Organisation Records 50 Cases Of Child Sexual Offences

The Child Protection Network (CPN) on Wednesday said it recorded and handled 50 reported cases of sexual offences against children in Plateau since January.

The CPN State Coordinator, Mr Tony Obemeasor, disclosed this at a workshop organised for stakeholders on “CPN Reporting Procedures on Violence Against Children (VAC)”
in Jos.

Obemeasor said the Plateau Government provided funding for the 50 cases of child sexual offences to ensure appropriate action was taken.

He added that “we got assistance from the office of the secretary to the state government to follow up 50 cases reported from January till date.

“The funds were used to train case officers currently assigned to families on case management.

“The cases are being managed in collaboration with the state’s Ministry of Justice to ensure all cases currently undertaken by CPN come to a logical conclusion.

“Of these 50 cases, 10 were assigned to five case workers with each handling two cases each.

“In the new year, we expect to take over 20 more cases after conducting the second phase of training for the case management officers.”

The CPN coordinator said the objective of the workshop was to work with key stakeholders, brainstorm and produce an appropriate VAC reporting procedure.

He said the key stakeholders included the Police, Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), medical personnel, the state’s Ministry of Justice, as well as the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development.

Obemeasor added that the objective of the workshop was to develop a plan for a way forward to avert child sexual cases or any form of child-related offences through appropriate and coordinated reporting pattern.

He said the plan would be forwarded to the ministry for women affairs for proactive action to avert the menace.

In his remarks, Mr Stephen Dewan, a National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) official, said it was apparent there was no interdepartmental synergy for reports to be sent to the accurate channel for appropriate action.

Dewan, who is the NYSC Assistant Director for Planning, Research and Statistics in Plateau, said that the Corps was a viable tool that could easily be mobilised for sensitisation and advocacy purposes.

He explained that the NYSC was looking forward to collaborating with CPN for a robust awareness campaign on child abuse and sexual harassment.

Mr Gwamfa Kannap, the Director, Child Welfare of the Ministry for Women Affairs and Social Development, said that the collaboration with Civil Society Organisations, the CPN and NGOs to monitor activities was important.

Kannap said the workshop would bridge the gap and ensure clear record of data of such cases for appropriate action.

Credit: NAN

Nigeria Records Increased Oil Output Ahead OPEC Production Cut Talks

The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries agreed in September in Algiers to trim production but the accord still has to be finalised on November 30 in Vienna.

In its November monthly report, OPEC said that its 14 members pumped 33.64 million barrels a day (mb/d) in October, 236,000 barrels more than in September.

Saudi Arabia’s output fell 51,700 bpd to 10.5 mb/d but Iraq and Iran, the next biggest producers, registered increases, as did Libya and Nigeria, the report said.

Iran, Saudi Arabia’s arch foe, in particular is keen to keep the taps open following the lifting of international sanctions under last year’s landmark nuclear deal.

The OPEC report chimed broadly with figures released Thursday by the International Energy Agency, which put cartel output at 33.8 mb/d.

The IEA said this was “well in excess” of the 32.5 mb/d to 33.0 mb/d range agreed by OPEC in September.

“This means that OPEC must agree to significant cuts in Vienna to turn its Algiers commitment into reality,” the IEA added.

The September agreement lifted oil prices but they remain hovering at around $45 per barrel.

On Friday late morning Brent North Sea was trading at $45.44 in London, down $0.40 from Thursday. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) was down $0.57 at $44.09 on the Nymex.

Credit: AFP

Government Records N1.90tr Deficit Financing In Second Quarter

An estimated deficit of N1,090.96 billion was recorded in the fiscal operations of the Federal Government at the end of the second quarter of this year.

According to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), in its Second Quarter (Q2) Economic Report, the deficit indicates an increase of 96.4 per cent above the provisional quarterly budget deficit of N555.49 billion.

The report just released and obtained by The Guardian yesterday said provisional data indicated that federally-collected revenue during the second quarter of 2016 was N1,159.05 billion which represents 51.3 per cent, and is 8.6 per cent lower than the quarterly budget estimate and receipts in the preceding quarter, respectively.

The CBN said: “The decline in federally-collected revenue (gross) relative to the budget estimate was attributable to the shortfall in receipts from both oil and non-oil revenue, during the reviewed quarter.”

It further reviewed that at N537.19 billion or 46.3 per cent of the total revenue, gross oil receipt was lower than the provisional quarterly budget and the receipts in the preceding quarter by 39.2 per cent and 19.4 per cent, respectively. It also said the decline in oil revenue relative to the budget estimate was caused by the persistent fall in receipts from crude oil and gas occasioned by low price of crude oil in the international market and the series of production shut- ins and shut-downs. .

The report indicated that though at N621.86 billion or 53.7 per cent of total revenue, gross non- oil receipts was above the receipts in the preceding quarter by 3.2 per cent, it was, below the provisional budget estimate by 58.4 per cent. The decline in non-oil revenue relative to the provisional budget estimate was due, largely, to the shortfall in receipts from all of its components except Customs Special Levies (Non-Federation Account) during the quarter under review.

CBN also gave insights into the distribution of the generated revenue within the quarter: “Of the gross federally-collected revenue, a net sum of N665.67 billion was transferred to the Federation Account for distribution among the three tiers of government and the 13.0% Derivation Fund. The sums of N100.92 billion, N186.83 billion and N48.09 billion were transferred to the Federal Government Independent Revenue, VAT Pool Account and others. The Federal Government received N323.16 billion, while the state and local governments received N163.91 billion and N126.37 billion. The balance of N52.23 billion was allocated to the 13.0% Derivation Fund for distribution among the oil-producing states. The Federal Government also received N28.02 billion from the VAT Pool Account, while the state and local governments received N93.41 billion and N65.39 billion.

Read More:

http://guardian.ng/news/government-records-n1-90tr-deficit-financing-in-second-quarter/

Abuja Airport Records Low Patronage Of Clients During New Year Celebration

The Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, recorded low movement of passengers as the world prepares to celebrate the New Year on Friday, in Abuja, on Thursday.

Mr Tony Ameh, Manager, Aero Contractors, said observed that both the departure and the arrival sections of both domestic and international wings of the airport were deserted unlike Dec. 24, when there was heavy traffic. that the rush associated with festive period was minimal, adding that the airline had recorded less number of passengers as against the previous years.

Ameh disclosed that the airline had more passengers during the Christmas period, adding that the airline had only five flights today compared to the 11 flights it operated during Christmas,also there was no fare hike during the season, explaining that the difference in ticket price was as a result of online booking and on the counter booking.

According to him, aside the fact that the economy is not too good at the moment, a lot of people that travelled to different parts of the country for Christmas are yet to return.

We have lesser number of passengers this year compared to last year’s and the previous years, and I believe it is due to the present economic situation in the country.

Like today, there is no fare hike unlike during Christmas when there was high demand for seats because if you are buying ticket over the counter you tend to pay more.

But when you buy your ticket online with some days’ interval, you enjoy cheaper fare but as you are approaching the flight, the fare goes up,’’ he said. However, optimism for a better and violence free Nigeria devoid of terrorism as much as better economic improvement in 2016.
I wish our esteem customers safe flights in 2016 as they continue to fly with us and I want to remind them that air is the most secured mode of transportation.

“We promise our customers better services, affordable fares, on-time departure and improved service delivery as we pray that God continues to guide us to maintain good safety records,’’ he said.

Credit: Dailytimes