Metro
Foundation trains over 600 vulnerable youths to acquire skills in 5 years
The Ladi Memorial Foundation (LMF) has given lifeline through training to over 600 vulnerable youths on skill acquisition, within the past five years the founder and Executive Director of the foundation Mrs Rosemary Osikoya, has said.
Osikoya who was former commissioner for education and later Environment in Kogi State said the foundation is aimed at empowering the youths and women to be self-reliant while providing them with a platform to acquire life-changing carrier coaching and mentoring.
“Since five years ago that the NGO has been in existence, we have been rendering vocational services to both in and out-of-school students at various levels.
“We have so far trained about 600 youth, most of them vulnerable in the society. We are helping them to access livelihood equipment and to give them hope,” she said.
Osikoya explained that 54 students in public school and dropouts were enrolled for the pilot public school co~curricular TVET Project, which was flagged off on July 8, 2021; while the club meetings commenced on July 26, 2021.
She said the trade skills taught were basic garment making for men, women and children; bag making, catering craft Practice: baking and confectionaries, and food preparation.
She added that the foundation provided the training free including consumables, equipment, learning tools, textbooks among others, and supported by generous individuals and organizations, which was acknowledged by the Schools’ TVET Champions 2021 Awards.
Osikoya stressed that most of those trained by the NGO were school drop-outs but were reintroduced to school, adding that, their self-esteem had increased.
“For this programme, we registered 54 people who went through our training for a period of six months. I am happy to announce to you that we are graduating 32 youths today.
“Skill helps to build and develop their personal capacity, which is the whole idea of the training.
”A total of 35 candidates were enrolled for NABTEB modular trade exams December 2021 in both JSS/GSS Pyakasa, Abuja, and out of school youths/women in Lokoja.
”The NABTEB modular trade Exams that were taken include: Baking and confectionaries, Food preparation, Pattern drafting, and Garment construction & finishing,” she said.
The executive director described the programme as a huge success considering the number of youths that it had helped to take off the street.
She, therefore urged educational institutions at various levels to adopt modules in skills acquisition, so as to equip students with skills that move them away from unemployment after school.
Other partners’ groups and individuals at the event also pledged their various commitments to supporting the co-curricullar TVET project.
The Vice Chairman LMF Board of Trustees, Engr. Kashim Ali, described the project as turning point, and noble and promising beginning for the young beneficiaries saying it would mark a positive turn in their journey in life.
Ali, who was a former COREN President, said the LMF remained committed to contributing positively to national development through quality human capacity development in the strategic areas of focus.
According to him, LMF is focusing on functional, practical skills for survival, livelihood improvements, entrepreneurship and employment which remains the bedrock of every national productivity, economic growth and personal fulfilment.
”Today’s event which brings us together presents a humble initiative to encourage TVET culture and strengthen integration of TVET certification in the formal education.
”It is a commendable feat bringing together various categories of stakeholders, forges linkages of cooperation and presents a new platform for focused partnership collaboration, mentorship and coaching everyone can buy into”, he said.
Ali expressed hope that the LMF Young Entrepreneurs’ Club (YEClub) Project experience and lessons learnt shared both today and afterwards would provide beneficial insight to education policy makers, administrators and other stakeholders.
Mr Yusuf Alli, the Managing Editor, Northern Operations of The Nation Newspaper, a Facilitator of the programme, commended the founder for the initiative, adding that, it would divert the attention of youths from societal ills.
“I came here to give my own support as a facilitator but when I saw the initiative, I was encouraged.”
The creativity, innovation and skills’ mastery demonstrated by students were judged by VIPs at the event, and the best talents were rewarded with various prizes depending on their skills’ categories.
The winners of the Garment making craft Student-preneurs category: First position- Favour Ifeanyi Chisom SS2 (female); Second position- Israeli Oloyede SS3 (male); and Third position & most improved student~preneur, Abubakar Akilu Hassan SS1 (male) of GSS Pyakasa, all got a Sewing machine each.
The winners of the Catering craft prizes in the studentpreneurs category: First position- Peace Daniel JSS3; Second position- Precious Noah Yahaya SS3; and Third position- Rachael Tojuola SS2, all female students of GSS Pyakasa.
The first (Peace Daniel), second (Precious Yahaya) and third (Rachael Tojuola) positions, received Gas cooker; Kenwood cake mixer; and a complete set of cooking pots respectively.
Human rights activist and lawyer Deji Adeyanju has issued a scathing response to comments made against him by Nyesom Wike, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) minister and former Rivers State governor. Wike had recently accused Adeyanju of being jobless, noting that the activist once sought his support in a bid to become the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) national publicity secretary.
During a press briefing in Abuja on Friday, Adeyanju didn’t hold back, describing Wike as “a bully and a coward.”
He went on to criticize Wike’s character and political approach, saying, “Wike has never worked anywhere in his life. He is a serial betrayer. The only difference between Wike and Portable is that Portable does not betray people who have helped him.”
Adeyanju praised Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara for his recent actions against Wike, saying, “I commend Governor Fubara for dealing decisively with him. That’s how to deal with tyrants. Wike is nothing without politics.”
He further expressed his concerns over Wike’s influence, stating, “The reason why he is making so much noise and constituting a nuisance all over the place is because of our political patrimony that he loots. Clowns and charlatans like Nyesom Wike will open their mouths and criticize true activists.”
Adeyanju also highlighted the importance of citizens participating in politics, saying, “Wike wants everyone to leave politics to rogues like him. His idea of nation-building is where people like him control everything. All citizens of conscience should get involved in politics.”
The back-and-forth between Adeyanju and Wike highlights ongoing tensions within Nigerian political circles and has sparked discussions about the role of activists and the nature of leadership in the country.
***Emotional Farewell as Nigeria Mourns a Dedicated Military Leader
Amid deep sorrow and heartfelt tributes, the late Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt. General Taoreed Lagbaja, was laid to rest on Friday at the National Cemetery in Abuja.
His burial concluded two days of solemn funeral rites that began in Lagos, marking the end of an impactful military career.
The casket bearing Lagbaja, draped in Nigeria’s green and white, arrived at the cemetery around 3 pm following a funeral service at the National Christian Centre in Abuja.
His body was lowered into the earth at 4:41 pm after a ceremony lasting over two hours.
The event was attended by numerous dignitaries, including President Bola Tinubu, Vice President Kashim Shettima, Acting Chief of Army Staff Lt. Gen. Olufemi Oluyede, Chief of Defence Staff General Christopher Musa, Defence Minister Abubakar Badaru, and other high-ranking officials.
President Tinubu, paying tribute, called Lagbaja’s appointment one of his most significant decisions and announced a posthumous national honor of Commander of the Federal Republic (CFR) for the late COAS. He urged the military not to lose hope: “Please, do not let death defeat us, and as Commander-in-Chief, I renew my pledge that the country will always support you and your families.”
General Musa, the Chief of Defence Staff, echoed this sentiment, calling Lagbaja’s passing a call to strengthen the military’s resolve.
“Let us ensure his sacrifice continues to guide us as we defend this nation. We are resolved to defeat all enemies of the state, whether within or outside,” he stated.
Acting COAS Oluyede expressed personal gratitude for Lagbaja’s mentorship, sharing that he had nominated him for a national honor even while facing illness.
Lagbaja’s funeral rites began with a service of songs at the Army Headquarters Garrison Parade Ground, Mogadishu Cantonment, on Thursday, following the arrival of his body at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport from Lagos.
Lt. General Lagbaja, born on February 28, 1968, served as Nigeria’s Chief of Army Staff for over a year, having been appointed by President Tinubu in June 2023. He passed away on November 5 after a brief illness, leaving a legacy of dedication and patriotism.
A civil society group, Good Governance Alliance – Nigeria (GGA-N), has condemned the Lagos State government following an alleged invasion of former Transportation Minister Admiral Festus Porbeni’s Lekki property by state officials on Friday morning.
They called for immediate action against alleged breach of court order on Admiral Festus Porbeni’s property.
According to the group, the invasion is in direct violation of a Federal High Court order and sets a dangerous precedent for lawlessness.
In a statement issued by GGA-N representative Nathaniel Obasi, the group reported that officials from the Lagos State Special Task Force forcefully entered Admiral Porbeni’s property at Wole Olateju Crescent around 7:30 am, accompanied by heavily-armed mobile policemen.
Obasi noted that the task force allegedly beat, arrested, and detained several individuals on the premises, placing them in a police vehicle known as ‘Black Maria.’
The statement emphasized that this raid contradicts a Federal High Court injunction prohibiting any disruption at the property and disregards a recent Supreme Court ruling granting federal control over inland waterways and adjacent lands within 100 meters.
Despite Porbeni’s possession of a Federal Certificate of Occupancy, the Lagos State Task Force allegedly threatened to bulldoze structures on the property, sparking concerns over escalating conflicts between state and federal jurisdiction.
GGA-N therefore urged the Chief Justice of Nigeria, the Inspector-General of Police, Lagos Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, and federal agencies overseeing waterways to intervene, asserting that the Lagos State government’s actions could lead to “lawlessness and chaos.”
According to him, the disputed property was previously invaded in 2021.
Obasi claimed that at about 7:30am this Friday, officials from the Lagos State Special Task Force, illegally forced their way into Admiral Porbeni’s property at Wole Olateju Crescent, Lekki, despite the Federal High Court order, which barred any agent from entering the premises or harassing any person at the premises.
It added the Lagos State Special Task Force accompanied by heavily-armed mobile policemen, beat up, arrested and threw staff and other people met on the property into a police vehicle called ‘Black Maria’, which they brought “for the illegal raid”.
“The officials who cordoned off the area are now threatening to bulldoze all structures on the property, in brazen breach of the Federal High Court order (FHC/L/CS/1384/21).
“The actions of the Task Force is also in disregard of the landmark ruling of the Supreme Court in January which affirmed the federal government’s exclusive control of the country’s inland waterways and all lands within 100 meters of all declared federal waterways in Nigeria.
“The question is despite Admiral Porbeni being in possession of a Federal Certificate of Occupancy (CofO), how is the Lagos State Government allowed to flout not only an injunction from the Federal High Court but also a ruling from the Supreme Court?
“The Lagos state government’s brazen disobedience of court orders is a recipe for lawlessness and chaos. We draw the urgent attention of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Inspector General of Police, the Governor of Lagos State and relevant federal government agencies in charge of federal waterways in the country to the illegal raid and occupation by the Lagos State Special Task Force,” Obasi stated
-
Crime1 year agoPolice nabs Killer of Varsity Lecturer in Niger
-
News10 months agoFCT-IRS tells socialite Aisha Achimugu not to forget to file her annual returns
-
Appointment1 year agoTinubu names El-Rufai, Tope Fasua, others in New appointments
-
News From Kogi1 year agoINEC cancells election in 67 polling units in Ogori-Magongo in Kogi
-
News From Kogi1 year agoEchocho Challenges Tribunal Judgment ordering rerun in 94 polling units
-
News1 year agoIPOB: Simon Ekpa gives reason for seperatists clamour for Biafra
-
Metro8 months ago‘Listing Simon Ekpa among wanted persons by Nigeria military is rascality, intimidation’
-
News10 months agoKingmakers of Igu/ Koton-Karfe dare Bello, urge him to reverse deposition of Ohimege-Igu