Day: April 4, 2023

The Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Adm. Awwal Gambo, has approved appointments of senior officers comprising Rear Admirals and Commodores as part of the routine reorganisation in the service.

The Director of Information, Nigerian Navy, Commodore Adedotun Ayo-Vaughan, made this known in a statement on Monday in Abuja.

Ayo-Vaughan said the new appointments resulted from the promotion of 128 senior officers in December 2022, mainly 52 rear admirals and 76 commodores.

He said the new appointments saw Rear Adm. Garba Abubakar being reappointed as the Nigerian Navy Delegate to the Islamic Military Counter Terrorism Coalition, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Meanwhile, Rear Adm. Akano Adesope, was moved from the National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru and appointed as the Admiral Superintendent Naval Ordinance Depot.

Similarly, former Director of Administration, Naval Headquarters, Rear Adm. Kennedy Egbuchulam, was appointed as the pioneer Chief of Communications and Information Technology.

Former Chief of Defence Space Administration, Rear Adm. Nnamdi Muogilim, moves to Defence Headquarters as the Executive Director Operations, Navy Holdings Limited.

Ayo-Vaughan said the erstwhile Commander, Nigerian Navy Ship, WEY, Rear Adm. Adewale Olanrewaju, would to take over as the Director of Standards, Naval Headquarters.

The former Deputy Director Communication Intelligence at Defence Intelligence Agency, Rear Adm. Fatah Sanusi takes over as Executive Director, Administration, Human Resource and Personnel Management at the Navy Holdings Ltd.

“Rear Adm. Nuhu Bala, the former Director of Transformation, Defence Headquarters has been reappointed as the Deputy Chief of Defence Space Administration.

Rear Adm. Danjuma Moses, former Director of Training, DHQ takes over as the Deputy Commandant, Armed Forces Command and Staff College, Jaji.

“The routine reshuffling of the senior naval officers also affected Rear Adm. Vincent Okeke, former Director of Logistics, DHQ who has been reappointed as Director of Plans, DHQ and Rear Adm. Yakubu Wambai, the erstwhile Flag Officer Commanding, Western Naval Command moves to DHQ as the Director of Transformation.

“The former Director Veterans Affairs, Naval Headquarters, Rear Adm. Ismaila Zelani has been appointed as Director of Administration at Naval Headquarters.

“Rear Adm. Emmanuel Beckley, the erstwhile Admiral Superintendent Naval Ordnance Depot moves to Headquarters Defence Intelligence Agency as the Director of Logistics,” he said.

The naval spokesman further said Rear Adm. Domnan Dangwel, had been redeployed from DHQ to Naval Headquarters as the Director Special Projects, while Rear Adm. Tanko Pani, would remain in DHQ and appointed as Director of Training.

He said while the former Deputy Director Earth Observation at DSA, Rear Adm. Hamisu Sadiq, moved to NHQ as Director of Safety, Rear Adm. Olusanya Bankole would take over as the Director of Communications at NHQ.

According to him, the immediate past Flag Officer Commanding, Eastern Naval Command, Rear Adm. Ibrahim Dewu takes over as the Director of Project Implementation, Monitoring and Evaluation Directorate.

“Rear Adm. Kennedy Ezete, moves to DHQ as Director, Project Monitoring while Rear Adm. Noel Madugu, formerly Deputy Director Special Operation Forces, DHQ has been appointed Director of Logistics.

“The erstwhile Director of Logistics, Nigerian Armed Forces Resettlement Centre, Oshodi, Rear Adm. Daupreye Matthew, is to resume as the Director, Innovation and Concept Development, NHQ.

“While Rear Adm. Emmanuel Nmoyem, was appointed as the Director, Human Rights Desk, DHQ while Rear Adm. Ibrahim Shettima, formerly Chief of Logistics, NHQ takes over as the Flag Officer Commanding, Central Naval Command.

“The former Flag Officer Commanding, Naval Training Command, Rear Adm. Monday Unurhiere is now the Director of Plans, NHQ while Rear Adm. Hamza Kaoje has been moved from Headquarters Western Naval Command to DHQ as Director of Equipment Standardisation and Harmonisation.

“Rear Adm. Idi Abbas, formerly Flag Officer Commanding, Central Naval Command resumes as the Director of Operations, NHQ,” he added.

Ayo-Vaughan also said Rear Adm. Clement Atebi, had been moved from the Central Naval Command to NHQ as Director of Audit, while Rear Adm. Samson Bura, formerly Fleet Commander, Western Fleet, had been moved to DHQ as Director Search and Rescue.

He said Rear Adm. Oluwole Fadeyi, had been moved from Eastern Naval Command and appointed as Director Record, Returns and Analysis at NHQ while Rear Adm. Olusola Oluwagbire, takes over as the Flag Officer Commanding, Eastern Naval Command.

According to him, the erstwhile Deputy Commandant, AFCSC, Jaji Rear Adm. Mustapha Hassan, is now the Director of Policy, NHQ while Rear Adm. Bashir Mohammed, becomes the Chief of Logistics (Navy) and Rear Adm. Julius Nwagu become the Director Campaign Planning at NHQ.

He added that Rear Adm. Patrick Nwatu, takes over as the Flag Officer Commanding, Naval Training Command, while Rear Adm. Mike Oamen is now the Director Veterans Affairs, NHQ, while Rear Adm. James Okosun, takes over as the Commandant Nigerian Naval Engineering College, Sapele.

Rear Admiral Suleiman Abdullahi has been reappointed as the Managing Director Admiralty Exchange Ltd., Navy Holdings Ltd., while Rear Admiral Kasimu Bushi has been reappointed as the Chief of Accounts and Budget, Naval Headquarters.

“Furthermore, Rear Adm. Joseph Akpan, takes over as the Flag Officer Commanding, Western Naval Command; Rear Adm. Ibrahim Shehu, appointed Director of Marine Engineering, NHQ and Rear Adm. Abdullahi Ahmed, moves to NHQ as Director, Recruitment, Reserve and Resettlement.

“Rear Adm. Fredrick Damtong has been reappointed Director Weapon Electrical; Rear Adm. Abdul-rasheed Haruna, the immediate past Commander, NNS BEECROFT is now the Chief Staff Officer, Eastern Naval Command while Rear Adm. John Mamman, has been appointed Chief Staff Officer, Headquarters Western Naval Command.

“The immediate past Commander, Naval Base Lake Chad, Rear Adm. John Okeke is to take over as the Chief Staff Officer, Headquarters Central Naval Command while Rear Adm. Olatunde Olodude moves from the National Defence College, Abuja to take over as the Fleet Commander, Western Fleet.

“Rear Adm. Chijioke Onyemaobi has been reappointed as the Director Ships Spares, NHQ.

“Other senior officers affected by the new appointments are Rear Adm. Sunday Atakpa, former Commander, NNS SOROH, who has been appointed the Chief Staff Officer, Naval Training Command and Rear Adm. Abdul-hamid Baba-Inna, former Commander NNS DELTA who was appointed Director, Legal Services, NHQ.

“Rear Adm. Patrick Effah has been reappointed, Director, Maritime Domain Awareness, NHQ.

“Rear Adm. Chidozie Okehie has been reappointed Director Personnel Release and Rear Adm. Olusegun Soyemi, appointed as Director, Monitoring and Evaluation Analysis.

“Rear Adm. Ebiobowei Zipele has been reappointed as the Commandant, Defence Intelligence College, Karu,” he added

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

The National Lottery Regulatory Commission (NLRC) says it has launched a National Premium Identity Verification Platform (NPIVP) to provide identity of lottery operators in Nigeria’s lottery industries.

The Director General of the NLRC, Mr Lanre Gbajabiamila, made this known in a statement on Tuesday.

The decision, according to him, was taken following stakeholders’ engagement meeting on ‘Know Your Customer (KYC) and Verification Issues in Nigerian Gaming Industry’, held at the NLRC Headquarters in Abuja.

Gbajabiamila said the measure was initiated by the stakeholders in lottery sector as a move geared towards mitigating and curbing unscrupulous activities in the lottery industry in Nigeria.

“The new NPIVP will provide identification in less than 8 seconds, attach real-time human faces to players, minimize fraud, ease compliance and encourage more participation in the industry.“

The NLRC D-G, during the meeting, identified the Federal Government’s concern about prevalent complaints relating to customers’ identity and verification in the industry.

He said the initiative was in line with the commission’s mission of creating a safe and secure environment for operators and players.

“Our mission in the NLRC is to create an enabling, safe and secure environment for operators and players while ensuring the Nigerian Gaming Industry thrives.

“As we are aware, the NLRC is the apex gaming regulatory institution in Nigeria, saddled with the responsibility of regulating the operation and business of the national lottery, setting standards, guidelines and rules.

“This is to ensure transparency and integrity and also protect the interest of players, stakeholders and the public; while also carrying out periodic industry-wide assessments.

He said there were “other duties as may be directed by the President as specified by the National Lottery Act 2005 (as amended).”

Gbajabiamila also used the medium to read the riot act to operators and directed gaming operators to identify and verify the players and users of their various gaming platforms to ensure that the collected and collated personal data were secure.

“To this end, the commission has collaborated with other Federal Government agencies to promote the gaming industry and ensure a safe and secure gaming environment among others,” he said.

Contributing, Clement Omife, Deputy Director, Consumer Affairs Bureau, a representative of Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC), said the agency had done a lot about KYC, especially in partnership with the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), being a critical aspect of its mandate.

“We really appreciate the NLRC for this wonderful initiative. We have been doing this KYC and I can tell you that it will help to mitigate a lot of criminality in the lottery industry.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that Mr Babatunde Bamgboye, representative of Nigeria Data Protection Bureau (NDPB), Association of Nigerian Bookmakers (Lottery Operators), led by their Executive Secretary, Akingba Olabimpe, the CBN representative among others, were present at the meeting.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

The Economic Community of West African states (ECOWAS) has embarked on a four-day workshop on developing Civil-Military coordination strategies to aid humanitarian action across West Africa.

Dr Sintiki Ugbe, Director, Humanitarian and Social Affairs, ECOWAS Commission, Abuja, during the workshop in Lagos said this was necessary considering the varied humanitarian challenges confronting the region.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that delegates cutting across the 15 member states of ECOWAS were represented at the workshop which began on Monday, April 3.

The workshop will end on April 6, 2023.

Ugbe noted that humanitarian assistance to the most vulnerable citizens was a critical mandate that ECOWAS had to pursue with all vigour.

“Today, ECOWAS is hosting a regional workshop on Civil-Military coordination,.

“Our region is faced with conflicts, terrorism, impact of climate change, food insecurity and many other challenges as this has led to a surge in humanitarian assistance.

“But, in providing humanitarian assistance, civilians cannot do it alone, they need military assistance to work together in a coordinated fashion to deliver assistance to vulnerable population.

“So, what we are trying to do as ECOWAS is to see how we can strengthen Civil-Military coordination, as it has become important in our region because it is difficult for humanitarian actors to reach those who are in need.

“The only way to enhance humanitarian access is to strengthen the synergy of Civil-Military coordination to promote compliance with humanitarian principles with comparative advantage in the use of our resources as civilians and military,” she said.

According to Ugbe, ECOWAS had enjoyed the support and cooperation of ECOWAS countries’ Heads of States over the years.

She said: “Through their approval and mandate, we have the ECOWAS community levy that we use for implementing our programmes but that is not enough.

““We also mobilise resources from our partners, just like this workshop is done with partnership between ECOWAS commission and some other organisations, with funding from the European Union and we have our United Nations partners who are providing technical support.”

Earlier, Mr Usman Obeche, Programme Officer for the workshop said the rationale behind the workshop was to organise ECOWAS working groups.

According to him, the workshop is also meant to establish linkages between the working groups and other relevant forum such as the regional committee for disaster management in West Africa, the ECOWAS standardised emergency management system and the national disaster risk reduction platform.

He said at the end of the day, some of the outcomes would be to have established standards and guidelines for the use of national military assets in emergencies and ECOWAS and member states would have been developed.

“Challenges in military coordination would be identified as well as emerging policy issues and gaps in the field of response,” Obeche said.

In his goodwill address, Mr Trond Jensen, Head of Office, United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), assured participants that the workshop would be strategic.

Jensen emphasised the need for meaningful collaboration and constructive dialogue between the military and civilians.

He said this was essential in solving common problems and building a brighter

future for the many people

“This workshop will be strategic and deliberations will design an appropriate civil-military coordination strategy for the ECOWAS region that meets the requirements of international best practices,” he said.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

Former President Goodluck Jonathan and other prominent African leaders and icons were honoured at the maiden edition of African Heritage Concert and Awards in Rwanda.

The Vice President of the Republic of Liberia, Dr Jewel Howard-Taylor and Dr. Seretse Khama Ian Khama, the former President of Botswana were also among the awardees.

According to the organisers, Heritage Times, the event was strategically packaged to celebrate and honour African greats who have distinguished themselves in their various fields of endeavor.

They are also people that have made sustainable global impact in pacifying the image of Africa.

Speaking after receiving the African Democracy and Peace Icon Award, former Nigerian President, Goodluck Jonathan, appealed to African leaders to become servants of the people, and not turn themselves into the “bosses of the people”.

“When you are called the executive president, our duty is to run our country properly, not to de-humanise human beings and make their lives difficult.

“What you should think is when you leave office, what will the world remember you for?

“Will the world remember you for killing people? Will the world remember you for jailing people, or will the world remember you for destroying their systems?

“What people will remember you for is what should guide our decisions, and I believe if every leader should begin to think is that they will leave office one day.

“And they will be remembered one way or the other, either positively or negatively,” Jonathan said.

The Vice President of the Republic of Liberia, Dr Jewel Howard-Taylor, conferred with African Humanitarian Award, said that honouring the “best and brightest” minds in Africa was crucial for navigating the future of the continent.

Howard-Taylor said this was especially as it concerns leadership.

She reminded African leaders that the dream of achieving a robust and sustainable Africa rests heavily on their shoulders.

Howard-Taylor added that celebrating Africans who have made impacts, would help change the negative narrative about Africa that was being propagated by the Western media.

Dr. Seretse Khama Ian Khama, the former President of Botswana, who bagged the African Philanthropist Award, stressed the need for African leaders to do the right thing and develop the continent.

While commending HT for putting together the event, he noted that the future of Africa remains bright and great in spite of seeming challenges.

On his part, Prof. Patrick Lulllmumba, who picked up the Africa Advancement Award, expressed worried that African continent was in a crisis mode.

Lulllmumba said that if African leaders were not careful, the `’continent will be eaten for launch once again”.

“I am energised by this award. I dedicate this award to Africans of goodwill, from whose eyes; the scales of ignorance have been removed. Growing Africa is an inter-generational struggle,” he added.

While retrospecting on the 1994 Genocide in Rwanda, he advocated unity and peace across Africa, adding that Africa had a prestigious place in the world stage.

He added that Africa lacked inspirational leaders, but expressed hope that the awards and special recognition and was one of the surest ways in which mentors would be created.

Other awardees at the event were: Late John Magufuli, former President of Tanzania – African Icon Award (Posthumous).

Victoria Nalongo Namusisi, Founder and Director of Bright Kids Uganda – African Humanitarian Award; Olumide Akpata, former President of the Nigerian Bar Association – African Legal Icon Award.

Also awarded were Dr. Ifie Sekibo, Founder of Heritage Bank Plc – African Philanthropist Award; Engr Simbi Wabote, Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) – Champion of Local Content Development in Africa Award.

Christelle Kwizera, Head Water Access, Rwanda – African Humanitarian Award; Fred Swaniker, Founder African Leadership University – African Humanitarian Award.

Hamzat Lawal, CEO, Connected Development – African Humanitarian Award; and the Triplets Ghetto Kids of Uganda – African Entertainment Award, completed the pack.

Amb. Suleiman Sani, the Nigerian High Commissioner to Rwanda, was also present at the event.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria