News
95% Digital Literacy in Nigeria by 2030 promising – Pantami
The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof. Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, at the weekend in Gombe, said Nigeria’s march towards attaining 95 per cent digital literacy in 2030, as contained in the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS), 2020 – 2030, now looks more promising than ever.
Pantami, who presided over the graduation of participants at a two-week Digital Job Creation Training for the North-East in Gombe, which was facilitated by the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, said “the reason we train citizens is because digital skills are no longer considered a luxury, but necessities required in any business you do. If you want to be successful, you need to have digital skills.’’
According to the Minister, “ICT is not just an independent sector but the key enabler of all other sectors today. It enables opportunities in education, in health, in agriculture, in security, in defence, in manufacturing, in trade, in investment and in industry.”
He, therefore, urged the participants to adopt innovation-driven enterprises and to utilize the training they have received to improve their economic status and make Nigeria a better place.
“We have to utilise ICT in order to make our country a better place. We must use ICT even for our personal economic benefits amongst others. Therefore, we want to encourage you not to waste your times online but rather to use the knowledge you have acquired to make Nigeria a better place and at the same time, derive many economic benefits from it,” he said.
The Minister highlighted that recent reports of the National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, about the performance of each sector of the economy, which indicated an unprecedented ICT’s contribution of 18.44 per cent to the economy, as very heart-warming about the prospects of the industry meeting with the expectations of the relevant policies.
“So, by implications, we set a record last year and we surpassed that record this second quarter of 2022 without involving the digital services. Only the ICT sector contributed 18.44 per cent, which can be attributed to the policies which we have introduced in the sector,” he said.
He said the training which has taken place in nine other states, including the Federal Capital Territory, will be conducted throughout the remaining geopolitical zones.
The Digital Job Creation Training is a two-week programme targeted at youth desirous of developing and enhancing their ICT skills in order to promote and enhance growth in the yet untapped and commercially viable digital economy both locally and globally. Each participant at the training received starter packs comprising laptop with accessories, MiFi Modem with three months data subscription, and some money.
Operatives of the Department of State Security (DSS), have arrested two principal suspects involved in the killing of 16 Nigerians of Northern extraction in Uromi, Esan North East Local Government last week.
The suspects were arrested by operatives of the DSS in Uromi, following credible intelligence. Operatives of various security agencies are hunting for other key suspects involved in the unfortunate incidents
Edo State Governor, Senator Monday Okpebholo, had on Monday in Kano State, during a condolence visit, revealed that 14 suspects had already been arrested in connection with the killing.
Governor Okpebholo who visited the State to condole with the Government and families of the victims, had vowed that justice will be served and those involved in the killing will be brought to justice.
Governor Okpebholo had also assured families of the victims that adequate compensations will be paid.
In the latest development, the two principal suspects arrested by officials of the DSS, have been transferred to Abuja, the nation’s capital, for further interrogation and prosecution by the relevant authorities.
A Nigerian televangelist, Timothy Omotoso has been acquitted of rape after spending eight years in prison in South Africa.
Trouble started when the televangelist was accused of raping young women from his South African church, an accusation he denied when he was arrested eight years ago.
His trial was aired live I South Africa and gained interest across the country, but insisted that he was not guiltynof 32-count charges against him.
In 2018, one witness told the court she had been raped by the pastor – who ran a church in the city of Port Elizabeth – when she was 14 years old.
The presiding judge on Wednesday 1st April, 2025 delivered judgement, saying Pastor Timothy Omotoso has not bèn found guilty over this case because prosecutors had mishandled the case.
South Africa’s National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) shared a similar assessment, saying that “former prosecutors in the case acted improperly and the accused were not sufficiently cross-examined by the state”.
The NPA said it will now “consider its legal options”.
For his part, Mr Omotoso told the media he thanked God for the verdict.
His co-accused, Lusanda Sulani and Zikiswa Sitho, were also found not guilty.
Mr Omotoso was dramatically arrested at an airport in 2017 as he sought to leave the country.
His trial was the first prominent rape case to be broadcast live in a country where sexual violence is rampant.
The hearings attracted huge interest, and raised difficult questions about victims’ rights, impartiality and whether justice is best served by having television cameras in courtrooms.
Following Wednesday’s verdict, Mr Omotoso will be deported to Nigeria, South African media outlet News24 reported.
The Rivers State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has declared that it has been vindicated by recent revelations from the state’s former Head of Service, Dr. George Nwaeke.
The Rivers APC Chairman, Chief Tony Okocha, stated this in a statement he personally signed and made available to journalists on Wednesday.
The former Head of Service, who recently resigned had alleged that the suspended Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, was directly responsible for the political crisis in the state and the bombing of the State House of Assembly.
In response, the Rivers State APC asserted that Nwaeke’s testimony aligns with the party’s long-held position, as frequently stated by Chief Okocha, that the suspended governor was the architect of the state’s political crisis, including masterminding the October 29, 2023, bombing of the State House of Assembly.
Chief Okocha further emphasized that Nwaeke’s account, given his high-ranking position in the state, cannot be dismissed as mere speculation.
He said attempts to discredit the former Head of Service will not deter him from exposing the alleged corruption and misconduct that the APC has repeatedly highlighted.
“What is most interesting to the APC in Rivers State as a responsible political party is that Dr. George Nwaeke’s revelations and testimonies of how suspended Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his squad bombed the Rivers State House of Assembly is an eye witness account.
“Again , it has clearly vindicated the APC in Rivers State as the only visible and viable opposition political party in the State, and has cemented the love for the party in the heart of well meaning Rivers people as the voice of the voiceless, and the hope for a better Rivers State.
“The revelations made by the former Head of Service in Rivers State has further positioned her as a political party with high level of integrity, and the hope of Rivers people for a viable alternative to produce the Governor of Rivers State in 2027.
“The verbal attacks staged against the resigned Head of Service will not deter him from exposing the corruption within Sim Fubara’s administration, which we have consistently highlighted as the opposition party. On this matter, the APC shall function as watchdogs”, the party stated.
Chief Tony Okocha expressed confidence that security agencies would thoroughly investigate the matter.
“The APC in Rivers State strongly believes that the relevant security agencies will be professional enough to get to the root of the matter and make their findings public”, he said.
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