Mali's Rare Desert Elephants Threatened by Poachers, Conflict

FILE - A herd of desert elephants searches for water in the drought-stricken Gourma region of Mali.

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Katarina Hoije

October 09, 2015 2:11 PM

BAMAKO, MALI—

Poachers have killed more than 50 elephants in Mali this year, a large portion of the country's declining elephant population.

In an attempt to protect the diminishing herd, 50 rangers are set to patrol a vast area in northern Mali, frequented not only by poachers, but also jihadists, armed militias and drug and arms traffickers.

There are just 350 to 500 elephants left in Mali, and those that remain face threats not only from poachers, but also from armed groups, climate change and reduced rainfall.

From January to June this year, 87 elephants were found dead, at least 57 of which were killed by poachers, said Mamadou Haidara of the national conservation and wildlife authority.

“This year we have seen an increase in the numbers of elephants killed, about 20 percent of the total population," said Haidara. "If this continues very soon there will be no elephants left.”

An aerial view of the dried up Lake Banzena in the drought-stricken Gourma region of Mali, May 24, 2009.

According to the U.S.-based WILD Foundation conservancy, which helps protect Mali's northern Gourma herd, about 90 elephants have been killed since late 2014.

The elephants' home is located in a part of Mali that is not under complete government control, and it is an area where al-Qaida and other extremist groups have been active.

“As you know, Mali is in a situation where it’s very difficult to control this territory," said Haidara. "The armed groups and others take advantage of the insecurity to kill the elephants and sell the ivory."

Following the occupation of northern Mali by Islamist extremists in 2012, many young men were lured by high salaries offered by al-Qaida while others took up arms.

When the extremists lost power, young men found themselves without work, rejected by their communities and sometimes even unable to return to their villages.

As Haidara tells it, some went into organized crime, such as poaching.

Armed rangers

To help save the elephants, 50 park rangers will deploy to the region, a 32,000-square kilometer savannah and semi-desert region. The rangers will be armed, though the weapons have yet to arrive.

“Fifty men is far from enough, but at least it’s better than nothing,” Haidara said.

No other elephant herd in Africa has developed a migratory pattern like the elephants in Mali, allowing them to survive in an environment with little water and sparse vegetation.

"The elephants come to Mali looking for food and water," he said. "They will spend a couple of months here before they head back to neighboring Burkina Faso to spend another three, four months.”

Tens of thousands of elephants once roamed West Africa’s savannahs, though now poaching and climate change have drastically diminished their numbers.

This man killed his mother and remove her heart !

It Felt Good To Kill My Mother And Remove Her Heart, Son Claims

Posted by: Olumide October 8, 2015

A man of California, was arrested and charged with murder after killing his mother. 31-year-old Omar Pettigen, who brutally murdered his mother with an ax and hammer before cutting out her heart, told police that killing felt good, police said.

The mother, who was a retired high school teacher, has been identified as 64-year-old Nailah Pettigen. She was found dead in her apartment in Fremont, which she shared with her son.

The woman’s former husband called police for a welfare check after he was unable to reach her or her son.  His son Omar, was arrested a few days later, and was arraigned on charges of murder and desecration of a corpse.

The 31-year-old man told detectives that he attacked his mother with a hammer and an ax before he took a gun from the closet and shot her in the back several times before removing her heart, according to court documents. Pettigen is being held at the Santa Rita Jail in Dublin, without bail.

Yomi Fash - Lanso , Nigerian ace actor loses mum

Yomi Fash - lanso , Nigerian ace actor loses mum
It is sad though
But praise to the Lord that his mother lived a very fruitful life
Yomi needs to be consoled
May God give him the latitude to bear the lost
May God grant his mum peacefully eternal life !

Kayode Fayemi : THE FACE OF EKITI : President Buhari is right ! by Wale Ojo lanre

Kayode Fayemi : THE FACE OF EKITI :  President Buhari is right ! by Wale Ojo lanre
The nomination of Dr John Kayode Fayemi as the minister designate from Ekiti sate is one of the best decision which president Buhari has ever made in recent time
This is my own person and sound opinion which may not go down with you . and to tell you , i give no hoot about your own judgement so let it be with
me .
JKF as fondly called is one of the outstanding talents from Ekiti state which parade others quintessential human being like Engineer Segun Oni , a honest man to the core and man of integrity for life which the Lord our God through Jesus Christ and Mother Mary has blessed this country with
John kayode Fayemi is not a saint as nobody is but ordinary human being and of the creation of God like you and I
But God has donated a substantial prodigiously robust intellectual ointment in the mental region of this Ekiti man .
It must be said that as a political animal , JFK played the propagandist politics in the first one and half years in the saddled before he commenced absolute governance which sustained the high rate of development his predecessor left behind .
As a well read , well travelled and cosmopolitan fellow , he believed that Ekiti people are not sub human being who must be treated like beggars and hungry bunch of homosapiens hence his urbanised concept of development the society in the spirit of all are citizens are honourables who need not treated as scums who survive only by remnants in the name of out stomach infrastructure except the aged who need social welfare
And it is a reality that Ekiti people have been a proud and sometimes arrogant bunch of people who hate begging ( ki a ma toripe a jeran ka ma pe malu ni broda) or spoon feeding ..
Thus hs administration was not about destroying the noble surviving initiative mechanism of the people by adopting cheap stomach infrastructure method or policy but by aggressive creation of investment alluring atmosphere which he achieved
He planted solid and sustainable projects which are today inestimable property and commonweal belonging to Ekiti .
A visionary who believed that Ekiti state deserves the best in terms of , educational infrastructure , Governor's house , the remodelling of the rustic Ikogosi warm and Cold Spring into an internationally tourists site in the world motorable roads , health institutions , vibrant civil service , restoration of Ekiti value system far , far away from 'arisers' and opa eyin Friday joints syndrome
His problems was that he never 'failed to relegate the office of the Governorship by romancing with fellow at Aleko , afato and opa eyin joints in Ekiti state when he was the Governor "
He also failed to play and showcase the fake populist tendencies just because he was not out to play on the integrity of the people
He is a realist who will not deceive the people and pretend to be what is not
JKF is prim , proper and fit as a Minister designate from Ekiti
He is an asset to the nation in the area of International diplomacy , international law and conflict .
He is young and agile
His eventual appointment and confirmation of same by the Senator will give hope to the young and incoming generation that all is well and will be well in Nigeria
Dr John kayode Fayemi is eminently qualified to be A Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria
President Buhari is not wrong
Fayemi is ok .

.

Workers beat up Air France executives after announcing sack of 2,900!

Workers beat up Air France executives after announcing sack of 2,900

October 5, 2015

Air France managers were, on Monday, forced to flee the company's headquarters after being attacked by a mob of workers that tore their clothes off.

Hundreds of angry staff stormed the Air France building at the Charles de Gaulle International Airport in Roissy, near Paris, after the company announced plans to cut 2,900 jobs on Monday.

Two senior executives, Xavier Broseta, Vice President for Human Resources, and Pierre Plissonnier, deputy of Air France long-haul flights, both had their shirts ripped off their backs as they were evacuated through the crowds.

Shortly before the attack, Mr Broseta and Air France Chief Executive, Frederic Gagey, had outlined a drastic cost cutting plan, which would see 2,900 jobs cut by 2017.

The cuts include 1,700 ground staff, 900 cabin crew and 300 pilots as part of efforts to lower costs, two union sources said.

Air France also confirmed in the meeting that it planned to shed 14 aircraft from its long-haul fleet, reducing the business by 10 per cent and that it wants to cancel its order for Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft.

This outraged staff, who are already at loggerheads with the company, and hundreds stormed the building, interrupting the meeting.  

Air France CEO had already left the room on Monday before the works council meeting was interrupted about an hour after it had begun.

Mr Broseta and Mr Plissonnier had to be escorted through the crowds by security as outraged union members tore their suits apart, forcing them to climb over a fence to get to safety. 

Parent Air France-KLM said it planned to take legal action over 'aggravated violence' carried out against its managers.

The action of the workers were later condemned by France's main airline industry union FNAM, calling it 'outdated behaviour.'

Violent protests by workers are commonplace in France, where the population has a long tradition of taking the law into its own hands.

Traffic disruption, damage to public property and injuries to police officers have gone hand-in-hand with a spate of demonstrations by farmers, taxi drivers, ferry workers and even tobacconists.

Read 21 Minister designates Buhari submits to the Senate

Ministerial list: Buhari submits 21 names • Fashola, Amaechi, Ngige, Onu, Aisha Alhassan, Fayemi, Malami Abubakar, Kachikwu make list

OCTOBER 1, 2015 : OUR CORRESPONDENTS 

 

Senate President, Bukola Saraki, receiving the ministerial nominees on Wednesday
| credits: http://www.olufamous.com/

Senate President, Bukola Saraki, on Wednesday received the ministerial nominees list at about 4:56pm from the Presidency but said the content of the presidential communication would be read on Tuesday.

The Senate had adjourned plenary at 2:00pm on Wednesday till Tuesday, October 6.

Sources said 21 names were contained in the list.

The Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari, in company with the Senior Special Assistant to the President on National Assembly Matters (Senate),   Ita Enang, delivered the list in a sealed envelope to the Senate President in his office.

Saraki, who left the office around 5:30pm, later spoke to journalists through his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Alhaji Yusuph Olaniyonu, explaining that the list would be read on the floor during plenary Tuesday next week.

“The Senate president received the ministerial list around 5:00pm this evening but no action would be taken on it until next week Tuesday. The envelope is still sealed,” Olaniyonu told journalists.

But The PUNCH learnt that a former Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola; and a former Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi, made the list.

Also said to be on the list are Kayode Fayemi, a former governor of Ekiti State; a former Governor of Anambra State, Chris Ngige; and a one-time Governor of Abia State, Ogbonaya Onu.

Malami Abubakar, SAN, a former National Legal Adviser to the defunct Congress for Progressives Change; Aisha Alhassan, a former governorship candidate of the APC in Taraba State; and Amina Mohammed, a special adviser to the Secretary-General of the United nations, Ban Ki-Moon, also made the ministerial list. Same for a former finance commissioner in Ogun State, Kunle Adeosun.

Curiously, the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Ibe Kachikwu, is said to be on the list, perhaps to combine his headship of the NNPC with junior petroleum minister. portfolio. Buhari has already announced himself as the substantive Minister of Petroleum.

The President had pledged that his ministerial nominees would be submitted to the Senate for screening and approval before the end of September thus raising fears on Wednesday that Buhari had failed to keep his promise to Nigerians.

Also, the Senate had earlier on Wednesday announced that the President had yet to send the list of ministers.

The Chairman, Senate Ad-hoc Committee on Media and Publicity, Dino Melaye, who addressed journalists shortly after the Senate had adjourned to Tuesday next week, however urged Nigerians not to lose hope because the September deadline given by Buhari would not expire until midnight.

Melaye had said, “We want to announce that we are still waiting for the ministerial list from Mr. President and I want to advise that there is no need for agitation as September expires by 12 midnight today (Wednesday).

“We want to assure Nigerians that as soon as we get possession of this list we will communicate same to Nigerians through the National Assembly Press Corps.”

He had also reiterated his earlier statement that the Senate “will attend to the ministerial nominees expeditiously but diligently, once the list was sent by the President.”

“Due process will be followed and I repeat that it is not going to be business as usual; we are going to properly screen all nominees and only those who meet the constitutional and moral requirements shall be cleared,” he had added.

Melaye explained that the Senate would as from next week start the consideration of all the communication earlier presented to it by the President concerning some appointments made while the Senate was on recess.

Buhari had on Tuesday sent a letter to the Senate, seeking the confirmation of the appointment of Prof. Umaru Garba Danbatta as the Executive Vice-Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission, for a first term of five years.

Buhari in another letter sought the confirmation of the appointment of Dr. William Babatunde Fowler as Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Board for a four-year term while in another letter, the President sought the confirmation of the appointment of the Managing Director and three executive directors for the Assets Management Company of Nigeria.

The nominees are Kuru as Managing Director; Kola Ayeye, Eberechukwu Uneze and Aminu Ismail as executive directors.

However, the Senate Minority Leader, Godswill Akpabio, had during plenary on Tuesday expressed concern that the Senate president did not read out the list of ministerial nominees despite the fact that newspapers had reported that it was in the Senate.

Akpabio, who had raised a point of order, citing order 14, also noted that the situation became worrisome in view of the fact that the September 30 deadline promised by Buhari would lapse on Wednesday.

But Akpabio’s argument had been countered by the Deputy Senate Leader, Bala Ibn Na’Allah, who explained that the list could still be sent before midnight on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the Senator representing Osun Central Senatorial District, Prof. Olusola Adeyeye, was on Wednesday announced as the Senate Chief Whip by Saraki.

Adeyeye was unanimously endorsed by the South-West caucus of the All Progressives Congress in the red chamber on June 24.

His name was on the list of principal officers approved by the APC leadership as contained in a letter addressed to the Senate president by the National Chairman of the party, Chief John Odigie – Oyegun, on June 23.

Gani Adams tears Governor Amosun apart on secession claims !

Governor Amosun is hallucinating  on secession claim - Gani Adams 

POSTED BY SEGUN ADEBOWALE ON SEPTEMBER 30, 2015 

In a statement on Wednesday, Otunba Adams described the statement credited to Amosun alleging that the OPC and other militias had secessionist tendencies as “hopelessly unfortunate, frivolous in intention and an act which is very undignified of the personality of a South -West Governor”

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The National Coordinator of the Oodua Peoples Congress, Otunba Gani Adams, has cautioned the Governor of Ogun State, Senator Ibukunle Amosun, against making frivolous allegations against ethnic militias in Nigeria.
In a statement on Wednesday, Otunba Adams described the statement credited to Amosun alleging that the OPC and other militias had secessionist tendencies as “hopelessly unfortunate, frivolous in intention and an act which is very undignified of the personality of a South -West Governor”.
Otunba Adams pointed out: “I would have ignored the comment as the ranting of an ant but coming out from the mouth of a Yoruba personality and a Governor of a state in Yorubaland who is supposed to know the import and magnitude of secession to the sovereignty and unity of Nigeria, then I have to make our stand clear and clean.
“To show that the statement is not only shameful and unexpected, but a brazen act of blackmail, which is totally false in concept and malicious, is the fact that for the past 12 years, OPC has not done anything or embarked on any act that is secessionist in nature.
“We have not either through act or deed, nor through spoken words or press release made mention of secession or break up of this country. It is thus surprising where the Executive Governor of Ogun State came about his so called ‘secessionist tendencies’ of OPC.
“Governor Amosun must be hallucinating or coming from a bad dream, for I don’t know where he came about his allegation of secession or felony and OPC.
“It is a criminal libel for Governor Amosun to label OPC as a secessionist group. We are a socio-cultural group determined to protect the territorial-cultural integrity of Yoruba people within the confines of a truly Federal Republic of Nigeria. This is why I participated in the National Confab with resolve for Regionalism not breaking up of the country.
“It is sad that people like Governor Amosun who were hiding their heads and carousing under the comfort of their families during the (late General Sani) Abacha tenure of terror when we were fighting for the reestablishment of democracy in Nigeria are the ones reaping where they did not sow.
“We don’t even begrudge them for this but they are now assaulting our integrity with aggressive and intimidating verbal cholera to project us who were in the trenches as felonists and secessionists.
“I hereby call on Governor Amosun to look for better and presentable onions to sell and position himself for national recognition and respect instead of telling brazen lies and outright falsehood against OPC.
“I expected him to read the statement of the Governor of Ondo State, Dr. Segun Mimiko, who publicly testified to the confidence in the conduct and protection of the OPC members to even the police. That is a statement from a culturally responsible Governor who appreciates and values the essence of OPC in Yorubaland.
“I am not disappointed in him. It is the effect of what they called folio de grandeur, stupidity of greatness. But he should remember that Governor’s tenure is temporal but Yoruba race and its development will outlive him.”
Otunba Adams appealed to members of the OPC not to be demoralized by the “reckless statement of Governor Amosun, which must have been a product of hallucination and frustration, which is not supposed to be misplaced on us.”

DSS screens Buhari’s ministerial nominees

SEPTEMBER 10, 2015 : ADELANI ADEPEGBA AND JOHN ALECHENU 

Director-General, Department of State Security, Lawal Daura,

The Department of State Services has commenced the screening of ministerial nominees sent to it by President Muhammadu Buhari, The PUNCH has learnt on Wednesday.

It was gathered that no fewer than 20 nominees had been vetted by the DSS operatives since the exercise started.

The President was said to have sent to the agency a total of 36 names of would be ministers for security checks.

The identities of the nominees were top secret as of Wednesday.

The President had indicated in a chat with journalists in Accra, Ghana, on Monday that he would keep his promise of announcing names of his ministers this month.

Investigations showed that the screening process by the DSS involved conducting background checks on the careers of the nominees and operatives were also checking for records of the nominees with anti-graft and security agencies.

One of our correspondents gathered that people on the list included mainly those who worked with Buhari when he was in the military and during his stint as the chairman of the defunct Petroleum Trust Fund.

The DSS could not be reached for comment on Wednesday as it had yet to appoint a spokesperson.

‘Security screening not public’

When asked if the Presidency had directed security agencies to vet ministerial nominees, the Special Adviser (Media) to the President, Femi Adesina, simply replied via a text message, “Security screening is naturally a behind-the-scenes matter, thanks.”

Top ranking members of the governing All Progressives Congress have also refrained from speaking about ministerial appointment by Buhari.

One of the APC leaders, who asked not to be named, said, “The truth is that the President is someone who believes in due process.”

“His choice of Daura (Lawal Daura), a member of the old guard, as the DG DSS should tell you something; even those contacted for screening know that any leak of information traced to them could ruin their chances,” the source added.

The National Chairman of the party, Chief John Oyegun, has been out of Abuja for almost one week.

Calls to his mobile phone indicated that it was switched off.

Repeated calls to the mobile telephone number of the National Publicity Secretary of the APC, Mr. Lai Mohammed, were neither picked nor returned as of the time of filing this report.

The ministerial list is yet to be forwarded to the Senate as it is still undergoing security screening.

The President, in an interview he granted the Hausa Service of the BBC on Tuesday, had given a hint about what influenced the appointments he had so far.

He had said, “If I choose people who I know quite well in my political party, people whom we came (together) all the way right from the All Paeoples Party, Congress for Progressive Change and the APC and we have remained together through good and trying times, what then is the reward for such dedication and suffering? They did not defect because of positions; they did not involve themselves in the pursuit of personal gains.”

Such considerations are also likely to influence his choice of ministers, sources indicated.

It will be recalled that Buhari had in July said his cabinet would be made known in September.

The President, in an article published in Washington Post on July 19, said it would neither be prudent nor serve the interests of sound judgment for him to have formed his cabinet immediately he was inaugurated on May 29.

He said it was necessary for the country to first put new rules of conduct and good governance in place before he could make critical appointments into his government.

The article was published ahead of his historic meeting with President Barack Obama of United States in July.

He said it was noteworthy that Obama did not have his full cabinet in place for several months after first taking office.

He said the US did not cease to function in the interim despite that delay.

“When cabinet ministers are appointed in September, it will be some months after I took the oath of office. It is worth noting that Obama himself did not have his full cabinet in place for several months after first taking office; the United States did not cease to function in the interim,” he had said.

Tinubu, Akande meet Buhari after Obasanjo’s visit

SEPTEMBER 10, 2015 : NIYI ODEBODE AND ENIOLA AKINKUOTU 

Akande, Buhari and Tinubu.

The National Leader of the All Progressives Congress, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, and a former Governor of Osun State, Chief Bisi Akande, held a secret meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa on Wednesday.

The visit came less than 24 hours after former President Olusegun Obasanjo met with Buhari.

Addressing State House correspondents after the one-hour meeting, Tinubu, who is a former Governor of Lagos State, said he did not come to submit any ministerial list to the President.

“What can I do about that, they have the right to speculate, they have the right to their lies and I have the right to debunk,” he said.

However, a reliable source told one of our correspondents that the ministerial list was one of the topics discussed at the meeting.

The source said just as Tinubu was given the power to pick Buhari’s running mate during the electioneering, Buhari was giving him the privilege of filling some positions that should go to the South-West.

He said, “Buhari never marginalised the South-West as is being reported. Most of the northern appointments that Buhari made are those that will work closely with him in the villa and Tinubu was not really interested in them.

“It was Tinubu that recommended Babatunde Fowler to head the Federal Inland Revenue Service and that is the next best thing after oil which many people don’t understand.

“Buhari has insisted that people that are answering to cases of corruption will not be part of his government and Tinubu is aware of this. He has recommended a former commissioner in Lagos for appointment too and he will be part of Buhari’s economic team even if he is not appointed as a minister.”

When asked how many ministerial slots Buhari had given Tinubu, the source said he could not say for sure but added that Buhari was planning to compensate Tinubu for losing out to Senate President Bukola Saraki and Yakubu Dogara during the National Assembly internal elections

He added, “Every state is expected to produce a minister and we already know that there will be some issues with some stubborn state governors. So, if Tinubu loses out at the ministerial level, he will be made to nominate the chairman of some parastatals and government agencies.”

When asked to explain why Tinubu and Akande chose to visit Buhari just a day after Obasanjo, the source said, “It was purely coincidental. Buhari is travelling out of the country tomorrow (today) and Tinubu wanted to tidy up some things before the President’s departure.”

Meanwhile, Tinubu has dismissed the Peoples Democratic Party’s allegations of dictatorship levelled against President Buhari.

Tinubu, in an interview with State House correspondents said the PDP should be quiet, if it did not have anything to say.

The former governor stated that the PDP created the rot that Buhari was cleaning, adding that the rot could not be swept under the carpet.

The PDP governors, after a meeting in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital, on Tuesday said Nigeria was sliding into dictatorship under the leadership of Buhari.

Defending the President, Tinubu said, “What is dictatorship about what he has done? He has helped to stimulate the economy in the various states and that is where the people are. So what is dictatorship? And the institutional paralysis had occurred in the country.

“It is very important for a steady man like the President to really help the nation recover from the paralysis and that is what he is doing so I don’t see what is dictatorial about that. If they don’t have anything to say, they rather be quiet. They created what is wrong here today and we can’t sweep that under the carpet. There must be rule of law.”

He also denied a claim that he went to the Presidential Villa to submit the ministerial list to Buhar, saying, “What can I do about that, they have the right to speculate, they have the right to their lies and I have the right to debunk.”

The APC leader said that there was no power struggle between him and former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar

“Our party is not even looking at the direction of power struggle or anything of such. The support structure is to encourage and support the President as you have heard from Chief Bisi Akande, to help him institutionalize his goal, principle and vision for a new Nigeria,” Tinubu stated.

He defended Buhari against criticisms that trailed his delay in releasing ministerial list, adding that there was a pitfall in rushing.

Tinubu stated, “Rush can cascade into mistakes of unimaginable magnitude. There is equally glory and recovery in slowness, when you have a slow fix of a bad foundation. So to me, I would rather take the one that will last the country and endeavour for a longer period of time than the rush hour shopping.”

Also speaking ,Akande, who was at the meeting, said the President “inherited piles of rot.” He said that they discussed the rot the PDP left for it was defeated.

I am having interesting experience as Senate President —Sarak

I am having interesting experience as Senate President —Saraki

September 9, 2015

Written by: 

Taiwo Adisa and Ayodele Adesanmi - Abuja

  SENATE President Bukola Saraki said on Wednesday that he was having a time of his life as Senate President of the country so far.

The Senate President who stated this after a tour of the National Assembly complex said that his experience since assumption of office three months ago has been both interesting and challenging.

He told newsmen after the tour that he was happy with his job.

The Senate President spoke to reporters after his official tour of the National Assembly Complex in Abuja, the first of such tour to be embarked upon by any Senate President since 1992, when the National Assembly moved to its present location.

He said: “It is interesting and challenging but I think what is rewarding about it is the support from one’s colleagues and the enthusiasm from some of the members of staff of the National Assembly. Also, similar support from Nigerians from all walks of life and the international community.”

Saraki told newsmen that the familiarisation tour was meant to allow him and the principal officers of the Upper Chamber have on-the-spot assessment of the environment so as to make for understanding of issues and challenges being faced by both staff and management of the National Assembly.

He further said: “The Assembly complex represents the image of the National Assembly. So, it is important for us to see what the issues are and have an understanding of the environment. Unless you go round and have a first hand understanding, sometimes, it is difficult to understand what the issues and challenges are, including the members of staff, their conditions, productivity and all that. By the time I go round; I will have a better understanding.”

A statement by his media office also quoted the senate President as saying that: “By and large I think for an institution like this and over the many years of its existence as well as the number of staff, I think the maintenance is generally acceptable.”

The Senate President added: “I think, of course, there is still area of improvement here and there, considering the number of people here, people that are coming in and out. I think there are some areas that again, particularly key areas of Information Communication Technology (ICT) and Research.

Saraki said: “There is a general desire to make the country proud with what we are doing here and I think we all have to keep to the promises we have made to all Nigerians that we will do our best to connect with Nigerians and let Nigerians appreciate that we are here to serve and to work for the good of this country.”

The statement quoted the areas he visited as including the Offices of the Clerk and Deputy Clerk to the National Assembly, Foreign Affairs Office of the Senate, the Senate Press Centre, the Police Station, State Security Service (SSS), Office of the Sergeant-At-Arms, Senate’s Tea Room, Hansard Reporters section, National Assembly Television and Radio Studio, Clinic, Library, the Nigeria Police and Defence Liaison Offices.

Others are the Procurement, Estate and Works Directorate, Corporate Services Directorate, Personnel Department, Offices of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, National Assembly Station of the Nigeria Fire Service, Dental and Eye Clinics, Legal Department, Finance and Accounts Directorate and the Canteen.