Vanguard, TUESDAY, JANUARY 21, 2014—15
FG to meet with ASUP over lingering strike BY LAIDE AKINBOADE
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BUJA—IN a bid to resolve the ongoing seven months strike embarked upon by the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics, ASUP, the Federal Government would meet with the leadership of the union today in Abuja. The meeting is expected to be presided over by the Supervising Minister of Education, Barr. Nyesom Wike. The Minister will after the meeting brief leaders of the National Association of Polytechnic Students on efforts of the Federal Government to improve polytechnic education in the country. The meeting is also aimed at reaching an agreement on the last issue yet to be resolved from the list of demands placed by ASUP before the Federal Government. Under the High Impact Development Scheme through TETFUND, the administration invested N12 billion to improve facilities in 12 selected polytechnics, with each of the polytechnics getting N1billion .
....To employ 1,000 teachers in unity schools BY LAIDE AKINBOADE
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BUJA—THE federal government plans to employ one thousand teachers to address the shortfall in Mathematics and science teachers in unity schools across the country Supervising Minister of Education, Nyesom Wike, stated this yesterday at a meeting with principals of Federal Unity Colleges in Abuja. He said the 1,000 teachers would comprise Mathematics, English and science, adding that this would enhance the staff strength of the unity colleges. “Like I said, when I became the Minister of Education, I discovered that we have shortage of teachers in our unity colleges. And through the collaboration of Head of Service, we decided to solve the problem.
DEFECTION: Court stops APC lawmakers from changing House leadership zOrders Reps to maintain status-quo till Feb 3 BY IKECHUKWUNNOCHIRI&
EMMAN OVUAKPORIE BUJA—TEMPORARY respite came the way of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, yesterday, as a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, restrained members of the House of Representatives who defected to the All Progressive Congress, APC, from altering or changing the leadership of the House, pending the determination of a suit before the court.
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APC moves to challenge ruling
However, APC legislators yesterday started moves to challenge the ruling of the Federal High Court. Justice Ademola Adeniyi, who made the order sequel to a suit filed before the High Court by the PDP, directed that members of the House should maintain the status-quo till February 3, when both the substantive suit and preliminary objections by the defendants will be heard. It will be recalled that PDP had approached the court, begging it to issue an order of perpetual injunction that would restrain the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal, and 52 other lawmakers, from taking any step capable of changing the present leadership structure at the lower legislative chamber of the National A s s e m b l y. M e a n w h i l e ,
members of the House of Reps, led by the Speaker, yesterday, challenged the jurisdiction of the court to dabble into what they said was purely an issue within the domestic affairs of the House. In urging the court to dismiss PDP’s suit as lacking in merit, the defendants, in their eighteen paragraphed counter-affidavit deposed to by one Mr. Mike Msenge, told the court that from prolonged practice of the House of Reps (1st defendant), the political party with majority of
members in the House formed its core leadership. According to them, “the Plaintiff/Applicant is not a human being but is one of the registered political parties in Nigeria. The leadership seats in question are being occupied by the 2nd-8th defendants, who are human beings.
Constitution
“That I have perused the Constitution of Nigeria and have not seen anywhere the Plaintiff/Applicant has voting rights with respect to the enthronement or removal from office of any or all of the 2nd-
8th defendants. “That before the defection of the 12th-53rd defendants from the plaintiff to the APC, the plaintiff had majority membership in the 1st defendant; hence the 2nd-8th defendants, being members of the plaintiff, were elected into those leadership positions they are currently occupying in the 1st defendant.” Meanwhile, APC legislators in the House yesterday started moves to challenge the ruling. Vanguard reliably gathered that APC members in the House immediately summoned an emergency meeting after Justice Adeniyi Ademola of an Abuja High Court issued the order.
NEW YEAR PARTY: Chief Richard Ahonaruogho, his wife, Yeye Mojisola Ahonaruogho and Principal, Victory High School, Mr. Olayemi Odedele, at the end of year/new year party of Victory High School/Victory College Ikeja Old Students' Association in Lagos.
Jonathan pledges N14bn to support dry season farming zSays dry season farming now a national project A
BY GABRIEL EWEPU
BUJA—PRESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan yesterday announced the sum of N14 billion to support farmers engaged in dry season farming in the country. He made the announcement while launching the 2014 dry season farming in Abuja. According to President Jonathan, dry season farming has now become a national project that subsequent administrations can leverage on, especially with the enactment of a law to back it up by the National Assembly. Jonathan said it was imperative to increase the support for dry season farming, following the huge number of states and farmers keying into the programme and the increased production of food after it was launched in 2013. The President said: “You
know our timely effort to transform the agriculture sector, in this regard we launched the Agriculture Transformation Agenda in 2011,the goal of adding 11 million metric tons of food for our domestic food supply, and changed our approach to agriculture, we no longer take agriculture as a
development programme. ”I am announcing today the provision of N14 billion to support dry season farming for the 2014 season. Last year it was N9 billion and as more states and farmers continue to key into it we shall increase the amount of money. “I received report that over
600, 000 farmers had already registered to produce food in this year’s dry season, this is an increase of 9.5 per cent of number of farmers who participated last year, and with 20 states now registered to participate in this year ’s programme compared to 10 states last year.”
ALGON denies holding election in Abuja
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BUJA—THE Association of Local Governments of Nigeria, ALGON, yesterday, dissociated itself from a purported election said to have been held in Abuja by four states representatives out of the 37. The association said in a statement that its leadership was law abiding and mindful of the subsistence of three suits before the Federal High Court, where former trustees ALGON
were challenging their removal. It said other suits were at the High Court of the FCT where a former staff of ALGON was challenging the non-renewal of his tenure and, where the president of ALGON was asking the court to stop any kangaroo meeting called by the former trustees and few dissident members. The group said the National
Executive Council had on, January 9, 2014, passed a vote of confidence on the present leadership, led by Ozo Nwabueze Okafor and the secretary general, Alhaji Shitu Yakmut. It said ALGON will remain committed to the goals and objectives for which it was established, which is grassroots development through the third-tier of government.