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Amaewhule-led Assembly Issues 7-Days Ultimatum to Fubara to Re-present Budget

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The Rivers State House of Assembly led by Martin Amaewhule has issued a 7-day ultimatum to Governor Siminalayi Fubara to re-present the 2024 budget to the House.

The order follows the first sitting of the pro-Wike House on Monday after some months. The other House led by Victor Oko-Jumbo is also holding a parallel sitting.

Fubara had earlier presented the budget to the House loyal to him when his current Chief of Staff Edison Ehie presided as the Speaker.

Ehie and the other pro-Fubara lawmakers passed the budget estimates, and the governor signed the bill into law. He stated that it is aimed at promoting economic development, inclusive growth, and addressing socio-economic inequality in the state.

With the recent development, the crisis rocking the Rivers State House of Assembly seems to be far from abating.

Today’s sitting by the Amaewhule-led Assembly after a long time may have come on the heels of last week’s Court of Appeal judgement nullifying the expulsion of Amaewhule and 24 others from the Rivers State House of Assembly by the Rivers State High Court.

Justice Charles Wali had in May, while ruling on a motion exparte following a prayer brought before his court by Victor Oko Jumbo, issued an ex parte order barring Amaewhule and 24 other lawmakers from parading themselves as members of the state House of Assembly.

But on last Monday, a three-member panel of the appellate court held that the lower court lacked the jurisdiction to grant the exparte order.

The court held that Section 272(3) of the Constitution gives the Federal High Court powers to determine whether the seat of a House of Assembly member has become vacant.

It held that the Federal High Court has the exclusive jurisdiction to determine if the seats have become vacant.

According to the court, the express mention of the Federal High Court in Section 272 (3) of the Constitution automatically excludes all state high courts from having the jurisdiction.

The appellate court held that the exparte order having been made without jurisdiction is null and void.

However, the speaker of the group Victor Oko-Jumbo in his opening remark during a plenary on Friday said that he and his members believed that the Appeal Court erred in its decision.

“We strongly believe that the Court of Appeal was in error when it held that the Rivers State High Court lacked the Jurisdiction to hear and determine SUIT NO PHC/1512/CS/2024,” he said.

“Accordingly, we have instructed our lawyers and they have filed an appeal to the Supreme Court of Nigeria Challenging the Judgement of the Court of Appeal delivered on the 4th Day of July 2024.”

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How Nestlé is Securing the Nation’s Future Through Wholesome Youth Empowerment Schemes

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By Eric Elezuo

“Our ambition is to help 10 million young people around the world access economic opportunities by 2030 through employment and employability, agripreneurship and entrepreneurship” – Nestlé 

The basis of empowerment is not just a function of lip service or showmanship. It is deeply rooted in the ability to showcase tangible and verifiable evidences as seen in individuals and institutions. It is harnessing the process, and aiding of individuals and institutions towards becoming stronger and more confident, especially in controlling their lives as well as claiming their rights in  the commity of existence.

It is the unequivocal unleashing of authority or power to people or institutions to do something which ordinarily they couldn’t do. Empowerments are of various callings, shapes and categories including political, financial, educational and entrepreneurial.

Consequently, when the story of lifting people, who verily accommodates empowerment, especially youths and women, talents and even resources, is written, one company will be at the forefront of superlative mention; the Nestlé Group, comprising Nestlé Global and Nestlé Nigeria. It’s involvement in the empowerment of women, youths, children and the generality of the public, has become a reference point of some sort, a case study and subject of discourse among men and women of goodwill. Nestlé is a force to reckon with, without an iota of doubt.

From its earliest and most humble beginnings in Switzerland in 1866/67, Nestlé, a brainchild of Henri Nestlé, has grown in leaps and bounds, becoming a global multinational brand, operating and distributing kindness, and empowerment in over 188 countries of the world.

Nestlé was the next best thing to happen to Nigeria, berthing in the country in 1961, as Nestlé Products (Nigeria) Limited. 63 years after, Nestlé has continued to heavily invest in the development and improvement in the nutritional profile of all their products, churning out healthy families and happier children.

Across the globe, the brand has maintained an aura that none has been able to beat in the business of affecting lives, rejuvenating standards and simply put, to empower the young people towards becoming their own individual bosses.

The company’s invincibility in creating leverage for the youths has been centred on four cardinal objectives, which include getting them hired, skilled, supported, and providing them with more opportunities.

Presently, Nestlé has trained about 8,464 young farmers through its renowned Agripreneurship Programme. This achievement incidentally is a process of one year – 2023.

In the same vein, 7,720,000 young people around the world has been provided with access to economic opportunities since 2017, just as a whopping 72,630 young entrepreneurs have received some basic but tangible benefits from the company. Nestlé’s love for the rise of the Nigerian youth, and by extension the world is legendary, and has proved to be larger than life.

It is worthy of note that among a humongous list of ordinate assistance rendered in the empowerment business, Nestlé Nigeria’s commitment to youth empowerment and skill development, continually takes a new dimension; the latest being the establishment in 2023 as an appendix of the firm’s broader technical training initiative, which has been running since 2011, the Flowergate Technical Training Centre (TTC), which just graduated another 20 young people comprising men and women. Yes, a significant milestone, which goes further to tell additional story of Nestlé’s stock-in-trade, and that involves its consistent efforts to equip Nigerian youth with essential technical skills.

It is a thing of joy to observe that since its inception, the programme has produced over 200 young Nigerians, who rode above  the rigous of 18-month stringent curriculum.

The TTC programme comes with a mind blowing six billion naira investment; a proof that their priority lies in developing the next generation of skilled professionals to drive the country’s industrial and entrepreneurial future.

“For over 13 years, our commitment to nurturing young talent has reflected our confidence in the future of this generation,” Mr. Wassim Elhusseini, Managing Director/CEO of Nestlé Nigeria, said at a recent function.

The technicality of the training, time involved and its rigors, have remained a clear testament of the quality, just as Nestlé waste no time in absorbing the graduates. The company does not train and dump; it has employed over 97 percent of its graduates. It is therefore, no surprise that employees of Nestlé are budding young men and women, rearing with energy, tact and a sense of deliverables.

“This year alone, we proudly graduated 70 skilled professionals across all our centers, including Agbara and Abaji, all of whom have now joined our team. For us, this program is more than just skills training—it’s about empowering young people to shape their futures and become catalysts for change. By equipping them with critical technical expertise, we are opening doors to personal growth and financial independence.

“Ultimately, this is a long-term investment in creating shared value, as their success extends beyond themselves, impacting their families, strengthening communities, and driving growth in the industry,” Wassim Elhusseini informed.

Every of the company’s efforts is assiduously targeted to prepare the Nigerian youth for the future, ensuring they can thrive in an evolving industrial landscape.

Of course, everyone expects the best of the youths as the training exercise combines theoretical learning with hands-on engineering experience and culminates in the City and Guilds of London Technicians’ Certification. This significantly boosts the employability of the participants.

Again, for the love of the young ones, and the need to safeguard the future, Nestlé Nigeria has introduced the Nestlé Needs YOUth initiative; a broad base plan that has so far accommodated over 25,000 youths on an annual basis, helping them access economic opportunities.

For the benefit of hindsight, Nestlé’s investment since 2011 in upskilling the bright young minds is a reflection of the  belief in the potential of the next generation as well as commitment to enabling them to thrive, in other to create shared value.

“By bridging the technical skills gap in the industry, we are not only enhancing the employability of our youth but also empowering them to achieve financial independence, enabling them to contribute meaningfully to their communities and society at large,” Nestlé noted.

Without an iota of doubt, Nestlé is “playing our part to cushion the impact of economic challenges on the youth and prepare them for the future. Some of these initiatives include our Nesternship Program, Nestlé Youth Development Program, and our active participation in the Alliance for Youth Nigeria initiative,” Mr. Shakiru Lawal, the Country Human Resources Manager at Nestlé Nigeria, clarified.

Beyond attending to young adults with vocational training, Nestlé is also saddled with the concept of catch them young. The firm’s employees, in collaboration with the company, engage in mentorship of students in the secondary schools, specifically JSS2, SS1 and SS2 classes. Presently, over 12,000 pupils across the nation have received one on one mentorship that has proved to be the ice breaker in their path towards making a career choice.

Dubbed the Youth Leadership Mentoring Programme, which is in collaboration with REVAMP Africa, a youth-focused non-profit organization with the vision to revive educational values and maximize potential among young people, especially in public secondary schools, the initiative aims to instill the right values, skills and attitudes requisite for success and positive personal development from an early age in children. The exercise is designed to empower the children through experiential learning as leaders of tomorrow.

“My classmates and I are excited to have the mentors in our classes. Today’s session on values and morality was very interesting. The mentors spoke to us about developing personal values for success in life. I am determined to live by the four values I have set for myself, both in school and outside the school. I will also put in more effort in my academics so I can excel and achieve my dreams,” a mentee recounts with gusto.

In addition to the many superlatives in youth empowerment schemes and initiatives, Nestlé has also embarked on a project of supporting academic excellence through wholesome sponsorship with its  Community Scholarship Programme.

The Programme, which was launched in 2020, has remained a commitment to empowering the next generation of leaders, and aimed at high-achieving senior secondary and tertiary students pursuing studies in Science and Technology. It also empowers and supports students in communities surrounding Nestlé operations through the provision of tuition, accommodation, uniforms, books, and other essential expenses. The company has steadily ensured that students, who qualify for the grant, have the resources they need throughout their education journey.

Presently, a whopping N18 million has been set aside for 90 verified indigenes for the ongoing session of selection.

“These scholarships reflect our unwavering dedication to investing in the future of our youth. At a time when economic challenges place added strain on families nationwide, we’re proud to provide meaningful financial support that eases this burden. By investing in education, we’re not only empowering individual students but also fostering the growth and prosperity of our entire community,” Victoria Uwadoka, Nestlé Nigeria Corporate Communications, Public Affairs, and Sustainability Lead, has said, noting that 65 students from various schools in Abaji, Agbara and Sagamu, from the 2023/2024 batch have been awarded.

The scholarship has been a leveler, helping students to pursue their dreams, fuel their passion for learning, and help them explore opportunities that might have otherwise been out of reach.

With various empowerment programmes sticking out of the stables of Nestlé, it’s obvious that young people are at the heart of regeneration and future.

“They are the entrepreneurs and innovators of tomorrow and the next generation,” the company noted, stressing that empowering the youths in whatever guise will remain a continuous process until every youth is self-sustaining and independent.

Nobody will forget in a hurry how Nestlé is developing data journalism, climate change and sustainability, partnering the Pan Atlantic University to train young journalists, towards mastering their craft.

That, is the Nestlé advantage!

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D-Day: Americans Elect New President

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The D-day has finally arrived, and millions of Americans are set to head to the polls and choose between the two presidential candidates who remain neck and neck in the polls.

Democratic candidate and Vice President Kamala Harris and Republican former President Donald Trump who have been embroiled in a relentless battle for votes for months, remain split by 1.2% in favour of Harris according to the latest polls Monday — a lead well within the margin of error.

Trump wrapped up his campaign trail with a final speech in Grand Rapids, in the swing State of Michigan he flipped back in 2016. Meanwhile, Harris concluded by pledging to “get to work” if elected in Philadelphia, another battleground state where incumbent Democratic President Joe Biden won by 1.2% in 2020.

Europe and the rest of the world remain on tenterhooks as the result of the vote might lead to protests and legal challenges similar to the aftermath of the vote four years ago.

Trump’s final campaign speech concluded in Michigan. The former president stuck to some policy points, namely immigration, but spent a portion of his final message meandering through a series of tangents, and criticising Harris.

Promising to usher in a new “golden age” for the US, he then spoke about assigning nicknames for his political opponents — and said “groceries” was an old term he hadn’t heard much.

He cast doubt on the electoral process, saying using “paper” for ballots was old-fashioned and slow, insisting “we want the answer tonight.”

Harris was the subject of much vitriol, with Trump saying the Democrat has a “low IQ” and that she and Biden had destroyed the US.

He said Nancy Pelosi and Democrats were “trouble for our country. They are bad, sick, people.”

At the end of his speech, he brought out the mayor of Hamtrack, Amer Ghalib, on stage to signal his support among Arab Americans.

Republicans are hoping Arab American voters, frustrated with Biden’s policies in the Middle East, will vote for Trump today.

Harris expressed ‘optimism’ and ‘joy’ at final rally in Philadelphia.

“Ours is not a fight against nothing, but for something… Tonight we finish as we started: with energy, optimism, joy,” Democratic candidate Kamala Harris said, wrapping up her campaign trail in Philadelphia on Monday night.

Describing her months-long run as a fight for democracy, the incumbent vice-president chose to end on a positive note with one last appeal to young voters.

“Generations before us led the fight for freedom, and now the baton is in our hands,” Harris said. “We need to get to work and get out the vote.”

Philadelphia is the largest city in the East Coast state of Pennsylvania, one of the seven key swing states — US states where the election could reasonably go to either of the two candidates.

After weeks of campaigning, polls are set to open across the US to decide the next president.

It is currently past midnight eastern time with the first polls set to open in the northeastern state of Vermont in some places as early as 5 am EST (11am CET).

Polls in Hawaii and Alaska are set to close by 1 am EST (7 am CET).

Over 82 million have already voted, according to data published by the University of Florida’s election lab, breaking records in some crucial swing states such as North Carolina.

  • Both Harris and Trump delivered their final message to voters in rallies last night.
  • Harris pushed a message of unity and optimism for the US, focusing on abortion rights and pledging to lower food and housing costs.
  • Trump painted a picture of America in despair — a problem only he could fix. Policy-wise, he vowed to seal the border between the US and Mexico and has proposed trillions worth of tax cuts.
  • Both spent a portion of their speeches criticising the other, with Harris making a contrast between her and her opponent without using his name, and Trump calling Harris a “radical left lunatic,” among other things.

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Just In: EFCC Arrests Former Delta Gov, Ifeanyi Okowa

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The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has arrested a former Governor of Delta State, Ifeanyi Okowa.

The former governor was arrested on accusations of misusing funds derived from resource allocation.

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