Gov Ishaku At The Ongoing Flag-Off Ceremony Of The 'Keep Kaduna Green' In Kaduna

Governor Darius Ishaku, the executive governor of Taraba state was among the dignitaries invited by the Kaduna state government, led by Gov Nasir El-rufai to witness the flag-off ceremony of the 'keep Kaduna Green'.

The event which has kick started, has Gov El-rufai giving the keynote address.

Excerpt, is the key note address by Gov. El-rufai;

PROTOCOLS

Let me begin by welcoming all our distinguished guests to Kaduna. I thank you most warmly for identifying with our project to make our state green by planting at least one million trees every year.

Our government considers the Keep Kaduna Green Project an important intervention. In planting one million trees every year, we intend to achieve many goals. Across our state, we will thereby be checking desertification. We will be creating jobs for the people who will plant and nurture the trees. The trees will ultimately grow and improve the look of our cities and towns. The shade and reassuring feel that leafy neighbourhoods project should be accessible to all residents of our state in their own neighbourhoods.

Trees play such a crucial role in the human drama. They help provide shelter, fuel and food; assist soil stability, protect water sources, and generally improve the environment. Yet too many people treat trees with regrettable indifference, cutting them down without replacements, destroying whole forested areas for purposes ranging from farming to real estate. Like most things with which nature has blessed humanity, there is a need for the necessary awareness and determination to use them in a sustainable way; to realise that these natural endowments need time to regenerate and that human beings are the ultimate losers when we adopt an attitude of unrelenting exploitation.

Therefore, we will accompany our Keep Kaduna Green project with a determined effort of public education. The goal is to foster a keen appreciation for nature across the generations. The projection is to engage about 26,000 persons across the state in the massive tree-planting effort we have embarked on. We trust that they will do their best to nurture the trees. But there is no doubt that our effort to Keep Kaduna Green will succeed only because our communities collectively support the project. I believe that we can persuade our people to invest their effort in protecting our environment, in beautifying our cities and in creating jobs.

Thus our grassroots approach to realising the goals of the Keep Kaduna Green Project involves ensuring that 65,000 trees are planted in each Local Government Area every year. Our communities will be mobilised to take concrete action against desert encroachment so as to preserve valuable arable land and ensure food security. In village and city alike, the cooling effect, and the air-filtering quality of trees are deeply appreciated.

The government will also provide an incentive for protecting and nurturing the seedlings. We have deliberately chosen economic trees for this project so that those who nurture them will have a share when the trees begin fruiting. Trees are valuable in themselves, but we hope the bonus of fruits will help make them much more valuable to many more people.

Ladies and Gentlemen, as we flag-off the Keep Kaduna Green project today by planting trees, I wish to urge all residents of Kaduna State to embrace the idea. In addition to the trees the government is planting, citizens can complement the effort by planting trees and flowers in their homes. Indeed, we have directed KASUPDA that henceforth, no building plans are to be approved for the construction of any building in our state unless the planting of at least four trees for every 900 square meters of land under development. In our schools, health centers and public facilities, aggressive tree planting will also be mandated. There will be further events to take the project across the state, engage our communities and make ours a state that is getting greener as it is becoming great again.

I wish to thank IDC, our partners in this grand effort, for their initiative and technical assistance they are providing for our tree-planting project. Our thanks go to the Vice Chancellor of the Kaduna State University for hosting us today, and all the senior government officials, members of the State Executive Council, our royal fathers and our State House of Assembly for being here to support this flag-off.

I wish to thank my sisters, the ministers of environment, and of budget and planning for being consistently supportive of all our initiatives in Kaduna State. My gratitude goes to Senator Binta Masi Garba, a daughter of Kaduna State who had represented Kaduna South twice in the House of Representatives but now represents Adamawa State in the Senate.

I thank my colleagues, the governors of Kebbi, Taraba, Jigawa and Sokoto States for being here physically or in representative capacity to support our efforts. Finally, the gratitude of Government and people of Kaduna State goes to our leader and mentor President Muhammadu Buhari who has consistently encouraged, supported and guided us in the direction of making Kaduna, his chosen state of residence for decades, a great place to live.

Thank you for listening.

God Bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria

Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai, OFR

Governor of Kaduna State

June 30, 2016

Court Of Appeal Dismiss Mr David Kente Case Against Taraba Gov. Ishaku

The Court of Appeal sitting in Yola, the Adamawa State capital, today struck out the appeal of a governorship candidate, Mr. David Kente, against the governor of Taraba State, Mr Darius Ishaku.

The petitioner had gone to the appeal court to challenge the eligibility of the Taraba Governor to contest the 2015 elections, on the grounds that he did not contest the primary election.

Mr. Kente, who was a PDP aspirant, contested the primary in December 2014 and lost but later defected to the Social Democratic Party (SDP), to contest the same governorship election in 2015.

In her ruling, Justice Jummai Sanchi of the Appeal Court, Yola, struck out the case, stating that Mr. Kente has no locus standi

DARIUS IS WORKING! Pledges To Boost Tea, Rice Production In Taraba

Gov. Darius Ishaku of Taraba has pledged to continue to support tea and rice farmers in the state in order to boost the production of the two crops.

Ishaku made the pledge on Tuesday evening in Jalingo when he hosted Muslim faithful in the state to a Ramadan breaking of the fast.

The governor told the people to embrace agriculture in order to change a situation where the state was completely dependent on the Federal Government for survival.

"I have already promised President Muhammadu Buhari that Taraba will meet 10 per cent of national tea demand by December 2016 and we are committed to achieving that.
"We have also committed resources to boost rice production and other crops in the state to improve the economy and feed the nation," he said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that Ishaku recently inaugurated modern tea processing machines at the Kakara Tea Factory in Sardauna Local Government Area of the state.

He also promised to repair the cassava processing plant which broke down recently in order to encourage massive production of the commodity in the state.

Ishaku told the Muslims faithful in the state to continue to preach peace and live in unity with their neighbours irrespective of their religious affiliations.

In his remarks, Alhaji Inua Mafindi, the state Chairman of Muslim Council, thanked the governor for the gesture, saying it would go a long way in promoting the spirit of oneness among religious groups in the state.

Also, Rev. Ben Ubeh, the state Chairman, Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), urged the people of the state to eschew violence and embrace peace in their communities.

NAN reports that top government functionaries, traditional rulers, representatives of CAN, women groups, organised labour union leaders among others, attended the occasion.

400 Taraba PDP Delegates Reject Appeal Court Judgment On Primary Election

The Appeal Court sitting in Yola on Wednesday dismissed the appeal by delegates of the state chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, seeking the court to declare all candidates in the last election illegal and order a fresh primary election.

The decision was, however, rejected by over 400 delegates elected from 168 electoral wards in the state who said the ruling was highly tainted.

In a statement by the state chapter of the party and a delegate from Gassol local government area, Bala Ahmed, the aggrieved delegates said the judgment failed consider delegates’ rights to lawfully elects candidates that will represent its party in an election.

Ahmed said it’s disturbing that the appeal was not allowed based on its merit but was struck out based on technical ground, saying the delegates will seek justice at the country’s Apex Court.

According to Ahmed, the party’s members in the state were clearly and brazenly denied their right to elect candidates of their choice for the 2015 general election, adding that several elections have been nullified based on irregular conduct of primary election by the opposition party and other pre-election matters.

He said, “They were several allegations that the state governor moved several millions to Yola, we are now forced to believe that the judgment was bought over with money, money that should be used to pay workers salaries are now spent by Taraba Government to sustain their illegality against PDP delegates and members.”

Ahmed maintained that if primaries were held without the knowledge of relevant authorities and lawful delegates, such should appropriately be declared unconstitutional, null and void.

“The ruling of the Election Tribunal is very explicit and unambiguous; there was no PDP primaries in Taraba, simple, We were denied our voting rights to choose a candidate for our party, we strongly believed that the Supreme Court will restore these rights.”

He further disclosed that, “the delegates will seek redress at the Supreme Court because nothing can supersede the rights of party members through their elected delegates to elect their candidates for an election.”

Culled : Naija247news

DARIUS IS WORKING : He Has Improved Water Sector In Taraba - Barr. Gowon

Governor Darius Dickson Ishaku has been described as a visionary leader who is determined to bring positive changes to the state; especially in the provision of basic social amenities, with key emphasis on the provision of water to the state capital and beyond.

The Commissioner of Water Resources, Barr. Emmanuel Gowon said this recently while speaking to journalists on the successes recorded thus far by the present administration led by Arc. Darius Dickson Ishaku tagged the ‘Rescue Mission,’ in the Ministry of water resources.

Barr. Gowon stated that, Governor Darius Ishaku is a gift to Taraba State and  he is a leader that is poised to bring positive changes to the state, most especially, in areas that will impart positively on the lives of the people and will at the same time fast track socio-economic development of the state, which he has demonstrated variously as the Chief Rescuer.

The Commissioner maintained that for any society to witness rapid development there must water and motorable roads and the present administration has taken it upon itself to provide water to all the nooks and crannies of the state beginning with Jalingo the state capital.

He stressed that work is progressing steadily at different locations with varying levels of completion.

Barr. Gowon further said because of the importance the governor attaches to water, shortly after his inauguration, Governor Darius Ishaku headed to the headquarters of African Development Bank in Abuja,  AFD, where he met with the Board of Directors and new avenues were explored to improve water supply to Jalingo and environs.

He posited that the visit is already yielding results with the expansion of more water transmission lines covering over 61 kilometers, erection of more over head tanks as well as the  construction of more reservoirs in certain locations within the metropolis in order to improved water supply to the state.

Barr. Emmanuel Gowon maintained that since Gov. Darius Ishaku took over the mantle of leadership, the state water supply has improved tremendously and effort has also been intensified to connect all the suburbs within the city center to steady water supply.

Accordingly, the Commissioner maintained that other areas that are also part of the MoU entered into by the state government and African Development Bank included the provision of VIP latrines and sanitation equipment.

He explained that, in the area of sanitation, two trucks that would be used in sanitation exercises have already been received and commissioned by the Governor as part of activities marking his one year in office and were handed over to the Special Adviser on Government Projects and Task Force on Environmental Sanitation with other equipment such as wheel barrows, hand gloves, rakes,sweepers among others.

Similarly, the Commissioner said about 40 urban and semi-urban areas within the state have benefited from the repairs and the reactivation of broken-down water supply schemes as well as the provision of motorised boreholes to boost water supply.

Barr. Gowon stated that within this period, the Taraba State Government fully explored its partnership with Japanese International Cooperation Association JICA, to provide water to all the nooks and crannies of the state, to that effect, about one hundred (100), boreholes have been sunk across sixteen (16) Local Government Areas of the state with some having six (6), while some have seven (7), and explained that Bali local government is the only council in the state that is yet to benefit from the state government partnership with JICA.

Speaking on the acute water shortages in Yorro and Zing, Barr. Gowon explained that because of the peculiarities of the two areas, Governor Ishaku directed the Ministry to look for a reputable contractor that specialises in feasibility study to survey the two areas with a view to finding a lasting solution to the water problems in the two local councils.

He also disclosed that the Chief Rescuer has already directed the Ministry to as a matter of urgency reactivate the two overhead tanks at Monkin and Yakoko and to ensure that water supply is restored to the two communities.

The Commissioner added that water plays a vital role in the transformation of every society and commended Governor Darius Ishaku for placing priority on the provision of water and stressed that, when there is sufficient water to go round all other amenities will also fall in place and reiterated his ministry’s determination to effectively support the initiative of Arc. Darius Dickson Ishaku in the provision of portable drinking water to the people of the state and asserted that the entire staff of the Ministry are on the same page with the Governor in rescuing the state from all ramification.

PDP Urges Members To Desist From Creating Disaffection In Taraba

The leadership of the Taraba State chapter of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has admonished those trying to create disaffection among members of the party to as a matter of urgency desist or face the wrath of the law.

Reacting to a news item claiming that PDP in the state has been factionalized, the leadership of the party, beckoned on its teeming supporter to dispel the rumour as “ PDP in Taraba is intact and would continue to be one.”

In a press statement made available to reporters yesterday morning in Jalingo, the state capital, the party chairman, Victor Bala Kona, said: “In view of this, the PDP hereby warn all person or group of persons who are parading themselves as PDP group in whatever name with the sole purpose of discrediting the party to immediately desist.”

The statement which was signed by the state Publicity Secretary, Inuwa Bakari, said that the “ so called group seemingly lacks the ability to understand simple English as presented by the party chairman while recently receiving defected members of the All Progressives Congress to our great party.”

A group recently claimed that they are a faction of the PDP known as the Uticiya The group, which went ahead to disassociate themselves from a call made by the party chairman for all the aggrieved members of the party to as a matter of urgency return to the party, said they have resolved to form a different PDP in the state.

Stressing that the party is not aware of any group other than the Victor Bala Kona led PDP, the statement noted that ‘’the fact of the matter was that the state chairman, Kona while receiving the APC decampees at the state secretariat used the forum to call on all aggrieved members to come back to the party and further assured them of a better things ahead in the party and not as portrayed by the so called Uticiya group.”

Kona told the chairman of the group, Philip Hamza to as a matter of urgency desist from creating “ disaffection among members of our great party” adding that “ PDP in the state is always one and will always be one.”


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