Last batch of 2022 Christian pilgrims arrive Nigeria safety

By Albert Akota

The last batch of pilgrims for the December 2022 Main pilgrimage exercise to Israel and Jordan arrived the country safely.

The last batch which was the 10th batch of pilgrims that participated in the NCPC December 2022 Main pilgrimage exercise were made up of pilgrims from Plateau, Ekiti, Kwara, Osun, self sponsored Pilgrims as well as Consular.

The pilgrims who departed Nigeria on 30th March, 2023 through the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja and the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos where the intending Pilgrims from Osun, Ekiti and Kwara were picked ,arrived Queen Alia International Airport, Jordan in the early hours of 31st March .

While in Israel, the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Christian Pilgrim Commission, Rev Dr Yakubu Pam had a Prayer meeting with all the pilgrims where he commended them for their exemplary conduct .

He described them as unique and special being the batch that brought the 2022 Main pilgrimage to its successful denouement.

The NCPC helmsman also hinted that the Easter 2023 pilgrimage exercise would commence on 26th of this month.

From Femi Oyelola, Kaduna

Agroup under the auspices of Concerned Northern Forum (CNF) has called on the Presidentelect, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu to be magnanimous and unite the country into one whole family,.

The Spokesman of CFN Aliyu Muhammadu Sanni, stated this in a statement made available to the media in Kaduna yesterday.

The Group said the President-elect, should ensure there is a uniform distribution of political appointments to well-deserving individuals from all regions of the country, saying positions that have been held by a particular region should be taken to the sister region for unity and peace to continue to reign.”

According to them positions like the SGF held by a Northerner for eight years should be given to a Southerner, the position of CBN Governor that has been in the south should come to the North, The GCEO of the NNPC LTD that has been in the North should go to the South, service chiefs, same in MDAs and other government agencies, all juicy and key positions should be swapped to maintain balance and stability in the country.”

“Mr President elect you to have the record of bringing the best heads together, you are detribalised Nigerian, a goal getter, pacesetter, we urge you to please use your attributes to unify Nigeria and make Nigeria work again.”

“As a priority, you should focus on the economy, give special attention to transforming our economy into a modern and global one that will compete with the economies of super power countries in the world, because we have both the potentials and resources to make that happen.”

“Naira should be strengthened, hence the introduction of deliberate, practically working economic policies and interventions in all sectors of the economy targeted at uplifting the masses from the abject poverty, they were faced with, their suffering must be alleviated to give way for peace, progress and development. “

“This will eventually lead to

From Mustapha Adamu, Kano

The Federal Inland Revenue Service, FIRS has adopted the use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to sustain the current improvement recorded in Nigeria’s tax regime.

The move had helped the service to achieve blockage of leakages in revenue generation in Nigeria.

The use of data had also played a significant role in shrinking the leakages in revenue that had in the past bedeviled revenue generation through tax in the country.

Dr Zahraddeen Salisu Maigoshi, a resource person at a One-day Workshop On Nigerian Tax Administration for Media Practitioners, organized by Afropolitan Media Limited in Collaboration with FIRS, disclosed this in his presentation, held in Kano yesterday.

He hinted that across the globe, there is no tax system that is immuned from leakages and defaulters.

He said, Nigerian tax regime under the incumbent FIRS boss, Mohammad Nami had succeeded in implementing tax policies and technical methods that had drastically reduced the challenges associated with tax payments that was been witnessed in the past.

According to him, in the preceding two taxation seasons there had been tremendous improvements in revenue generation through the improved tax system in Nigeria, courtesy of the Mr Nami led FIRS.

He noted that the move by the service to check leakages was the reason it generated about N20K trillion last year.

Maigoshi explained that the N10 trillion generated by FIRS in 2022 were disbursed between the federal government, states and Local Government coffers.

He said however that there still exists the need to enact laws with stiffer penalties for those who still dwell in the habit of violating taxation laws.

He cautioned those unrepentant in the activities he referred to as tax avoidance to desist from such act to avoid been caught in the web of the wrath of tax evasion.

In her welcome remarks earlier, the CEO Afropolitan Media Limited, Aisha Umar Halilu applauded FIRS for the new innovations introduced to its functions, which she said has helped boost revenue generation to a large scale.