JAMB begins sale of UTME forms, reviews registration

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board said, on Tuesday, that it would begin the sale of forms for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination in March, 2017.

A statement by the spokesperson for JAMB, Dr. Fabian Benjamin, said the agency had taken time to add value to the services it had been offering to Nigerians for over three decades.

Benjamin stated, “In the course of conducting admission, many institutions have admitted candidates on merit only for them to discover that such candidates do not have qualified O’Level results or the right combination of subjects for admission and had to delete and start the process all over again. With this, they would have denied other qualified candidates the opportunities for admissions.

“This, we are addressing by ensuring that no candidate is henceforth recommended without his O’Level result being supplied. To achieve this, JAMB will insist that candidates supply their result on its website during registration or later, but before admissions commence for them to be considered for admissions. We believe this will allow only qualified candidates to be considered for admissions.”

The board explained that candidates would henceforth be allowed to make one choice of public university, in which new registration platform will now be first choice, second choice, third choice and fourth choice.

According to him, the restructuring is aimed at expanding the opportunities available to candidates since almost all the public universities do not consider candidates on the second choice list because they hardly exhaust the applicants on the first choice list.

Benjamin said, “We have designed a central admissions processing system, where the board will interface with the institutions and ensure compliance with this reform.

“The summary is that no candidate will be admitted with awaiting result. Candidates and their parents are also to note that JAMB has restructured the registration platform to allow for only one choice of public university.

“The new registration platform will now be first choice, second choice, third choice and fourth choice and not most preferred, preferred e.t.c as it was.

“Candidates’ first choice can be a college, university, innovative enterprises institutions or polytechnic/monotechnic.

“However, if a candidate makes a public university his first choice, he will not have any public university to choose for second, third and fourth choice. He will have on the remaining three choices, a college, polytechnic, private university and IEIs.

“However, candidates for the 2017 UTME can now select the National Certificate in Education (College) or National Diploma (Polytechnic/Monotechnic) as their first choice up to third choice and the fourth IEI. They can select the IEI (Innovative Enterprise Institution, ND) as their first choice up to the fourth choice, but can only pick a public university once.”

He added that the registration for the 2017 UTME and direct entry would go on at the same time, stating that during registration, candidates’ 10 fingers would be captured through the biometric verification machine.

Benjamin also warned candidates that no cyber café would register candidates for the UTME.

Benjamin stated, “On no account should any candidate patronise any cyber café for registration. It is important to note that the board will not deploy the use of any scratch card for the 2017 UTME registration.

“The board is poised to see that a reasonable percentage of candidates, who take this examination and are qualified, find placement in tertiary institutions.

Reps clash over Buhari’s health status, summon IG, CPs

Members of the House of Representatives exchanged words on Tuesday over the health status of President Muhammadu Buhari.

Lawmakers quarrelled over the use of the word “sickness” in referring to Buhari or explaining his reason for being away from the country to the United Kingdom since January 19.

The disagreement was more pronounced among members of the ruling All Progressives Congress, the President’s party.

While some members said Buhari was sick and was away to treat himself, others claimed that he was on “medical vacation.”

It was the House Majority Leader, Mr. Femi Gbajabiamila, who started the argument when he tried to stop the Chief Whip, Mr. Alhassan Ado-Doguwa, from describing the President as a sick man.

Both Gbajabiamila, who is from Lagos State, and Ado-Doguwa, who is from Kano State, are members of the APC.

Ado-Doguwa was contributing and opposing a motion, seeking to investigate the alleged harassment of members of ‘Kwankwasia’ followers, a political group loyal to former Kano State Governor, Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso.

He had stated that the motion, which was moved by a fellow Kano lawmaker, Mr. Aliyu Madaki, was “basesless” because the Kwankwasia group was known for moving around the state and inciting people against political leaders.

Ado-Doguwa observed that the country was already under tension owing to the absence of Buhari and could not afford any “partisan” activities that could lead to insecurity.

He added that the group was already campaigning for the 2019 presidential election in a volatile place like Kano.

“Our beloved President is sick abroad. These partisan activities are completely unnecessary and baseless. The police must do their work of protecting lives and property anywhere in the country.

“The sponsor of the motion failed to lay the facts of the issues as they are,” he added.

But Gbajabiamila shouted “point of order” and requested the presiding Deputy Speaker, Mr. Yussuff Lasun, to ask Ado-Doguwa to desist from calling Buhari a sick President.

Gbajabiamila stated, “There is no factual basis for what he is saying; that Buhari is sick abroad.

“The President is not sick. At best, he can say that the President is on medical vacation.

“There is a difference between being sick and going on a medical vacation.”

Members reacted, raising voices, some saying there was no difference between being sick and going on medical vacation.

Others shouted in support of Gbajabiamila, saying he was right.

However, Lasun caused more uproar when, in his bid to support Gbajabiamila, he too admitted that Buhari was sick.

“Let me sustain the leader’s point of order.

“Ado-Doguwa, you should not lay emphasis on the sickness of our President because of the security implications,” he said.

There was loud laughter on the floor, which left Gbajabiamila defeated and helpless in his line of debate.

Earlier, Madaki, in his motion, had sought the intervention of the House to halt a potential breakdown of law and order in Kano State due to the alleged abuse of power by the police.

He accused the police of taking sides with the State Governor, Mr. Abdullahi Ganduje, to stop the Kwankwasia group from holding any lawful assembly.

“This is like inviting anarchy and we must act fast before the situation implodes.

“Even in Bauchi State, the home of Mr. Speaker (Yakubu Dogara), the police are stopping groups from conducting themselves peacefully,” Madaki added.

The Peoples Democratic Party lawmakers seized the opportunity to recall the role the police played two weeks ago in Abuja when they stopped the Ahmed Makarfi faction of the PDP from holding a meeting at the International Conference Centre.

The House Minority Leader, Mr. Leo Ogor, told his colleagues that he wept when the police stopped the PDP’s meeting.

“We came together as a party to review the decision of the Federal High Court (Court of Appeal) on our party.

“The police came and blocked the whole place. I wept because that action was totally uncalled for,” he said.

Another PDP member, Mr. Sunday Karimi, informed the House that abuse of power by the police seemed to have increased under the Buhari administration.

He cited instances of Kogi, Rivers and Bauchi states as well as the Federal Capital Territory, where the police had been accused of harassing political groups that were not in support of the government in power in such states.

The House later resolved to summon the Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris, and the commissioners of police in the FCT, Kano and Rivers states to defend the allegations against the police.

I no longer have a first-choice goalkeeper’- Guardiola

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has effectively admitted he no longer has a first-choice goalkeeper after declaring he will choose between Willy Caballero and Claudio Bravo on a game-by-game basis. Bravo was brought in from Barcelona in August to be the senior goalkeeper, but has lost his Premier League place to Caballero in recent weeks after a series of inconsistent displays. Chile international Bravo was brought back in for the FA Cup fifth-round tie at Huddersfield 10 days ago, and is widely expected to be selected for the replay at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday.

Guardiola, however, has rotated his keepers for domestic cup ties this season, so that would then mean Argentine Caballero returning for Sunday’s Premier League trip to Sunderland. But Spaniard Guardiola, who let England goalkeeper Joe Hart leave City for a loan move to Italian side Torino last year, insisted on Tuesday he was reviewing the goalkeeping situation constantly. “They (Caballero and Bravo) are so professional, they are exceptional, so there’s no problem about that,” Guardiola explained. “You may not believe me, but I am not thinking about who is the first and who is the second. “I decide on what I see, on what is the recent past, on the upcoming situation of the future. We are going to decide game by game. “I have to think about it, not just with goalkeepers. “Tomorrow’s a ‘final’ against one team (Huddersfield) who impressed a lot when we played there away. They are near the top of the Championship. Sometimes, teams at the top of the Championship are stronger than teams in the Premier League. “So it’s one game. We know how many surprises there are in the Cup, so I have to think about it after the training session tomorrow (Wednesday) morning.” – Kompany return on hold – City made eight changes for the goalless draw at Huddersfield’s John Smith’s Stadium, and fringe players such as Pablo Zabaleta, Jesus Navas and Nolito are likely to be given a chance to impress again. Wednesday’s game is the first of five in 19 days for Guardiola’s men, with Premier League tests against Stoke and Liverpool, as well as Sunderland, and the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie in Monaco to come. City captain Vincent Kompany, though, is not ready to return after multiple injury setbacks, with the most recent a leg problem. The Belgium international has played only six times this season, and has been dogged by injury woes over the last two years. Guardiola, though, insisted Kompany was close to a return, and would be able to play a full part in the remainder of the season. “Vincent is not ready for tomorrow,” the manager said. “He is much better but not for tomorrow.” Guardiola and his players had a short break in Abu Dhabi after having no game last weekend, with scheduled opponents Manchester United beating Southampton in the League Cup final at Wembley instead. The Abu Dhabi trip saw Guardiola meet with City owner Sheikh Mansour for the first time. Guardiola, who succeeded Manuel Pellegrini as City manager last year, said he was impressed by the Sheikh’s football knowledge –- but the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich boss was left in no doubt he will be replaced if results are not good enough. “I was really impressed that he knew absolutely everything about us,” said Guardiola. “It was nice to meet him and spend a few hours together. “He is so happy because he sees all the games and he sees the effort, he demands it. He knows we make absolutely everything, we fight until the end. “I had good relations with almost all my owners in Barcelona and Bayern Munich, of course it is important to know them. “They know, we know, all the managers and owners know that we are here because of the results. If the results are not good we are going to be replaced. I replaced another manager.”

Obasanjo’s statement selfserving, discomfiting, misleading – Fayose

Governor Ayo Fayose of Ekiti state has asked former President Olusegun Obasanjo to stop making provocative statements that distract and discourage Nigerians from squarely facing up to the onerous task of fixing the economy and building Nigeria into a strong and virile nation. Reacting to a statement credited to Obasanjo, in which the former president said his generation had failed the nation, Fayose who spoke through his Chief Press Secretary, Idowu. Adelusi, decried Obasanjo’s sanctimonious self-righteousness, saying that apart from the statement being misleading, self-serving and discomfiting, it is also not what the country needs at this time of great economic distraction. “There is much suffering in the land. The people are hungry. Yet, one of those responsible for this unsavoury state of affairs relishes in adding insult to the people’s injury. He makes statements that are not only reckless but also untrue”, he added Fayose said rather than generalise, Obasanjo should speak for himself. “Obasanjo, truly, has failed this country many times over but not all members of his generation failed this country. There are shinning lights in that generation that have served the nation well”, the governor said. “How about Emeka Anyaoku, Wole Soyinka, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, Prof. Ayodele Awojobi? The list is endless and they are to be found in all the nooks and crannies of this country who belong in the same generation as Obasanjo and who have done this country proud”, he added. Fayose, however, lamented that Obasanjo wasted all the golden opportunities that he had to make this country great, first as a military Head of State and later as a two-term civilian president. “It is too late in the day for him to now cry over other countries that have passed Nigeria by. This is mere crocodile tears when we realise that no other Nigerian leader had the opportunities that Obasanjo had to make this country great but he bungled them all”. “He should speak for himself and not rope his entire generation into his misadventure in governance. Here is a man who neither recognised nor encouraged any star except himself. He must shoot them down or disparage them. For him, Obafemi Awolowo was not patriotic; MKO Abiola was not the messiah Nigeria needed; Tinubu was a rascal; Jonathan was not good; and President Muhammadu Buhari did not understand economics. Only Obasanjo is good. Only Obasanjo fought and won the civil war. Only Obasanjo understands everything – from economics to military to foreign affairs” “Yet, this is the same Obasanjo that laid the foundation for corruption in this country with his ill-fated third-term misadventure when billions of Naira was used to bribe National Assembly members. This is the same Obasanjo that turned EFCC under Nuhu Ribadu into his private army to harass political opponents. Under this same Obasanjo, eight civilian governors were illegally and unceremoniously removed from office through kangaroo impeachments. Minority members of the Houses of Assembly were empowered to override the majority members. Under Obasanjo, our elections were “iwuru-wuru” and “mago-mago” and we were the laughing stock of the international community. “This same Obasanjo, who came back from prison a pauper, ask him how much he is worth today and how he made the money? The launching of his Presidential Library, which he is preparing to commission soon, attracted donations that ran into billions of Naira while he was in office. Only God knows how many more billions the commissioning will garner this time around. Accusing the former President of an obsession with hugging the limelight, the governor said: “Obasanjo should give us a break. There is no denying the fact that he failed the country. The least he can now do is leave us alone to clear the peculiar mess he and others of his ilk got this country into. Let him retire into obscurity; fade away from the limelight; and allow us our peace and serenity”, Fayose added

Those rating Osinbajo higher than Buhari want to cause division in govt – Presidency

ABUJA-Presidency has frowned at the speculation tending to score the performance of the Acting President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo higher than that of President Muhammadu Buhari, saying it was a calculated mischief to cause a division in the current administration. The presidency said that the government was one and as such, there should be no basis for comparisons whatever between the President and his deputy. The Political Adviser to the President in the Office of the Vice President, Senator Femi Ojudu made the remarks while fielding questions from State House correspondents on the speculations making the rounds, preferring Osinbajo’s style of governance to Buhari’s on Monday in Abuja. It will be recalled that Osinbajo has been piloting the affairs of the country since January 19 when President Buhari jetted out to London, United Kingdom on medical vacation.

Since his departure, Osinbajo has apparently taken a couple of initiatives that had elicited hopes that Nigeria may get out of its present state of economic recession sooner than expected. One of those decisions was a directive to the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Godwin Emefiele to review the country’s foreign exchange policy which seems to be producing results at the moment, judging from the Naira value appreciation over the Dollar. Osinbajo had earlier also forwarded the name of the Acting Chief Justice of Nigeria, Walter Oonneghen to the Senate for confirmation contrary to the Buhari’s perceived reluctance since appointing the CJN in acting capacity in November, 2016. Reacting to trend of comparing the President and his Vice, Ojudu said it was completely unfounded. He said: “I think it is thoughtless. I also see it as a ploy by the opposition to cause an unnecessary ‎division. It is a joint ticket. The president and the vice president were elected based on the manifesto of the party and since they were sworn-in, they have been committed to implementing that manifesto. “The same people who said we never had economic team, no policy, nothing, are the ones saying this. It is now the policies we are implementing are maturing and they are seeing the result. It is not a question of one person being better than the other person. “I will give you an example, there is nothing that has been done since the vice president started acting that is not something that started far back in the past. A good example is the Niger Delta initiative. The President called the Vice President and said I am giving you the mandate, go into the Niger Delta, meet with everyone who is a stakeholder, all the communities, talk to the militants and make sure you solve this problem for the benefits of Nigerians. “We are losing 1.2 million barrels of oil per day. All the gas pipelines powering the turbines are being blown up. And the President has said unless and until we resolve this problem, we will not get out of recession. The VP took up the mandate and went to the Niger Delta. It is the initiative of Mr. President not that of Vice President. “This is mischief makers, those who do not wish this country well, who are always promoting crisis, who will not allow the people to benefit from this democracy are the ones promoting this kind of divisive tendencies.” He said that the Acting President on some occasions consult the President even as he refused to accept that Osinbajo was not in charge. “Almost on a daily basis, yes.‎ Well, there are things he still needs to consult the President. I mean it is not a regular thing but major decisions he still has to consult Mr. President. The president is still the president. ‎”He is in charge but like I said earlier on, this is a joint ticket the president of Nigeria remains the president of Nigeria. He is acting because it is one and the same. He is more experienced, he has been in the game longer than the vice president and if there are major issues that he needs to take decision on, he could call on him and say Sir, what do you think about this we are about to take decision on it. Do you have opinion? That does not mean he is not in charge.” But reminded that Nigerians other than partisan opposition politicians were the ones making the comparisons, Ojudu maintained his position of oneness. ‎”Again, one other thing you have to see is that if you give someone a responsibility, he must be able to show to Mr. President that despite that he is not being around is not going to create any vacuum. He can then decide not to sleep at all, all through the time the president is a way just to show him that he is capable of ensuring that Nigeria goes on well while he is away. “And the President could also have given the mandate let nothing go wrong, I believe in you, I appointed you as my Vice President you must make sure that you do this. If you have a boss who gives you an assignment you will want to impress him and Nigerians as well and that for me is what has happened. ‎It is not that one person is better than the other, certainly not. “I’m telling that I have seen some things sent out intentionally to cause some kind of division within the presidency. Some people who have been condemning everybody in the past, I see them on twitter and on facebook and generally on social media. Some people are trying to promote division and we are not going to allow that. This president and vice president worked together in tandem and I know they both have confidence in this nation”, he said. Also asked to react to the concerns in Katsina State that the president was poisoned, the Political Adviser said it was stupid to believe such stories. “The way I will react to that is that those of you in the media should be careful what you pick from the social media now. It is becoming a factory for fake news in the Nigeria. A lot of things you see on social media can never be true. I saw that, I read it and I assessed it using the prism of these factors, those indices we use to analysis stories in the media and found out that, that it cannot be true. “For example they said somebody kept N77 trillion somewhere, imagine that. What is the total value of Nigeria’s economy that because of somebody keeping N77 trillion therefore some people want to poison him so that they can inherit the money. “I mean we have a president that nobody in this country can question his integrity. As a young officer, a middle officer, a senior officer and as a Head of State till now, nobody has been able to tarnish his image or come up with anything. For me, it is not even worth responding to, as soon as I read it, I dismissed it, it is so ridiculous. Again it is the handiwork of our enemies, the problem is fakeness has almost become global and universal, other countries are experiencing it. Those who want to destabilize the country, they come up with all kinds of stupid stories, some kind of unimaginable stories. So we should just discountenance those things”, he said.

President Buhari’s Doctors Also Treating Crohn’s Disease, An Intestinal Malady

A source familiar with President Muhammadu Buhari’s medical treatment in London has revealed to Sahara Reporters that, apart from a lingering prostrate flare-up and other chronic conditions, the Nigerian leader has also recently been battling with a persistent “internal organ” problem, a fact this website reported on Sunday.

The source attributed President Buhari’s inability to eat as well as his progressive loss of weight to Crohn’s Disease, a medical condition that has affected his digestive system.

According to the source, Mr. Buhari had had parts of his colon removed in 2013 and also had another operation to have hemorrhoids, swollen veins near the human rectum, removed in 2016 in London during one of his secret trips to seek urgent medical treatment.

The latest revelation appears to validate a claim by Mr. Buhari’s wife, Aisha Buhari, to the effect that her husband was dealing with “internal organ failure.”

In interviews, several doctors in Nigeria and the UK told Sahara reporters that the fact that Mr. Buhari was an outpatient indicated a condition consistent with Crohn’s disease. Two of the doctors stated that it was likely that President Buhari’s course of treatment for his prostrate and other issues led to a complication and worsening of his Crohn’s disease. Sahara Reporters had reported that Mr. Buhari also has prostate cancer that was first treated by UK doctors shortly after the Nigerian leader lost the 2011 presidential election to former President Goodluck Jonathan. 

Crohn's disease is an inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) that causes inflammation of the lining of the digestive tract, leading to abdominal pain, severe diarrhea, fatigue, weight loss and malnutrition. Inflammation caused by the disease can affect different areas of the digestive tract in different patients, but doctors interviewed for this report disclosed that it usually occurs in the intestines, where the inflammation caused by Crohn's disease often spreads deep into the layers of affected bowel tissue. 

Doctors also revealed that Crohn's disease can be both painful and debilitating, and sometimes may lead to life-threatening complications. “When it occurs in younger people, there is a higher chance of future complications than in older patients,” one doctor told our correspondent. He added that the disease “often worsens with age.”

According to the doctors consulted for this report, while there is no known cure for Crohn's disease, palliative therapies can greatly reduce its signs and symptoms and even bring about long-term remission. Some of the doctors stressed that, with proper treatment and management, many patients with Crohn's disease are able to function well.

The doctors stated that the cause of Crohn's disease is largely unknown. However, one doctor said the condition was likely due to an abnormal response of the immune system. Food or bacteria in the intestines, or even the lining of the bowel, may cause the uncontrolled inflammation associated with Crohn's disease.

The doctors disclosed that the inheritance pattern of Crohn’s disease was also unclear, noting that several genetic and environmental factors are often at play in the occurrence of the disease. According to one doctor, the condition tends to “cluster in families.” He explained that having an affected family member was deemed to constitute a significant risk factor for the disease.

Should Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari resign?

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari has been away for weeks getting treatment for an undisclosed ailment.

President Muhammadu Buhari flew to the British capital London in mid-January to be treated for an undisclosed medical condition.

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo is temporarily leading the country.

But opposition leaders say Buhari has been out of the country for too long and he should resign.

What will this mean for Nigeria and the region?