The rejection of the six-year single tenure bill for president and governors and the plan to
operate Lagos blue rail line by 2021 are some of the trending stories in the Nigerian press
on Wednesday.
The Nation newspaper reported that the House of Representatives on Tuesday rejected a
Bill seeking to amend the 1999 Constitution to accommodate a six-year single tenure for the
President and governors in the future.
The Bill, sponsored by John Dyegh also seeks a six-year multiple tenure for federal and state
legislators.
The decision got a knock from former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, who said the members of
the House of Representatives have thrown away the baby together with the bath water,
according to the Daily Trust newspaper.
The newspaper said that Atiku, a former presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic
Party (PDP), in a statement by his Special Advise on Media, Paul Ibe, expressed displeasure
with the speed with which the six-year single term proposal for president and governors
was rejected by the House of Representatives.
ThisDay said Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has set a 2021 date for the
much-anticipated Lagos Blue Line, the state’s rail project, to commence operations.
Sanwo-Olu, while leading members of the State Executive Council to inspect the 5km long
Continuous Beam Bridge constructed from Iganmu to Marina, said the completion of the
sea-crossing track indicated his administration’s commitment towards completing the
state-funded rail project started in 2009.
The Guardian said that software practitioners are currently angered by the perceived neglect
of the sub-sector by the Federal Government of Nigeria. Under the aegis of the Institute of
Software Practitioners of Nigeria (ISPON), the operators said the development of software
should be prioritised by governments at all levels.
Channels Television and many other newspapers reported that President Muhammadu
Buhari signed into law on Tuesday, the 2020 Appropriation Act of N10.594 trillion.
The Punch reported that there are indications that university lecturers, who failed to register
for the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System, might face a bleak Christmas
as the Federal Government insisted on a directive of the President, Major General
Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), on the payroll system.
The newspaper said that the Federal Government was still insisting on its position that any
of its employees, who failed to register for the IPPIS, would not be paid his salary.
The Sun said the Abuja division of the Federal High Court presided over by Justice Inyang
Ekwo, has summoned the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice,
Abubakar Malami, and the Director General of the Department of State Service (DSS) to
appear before him on December 23 over the continued detention of Omoyele Sowore.
…
MM/GIK/APA