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CPS: Lagos Alive to Responsibilities

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#EndSARS Enquiry Report: Sanwo-Olu Sues for Peace

 

The Lagos State Government is not ignorant of the pains of retirees waiting for their disengagement benefits, long after leaving active service and has plans to address it.

The issue came to the fore on Friday at the 98th Batch Retirement Bond Certificate Presentation to the state’s retirees put together by the Lagos State Pension Commission.

Governor, Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, disclosed that since the inception of the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) in 2004, the state had paid not less than N125 billion to 29,518 retirees.

He assured that the outstanding payments were being looked into.

Sanwo-Olu said, “We are not unaware of the backlog in the payment of accrued rights but we are focused on the intentional and strategic eradication of this backlog.”

Represented by Secretary to the State Government, Folashade Jaji, the governor in a keynote averred that the state government had also paid over N47 billion into the Retirement Savings Accounts (RSA) of its retirees since the advent of his administration in 2019.

He noted that 12,642 retirees from the state’s Mainstream, Local Government, State Universal Basic Board (SUBEB), Teaching Service Commission (TESCOM) and other parastatals were enjoying their retirement benefits under CPS in the state.

“The Lagos State government has paid 125,996,687,159.13 to 29,518 retirees since the advent of CPS and N47,050,805,734.16 to its retirees since the inception of my administration,” he said.

According to him, the state had paid not less than N2,522 billion into the RSAs of another set of 755 retirees for the month of December.

“This is alongside their monthly contributions which have already been remitted into their respective RSAs with the Pension Fund Administrators.

“Today’s event is a continued affirmation of the commitment of the state government to the welfare of its workforce, both active and post-service.

“This event is a landmark occasion as the number of retirees and the amount to be paid is the single largest we have paid since the inception of the CPS in Lagos State,” Sanwo-Olu said.

Commissioner for Establishments, Training & Pensions, Lagos State, Ajibola Ponnle, opined that the accrued pension right paid by the state government between 2019 and till date was the highest paid by any state government.

She was represented by Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Establishment Training & Pensions, Dr Abiodun Onayele.

In her words, “Lagos State has been consistent in her leadership role in the implementation of the CPS and has won numerous awards such as the best compliant state in the federation consecutively and consistently.”
“We are committed to maintaining this rating by improving on timely payment of retirees’ pensions and other applicable benefits upon disengagement from service.

“As you receive your retirement bond certificates, I wish to advise you to embrace the joy and challenges of this new phase of life and take advice from competent and reliable sources.

“In this regard, please do not hesitate to contact LASPEC or even the Ministry of Establishments, Training and Pensions should you require clarifications or advice regarding the modalities surrounding your retirement benefits matters.

NEWS

Moghalu Prescribes Good Governance As Panacea To Ethnic Agitation

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The President of the African School of Governance, Kingsley Chiedu Moghalu has admonished state actors against resorting to brutal force in the bid to muscle out separatist agitators.

In the aftermath of Mazi Simon Ekpa, the Finland based Biafran nationalist agitator being caught in legal web and the Nigerian government moving swiftly to seek his repatriation, the former deputy governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has cautioned that ‘We either fix our problems, or our problems will eventually “fix” us. No alternative to a renegotiated union.’

ALSO READ: Finnish Police Arrest Simon Ekpa Over Terror-Related Allegations

The political economist, while expressing his hope in Nigeria, made it clear that “hope is not a strategy”.

He bared his mind in a series of posts on his verified handle on micro-blogging site, X on Friday.

Moghalu wrote, “Despite sustained contemporary difficulties, I am hopeful about Nigeria. But hope is not a strategy. We need to improve state capacity for effective governance.

“We either fix our problems, or our problems will eventually “fix” us. No alternative to a renegotiated union.

“We must learn to be honest with ourselves and address the root causes of our problems. Why ignore them, when the problem is actually quite solvable? The problem with continuing with this approach is that when the danger crystallizes, those who thought they were benefiting from

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NEWS

N1.7trn Loan: Atiku Blames NASS For Worsening Nigeria’s Debt Burden

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Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar has criticized the federal government’s plan to secure an additional N1.7 trillion loan through Eurobonds to cover a shortfall in the 2024 budget, describing the borrowing as unsustainable and harmful to Nigeria’s economy.

In a statement shared on Thursday via his X (formerly Twitter) handle, Atiku accused the Bola Tinubu-led administration of burdening Nigerians with debt while failing to provide clear answers about the country’s fiscal challenges.

READ ALSO: CSR: Dangote Cement Fuels Education With Support Projects At Lagos Schools

He also faulted the National Assembly for enabling what he called a “voracious appetite” for loans.

The former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate expressed alarm over a recent World Bank report ranking Nigeria as the third most indebted country to the International Development Association (IDA), calling the development troubling.

“The recent report released by the World Bank, showing Nigeria as the third most indebted country to the International Development Association (IDA), is very concerning,” Atiku stated.

He raised further concerns about the government’s decision to benchmark the proposed loan at an exchange rate of 1 USD to N800, despite the Central Bank of Nigeria’s official rate being over N1,600.

“What makes this particular loan proposal even more concerning is that it is benchmarked at the exchange rate of 1 USD to N800, whereas the current exchange rate from the Central Bank of Nigeria stands at over N1,600 to 1 USD,” he said.

Atiku questioned the need for additional borrowing, given the government’s earlier claims of record-high revenue collection.

“In July this year, Tinubu boasted that the FIRS and Customs under his watch had collected all-time high revenues to finance the budget. Why are they still borrowing?” he said

He accused the government of a lack of transparency, describing the borrowing spree as detrimental to Nigerians already struggling under economic hardship.

“There is something that they are not telling Nigerians, even as they are being crushed by a combination of their failed trial-and-error policies and loan rackets.”

Atiku also referenced a report by BudgIT, a budget monitoring group, which criticized the 2024 budget for its inefficiencies.

He alleged that corruption, rather than infrastructure or development needs, was driving the government’s borrowing decisions.

“These loans are powered by corruption and not for infrastructure and development needs. This voracious appetite for humongous loans is deeply concerning,” he said.

Reflecting on Nigeria’s financial history, Atiku lamented the return to significant foreign indebtedness just years after former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration cleared the country’s debt.

“It is agonizing to see that just a few years after the Obasanjo administration took us out of foreign indebtedness, we are today back at the top spot in the same conundrum,” he stated.

He called for a more cautious approach to borrowing, urging the government to prioritize fiscal responsibility and transparency to avoid worsening Nigeria’s economic challenges.

 

 

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International News

ICC Issues Arrest Warrants For Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, Others

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The International Criminal Court (ICC) has taken a historic step, issuing arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

The charges include crimes against humanity and war crimes allegedly committed during Israel’s recent assault on Gaza.

In a detailed statement, the ICC accused the Israeli leaders of “intentionally and knowingly depriving the civilian population in Gaza of objects indispensable to their survival, including food, water, and medicine and medical supplies, as well as fuel and electricity.”

READ MORE: Osun Govt Decries Attempted Murder Of Park Mgt  Chairman By Police

The ICC’s move marks a significant escalation in international scrutiny of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Netanyahu and Gallant are alleged to have orchestrated policies that caused severe harm to the civilian population in Gaza, leading to widespread condemnation from human rights organizations.

Alongside the charges against Israeli officials, the ICC also issued an arrest warrant for Hamas military commander Mohammed Deif. Deif has long been a central figure in Hamas’s military operations. Israel’s military claims to have killed him in a July airstrike, although this has not been independently verified.

The warrants highlight growing calls for accountability amid the ongoing conflict in the region. The ICC’s actions are likely to provoke heated debate and may complicate diplomatic efforts aimed at resolving the crisis.

With the warrants issued, global attention now turns to how the international community will respond and whether any practical steps will be taken to enforce them.

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