Folarin Kehinde

Kenny Folarin, Abuja

The auditorium of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, ICC Abuja was filled to capacity as well wishers from all walks of life converge to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee Celebration of Pastor Mrs Onome Anyiam.

The colorful atmosphere of white and purple with music and good ambience characterized the occasion.

Pastor in Charge, RCCG Region 10, Pastor Jide Akiode who took the sermon from Psalm 89 vs 1 admonished the celebrant that she enjoyed God’s unfailing mercies as no one turns 60 twice but once in a lifetime.

Pastor Akiode charged christians not to have a sense of entitlement to God’s mercies, “If God does not answer prayers he will still remain God and still exist”.

He admonished the celebrant not to forget God’s mercies even at 60 but keep on waxing strong for kingdom work.

“What you have enjoyed for 60 years is pure mercy, if he is merciful unto you, you live. Psalm 103 vs 3.”.

Also, the Pastor in Charge, RCCG FCT Province 11 and husband of the celebrant, Pastor Richard Anyiam eulogized the celebrant with praise and showers of love described Pastor (Mrs) Anyiam as a true example of a virtuous woman.

“My wife exemplifies the picture of a virtuous woman, an entrepreneur per excellence, she can turn sand into gold, she is 7 women in one, untiring, for 24 years she is a stranger to sickness, she is the best soup maker allover the world, energetic and has the fear of the lord and I have never regretted marrying her, she is a pillar and formidable pillar in my ministry”.

The celebrant, Pst (Mrs) Onome Anyiam whose joy knew no bounds was full of praises to God almighty for clocking 60 and expressed her profound appreciation to the Redeemed Family.

She explained that the grace of God has kept her till date though the journey of life has not been easy but God saw her through.

She further stated that 60 is her next level and her path will continue to shine in subsequent years to come.

“The word of God says in proverbs 4vs18 that but the path of the just is as the shinning light that shineth more and more unto the perfect day, so it means that 60 is my next level it means at 70, I will shine brighter than 60 and my path will continue to shine on daily basis until I see Christ in glory”.

The Wife of the Continental Overseer, Rccg, Pastor Mrs Odeyemi showered prayers and blessings upon the celebrant, her family and the church at large.

The Governor of Anambra State, Prof Charles Soludo confirmed on Monday that the Central Bank of Nigeria has asked commercial banks to dispense and accept old naira notes as deposits.

DAILY POST reports that Soludo, a former CBN governor, made this known in a statement he posted on his social media handles.

He explained that the Governor of CBN, Godwin Emefiele gave the directive at a Banker’s Committee meeting on Sunday.

He added that Emefiele personally confirmed the directive to him.

According to him, residents should report banks refusing to accept the old notes.

“Commercial banks have been directed by the Central Bank to dispense old currency notes and also to receive the same deposits from customers. Tellers at commercial banks are to generate the codes for deposits, and there is no limit to the number of times an individual or company can make deposits.

The Governor of the CBN gave the directive at a Bankers’ Committee meeting held on Sunday, 12th March 2023. The Governor, Dr Godwin Emefiele, personally confirmed the above to me during a phone conversation on Sunday night. Residents of Anambra are therefore advised to freely accept and transact their businesses with the old currency notes (N200, N500; and N1,000) and the new notes”, the statement contained.

Kenny Folarin, Abuja

As Nigeria joins the world to celebrate the 2023 International Women’s Day, the Chief Executive Officer, High Tech Centre for Nigerian Women and Youths, Dr. Wunmi Hassan has posited that Nigerian women need to be knowledgeable in cyber security and data privacy protection.

Dr. Wunmi who spoke exclusively with leading reporters stated that women need to open up to cyber security learning, securing online protection for themselves and their children, especially the younger ones (the girls).

According to her, women need to be exposed to what need to be protected and be conscious of their security, what they should post online, and who they share their data with considering lots of scams and vulnerabilities especially among the female gender.

‘So we need to wise up and be trained, understand lot of cyber security issues and know what to do at different times. Many women doing business online need to learn this to be able to protect themselves, the business and their customers”.

“We cannot stop learning we need to encourage women to learn and keep learning so that as we look at the theme for this year, which is calling on every woman to be digital literate, encourages women to be tech savvy and understand what need to be done by oneself not outsourcing always”.

Furthermore, Dr. Wunmi explained that computing, coding and programming are very essential programs for women which enable them develop tech solutions.

She added that technology is supposed to be a course or field that more women should be involved in because it gives an enabling environment to work at their pace virtually while still be able to manage the family and be a very joyful, fulfilled and successful woman

Dr. Wunmi however implore the government to make data more affordable and available and make policies that will be citizens friendly while strengthening connectivity even to the rural population.

‘We solicit that government make data more affordable and cheaper than what it is so that more people can engage and I think that they are not doing badly as it were but the policies needs to be more entrenched so that those in the rural areas where connectivity might be a challenge will also be connected”.

She advised women irrespective of class or status to embrace technology, learn tech skills and make more money even online.

‘And for many women that cannot go to school or work, technology is the only thing that can help better your life, you can use it anywhere with the mobile device and work virtually and make money”.

“We call on every woman to know that they can learn a skill be better anywhere they can benefit from technology and earn more to make money virtually”.

As the world celebrates the 2023 International Women’s Day (IWD), the Executive Director, of the Nurture Women and Girl Child Initiative (NWAGCI), Mrs. Doris Eyong Kokomma has called on government at all levels to close the digital gender gap to avoid economic and social inequalities, saying that it holds the key to a robust economic growth.

Mrs. Eyong who stated this while commemorating the 2023 IWD celebration, she pointed out that in spite of increased awareness and sensitization on the issue of gender equality and gender inclusiveness, the society still discriminate against women attributing it to culture or tradition.

This discrimination also affects the society as women with great talents and potentials are neglected merely on the basis of gender.

The UN Women’s gender snapshot 2022 report states “that women’s exclusion from the digital world has shaved $1 trillion from the gross domestic product of low and middle-income countries in the last decade- a loss that will grow to $1.5 trillion by 2025 without action”

“Nonetheless, women’s carefulness in resource management and developmental skills cannot be overemphasized, they remain the sustaining force of the future, given the needed encouragement, conducive environment and opportunity; women have the potential to change the narrative and make the world greater and a better place for everyone to live in”, she posited.

The theme of this year’s commemoration, “DigitALL: Innovation and Technology for Gender equality” is very apt as it aligns with the priority theme for the upcoming 67th session of the Commission on the status of women (CSW-69) considering the proven capacity of women in diverse fields of life such as Law, medicine, pharmacy, digital technology, engineering and literary art just to mention but a few.

Government must take on its responsibility of connectivity and ensure people down to the grass root especially women and girls are connected to internet, it should also make sure that the rights of women and girls are protected online and off-line, Protection of women and girls digital rights holds the key to all-round development in every facet of the society.

Women and girls should be encouraged to study in the stem areas; hence this will produce more women in the technology and digital space. According to the world economic forum report, “by 2050, 75% of jobs will be related to stem areas. Yet today, women hold just 22% of positions in artificial intelligence…”

She used the opportunity of the International Women’s Day to call on the federal lawmakers to consider and pass the Gender and Equal Opportunity Bill, saying it will reduce gender-based violations and legally equip women to challenge the inequalities confronting them including Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV) which has continued to rear its ugly head in the society.

She said her organization Nurture Women and Girl Child Initiative will continue to provide succor and support to women and children as well as promote the welfare and rights of women and girls especially their right to education.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has given reasons it postponed the governorship election by one week.

The exercise, which was initially scheduled for this Saturday, will now take place on March 18.

The National Commissioner & Chairman Information and Voter Education Committee, Barr. Festus Okoye, confirmed this in a statement on Wednesday night.

Okoye said the commission needed time for the reconfiguration of the BVAS used for the Presidential election held on February 25, 2023.

“For instance, the BVAS can only be activated on the specific date and time of an election.

“Having been used for the Presidential and National Assembly elections on 25th February 2023, it is necessary to reconfigure the BVAS for activation on the date of the governorship and State Assembly elections,” the statement read in part.

As Nigeria joins the world to celebrate the 2023 International Women’s Day, a communication consultant, and media specialist, Mrs Halima Oyelade has charged Nigerian Women to embrace new innovations and digital technology.

Oyelade in an exclusive interview with leading reporters stated that there are still opportunities in the digital space that can empower women, yet only few untapped.

According to the communication expert, there exists greatness and awesomeness in every Nigerian woman and the world is waiting to celebrate them despite daunting challenges.

Read Also: Encomium Trails The Oyelades at Book Launch, Thanksgiving

“The way to the top is not a walk in the park be resilience in what you are doing let’s come together as women to help and support one another, amazing doors are opening in the digital world and that could empower women”.

“Let’s keep our eyes and mind open to keep our voice together, there are unprecedented opportunities that are available if we are bold enough to utilize them”.

Meanwhile, Oyelade celebrating Nigerian women especially those in tech stated that some of them in spite of daunting challenges are under represented which is a barrier to building their careers but against all odds, women have fought through, they are fighters and still fighting.

Read Also: Halima Oyelade, An Exemplary Christian Woman – RCCG

“To a large extent, they have harnessed opportunities and contributed in no small measures, I encourage women to look for those opportunities so that when opportunities comes they will be ready to clinch it when they are fully prepared. I say kudos to lots of them doing well in the digital space”.

Oyelade noted that women has also been affected by issues of data access, connectivity and privacy which has infringed on their rights.

“When it comes to the issues of access to data connectivity, privacy is general, but it affects women too because generally men will have it easier to get access or more financially stable.

“On privacy policies, sadly we have seen how technology has infringe the rights and privacy of people and that could put fear in some people.

“Generally, I will say it has affected women but we should continue to thrive, but we should leverage on opportunities to take options”. She added.

Kenny Folarin, Abuja.

As Nigeria joins the world to celebrate the 2023 International Women’s Day, (IWD), Baobab for Women’s Human Rights has implored the federal government to create a digital future for women.

Executive Director,Baobab for women’s Human Rights (BAOBAB), Ms. Bunmi Dipo-Salami, JP in a statement on Wednesday stated that it is important to create a digital future in which all members of the Nigerian society enjoy equal rights to safety, dignity and freedom, protect women and girls from online gender-based violence, and close the existing digital gender divide. 

Dipo-Salami explained that across the world, studies have shown that technology has the potential for opening new doors for the global empowerment of women and girls through gender-responsive digital learning, tech-facilitated sexual and reproductive healthcare, and addressing the pervasive threat of online gender-based violence, an evolving challenge which oftentimes lacks legal recourse. 

She highlighted the components of online gender-based violence which include privacy violations, sexual harassment, trafficking, cyberstalking, and so forth.

Continuing, Dipo-Salami stated that the COVID-19 pandemic has thrown up digital innovations which have improved advocacy to end sexual and gender-based violence, as well as capacity building for a wide range of stakeholders, especially young women, through online training, and webinars on social media platforms.

She noted that although women’s contribution to the digital world cannot be overemphasized, their accomplishments have not been met with commensurate appreciation. 

“As we celebrate the International Women’s Day, BAOBAB urges the Nigerian government to take its responsibility of protecting the lives of vulnerable and marginalized groups, particularly women more seriously”

“One way of accelerating this is by domesticating and implementing regional and international laws that protect and promote women’s rights, especially the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (The Maputo Protocol), which has been adjudged one of the world’s most comprehensive and progressive women’s human rights instruments”.

Dipo-Salami stated the theme of this year’s celebration is DigitALL: Innovation and Technology for Gender Equality resonate the power of innovative digital technology in improving the lives of women and girls by eliminating all forms of discrimination and inequality. 

It also aligns with the priority theme for the upcoming 67th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW-67).

“Innovation and technological change, and education in the digital age for achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls”.  

She noted that despite several campaigns against gender inequality, women around the world still battle discrimination and inequality. Women’s sexual and reproductive health, which is related to multiple human rights, including the right to life, the right to be free from torture, the right to health, the right to privacy, the right to education and so forth continues to be undermined. 

“There is still a general lack of sexual health information available to women and girls, as well as barriers to reproductive rights as a result of culture, religion, beliefs and laws that alienate women’s human rights”.

She however urge non-state actors to continue to double efforts to discuss strategies, lessons, successes, and challenges to stimulate actions for the protection and promotion of women’s rights through digital platforms.

“We also call on all and sundry to #EmbraceEquity by enabling a violence-free society where both men and women, men and boys alike have access to opportunities and enjoy rights that enable the growth and development of the nation”. She added.

The ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, has appointed 12 Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs) to defend the mandate of its presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, in the just concluded election.

Recall that Tinubu polled 8,794,726 votes in 12 of Nigeria’s 36 states, higher than his closest rival, Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

While the former vice president came second with 6,984,520 votes, the candidate of the Labour Party, LP, Peter Obi, finished the race with 6,101,533.

Both Atiku and Obi have rejected the outcome of the election, vowing to seek redress in court.

But the ruling party, in its readiness to defend the mandate, said it is willing to meet the opposition parties in court.

In a statement on Tuesday, the party’s National Legal Adviser, Ahmad Usman El-Marzuq, released the 13-man list comprising 12 senior advocates.

Top on the list is a legal icon, Wole Olanipekun, who is also the lead counsel to the ruling party at the Presidential Election Tribunal.

“The All Progressives Congress (APC) has appointed a team of highly qualified and experienced lawyers to represent the Party at the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal,” the statement read.

“The team is composed of legal luminaries with vast experience in election petition matters, constitutional law, and litigation.

“The legal team consisting of twelve (12) Senior Advocates of Nigeria and the National Legal Adviser of the Party, Ahmad Usman El-Marzuq, Esq., is led by Prince Lateef Fagbemi SAN, a renowned lawyer who has successfully handled various high-profile election matters and other landmark cases.”

Other members of the list are Ahmad Usman El-Marzuq, Sam Ologunorisa, Rotimi Oguneso, Olabisi Soyebo, Gboyega Oyewole, Muritala Abdulrasheed, Aliyu Omezia Saiki, Tajudeen Oladoja, Pius Akubo, Oluseye Opasanya, Suraju Saida and Kazeem Adeniyi.

The Supreme Court has ordered the usage of the old naira notes alongside the new ones, berating the Federal Government and the Central Bank of Nigeria for punishing Nigerians with naira scarcity.

The court also invalidated the directive of the Central Bank of Nigeria and federal government, faulting them for disobeying its interim orders on usage of old notes.

Recall that the apex court had earlier granted an exparte motion filed by the governments of Kaduna, Kogi and Zamfara states seeking “an interim Injunction restraining the federal government through the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) or the commercial banks from suspending or determining or ending on February 10, 2023, the time frame with which the now older version of the 200, 500 and 1,000 denomination of the naira may no longer be legal tender pending the hearing and determination of their motion on notice for an interlocutory injunction”.

But the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Abubakar Malami, SAN, through his counsel, Kanu Agabi SAN, had filed a preliminary objection against the suit, urging the apex court to dismiss the application because the court of first instance is the Federal High Court.

The AGF also contended that the appropriate agency to be sued is the Central Bank of Nigeria.

The plaintiffs later told the court in their processes that the representative of the federal government should be charged for contempt because they allegedly did not comply with the interim directive that the old currencies should continue to be legal tender.

Katsina, Lagos, Cross River, Ogun, Ekiti, Ondo and Sokoto states were joined as co-plaintiffs in the case while Bayelsa and Edo states later joined the AGF as respondents.

For Rivers and Kano states, they filed separate suits before the apex court saying they are challenging the withdrawal limits imposed by the CBN.

But at the resumed date of hearing on February 23, the first and second plaintiff’s (Kaduna and Kogi states) counsel, Abdulakim Mustapha SAN, urged the court to dismiss the preliminary objection of the reapondents.

The initial plaintiffs thereby urged the apex court to hold that in the interest of justice, the president or the CBN cannot usurp the powers of the state governments, by unilaterally stopping the usage of old naira notes without consulting with the National Economic Council and Federal Executive Council.

On Friday, the seven man panel of the court led by Justice John Okoro (in a verdict prepared by Justice E. Agim), said the CBN and FG cannot make sure policy without consulting with states.

The court held that although the CBN further reviewed cash withdrawal limit for N500,000 and 5 million for individuals and businesses; by 15th February, 2023, the new naira notes were not sufficiently available to Nigerians.

The panel held the CBN did not state the amount of new naira notes it disbursed, adding it is not in dispute that bank institutions did not have new notes to pay customers based on CBN’s cash withdrawal limit of N500,000.

“The policy of the federal government punished Nigerians and grounded economic activities nationwide,” the court held.

It observed that customers stood for hours in bank but could not get the money they needed.

On jurisdiction, the apex court held the naira swap case falls within its purview and judicial powers.

“The directive of the president is in exercise of the executive powers of the federation vested on him and the federal government and its agencies represents all the constituent state of the federation.