers form any attack, proposing FMARD set aside a budget allocation for the importation of Pig Feed from Argentina, whereas a special department of Piggery in the Federal Ministry of Agriculture should be created.

“Dear Mr. President, we are law abiding association. We prevent our members from being provoked by the government-backed Hisbah/Islamic horde that aim to destroy our pig farmers. We shall not be involved in attacking and killing the anti-piggery people in the Sharia States. If these things are not done, we can no longer guarantee that our members would not deliberately target our transducers,” NAPF said.

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Cattle colonies, insult on Nigerians – CAN

NaijaAgroNet:

The spate of agitations over planned establishment of cattle colonies by the Federal Government of Nigeria, have been wholesomely described as an insult on Nigerians, reports NaijaAgroNet.

The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) stated this in Abuja, Tuesday, saying that this is a term every Nigerian should condemn and resist.

CAN through the General –Secretary of Christian Association of Nigeria, Rev. Dr. Musa Asake, at the National Christian Centre, Tuesday, told newsmen that every Nigerian should condemn in strong terms and resist the attempt by this pro-Fulani government that 'cattle colonies' shall be established all over the country.

“This is an insult on all Nigerians. The idea of 'cattle colony' presupposes that the Fulanis are colonial masters,” CAN said.

Wondering, “How and when one ethnic group transmuted into a ‘colonial master’ over all the other 388 ethnic nationalities in Nigeria is unknown?”

Besides, CAN pointed out that this came up after Nigerians roundly rejected “grazing reserves”.

Further, alleged that the cattle colony is the handiwork of Islamists trying to deceive with change of nomenclature.

Emphasising that again and again, “Muslim leaders from the northern part of the country have demonstrated inability to respect the secularity of the Nigerian State and leave religion as an individual conviction according to Section 38 (1) of the Nigerian Constitution.”

CAN, therefore, demand from President Muhammadu Buhari, a holistic response to curb the horrendous menace of the Fulani herdsmen and Boko Haram, who to all intent and purpose have launched Jihad in Nigeria.

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LASEMA rescues stucked woman from mud @Iyana-Oworo

NaijaAgroNet:

The Response Team of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) has rescued a middle-aged woman stucked in the mud under the 3rd Mainland Bridge, inward Berger Iyana Oworo in the early hours of Wednesday, reports NaijaAgroNet.

This incident, NaijaAgroNet gathered, came barely two weeks after a similar incident occurred with a middle-aged man was rescued alive by the LASEMA Response Team and other emergency agencies at the opposite end of the  same environment.

General Manager LASEMA Mr. Adesina Tiamiyu, disclosed that the middle aged woman whose details could not be ascertained as at press time, was found trapped in the mud under the intersection wing of  the 3rd mainland bridge outward Iyana Oworo.

The victim, he said, was walking through the muddy soil and eventually got trapped in the mud.

According to him, the timely intervention of the LASEMA Response Team, the Lagos State Fire Service and other emergency responders culminated into the rescuing alive of the victim. The victim was rescued  with the aid of the LRU heavy duty equipment (Crane) assisted by officials of the Lagos State Fire Service .Upon rescue the victim was administered first aid treatment and later moved to the Lagos State Teaching Hospital for proper medical treatment.

Tiamiyu who supervised the rescue operation said it is difficult to ascertain why and how the incident occurred as the lady was said to be presently traumatized and requires medical attention for stabilization. He however advised that Lagosians should be very careful when moving around muddy area. 

He enjoined residents to report any emergency in their surroundings in time through the emergency toll free number 112/767.

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Group urges IGP to disarm Hausa-Fulani in Benue

NaijaAgroNet

The Tiv community in Lagos State, under the auspices of Mdzough U Tiv (MUT), has called on the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Ibrahim K.Idris, to  urgently disarm the irate Hausa -Fulani youths in Benue State, especially Makurdi, reports NaijaAgroNet.

This call was made through MUT President General, Prince Aondowase Ikyernum Kajo, following Saturday and Sunday night attacks on their host community in Wadata area of Makurdi where some Tiv residents were killed, others sustained varying degrees of injuries and their houses burnt by the rampaging youths.

They alleged that intelligence information at their disposal indicated that there is a huge stockpile of dangerous arms and ammunitions in mosques, homes, shops and many other unidentified places by the Hausa -Fulani residents in the state.

With the kind of arms these rampaging youths were brandishing, and recklessly attacking Makurdi residents, it means they are well prepared to do the worst, hence, the urgent need to clampdown on the aforementioned places and confiscate those weapons.

It would amount to double standards by the Nigerian security agencies (soldiers) who hastily arrested the Benue State livestock guards who were on a legitimate duty protecting their communities against marauding Fulani herdsmen terrorists but looked the other way when other tribes are causing severe harm to the lives and property of our people with more highly sophisticated weapons.

Remember that during the state government Amnesty program, only  Benue indigenes submitted over 700 arms to the state. It is not logical for people who are armless to be living in the midst of their dangerously armed visitors that are daily inflicting pains on them unchallenged.

We also warn that those sponsoring these irate youths recently drafted to Benue with no viable source of living to cause chaos paving the way for a declaration of state of emergency in Benue should have a rethink as such diabolical agenda would not succeed in our state.

We thank the governor of Benue State, Samuel Ortom, for standing firm with his people in these trying times. We also thank the Benue Traditional Council, led by HRM Prof. James Ayatse, Tor Tiv V, heads of all the socio-cultural organizations in the state and religious leaders for their efforts to see that these unprovoked attacks on our people stop.

We equally thank other critical stakeholders in this struggle to save our lives especially media professionals, social media activist, civil society organizations, the good people of Benue and well meaning Nigerians for standing with us.

We deeply sympathize with the families who lost their loved ones and  also wish the injured speedy recovery.

This is as we call on President Buhari who is the Commander in Chief of the armed forces to end this pogroms against Benue people by Fulani herdsmen terrorists.

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Lagos arrests 30 cart pushers over illegal refuse dumping

NaijaAgroNet:

Lagos State Government on Monday arrested 30 cart pushers for dumping refuse indiscriminately on road medians in some areas of the State in the middle of the night, reports NaijaAgroNet.

Chairman of the State’s Task Force on Environmental and Other Special Offences (Enforcement Unit), SP Olayinka Egbeyemi who made rhis know to  NaijaAgroNet, said the arrest was in line with the recent ban on the activities of cart pushers and wheel barrow operators by the State Government.

Egbeyemi, who affirmed that the activities of cart pushers in the State are illegal, said investigations found them culpable in dumping refuse on the road side especially at night thereby sabotaging efforts by the Government to keep the State clean. 

He said the Government is poised to go all out to prosecute any persons found to be working against the new waste management policy encapsulated in the Cleaner Lagos Initiative (CLI), saying the programme is designed to revolutionalise waste administration in line with global best practices when fully operational.

“There are reports that refuse are littering the Lekki, Victoria Island, Ajah and other parts of the State and investigations reveal that it is the handiwork of unscrupulous elements within Lagos State Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) and their outside sponsors who are not comfortable with the new arrangement for the management of waste in the State and are hell bent on sabotaging government effort and frustrating them from carrying it out.

“The State Government has vowed to go all out against the saboteurs and after their sponsors and punish them in line with the laws of the State.

“We also need to let Lagosians know that it is illegal to use cart pushers to evacuate refuse and they should stop encouraging it. There are PSP vehicles that come around to pack refuse and they are the ones they should patronise and not these cart pushers.

“We want to notify all these cart pushers that their activities are illegal in Lagos. Lagos is a mega city and we have all it takes to collect refuse. So, the issue of going to the streets and collecting refuse and then dump same on the road is an act of sabotage to the government,” he said.

Egbeyemi said the suspects arrested would soon be charged to court for prosecution, just as he assured that Government would leave no stone unturned in keeping the State safe and clean.

Besides, the Task Force Chairman said that the enforcement would continue across the State until the activities of cart pushers and other unscrupulous elements found to be frustrating government’s efforts are completely brought to a halt.

“For the past two to three weeks, we have been noticing refuse on the roads and investigations have revealed that part of those carrying out such act and sabotaging government efforts are these cart pushers and probably there might be some people behind them,” Egbeyemi said.

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Pix: cart pushers, courtesy The Punch

FG calls for media self-control in Benue herdsmen attack

NaijaAgroNet:

The Federal Government (FG) has appealed to the media and public commentators to exercise utmost restraint in their coverage of the fallouts of the what it described as recent farmers and herders clash in Benue State in order not to further inflame passion and worsen the situation, reports NaijaAgroNet.

In a press statement issued in Abuja on Saturday, and made available to NaijaAgroNet, the Minister of Informationand Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said while the Federal Government is working hard to address the situation with a view to preventing a recurrence, not just in Benue State but everywhere across the country, it is incumbent on the media and public commentators not to engage in actions that can aggravate the crisis.

''Lest we are misunderstood, we are neither saying the media should not cover the crisis nor asking public commentators to desist from commenting on it. All we are saying is that both must be circumspect.

''The current poisoned atmosphere of incendiary comments, unrestrained use of pictures and footages that offend human sensibilities as well as fingerpointing can only exacerbate the situation and complicate ongoing efforts to end the crisis,'' he said.

Alhaji Mohammed said the Federal Government is absolutely saddened by the loss of lives and the destruction of property resulting from the crisis, and recalled that President Muhammadu Buhari, in commiserating with the Benue Governor, unreservedly condemned the killings and also assured of the necessary security measures to prevent further attacks and bring the perpetrators to book.

He said the Federal Government has also mapped out short and long-term solutions to the incessant clashes between farmers and herders, including a planned conference of stakeholders, and assured of the government's strong determination to find a lasting solution to the farmers/herders' clashes.

Isaac Oyimah/GEE

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Insert Braille signs in currency notes - Abacha Adebesin

NaijaAgroNet:

The Monitoring Officer, Justice, Development and Peace Centre (JDPC), Mr. Abiodun Abacha Adebesin, has called on the International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank and Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to lead agitations for the insertion of Braille signs on currency notes, reports NaijaAgroNet.

Braille, NaijaAgroNet gathered, is a tactile writing system used by people who are visually impaired and is traditionally written with embossed paper.

NaijaAgroNet also gathered Braille users could read computer screens and other electronic supports thanks to refreshable braille displays available nowadays.

Making this call, Mr. Adebesin, noted that its high time global financial institutions consider adding Braille signs on our paper currencies in fulfillment of the one of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of not leaving any one behind.

As said by Adebesin, the blinds have been cheated on so many occasions because they rely on people to determine the denominations of the money they are holding and this is really saddening.

“If this done by all financial institutions in the world with the support of IMF and world bank, this will be in line with agenda 2030 'Leave no one behind'.

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Herdsmen killing in Benue, invitation to civil war – Yaro

NaijaAgroNet:

The Benue State chairman of the ruling All Progressive Congress, APC, Comrade Abba Yaro has described the massive killing of over 50 Benue people by the Fulani herdsmen as an invitation for civil war, reports NaijaAgroNet.

A press statement made available to NaijaAgroNet in Abuja, Yaro decried the recent killings as an attempt to spark second civil war in Nigeria, insisting that, it is clear case of ethnic cleansing around the Benue Valley which must be stopped immediately.

While calling on President Muhammadu Buhari to immediately call the Fulani  to order and as well direct security agents to fetch out the killers, he also called on all Benue Sons and daughters, irrespective of Party affiliation to rise in defense of Benue Community.

"This is above Party politics, it is human lives, how can you kill a pregnant woman and removed the unborn child yet slaughtered it? It is barbaric, unspeakable and generally unpalatable".

Yaro says the Anti Open Grazing Law in Benue is not targeted at any section of the people but for the general security of Benue State, a measure against cattle rustling and a solution to herders/farmers clash.

"The implementation is ongoing and we are in support of our governor, we are not deterred, the Anti Open Grazing Law has come to stay.

"Nigerians should not see the killings as a Benue problem but National crisis, the absence of peace in Benue is an absence of peace in Nigeria.

"We must treat it as a national ethnic cleansing by the Fulanis and collectively pressurize Mr President to put an end to it. If Boko Haram can be defeated, IPOB stopped, Fulani killings can be stopped", he observed. 

He further call on the Chief of Army Staff, Lt Gen Buratai, the Interior Minister Lt Gen Danbazau, the Director General of the Department of State Services (DSS), Lawal Daura, the Inspector General of Police Ibrahim Idris to protect Benue community or "we rise in self defence, which will amount to the second civil war."

Yaro emphasized that, "if the Fulanis are not called to order by the relevant authorities to stop the ethnic cleansing, like the lawless Fulanis are doing, Benue people shall take laws into their hands in selfdefense".

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Canada responds to multiple food crises in sub-Saharan Africa with $19.8m

NaijaAgroNet:

The Canadian government has responded to multiple food crises in the sub-Saharan Africa, including Nigeria, with the sum of $19.8 million, about N70,967,741,935.48 billion, reports NaijaAgroNet.

This, Canada said, would assist in addressing the critical needs of millions of vulnerable people across sub-Saharan Africa, including women and children suffering from a lack of access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their daily needs —the result of severe drought and conflict.

Proclaiming this via the Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau, Minister of International Development and La Francophonie, Ambassador Marc-André Blanchard, Permanent Representative of Canada to the United Nations, the $19.8 million is additional funding to address extreme levels of food insecurity in Cameroon, Chad, Ethiopia, Niger, Nigeria, South Sudan and Uganda.

In these seven countries and neighbouring regions, Canada’s funding of experienced and trusted Canadian and international partners will respond to critical humanitarian needs. This includes the provision of basic necessities, such as emergency food, potable water, adequate sanitation, health care, shelter and protection services.

“Canada is pleased to provide critical humanitarian assistance to address the effects of drought and conflict in Sub-Saharan Africa and to ensure those requiring emergency assistance are reached. Today’s announcement will help save lives, alleviate suffering and bring relief to people who need urgent help,” Marc-André Blanchard said.

NaijaAgroNet recalls that in March 2017, Canada voted close to $120 million in humanitarian funding in response to severe food crises in Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen.

Also, between March 17 and June 30, 2017, Canadians generously donated over $21.3 million to registered Canadian charities in response to humanitarian crises, including an unprecedented famine, food insecurity and conflict-induced displacements affecting over 55 million people across Africa.

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Over 20,000 babies born on New Year’s Day in Nigeria - UNICEF

NaijaAgroNet:

About 20,210 babies were born in Nigeria on the New Year’s Day, so says the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF), reports NaijaAgroNet.

Also, UNICEF challenges nations around the world to make sure more newborns survive their first days of life, stressing that Kiribati’s Christmas Island, a small island in the Pacific, will most likely welcome 2018’s first baby; the United States, its last.

Globally, over half of these births are estimated to take place in nine countries including Nigeria -20,210; India - 69,070, China — 44,760, Pakistan — 14,910, Indonesia — 13,370, United States of America — 11,280, Democratic Republic of Congo — 9,400, Ethiopia — 9,020 and Bangladesh — 8,370.

While many babies will survive, some will not make it past their first day. In 2016, an estimated 2,600 children died every day of the year, on the day they were born. For almost 2 million newborns, their first week was also their last. In all, 2.6 million children died before the end of their first month. Among those children, more than 80 per cent of all newborn deaths are due to preventable and treatable causes such as premature birth, complications during delivery, and infections like sepsis and pneumonia.

 “This New Year, UNICEF’s global resolution is to help give every child more than an hour, more than a day, more than a month - more than survival,” said Terry Durnnian, Acting Representative of UNICEF Nigeria. “We call on the government and partners to join the fight to save the lives of millions children by providing proven, low-cost solutions.”

Over the past two decades, the world has seen unprecedented progress in child survival, halving the number of children worldwide who die before their fifth birthday to 5.6 million in 2016. But despite these advances, there has been slower progress for newborns. Babies dying in the first month account for 46 per cent of all deaths among children under five.

Next month, UNICEF will launch Every Child Alive, a global campaign to demand and deliver affordable, quality health care solutions for every mother and newborn. These include a steady supply of clean water and electricity at health facilities, the presence of a skilled health attendant during birth, disinfecting the umbilical cord, breastfeeding within the first hour after birth, and skin-to-skin contact between the mother and child.

 “We are now entering the era when the entire world’s newborns should have the opportunity to see the 22nd Century. Unfortunately, nearly half of the children born this year likely won’t. A child born in Sweden in January 2018 is most likely to live to 2100, while a child from Nigeria would be unlikely to live beyond year 2072,” Durnnian said.

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