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Highlights of Tinubu’s manifesto: Creation of anti-terrorist battalions, student loans, others

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The manifesto for Bola Tinubu, presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), was unveiled on Thursday.

The 80-page policy document, titled ‘Renewed Hope 2023 – Action Plan for a Better Nigeria’, was unveiled by President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday.

Below are highlights of the manifesto:

DECENTRALISATION OF POWER

In the document, if elected, an administration overseen by Bola Tinubu and Kashim Shettima as president and vice-president will collaborate with the national assembly and state governments to amend governance architecture.

It will also review the constitutional legislative lists to ensure that states are given greater control over certain critical matters. Focus areas will include crime prevention, prisons, stamp duties, and certain forms of taxation.

ESTABLISHMENT OF ANTI-TERRORIST BATTALIONS

Tinubu said he will bring to the fore a “bold, no-nonsense crime prevention reform” which will see to the establishment of highly trained and disciplined anti-terrorist battalions (ABATTS) — identified as a special forces unit that will “seize the strategic and tactical initiative, giving terrorists, kidnappers and bandits no respite”.

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He also said there will be an increase in the recruitment of police officers, while the force will be provided with high-tech equipment. VIP security will also be transferred to the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC).

MORTGAGE AND CONSUMER CREDIT REFORM

With the support of state and local governments, the Tinubu administration aims to implement a new social housing policy which will provide pathways for the poorest Nigerians.

The housing mandate is divided into three parts: Granting low-interest-rate mortgages directly; guaranteeing qualified mortgages issued by banks; and purchasing mortgage from private banks.

INCREASING CULTIVATED LANDS

According to the document, only 35 percent of arable land in Nigeria is presently cultivated, and the Tinubu administration’s target is to increase the number to 65 percent in four years.

Initiatives such as the Anchor Borrower’s programme and agricultural credit guarantee scheme will be expanded to reach more rural communities.

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NEW ROADS, MORE RAILWAY PROJECTS

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“As part of that highway system, we shall rehabilitate and expand existing federal roads and expressways. We shall accelerate the construction of new roads as well as the rehabilitation of existing ones via creative funding mechanisms, including accessing capital markets and PPP,” the manifesto reads.

The administration, if elected, also aims to prioritise the completion of critical ongoing national railway projects such as the Lagos-Kano, Benin-Abakaliki, Port Harcourt-Maiduguri, Lagos-Calabar, and Kano-Maradi.

STUDENT LOANS, MODERN CURRICULUM

As contained in the Tinubu manifesto, a committee will be tasked with establishing a curriculum that more closely matches educational instruction with the actual and projected needs of the private sector. A modern standard curriculum will be developed and implemented in all primary and secondary schools throughout the country.

If APC wins, Nigeria’s history will be reintroduced to classrooms in the country, while indigenous language courses will be compulsory for all children through the completion of secondary school.

READ  Gunmen kill, burn LP senatorial candidate and supporters in Enugu

Under a Tinubu administration, teaching will be a “rewarding” career option, while on tertiary education, the administration aims to institute a pilot student loan scheme. Institutions will charge more cost-reflective tuition fees, and with consideration for employment rates and other conditions, the loan programme will have a maximum borrowing limit and flexible repayment provisions.

YOUTH EMPOWERMENT

Through its social and political empowerment plan, the administration aims to reserve at least three cabinet positions for persons under the age of 40, and six more positions for persons under 50.

The government, if elected into power, will also pass a presidential directive requiring that at least 20 percent of political appointments to MDAs be reserved for qualified people under the age of 40.

The administration, if elected, also aims to cut the youth unemployment rate in half within four years, increase intergenerational, business mentoring and cooperation with two million volunteer entrepreneurs and professionals across the nation.

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UK local election: Boris Johnson turned away from polling station after forgetting valid ID

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Former prime minister of the UK, Boris Johnson, was turned away from his local polling station after forgetting to bring the required photo identity.

 

Johnson had joined locals in South Oxfordshire on Thursday to vote in the police and crime commissioner election.

Polling officials however told him he would not be allowed to vote without providing his identity.

There are 22 acceptable forms of ID in the UK including passports, driving licences, blue badges, and certain local travel cards.

 

As prime minister in 2022, Johnson introduced the Elections Act which requires photo ID — a development that sparked intense criticisms from Britons.

Last year, the Electoral Commission warned that the new law could exclude hundreds of thousands of people, including minorities and those with disabilities.

A spokesperson for Johnson confirmed he had forgotten the photo ID, but that he was able to cast his ballot after he returned with a valid ID.

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“Mr Johnson voted Conservative,” Sky News quoted the spokesperson as saying.

Downing Street said it would “look into” changing the controversial rules which require photo ID in order to vote, so that ID cards of veterans can be added to the list of valid identification.

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Governors can pay N615k minimum wage if they get priorities right – NLC

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President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero, says state governors can afford to pay the proposed N615,000 minimum wage if they get their priorities right.

Ajaero spoke on Thursday during an interview with Channels Television.

 

Recently, organised labour announced that the new minimum wage should be pegged at N615,000.

The proposal came amid ongoing minimum wage negotiations between federal and state governments on one hand, and organised labour on the other.

 

In 2019, the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari pegged the national minimum wage at N30,000.

After the new minimum wage was announced at the time, it took some states forever to implement the increment.

 

Asked during the interview if organised labour’s proposal of N615,000 is realistic, Ajaero said the amount is the “most realistic” given the galloping inflation in the country.

 

The NLC president said organised labour considered factors like transportation, housing, and feeding before arriving at the sum.

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“If you are talking about being realistic, the N615,000 demand is the most realistic. Being realistic is not about slave wage,” Ajaero said.

 

“However, N30,000 is big money if inflation is brought down, and at a single digit.

“Look at the indices that create inflation. If you check them, you can talk about being realistic. All other factors in the country are going high and wages remain constant.”

 

Asked if states can afford the N615,000 proposal, the NLC president averred that it is not about ability to pay but the priorities of states.

“I think we need to understand the issues of ability to pay and not getting the priority right,” he added.

 

“Most of the states that have shown willingness to pay the current minimum wage are not among those getting the highest revenue.

“During the time of Muhammadu Buhari, some states were declared not having enough money to pay and he released funds for them to pay.

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“Those states still refused to pay. It is not the question of either the quantum of money that they have or not, it is what they decide to do with such money.

 

“If they get their priorities right, then a lot can happen.”

 

Organised labour has also threatened to embark on a strike if a new minimum wage is not announced before May 31, 2024.

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15-yr-old Kwara public school student scores 362 in UTME

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A student of a public secondary school, Government Secondary School, Omu Aran, Kwara State, Olukayode Victor Olusola, scored 362 marks in this year’s Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, UTME, to be among the contenders for the highest scorers in the examination.

Though the Registrar of the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board, JAMB, Prof. Isaq Oloyede, organisers of the exam, had said the Board would not announce the highest scorer to avoid last year’s experience of confusing claims, Olukayode’s score is celebratory, as it is among the highest in recent years.

He scored 95 marks each in Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry and 77 in English Language.

 

His exploit is coming against the backdrop of the poor performance of candidates in the exam in which 1.4 million scored less than 200 marks out of 400. The exam was taken by over 1.8 million candidates

Also, Olukayode’s excellent performance is coming at a time when confidence is greatly eroding in what public schools have to offer and some private schools are boasting of being the most expensive in the country.

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Olukayode was born in 2009 and hopes to study Electrical Electronic at the University of Ilorin, Kwara State.

 

His mother, Beatrice Tosin, while giving all the honour to God, also praised the studious and hard working nature of her child.

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