* Applauds Defence College Course 32 graduands’ input in research on mining industry, national security
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has vowed to invoke his constitutional powers to continue to equip, arm and empower the Nigerian military.
He acknowledged “the importance of strategic leadership in addressing the complex security and development challenges” confronting Nigeria.
President Tinubu made the vow on Friday during the graduation ceremony of the Course 32 participants at the National Defence College, Abuja.
Represented by Vice President Kashim Shettima at the event, the President decried the state of infrastructure at the National Defence College’s permanent site at Piwoyi, Abuja, noting that, while his administration has made substantial progress, there is still more work to be done in the school.
Accordingly, he restated his administration’s commitment to ensuring ongoing work and upgrading of the facilities at the permanent site are completed.
Vowing to arm and equip the nation’s armed forces, the President said, “Under my watch, members of the Armed Forces of Nigeria have made remarkable sacrifices and recorded significant achievements in protecting Nigeria’s territorial integrity and securing the lives and properties of our citizens.
“I will continue to do everything within my constitutional powers to ensure that the Nigerian military is well-resourced and fit for purpose”.
President Tinubu thanked the graduates of Course 32 for their input and contributions to his research aimed at providing “strategic options for harnessing the mining industry in Nigeria to enhance national security and development.
“We are already working with the fundamentals of your recommendations as we look forward to actualising our golden era scenario with substantial security assets supported by robust collaboration and institutional reforms,” he added.
The President praised the unique style of the National Defence College in consolidating knowledge through what he described as “a broad thematic area,” saying it has helped in finding “sustainable solutions to national security and development problems in Nigeria, Africa, and beyond”.
The President highlighted some of the significant progress made by his administration in addressing some of the challenges confronting the nation, including the implementation of the new national minimum wage which, according to him, will not only benefit civilian workers but also personnel of the Nigerian Armed Forces and other security agencies.
He continued: “We are also working tirelessly to curb the menace of crude oil theft and pipeline vandalism in the Niger Delta. I have also tasked the Defence Headquarters and other security agencies with curbing the menace of crude oil theft as soon as possible. This will boost oil and gas production and achieve our desired economic stability
“We are committed to creating an enabling business environment that encourages value addition in our mining sector. We are working with international partners to develop strategies that will harness this sector’s potential for national security and development.”
President Tinubu further charged the graduates of Course 32 to continue upholding the values of excellence, courage, patriotism and integrity, even as he implored them to use their newly acquired knowledge and skills to address the multifarious challenges facing Nigeria.
Earlier, the Commandant of the National Defence College, Rear Admiral Olumuyiwa Olotu, disclosed that the 111 graduates will contribute to Nigeria’s efforts to bolster its strategic leadership across various sectors.
He said, “Our mission is to develop future strategic leaders sufficiently equipped with the requisite knowledge and analytical skills necessary to harness the instruments of national power in a dynamic defence and security environment.
“For participants of Course 32, this mission is achieved through a 9-module curriculum comprising subject areas such as research methodology, science and technology, conflict and war studies, policy formulation analysis, and strategic leadership among others”.
The Course 32 graduates were drawn from national agencies and institutions, including the Nigerian armed forces, Nigeria Police Force, Department of State Security, and several ministries.
Notably, the class also included 19 international participants from countries including India, Brazil, South Africa, and Ghana, as part of Nigeria’s commitment to fostering global cooperation in defense and security matters.
Those present at the graduation ceremony included Minister of Defence, Mohammed Badaru; Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun; Minister of State for Defence, Bello Muhammed Matawalle; Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa; Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt. General Taoreed Lagbaja; Chief of Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Hassan Abubakar; Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla; the Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Adeyeye Ogunwusi, and former Delta State Governor, James Ibori, among many others.
Stanley Nkwocha
Senior Special Assistant to The President on Media & Communications
(Office of The Vice President)
23rd August, 2024
We”ll Continue To Promote Rule Of Law, Tolerate Dissenting Voices
*PRESIDENT TINUBU AT NBA CONFERENCE:*
*Says his government’s policies, actions will soon bring enormous relief to Nigerians*
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has vowed to keep promoting the rule of law, adhere to the principles of separation of powers, and tolerate dissenting views within the ambit of the laws of Nigeria.
This, he said, explains why since he assumed office, his administration had been making steady progress in rebuilding the nation through legal and judicial reforms.
The President made the vow on Sunday when he declared open the Annual General Conference of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) in Lagos.
President Tinubu, who was represented at the event by his deputy, Vice President Kashim Shettima, acknowledged the association’s sterling history of championing democratic ideals, as well as promoting the rule of law.
“Let me reassure you all that this administration will continue to promote the rule of law, adherence to the principles of separation of powers and tolerance of dissent within the bounds of the law,” he declared.
The President implored Nigerian lawyers and other citizens to join hands with his administration in resolutely working towards a Nigeria of everybody’s dreams, saying the nation cannot continue to toe the path threaded in the past, if it must achieve sustainable development.
He assured that though making difficult decisions to change the way things were being done in the past would produce hard results, his administration’s policies and actions will bring relief to Nigerians very soon.
President Tinubu noted: “Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, while I acknowledge the temporal existence of some daunting challenges besetting us as a nation, I would like to urge you all not to adopt a defeatist approach; rather, we should remain resolute in working for a country of our dreams.
“It is obvious that Nigeria as a nation cannot continue to sojourn on the trajectory of the past if we must be assured of sustainable development; hence, the need to sanitize the Augean stable and chart a proper course of rebuilding the nation.
“I acknowledge that altering the status quo requires difficult decisions and changes, which also inevitably come with hard outcomes. However, I am confident that this is a passing phase and our policies and actions, as an administration, are bound to usher in relief in no distant time.”
The President thanked the Supreme Court for consistently sustaining good governance and the tenets of democracy in Nigeria, citing the recent verdict of the highest court in the land which granted financial autonomy to the local government councils.
The judgment, he noted, “will spur the much-desired developments at the grassroots level,” even as he expressed confidence “that more of such strategic and reform-oriented legal interventions will be achieved” by the third arm of government.
On the part of the executive arm, President Tinubu restated his administration’s commitment to continue making the welfare of the judiciary a top priority of his administration.
He stated: “I want to assure the Learned members of the Bench and the Bar that this government will continue to accord top priority to the welfare of the judiciary to ease avoidable burden on their Lordships and speed up the adjudicatory process which is a sine qua non for social order and economic development.
“It is, therefore, my fervent expectation that the NBA would provide the appropriate legal compass for all persons, government, and businesses towards rebuilding our dear nation”.
He outlined efforts being made by his administration in reforming the judiciary including signing the Judicial Office Holders (Salaries and Allowances) Act 2024, leading to a 300% increase in the remuneration of our judicial officers, and putting in place the full complement of Justices of the Supreme Court.
The President also disclosed that his administration “is also working on the construction of a permanent and befitting edifice for the Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal.
“Furthermore, provisions are being made to provide conducive accommodation for federal judicial officers within the Federal Capital Territory. All these are part of measures to boost the independence, welfare, and capacity of the judiciary,” he added.
President Tinubu applauded the theme, “Pressing Forward: A National Posture for Rebuilding Nigeria,” chosen by the NBA for this year’s annual national conference, just as he commended the Association for always being part of “the vanguard for initiating and driving reforms to stimulate economic growth and development”.
On her part, Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, said efforts must be made towards accelerating growth and development, as Nigeria has all it takes to succeed.
In her keynote address titled, “A Social Contract for Nigeria’s Future,” the former Nigerian Finance Minister as well as the first woman and first African to lead the WTO regretted that Nigeria is not progressing as much as it should in its over 60 years of existence.
“Strong macro economic reforms is something we need in Nigeria. Oil has dominated Nigerian exports but we must diversify to agricultural and solid minerals exports,” she added.
Lamenting the lack of policy consistency which, according to her, has also affected the growth of the nation, the WTO DG said that to minimize the volatility of inconsistent policies, Nigeria needs a social contract, stressing that achieving a social contract involves the security of lives and national assets.
She said an organization like the NBA has a role in achieving a social contract.
“We need a new social contract to achieve growth in our country. My conviction on the need for a social contract is based on the need to tolerate different political parties and past administrations that preceded any administration in power,” Dr. Okonjo-Iweala noted.
For his part, the host Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State, maintained that the security of lives and property was one of the cardinal things that the social contract was all about.
Urging the judiciary to strengthen the nation’s electoral process, he assured that Lagos, as a state, is ready to take on the social contract, even as he said for five years, he has not taken a kobo from the local government treasury.
“And we have demonstrated that even in the legal profession that all of you are part of we have more women in our judiciary consistently than any other part of the country and we kept faith in that,” Sanwo-Olu added.
Earlier in his welcome address, President of the NBA, Mr. Yakubu Maikyau (SAN), assured that the bar will continue to work for the course of justice in Nigeria, adding that the respect the bar has is a symbol of freedom in the county.
“The bar is represented primarily by the need to serve justice to the people. Our existence as a people is intricately connected to our responsibility as the defenders of the people,” he said.
Mr. Maikyau urged lawyers to ensure that they discharged their duties to the people of Nigeria with determination like the resilience of an eagle and eschew corruption at all levels.
The occasion also featured the launch of a book titled, “History of the Nigerian Bar Association,” written by a Nigerian lawyer, Olanrewaju Akinsola.
Other dignitaries present at the event included Plateau State Governor, Caleb Mutfwang; former President of Ghana, John Dramani Mahama; Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN); President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Monica Dongban-Mensem, the Ooni of Ife, His Imperial Majesty, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi (the Ọjájá II), and representatives of the Senate President and Speaker of the House of Representatives, among others.
*Stanley Nkwocha*
*Senior Special Assistant to The President on Media & Communications*
*(Office of The Vice President)*
*25th August, 2024*
STATE HOUSE PRESS RELEASE
PRESIDENT TINUBU CELEBRATES GOVERNOR BABAGANA ZULUM AT 55
President Bola Tinubu warmly congratulates the Governor of Borno State, Professor Babagana Umara Zulum, CON, MNI, as he marks his 55th birthday.
Governor Zulum is an academic, visionary, reformist, and statesman.
President Tinubu joins family, friends, and the people of Borno State to celebrate the young and dynamic leader who embodies the pragmatism and energy of youth, as well as the sobriety, prudence, and wisdom of the elderly.
The President commends Governor Zulum’s hands-on approach to leadership, demonstrated by his unchoreographed, pre-dawn inspections of rural clinics and critical agencies to ensure their smooth operations and that staff are on hand to provide essential services at world-class standards.
President Tinubu also applauds the governor’s courage, exemplified by his personal interventions in security situations in Borno State and in the recent resettlement of displaced citizens.
The President appreciates Professor Zulum’s facility for providing unifying leadership, epitomized by his efforts towards ensuring the welfare of citizens from other parts of the country and in the promotion of Nigerians of diverse ethnic backgrounds and faiths through the ranks of the Borno Civil Service on the exclusive basis of merit.
“Babagana is one of those luminescent northstars of meritocratic rise in the Nigerian political firmament. From humble beginnings, his tenacious pursuit of personal growth and later on, expeditious state and national development, is a guide to Nigeria’s future generations. Borno State and Nigeria at large are fortunate to benefit from his benevolent brand of modest, rigorous, and visionary political and administrative leadership,” the President states.
As the governor marks this milestone, the President wishes him many more years in good health and renewed strength in his service to the nation.
Chief Ajuri Ngelale
Special Adviser to the President
(Media & Publicity)
August 25, 2024
