‘ The All Progressives Congress (APC) has rejected the position of Financial Times that Nigeria is becoming a failed country under President Muhammadu Buhari. In a statement on Sunday, the party said contrary to the claim, the Buhari administration is “visibly and frontally” addressing Nigeria’s current challenges. In an editorial on Tuesday, Financial Times had said “Nigeria will become a problem far too big for the world to ignore” if urgent and drastic measures are not taken by the Buhari administration. “The definition of a failed state is one where the government is no longer in control. By this yardstick, Africa’s most populous country is teetering on the brink,” the international business newspaper had written. But in the statement, John Akpanudoedehe, secretary of APC caretaker committee, described the claim and similar ones as “doomsday wishes.” “While naysayers and opposition partisans chorus their doomsday wishes for Nigeria, our dear country is nowhere close to becoming a failed state,” he said. “From the economy to security, it is easy to sum up Nigeria with some recent recorded security incidents and the economic downturn. However, this government has displayed the political will and capacity to contain any criminal/terrorist activity and return the economy to growth. “President Buhari’s administration which sees the urgent need to have a better policing system for the country and is embarking on sweeping police reforms and supporting community policing, is definitely not governing a country close to becoming a failed state. “Amid the COVID-19 induced economic slowdown, President Buhari’s administration which is stimulating the economy by preventing business collapse; supporting labour-intensive sectors such as agriculture; creating jobs through infrastructural investments in roads, rails, bridges; promoting manufacturing and local production at all levels to attain self-sufficiency in critical sectors of the economy, is definitely not governing a country close to becoming a failed state.” The party said Nigeria used to have an “ignoble pastime” when previous administrations will rather “bury its head in sand and spin conspiracies in the face of insecurity and engage in voodoo economics to hoodwink Nigerians while national resources were stolen and diverted to political cronies”, adding that “those days are gone.” “While the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and their hirelings engage in their unfortunate and apparently orchestrated attacks on the Armed Forces and other security services, the APC will rather support their efforts and charge them to do more to further degrade the capacity of terrorists and other criminal elements to attack soft targets,” it’ said.

On December 23, Saudi Arabia’s Justice Ministry issued a memorandum to courts and marriage officials (Maazouns) to refrain from concluding marriages for those under the age of 18. Issued by Justice Minister Dr Walid bin Mohammed Al-Samaani, the instructions were for courts and officials to refer all such cases to the competent courts in accordance with the Child Protection Law. The law, introduced in 2014, has a provision that states “Before the conclusion of the marriage contract, it is necessary to ensure that a person marrying under the age of 18 will not be harmed, whether male or female.” While not banning marriages below 18 entirely, it adds another step to the process. Now, such marriages will need the approval of a specialised court, which must determine whether the marriage would harm the minors in question and if it is in their best interests. In January, the Kingdom’s advisory Shoura Council approved a ban on the marriage of minors, male or female, below the age of 15. As per its stipulations, marriages of those below the age of 18 would need permission from a specialised court. While hailed as a great step forward many years in the making, the stipulations still leave room for abuse—the deputy director of international NGO ‘Girls Not Brides’ told Reuters that girls could still be at risk of being forced into marriage if their parents persuaded a court to agree to it. Arab News reported that matchmakers found violating the law would be “held accountable” and “referred to the ministry for necessary legal action”. Also, while eariler there was no minimum legal age for marriage, now, this has been set at 18. According to the ‘Girls Not Brides’, globally, one in five girls is married before the age of 18. A report by Pew Research in 2016 found that 117 countries around the world had legalised some form of child marriage through exemptions in their minimum age requirements. The move is part of the kingdom’s efforts towards its Vision 2030 goals, as it legislates reforms aimed at keeping the kingdom in line with its international treaties and a new, modernised image, as it seeks to advance from an oil-economy to a diversified one. Saudi Arabia has ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), as well as two optional protocols on protecting children from being recruited into an armed conflict and on prohibiting child slavery, prostitution and pornography. The United States is the only country not to have ratified the UNCRC. Other reforms of note include those over the guardianship system that required women to seek male permission to marry, work or travel was still under place. This system was partially rolled-back in August, allowing women to travel without permission. In October, the kingdom cleared the way for women to join the armed forces.

Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, says he may re-impose another lockdown beginning from January as the number of coronavirus cases surge in the State. He gave hint of imminent second phase of lockdown amid rising cases of COVID-19 during the thanksgiving church service in celebration of the 90th birthday of Mrs. Priscilla Nwanediye Mark, at the St. Martin’s Anglican Church, Omagwa in Ikwerre Local Government on Sunday. Governor Wike, lamented as worrisome the refusal of most churches and markets in the State to enforce compulsory wearing of face mask in adherence to COVID-19 protocol. He said the State government had initially relaxed the restriction on the number of persons who worship in churches, but with second wave of COVID-19, he will by this week announce new stringent measures to check the spread of COVID-19 cases in the State, “When you go to some churches, they don’t wear mask. Go to market, they don’t wear mask. They believe COVID is not real. It’s not real because it has not happened to you; nobody had died whom you know. When somebody has died and the person was close to you, you will know that COVID is real. “So, it is real and I want to appeal to all of you that we have to be more strict now because the second wave is more dangerous than the first wave. It’s very, very dangerous. I know how many people we have lost since the second wave started.” Governor Wike implored the Bishop of Diocese of Ikwerre to prevail on members of all the churches under his jurisdiction to always wear their face mask. “If you don’t comply, I have no choice, but to shut down the churches; Pentecostal, Catholic, Anglican. I have no choice, because when you have it, who spends the money? It is the state that treats. So, we need to use the money for some other things, but not for this. Let us discipline ourselves and know that COVID is real. Let nobody tell you that there is nothing like COVID. It’s real.” Delivering a sermon titled “Thanking God for His Mercy” the Bishop, Diocese of Ikwerre, Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion, Right Reverend Blessing Enyindah, stressed the need for people to always acknowledge God’s mercies in their lives. Bishop Enyindah who observed that this is an era were people lived below the lifespan of 50 years, said it was the mercy of God that made Mrs. Priscilla Mark attain 90 years.

Retirees in Anambra State have threatened to embark on hunger strike over unpaid gratuities. The state chairman of the pensioners, Anthony Ugozor , disclosed this to our correspondent in Awka , the Anambra State capital on Sunday. While stating that the state government was owing pensioners in the state four years arrears of gratuities, Ugozor said the retirees would hold a meeting early next year to take a decision on the matter . He said , “ We don’ t know what to do on this again . You know you are longer in active service , so government is treating our matter with levity because it knows we can no longer embark on industrial dispute. “ We may consider hunger strike after our meeting . The only problem we may have about hunger strike is whether it will not be detrimental to our health at our age. But members will decide that in our meeting “ I got my December pension before Christmas . We thank Governor Willie Obiano for that; he pays pension regularly , but pension is not all that the pensioners need . We are dying in piecemeal, the governor should pay us our gratuities. ” He said since 2017, the state government had not paid any retiree in the state gratuity.