Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has said corrupt elements are doing everything possible to obfuscate the good
work of the present administration, as a response to the government’s determined fight against corruption
Addressing the staff of the Nigerian Embassy in Abu Dhabi on Sunday, the Minister said as the government fights corruption, corruption is
also fighting back, using even unsuspecting sources, adding: ”This is
the biggest challenge facing the administration at the moment.”
He however assured that the Administration remains determined and
focused in its efforts to root out corruption in the country.
Responding to a question on how the government can better ensure the
flow of timely and accurate information to Nigerian Missions abroad,
Alhaji Mohammed said the Ministry would launch an Information App on
15 Dec. 2016 to provide real time information to Nigerians at home and
in the Diaspora.
He also said the Ministry is considering setting up a Foreign Service
Information System as part of plans to furnish the Missions with
much-needed information, especially for prospective investors and
tourists.
The Minister told the Embassy Staff that apart from using the
traditional means of communicating with the people, the Administration
has resorted to holding Town Hall Meetings in order to better inform
Nigerians of the activities of government, as well as to get the
necessary feedback on government’s programmes and policies.
He disclosed, however, that the Town Hall Meetings, which has been
held in five states and Abuja so far, will be held on a sectoral basis
from next year, in order to provide more information to Nigerians on
key sectors, including Agriculture, infrastructural development and
the economy.
Mohammed also announced that efforts are being made to revitalise the National Orientation Agency (NOA), which he said is the
closest to the grassroots, with a view to strengthening to be able to
communicate the programmes and policies of the Administration to
Nigerians
”We are reinventing the NOA in a more professional manner. The
challenge is to better equip the NOA staff with the latest
communication facilities so that they can do their work more
effectively,” he said.
The Minister, who was in Abu Dhabi to attend the International
Conference on the Safeguarding of Cultural Heritage in Conflict Areas,
said the Administration has acquitted itself creditably in fighting
the insurgency in the North-east, tackling the incessant clashes
between farmers and herders and taking concrete measures to end the
militancy in the Niger Delta.
He said the government has already provided 200,000 of the 500,000
jobs it promised under the N-Power Volunteers Programme, while at the
same time embarking on an agricultural initiative that will see
Nigeria become self sufficient in rice and wheat in the shortest time
possible.
On the economic recession, Mohammed said ”We are spending our
way out of this recession, we are investing massively in
infrastructural development: roads, railways, power etc, and creating
jobs in the process.”
Earlier, the Charge d’Affaires, Mr. Nura Rimi, said the Embassy is
carrying out its assignment diligently in spite of the challenges
facing it, adding that it recently bagged an award for excellence from
the United Arab Emirates authorities, one of only three missions in
the UAE that won the award.
Issues raised by the Embassy Staff in their interaction with the
Minister include the suspension of flights to Abuja by Emirates
Airlines, the visa restriction to Nigerians willing to travel to the
UAE, the need for Nigeria to tap from the $350 million renewable
energy fund that is available in the UAE and the possibility of
Nigeria partnering with the UAE Red Crescent to assist the Internally
Displaced Persons in the North-east.
Among top officials of the Embassy who attended the meeting are Mr.
Aliyu Hamman (Minister – Economic); Mr. Rabiu Lawal (Minister –
Consular); Mr. Zakari Usman (Senior Counsellor); Mr. Adesoye Samotu
(Senior Counsellor), Mr. Bukar Salihu Malgin (Finance Attache) and Mr.
Mohammed Bashar Magaji (Immigration Attache).
