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Leaders Beg Obasa to Ditch Senate Ambition for Lagos Assembly Return

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By Aduragbemi Omiyale

The Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Mr Mudashiru Obasa, has been urged to focus on a return to the state parliament and ditch his ambition to run for the Senate in 2023.

On Sunday evening, some leaders in the Agege and Orile-Agege areas of Lagos State said they would want him to still represent them at the local level before taking a shot at the federal level.

They said he has brought pride to the communities and would want him to still serve them at the Lagos Assembly through effective legislation and related activities, though they said he has an unbeatable chance of winning if he vied for a seat in the Senate.

At an Iftar programme that inadvertently provided an opportunity for the leaders to speak about Mr Obasa’s achievements so far, the leaders said the Speaker had become a pride, not only to Agege, but to Lagos State.

At least 80 leaders, political appointees and chieftains of the All Progressives Congress (APC), including Dr Babatunde Adejare of the House of Representatives; Wale Ahmed, Lagos Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs; Afolabi Ayantayo, Special Adviser to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Parastatals Monitoring Office; and Oba Ambaliu Hakeem Agbedeyi, the Alaige of Orile Agege supported that the Speaker return to the House.

Some of the others who gave their support included Chief Safari Adaranijo, APC Apex Leader in Agege; Gani Owolabi Dada, leader; Elder Rotimi Adesina; Olaniyi Salau Ojo APC chairman in Orile-Agege, Alhaji Tunde Azeez; APC chairman in Agege; former and current local government council chairmen; vice chairmen; councillors; supervisory councillors and Special Advisers of the two council chairmen.

While urging that the Speaker be asked to return to the House, Mr Adejare said Agege is now noted for good road networks with the help of the Speaker.

“Days ago, during the 80th birthday of Ebenezer Obey, a visiting Senator was marvelled that Agege now has very good roads. I told him not to forget that we have the Speaker of Lagos here,” the former Commissioner said while praying for more wisdom for Mr Obasa in his leadership position.

Wale Ahmed who said he expects Obasa to be unopposed, added: “My prayer is that after the elections next year, we would all gather here to celebrate again.”

Oba Agbedeyi, while thanking Mr Obasa for positively making Agege a place to reckon with, urged the Speaker to return so as to bring more developments to the area.

Mr Johnson Sunday Babatunde, chairman of Orile-Agege LCDA, who led the conversation, warned that Agege must not lose all that it had gained through Speaker Obasa. Rather, he said, the area should experience more dividends of democracy.

“A lot of people from Agege have been employed because of Obasa. A lot of infrastructures have come to us because of Obasa. There should be no vacancy in Agege Constituency 1,” he said.

He noted that one way Agege can appreciate Obasa’s love for the area is to ask him to return and work for him to occupy the position again.

Supporting the collective decision by the leaders, Ganiyu Egunjobi, chairman of Agege local government council, said the Speaker had brought glory to Agege and that he should be encouraged to return to the House unopposed.

Earlier, the Islamic clergy at the Iftar, Chief Imam Quadri Abdul Ganiu Ayorinde, harped on love and the importance of Ramadan.

Aduragbemi Omiyale is a journalist with Business Post Nigeria, who has passion for news writing. In her leisure time, she loves to read.

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How to Stop Recycling of Criminals, Ex-Convicts—Onabulo

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CRAN Recycling of Criminals

By Emmanuel Udom

The president of the Crime Reporters Association of Nigeria (CRAN), Mr Olalekan Onabulo, has explained how the various justice systems could work to stop the recycling of criminals and ex-convicts in the country.

Speaking in his welcome address at the CRAN Public Lecture/Award ceremony held at Sheba Event Centre in Ikeja, Lagos, Mr Onabulo said that there is no denying the fact that the pursuit of justice and security is a shared responsibility that demands collective efforts and collaborations.

He further explained that since recidivism, which is the recycling of criminals and ex-convicts is a hydra-headed monster, which has become a significant source of concern for security agents in the country.

Security operatives are in most cases ambushed, killed or maimed by criminals earlier arrested, investigated and prosecuted who returned to a life of criminalities after their convictions.

According to the CRAN leader, these criminals are emboldened and unrepentant and may want to take their pounds of flesh from security operatives to carry out their professional duties.

Speaking on Justice System Administration and Security in Nigeria: Challenges, Opportunities, and Solutions, Mr Onabulo said all hands must be on deck to address the issue as the whole process seems to have failed and must be redeemed by all and sundry.

”The security operatives, the judiciary and indeed all Nigerians must collaborate and work together to create a safer, just, and equitable society for all,” he stated.

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NIWA to Collaborate With Coastal States to Secure Waterways

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waterways fatalities

By Adedapo Adesanya

The National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) has commenced moves to collaborate with coastal states across the country to increase the safety of Nigerians using the waterways to commute.

According to the waterways regulator, this is part of bids to enhance safety on the nation’s waterways.

This was disclosed by Mr Bola Oyebamiji, the Managing Director of NIWA while speaking at a one-day consultative forum on safety and insecurities on inland waterways, organiwed by the Nigeria Transportation Commissioners’ Forum in Ilorin, Kwara State on Thursday.

He emphasised the critical role that safety and security play in fostering a thriving water transportation system.

The conference, themed Prevalent Safety, Security Hazards and Practices in Inland Waterways: Passenger Transport Safety in Ilorin, Kwara State, sought to address the pressing issues facing the inland waterways sector.

Mr Oyebamiji acknowledged the ongoing efforts by NIWA to improve safety, such as the recent unveiling of the transportation code for public use, and the inauguration of several operational assets including survey boats, gunboats, water ambulances, and a passenger ferry.

He also noted that safety campaigns have been launched across all operational bases, targeting local communities in their native languages.

The NIWA boss highlighted the support from the National Assembly, including the ongoing discussions on establishing coastal guards and the attention safety and security on inland waterways have received from the House Committee on Inland Waterways.

He appealed to the Commissioners for Transportation across relevant states to collaborate with NIWA in areas such as training, safety campaigns, infrastructure development, and financial empowerment.

He also stressed that while the challenges are significant, they are surmountable through collective action, adding that the efforts must be complemented.

The NIWA MD expressed optimism for actionable and implementable outcomes from the forum, which he believes will contribute significantly to ensuring safer and more secure inland waterways in the country.

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Seedstars Africa Ventures Raises $42m in First Close

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Seedstars Africa Ventures

By Adedapo Adesanya

Seedstars Africa Ventures I, a venture capital fund making early-stage investments in highly scalable start-ups in Africa, has achieved a first close of $42 million

The raise was led by the African Development Bank and EIB Global with the support of the European Union, under the ACP Trust Fund – EU Compartment and Boost Africa among other global investors.

The fund, with offices in Nairobi, Dakar and Paris, has further secured $50 million in commitments towards an $80 million fundraising target.

The milestone was announced at the 2024 Africa Investment Forum Market Days currently underway in Rabat, Morocco.

The fund has already deployed over $10 million to five pioneering African startups in the climate, food systems, energy access, internet connectivity, financial inclusion, and payments infrastructure sectors.

These are Beacon Power Services (Nigeria), Poa! Internet (Kenya), Xeno (Uganda), Bizao (Cote d’Ivoire, Senegal, and France): and Shamba Pride (Kenya).

According to a statement, it was disclosed that these businesses serve over 60 million people, including by connecting 60,000 households to the internet, supporting 50,000 farmers, and empowering 30,000 individuals with financial inclusion services across eight African countries.

“The portfolio is also fully 2X compliant, empowering women in startups and ecosystems,” the statement added.

Both the African Development Bank and the European Investment Bank are founding partners of the Africa Investment Forum, a platform that advances transformative African projects toward financial close.

Seedstars Africa Ventures I is addressing gaps in early-stage financing across Africa through investments of up to $2 million in seed and series A rounds, with significant follow-on capacity of up to $5 million, thereby bridging available pools of capital.

By leading successive investment rounds, the fund will catalyse co-investment while offering operational support to start-ups.

The Fund was founded by Ms Maxime Bouan, Mr Tamim El Zein and Mr Bruce Nsereko Lule who have over 45 years of experience investing and working across the continent.

Seedstars Africa Ventures is a member of LBO France Group, which played a pivotal role in seeding this initiative as part of their multi-asset class African strategy, alongside other initiatives.

Speaking on this, Mr Robert Daussun, and Ms Stéphanie Casciola, Chairman and CEO respectively of LBO France said “We are delighted by Seedstars Africa Ventures’ latest milestone, and proud to have been the initial supporter of the team. The portfolio the team has built with our support is innovative and transformative, already providing significant impact and value to the continent. LBO France appreciates the opportunity SAV provides for us and our partners to be part of Africa’s growth story.”

“The African Development Bank views Seedstars Africa Ventures as a strategic opportunity to provide innovative support to Africa’s venture capital industry. It serves as a conduit to improve access to finance for youth and women while also enhancing the availability of risk capital in Francophone Africa.

“This is an area that has traditionally faced limited access to risk capital,” said Mr Ahmed  Attout, African Development Bank Group Director for Financial Sector Development.

“We welcome the investment of the African Development Bank, our Boost Africa partners, in the Seedstars Africa Ventures fund,” said EIB Vice-President, Mr Ambroise Fayolle. “Accelerating digitalisation is a priority for the EIB, and we are committed to supporting African businesses as they drive innovation and prosperity on the continent.”

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