National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net
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Tuesday, March 5 , 2013
Youths protest as two die in Bauchi auto crash E ZEKIEL TITUS BAUCHI
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o fewer than two people were killed and two others injured in an accident which occurred at Tashan Maiturare near Nabordo along BauchiJos Federal Highway yesterday in Toro Local Government Area of Bauchi State, even as youths took to the streets
to protest incessant road crashes in the area. The State Commandant of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Mr. Henry Sunday Olatunji, said five people were involved in the accident. According to him, the accident occurred as a result of over speeding. Olatunji said that the victims were hit by a car and that the FRSC personnel took the corpses
and the injured victims to Toro General Hospital. Residents of the area claimed that youths organised a peaceful demonstration to prevail on the Bauchi State Government to build speed breakers on the federal highway so as to reduce over speeding by motorists and incessant crashes. They claimed that the protesters blocked the
road for many hours before policemen dispersed them. The Bauchi State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Mr. Hassan Mohammed Auyo, confirmed the incident. He said: “When we were informed that the protesters had blocked the road, we quickly mobilised to intervene. People can now go about their normal business.”
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Sacked Benue commissioners fraternise with APC –CNPP H ENRY I YORKASE MAKURDI
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ome commissioners recently sacked by Benue State Governor Gabriel Suswam in a major cabinet reshuffle are said to have pitched tent with the opposition parties against the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the build-up to the 2015 general elections. Chairman of the Conference of Nigeria’s Political Parties (CNPP) in Benue State, Mr. Baba Agan, dropped the hint yesterday in a chat with National Mirror in Makurdi, the state capital. Agan said that some of the sacked commissioners had been fraternizing with the newly formed All Progressive Congress (APC) and even indicated their interest to contest the 2015 poll on the ACP platform. He, however, refused to disclosed the identi-
ties of the former commissioners, saying that they had been merely trying to make ends meet in the administration of Governor Suswam Efforts to clarify the claim from one of the sacked commissioner failed as several attempts to get his comments on the issue through his mobile phone did not yield the desired result. It will be recalled that Governor Suswam dropped 11 commissioners out of the 16 that made up his cabinet two weeks ago. The CNPP boss, however, said that (APC) was formed to rescue Nigeria from the grip of underdevelopment. He said: “At the moment, the APC is spreading all over the country like wild fire with the major purpose of unifying the opposition elements so as to form a strong, reliable and unified political structure.”
Kano registers beggars for skill acquisition AUGUSTINE MADU-WEST KANO L-R: Representative of President of Kaduna Chamber of Commerce, Mines and Agriculture (KADCCIMA), Alhaji Ahmed Isah; Zonal Business Manager, North-West Zone, Airtel Nigeria, Mr. Jeremiah Essien and Chairman, KADCCIMA Sub-Committee, Alhaji Suleiman Aliyu, during the ‘Airtel Day’ ceremony at the ongoing 34th Kaduna International Trade Fair, yesterday.
ASUU flays woes confronting nation’s varsities •Wants Nasarawa varsity students’ killing probed AUGUSTINE MADU-WEST KANO
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he Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) yesterday expressed concern over some issues threatening academic and other activities in the nation’s universities. ASUU, however, asked the Federal Government to intervene immediately so as to avoid escalation of such problems. ASSU National President, Dr Nasir F. Isa, spoke with journalists at the union’s secretariat in Bayero University, Kano. Isa warned that the crisis being experienced in some universities were capable of derailing the focus of the institutions, if adequate steps were not taken to address them.
He mentioned some of the problems to include the killing of two students of Nasarwa State University in Keffi, the alleged imposition of Prof. B.B. Fakaye as the Vice-Chancellor of the Rivers State University of Science and Technology (RSUST) by Governor Rotimi Amechi and the non-payment of the salaries and entitlements of University of Ilorin academic staff, whose appointments were terminated by the Prof. Shuaibu Oba Abdulraheem-led administration in 2001, but returned to the university in 2009 following a Supreme Court judgement. Other disturbing issues, according to him, include the non-release of White Paper on Special Visitation to the Universi-
ty of Abuja, as well as the re-constitution of the Governing Council of Federal Universities. On the killing of the two students of Nasarawa State University, the ASUU boss condemned the recourse to military intervention in civil matters, stressing a more informed university leadership should have realised that there is no love lost between students and the armed security services. On RSUST VC issue, Isa flayed Governor Amaechi’s action for imposing Prof. Fakeye on the university. He then called for investigation into what it described as avoidable killing of the Nasarawa State University students with a view to bring the culprits to book.
Isa also called for the setting of a judicial panel of inquiry to establish the legality or otherwise of Prof. Fakeye’s re-appointment as RUUST vice-chancellor. He insisted that the President and Visitor to University of Ilorin should impress it on the administrators of the university to embrace openness and democratic ethos, stressing that the school must implement court judgments to the letter and allow its workers to exercise their right to from union without let or hindrance. Isa said: “The Federal Government should respect its promise not to allow a vacuum in the governance of universities by re-constituting and inaugurating Governing Councils for all federal universities immediately.”
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he Kano Government has begun registration of street beggars with the aim of training them under its skill acquisition programme. Already, 500 of them have been registered and taken to designated centres where they will begin their training, according to the Special Adviser to the Governor on Disabled Matters, Alhaji Usman Yusuf Usman. Usman told National Mirror that the registration exercise is ongoing at various road junctions, roundabouts and other places where disabled persons and destitute are commonly found. According to him, those already registered and taken to the training centres were excited and had demonstrated their willingness to acquire skill. Usman said that the beggars would be trained
in elementary business, tailoring and welding. He said from investigation, most beggars, especially the physicallychallenged were forced by hardship to involve in begging for survival. According to him, those evacuated from the streets for the training were cripples, lepers, the blind and the deaf and dumb. He said the government initiated the programme as part of the measures to eradicate street-begging in the state. Usman said: “Governor Rabi’u Kwankwaso has directed the office of Disabled Matters to conduct statistics of destitute on the streets to enable the government work out a programme that will cater for their needs.” The governor’s aide, therefore, appealed to the destitute to avail themselves of the opportunity by registering with centres of their choice so as to make a decent living.