Over 9,000 beneficiaries have been recorded as the Federal Ministry of Education, in collaboration with the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) and the Bank of Industry, has rolled out the Tertiary Institutions Staff Support Fund (TISSF).
The new scheme is designed to improve the welfare of academic and non-academic staff across Nigeria’s tertiary institutions.
In a statement released on the official X handle of the National Orientation Agency on Monday, under the initiative, eligible staff of federal and selected state universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education can access interest-free loans of up to ₦10 million, repayable over a maximum of five years, following a 12-month moratorium.
According to details released by the Ministry, about 248 institutions nationwide have been cleared to participate in the programme.
These include all federal universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education, as well as one state university, one state polytechnic, and one state college of education in each state.
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The Ministry also confirmed that in the first phase of disbursement, more than 9,000 staff members of eligible institutions have already received payments under the scheme.
The over 9,000 beneficiaries account for 28 per cent of the 33,000 verified applicants drawn from around 219 federal and state tertiary institutions.
A former minister of aviation and former corps marshal of Federal Road Safety Corps, Osita Chidoka, has called on the government to invest in safety and precaution measures on the roads to avoid accidents on the highways.
Chidoka made the call on Monday during an interview with Channels Television’s The Morning Brief.
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He said that if the government failed to invest in road safety, by 2030 at least 65,000 lives would have been lost to road crashes if care is not taken.
“No country loses 5,000 people from a particular incident and does nothing. But let me tell you the price of doing nothing, if we do nothing and this thing keeps growing at the current 10 per cent between 2024 and 2025, and FRSC remains without patrol vehicles and fueling to go about at least reducing speed on our highway, by 2030, we would have lost at least 65,000 Nigerians from road crashes.
“It could be me, it could be you, and could be anybody, and that is not good enough,” Chidoka said.
‘Vision Zero Possible’
The former minister further stated that it was possible to reduce fatalities and serious injuries in road crashes.
“Vision zero is possible, and I tell people that I’m passionate about road safety. Road safety is not the same as FRSC. FRSC is the Federal Road Safety Corps, but road safety is an issue that Nigerians should be interested in,” he noted.
“I am saying to Mr President, we don’t need any new legislation, we don’t need any new laws.
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Comedian Ruby Wax interviewed Donald Trump on his private jet in 2000, but described the encounter as one of the ‘most excuriating’ moments of her career
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Ruby Wax says Donald Trump “completely nailed” her with one comment(Image: BBC)
Ruby Wax says Donald Trump pushed her to quit showbiz after he “nailed her completely” during a notorious encounter. The comedian was “thrown off” Donald Trump’s private jet after meeting him for an interview.
It came after Ruby, 72, laughed at the billionaire when he told her he wanted to become the US President. Ruby spoke to the businessman on his plane for her Ruby Wax Meets series in 2000.
Trump, 79, reportedly threatened to “kill” Ruby should they ever meet again. Speaking on the Stompcast podcast with Dr Alex George, Ruby explained Trump was the “worst” interview she did during the series.
She said: “Donald Trump was the cruelest. That was when I decided to quit showbusiness because he threw me so much.
“He was so full of rage and hatred that I had flop sweat running down my face and thought, ‘I never want to do this again’. He nailed me completely and said at one point, ‘You’re angry with a smile.’ And I thought, ‘This guy has gutter instincts,’ because that’s exactly what I was.”
Ruby previously described her initial meeting with the US President as one of the most “excruciating moments” of her career. She believes Trump “hated” her during their discussion.
Describing Trump as “vicious” and “sharp” with a “gutter rat instinct,” she claims the tone of their meeting changed once she laughed at his presidential ambitions. She now admits she would have “handled it really differently” if she were to do the interview again.
Speaking on the Disruptors Podcast, Wax explained: “He called me obnoxious and he said, ‘Let’s land the plane.’ We were at 33,000 ft and I had laughed at him when he said he wants you to be president of the United States.
“I thought, ‘What a kidder. This guy’s got a sense of humor.’ And then I saw it wasn’t a joke. And he threw me off the plane.
“He said to John McEnroe, who was my next interview after him, ‘If I ever see Ruby Wax again, I’m going to kill her.”
Ruby previously told ABC that Trump told the pilot to land the plane in Arkansas so she could disembark. However, she believes she eventually won the President over with a moment that wasn’t caught on camera.
Speaking to ABC, Wax said: “We were in a car together, but you don’t see that. And he told me what he likes to do with women, thinking that he would shock me. But I shocked him back, so then he started to like me. Because I became as animal as he did.”
Ruby is currently competing in the latest series of I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! On ITV One. From 9pm tonight (November 17) viewers will watch as she tackles the latest Bushtucker Trial with TikTok star Angry Ginge.
