Lecturers under the aegis of the Academic Staff Union of Universities have received full salaries for the month of November 2022, GOGAN TV can confirm.

Our correspondent also gathered that the eight-month arrears remained withheld by the federal government.

A senior member of the union at the Bayero University in Kano made this known in an interview with our correspondent in Abuja on Wednesday.

“Some of our members have started receiving salaries, and I can confirm to you that we received our full salaries for the month of November. However, the arrears are still withheld.

GOGAN TV reports that the Federal Government refused to pay the striking lecturers for the eight months during which the union embarked on strike.

The lecturers, in October 2022 were also paid pro-rata (half-pay) according to the Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige.

Lecturers across the country have been protesting against this decision by the federal government.

The National Executive Council of the union is expected to hold a crucial meeting in the coming days over the withheld salaries.

GOGAN TV

The Labour Party in Kaduna State has condemned the killing of its woman leader in the state, Mrs. Victoria Chimtex, by yet-to-be-identified gunmen.

Our correspondent gathered that the incident took place in the victim’s house in the Kaura Local Government Area in Southern Kaduna on Monday.

It was gathered that the hoodlums also shot Chimtex’s husband in the leg. He was rushed to an undisclosed medical facility, where he was said to be receiving treatment as of the time of filing this report.

The Labour Party in the Southern Kaduna Senatorial Zone, in a statement by its publicity secretary, Edward Buju, on Tuesday, condemned the assassination of the woman leader.

The statement read, “The Southern Kaduna, Zone 3, Labour Party family, the Chairman, and excos of Kaura Local Government Area LP condemn in very strong terms the brutal and cowardly assassination of our mother and sister, Mrs. Victoria Chimtex, Woman Leader, Kaura LGA LP. The sad event took place this morning when some gunmen broke into her family’s residence in Manchok, Kaura LGA, and shot her severally.

“Her husband was brutally shot in the leg, and he is currently in an undisclosed hospital.” The killers did not take any valuables from the house, suggesting assassination as the only mission of the wicked actors.

“It saddens our hearts that such an industrious, hard-working, and dedicated woman leader was killed when the families of the Labour Party from the local government, zonal, and state levels needed her the most at this critical time that Nigerians are in quest for a new Nigeria through the Labour Party.”

As of the time of filing this report, neither the state government nor the state police command had reacted to the incident.

The state Police Public Relations Officer, Mohammed Jalige, did not take his call or respond to a text message sent to him by our correspondent on the matter.

GOGAN TV

The Minister of Finance, Budget, and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, said allegations of budget padding of projects and allocations in the 2023 Appropriations Bill made no sense.

She stated this during her presentation before the House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations.

The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management, and Social Development, Sadiya Farouq, while appearing before the Senate Committee on Special Duties on November 21, 2022, for budget defense, blamed the finance ministry for adding N206bn to the ministry’s budget.

Farouq had claimed that the ministry requested some projects for the North-East Development Commission and the National Social Safety Net Project in the 2022 budget, which were not released, but was surprised to see an inflated amount in the 2023 budget of the ministry.

Consequently, the House invited the finance minister to respond to six queries concerning the budgets of various ministries, departments, and agencies.

The issues were the National Social Safety Nets Project, allocated N206,242,395,000 under the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management, and Social Development; the refurbishment and procurement of Harris RF-5/7800 Military Communication Equipment at a cost of N8,600,000,000; and the Safe Schools Initiative, allocated N2,250,000,000, both under the Ministry of Defense.

Another is on the Second Africa Higher Education Centers of Excellence for Development Impact Project, a project coded ERGP30180290, to be financed by the World Bank, domiciled under the Federal Ministry of Education, for a loan of $30 million (the equivalent of N12,304,500,000 at an exchange rate of N410.15 to a dollar).

In her presentation, Ahmed said, “The 2023 budget proposal has been prepared with the utmost sincerity of purpose and in line with established regulations and procedures.” Over the past week, there has been a lot of misinformation in the media regarding certain provisions in the 2023 budget, which totals $N423 billion. The expenditures mostly relate to provisions for multilateral and bilateral loan-funded projects.

“It is instructive that all these projects, now the subject of controversy, were included in the budgets of these MDAs, which were transmitted to the supervising ministers for their review and feedback on October 4, 2022, before the presentation to both the FEC and NASS. Until these recent controversies, none of the concerned MDAs raised any issues on the projects with the FMFBNP.”

The minister concluded, “The current issues would have been easily clarified between the respective MDAs and the FMFBNP had the affected agencies followed the established budget processes.” The proposed 2023 budget for each ministry was circulated for review and feedback and then presented at the Federal Executive Council before it was submitted to the NASS by President Muhammadu Buhari.

Ahmed stated, “Finally, let me state clearly that the allegation that the FMNBNP “padded” the budgets of the affected MDAs by inserting the projects in question makes absolutely no sense.” If the projects are in the budgets of these MDAs, the FMBNP cannot procure them, as their procurement can only be handled by the concerned MDAs.

The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management, and Social Development, Nasir Sani-Gwarzo, however, pointed out that Farouq did not accuse her finance ministry counterpart of padding the budget, saying the media dwelled on the comments made by senators at the session.

The chairman of the committee, Aliyu Betara, in his closing remarks, said the lawmakers were satisfied with the explanations of the finance minister.

While overruling a motion seeking to summon Farouq, he noted that the Minister of Defense, Major-General Bashir Magashi (rtd.), who had been invited on the same matter, might not appear before the lawmakers again.

Several members of the committee criticised Farouq for usually shunning summons by National Assembly committees, especially those overseeing her ministry.

Betara said, “So, PS (of the humanitarian ministry), please tell your minister, it is not even about the appropriation committee inviting her; she has issues with her committees in the House.” Most times they invite her, but she does not come to appear before the committee. So, it is wrong. If she is not ready for the job, let her quit. The chairmen are complaining. In our report now, they could not submit a report for the humanitarian ministry. So, PS, talk to her.”

The Deputy Chairman, Iduma Igariwey, warned that Nigeria could have a bad image in the international community as the country had deals with global financial bodies.

GOGAN TV

The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu has said it will take two days to replace the 65,000 permanent voter cards burned during an attack on the commission’s office in Ogun State.

The INEC boss said this on Tuesday in Abeokuta, the state capital, during an on-the-spot assessment of the burned office in Abeokuta South.

Hoodlums had on November 10 attacked the Abeokuta South Local Government Area and destroyed over 65,000 uncollected PVCs, among others.

Yakubu, while speaking with newsmen after assessing the extent of damage, described the arsonists as “undemocratic and retrogressive elements.”

He said, “Whatever materials we have lost, the commission is making efforts to replace them.” We lost 65,699 PVCs; we want to assure all those who have not collected their PVCs and may have been affected that we are making plans to reprint the PVCs quickly and to bring them back to Abeokuta, South, for people to collect and vote.

“We want to assure the people of Abeokuta South that this incident, as terrible as it is, will not deter and will not discourage us, and it will not discourage our staff from conducting the 2023 general elections. We want to once again assure the people of Abeokuta South, the people of Ogun State, and the people of Nigeria that the commission is determined to make the 2023 elections our best ever; we will not be deterred, and we were cowed by an act of arson by undemocratic and retrogressive elements.

“As soon as we get the VIN numbers to be harvested by the state office, we will reprint; it doesn’t take longer than two days to print 65,000 PVCs, but we have to get the voter identification numbers for the cards that were lost so that we can quickly reprint.”

GOGAN TV

On Tuesday, President Muhammadu Buhari said that weapons being used in the conflict in Russia and the Ukraine were finding their way into the Lake Chad and Sahel regions.

Therefore, in order to stop the spread of illegal weapons in the region, he urged greater cooperation between border control agencies and other security services.

“Weapons used in the war in Ukraine and Russia are also beginning to filter into the region,” Buhari told leaders at the Lake Chad Basin Commission’s 16th Summit of Heads of State and Government.

This is according to a statement signed by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, titled, ‘President Buhari calls for tighter security around borders in the Lake Chad basin with the proliferation of weapons from the Russia-Ukraine war.’

Buhari, who ended his tenure as Chairman of the Summit of Heads of State and Government, said although the threat from terrorists in the region had been relatively brought under control, the influx of weapons posed fresh challenges.

He said, “Despite the successes recorded by the gallant troops of the Multinational Joint Task Force and the various ongoing national operations in the region, terrorists’ threats still lurk in the region.”

“Unfortunately, the situation in the Sahel and the raging war in Ukraine serve as major sources of weapons and fighters that bolster the ranks of the terrorists in the Lake Chad region.”

“A substantial proportion of the arms and ammunition procured to execute the war in Libya continues to find its way to the Lake Chad region and other parts of the Sahel.”

“There is, therefore, the urgent need for expedited collaborative actions by our border control agencies and other security services to stop the circulation of all illegal weapons in the region.”

Bidding farewell to his counterparts from the other five member states, Buhari urged them to provide the required political and material support for the LCBC/MNJTF

GOGAN TV

Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, said on Tuesday that over 30 patrol teams had been formed between Oyo and Ogun states to tackle the problem of kidnapping along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

The governor also disclosed that drones would be deployed to cover the road, explaining that this would aid security agents in monitoring activities in the area.

Abiodun spoke during a meeting with the management of an Abuja-based newspaper in his office.

He said, “We set up a joint security team with the Oyo State Government because we found out that the majority of the incidents are right at the border between us and Oyo State; they take advantage of that area as a blind spot.”

“As we speak today, I think there are not less than 30 patrol teams on that corridor of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.” These teams comprise soldiers, policemen, operatives of the DSS, men of the civil defense, and vigilantes.

“We are going beyond the deployment of security teams; we are deploying drones to cover that road.” These are drones that will allow us to see exactly what is happening there, even before any occurrence.

“We have also gone ahead and cleared both sides of the road, because of that element of surprise that they introduce when they just jump out of the bushes, kidnap, and run away.” So, we have asked our contractors to clear 50 meters on each side, which makes it difficult for them to use the bushes to hide.

GOGAN TV

The no-work, no-pay Federal Government policy was the subject of a peaceful demonstration on Tuesday by members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities at the Joseph Sarwuan Tarka University (formerly Federal University of Agriculture) Makurdi, Benue State.

The Federal Government had, in October 2022, paid prorated salaries to the lecturers after they called off their eight-month strike, saying they only worked for 18 days and should be paid as such.

The ASUU members who converged on the south core of the institution and marched through the campus said the protest was intended to express their frustration with the Federal Government over the half-salary and the failure to pay for the next eight months and implement necessary agreements.

Addressing members of the union before the protest, the ASUU chairman, Prof. Simon Ejembi, said, “We picked Wednesday as a no-lecture day, but yet we decided that students should go to class and receive lectures just to prove to the government that we can cover whatever gap they thought we left behind.”

“We did not go on strike because we wanted to go on strike, but because the government failed to do its part, so we can’t be punished for that.”

“We suspended the eight-month strike on September 8 due to a court ruling, and even when we appealed the judgment, the FG insisted that we go back to work.”

“For the record, each time we return to work, the FG does not speak to us again; now that we have returned, they have stopped our salary since April, and we are paid per day of work.” In fact, the present government is lawless and unserious. “They want students off campus because they are not interested in students being in school because their children are abroad.”

Ejembi said ASUU in all its 13 zones was embarking on the protest simultaneously and would meet at the National Executive Council level on December 2, 2022, to decide the next line of action should the perforated salary continue.

Meanwhile, the ASUU chapter at the Federal University Lokoja has called for the removal of the Minister of Labour, Dr. Chris Ngige, and his education counterpart, Adamu Adamu, for their improper handling of the crisis.

The union stated this while staging a protest on the Adankolo campus of the institution on Tuesday.

The FUL branch ASUU chairman, Dr. Joshua Silas, who addressed journalists, said the way the Federal Government was represented by the two ministers revealed that they were out to destroy public universities.

He said, “We are calling on you, Mr. President, to remove the ministers before they destroy our educational system.” They want to turn university lecturers into casual workers. “This government wants to destroy public institutions.”

Asked what the next line of action would be if the president refused to give in to their demands, Silas said the decision was for the NEC to make.

GOGAN TV

The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, has condemned the alleged theft of Nigerian tourists’ and shoppers’ passports and money in the United States of America and different parts of Europe, particularly the United Kingdom.

He spoke on Monday during his presentation at the fifth edition of the “PMB Administration Scorecard 2015–2023 Series,” held at Radio House in Abuja.

Lai said, “It has come to the attention of the government that Nigerian travelers to the United States and some countries in Europe are having their belongings, especially money and passports, stolen at an increasingly high rate.”

“The most recent victims of this are travelers to the UK, most of whom were dispossessed of their belongings at high-end shops, particularly in the high street of Oxford.”

“We have therefore decided to advise Nigerians traveling to Europe and the United States to take extra precaution to avoid being dispossessed of their belongings.”

The minister, however, noted that his advice was not a regular travel advisory, adding that travel advisories were the prerogative of Nigerian embassies and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

GOGAN TV

The All Progressives Congress and the Osun State House of Assembly have tackled the new Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, over the six Executive Orders he signed on Monday.

They condemned the new governor for reversing some appointments, and Adeleke, who was elected governor on the platform of the People’s Democratic Party, announced the dismissal of allegedly 12,000 workers employed by his predecessor in his first official act as governor. recruitments made by his predecessor, Gboyega Oyetola.

Adeleke, who was elected on the People’s Democratic Party platform, announced the dismissal of allegedly 12,000 workers employed by his predecessor in his first official action as governor.

He also deposed three monarchs and allegedly ordered the withdrawal of the certificate of return of local council chairmen elected under the APC in the October 15 local government elections conducted by the State Independent Electoral Commission.

The decision to withdraw their certificates of return was contained in a statement signed by the OSIEC Executive Secretary, Adedapo Adejumo, in Osogbo on Monday.

Gogan TV reports that Justice Nathaniel Ayo-Emmanuel nullified the council election last Friday, citing non-compliance with the 2022 Electoral Act, following a case filed by the PDP against OSIEC, the APC, and some of its chairmanship candidates.

The court held that the electoral commission did not comply with the provisions of sections 24 of the OSIEC Law, 2022, and Section 28 of the Electoral Act, 2022, which mandated it to give a notice of 360 days before the conduct of the election.

Furthermore, the governor abolished the “State of Osun” appellation, which was promulgated by one of his predecessors, Rauf Aregbesola, froze the state accounts, reversed the appointment of 30 permanent secretaries by Oyetola, and promised to correct past injustices, corrupt acts, and bad policies of the immediate past administration.

Earlier, the Secretary to the State Government, Tesleem Igbalaye, announced the suspension of the Chairman of the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission, Mr. Segun Oladitan, along with six other members of the Commission, with immediate effect.

The suspension was said to have been based on several petitions bordering on financial impropriety, dereliction of duty, absenteeism, and abuse of office against the said chairman and members of the commission.

The statement read, “The Executive Governor of Osun State, Senator Ademola Jackson Nurudeen Adeleke, has directed the immediate suspension of the Chairman of the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission, Mr. Segun Oladitan, and the following members of the Commission: Mr. Yusuf Oyeniran; Alhaja Suibat Adubi; Prince Yinka Ajiboye; Mrs. Abosede Omibeku; Mr. Dosu Gidigbi; and Mr. Wahab Adewoyin; and Mr. Wahab Adewoyin; and Mr.

This suspension is the sequel to several petitions focusing on financial impropriety, dereliction of duty, absenteeism, and abuse of office against the said chairman and members of the commission.

“Pending the outcome of an investigation into the allegations against the suspended chairman and members of the commission, the Secretary to the Commission shall hold forth in running the affairs of the commission.”

But the National Vice Chairman (South-West) of the All Progressives Congress, Mr. Isaac Kekemeke, faulted Adeleke’s actions, noting that his predecessor’s tenure did not end with the new governor’s electoral victory on July 17.

Kekemeke, in a statement on Monday, admonished Adeleke to exercise authority with sobriety in order to avoid endless litigation and distractions.

He said, “Governor Adeleke shouldn’t be too excited; government is a continuum and is bound by contractual relationships duly entered into by competent authorities.”

‘’One thing he, Adeleke has probably and sadly overlooked is that Oyetola’s administration did not end with the announcement of his victory by the Independent National Electoral commission.

“Oyetola and no other person were still governors between July 17th and November 26th, 2022. The right to continuously review government programs and activities must be exercised objectively and with sobriety, as to do otherwise will be courting distractions through endless litigation and agitation.

‘’He (Adeleke) was governor-elect between that period, while Oyetola remained governor with unhindered powers to exercise the functions of that office as he deems fit, albeit legally.”

Also taking up the governor’s actions, the Osun State House Assembly said it rejected the contents of the executive orders signed by the new helmsman.

This was contained in a statement signed by the chairman of the House Committee on Media and Publicity, Moshood Akande.

The assembly insisted that the state anthem, crest, and flag were all backed by law, adding that their usage remains a matter of law and not optional.

The statement read, “The State of Osun House of Assembly, having reviewed the inaugural speech of the governor and the activities of the inauguration, hereby resolves as follows:

“The usage of the state anthem, crest, and flag is an enactment of law, and as such, its usage is a matter of law and not choice.” The enactment of the “State of Osun Anthem, Crest, and Flag Law, 2012,” assented to on the 18th of December, 2012, is contained in Schedules 1, Il, Ill, IV, and V, which carefully detail every component of this law.

“Schedule I is the State Anthem, Schedule I has to do with the state Crest, Schedule III is the symbolic significance of the symbolic significance of the element in the flag. Lastly, while we are aware of a court judgment in effect recognizing “Osun State,” the Assembly, pending the determination and exhaustion of all legal means, would not be drawn into this matter.

“However, the state shall and will continue to be described as the State of the Virtuous (Ipinle Omoluabi).”

Explaining further the content of the Executive Order, signed on Monday by Adeleke, his spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed, in a statement, said the six orders assented to by the governor covered the appointment of workers and monarchs, among others.

He also said four committees had been instituted to review and audit appointments and promotions: the state assets inventory and recovery committee, the contractors review committee, the MoUs and agreements review committee, and the chieftaincy matters and appointment of traditional rulers review committee.

According to him, the governor has also reversed all appointments made in the service of the Osun State government in any capacity in all the ministries, departments, agencies, commissions, boards, and parastatals after July 17.

He also stated that all appointments of traditional rulers made by the immediate past administration after July 17 would be reviewed.

The governor specifically asked the Aree of Iree, Akinrun of Ikirun, and Owa of Igbajo to vacate their palaces.

The statement noted, “The Executive Governor of Osun State, Senator Ademola Adeleke, has issued six executive orders to take immediate effect.” The orders signed this morning by His Excellency covered chieftaincy matters, appointment issues, the setting up of a review panel, staff audits, and employment matters.

However, the PDP has thrown its weight behind the governor, stating that all his decisions were in order.

Speaking with The PUNCH, the National Publicity Secretary of the party, Debo Ologunagba, said Adeleke, having prioritized his programs, chose to correct the “illegalities” perpetrated by the previous administration.

He said, “We don’t want to elevate his (Kekemeke’s) comments to the level of national discourse.” When a government comes on, it has its priorities, and part of the obligation of the PDP government, according to our mission statement, is that we want to rescue and rebuild Nigeria.

“Osun State was in the jugular of a reckless and irresponsible government for eight years.” A new government is now in place, and it is settling down to correct the mistakes of the past. If there are illegalities, they should be corrected.

“One of such is the irresponsible and reckless renaming of Osun State as the State of Osun, which is completely unconstitutional because we are conscious of the constitutionality of our process.”

“For us, we are a rule of law party; we follow the process, and if there are actions that have been taken that are unconstitutional, any responsible governor that Senator Adeleke represents must reverse that.”

“Another thing is the unconstitutional conduct of elections to the local government.” They were advised but because the APC is run by people who are not interested in the rule of law and believe in impunity; they went ahead to conduct an illegal election which of a court of competent jurisdiction has set aside,” he said

Ologunagba argued further that the governor simply obeyed the court order by dissolving the elected council executives.

He added, “When the APC makes a comment from afar, you disregard it because it is not worth it.” So, the governor has obeyed the court order by dissolving that charade.

“The people are happy with his decision because of the madness of this APC in the last eight years.” “No tangible project was established, but corruption and recklessness were the order of the day.”

But reacting to the withdrawal of Certificates of Return issued to the elected council officials, the Chairman of Irepodun Local Government, Adegoke Ogunsola, said having studied the decision, the affected officials have valid grounds to approach the court for redress.

Ogunsola, a lawyer, explained that after the court judgment last Friday, the affected parties filed a notice of appeal and duly served the PDP, a development that ought to have put to rest all issues concerning local government elections until the relevant court decides the matter.

Besides, Ogunsola said the OSIEC secretary, a career civil servant, could not be used to withdraw the certificates issued to them by the commission, except if the court ruled that they should be withdrawn.

He stated, “There are so many issues.” They got a judgment against us on Friday on the procedures of the elections. Immediately after the judgment was delivered, we filed a notice of appeal and requested a stay of execution.

“The All Progressive Congress and some of us who are parties to the case and we served them (the PDP). That is why he (Adeleke) could not pronounce on it in his inaugural address.

“After that, he directed the most senior career officers to take over from us, which is illegal in the sense that once you file a notice of appeal and stay of execution and you serve your opponent, who wants to execute the judgment, you are not supposed to do anything on the matter any longer.” You have to respect that until the court gives its ruling.

“Furthermore, this afternoon, the OSIEC executive secretary made a release saying that they will not appeal the judgment and that our certificate should be withdrawn.” We are still studying the situation to know what to do next because he doesn’t have that power. It is the court that can withdraw the certificate that has been issued.

“The party has taken a position.” “The secretary of the party called and asked me to study the relevant laws and get back to him, and I told him that the next thing is to challenge the decision of the executive secretary of OSIEC in court,” Ogunsola concluded.

One of the monarchs affected by the executive order, the Akinrun of Ikirun, Oba Olalekan Akadiri, said he had directed his chiefs to vacate the palace.

He said, “I don’t have an issue with the fact that the government wants to set up a committee to review the process that produced me as monarch.” “The process that made me a monarch is perfect, and I don’t think I have engaged in any manipulation.” “I have ordered the chiefs to move out of the palace to allow the government to do its job.”

Meanwhile, the reversal of appointments into the civil service ordered by the governor may affect thousands of the workers recruited after Oyetola lost his reelection.

Findings indicate that about 3,000 new teachers were recruited into various public primary schools in the state between mid-July and November.

It was also learned that on Wednesday, 100 letters of appointment were taken to Osun State Polytechnic, Ireland, for distribution to the newly employed.

Over 1,000 workers were also reportedly employed through the State Hospital Management Development Board between July and November, while about 61 freelance staff that have worked with Osun State Broadcasting Corporation for many years were also absorbed into the full-time service of the station.

Sources also said 1,500 teachers were recruited for secondary schools across the state after the July 16 elections.

But Oyetola’s spokesperson, Ismail Omipidan, dismissed as false the reports that his principal employed 12, 000 in the civil service.

He challenged the government to publish the list of the purported 12, 000 workers, asking, “What is the entire workforce of the state?”

GOGAN TV