President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has expressed the willingness of the federal government to establish synergy with all the academic unions within universities in the country, saying all avenues for dialogue will be explored and exhausted before any strike actions. The President, who stated this during the 33rd convocation ceremony of the Federal University of Technology, Akure, said this corporation of the Union with the federal government will ensure the needed educational development in the country. Tinubu, who was represented by the former President of the West Africa College of Surgeons, Prof. King-David Terna Yawe, said the synergy will help to create an atmosphere of peace and tranquillity on all campuses. “I would like to enjoin all the unions in our universities to cooperate with the government to deliver the needed development by ensuring an atmosphere of peace and tranquilly on our campuses. “On our part, we will ensure that motivational activities are put in place to ensure improved productivity. Reciprocative actions would be expected from our universities as the government works hard to raise the bar for a conducive teaching and learning environment. “To whom much is given, much is expected. Dialogue, patience, and positive engagement are better means of achieving results than strike actions. Industrial disharmony does nothing but disrupt life, waste time, and elongate the academic calendar. Therefore, all avenues for dialogue must be explored and exhausted before strike actions are considered, and as the last resort,” The President also expressed the omission of his administration in tackling all the challenges confronting the education sector in the country and repositioning the sector. He said the government is not unaware of the challenges confronting higher institutions of learning in the country and said this was one of the reasons the Students Loan Bill was signed into law immediately after his inauguration as President According to him, “This Act will enable indigent students in all our tertiary institutions to have access to interest-free loans, which they will pay back at their convenience in the future when they are gainfully employed. “Under my watch, and as I have said in my manifesto, no student will drop out of school as a result of an inability to pay school charges. He stated, “The government is not unaware of the challenges facing our higher educational institutions, particularly our universities. “I want to use this opportunity to assure all Nigerians that our government is making frantic efforts to address the situation holistically. “My government would not shirk its responsibilities in this regard. We will ensure that educational institutions get their dues to perform their statutory duties optimally.” He disclosed that there are many good plans in the pipeline being put in place by his administration, saying the welfare of the students, human welfare, and welfare development will be given priority to ensure He congratulated the graduates on this great occasion, encouraging them to make use of what they learned during their school training. The Vice Chancellor of the school, Prof. Adenike Oladiji, said a total of 195 out of the 3,491 graduands graduated with First Class, saying the graduands include 2,295 males and 1,196 females. The vice chancellor said out of the total number, 195 students have first class, 1,510 have second class honours (upper division), and 1,515 students have second class honours (lower division), while 254 and two students are graduating with third class and pass, respectively. According to the Vice-chancellor, “out of the total number, 195 students have first class, 1,510 have second class honours (upper division), 1,515 students finished with second class honours (lower division), 254 have third class, and two students finished with a pass.

  The Nigerian naira appreciated against the United States American dollar, closing at N791.75/$1 at the official market. According to data from the FMDQ Securities Exchange, the naira rose by 5.87 per cent or N49.39 compared to the previous day’s rate of N841.14/$ at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market. The naira’s gain was, however, expected due to the recent move of the Central Bank of Nigeria to clear some of its FX backlog. Investors’ highest bid for the dollar was N1120/$1, while the intraday low was N701/$1, representing a wide spread of N419/$1.  Forex turnover at the close of the trading was $157.78m. Meanwhile, the CBN last week said it had begun clearance of the backlog of foreign exchange forward contracts. The move, experts say is expected to bring relief to the naira, the business community, and the economy at large. The country has faced persistent dollar shortages since foreign investors exited local assets. Since then, investors have yet to return and the apex bank has struggled to meet the demand for dollars in the country. The central bank’s payments follow the October 23 announcement by the finance minister, Wale Edun, that Nigeria was expecting $10bn of inflows to improve FX market liquidity. It will come as a relief to local lenders, who have been struggling to meet demands from customers due to chronic dollar shortages in Africa’s largest economy. Speaking on CBN’s clearance of forex backlog, deputy president of Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Gabriel Idahosa, said clearance of backlogs of FX forwards will bring back confidence in the traditional market. “The new move by CBN to clear backlogs with international lenders gives the signal that the apex bank is back in trading and business. Apart from bringing back letters of credit, it generally brings back confidence in the traditional market. It restores the confidence of portfolio investors and international airlines. It will also bring foreign direct investments,” Idahosa added.

  The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has condemned the removal of Adepele Ojo as the chief judge of Osun state. On Thursday, Ademola Adeleke, governor of Osun, suspended Ojo from office and approved the appointment of Olayinka Afolabi as the acting chief judge. Ojo was suspended despite an order by the National Industrial Court restraining the governor from removing her from office. In a statement issued on Saturday, Akorede Lawal, national publicity secretary of the NBA, said the action of the governor is a “clear disregard” for the court’s order.   Lawal said the NBA will not recognise Afolabi as the acting chief judge. The national publicity secretary said the NBA’s position is anchored on the constitutional doctrine of separation of powers and the independence of the judiciary. “The tenure of a judicial officer cannot and should not be subject to the mood of politicians,” NAN quoted Lawal as saying. Lawal said the provisions of the 1999 Constitution are not ambiguous on how a chief judge of a state can be removed from office. “The law has since been settled in Nganjiwa v FRN (2017) LPELR-43391 (CA) that any misconduct attached to the office and functions of a judicial officer must first be reported to and determined by the National Judicial Council (NJC),” the statement reads. “The Supreme Court in Elelu-Habeeb & Anor v AG Federation & Ors (2012) 12 NWLR (Pt 1318) 423 has clearly stated that the Chief Judge of a State cannot be removed under any guise including the infamous “step aside style” without recourse to the NJC. “The interim injunction restrained the Governor of Osun from interfering with the office of the Chief Judge of Osun state.   “All court decisions must be obeyed and complied with until a superior court of competent jurisdiction sets them aside.”

  An official of the Hamas-run health ministry in the Gaza Strip said more than 80 people were killed on Saturday in double Israeli strikes on the Jabalia refugee camp. “At least 50 people” were killed in an Israeli strike at dawn on the UN-run Al-Fakhura school in the camp, which had been converted into a shelter for displaced Palestinians, the official told AFP. Social media videos — which AFP was not able to verify — showed bodies covered in blood and dust on the floor of a building, where mattresses had been wedged under school tables. A separate strike on another building in the camp on Saturday killed 32 people from the same family, 19 of them children, the health ministry official said. The ministry released a list of 32 members of the Abu Habal family it said had died.   Jabalia is the biggest refugee camp in Gaza, where some 1.6 million have been displaced by more than six weeks of fighting between Israel and Hamas. The Israeli army did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the two strikes. The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) was also unable to offer an immediate reaction.   At the start of November, the Hamas government said more than 200 people had been killed and hundreds more wounded in Israeli bombardments on the Jabalia camp over three consecutive days. Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas in response to the October 7 attacks which Israeli officials say killed about 1,200 people, most of them civilians in southern Israel, and saw about 240 people taken hostage. The army’s relentless air and ground campaign has since killed 12,000 people, including 5,000 children, according to the Hamas government which has ruled Gaza since 2007. AFP

  Tanzania has announced the death of one of two nationals taken hostage by Hamas during the October 7 attacks on Israel. The Israeli government had named two students from Tanzania — 22-year-old Clemence Felix Mtenga and 21-year-old Joshua Loitu Mollel — among some 240 taken to the Gaza Strip. “It’s with great sadness we confirm the death of Clemence Felix Mtenga,” a foreign ministry statement said late Friday. It did not say how Mtenga died. “We would also like to inform the public that Joshua is still missing as we continue to follow his whereabouts,” the ministry said. Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas in response to the October 7 attacks which Israeli officials say killed about 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and saw about 240 hostages taken. The army’s air and ground campaign has since killed 12,000 people, including 5,000 children, according to the Hamas government which has ruled Gaza since 2007.

  No fewer than 10 supporters of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) have lost their lives in a road accident that occurred on Saturday along the Anyingba-Ankpa road. Two other people sustained serious injuries and were rushed to the hospital for treatment. TribuneOnline reliably gathered that the accident happened at about 10 a.m. on Saturday in Okura when the SDP members left Ankpa for Anyigba for a meeting. It was further gathered that the meeting, which involved coordinators of the party, was summoned by the party’s stakeholders to analyse the recent Kogi state governorship election, in which candidate Murtala Yakubu Ajaka came in second. “It was a head-on collision crash involving another vehicle at speed conveying people from the SDP meeting. “The unfortunate incident occurred due to excessive speeding, which led to a loss of control that resulted in the crash.”   An eyewitness account said the injured are currently receiving treatment at one of the hospitals in Anyingba. The campaign council of the SDP has commiserated with the families of those who lost their lives in the accident. Meanwhile, when Tribune Online called the Kogi State Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corp., Mr Samuel Oyedeji, for confirmation of the accident, he said he had yet to get a report from the zone.