Israel has pounded Gaza from the air since the weekend incursions, the deadliest by Palestinian militants in its history, and has been preparing for a ground invasion.

The United Nations said early on Friday it had been told by the Israeli military that some 1.1 million Palestinians in Gaza should relocate to the enclave’s south within the next 24 hours.

“The United Nations considers it impossible for such a movement to take place without devastating humanitarian consequences,” U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement.

“The United Nations strongly appeals for any such order, if confirmed, to be rescinded avoiding what could transform what is already a tragedy into a calamitous situation,” he said.

Seeking to build support for its response, Israel’s government showed U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and NATO defence ministers graphic images of children and civilians they said Hamas had killed in a weekend rampage in Israel.

Blinken said they showed a baby “riddled with bullets,” soldiers beheaded and young people burned in their cars. “It’s simply depravity in the worst imaginable way,” he said. “It’s really beyond anything that we can comprehend.”

Like others across the globe, Blinken urged Israel to show restraint, but he also reiterated America’s support, saying: “We will always be there by your side.”

On Friday he was due to meet Jordan’s King Abdullah and Mahmoud Abbas, head of the Palestinian Authority in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, as part of a Middle East tour aimed at stopping spillover from the war.

America’s top diplomat, Blinken planned to visit key U.S. allies Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates – some with influence on Hamas, an Islamist group backed by Iran.

Israel’s military chief, Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi, said lessons would be drawn from the security failures around Gaza that enabled the attack.

“We will learn, investigate, but now is the time for war,” he said.

The U.S. military is placing no conditions on its security assistance to Israel, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said, adding Washington expected Israel’s military to “do the right things” in prosecuting its war against Hamas.

Austin was due in Israel on Friday and planned to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Hamas called on Palestinians to rise up on Friday in protest at Israel’s bombardment of the enclave, urging Palestinians to march to East Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque and clash with Israeli troops in the occupied West Bank.

Israel’s parliament approved Netanyahu’s emergency unity government late on Thursday, including a number of centrist opposition lawmakers, to display the country’s united determination to fight Hamas.

Public broadcaster, Kan, said the Israeli death toll had risen to more than 1,300.

Scores of Israeli and foreign hostages were taken back to Gaza; Israel said it had identified 97 of them.

Israel has responded so far by putting Gaza, home to 2.3 million people, under siege and launching a bombing campaign that destroyed whole neighbourhoods.

Gaza authorities said more than 1,500 Palestinians had been killed.

READ ALSO: PSC promotes 12 CPs to AIGs, 19 DCPs to CP

Sirens warning of incoming rocket fire blared in Israeli communities near the Gaza border early on Friday.

Israel carried out air strikes across the Gaza Strip overnight, Palestinian media reported.

One attack on a house in the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza killed at least 17 people, the reports said.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said fuel powering emergency generators at hospitals in Gaza could run out within hours and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) warned food and fresh water were running dangerously low.

“The human misery caused by this escalation is abhorrent, and I implore the sides to reduce the suffering of civilians,” ICRC regional director Fabrizio Carboni said.

Human Rights Watch on Thursday accused Israel of using white phosphorus munitions in its military operations in Gaza and Lebanon, saying the use of such weapons puts civilians at risk of serious and long-term injury.

Israel’s military said it was “currently not aware of the use of weapons containing white phosphorus in Gaza.”

Source: Reuters/NAN

The post UN says Israel wants 1.1 million Gazans moved south appeared first on Frontpageng.

He said this on Friday in Abuja, while submitting the 7-man committee report to the party’s national chairman,  Senator Abdullahi Adamu.

“Our respected national chairman and other distinguished members of the National Working Committee (NWC), it is our pleasure to be here with you today to present our report to you.

“We had the privilege of being inaugurated by you on May 30, and we immediately started work same day, after a brief meeting.

“All the aspirants were engaged on the issue of consensus and it was a pleasant surprise that 98 to 99 per cent of them agreed that the party is supreme, that whatever it finally decides with proper consultations, would likely be accepted.

“Though one aspirant said that; yes I will accept consensus so long as it is settled on me.

“First, we had 23 presidential aspirants that we interacted with and my first comment is that we are indeed a very luck party,” Odigie-Oyegun said.

He added that though 23 presidential aspirants presented themselves for screening, there were other prominent Nigerians within and outside the country that applied but could not proceed with their applications.

He said the quality of the aspirants were unquestionable, adding that the committee was surprised at the active participation of youthful members of the party.

He added that the committee was particularly surprised by the life accomplishment of the youths in the race, their understanding of the country’s situations and why they wanted to have the privilege of governing her.

“What was important was that they so believed in the country and the party that they were able to pay the sums they paid for its Expression of Interest and Nomination forms to participate in the process.

“So, I think the party ought to pat itself on the back for that,’’ Odigie-Oyegun who was a former national chairman of the APC and a former Edo State governor, said.

He explained that the committee’s report was in two aspects; the basic constitutional qualification to aspire to be a president of the country, and the ability to lead and background of the aspirant.

He said all the aspirants had the constitutional basic requirements and were qualified in that regard, because it was basic and simple.

“But we are a governing party, and we are keying on continuing the process and replacing at the proper time, our president with yet another member of the party,” he said.

He said for this reason, the ability of the aspirants to lead, their background, experience and understanding of the Nigerian situation became critical.

He said their ideas on how difficult issues and problems could be addressed and how they could move the country forward also became a critical consideration at the screening.

“It is on that bases, that who you are, what are you and what have you achieved.

“And the understanding of your mission and what you think you can do to move the country forward made our final list.

“I don’t want to read the names, I think we will leave that to you, but we have a short list which brought the number severely down to 13.

“We could have cut it a little shorter, but we wanted deliberately all the younger elements to surface,” Odigie-Oyegun said.

He said the idea was for the younger aspirants to be seen and noticed and handed over to the party’s leadership to decide who their preferred candidate would be for 2023 presidential election.

He said it was also an opportunity to showcase the kind of people that existed in the APC and within it, their youthfulness and the kind of experience they had.

This, he added, was for the world to know that the APC cared for the young and when it said the young shall aspire, it really meant it.

“This had been showcased in the report we have written.

“We only drew a word of caution that there is this cleavage that is gradually becoming centre stage in national discourse, between the North and the South and the presidency.

“And we just want to advise strongly that the party should please think of it in making its decision, address it and let it influence their thoughts because it has its own implications,” he stressed.

Odigie-Oyegun thanked the party’s leadership for the opportunity to serve in the committee, saying that though it was a sensitive and challenging assignment, it was an interesting one.

“We all profited from the assignment immensely and think the party will also profit,” he said.

He said the committee members were happy to take on the responsibility to do as much as they could do to make the work of the party lighter.

Adamu, while receiving the report, said the party’s leadership would look into it.

Source: NAN

The post APC primary: How we cleared 13 presidential aspirants -Odigie-Oyegun appeared first on Frontpageng.

The members of the committees were made known via a statement issued on Wednesday night by the APC National Publicity Secretary, Barr. Felix Morka.

Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, was appointed to handle finance and logistics, while Gombe State Governor, Inuwa Yahaya and Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed, were appointed to chair the budget sub-committee.

Niger State governor, Abubakar Sani Bello, will head the Presidential Screening Appeal.

He will be assisted by the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Ahmed Idris Wase.

Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, will handle accreditation and decoration, while his Ondo counterpart, Governor Rotimi Akeredolu was appointed to handle the security and compliance committee. He will be assisted by a former Minister of Interior, General Abdulrahman Dambazau (retd).

Kano State governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, will head the transportation committee and he will be assisted by the Minister of State for the Federal Capital Territory, Dr. Ramatu Tijani Aliyu,

Kebbi State governor, Atiku Bagudu, was appointed to handle election planning and will be assisted by his Imo State counterpart, Hope Uzodinma.

Accommodation will be handled by Borno State Governor, Babagana Zulum, and Osun State Governor, Gboyega Oyetola.

Nasarawa State governor, Abdullahi Sule, takes charge of media publicity, while Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr. Chris Ngige and former Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Folorunso Adewole, will handle medicals.

Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau State will handle Hospitality and Welfare, while the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Hajiya Sadiya Umar Farouq will co-chair the committee.

Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), handles legal, while Zamfara State Governor, Bello Matawalle, and Minister of Federal Capital Territory, Mohammed Musa Bello, were appointed to handle venue and site servicing.

Other heads of the APC special convention committees are Governors Mai Mala Buni of Yobe State (Election Appeal), Aminu Bello Masari of Katsina State (Protocols) and AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of Kwara State (Digital Communications).

Pre-Convention/Management/Rapporteur will be handled by Governor Nasir el-Rufai of Kaduna State.

He will be assisted by the Minister of Women Affairs, Dame Pauline Tallen, while the Deputy Senate President, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, handles accreditation of Diplomats.

He will be assisted by the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama.

The post Presidential primary: APC sets up 18 sub-committees, names chairmen appeared first on Frontpageng.

He described the price as prohibitive and a deliberate process perfected by the leaders of the party to disenfranchise genuine and passionate Nigerians ready to serve.

Isah said only those with stolen money could purchase the form at that rate, with ulterior motive of seeing it as an investment they must recoup whilst in office.

The presidential aspirant pointed out that once they succeeded in edging out those actually ready to transform the nation, their children and wards who they perfectly groomed to take over from them to continue to plunder the people’s common wealth, would take over the system to continue where they stopped.

“I read somewhere on a social media platform the APC youth leader happy to announce that he was able to negotiate a fifty per cent discount for the youths who want to vie for the presidency.

“My question now is how many youths can muster such amount of money. What we are talking about here is N50 million just to purchase the form,” Isah said.

In the opinion of the former chairman  of Civil Liberties Organisation in the North West zone, “Only the werewolves want to continue to superintend over the governance of this nation.

“And it is sad that this is happening under the  watch of President Muhammadu Buhari. It is disheartening that he will allow the APC Buccaneers to have their way.

“The cost is bound to limit the options available because most of those passionate and committed to leading the country out of the woods cannot afford the cost of buying the form.

“And to imagine that this is exclusive of the campaign resources required by the aspirants and/or candidates when they finally emerge to campaign nationwide.

“It will encourage and set the pace for massive looting by whoever is the product of this unintelligent fixing of the cost for obtaining the form.”

Isah who in 2019 was recognized by the National Youth Council of Nigeria, NYCN, as one of the 50 future leaders advised the parties to drastically reduce the amount fixed for the forms.

“We copied the presidential system of government from the United States of America but I read somewhere that the cost of purchasing form to vie for office there is ten times less than what we have here.

“Where do they expect the youths to muster that humongous amount of money to purchase the forms if not that they are encouraging monumental looting of our common patrimony with a view to finally bury our dear nation?,” he asked.

He bemoaned the actions of the president and the recently installed national chairman of the party, Abdullahi Adamu, adding that it had become clear he came to do the hatchet job of killing the party.

“He is beginning to bare his fangs and having started this way, I can assure you that before the 2023 general elections, APC will be no more.

“The game plan is also to ensure mass movement out of  the APC into other parties especially the rival Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to serve their ulterior motives.

“To imagine that President Muhammadu Buhari who claimed to be very poor in 2014 such that he couldn’t afford to purchase the forms as cheap as it was then compared to this one. If I recall, it was about N20 million at that time,” he stated.

He recalled that he was one of those that donated to Mr. President’s campaign funds and mustered mass procurement of recharge cards to raise funds for his campaign.

He added: “And for his reelection in 2019, some of us also deployed our hard earned resources, personal funds to prosecute the campaign.  As for me, we won our units. We won our ward and we secured our local governments with personal resources to ensure victory for Mr. President.

“Our hope at that time was that Mr. President and our party, the All Progressives Congress will get it right for the benefit of Nigerians going forward. But what we have today is the direct opposite with stolen funds being what they want to use for campaigns and vote buying.

“I am sorry for the youths of this country because none of those at the top reckons with them and wish to hand power over them. The corrupt want to continue to steal and maintain crass display of wealth.

“But to me, I think it is a deliberate attempt to disenfranchise those of us on genuine rescue mission of this nation and I bet they won’t succeed in frustrating us. As I said here earlier,  there are several other options since the wrecked old power mongers won’t yield space for us. Mark my words please that said, “No one will acquire this form with his or her hard earned resources. Funds they laboured over time to muster. Only those with stolen resources can and will afford it. And I think it is also a deliberate and wicked attempt to displace the youths after successfully achieving the ‘Not-Too-Young-To-Run’ act.

“Fifty million for a form to contest elections? It’s  a calculated means to disenfranchise the youth. This is unbelievable. It is simply unacceptable. What shall we tell our children and our children’s children that we kept quiet in the face of this shenanigans?

“I will therefore enjoin the youths to resist the deliberate attempt to disenfranchise them.”

The post 2023 presidency: APC aspirant kicks against N100m form price appeared first on Frontpageng.

This was even as the newly elected Deputy National Chairman (North), Abubakar Kyari, also resigned as lawmaker representing Borno North District.

The resignation letters of both lawmakers were read by the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, during plenary.

Senator Abdullahi Adamu, until his election as national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), chaired the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development.

Kyari, on the other hand, was the chairman of the Committee on Federal Capital Territory, FCT.

Senator Adamu’s letter reads: “It is with utmost respect and appreciation I inform you that consequent upon my victory as National Chairman at the just concluded convention of our great party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), on the 26th of March, 2022, I hereby resign formally as the Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria representing Nasarawa West Senatorial District with effect from 1st April, 2022.

“I feel a sense of duty and obligation to convey through this letter, my appreciation for the cooperation and guidance I received from you as Chairman of the National Assembly throughout my official and private association with you.

“As I leave the Senate, I cannot easily forget the change and style of leadership that you brought since becoming the Senate President of the Ninth Senate.

“Your ability to forge the deep-rooted bi-partisan approach on all issues which you chaired deliberations speaks volumes of your chemistry as a leader.

“Since your assumption of the Chairmanship of the National Assembly, you have worked so hard for the Assembly to be seen to work with the government and not against it.

“Indeed, you have roundly proved at every stage that the three arms of government are truly arms of the same national government.

“You have stirred the National Assembly to do the bidding of our great party without prejudice to the other parties irrespective of their representation.

“In so doing, you have been able not to only carry your colleagues at the leadership level of the Senate, but endeavoured to be a family head in the real sense of the word to all members of the Ninth Senate.

“My resignation will leave me with full memories of the solidarity and camaraderie that you have been able to forge over the eleven years I’ve been in the Senate.

“To say I will miss you and my colleagues in the Ninth Senate will be an understatement, but I gain consolation in the fact that my call to a higher pedestal of service will keep us all within reach of one another.

“Kindly convey my wishes to all my colleagues that they should kindly spare some time in joining hands with us at the headquarters of our great party, the APC, to do the needful in our efforts to deliver the 2023 Presidential and General Elections to our party and its followers.

“I also request that you convey my gratitude to all our colleagues and chamber staff.”

The post BREAKING: APC national chairman, deputy resign from Senate appeared first on Frontpageng.

It is amazing how things are changing for good at the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) under the leadership of Mr. Muhammad Nami. Recall that soon after he assumed office, he did not mince words by declaring that he would return to the staff the Service functions hitherto given to Consultants. Six months down the line, it can be confidently reported that he has made good his promise, especially in the use of the  ICT staff for the deployment of technology infrastructure to drive TCC issuance to taxpayers.

Tax Clearance Certificate (TCC) is very critical to the operations of both the Service and the taxpayers. Once a taxpayer pays his tax the Service is required by law to issue him with a tax clearance certificate which is a clean bill of health for him to continue to do his business for the current year. Without this certification a taxpayer can not confidently seek and execute contract anywhere. On its part, the Service issues the certificate as a statutory duty without which it risks court litigation by a diligent taxpayer. So the tax clearance certificate engenders a symbiotic process that mutually benefits both sides. That is why the Management of FIRS ably led by Mr. Muhammad Nami, having understood the critical nature of the issuance of the TCC, did not waste time in putting machinery in place towards achieving effective issuance process.

Harnessing and putting to use the talent and knowledge of the staff is a huge boost to their morale. It is also a step towards enhancing staff productivity and value addition to the Service.

Hitherto, the process was very slow making it difficult to issue TCC to taxpayers. This had compounded the ease of doing business. The platform on which the TCCs were generated before now had constituted some needless challenges. Despite the sluggish nature of the issuance process, the Service paid handsomely for poor service. Yet the platform has no means of validating information with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) resulting in de-linkage between the Service and the taxpayers. This means that the platform had a ratio of 1:10 problem solving solution which greatly impeded the operations of the Service. By this token, the Service suffered huge losses of taxes because it took taxpayers several months to get their TCCs processed. But because of personal interest it was allowed to run for so long in spite of complaints from staff and taxpayers alike.

It is as a result of this that Mr. Nami directed the ICT department to evolve an in-house alternative platform in line with his goal of harnessing internal human resources to achieve his mission. This was immediately put to effect as the ICT department rose to the challenge. The newly developed in-house solution is currently proving to be more effective in the issuance of TCCs. It was developed free of charge and patented by the staff. This novel platform is different from the former one in many respects. It includes taxpayer’s email address and other login credentials for seamless operations and control. It accommodates many login for one taxpayer; and it is also compliant with smartphones. It has the capacity to accommodate about 800 users concurrently. Two weeks after its deployment on 1st June, 2020, it processed 2,603 requests and issued 1,846 TCCs.

Given the in-house development and deployment of this platform, the Executive Chairman of FIRS, Mr. Muhammad Nami has made good his promise of returning the Service to staff. What this implies is that Mr. Nami is adept at utilising human resources for optimal benefit. Harnessing and putting to use the talent and knowledge of the staff is a huge boost to their morale. It is also a step towards enhancing staff productivity and value addition to the Service.

Another benefit is cost saving strategy that Mr. Nami has adopted since he assumed office. When Mr. Nami assumed office in December, he did not mince words to say that it would not be business as usual in FIRS in relation to how funds are used. No more wastage of financial resources on frivolous ventures such as indiscriminate engagement of consultants for jobs that the staff can do or organising concerts, parties, and sponsoring pleasure trips. For him there has to be probity and prudence in the utilisation of the hard-earned funds of the Service.

Mr. Nami is thus making good his promise to the staff that he would return the functions previously given to Consultants to them in all ramifications. He has embarked on this since he took over the mantle of leadership. In addition to giving the ICT department free hand to operate and muster internal resources to discharge its functions, Mr. Nami has also extended the same leeway to the Audit and Investigation department to achieve its core mandate. Hitherto, the Audit function like the ICT was ceded to greenhorn consultants who more often than not shortchanged the Service. In most cases these consultants ripped off the Service.

The various automation solutions currently being deployed to cover revenue collection in all tax types have the imprint of local content and smack of the innovative leadership approach of Mr. Nami.

There is a huge relief throughout the Service and the taxpaying community now that the erstwhile encrusted platform has been replaced with a more effective and efficient platform that guarantees ease of doing business. This has the added advantage of restoring taxpayer confidence, boosting revenue collection, and enhancing productivity of the staff. The new platform is  currently running efficiently while its capacity would continue to be expanded going forward to make it compatible with the increasing demand from taxpayers and field officers. As a committed tax man, Mr. Nami understands too well the importance of tax operation, its strategic importance to the country’s economy, and how not to mess up the process for personal gains.

It is for this reason that he is applying himself diligently to improving the processes in the Service through effective utilisation of men and technology. In line with this disposition he has, in relation to the proficiency of the staff, reverted certain authorizations that were centralized in the headquarters like the utilisation of credit notes, operational letters, issuance of TCCs, etc to staff. Equally examination of accounts has been restored. Similarly,  proper segmentation in tax administration consistent with the global best practices has been reinstated.

The various automation solutions currently being deployed to cover revenue collection in all tax types have the imprint of local content and smack of the innovative leadership approach of Mr. Nami. Despite the dire need for the integration of technology he is not compelled to engage consultants to undertake the jobs that can be undertaken internally. To him that should be a last resort or based on very compelling reason. This Management strategy is working well for the Service and the staff are happier for it.

*Adamu is a public analyst based in Abuja.

The post Nami: Making good his promise, By Abdullahi Adamu appeared first on Frontpageng.