Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun, yesterday, broke silence on the passing of his father, Pa Emmanuel Abiodun, describing his demise as “painful and a great loss to him and his family.” Abiodun, who spoke when he received Remo traditional rulers, members of Ijebu-Remo Unity Forum, Labour union leaders, National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) leadership, and other prominent personalities during a condolence visit to his family house in Iperu-Remo, said his late father urged him to respect the civil servants, pay pensioners regularly and treat teachers well. The governor further noted that his late father was a humble man who lived for his family and community. He said he was completely broken when he received the news of the death of his father, stressing: “My father lived for his family and community. We are a well-knitted family. I have always feared a day like this. My father was a humble man. “I am greatly pained by his death, but slowly coming to terms with the fact that he is no more. He had a humble beginning, but a glorious end,” he said. Abiodun, however, urged the people of the state to live a humble life and serve humanity, virtues, which he said, would leave a lasting legacy on the mind of the people after their demise. Earlier in his remarks, Akarigbo and Paramount Ruler of Remoland, Oba Babatunde Ajayi, said that the late Pa Abiodun was an astute administrator and a great teacher who impacted positive values in the lives of younger ones. He said the passing of the governor’s father must not be signposted with mourning, but an expression of joy for a life well spent, adding that “even at a very old age, his faculty was still intact”. Also, an elder, Daudu Teslim, who spoke on behalf of Ijebu-Remo Unity Forum, maintained that the late Pa Abiodun was meticulous in his deeds.

The Federal Government has approved a Federal Roads and Bridges Tolling Policy and Regulations, presidential aide, Tolu Ogunlesi has said. According to Ogunlesi, who is a Special Assistant to the President on Digital and New Media, the government made the decision on Wednesday at a Federal Executive Council meeting in Abuja. In a statement posted on his official Facebook page, he quoted the Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, to have said that the regulations were developed after extensive consultations with various stakeholders within and outside the government, including transport unions like National Union of Road Transport Workers, Road Transport Employers’ Association Of Nigeria, amongst others. He listed the recommended tolling fees in the approved policy and regulations to include “Cars: N200; SUVs: N300; Private Buses: N300; Commercial Buses: N150; Luxury Buses and Trucks: N500”. The statement titled, ‘Nigeria Cabinet approves Federal Tolling Policy and Regulations’ also said “fees at existing tolled roads (Lagos and Abuja Airport Toll Plazas, and the Lekki and Ikoyi Toll Plazas) were taken into consideration” in reaching the new recommended pricing. The statement listed 10 highlights of the new Federal Tolling Policy as follows: “It will be an Open Tolling system (just like the one that used to be in existence in the country), instead of a Closed Tolling system. (A Closed Tolling system means that you pay per distance traveled (‘distance-dependent’), while Open Tolling means you pay a fixed/flat rate that is not dependent on distance traveled). “Only dual carriageways owned by the Federal Government will be eligible for tolling by the Federal Government. (Of the 35,000km of Federal Roads in existence in the country, only 5,050km are dual carriageway). Federal carriageways that are single, i.e. undivided highways will not be tolled. The only exceptions here will be some bridges, which are listed in the Policy. “Toll Revenues will be used to maintain the roads and also to repay investors who have invested in building or completing a road under the Highway Development Management Initiative. “Electronic Toll Collection and Management systems will be prioritized over Cash systems. “The following will be exempted from Tolling: Bicycles, Tricycles, Motorcycles, Diplomatic vehicles, Military and Paramilitary vehicles. “The Tolling Policy is a broad National framework that will serve as a guide for States and Local Governments who seek to implement their own Tolling Policies. (As noted earlier, only about 16% of the total road network in Nigeria belongs to the Federal Government. States own/control roughly the same amount as the FG, while the rest – amounting to two-thirds are last-mile roads belonging to and under the responsibility of Local Governments). “People who live around Toll Plaza Areas will benefit from what is called ‘Frequent User’ discounts, in line with global best practice. “Recommended Tolling Fees in the Approved Policy and Regulations are as follows: “Cars: N200; SUVs: N300; Private Buses: N300; Commercial Buses: N150; Luxury Buses and Trucks: N500 “According to the Honorable Minister, the Federal Highways Act vests the power to toll (Federal Roads) in the Minister responsible for roads, but implementation of any tolling policy/regime involves many processes and multiple agencies, and therefore requires multi-stakeholder collaboration. “According to the Minister, it is important to stress that even with this policy now approved, tolling is not going to start immediately. He very clearly said that Tolling will not start “until the roads are motorable.” This policy is a necessary condition for the implementation of Tolling, and it is now for people to start getting familiar with it and for relevant stakeholders to start using it as a basis for their financial modeling and investment analysis, ahead of the eventual rollout of Toll Plazas.”

’ Jibrilla Bindow, former governor of Adamawa state, was interviewed by the Department of State Services (DSS) on Wednesday, TheCable has learnt. Sadiq Abdullateef, media aide of the former governor, told TheCable Bindow honoured an invitation of the DSS and that he has been released. The secret police also interviewed five other persons –Kabiru Mijinyawa, former speaker Adamawa house of assembly; Sulaiman Adamu, acting APC chairman Yola south; Mustapha Barkindo, former adviser during Bindow’s administration; Abubakar Umar Sirimbai, former commissioner, and Yusha’u Adamu. The former governor was said to have held a party meeting in Adamawa where some aggrieved members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) poured invective on President Muhammadu Buhari. An audiotape of the meeting was leaked to the media, and some of those at the event were said to have made death wishes against the president. The DSS invited the key participants of the meeting for questioning over the leaked audiotape. In a statement issued on Wednesday, Abdullateef said the former governor condemned those making incendiary comments against the president at the meeting. ”Former Adamawa State Governor, Senator Muhammad Umar Jibrilla Bindow was invited to a party meeting because some members of the party were aggrieved about the just concluded primaries, which he attended as an elder of the party,” the statement said. ”It’s worthy of note that, there was no program in the said meeting, he went there and sat and listened to the aggrieved members’ complains, and there was an unwarranted outburst from some members which he cautioned, it’s sad that some people are using that outburst with a recording to malign the former governor. ”The said recording was doctored and if you listened to it very well, there are some conversations that were skipped, Senator Bindow cautioned the members making those unwarranted utterances thrice in the meeting and even threatened to walk out. ”His words were, ‘please this is not right, you don’t wish anybody death because of political reasons, talk less of our leader and father, the president. Let’s make progress please, or I am leaving’. ”But because it’s a planned recording to malign and create problems where there is none, his utterances condemning what has been said wasn’t even in the circulated recording. ”As far as we are concerned, we were invited to a meeting and things were said in public and Senator Bindow cautioned the people making those utterances and that was it. ”President Muhammadu Buhari is like a father to Bindow and he will never entertain anything is such on the president.”