The leadership of the House of Representatives has resolved the issues surrounding the delays in the payment of the salary of some health workers in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.

This is according to a communiqué by Lanre Lasisi Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the Speaker, House of Representatives.

He noted that consequently, some of the health workers under the aegis of Joint Health Sector Union (JOHESU) and the Assembly of Healthcare Professionals would receive their salary on or before May 22, 2020, which will be Friday.

The issues were resolved at a meeting, on Wednesday, between the leadership of the House, led by Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila, and the Minister of the FCT Mohammed Musa Bello, Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire, the Accountant General of the Federation, Ahmed Idris and officials of JOHESU, led by their chairperson in the FCT, Comrade Deborah Yusuf, among others.

In his remarks at the meeting, Gbajabiamila expressed dismay that some health workers in the FCT, who have been at the frontline of the fight against COVID-19, did not receive their salary and allowances since January.

The Speaker, who said he considered the meeting “extremely important because there is the potential that lives are at risk,” noted that the House would not fold its arms and watch the health workers embark on strike, as they threatened to, on May 28.

Gbajabiamila said from the information at his disposal, the issues had to do with the office of the Accountant General of the Federation, saying equity and diligence must be adhered to in dealing with such issues.

He commended the health workers for their sacrifices and patience over the past few months and assured that the House would always prioritize their welfare.

Speaking, FCT Minister, Bello, while thanking the Speaker for his intervention, said the FCT Administration had always paid salaries as and when due, but that with the introduction of the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS), they have been experiencing some hiccups.

However, he noted that following the intervention of the House leadership through the Committee on Healthcare Services, all the issues were resolved with the office of the Accountant General of the Federation.

On his part, Minister of Health, Ehanire, thanked the Speaker for the good leadership he has been providing and for championing the cause of the Nigerian masses.

Giving an update on the issue, the Accountant General of the Federation, Idris, said all issues have been resolved and that the FCT health workers would get their salary on or before May 22.

Narrating how the problem came about, he said after the FCTA approached his office for enrollment into the IPPIS sometime in 2018, over 25,000 workers of the administration were enrolled in over 12 months.

However, he said it was later discovered that more than 500 of them, mainly health workers and teachers, were not captured and that the process of capturing them was delayed due to the lockdown necessitated by COVID-19.

“As we speak, we’ve done the payroll and payment will be made on or before the 22nd of this month. Today is 20th, I can assure that they will get their salary before the 22nd,” he said.

Earlier, the chairman of the House Committee on Healthcare Services, Rep Tanko Yusuf Sununu, briefed the meeting about the actions taken by the House through his Committee, which included series of meetings with the relevant authorities since March.

The chairman of the JOHESU in FCT, Mrs Yusufu, thanked the Speaker for his intervention as well as the two ministers for their concern. She also thanked the Accountant General for the actions taken so far.

She said the Speaker has been a father to the FCT JOHESU and that he has now become an honorary member of their union, saying they were not against IPPIS, but that all they desire was for their salary and allowances to be paid on time.

Governor Abubakar Sani Bello has signed into law three bills passed by the Niger State House of Assembly.

The bills include the Niger State Tertiary Institutions Law, with an operational date starting from the 8th of May 2019.

The new law increases the retirement age of Academic Staff of the State-owned tertiary institutions from 60 years to 65 years.

The academic staff that have attained 60 years before the commencement date of the law and in active service or employed after, shall enjoy the provision of the law.

Another bill assented to is the Legislative House (Powers and Privileges) Law 2019, which has operational date from 21st January 2020.

The law empowers the Legislators to invite any member of the public for questioning and that no criminal or civil proceeding shall be instituted against a member either in written or spoken at the plenary session or committee proceedings of the House.

Also assented to is the Niger State Water and Sewage Corporation Law, 2020 which shall come into effect from the 25th of March 2020.

The essence of the water and sewage corporation law is to achieve a sustainable water system development in the State.

By Mohammed Baba Busu

The Etsu Nupe, Alhaji Yahya Abubakar, has admonished Nigerians to return to God for divine intervention in the current global coronavirus pandemic.

Abubakar, the Chairman of Niger State Council of Traditional Rulers, spoke when he addressed a selected group of Islamic preachers and Imams of Juma’at mosques drawn from across the kingdom in his Palace on Wednesday in Bida, Niger State.

Alhaji Abubakar advised that with fervent prayers by both the muslim Ummah and adherents of other religions in the country, Almighty God would certainly end the pandemic.

The monarch said that the last 10 days of the Holy month of Ramadan was the most auspicious time to pray against calamities and for peace, unity and socio-economic prosperity of Nigeria.

The Royal father also urged the Muslim faithful to sustain the noble lessons learnt during the current month of Ramadan.

He said the lessons included patience, piety, perseverance, Philanthropy as well as good neighbourliness.

“We should strive to maintain our God-fearing acts which we exhibited during the fasting period.

“As Muslims, we must strive to maintain all the good deeds we showed during the fasting period and shun the evil and devilish acts we abstained from during the holy month.

“Such good behaviours include abstaining from adultery, cheating, stealing, alcoholism, drug abuse and other secret sins.

“I pray that almighty Allah accepts our prayers and the Ramadan fast and urge the Muslim Ummah never to return to abominable acts after the fast.”

The monarch said it was only with the fear of Allah that Muslims would meet their needs and enjoy their possessions on earth.

He appealed to well-to-do Muslims in the country to assist the less privileged with food items and other basic needs.

He also urged Muslims to always pray for national peace, progress and
tolerate one another for sustained unity in the country.

He noted that the two major religions in the country preached peace, unity and love, stressing that without peace and unity, socio-economic development would continue to elude any society devoid of it.

The royal father called on leaders at all levels to lead the people with the fear of God, saying “leaders should always remember that they would all account for their deeds on the day of reckoning

Governor Abubakar Sani Bello of Niger State has charged the Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries to intensify efforts on animal husbandry as it is an integral part of the administration’s agricultural transformation agenda.

Governor Sani Bello stated this when he visited the State’s Livestock Improvement and Breeding Centre at the Tagwai Dam, Minna.

He acknowledged that the progress and process of developing unique species of Cattle at the centre were slowing and promised to meet with the ministry to fast track its development.

According to him, the whole idea of the Centre was to have from overtime moved from the present generation of Cattle to a better one for a better quality of milk and beef production.

He said that four veterinary doctors were sponsored to South Africa by the State government for training in artificial insemination and that with partnership agreement with a South African firm on Bonsmara (a disease-resistant cattle) semen supply it was expected that by now something tangible should have been achieved.

“The previous administration imported many of the Bonsmara breed from South Africa with the hoped that by now we should have been doing artificial insemination so that over time we shall be able to improve on our local breed especially the bokolo breed”, he stated.

He said that a crossbreeding between the Bonsmara and the local bokolo perfectly worked out in the State, therefore it was time for such an effort to be redoubled.

“It is a wonderful programme but unfortunately I have to find out why we have not made much progress”, he said.

The governor said that with the Bobi Grazing Reserve coming on board, this was the time that the government has to assist the herdsmen through artificial insemination so as to get the rare cattle that produce high quantity of milk of about 10 litres per day instead of the two litres daily and a cattle of 500kg to 600kg.

Governor Abubakar Sani Bello of Niger State has assured of his administration’s readiness to prioritize ongoing projects and ensure high quality delivery.

This is coming on the heels of shortfall in revenue generation as a result of the outbreak of COVID-19 as he embarks on assessment tour of ongoing projects in the State.

While at the re-awarded 10Km Tagwai Dam road project site in Tungan Goro, Chanchaga, Governor Sani Bello said that his administration is taking inventory of all on-going projects, so as to complete the ones that have attained appreciable level of completion, maintaining that no project should be left uncompleted as that will mean going backward.

He promised to see that no abandoned project is left in the State.

The Governor assured that all the projects that have direct impact on the people will be completed.

According to him, the contractor handling the project has demonstrated that it has the capacity to deliver as it has executed similar projects within the State.

Abubakar Sani Bello said that government will continue to monitor the contractors to ensure that they speed up work and finish in good time, and as stipulated in the contract terms especially now that the raining season has set in.

The Tagwai Dam road had suffered an initial setback in the past four years as the earlier contractor handling the project lacked the capacity to handle the work leading to revocation.

A new contract was however offered to Messrs Construction Products Nigeria Limited (CPN), at the cost of over N678 Million.

The Governor who noted that there is need to provide ease of movement for those plying the road stressed that timely completion of the road is non-negotiable.

• Gov. Diri Extends Presidential Directives For Two Weeks
• Jonathan, Dickson, Ooni Of Ife Donate To State

A medical doctor has tested positive for COVID-19 in Bayelsa State, bringing the number of active cases in the state to two.

Governor Douye Diri announced the new confirmed case on Tuesday during a meeting of the COVID-19 Taskforce, which he chairs, at the Government House, Yenagoa.

A press release by his Acting Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Daniel Alabrah, quoted the governor as saying that the doctor, who is a staff of the Federal Medical Centre in Yenagoa, was earlier admitted at a private hospital before he tested positive for the virus.

His travel history showed that he came into the state from a trip to neighbouring Delta State.

The hospital has been shut down for decontamination to commence.

The governor, who noted that five positive COVID-19 patients had been successfully treated and discharged, cautioned frontline medical personnel handling active cases to adhere strictly to laid down protocols.

Arising from the resolutions taken by the taskforce, Senator Diri directed that the presidential directives of inter-state lockdown be adopted for another two weeks as well as the dusk-to-dawn curfew of 8pm to 6am.

He equally stated that the stay-at-home order for civil servants on grade levels 01-12 be extended for another two weeks as part of strategies to contain the spread of the scourge.

Diri further directed the Head of Service, Mrs Biobelemoye Onyeama to liaise with the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Health, the Chief Medical Director of the Niger Delta University Teaching Hospital and his counterpart at the Federal Medical Centre, Yenagoa as well as the Director of Public Health to devise a plan on the gradual return to work of the affected civil servants.

On the issue of worship centres maintaining the social distancing order, the governor permitted Muslims in the state to hold the forthcoming Eid-el Kabir prayers but stressed the need for them to observe all the rules and regulations on COVID-19.

He also relaxed the order on burials in the state but directed that all mortuaries sign an undertaken with the deceased families to abide by the COVID-19 protocols.

“During such burials, there shall be no social gathering, including daytime or night reception or dance,” he said.

The governor further stated tha all VIPs and those on essential services coming into the state must submit themselves to screening at the boundary points.

Senator Diri, who observed that the state government had not received any donations from the federal government and the World Health Organisation, however highlighted a number of donors that had assisted the state both in kind and cash towards mitigating the impact of the dreaded virus.

The donors are former President Goodluck Jonathan, who donated 1,000 bags each of rice and beans while the immediate past governor, Honourable Seriake Dickson, gave N10 million.

The Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, also made a donation of two motorised modular fumigators while one Mr. Freeborn David donated 150 face masks.

Others are First City Monument Bank, Yenagoa branch 114 cartons of instant noodles, 979 10kg bags of rice, 80 packets of face masks, Ecobank 350 10kg bags of rice, 370 5kg bags of garri, Academic Staff Union of Universities Port Harcourt zone 100 milligrams of 500 bottles of sanitisers as well as the Yenagoa branch of the Nigerian Bar Association 50 bottles of 200 milligram sanitisers.