10th Senate Will Rubber Stamp What’s Good For Nigerians, Says Akpabio  

Sunday Aborisade in Abuja

The anointed candidate for the position of the 10th Senate Presidency, Senator Godswill Akpabio, has said that the National Assembly, if elected, would not be a rubber stamp parliament but would “rubber stamp whatever is good for Nigerians and what Nigerians want.”

Akpabio stated this at a dinner organised for him and the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the position of the deputy Senate President, Barau Jibrin, by some Senators-elect under the aegis of Stability Group.

The former governor of Akwa Ibom State said with him as Senate President, things would work better for Nigerians.

“Things would change in Nigeria for good under this administration and that is our promise to Nigerians. Be rest assured that we shall succeed by the special grace of God,” he said.

Akpabio, according to a statement by his media office, said the dinner was organised by the leadership of the group for members to further deliberate on how to collaborate with the President Tinubu-led administration for the benefit of Nigeria and Nigerians.

He said the meeting was a continuation of the one earlier held at AV Suites.

“We believe that it is important we continue to bond together because God has put us together for the next four years to work for the benefit of Nigerians  in the 10th Senate,” Akpabio said.

Speaking further, the former Senate Minority Leader, said “We believe that every Senator irrespective of his or her political party is first and foremost a Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

On the allegation that the Senate under his leadership would be a rubber stamped one, Akpabio said, “The 10th Senate is made up not only men and women of high integrity but people of diverse

Skills Acquisition:  World Bank Partners Ogun to Train 10,000 Youths 

James Sowole in Abeokuta

The Ogun State Government is set to partner the World Bank to train not less than 10,000 youths in different types of trade while reviving all the State Technical Colleges.

 Planned under the state’s Skills Fund Project of the State Economic Transformation Project (OGSTEP) office, is to improve economic livelihood and enhance productivity among citizens.

The immediate past Commissioner for Budget and Planning Mr. Olaolu Olabimtan, disclosed the state’s effort, during an interview with journalists.

He said the project was set up as an initiative to support technical and vocational skills in the state, towards the production of skilled and employable youths and to check lack of adequate skilled manpower in workplaces.

Olabimtan said that the project would be executed by people of integrity as Board of Trustees, to ensure that the fund is separated from normal government budgetary systems in order to achieve transparency and sustainability.

The former commissioner explained that the selection process for the skills fund would be community-based, though in a very competitive manner.

He posited it was high time the society desist from celebrating individuals with questionable sources of wealth, rather, encourage hard work, diligence and the acquisition of skills.

Speaking on the project, the immediate past Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Prof. Abayomi Arigbabu, noted that the government cannot employ everybody as civil servants and has therefore provided a means of empowering them and making them employers of labour themselves.

He noted that the skills acquisition programme is well-structured and technologically driven unlike the traditional skills acquisition method.

He therefore, called on parents of interested learners from Junior Secondary School (JSS 3) not to discourage their children and wards from attending the State Technical Colleges as the certification from the colleges would be recognised by creditable bodies and they would still have the opportunity of proceeding to universities or polytechnics in order to be more academically inclined if desired.

Also speaking, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education Science and Technology, Mrs. Abosede Ogunleye, appreciated the state government for her effort in tackling the menace of unemployment especially among youths, saying that the project would go a long way in changing the narrative of the state and create a better society.

She described handwork as very important all over the world and urged the intending trainees never to take skills acquisition for granted.

Explaining the scope of the training, the Coordinator of the State Economic Transformation Project (OGSTEP) in the state, Mrs. Mosunmola Owo-Odunsi, said  that the skills development programme under the Ministry of Education Science and Technology is being sponsored through OGSTEP by the World Bank.

She added that the duration for each of the skills would range from 2 to 9 months.

Mrs. Owo-Odunsi, disclosed this during a sensitisation visit to one of the Training Centres in Obada-Oko area of the state.