THENAll 0 N WEDNESDAY, MAY 1_, 2012
9
CITYBEATS mlth Inauguration of .. 21).00) metric tonne5 capacity nee factory. the Lagos State G( yemmenl yesterday look .. bold step towards food
W
secufl1r.
TIle JlCtory If' lmola in lkorodu Local Govemnenl Area of the
SUltr is built on .!3 htctares of land and It is the fin~ of such pro;ect to be "labli5ho~ l.outh of the Sahara It has IO,OOC·lon stonge fadliIy for rice rildol)' and 4S;000-1cm capacity slorng" for firushed rice.
The govf'tnmeat opened .. J>01:II-
try eblt' In Erikorodo also In the Ikonxlu axl:.. Governor B ,batunde Fuhol. deKfibed the 1lCtory establish· ment u .. "''akl~'lp call on hood· 1wrt5, popuhrl) ~fend to as fin'll boys to Q(IItr 1M slrfoet and take to fuming. Fashola S lid '"Time to ilccommod.tr the ~o~ of ~t!I in the stale Is 'wer The time for _ilIth Wltt-OUI work ill over, we ha~ provlded hi> tnme work 10f" you to get lour hands busy. gel off the strerts 'nd go 10 the faiin, _ win glVf' 'If u farm land and I will gave Yfou th .. support and if you put you IRlnd t~ it there '5 rospenty Ow I.lnd IS too gm'n or U5 to br hungry; our youths must hi! re.ty t I work in the famu that Wi:! "re ae Itlng .. The, governn reiterated hili rommitmerll to fI.'mvisoratlfls "SncultUTe,9vin: y It ill OO1y through such step tl.al nt! lUIllon can 5L1rmount ib e-=ooomic challmges "We are begi mmg to see II cleilr pllth toW"n.'1I e labllShing sustalnIIble agncu\tu e" FllIIhola lIald, lidding tNl thel e WiIl5 need for government It IU levelll to conllider investmenl thrlugh dl!'Vel~ment of InCrastruo: tuf ~ input, budgetary 1I1Iocabon lind (Lnding for llrm-
r.
.~
Fashola wid the estabhshment of the nee mill 1I111rled four years ago, adding tht t piaN a~ afOOI to pUsh the sli'te', ra! production 10 600 hectare. ptr IInnum He IUged l:h ~ Fedenl Covelnmen! In nkllK lind In the Qgun/ Osun Ri\'1!f S. Sin, 10 enable the lltate increil~ ts production and
· eo..emor f~ holl t2nd riSh!), Minllll.., of Su te for Asricuh un Ind R u~J Oo! .. elopmenl. Alh lll 81 k ... Tijln l, (Jrd leW, OIttins the l:lpe to oJ'fl' the. rice flCtol')'. With th ..... f .... m Idt n e; lion.. Ablk ll' Dlblri·En! wl, Se n.ator Gknp Aah.af ... Ob.a of Imo t... Ob.a Ali b.d e 8 I k ..... Ind Comlnlnlonu for Asncul· tu n Ind Coope...,,!ivel, Pri nce Gbo l.ah.an L.awl l._y"l.. rd. y ........ _ _
Lagos begins rice production to promote food security 8y Miriam Ndlkanwu
meet the facility'll processlOg GIIIpldty The governor urged the Min~ tries orWorks andlnfnstructure, Energy and Commerce ilOO Industry, fo develop good road networks. constant powersupply ~oo improve infrastructure Wlthin the industria] estate. ~ Mmister of State for Agricu.ltu~, Mr Bukar TIjllnl, pl"lli5ed the state for the investment, which he described as Its response 10 meeting the people's aspirHhOM. Gover:narn:t.', No 5iLId, is;U,oul nosponding to thOR who elected you. lidding thllt the ria! factory
tallies with President Goodluck transformiltion asenda of ensunng food securny He said~ "We have 10 start 10 p~ duce m~ ~, we c:annot contin!.Ie to depend on importiltion from ('(>Unlnes such as Thailllnd iUld india, bUI we have 10 start now to produce what we can ellL· Lag05. he said, is among the few JI;ltes cluimpioning this COU1M'. plffiging the JUpport of the Fed~ eral Governme.,rs to improve rommeraal agriculture. -We will do more in Lagos
Jon~than's
when It comes to cornn'lerdal activity to make food suffICient and Improve our agncultural value cham.Earlier, CommiSSioner for Agriculh.lre Mr Gbolaluin LAWlII5IId \he, factory can proce!l5 ~ opable of matdung the best qUllity rice from any part of the world 1be facility, he Sind, If ope!"ted optlm;t]ly on p~-;tdua! Mlween 350.000 md 4OO,ow bags of rice pt'r
Y'''' He !laid the target of the
~tate is 10 increase lOaII ritt production
L w to regulate cyclists underway, says Attorney-General AKING a cue from the ("ourt', \ erdict upholding the rlgl-I of commercial mOlorgele opo·rlltors. the Lagos Stale GoI,·ernml!nt hilS sent a bill 10 R'gulate theIr lI("tivities to the 110\15(' of A5SeJnhly The bill when passed into law will spec.r~ all as where the moton:ycb5ts aka) Oo«ldn CIIn opemte. Altorney· enl r,1 find Comm15siona (or 1usl,('I-' ~'Ir Ade Ipaye made this }.n('l vn yelt'rday lit II one-day ,,,ork,i'op for Judici .. 1 Corn-spondent:-, held at the Mmistry of Ju~hce, Ala\lSil, Ikl!)il Ipllye sald t I~ bill was bemg fine-tUned tty the slate ExeculJ\'e Council wher Justice stephl!n Adah of th .. FI eral High Courl ruled on tM cydJ5I5' sulL
T
By Adeb ls l OOllnuga Ind Joseph Jlbune
abe bill ha5 now been complet~ ed and is now before the Assembly for consideration," he said. lpaXe said there were misrepreSI!fltations in Ihe reports of the ruling
He saId. "The court did nOI say thai Lagos r;annol ban or regulate the activities of the ohuIIr ricfers. "Whllt the judgmmt said WIIS that there must be a IlIw m pilia!' before this c:an hi! donI! .. 1l\e C00UJU5Sloner said thl! demand fOT the release of abou l S.ooo motorcycle IItlegedly .sdud by the .f:ovemment by _the okada rid· eB "mount 10 pbymg 10 the gallery_·
According 10 him, Ug05 cannot be held responsible for motorcycles seiud by security agencies like the pelia!' for IntUic offences. He said the same traffIC rules tru.1 to motorists also apply to a5 t~ arl! ilil vehicles. lpayeaaid Cbdll riders musloiley tr-aHic rules like other road users, adding: "If an obdll rider drives across the red ligh t, it is an offl!l1C'l". It IS an offena if they TIde llgainsl Intfnc or on the Sidewalk. among olhers " f-Ie said the Siale would not apP't'"1 the judgment iIl5 -there is re"lIy nothing to appelll IIgil105t." Tpitye urged motorists who have any complilm15 .gllinst offKft'5 of ~ stllte Tl"llffic MiU\ilgement Authority (LASTMA) to file offioal
:rr.,Z
G.O.K. Ajayi, Fashanu others mediate in govt, doctors face-off
L
EGAL IIID,lnlnes, Chief
G.O K.. Alavi(SAN) and Mr.
Ban Faihunu (SAN) i1re among I nl~n committee set up bY the Nitit:rian Bar Associalion (NBAl. ll~ Stiltt', to mediate in the fatt.-)ff bt>tween the Lag05 St.. te go\'<!rnmenl and doct015. Thl! commiltf'-'~ was mandated 10 meet with th e stlte govt'rnment to reol\l' till! issue ihatled to the doctors lack, a statement from the Lo;eocilltion said O ther members of the nineman rommittee tndude: Pa Tunji Gomez; a fomu~.. chairman 01 Oll! branch, M.r Akin Aldnbote; Mr. W. A. Gbadtho; NBA National Treasurv, Mr.. Fun.mi Oluyede;
By Adebl sl On.anuga
MISS Toy.n Ballhorun and the bfilnch Chllirman, Mr. Taiwo O. Tiliwo. The statemmt said the il5socilllion at its meeting on Monday decided 10 mediille in the rUi between the government Ind the medical doctors. The committee, it Wll5 gathered, ....s illrt>ady written a leiter to both partie5 for lin emergency meeting to address the issues. Meanwhile. the National Asaociillion of Resident Doctors (NARD), hilS ailed on the Nationill Assembly to in tervene in the impassl! and prevent needless lo6s of livt'S o f innocent Nigemll1s. Aa:ordlng 10 the group, the no-
em! ma55 uck of doctors by the slate government was unwalTlnted, unexpected 01 a dl!moo-atic admini5 tral ion and limacked 01 executive r eckJesnesr;.
"'\'Ihi'l else can explain the mass sack o f h18hlr s1dlled proit"SSlOllab in one Tel swoop? Worse 5till ;s the em ployment of doctors as Ol5uIIIs, ",·hich ill ilgairut the labour Iawl of Nigeria,"'" II said. NARD said striking doctors besan thei r agi ta tion, ad/'udged legal by Ihe "Nl tional n d uli l ri al Court. in August 2010 and by November of llie same yellf the LAgos Sta te Government signed the Igreement to implemenl the CoosOIidated Medical Salary Structure (CONMESS) from January 2011
reports. assuring that they would be tn!ated. On finanoal autonomy for H()U50 es of Assembly being considered in the ongOing Constitution IImemiment, Ipilye said the 5tilte "Iready hilS a lllw on It which 15
beiTh~ ~C~~~~:erill
lind Permanent Secretary In the mlnl.!ltry, Mr lawai Pedro (SAN), mtl!flltoo the demilOd for slate police, yying lhat is OJle sure way of tackling imecurity. On whether journatillis can record with elecuonicdevices dur109 court pUJl:eedmgs, Pedro said he did not see anything wrong with thaL "I think the ban an5e5 from the conservative lUIlun of the profession. It's an:haic -rhe court of law is regarded 115 II public p~, 50 why can't someone rKOid the procMiin~1 "However, SinO! !here may be dislr.lction5 where you have many camen.men in court. it can be regulllted." he said He "Iso warned journalists 10 hi! wary of reporting comments law· Yer.! make in court, 115 not all a re recorded by the judge. · 8y lilW, Ihe only authen t ic record is that Soigned by the ludge He is not bouna to write I I nibbish. "So, if II IlIw~r makes .II statement that i5 polentially IibeJlow, you musl be careful in ~S it. "Do your own InvHl lgatlon into wru.t is yid. Don', lust publish because! it WII5 sa.ld. OoUig 110 will amount to irrespoo5ihle journalism."
to enhllnce food 5eCuTlly, ad2" that lhe COunlryr,"""":r d, largely on Thai and an fa is~ for ri~ which according 10 rum, Incruses the foo.J security Tlllk level LAwai said, "Not only are these nallons 10 a r!!':lallve po51llOn of strength. we have beCome very vuinefilble 10 otherwise ildv~ weather conditions In the exporting countries, their milcro-econouuc pohoes and reguliltory p0lIcies and procedures_ In other wordll, noodmg In Thailand should not del~ the pnet" of nee in Lagos "
Assembly gets
Constitution Amendment panel By Ollegbe Okoekl
ruE LAgos Stille House of Assembly yeslerdlly nLised Constilutlon Amendment Memoranda Dfilhmg Committee (CAMOC). The committee Will collate aU me:'moranda from ihe slale and fildlitate their submission 10 the Niltional CommiUet" Members of the committee ilte:' leader of the House, Alibayo Adeyeye. (Ouiirman); Adefunffi' ilayO Tqu05O, (Mushin I); Kabll uwal (Surulere I); Abdulbaq Balogun (Ajeromi-Uelodun II); ~ OIulade (Epe II); SanaJ Agunblildl! (lkorOdu I); Otlef Whip. Rasilq Balogun {SurulBe 11).nd J)epu_!y !..rider. Lol. Abode (Ikqa 11). 1be committee' WI.S constituled following a Notia: of Motion Moudltby Adqeye, who ref~ hh collt'itgue5 to an advertlsement by the Senate, calling for ~ontnda on the planned the amendment of the 1999 Constitution. Adeyeyl! Silid the adverti!ement stated that memonnd" should hi! IlUbmiued wilhin SO dll}'5 to the Constitution Review Committee.. He slaled the need for Lagos Slate and lIIgosians to stale umoquivoca llJ, "our position on the propo5ed. Constitution .mmdment, hl.sh1ighting ~Iear· Iy, some a~as to 1M Constitu· tion that require urgent amendme1t IS dictaled by our internedons with the ExeCutive, the Judiciary lind LAgosians It large_"