Determined to put a stop on school pupils getting wet during this rainy season with their attendant wet floors, a Non-Governmental Organization, Third-Estate has donated all season skecher shoes to selected schools in Moro Local Government Area of Kwara State.

Making the presentation at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the group in Ilorin Emirate, the President of the association, Mallam Bolaji Nagode said the gesture apart from being a morale booster to the students, was also geared towards unifying the councils within the Ilorin Emirate.

Nagode said: “With supports from Assist International, Ripon, California through Lanre Gidado, Third-Estate presents the Skechers shoes to the selected schools in Moro Local Government to protect students during the raining season and for exercises and is also a symbolic gesture to the people of the community that all local governments in Ilorin Emirate are in one spirit of equity, justice and fairness in politics and economic development.”

Speaking on the activities of the association in the last one year, Mallam Nagode said: “We have commenced free medical outreach for elderly people in the communities and initiated Skills acquisition programmes in ICT through credible IT learning centres.

“We also have a plan to sponsor young graduates to acquire skills in Solar PV Installation and maintenance as part of creating self-empowerment job opportunities for the youths.”

The President also disclosed that a database program on eminent personalities from Ilorin Emirate who contributed to the growth and development of the community and Nigeria is being conducted by Image Merchants Promotion Limited, a reputable PR firm in Abuja.
Speaking on behalf of Good Friends of Moro People, Alhaji Raji Mohammed expressed gratitude to Third-Estate for the donation of Skecher Shoes and its various activities in supports youths empowerment and skill acquisition programmes.

In the cause of his education, he obtains General Certificate of Education (GCE) 1979, Ordinary National Diploma (Business Administration) 1984, Higher National Diploma (Business Administration) 1987 and Post-Graduate Diploma in Computer Science 1997.

Employed by Federal Ministry of Agriculture in 1980, he was granted scholarship and proceeded on Study leave between 1983 – 1988. After his studies, he had worked in various departments of the Ministry of Agriculture between 1988 and 2001.

He was thereafter posted to Ministry of Mines and Steel Development, Abuja in 2001 before he eventually retired as the Head of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development in 2015.

Presently, Mr. Hassan is self-employed and working as Consultant on ICT.

A very active member of the Third-Estate Forum of Ilorin Emirate, his hobbies include Volley Ball, Reading, Table Tennis, Travelling and Farming.

A respected communication expert, Dr. Yahaya had a working experience as a journalist when he was appointed Editor IlorinWatch, Ilorin between January 1988 to December 1990. He was also a Senior Political Correspondent with Post Express Newspaper, Lagos between April 1995 – February 1997.

In January 1991 he was appointed Public Affairs Officer I at the National Population Commission, Abuja, Nigeria and rose to the position of Deputy Director, Information, Education November 2010.

Dr. Yahaya served as Part-time Lecturer – National Open University, Abuja Study Centre, from 2009 to 2016; National Expert Media Specialization, United Nations Development Program (UNDP), Nigeria Democracy Governance for Development project from November 2010 to December 2012 and Assistant Political Analyst, European Union Election Observation Mission (EUEOM) in 2015.

He is currently Senior Electoral Administration Expert European Centre for Electoral Support (ECES) since September 2017 to Date. He has wide experience in sustainable capacity building, knowledge management, experience sharing and engagements and trainings for electoral stakeholders.

He belongs to various professional bodies including Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (Abuja Chapter), PRNigeria Network, an online interactive forum for PR Professionals; Nigeria Political Science Association and Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ).

He has been the Secretary-General of the Third-Estate Forum of Ilorin Emirate.

He attended Government High School, Ilorin, Kwara State where he obtained West African School Certificate (WASC) before proceeding to Ahmadu Bello University for Bachelor of Arts Degree in History in 1984. He also obtained Masters in Business Administration (MBA) in 1996 and Bachelor of Laws (LL.B Hons) in 2002 from the same university. He was at Nigeria Law School Bwari and was call to the bar in 2004.

He has worked in the public and private sector for 33 years rising to the position of Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Crittall-Hope Kaduna Ltd in 2013.

He has also served on the Boards of various companies as Company Secretary and Director acquiring extensive boardroom experience over time. Some of the positions he held included Commissioner, Ministry of Commerce, Industry & Co-operatives Kwara State 1998 – 1999; Chairman, Laekmind Investments Ltd, Kaduna; Director, Crittall-Hope Kaduna Ltd, Kaduna; Director, Woodkraft Industries Ltd, Kaduna; Chairman, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, Kaduna South East Branch; Member, Governing Council, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria; Board Member, Kaduna State Water Corporation; Member, Tripartite Committee on the Review of the Minimum Wage.

He belongs to several professional bodies. He is Member, Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), International Bar Association (IBA), Commonwealth Lawyers Association (CLA) and a Fellow Chartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria and Nigerian Institute of Management (Chartered).

For Postgraduate Programmes, he obtained Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) from Ahmadu Bello University Zaria in 2003 and Master of Science Degree in Forensic Accounting and Criminal Investigation (Msc) from St. Monica University, Yaounde Cameroon in 2015. His Msc Project is title The Effects of Capital Structure on the Performance of Selected Nigerian Banks

He also obtained Certificate in Proficiency in International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS) from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria 2012

He belongs to relevant professional bodies. He is a Fellow, Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (FCA); Associate, Chartered Institute of Taxation (ACTI) of Nigeria and Fellow, Certified Forensic Investigation Professionals (FCFIP) from the International Institute of Certified Forensic Investigation Professionals
He started his working experience with Olusola Adekanola & Co. Chartered Accountants Professional Accounting Firm as a Tax Consultant in Auditing, Tax and Management Consultancy between 1988 to 1991 . He was also at Merril Guaranty Trust Ltd, a Finance House for Management Information Service between 1991 and 1994.

He later moved to the public sector in 1994 as Internal Auditor at the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) where he is currently an Assistant Director.

Born on August 10 1962, Ahmed Bolaji Nagode the current President of Third-Estate Ilorin Emirate Forum, attended United Primary School, Ilorin, 1969 – 1974; Government Secondary School, Ilorin 1974- 1979 and Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, 1979 – 1984 and University of Ilorin 1989- 1991. Some of his academic qualifications includes Diploma in Management, Bachelor of Science (B.SC) Political Science, Master of Public Administration (MPA) and University of Lagos.

After the completion of National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) in Benue State, he was employed by Kwara State Education Management Board in 1986 and became Personal Assistant to Hon. Commissioner of Education in the state.

He later had a brief stint as a Lecturer, Kwara State Polytechnic, Ilorin 1992. It was in 1993 that he got federal appointment as Manager (Personnel and Administration). It was at the electricity company that he got rapid promotion up to the position of Assistant General Manager (Learning & Performance Management) 2009.

Mr. Nagode was later appointed Deputy Director (Training Programme) National Power Training Institute of Nigeria (NAPTIN) in February 2013 and became Director (Business Services) in February 2014- 2016. He is currently the Acting Director General NAPTIN since 2016.

Apart from speaking on Human Resources Management as Seminars and Workshop, Ahmed Nagode is a full Member, Chartered Institute of Personnel Management (IPM) and Chartered Nigeria Institute of Management (NIM).

He joined the services of the Board as an Administration Officer I, in the then Department of Matriculation and Examination between 1989 – 1991 from the Federal Ministry of Finance and Economic Development, between 1991-1994 he was an Assistant Registrar in the Office of the Registrar; he became Senior Assistant Registrar between 1994-1996; Principal Administrative Officer between 1996-1997, Assistant Chief Administrative Officer between 1997-2000 and Chief Administrative Officer between 200-2004 all in the Office of the Registrar.

He became a Deputy Director in 2004 still in the Registrar’s Office until he was transferred to Test Administration Department in 2013 as an Acting Director before his recent elevation to the post of the Director of Test Administration Department.

Dr. Lawal, as the Director of Test Administration Department has brought new zeal to the Department and transformed its operations. He is a witty goal-getter, who has demonstrated good leadership and his presence on the Board’s Management team is a great asset to the Board. He is a Member, Institutes of Management Consultant and Member, Institutes of Management.

He has attended Trainings, Workshops and Conferences both locally and internationally.

He noted that science students often battled challenges such as inadequate lecturers and laboratory equipment as well as epileptic power supply.

Ambali’s views were supported by the Provost, College of Education, Ilorin, Dr. Isiaka Opobiyi; a lecturer at Unilorin, Dr. Abubakar Aliaga, a former Kwara State Commissioner for Education, Alhaji Raji Mohammed and The President, The Third Estate, Alhaji Ahmed Bolaji-Nagode.

They spoke on Monday on the sidelines of a summit by the Third Estate in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital.

Ambali said, “While Arts students can manage to read with torchlight, science students need facilities for practical classes. The challenge is that you cannot have practical classes without power supply. ”

In his remarks, Bolaji-Nagode stated that the group had awarded scholarship to indigent students and provided boreholes to communities.

He added that the association would train some indigenes on ICT to become self-employed.

Nagode said, “We are alive to the need to shift attention from white collar jobs to self sufficiency and employment. We intend to sponsor the training of select young graduates from the emirate to acquire skills in information technology.

“The objective of this initiative is to make them self-employed upon the completion of their programme and also to become potential employers of labour in the IT market.”

The Director, Test Administration and Evaluation, Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, Dr. Yusuf Lawal, said that more candidates applied for Arts and Management courses than Science courses. Lawal, who was the guest lecturer at the event, said it was imperative to encourage more candidates to study Science courses to attain technological advancement.
Source: http://punchng.com/unilorin-vc-canvasses-support-for-science-ict-education/

In its efforts to encourage academic excellence among youths of Ilorin Emirate, the Third-Estate is planning special scholarships for indigent Students who are exceptionally brilliant in high institutions.

The newly elected President of Third-Estate, Mr. Ahmed Bolaji Nagode made the disclosure after his election at the Annual General Meeting of the forum held in Kwara Hotel Ilorin at the weekend. Nagode who commended the outgoing executive members where he served as the Vice President promised to sustain the tempo of development and progress of the socio-cultural organisation.

He said: “I must commend the outgoing Executive Members for initiating various projects and programmes during their. The Exco under Mr. Yusuf Lawal successfully renovated schools, provided a new Constitutions for the Third-Estate, donated funds towards maintenance of Central Mosque Ilorin, completed skill acquisition centre, developed a functional website and hosted Security and Economic Summits towards peace and progress of the state. “This are indeed remarkable achievements that we promised to sustain and improved upon.”

Also speaking at the occasion, the outgoing President of Third-Estate, Dr. Yusuf Lawal expressed deep appreciation to the members for the privilege of serving the group.

Mr. Lawal said: “For us, it has been an extreme pleasure of having the opportunity to serve the Ilorin Emirate and contribute in our own humble ways to the advancement of its interests. Our experience in the last four years has reinforced our confidence in the capacity and potentials of our people to build a great, prosperous and united community if we focus more on what unites us rather than our differences (if any).

“We must renew our vow to continuously work for the upliftment of our community and improvement of the lives of our people. We have tried in our own humble way to contribute to the development process of Ilorin Emirate. However, the challenges that confront the people are huge and multidimensional.

“I therefore urge the incoming Executive to work hard in order to sustain the tempo of development in Ilorin Emirate. They must jealously guide the reputation of Third Estate as the vanguard of development and refrain from any sectional or partisan tendency that may compromise such reputation. They must be innovative and proactive in addressing emerging challenges.”

Other elected executive officersincluded Ahmed Bolaji Nagode President; Toyin Hassan Vice President 1 and Ahmed Gobir Vice President II. Others officers were returned based on a constitutional amendment. They include Dr. Isiaka Yahaya Alada, Secretary General; Shehu Usman Aladire, Treasurer; Yushau Shuaib Agaka, Publicity Secretary; Saad Danmusa, Assistant Secretary General and Barr. Abdulhakeem U. Mustapha, SAN Legal Adviser. PRNigeria

Read more at: https://prnigeria.com/2017/04/third-estate-institutes-scholarship/

At their Annual General Meeting of the association on April 5, 2015 in Kwara Hotel, Ilorin, members unanimously resolved and re-elected the executive officers to continue in office for their commitments and selfless service.

Early in his remarks, the President of the association, Dr. Yusuf Lawal urged members to renew their vow to continuously work for the upliftment of the society and improvement of the people.

He state that “we have tried in our own humble way to contribute to the development process of Ilorin Emirate even as there are huge and multidimensional challenges confronting the people which must be addressed.

“We cannot therefore afford to rest on our oars. We must do everything within our power to ensure that we arrest the downward slide in the quality of lives of our people and provide the much needed opportunities”

The Executive members whose tenures have been renewed include Dr. Yusuf Lawal, President; Ahmed Bolaji Nagode, First Vice President; Dr. Ibrahim Gambari, Second Vice President and Shehu Usman Aladire, Treasurer.

Other officers include Abdulhakeem U . Mustafha, Legal Adviser; Yushau Abdulhameed Agaka, Publicity Secretary, Isiaka Yahaya, General Secretary and Saad Ayuba Danmusa Assistant Secretary