Senator Iroegbu in Abuja
The Commandant, National Defence College (NDC), Rear Admiral Samuel Alade, has said the college would continue to sustain its policy of admitting only officers that have complied with the Body Mass Index.
Alade, who was represented by the NDC deputy commandant, Maj.-Gen. Ede Ode, stated this in Abuja yesterday at the NDC 2016 Sports Day organised as part of activities to mark the Course 24 graduation ceremony.
He said the policy was aimed at ensuring that only physically and mentally fit officers were admitted to the college for training.
He said that apart from the college’s academic programmes, both staff and students were encouraged to participate in sporting activities in line with the military’s objective of maintaining physical fitness at all times.
The commandant noted that sports was an integral part of activities at the National Defence College both as a unifying factor and an exercise to keep the body healthy.
He said: “Just as we take the matter of academics seriously at the college, we equally pay attention to the matter of physical fitness.
“We appreciate and will sustain the directive from the services that officers shortlisted for the National Defence College programme must comply with the Body Mass Index.
“The essence is to ensure that the participants are healthy, physically and mentally fit to undergo such rigorous training.’’
Alade added that it was using sports to further strengthen the bond between directing staff and participants on one hand and on the other hand, foreign participants and other members of the college community.
On his part, Minister of Sports and Youth Development, Solomon Dalung, commended the management of the NDC for integrating sports in its training programme.
Dalung who was represented by the Director, Grass Root Sports, Mr Shua Umar, said the Armed Forces policy on physical fitness was worthy of emulation and should be replicated in other fields of the public sector.
According to him, sports should be at the heart of ever y profession and not only for the Armed Forces.
The minister said the ministry would continue to identify key stakeholders and build partnerships that would advance the cause of sports in Nigeria.
He pledged the continued support of his ministry to the college, offering to work closer with participants in the near future, in the area of sports development.
The games involving the commandant and the course 24 participants’ football, volleyball, basketball, table tennis, lawn tennis and scrabble teams were played to mark the occasion.
Alleged N72 billion looting: Katsina High Court dismisses Shema’s case against Commission of Enquiry
Ibrahim Shuaibu in Katsina
The Katsina High Court presided by Justice Abbas Bawale has dismissed the suit filed before it by former Governor of the state, Barrister Ibrahim Shehu Shema against the Judicial Commission of Inquiry set up by the State Government to investigate the alleged looting of N72billion by the officials of the Shema led PDP administration.
Also joined in the suit are the Chairman, Justice Surajo Muhammed and all the other 10 members of the Commission.
In the suit, the former Governor sought the that the Governor of the state, Rt. Honourable Aminu Bello Masari has no power to constitute the commission to enquire into the activities of his tenure.
Shema also requested that the establishment of the commission is unconstitutional, that his right to fair hearing has been breached and the Chairman of the Commission is biased.
However, in its ruling the court dismissed all the claims of the former governor denying him all the reliefs he had sought.
The court ruled by the power vested on him by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the Governor has the power to constitute the Judicial Commission of Inquiry.
“That the right to fair hearing of the plaintiff, Ibrahim Shehu Shema, has not been breached as he had been served with all the processes of the Commission which had given him sufficient time to respond to the allegations raised in all the memos filed by the government before the Commission and the plaintiff has not provided sufficient evidence to prove that the Chairman of the Commission is biased. No cost was awarded to any of the parties.
