WARRI-AJAOKUTA-OBARO-ABUJA CENTRAL RAIL PROJECT EXPECTED TO ATTRACT A MINIMUM OF $30B INVESTMENT INTO THE COUNTRY. MINISTER OF TRANSPORTATION

Minister of transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, said Warri-Ajaokuta-Obaro-Abuja central rail project was expected to attract a minimum of $30 billion investment into the country.

Amaechi said this while briefing the Joint Senate and House of Representatives’ Committee on Land Transport on Monday in Abuja, saying the Federal Government had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with China Railway Construction Corporation in respect of the project on Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement.

According to Amaechi, the MoU also covers the construction and expansion of Warri Port and Harbour, construction of deep-sea port and construction of industrial park at Port Harcourt and Bonny Island. Amaechi said the government had also signed the contract for the construction of Calabar to Port Harcourt rail line with extension from Port Harcourt to Onne deep-sea port.

He explained that the project was the Segment one of the Coastal railway projects stemming from Lagos to Calabar with branch line Benin to Onitsha, including the Onitsha bridge rail station. The minister also said the Lagos-Ibadan Segment 2 of the Lagos-Kano railway modernisation project would soon commence; the line would also extend to the Apapa ports from Ebute Metta. “We have also signed the implementation agreement in August for Kano-Kaduna of which the initial commercial contract agreement was signed in 2006. The other segments namely Ibadan-Ilorin-Abuja and Minna-Kaduna will come on as the negotiations and works progress. “In the road transportation mode, our priorities include the completion of some freight offices including that of Seme in Lagos State; Shaki in Oyo State and Illela in Sokoto State. “Others are Kamba in Kebbi State; Jibiya in Katsina State; Gamboru Ngala in Borno and Idiroko in Ogun State as well as the commencement of inter-state road transit,” he said.

He said the present administration was determined to reposition the transportation sector for optimal performance, principally by creating an enabling legal and legislative framework to encourage private investment in the sector. He said the long-term effect of divestment by government in railway transportation had been the major factor in Nigeria’s weak position in the railway sector. According to him, the narrow gauge system will provide affordable and safe transport to over 5.1 million passengers a year. “This will also account for over 20 million tonnes, amounting to almost 35 percent of freight movement per year,” he stated. Responding, Gbenga Ashafa, chairman, Senate Committee on Land Transport, said the visit of the committee was to conduct an on the spot assessment of performance of the ministry within the life span of the 2016 budget.

Ashafa said the disposition of the committee to the ministry’s proposals in the 2017 budget would be largely guided by its assessment of the ministry’s performance in the current period. He said that the legislative arm was committed to providing the requisite legislative support to the executive in its drive to create change in the country’s transport landscape.

According to him, the committee believes that with the senate’s passage of the 2016 Railway Bill; more avenues have been opened up in the rail transport sector for foreign direct investment. While commending the government for the completion of Abuja-Kaduna rail project, Ashafa called for adequate security measure in the rail corridors.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the joint senate and house committee members, during the oversight visit, inspected the Idu and Kubwa rail stations.

HOLD FG RESPONSIBLE FOR FAILED ROAD PROJECTS IN DELTA STATE SAYS DELTA STATE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY

ASABA—DELTA State House of Assembly has told the people of the state to stop blaming Governor Ifeanyi Okowa for the terrible conditions of virtually all the federal roads in the state, saying the Federal Government should be held responsible.

Speaking through the Chairman of the Assembly Committee on Environment, Oil and Gas, Mr Daniel Yingi, the Assembly, said it was sad to hear people blame Governor Okowa for the disrepair of federal roads in the state instead of the Federal Government, describing it as a sad commentary.

According to Yingi who represents Burutu Constituency 1, “I want to use this opportunity to let Deltans know that most of these roads, including Sapele-Abraka-Agbor Road, Benin-Sapele-Warri Road, Asaba-Illah-Uromi Road and many others that are in very bad shape, are federal roads not state roads. So, all the blame should be heaped at the door steps of the Federal Government and not the state. The people should not judge our performance by the failure of the federal government. I feel very bad when I hear people ask Okowa what is doing on these roads.”

MARTIN LUTHER'S REFORMATION DAY CELEBRATION IN ABONNEMA

Today being the Martin Luther's Reformation day the members of ST. PAUL'S NYEMONI LUTHERAN CATHEDRAL(TEMPLE OF THE NEW COVENANT) took the streets to mark the day and also preach the gospel to the citizens of Abonnema in Akuku-Toru Local Government Area of Rivers state Nigeria. The HeadQuarters of the Fellowship of Lutheran Congregations Nigeria (FLCN) with the Primate of FLCN HIS EMINENCE MOST REV. DR. NIMI BENSON JOHN FYNEFACE(JP), the Arch-deacon REV.GODSTIME DOUGLAS (JP) and other Ministers.

PHOTO SPEAKS

MARTN Luther's REFORMATION DAY CELEBRATION

The Story of Reformation Day and Martin Luther

Origins of Protestant Faith in the Story of Martin Luther

 

For many Protestants, particularly Lutherans, Reformation Day is one of the most important holidays, next to Christmas and Easter. Reformation Day is celebrated on the last Sunday in October and honors the beginning of the Reformation, commemorating Martin Luther's posting of ninety-five theses at the entrance to the Castle Church in the town of Wittenberg, Germany, in AD 1517.

Luther, an Augustinian monk, doctor of theology, and resident of Wittenberg, is considered by Protestants to have rediscovered the fundamental tenets of Christian faith, thereby setting the stage for a confrontation within the Church that would eventually lead to the Reformation. 

The History of the Reformation
The historical trends that brought about the Reformation began centuries before its actual occurrence. In part, the root causes stem from the Church's departure from the foundational teachings of Christ regarding a believer's relationship with God, believers' relationships with one another, and the means of salvation. By the time of the fall of Rome, in the late fifth century, the Church had already adopted many practices contrary to the teachings of Christ. 

Particularly, three perceived errors in doctrine stood out as major flaws that were in direct opposition to his teachings, and these later became the basis for Luther's ninety-five theses. The first error created a priesthood that acted as mediator between the believer and God, suggesting that direct communication between man and the almighty was impossible. The second was the establishment of a pope or pontiff who would exercise authority over the entire Church. The third error related to the attainment of salvation through penitent works and charitable acts, rather than through the miracle of faith. 

Indulgences
The catalyst that caused Luther to directly confront these issues, however, was the Church practice of granting "indulgences". The custom was based on a verse in the Gospel of John, where Jesus gave the apostles the authority to forgive or retain the sins of humanity. In Luther's time, the Church was engaged in the practice of selling indulgences as a means of increasing ecclesiastical wealth. The Church justified this practice by citing that, although God released the offender from his heavenly obligation, he was still required to pay an earthly price for his sin. 

Such payments (or other suitable acts of charity) to the Church released a person from financial or civil obligation incurred as a result of sin. This practice greatly benefited nobles and the wealthy, who could literally pay for their crimes, and correspondingly severely disadvantaged the poor, who could not. The practice also included the selling of indulgences to the families of deceased relatives to release their souls from Purgatory. 

It was the "Jubilee Indulgence," authorized by Pope Leo X to pay for the rebuilding of St. Peter's Cathedral, which incited Luther to take action. As the doors of churches were often utilized for posting public notices, Luther, having written his ninety-five theses, placed them on the Castle Church doors on All Hallows Eve, where many who would attend the following All Saints Day observance would read it. However, it was the recent invention of the printing press that allowed Luther's theses to be circulated throughout Europe, thereby bringing him to the attention of Rome and the papacy. 

Luther's Excommunication
The Church perceived Luther to be in opposition to Papal authority, and, accusing him of heresy, sought to have him arrested. With the support of the faculty at Wittenberg University and the Elector, Prince Frederick III of Saxony, Luther avoided imprisonment and a trial that most likely would have ended with his execution. However, by 1520, he was excommunicated from the Church and labeled as a heretic and fugitive. 

The reaction of the Church against Luther and its steadfast refusal to discuss his theses prompted an internal schism that eventually became the Reformation movement. By 1530, the division was set, and an official statement of faith, known as the Augsburg Confession, began the first Protestant Church. 

The revival of the doctrine of salvation by grace through faith has become the cornerstone by which the modern church exists. Reformation Day honors the work of the Holy Spirit in individuals who step out and confront the evils of their day through faith. From Luther's time to the present, the Church has been in a near-constant state of reformation, as the Lord continually restores the teachings and gifts that He blessed the Church with at its birth on Pentecost.

ABOMINATION!!! MAN CAUGHT FINGERING 18 MONTHS OLD BABY

Lagos state police command has arrested 47 year old Emmanuel Magbatie…for a case of defilement. The suspect lives in Ikorodu with the parents of the 18 month old baby that was defiled. The mother of the victim narrated to the police that on the 5th of August, her daughter went to play in the suspect’s room as usual, but she was shocked to meet the suspect fingering the 18 month old baby

BANK WORKERS TO DECLARE THERE ASSETS

The Central Bank of Nigeria has ordered workers in all the 19 Deposit Money Banks in the country to declare their assets. The  move analysts say looks like the Federal Government is beginning to expand its ongoing anti-corruption crusade to the private sector, especially the banking industry.

The directive, which came in a letter through the Banking Supervision Department of the CBN to all the 19 commercial banks in the country about four weeks ago, gave bank officials only one week to complete the assets declaration process, sources close to the DMBs said.

AMAZING!!! FEMALE FOOTBALLER WITH SIX PACKS ON DISPLAY

Former Nigerian Footballer Chichi Igbo shows off her six packs in a mini Jacket

DAVID MARK"NIGERIANS CAN NOW SPOT THE DIFFERENCE"

Former Senate President David Mark at the weekend said Nigerians can now spot the difference between the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) government and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).