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Minister Renews Call For Return Of Looted Nigerian Artefacts

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Lai Mohammed Denies Contracting COVID-19

The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has renewed his call for the repatriation of all looted Nigerian artefacts, while commending those countries that have heeded the call by returning such antiquities.

In a statement issued in Abuja on Tuesday to mark the 2021 International Museum Day, the minister also appealed to Nigerians, especially the elite, to join the ongoing campaign to repatriate all looted Nigerian artefacts.

He thanked the individual Nigerians who have established private museums as well as those who support the various public museums with their hard-earned resources, saying the elite in particular can offer support by adopting museums in their neighbourhoods
Alhaji Mohammed said the campaign for the repatriation of looted artefacts, which was launched by the federal government in October 2019, has yielded fruits, with the spate of return of stolen Nigerian antiquities from around the world.

He expressed appreciation to the German government and German museums, both of which are presently at the forefront of repatriating Nigerian antiquities.

Listing the efforts being made by the federal government to recover looted artefacts, the minister said Nigeria had caused a claim to be instituted before the UNESCO’s mediation body, the Intergovernmental Committee for the Promotion of Return of Cultural Property (ICPRCP), for the return of an Ife bronze object to Nigeria, marking the first time ever that Nigeria would institute a claim before this international panel.

The Ife bronze head, which was stolen from the National Museum in Jos in 1987, was acquired by an art gallery owner in Belgium, who is now demanding money from Nigeria before releasing it.

READ ALSO: Buhari Asks Senate To Approve N2.3 Trillion External Loan

The minister recalled that in January 2020, he met the Secretary of State for Culture of the United Kingdom to press Nigeria’s demand for the release of the said Ife bronze head, which is now being kept in the British Museum, expressing the hope that the matter would soon be resolved in favour of Nigeria.

”Also, after a vigorous pursuit, the United States has approved Nigeria’s request, under the Convention on Cultural Property Implementation Act (CPIA).

The import of this approval is that any cultural property that is 250 years or older can never enter the
United States of America from Nigeria, unless with the official imprimatur of Nigeria,” he said, adding that such antiquities will be returned to Nigeria from the US border without the need for expensive litigations or diplomatic shuttles.

On the home front, Alhaji Mohammed said in order to forestall further theft of the country’s antiquities and other heritage property and to enthrone better management in this field, ”we are placing the law pertaining to this sector before the National Assembly. We know they will give it every support and ensure its expeditious passage.”

Reflecting on the theme for this year’s International Museum Day, which is ‘The Future of Museums: Recover and Imagine’, he said the theme had its background in the changes the world has experienced in the past year because of the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.

READ ALSO: Governor Abiodun Suspends Aide Arrested In US Over Alleged $350,000 Fraud

‘We hope the expected full recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic will be the harbinger of a reimagining that will enable us to leverage the areas in which we have comparative advantage – our arts and our culture – in order to re-launch ourselves to the world,” the minister said.

The International Museum Day is celebrated on May 18 every year to bring knowledge and information about museums to the people and to introduce museums to the communities.

 

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NNPCL Board: Club 66 Idanre, Commends Tinubu On Akinyelure’s Appointment

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Chief Pius Akinyelereu

A foremost club in Idanre, Ondo State, Club 66, has commended President Bola Tinubu for appointing its patron, Chief Pius Aknyelure, as chairman of the Board of the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Ltd (NNPCL).

The Club gave the commendation in a statement issued by its President, Dr Anthony Omolola, in Lagos, on Tuesday.

Club 66 Idanre, which described the appointee as a square peg in a square hold, said that he would bring his vast experience in the oil and gas industry spanning over 40 years to bear on the appointment, particularly in resolving some of the knotty issues faced by the NNPCL Board and the oil industry in general.

The Club said: “Chief Pius Akinyelure’s appointment as chairman of the NNPCL board no doubt marks a watershed.

“Akinyelure retired from Mobil Oil as Executive Director of Finance in 1997. Even before then, he had been a big player in the industry.

“The Club sincerely appreciates the president for finding our patron worthy of such a prestigious assignment.

“Before now, he was appointed into the Board by former President Muhammadu Buhari in 2015.

“Thereafter, he was reappointed by President Buhari in May 2020.

“He has been chairman and director of several companies, including Wema Bank, Credit A Bank Ltd, Odua Investment Ltd, Oluwa Glass Plc, Okitipupa Oil-Palm Plc, Odua Telecommunications Ltd, Cocoa Industry Nigeria Ltd, Hallmark Bank, and West African Portland Cement Plc. He is a philanthropist with unique contributions to several communities in Ondo State and Nigeria at large.

“The good people of Idanre extend felicitations to the president for his noble gesture.”

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Abiodun Approves Constituency Projects For 236 Councillors

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Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun

Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, has approved constituency projects for the 236 councillors in the state.

The approval, the governor said, was in fulfilment of his promise to ensure the councilors execute projects in their various constituencies as the closest to the people at the grassroot.

Prince Abiodun made this known at the Governor’s Office, Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta, when he received the jubilant councilors who were on ground to pass a vote of confidence in his administration and also thank him for paying their full furniture allowance.

Governor Abiodun, who recently approved the full payment of furniture allowance to the 236 councillors, also promised to ensure the continuous empowerment of the councillors.

“You have reminded me of my promise to you of your constituency project. Consider that done because you are the closest to the grassroot. You are the ones representing us at the grassroot. You will not be put to shame.

“I am a promise-keeping governor . Whatever promise I make to you, I will definitely keep it. I want to thank you for your very kind remarks for appreciating that I promised you I was going to pay your furniture allowances, and I remain the first governor that will pay furniture allowances to councillors 100%.

“I also promised that I was going to ensure you are sufficiently empowered. You are politicians. You must be empowered to continue to empower your various constituencies and I think I am trying,” he said.

Governor Abiodun also thanked the judiciary for upholding the rule of law and called on opposition members to stop running around to buy jugments and join his administration in moving the state to the next level.

The governor stated that Ogun State is currently the fastest growing economy in the country, even as he ascribed the success to the team, which shares the same vision with him.

He promised that his administration would spend the next three and half years building on the solid foundation laid in the first term, noting that no stone would be left unturned.

Governor Abiodun also urged the councilors to continue to be good ambassadors of the party at their various wards.

Earlier in his remarks, the Chairman, Ogun State Forum of Councillors, Hon. Olarenwaju Adeleye thanked the governor for approving and paying their full furniture allowance.

Adeleye also acknowledged Governor Abiodun for executing at least a project in each of the 236 wards of the state and commended him for not abandoning projects left unfinished by the immediate past administrations in the state.

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Ogun, Aviation Ministry, Others Meet Tuesday On Concessioning Gateway Agro-Cargo Airport

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Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun

The Ogun State Government, Federal Ministry of Aviation, and other stakeholders will, this week, meet on concessioning the Gateway Agro-Cargo International Airport.

The airport, located in the Iperu-Ilishan axis of the state, is nearing completion with aircraft already landing at the location.

The Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun speaking on a Channels TV programme on Sunday evening, disclosed that efforts by the state government to recoup every penny expended on the airport would begin with the take-off of the concessioning agreement.

Prince Abiodun said that because of the world-class facilities available at the airport, the state government received many concessioning offers.

He said: “Returns on airport investments are not seen overnight. We have been receiving unsolicited offers from others who are desirous of consessioning this airport and paying us back everything the airport costs us.

“So, for us, our money has worked. We invested in building this airport to de-risk it because we realised that if we had gone ahead and advertised for others to come and build this airport for us, we probably would only have started building it at the end of our second term. So, we decided to bite the bullet. We invested. We have built that airport.

“Because of the standard that we have adhered to– we’ve built a world class airport here– we have now received unsolicited offers to concession the airport from us and I am happy to say that we have accepted one of those offers. By the grace of God, on Tuesday , we will be signing that concession. You will see the Minister of Aviation along with the heads of aviation parastatals signing with us to a third party who currently manages three other airports in Africa.

“And this third party would be paying the entire amount the airport has cost us. So, it would now be his responsibility to run this airport in line with the world best practices. He would be responsible for bringing in traffic to this airport, and I know that he is already speaking to some major cargo companies around the world. We’ve created this enabling facility. “They said you build a road that connects you from one point to the other, but when you build an airport, it takes you from one point to the rest of the world. And we think that with what we’ve done, we’ve opened Ogun State to the rest of the world.”

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