51 Friday, Nigerian Tribune 27 May, 2011
NEWS
Agbekoya makes ,case for agricultural development in South By Adebayo Waheed H E Nigerian Hunters and Farmers Union otherwise known as Agbekoya Society has urged President Goodluck Ionathan to ensure that the next Minister of Agriculture and Natural Resources is appointed from the Southern part of the country to enhance agricultural development in the country. The union's PresidentGeneral, Chief Kamorudeen Okikiola, in a statement in lbadan, on Thursday, disclosed that over 90 per cent of Ministers of Agriculture appointed in the past years under both military and
T
from the North, a r g u i n g , th t th' . f th He argued ·that farm- . fore now the economy of a IS was one 0 e ers from the South did not the South has been anreasons why agriculture had not developed. have access to necessary chored on agriculture. "We are no~ against He alleged that most of agricultural funds like the efforts of the Federal their counterparts from the North but we want Government towards de- the North, adding that agricultureintheSouthto veloping agriculture had this had affected the develop so that people can been more concentrated growth of agriculture in feed themselves and stop in the northern part of the South. importing food from the Nigeria becau se the min"In actual fact, the soil North. isters came from the in the S~uth is richer than According to him, it North, the soil in the North. Be- was imperative that agri-
. culture was developing in the South, so that the South would stop importing food items from the North, He also enjoined the Southern governors to ensure proper funding of agriculture through the right agricultural organisations and individual farmers,
civilian regimes were
Group condemns N/West quest for Reps' aeputy speaker's seat By Bola Badmus
A
group, Equity Rights Agenda (ERA), has condemned alleged moves by some members of House of Representatives, North -West caucus, to produce the next deputy Speaker at the expense of the North-East. The group made the condemnation in a statement it issued on Wednesday in Abuja and signed by its national coordinator, Mr IIya Bakare, describing the moves as unjust, unfair and ungodly. The group, which also expressed shock and dismay about the development, said the pursuit, if realised, would leave the North-East with virtually no position of Significance, It warned that the North-West geopolitical zone, which already had the vice president's slot apart from other high profile positions, should stop behaving as if other northern zones did not matter or exist.
Go to your
right), Works, Alhaji Muslim Oyedemi; Chairman, Caretaker Committee, Oorelope Local Government, Honourable Lukman Balogun and the Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism, Alhaja Risikat Alabi, alter the presentation of beaded crown to the Alepata, on Tuesday, Photo: Moses A/aD
Ekiti acting gov admonishes children on forthrightness
C
HILDRE N have been charged to always remember the hope the parents and the government placed on them for a better society and, therefore, begin to be forthright in their behaviour and aspire to excel in wha tever they do. Ekiti State acting governor, Mrs Funmi Olayinka, gave the charge w hile h os ting children parliamentarians who paid an advocacy visit to her office in Ado Ekiti. Mrs Olayinka said the governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi, as well as their parents believed in them and had no doubt that the
constitu~ncies,
ward behaviour that could destroy their glorious future while giving the assurance that the government wo uld con tinue to give priority to the welfare and protection of the rights of the children. Speaking earlier, the
speaker of the incoming children parliament, Mr Oluwaseun lIesanmi, commended the administration of Dr Fayemi for giving adequate attention to the welfare of children and mailers that had to do with the protection of their rights,
Benue ACN chieftains desperate for power to By Dare Adekan~bi loot treasury -Tivelders HE Chairman of .' Tiv Elders Forum , in Benue State and 'a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief (Dr) Godwin Dabo' Adzuana and an elder of
T
Mimiko charges appointees
ing th e at titude had NDO St.ate gover- placed ex tra burden on . nor, Dr Olusegun the governor, who had to ," . Mimiko, on attend to every minor isThursday, handed down sues that ought to have a strong warning to all been settled at the conpolitical appointees in stituency level. the state who failed to Dr Mimiko, who stated make regular contacts with this at Ore in Odigbo Lotheir constituencies, Saying ' cal Government Area of such appointees would face the state during the defecserious sanctions. tion of some over l,OOO In the same vein, the chieftains of the Peoples national chairman of the Demo,ratic P\lfty (PDP) Labour Party (LP), Chief and Action Congress of Dan Nwanyanwu, threw Nigeria (ACN) to Labour his weight behind the Party, said that both the' P~opo.~~P san~J}~? say-
O
crop of brilliant children that were raised in Ekiti would build an Ekiti that would give "joy to everybody, She, therefore, admonished them to be serious with their studies, be obedient to their parents and teachers and shun unto-
elected officers and political appointees were in office to serve the electorate. He explained that the Labour Party government in the state got its mandate througl) the. popular ~up port of'the people iri iheir quest for total c)iange 6f governance, saying that it would amount to regretiUhe electora te was kept in the dark concerning government's programmes that were ain'ted .klliriiiflg a~oUI)d their Iiving',standard,
wants perpetrators punished H E Anglican Diocese of Kabba, Kogi State, has held its sixth synod with a call on the Federal Government to punish perpetrators of the 2011 post-election v iolen ce and pay adequate compensation to victims and churches destroyed during the carnage, The Diocesan Bishop, Right Reverend Stephen Akobe, who condemned the violence and warned on the attendant consequences of ~nguided inci ting statements of some prominent political leaders, made this call during nis charge at the synod held at St. Andrew's Cathedral Anglican Church, Kabba. Whil~ lamenting the spate of insecurity in the country with an appeal to government to halt the trend, he joined other Nigerians who recom mended the modification of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) scheme so that corps members could be allowed to serve in familiar terrains. The Bishop, who also called on government to reconstruct Nigerian roads that had become death traps, appealed that the payment of pens(oners and workers' entitlement be prioritised. He frowned on several vices such as mode of dressing prevalent among Christian youths and advised parents, teachers and stakeholders to discourage the trend.
T
Brief
40 ~day' prayer ALHAJI Abdu l Sa lam Bello Arikewuyo is dead, He died on May 16, 2011 and was buried the fol lowing day at Iganna, Oyo State according to Islamic injunction. He was 94 years of age and was su rvived by children, grandchildren and great grand children, A 40-day prayer (fidaus) .will be held for the repose of his soul on Iune 25.
the eth ni c group, and ing recourse to violence former police chief. and falsehood, when they Abubakar Tsav, have ac- were rejected by the cused members of the op- people of the state, pOSition Action Congress Both of them of Nigeria (ACN) in the emphaSised that the gusta te of desperation for bernatorial andpresidenpolitical power w ith in- tial elections in the state tent to steal and loot the were a true reflection of the will of the majority state treasury, The Tiv elders, who and challenged the ACN spoke while addressing to head for tribunal if newsmen in Ibadan, on there was rigging or maTuesday evening, said the nipulation as claimed by allegation of silent killings the party, an'd clampdown of the According to them, ACN members by the gov- most of the chieftains of emor of the state, Gabriel the ACN were foundation S~swam, was false and members of the PDP who urged them to furnish the · left the umbrella party besecurity with evidence, ca use Governor Suswam They stated that some ' put a stop to the "culture . of the ~CN ca~didates 'of impugnity" of s~aring sold their properties out of money that should be dedesperation for political ployed for the transform a- -Alhaji Abdul 'Salam ,;of,fi..ce 'lnd wef~/!lilw mako";' tinn!.'...-'o"f-,t!!h"-e-"s,,ta!!te"-'~_~_.l..-_ _.::A.::r:.:I:.:'k:.:e::::,w .:..::u~y.::o:..-_ s.O.3aa,Hr ,€iH
, --
Post-election violence: Bishop
.--- .~---
(J O'2, f:.H! . ~