News
Flood Hits Maiduguri City As Govt Close Schools For 2 Weeks
Our Correspondent
Hundreds of residents have fled their homes, shops and schools following a devastating flood in Maiduguri, the Borno state capital
One of the victims of the flood said that the flood effected Millionaires Quarters around Gamboru Ward and its environs were also flooded even as the popular Lagos Bridge and the Moduganari bypass bridge have also been submerged and inaccessible.
Mallam Ba’aba the resident of the town said this situation is to be worse than the previous flooding incident around 1994, exactly 30 years now ago, thereby making history to repeat itself in the month of September.
The Alau Dam, which has been at full capacity for the past week, reportedly collapsed in the early hours of Tuesday.
According to the staff of Zoo park, who spoke on theflood, expressed that the Shehu Sanda Kyarimi Park, also been submerged forcing staff to relocate to a safe place, while many animals in the Zoo including crocodiles and snakes have strayed through the water channels, thereby raising apprehension amongst residents who are scampering to remove their properties floating on the raging flood.
Yagana Mustapha added that the flood almost effected parts of the state like, Zoo Road has been flooded with water gushing to the College of Health Technology in Maiduguri while the water is already going towards the Damboa Road ,Commissioner of Police Junction
Comrade Butama Abiso, who is the Executive Director, Network of Civil Society Organisations in Borno State, has urged the humanitarian action towards the victims of the flood.
According to him the flooding has left numerous families devastated and homeless, with particularly severe impact on women and children,.
He also urge on all Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and Community-Based Organisations (CBOs) under its wing to extend their assistance to the affected communities in the State.
In a statement by Usman Tar, the state commissioner for information and internal security, issued a flooding alert, urging the immediate evacuation of those living along the riverbanks.
Tar also urged residents of the affected areas to follow evacuation routes to ensure safe passage.
“Due to the unusually high volume of water this year, we urge all the residents living along the river bank to take immediate action to protect themselves and their properties,” he said.
In the meantime, the Borno State government has reopened the closed Bakassi Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camp in Maiduguri for relocation of citizens displaced by the flood.
“following the ongoing flooding across the state and its adverse effects, the Borno State Ministry of Education, Science, Technology, and Innovation has directed a statewide closure of all schools, both public and private, until Monday, Sept. 23″, the statement said .
He added that we urge all concerned parties to comply strictly with this directive.We regret any inconvenience this notice may have caused and we appreciate your understanding,” the statement added.
The schools which were initially scheduled to open on Monday, Sept. 9, but we’re forced to be closed down in less than 24 hours after resumption due to some of the schools were submerged while others are being occupied by people displaced by the flood..
Our correspondent learnt that the last time the dam collapsed was in 1994, which led to unprecedented flooding in Maiduguri, with nearly half of the town submerged.
News
Tax Reforms, Will Bring Prospeeity-Presidency
Special Adviser to the President on Public Communication and Orientation, Chief Sunday Dare have explained that President Bola Tinubu is determined to promote prosperity by protecting the vulnerable, while eliminating unnecessary financial strain on citizens and ensuring a more efficient revenue collection process.
Dare, in an opinion piece, titled “Tinubu’s People-Centric Tax Reforms and Ndume’s Threat“asserted that President Tinubu meant well for Nigerians as he encouraged people to study the bills and to mobilise support for them to be passed by the National Assembly.
He wrote that “The President’s vision and clear mandate is evident in what the Fiscal policy and tax reforms Committee delivered as recommendations to the government, and became a part of the Economic Stabilisation Bills (ESB) approved by the Federal Executive Council in September, as part of the Accelerated Stability and Advancement Plan (ASAP) of the government.
According to him, “It was in furtherance to a realisation of these objectives that President Bola Tinubu sent a letter to the two chambers of the National Assembly, requesting for the approval of four tax reform bills, which are: “The Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill”, “The Nigeria Tax Bill”, “The Nigeria Tax Administration Bill,” and “The Joint Revenue Board (Establishment) Bill.”
He said “These Bills seek to provide a consolidated fiscal framework for taxation in Nigeria, a clear and concise legal framework for the fair, consistent and efficient administration of all the tax laws to facilitate ease of tax compliance, reduce tax disputes and optimize revenue, among others.
Dare urged people to familarise themselves with “What is driving the reforms and the proposals that have been laid out, which include consolidating the different ‘nuisance taxes’ taxes and levies, which some have put at 62 official and 200 unofficial taxes into a streamlined system of 8 taxes to eliminate unnecessary financial strain on citizens while ensuring a more efficient revenue collection process.
“The committee is also pushing for a constitutional amendment to limit the total number of taxes on individuals and businesses to a single-digit. The objective, it says, to provide greater financial stability and predictability for taxpayers, fostering a more conducive business environment. Apart from that are the amendments to the withholding tax regulation, with businesses earning below 50 million Naira exempted from this tax, to provide relief for small companies and reduce the tax burden on emerging enterprises to engender growth of SMES, which play a central role in providing employment and the development of the econo
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