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NANS Condemns Killing of Ropvil Daciya Dalep,  Calls For The Sack Of Service Chiefs

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NANS Condemns Killing of Ropvil Daciya Dalep,  Calls For The Sack Of Service Chiefs
The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) condemns in strong terms the brutal murder of Ropvil Daciya Dalep, a student of University of Maiduguri. Dalep was abducted on his way back to school by the Boko Haram terrorist group on 9th January, 2019 alongside others in the vehicle to Maiduguri from Jos.
After days in the net of the dreaded Boko Haram group, Dalep a bonafide member of the largest black students movement, NANS was brutally killed on the 22nd January, 2020 in a video that has gone viral in the social media space.
Others are still held captive and suffering in the hands of their abductors. On a daily basis, Nigerians are kidnapped and killed by Boko Haram and other unknown armed groups.
Recall that a few days ago we were shocked by news of the execution of Pastor Lawan Andimi, Chairman, Christian Association of Nigeria(CAN) in Michika Local Government of Adamawa State who was abducted and murdered in cold blood by the same terrorist group in a video recorded and release by the terror group.
Communities in the North East, especially in Adamawa and Borno States have come under heavy attack with untold casualties and tales of woe that has been either not reported or under reported by the media.
At the moment, there is no safe place in Nigeria as abduction is carried out close to the seat of power, Abuja and its environs. Travellers and commuters are regularly attacked, kidnapped and killed around Kogi, Kaduna and Jos routes.
The impact of the violent attacks has been devastating on these communities and Nigerian students who now live in perpetual fear and could no longer attend school in these areas due to fear of killings and kidnaps as their campuses come under several attacks and the highways they commute from their various homes to school unsafe.
We call on President Muhammadu Buhari, Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces to immediately sack the service chiefs as they have lost touch with the reality.
The rising insecurity in every part of the country must be curtailed, as we call for a halt in normalization of blood letting.
We shall commence action to get our country secured immediately.
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Alake Inaugurates Nigeria-US Solid Minerals Committee, Dismisses $700bn Claim, Says No Assets Sold

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Joel Ajayi

The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Dele Alake, on Tuesday inaugurated the Nigeria-United States Committee on Strategic Cooperation in the Solid Minerals Sector in Abuja, dismissing reports that Nigeria sold $700 billion worth of solid minerals to the US.

The inauguration followed the strategic cooperation framework established between Nigeria and the United States during the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York.

In a statement issued on Wednesday by the Head PRESS and Public Relations Department Mrs. Kania Maliki Andeyaba stated that, Alake in the Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, signed with the US is a government-to-government platform to facilitate business-to-business engagements between American investors and Nigerian local operators, not a sale of assets.

Harping on the importance of the solid minerals sector to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s economic diversification agenda, he noted that the administration was committed to reducing dependence on a mono-product economy through the sustainable development of Nigeria’s vast mineral resources.

According to him, the Nigeria–US partnership as a strategic initiative to attract investment, promote technology transfer, strengthen local mineral processing and create employment opportunities.

“There is no sale of any Nigerian asset. There’s nothing exchanging hands,” Alake declared.

“We created a platform to facilitate mingling of US investment ventures with Nigeria’s local operators. It is in the public domain. We signed it in public and published it in four or five national newspapers.”

The Minister said reports claiming the US was coming to take over Nigeria’s minerals and security architecture were untrue at best and products  of riotous imagination  at worst.

Explaining the policy thrust, Alake said Africa has historically held the short end of the stick in global economic transactions, and Nigeria is determined to change that model.

“We have the resources, the critical elements the world needs to transit to clean energy. So we are creating a new paradigm — you bring your capital, expertise and technology, to match with our natural resources and create a win-win situation . The investor gains, Nigeria gains.’’he said.

Nigeria, he stressed, had operated a mono-cultural economy dependent on oil, while solid minerals were exploited informally — with ores taken “from pit to port” without value addition.

Alake said government has now made local processing mandatory, refusing to grant mineral titles to investors without a clear pathway to processing in Nigeria.

He said the policy led to the springing up of processing factories, including the largest lithium processing plant in West Africa commissioned recently in Nasarawa by the Vice President, and informed the formation of the African Minerals Strategy Group.

Alake noted that investor confidence has returned due to macro-economic reforms by President Bola Tinubu that guarantee security of tenure and repatriation of profits.

He charged the committee to discharge its assignment responsibly, saying its work is strategic to achieving the President’s $1 trillion economy target.

To this end, he told the Committee to ensure effective coordination, identify investment opportunities and translate the framework into measurable outcomes capable of positioning Nigeria as a competitive player in the global solid minerals industry.

In his welcome address, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Engr. Faruk Yusuf Yabo, said the inauguration translates growing bilateral engagements into a structured framework for practical cooperation and investment mobilization

Economic Officer at the US Embassy, Jonathan Baas, said President Donald Trump has prioritized three areas for US embassies — energy, artificial intelligence/super intelligence, and critical minerals.

Baas said Washington’s direction is to work with partners to secure critical supply chains while ensuring partners capture value.

“We just signed a contract today on looking into building AI data centres in Nigeria at the Nigerian Economic Summit. That’s the direction Washington wants us to go,” he said.

In his vote of thanks, CEO/Managing Director of Nigeria Solid Minerals Company, NSMC said that the committee

is expected to coordinate implementation, facilitate investment and monitor progress towards achieving the objectives of the Nigeria–US cooperation framework.

The inauguration reinforces the Federal Government’s commitment to repositioning the solid minerals sector as a key driver of economic diversification, industrial development and national prosperity under President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

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