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Corps Member Leads War Against Open Defecation, Donates Toilets Facility to Dakwa Community

Published

4 years ago

January 14, 2021

…1,000 women to enjoy free genotyping and blood grouping

Joel Ajayi

While others are using their allowees to purchase unnecessary things, a kindhearted Youth Corps Member, Dr. Vincent Emmanuel Chidera, has decided to use his own to ameliorate the suffering of people by donating a 4-unit toilet facility to the Dakwa community in Dei-Dei, in the Federal Capital Territory.

The facility will no doubt help more than 60 Almajiri children who resorted to open defecation because of lack of adequate toilet facilities.

Not only that, in partnership with Dr. Chidera’s Place of Primary Assignment, 1000 women of reproductive age group 15-49 in the communities will enjoy free genotyping and blood grouping.

Dr. Chidera is from the South-East, born and bred in the North, schooled in the South, and currently serving at the EL-HUSSAN Specialist Hospital in Dei-Dei in Abuja.

However, the commissioning of the Community Development Service Project of Dr. Chidera attracted the attention of NYSC Headquarter and the FCT chapter as they were all physically present to grace the occasion.

While commissioning the project, the National Youth Service Corps NYSC, Director General, Brig. Gen Shuaibu Ibrahim applauded the young man for the laudable initiative, he then called on all the corps members to borrow a leaf from the character of Dr. Chidera by making themselves relevant in their community development toward the growth and development of their father’s land.

NYSC Boss said that the construction of the toilet was timely as it would help to prevent so many airborne diseases, more so as Coronavirus ravaged the world.

He said; “During the beginning of COVID-19 pandemic, we have to suspend our mobilization but corps members were mobilized nationwide to contribute to the fight and when the history of those corps members who fought and still fighting Pandemic Dr. Chidera will be mention because he contributes immensely; he produces face mask anytime you need corps members in FCT is always there.

“So, when I was invited to commissioning of this project, I have to spare time to come because it’s not just the magnitude of this structure but the spirit behind it.

“I want to call on all the corps members to borrow a leaf from the character of Dr. Chidera to add value to those communities. NYSC always provides a platform to corps members and for those of them that are very serious and make maximum use of the opportunities the sky is always their limit. I once again congratulate Dr. Chidera and I wish you the best in life.”

He thanked the community forgiven the corps members an enabling environment for them to provide the project.

In her welcome address, NYSC FCT Coordinator Hajia Wlida Siddique Isa commended the donor adding that the project will further reduce open defecation in the community.

According to her, this brief even is in furtherance of our commitment to providing solution to societal issues and contributing our quota to community and national development

“We sincerely hope that this facility will go a long way in reducing the impact of open defecation within the Dakwa community and her offspring. I, therefore, enjoin the leaders and of course the youths of this community to ensure that this facility is properly and fully secured.”

Speaking at the venue, Dr. Chidera, a 2020 Batch A corps member, who provided the facility said that there was the need for other well-meaning Nigerians to come to the aid of the community in providing other facilities that would give the community a facelift.

A kindhearted Youth Corps Member, Dr. Vincent Emmanuel Chidera Giving Brief of the Project.

According to him, I decided to solve the problems by building the toilet.

“My posting to serve in this community came with a great delight, and I had set my heart to touch as many lives as I could; the pandemic and stringent economic difficulties, notwithstanding. Few weeks into my posting, I had noticed a trend, which to me, was of epidemiological significance; A good number of all the under-5 children which I managed, presented with a similar set of GI symptoms and were weighing below the expected weight for their age and sex.

“This observation prompted the epidemiological survey that landed me in this compound the very first time I came here. I had seen over five other similar settlements around the community, where Almajiri children are housed but without a convenience.

“I was particularly drawn to this very one because of the population density; having 65 children between the ages of 5- 18, clustered in a 3- room 12x 12 apartments, without a convenience, was nothing less than suicide, so I thought.

“So, I decided that something urgent must be done before the next rainy season. Though the prevailing economic situation made things extremely difficult, but I’m glad, with the support of the children, we were able to put together, something a little more convenient than our gutters.

“Finally, 5 months ago, we had admitted and managed a 16year old Sickle Cell Disease patient, who was weighing less than 10kg and was in severe pains, pains which she had innocently suffered for over a decade because her parents were either unaware or choose to throw the knowledge to the abyss. After an interaction with over 50 patients, I realized, a good number of them knew what genotype was, but has never had one done.

“In partnership with my Place of Primary Assignment, we decided to run a free genotyping and blood grouping program for 1000 persons in the community over a period of two months. That project was completed successfully, but the result was mind-boggling. Almost 30% of the Sample population had the Sickle Cell Trait. By implication, 1 out of every 4 women in Dakwa, had the Sickle Cell trait and must not marry a man with the trait. These are pressing societal issues that must be given attention.”

While giving the vote of thanks, the Village Head of Dakwa community Alhaji Yahaya Ajiya, called on stakeholders to come into the community to upgrade the educational standard that will help the community at large.

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Business

Tax Reform Bills: The Verdict of Nigerians

Published

2 weeks ago

March 6, 2025

The Gleamer

Ismaila Ahmad Abdullahi Ph.D

The public hearings conducted recently by the two Chambers of the National Assembly have elicited positive responses from a broad spectrum of Nigerians, cutting across regional interest groups, government agencies, civil society groups, concerned individuals, the academia, and Labour Unions, among diverse others. Contrary to a few dissensions hitherto expressed in the media, almost all the stakeholders who spoke during the week-long sessions were unanimous in their declaration that the hallowed Chambers should pass the tax reform bills after a clean-up of the grey areas.

The public hearings were auspicious for all Nigerians desirous of economic growth and fiscal responsibility. They were also a watershed moment for the Federal Inland Revenue Service, which had been upbeat about the tax reforms. Indeed, the public hearings had rekindled hope in the tenets of democracy that guarantee freedom of expression and equitable space for cross-fertilisation of ideas. Without gainsaying the fact, the tax reform bills have been unarguably about the most thought-provoking issues in Nigeria today, drawing variegated perspectives and commentaries from even unlikely quarters such as the faith-based leaders, student bodies, and trade unions, which speaks much about the importance of the bills.

In the build-up to the public hearings, not many people believed that the bills would make it to the second reading, much less the public hearings. Even the Northern stakeholders who seemed unlikely to support the passage of the bills have softened their stance and have given valuable suggestions that would enrich the substance of the bills. The Arewa Consultative Forum came to the public hearings well-prepared with a printed booklet that addressed their concerns. It concluded with an advisory that the bills should be “Well planned, properly communicated, strategically implemented and ample dialogue and political consensus allowed for the reforms to be accepted.”

The concerns of ACF ranged from the composition of the proposed Nigeria Revenue Service Board as contained in Part 111, Section 7 of the bill, the unlimited Presidential power to exempt/wave tax payment as proposed in Section 75(1) of the bill, the family income or inheritance tax as contained in Part 1, Section 4(3) of the bill, to the issues around development levy and VAT. On the development levy, the ACF stated that unless the Federal Government is considering budgetary funding for TETFUND, NASENI and NITDA, it does not see the “wisdom behind the plan to replace (them) with NELFUND”.

The position of the North was equally reinforced by the Supreme Council for Shariah in Nigeria, Northern Elders Forum, Kano State Government, Professor Auwalu Yadudu, and the FCT Imams. Like the ACF, these stakeholders lent their respective voices to the Section on the Inheritance Tax in Part 1 of the bill and the use of the term ‘ecclesiastical’, which, in their views, undermines certain religious rights and beliefs. The Kano State Government, represented by Mahmud Sagagi, affirmed that “we support tax modernisation” but cautioned that “we must ensure that this process does not come at the expense of states’ constitutional rights and economic stability”. Professor Auwalu Yadudu, a constitutional law professor, drew attention to the use of the ‘supremacy clause’ and cautioned that the repeated use of “notwithstanding” in the bills would undermine the supremacy of the Nigerian constitution if passed as such.

Other stakeholders that made contributions at the sessions included the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas, Fiscal Responsibility Commission, Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission, Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria, Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria, Nigeria Customs Service, and a host of others. While most of their concerns bordered on technical issues requiring fine-tuning, they were unanimous in their support for the bills. They aligned with the position of the Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service, Zacch Adedeji, Ph.D. and the Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, Mr Taiwo Oyedele, which is that the extant tax laws and fiscal regulations are obsolete necessitating reforms aimed at creating a fair and equitable tax and fiscal space to grow Nigeria’s economy.

In one of the sessions, Dr Zaach Adedeji expounded on the criss-cross of trade activities in the Free Trade Zone whereby companies misuse tax waivers as exporters to sell their goods or services in the Customs Area at an amount usually less than the price the operators in the Customs Area who pay VAT and other taxes sell theirs thereby disrupting business transactions. This way, the operators in the Free Trade Zone shortchange the government in paying their due taxes by circumventing extant regulations, which are inimical to the economy’s growth.

Overall, the presentations were forthright, foresighted, and helpful in elucidating the issues contained in the bills. According to the statistics read out at the end of the hearings at the Senate, 75 stakeholders were invited, 65 made submissions, and 61 made presentations. At the House of Representatives 53 stakeholders made presentations. By all means, this is a fair representation. Given the presentations, it is evident that the National Assembly has gathered enough materials to guide its deliberations on the bills. As we look forward to the passage of the bills, we commend the leadership of the National Assembly for their unwavering commitment to making the bills see the light of the day.

Abdullahi is the Director of the Communications and Liaison Department, FIRS.

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