Niger State Government to host the National Council on Information meeting, to be tagged "Minna 2024".
Although the date of the event was not announced, the plan was disclosed on Thursday by the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris Malagi, when the Niger State Commissioner of Information and Strategy, Hon. Binta Mamman, paid him a courtesy visit at his office in Abuja.
The minister said the proposed plan to host the National Council of Information meeting in Minna was part of the federal government's Renew Hope Agenda on the Information Sector, which he said has aligned with the New Niger Agenda of Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago.
"I will discuss it with the president, my state governor, and the Council so that it will be hosted by my state. Though they will say I am selfish, let it be the first under my watch to be hosted in my state," Malagi said.
He noted that the meeting will afford the state the opportunity to showcase its New Niger Agenda's strategies and programmes, adding that part of the Renew Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was to carry out town hall meetings across the 36 states, within the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria.
The minister described the town hall interaction as a medium for exchanging ideas and taking feedback from people as a catalyst for the implementation of Renew Hope initiatives across all sectors of the nation's economy.
Earlier in her submission, the Niger State Commissioner of Information and Strategy, Binta Mamman, applauded the decision of the federal ministry of information to host the National Council of Information meeting in Niger State, saying the gesture will greatly spur the farmer governor, Muhammad Umaru Bago, towards providing adequate support for the information sector to strive for and propagate the New Niger Agenda.
Noting that the Council on Information meeting in Minna will be a plus in showcasing the state's transformational projects, the commissioner said, 'we are pleased as a state to receive this gesture from you as our own.
"We also want you to support us in the area of retreat, training, and retraining our information officers. We want to urge you to always remember us if there are opportunities that the state information sector can benefit from your good office.
"We assure you that the National Council of Information hosted by our state will be impactful to the New Niger Agenda of Farmer Governor Bago," she added.
The State Commissioner was accompanied by the General Manager of Radio Niger, Kabiru Ibrahim, and the Director of Information, Mrs. Hassana Joan Kpetu.
The Electoral Committee of the 2024 FCT SWAN elections has fixed Friday, May 10, 2024, for the concluding part of the elections.
It could be recalled that in the elections held on Friday, April 26, 2024, winners could not emerge in the positions of the Chairman and the Treasurer.
In the chairmanship position where Folusho Alade Oyekan, Tolulope Oguntimehin, and Kelechi Onwudiwe contested, Oguntimehin and Onwudiwe polled 64 votes each, while Oyekan scored eight votes. A total of 136 votes were cast. Both candidates agreed to go for a second ballot on a new date.
The same was the scenario in the position of treasurer, where Jean Frances Nweze and Taofeek Lawal tied for 88 votes.
Announcing the new date for the concluding part of the election, SWANECO Chairman Patrick Ngwaogu (Odogwu) said after meeting with his members, they have resolved to fix Friday, May 10, 2024, for the concluding part of the election.
Ngwaogu was full of appreciation to the members for the orderly manners they presented themselves all through the elections of April 26. He was full of praise for the national leadership of SWAN for standing solidly behind them.
During the April 26 elections, the chairman of the FCT SWAN Electoral Committee (SWANECO), Patrick Ngwaogu, called for the affirmation of the unopposed candidates, comprising Niyi Busari as Financial Secretary, Samuel Ahmadu as Secretary, and Victor Okoye as Vice Chairman.
However, on Friday, Joshua emerged as the newly elected assistant secretary as he polled 104 votes to defeat Nonso Arinzechukwu, who got 32 votes. Joan Iwuchukwu was elected as Welfare Officer. She got 88 votes to beat Busayo Olowookere, who garnered 48 votes.
