Cubinks NEWS

By OCHE AGWUCHI M r.  Eddy Ochigbo  is the gentleman beside me in this pix. At the time, he was Editor of then famous but now rested Hotline Magazine in Kaduna. Permit me to tell you a short story so you may appreciate why I truly appreciate this man. I had gone to Hotline to drop an application for employment as a reporter and was told to wait for the Editor to be interviewed. For all the times I was asked to come, I did but Mr. Ochigbo was never on seat. The day I finally met him, he apologised and told me he had to do a number of trips out of town. We were about settling down for the interview when the publisher, Alhaji Hassan Sani Kontagora (Magajin Rafin Kontagora) walked in. Straight at me he came: "What are you doing here?" he thundered. I told him I was looking for a job. "My friend there is no job here," he replied. "Come," he commanded and I followed him out of the Editor's office. Pointing at another office, he told me, ...

Hand washing in compliance with Covid-19 protocols   By YUSUF GOJE T he way Kaduna State government is handling the Covid-19 pandemic can be faulted on other grounds but not on the pro-activeness and decisiveness with which it is confronting the resultant public health crisis and its socio-economic consequences. Objectively speaking, the decisions, many of which  are controversial, remain the most viable alternative for any serious government to take in emergencies like this. After all, unusual times require unusual measures.  The Governor, Mallam Nasir Ahmad El-rufai, on various public platforms has disclosed his readiness to face any resultant consequences of such decisions. Now that the government is getting a hold on how to contain the spread of the pandemic, even though the numbers keep rising, it is time for citizens to begin to also ask the right questions. This is necessary because the global economy is contracting at an accelerated pace. Sub-...

Chairman JONAPWD, Abdulaziz Suleiman , (Right) and a colleague (Middle) in a chat with CALPED's Yusuf Goje By SMITH WAYA Before the index case of Corona virus (Covid-19) in Nigeria, the Kaduna state government held a public hearing on the proposed  Kaduna state social protection policy, in line with the administration's slogan of putting the people first. The Joint National Associations of Person with Disability(JONAPWD), Kaduna chapter, as the umbrella body for people living disabilities in the State, were invited to present a position paper on their expectations of the new policy. The Disability Community took advantage of the town-hall meeting to appeal to the state government to work assiduously towards reducing poverty and hunger in their household. The Governor, Mallam Nasir Ahmed El-Rufai, assured them of the state government's commitment in ensuring that no one is left behind especially people living with disabilities. Incidently, as the State governm...

By YUSUF GOJE I t is obvious even to the blind and audible to the deaf that we are confronted with unusual times. The Covid-19 pandemic has brought the world to its knees; even the most powerful countries and leaders are desperately helpless and overwhelmed. The global economy is fast crashing, which could throw us possibly into the worst depression the world has witnessed in recent history. More depressing is the increasing number of confirmed infected cases and rising deaths; which has exposed the weakness of the global health systems to cope with such emergencies. To nip the pandemic in the bud, countries and sub-nationals have been adopting diverse approaches to halt the high rate of spread, save the infected and resuscitate the failing economies. At this point, it is pertinent to acknowledge the proactive steps taken by sub-nationals like Lagos and Kaduna state. In particular, the latter, which has taken commendable preventive measures that include mass awareness cr...

A cross-section of environmental strategists at the event Lack of good and well-intentioned environmental governance and social audit for effective monitoring and evaluation of data and procurement have been identified as the major impediment against the climate change campaign in Kaduna state. A leading member of Network of Civil Societies in Environment, Gloria Kasang Bulus, who made this known during a one-day capacity building platform for critical stakeholders working around environment - strengthening the technical working groups; to develop or use tools required for effective engagement with government, urged participants to volunteer wholeheartedly in the task ahead - to mitigate climate change. Bulus who is also the Director, Bridge that Gap Initiative and convener of the network noted that, "Unless and until we are able to partner the government in ensuring outcomes in tandem with the people oriented policies, plans, appropriations; we will be doing next...

A n elaborate template for budget tracking and monitoring of the 2020 budget - with special emphasis on procurement status, level of compliance, budget source documents and payments - have been put in place to identify bureaucratic bottlenecks, militating against optimum budget implementation in Kaduna state. This renewed impetus of the Open Government Partnership (OGP), was a fallout of a 2-day partners budget reflection meeting for all stakeholders working around budget in the state - put together by Partnership to Engage Reform and Learn in collaboration with UK aid - touched on trend analysis of budget in key service delivery sectors of Health, Education and Infrastructure, between 2016 and 2020 as well as a comprehensive review of citizens' engagements around 2020 budget development process with a view of making 2021 more effective and result oriented. Dr Elisha Auta Menson, who is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Economics of the Kaduna State Univer...

Constituents of Rido Ward of Chikun Local Government at the Town Hall meeting   I n compliance to the  Open Government Partnership (OGP) principles, other fiscal transparency and sustainability reforms at local governments, Chikun Local Government Council of Kaduna state have now a procurement plan and other related data for citizens to access, monitor and track budget implementation and procurement. Dropping the hint during the week in Kaduna, Chikun Council boss, Hon. Hadiza Ladi Yahuza revealed that her Council has concluded plans to stick to the state's Public Procurement Law and guidelines to stimulate economic growth and social development at the grassroots level. Yahuza, who was represented by the Council's Secretary, Engineer Phillip Makama, appealed to constituents to be patient with the Council and assured that plans are in place to address their needs. The host and Councillor of Rido ward,  Hon. Peter David, expressed gratitude over ...