Category: National Issue

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo spoke in Lagos during a lecture titled, ‘Social responsibility in nation building,’ which he delivered at the 78th anniversary of Island Club.

He said, “I have said it before and I will say it again. Nigeria should have state police in all the states so that they can adequately tackle insecurity. Guaranteeing citizens a safe environment and round security is one thing a government must do.

“No nation can be built where peace, security and stability are not assured or guaranteed and with reasonable predictability of the President and the future not enthroned.”

He added said, “Any government that is deaf, dumb and blind is a government that will not last. As a government, you need to listen to the people. If you fail to listen to the people, the day of reckoning will come for you and it will come soon. We can see it all around us; it has come.

“You have to realise that there is an element of hazard in life itself. What would make you not talk? Fear? There is a Yoruba proverb that says, ‘You talk, you die; you don’t talk, you’ll still die.’ Death is inevitable. As I am here, I am not afraid of death.

“It is painful what we are seeing. There are currently over four million out-of-school children in Nigeria. That is a fact. They cannot hide that. No Nigerian should bury their faces because they are scared of death. State the fact; if they want to deny it let them deny it.”

He added, “Diversity is of God; sameness is of the devil. We, as Nigerians, must learn to manage our diversity so that we can have one goal – the Nigerian dream.  A nation is not formed until there is a stake and mutual dignity and responsibility and purpose for every component.”

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Force Public Relations Officer for Lagos State Police Command, CSP Adekunle Ajisebutu disclosed this in a statement.

He said the venue for the Lagos edition of the test is the WAEC Testing and Training Centre in Ogba.

According to the statement, “This is to inform candidates who participated in the 2020 recruitment exercise and have been shortlisted for the next stage that, computer-based aptitude test for successful candidates will take place nationwide on Friday 29th October 2021 and Saturday 30th October 2021.

“Successful candidates shortlisted for the aptitude test in Lagos State are requested to report at the WAEC TESTING AND TRAINING CENTRE, OGBA venue of the test at least an hour before commencement of the CBT which will start at 8.30am on Friday 29th October 2021. They are to come along with the computer printout of their exam slips and writing materials.

“All candidates are to further note that the exercise is free. Therefore, they are not expected to pay money to anybody under whatever guise.

“Candidates are warned against examination malpractices, as any infraction will attract severe penalties.”

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Speaking with journalists in Osogbo, Commissioner for Information and Civic Orientation, Mrs. Funke Egbemode, noted that rather than take to the streets, the senior citizens should show understanding and be patient with government.

“Since we came in, in 2018, we have paid salaries and pensions as and when due and we are steadily reducing even the arrears we inherited from the previous administration.

“To show commitment, we just devised a strategy to ensure that those under the Contributory Pension Scheme and whose entitlements are from N100,000 to N500, 000, were paid up to December 2020. Also, we have taken on those from N501, 000 to N1millon, N1m to N1.5m and N1.5 to N2m and we are not relenting. In the last two months, we have paid over 300 Contributory Pensioners.

“From 2018 to date, we have expended about N40billion to cater for our senior citizens. This is a demonstration of love and commitment to our senior citizens and we won’t relent. Rather than resort to civil unrest, we appeal to our senior citizens to show understanding and be a little more patient with government,” the commissioner said.

In another development,  Chairman Civil Service Commission, of Kwara State, Hajjia Habeebat Anike Yusuf at the Commission’s meeting.

The aide said, “The Commission advised that all the affected Civil Servants are to fill all necessary documents and submit same four days before the interview date through the Staff officer of their respective Ministry, Department and Agencies (MDAs) to avoid delay or outright cancellation of the interview for any erring officer.

“She also advise that all the affected officers are to come with their face masks, Original Certificates, Citizenship Certificate, Service ID card, Approval of study leave (if any), Evidence of change of Names, examination slip, Letter of first Appointment, Letter of Gen.40, Letter of Last Promotion, Letter of Confirmation and NYSC Certificate or exemption.

“She warned that the Commission would not embark on any make-up interview for any candidate who missed the interview date.”

The Director, Corporate Communications, CBN, Osita Nwanisobi, said this in a statement on Saturday titled ‘President Buhari to unveil eNaira on Monday, 25 October 2021.’

The statement said, “Following series of engagements with relevant stakeholders including the banking community, fintech operators, merchants and a cross-section of Nigerians, the CBN designed the digital currency, which shall be activated on Monday, October 25, 2021.

“The eNaira, therefore, marks a major step forward in the evolution of money and the CBN is committed to ensuring that the eNaira, like the physical Naira, is accessible by everyone.”

“Since the eNaira is a new product, and among the first CBDCs in the world, we have put a structure to promptly address any issue that might arise from the pilot implementation of the eNaira,” the CBN said.

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This was contained in a press statement by the commission titled, ‘NCC alerts telecom consumers on Flubot Malware… Lists measures to guard against attack.”

NCC noted that according to the information received from the Nigeria Computer Emergency Response Team, Flubot “targets Androids with fake security updates and App installations”.

The statement quoted ngCERT as affirming that Flubot “impersonates Android mobile banking applications to draw fake web view on targeted applications and its goal transcends stealing personal data and essentially targets stealing of credit card details or online banking credentials.

“FluBot is circulated through Short Message Service and can snoop “on incoming notifications, initiate calls, read or write SMSes, and transmit the victim’s contact list to its control centre.”

“This malware attacks Android devices by pretending to be “FedEx, DHL, Correos, and Chrome applications” and compels unsuspecting users to alter the accessibility configurations on their devices in order to maintain a continuous presence on devices.

“The new malware undermines the security of devices by copying fake login screens of prominent banks, and the moment the users enter their login details on the fake pages, their data is harvested and transmitted to the malware operators’ control point from where the data is exploited by intercepting banking-related One Time Passwords and replacing the default SMS app on the targeted Android device.

“Consequently, it secures admittance into the device through SMS and proceeds to transmit similar messages to other contacts that may be on the device it has attacked enticing them into downloading the fake app.

“It suffices to say that, when Flubot infects a device, it can result in incalculable financial losses. Additionally, the malware creates a backdoor which grants access to the user’s device, thus enabling the invader or attacker to perform other criminal actions, including launching other variants of malware.”

In a statement signed by the Senior Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, Buhari said the term rising insecurity should be replaced with the “reality of declining insecurity.”

The statement was titled ‘President Buhari Felicitates With Muslims On Eid-el-Maulud, Reassures That Significant Gains Are Being Made In Combating Insecurity.’

It partly read, “The President urges Muslims to strive for “forgiveness and closeness to the noble life and teachings of the Prophet (SAW) whose birthday is being marked on this blessed day. On this auspicious occasion, I wish you all the blessings of today.

“The President uses the occasion to give a snapshot of the increased activities the Armed Forces, Police Force, and intelligence agencies have embarked upon to effectively respond to the security challenges in the nation.

“He says the government fully expects and intends for these trends to continue, and calls on the media to address the tone, content, and standards of reporting into security and safety measures. Time has come to revise the prefixes “rising insecurity” with “declining insecurity.”

“The President adds that increased cooperation and collaboration from the citizenry, coupled with reinvigorated, dynamic, and energised police, security and military leadership is helping the administration score more victories against terror, criminality, and economic sabotage. The reality of declining insecurity should replace the inaccurate narrative of rising insecurity in the country.”

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The Executive Vice Chairman of NCC, Prof. Umar Danbatta, re-affirmed this at the annual African Tech Alliance Forum held in Lagos.

This is according to a statement titled ‘NCC Upbeat on Plans for 5G Deployment’ signed by the NCC’s Deputy Manager of Public Affairs, Kunle Azeez.

The statement read, “The NCC’s plan for 5G technology deployment in the country continues to gather momentum with the Commission confirming that its readiness to begin full implementation is at 97 per cent.”

He said, “Consistent with our mandate as enshrined in the Nigerian Communications Act 2003 and other guiding legislations, we have been working to ensure the penetration of broadband services in line with Federal Government’s targets, as contained in Nigerian National Broadband Plan, 2020 to 2025.

“Already, we are set for the auction of some spectrum slots in the 3.5GHz band. The other day I was at the National assembly, I informed the Senate that we were 95 per cent ready for 5G. Today as we speak, I am delighted to tell you that we are already at 97 per cent completion.”

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