Metro
‘We are committed to our polices of social protection and empowerment’ – President Buhari
President Muhammodu Buhari has restated his administration’s commitment to youth development and poverty alleviation.
He pledged that the Federal Government policies of social protection and people empowerment would continue on track, despite the challenges posed by COVID-19 pandemic.
President Buhari was speaking at the launch of the Presidential Youth Empowerment Scheme (P-YES), aimed at creating 774,000 jobs across the Local Government Areas (LGAs) in the country.
The President, who described P-YES as a cornerstone of his administration’s social and economic development strategies, said it was part of the overall policy of ensuring that 100 million Nigerians were lifted out of poverty in ten years.
”The P-YES is also part of the plan that we adopted in 2016 in which we empowered One hundred youths from each of the 774 Local Government Areas with the necessary tools to acquire skills and establish small businesses.
”Given the success of that initiative, we are now committed to creating 774,000 jobs across all the LGAs, through the P-YES programme,” he said.
President Buhari, who took a tour of P-YES tools and equipment displayed at the forecourt of Presidential Villa, expressed delight that the materials showcased represent the fruits of the initiatives embarked upon by his administration in 2016.
”All the tools, machines and equipment that are exhibited here, are products of the efforts of these empowered youth entrepreneurs.
”I note with particular pleasure that they were all fabricated in Nigeria by Nigerian youths using locally sourced materials. This is a wonderful and uplifting achievement.
”As an entrepreneurship empowerment project, the P-YES programme aims to address the needs of unskilled and less educated youth.
”It targets key areas of activities that are of practical importance and are essential to every aspect of our economy.
”These include areas such as agriculture and food processing, restaurant and catering, tailoring and fashion design, technical skills such as in the Information and Communications Technology sector, artisanship, welding, carpentry and joinery, other small businesses and activities associated with the micro-economic sector of this economy,” he said.
The President used the occasion to call on State Governments, Ministries, Departments and Agencies of government to factor the P-YES into their programmes to assist the youth realise their potentials in their chosen fields.
He urged local and foreign private sector operators in Nigeria to also contribute their share to the expansion of this programme through channelling their corporate social responsibility efforts towards skills acquisition, creation of start-ups, and other intervention measures.
President Buhari declared that the expansion of the P-YES would now be vigorously pursued, adding that more resources will be committed to the achievement of its goals and objectives towards youth empowerment and entrepreneurship development.
The President commended the Office of the Senior Special Assistant on Youth and Students Affairs, under Hon. Nasiru Saidu Adhama, for driving the P-YES programme in accordance with the mandates prescribed for the office and the programme.
He expressed confidence that the programme being supervised by the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation would make significant difference.
In his remarks, Hon Adhama assured the President that as achieved in the pilot phase of the programme the selection of beneficiaries in the full-scale P-YES scheme would be done with the utmost transparency and credibility, adding that equal opportunities will be observed in the delivery of equipment, tools and machines to all States and LGAs.
Osun State Government has said all bedridden pensioners and others with serious health challenge will henceforth have their audit exercise conducted through telephone.
A statement by signed by the State Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Kolapo Alimi on Monday revealed that such pensioners, will no longer be required to be physically present at the venue of the screening exercise.
The statement added that pensioners who are currently outside the State would have their screening conducted via the same means.
It also said “Pensioners outside the state at the moment no longer need to travel down to Osun State as they will also be having their screening through the telephone.
“Additionally, pensioners in the diaspora will also be screened only through video calls.
“In line with the above, the Pension Board is expected to make available all the particulars, especially pictures of pensioners to the Consultant, for ease of identification during the video call screenings.
“The above directives take immediate effect.”
…Govt should decentralise process to prevent avoidable deaths – Retirees
Pensioners in Osun State have appealed to the State government to decentralise the ongoing screening of its workforce including retirees.
The call became necessary as some of the aged retirees collapsed on Monday within the premises of the Center for Black Culture and International Understanding, Osogbo, venue of the ongoing screening.
It took the intervention of the medics of the State Ambulance Service to revive and stablise the victims.
Retirees, numbering about 2,000 old men and women who are visibly aged, frail and in some cases sick, were at the venue for the screening exercise.
A number of them who could not withstand long time standing were seen either, lying down, sleeping or sitting on the bare floor to avoid eventuality.
Many of the pensioners were visibly angry for what they described as inhuman treatment by the handlers of the exercise.
Sunday Omotosho decried the arrangement and the eventual treatments of his colleagues who came for the exercise from across the State.
Though, he agreed that the exercise as sanctioned by the State government was desirable, but was of the opinion that the process would have been made easier if it were to be done on local government or zonal basis.
As at press time, the exercise was yet to commence as the consultant in charge, Saadat Bakri-Ottun was yet to arrive the venue, hence the wait prolonged.
The staff audit was earlier suspended for weeks by the state House of Assembly over inhuman treatment meted to the civil servants by the consultant, but the suspension was lifted after she promised to correct her mistakes.
….ASUP, Students lock school gate to prevent academic activities
Heavy protesters have laid seige on the entrance of the Osun State Polytechnic, Iree, Osun State against the removal of the institution’s rector, Dr. Tajudeen Adewale Odetayo.
The State governor, Senator Ademola Adeleke had reportedly suspended Odetayo and allegedly replaced him by his kinsman.
Protested gathered at the frontage of the polytechnic entrance as early as 7:30 on Tuesday morning carrying different placards with different inscriptions to register their displeasure against the removal of the embattled rector.
The school gate has been put under lock and key, by the students and the school chapter of the Academic Staff Union of the Polytechnic, ASUP preventing academic activities and other activities on the campus.
More to follow…
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