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THE STATES

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Adamawa

The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA)
has advised internally-displaced persons in some local government areas of Adamawa to return to their communities.
The Senior Information Officer of the agency Malam Sani Datti,   told newsmen in Yola that peace had been restored in the areas concerned.
Datti said that following the military recapture of some of the local government areas from Boko Haram, NEMA had been able to assess the situation in three local government areas.
He listed the areas to include Gombi, Hong, Mubi North and Maiha.
“The agency is therefore advising those internally displaced persons, especially those from Gombi, Hong and Mubi Local Government Areas to go back to their respective areas.
FCT

The Foundation for the Advancement of Ethics and Val
ues (FAEV) has urged Nigerians to promote ethical and moral values for good governance to thrive in the country, as the general election approaches.
The President of the NGO, Mrs Shimite Katung, made the call while speaking with newsmen in Abuja.
Katung said that the foundation had collaborated with the Office of the Special Adviser to the President on Ethics and Moral Values, to ensure that corruption, crises, violence and other evil acts were curbed.
She said that democracy was incomplete without accountability, transparency and integrity, adding that the organisation would contribute its quota toward the ongoing transformation of the country.

Gombe

The Gombe State Agency for the Control of HIV/AIDS
(GOMSACA) said it had increased the number of Prevention of Mother Child Transmission (PMCT) centres from 185 to 225 in the state.
The Project Managerof the agency, Dr Suraj Abdulkarim, told newsmen in Gombe that the centres were sited across the state.
He explained that the aim was to ensure that every pregnant woman that was tested positive accessed  the services provided by the centre.
Abdulkarim said the agency had collaborated with non-governmental organisations and community-based organisations conducting advocacy in brothels to educate commercial sex workers on preventive measures against HIV and AIDS.
“They advise them on the need to use condoms as well as know their status,” he said.
The manager said that a bill on stigmatisation against people living with HIV was pending in the state House of Assembly.
“We are made to understand that most people do not want to come for voluntary counselling and testing.
“But it is very important to know your status, as well as the various preventive measures,” he said.

Kaduna

The President, Environmental Health Officers Associa
tion in Kaduna State, Mr Yandeh Mairiga, has suggested the use of tricycles for refuse evacuation in areas with difficult terrains and populous quarters.
Mairiga made this suggestion in Kaduna while speaking to newsmen recent.
He stressed the need to use tricycles to evacuate waste “in communities that are not easily accessible.”
He opined that this would ensure effective collection of waste from communities, especially in high-density areas, where heavy waste collection trucks might not be able to access.
The president said, “Using trucks would deal with the unhealthy situations in some localities that have become an eyesore in some parts of the state.’’
According to him, most dump-sites in the state are too far from residential areas, thereby making it difficult for residents to evacuate and dispose of their refuse.
Kano

The Dala local government area  in Kano State said it
had budgeted more than N6.5 billion for this fiscal year.
The Council Chairman, Alhaji Ibrahim Yusuf, said this while fielding questions from newsmen shortly after defending his council’s budget at the state House of Assembly in Kano.
He said the council proposed to spend 54 per cent of the budget on capital projects and 36 per cent on recurrent expenditure.
“We also planned to construct six major drains to ensure a healthy environment,’’ he said.
The chairman said further that the council had trained more than 500 women in various vocational skills.
He said,“Since my assumption in office in May last year, the council had initiated a number of empowerment programmes for the people of the area.

Katsina

Avian Influenza, a.k.a. bird flu , has hit some poultry
farms in Katsina leading to the death of over 3,000 birds.
The Vice Chairman, Katsina State Poultry Farmers Association,  Alhaji Musa Danhassan, confirmed the outbreak of the disease to newsmen in Katsina
Danhassan said that the farm of one of their members, Alhaji Garba Dalhatu was affected by the outbreak and the man lost over 3,000 birds.
He said that specimen from the affected birds had been taken to the National Veterinary Research Institute, Vom, Plateau State, where it was confirmed.
The vice chairman disclosed that their association had reported the outbreak to both the state and federal ministries of agriculture about the outbreak of the disease.

Kwara

The PDP deputy governorship candidate in Kwara State,
Alhaji Yinka Aluko, has called on wealthy muslims to imbibe the virtue of righteousness as exemplified by Prophet Mohammed.
Aluko made the call on Friday at the inauguration of a mosque built by members of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) within the premises of the Ilorin International Airport.
Aluko enjoined clerics to concentrate on the propagation of Islam in line with the teachings of Prophet Muhammad.
This, he said, was to eradicate acts capable of undermining peaceful co-existence in the country.
Aluko also charged youths in the state to shun violence, stressing that it was an obstacle to growth and development of democracy.
He also advised parents and guardians to keep close watch on their children and wards.

Lagos

A UK theatre outfit, Hamlet Globe to Globe, will perform
Shakespeare’s historical play, Hamlet, in Lagos on March 4 and March 5 at the MUSON Centre, Victoria Island and St. Saviour’s School, Ikoyi.
A statement by the organisers said the Hamlet Globe to Globe tour opened at Shakespeare’s Globe, London, on 23 April 2014, the 450th anniversary of Shakespeare’s birth.
The event is coming to Nigeria courtesy of the British Council.
Hamlet is scheduled to tour every single country on earth in two years.
It features Nigerian actor, Ladi Emeruwa in the role of Hamlet and is directed by the Globe’s Artistic Director, Dominic Dromgoole.
The Hamlet theatre arrived Africa in January after showing in the U.S.A, Moscow, Mexico, Chile, Poland, St Kitts and Nevis and South America.

Nasarawa

The Nasarawa State Government has threatened to sanc
tion principals and head teachers found collecting illegal fees in public schools in the state.
The Executive Chairman, Nasarawa State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Malam Abdulkarim Abdullahi, made this known in an interview with  newsmen  in Keffi.
He described unauthorised fee collection in public primary and secondary schools as an act of sabotage by the erring head teachers and principals.
Abdullahi explained that the state government declared free education policy to enable the children of the poor have access to education to better their future and for the overall development of the country.
He said: “In the olden days education was free, government will provide all the necessary and needed facilities for pupils, students from the primary to the higher institutions and there is an enabling environment for teaching and learning”.
Osun

The Provincial Pastor of Living Faith Church in Osogbo,
in Osogbo Pastor Muyiwa Emmanuel,  has urged Christians to be faithful in their business dealings with others.
Emmanuel, who said this during a business and career summit said any Christian who aspired to be great in his business and career must learn and practise the virtue of faithfulness.
“Faithfulness has its reward. Unfaithfulness may work for people sometimes, but it does not all the time,’’ the cleric, who read from Luke 19 verses 7 to 26, said.
He urged Christians not to cheat in their dealings but should rather be honest and faithful.
Emmanuel, who decried the manner some Christians cheat in their business dealings, said unfaithfulness does not glorify God and urged Christians to be accountable in their businesses.
He urged Christians to be faithful to God and their fellow men.
“Faithfulness, accountability, generosity, divine guidance and gratitude are the hallmarks of breakthrough in a Christian’s business and career,’’ the pastor said.

Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Women Affairs, Dr Ezekiel Oyemomi, Director, Women Affairs, Mrs Iran Ajufo and representative of UN Women, Kemi Ndiel, at the National Stakeholders’s Consultative meeting  on the Status of Women in Abuja yesterday.

Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Women Affairs, Dr Ezekiel Oyemomi, Director, Women Affairs, Mrs Iran Ajufo and representative of UN Women, Kemi Ndiel, at the National Stakeholders’s Consultative meeting on the Status of Women in Abuja yesterday.

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Accolades, Fanfare As Ogbakor Ikwerre President General Celebrates 80th Birthday

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The President General of Ogbakor Ikwerre Cultural Organisation Worldwide and the Mgboh XIII of the Mgboh Royal Family of Emohua Kingdom in Emohua Local Government Area of Rivers State, Eze (Barrister) Godspower Onuekwa, penultimate Friday celebrated his 80th birthday with pomp, pageantry and fanfare.

 

The celebration, which commenced with a symposium organised in his honour at Rivers State University on Thursday, August 21,2025, got to a resounding climax on Friday at Suntai Event Centre in Port Harcourt, where people from all walks of life, including business associates, friends, well-wishers, relatives, community folks, traditional rulers, and admirers, gathered to pay glowing tributes to the celebrant.

 

Before then, a well attended thanksgiving service was held that same Friday at Emmanuel Anglican Church, Okoro-Nu-Odo, to honour him and return gratitude to God Almighty for the fruitful and eventful life and accomplishments of the Emohua leader and icon.

 

 

The service which was officiated by Rt Rev Wisdom Budu Ihunwo, Bishop of Niger Delta North had other renowned and respected clerics like Most Rev(Dr) Blessing Enyindah, Dean, Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion); Rt Rev(Dr) Emmanuel Oko-Jaja, Bishop, Diocese of Niger Delta; Rt Rev Innocent Ordu, Bishop, Diocese of Evo; and Ven Solomon Eze Nelson, Archdeacon, Okoro-Nu-Odo; among others lined up as officiating ministers.

 

The service lived up to its billing, as it featured powerful and soul-lifting praise and worship; point-blank prayers; and beautiful renditions, which electrified the entire atmosphere, essentially packaged to thank God for the life of the celebrant.

 

However, the crowning moment actually came when the who is who, the crème de la crème of the society, thronged the terraces and fabulously decorated expansive hall of Suntai Event Centre, to celebrate Eze Onuekwa, amid accolades, aplomb and panache, wining and dining, and clinking of glasses with him and all.

 

The chairman of the colourful ceremony, Chief Evans Woherem, who was represented by Eze(Prof) Christian Akani of the prestigious Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, praised the celebrant for his youthfulness in spite of clocking 80 years, generosity, humility, humaneness and selfless services to the Ikwerre ethnic nationality, the Niger Delta and Nigeria, and called on all and sundry to emulate his good legacies and simple disposition towards life and existence.

 

Goodwill messages also poured in in torrents to underscore and salute the doggedness, resilience, astuteness and uniqueness of the endearing life of the celebrant, with Prof Emenike Wami, the Ochia Ohna Ikwerre(XIV), taking the lead.

 

Prof Priye Iyalla, the wife of late renowned writer, novelist and playwright, Dr Elechi Amadi, held the audience spellbound as she masterfully reeled out the profile of the celebrant, amid intermittent applause from the crowd.

 

The Tiv Community from Benue State, resident in Rivers State, were not left out, as they honoured and decorated Eze Onuekwa in their complete traditional regalia.

 

Cultural displays from Baptist Church, Rumuowhor; ADNA Wogbuji Dancing Group, Egbeda; Tiv Dancing Group; and Promoter Eze and Rumu-Mgboh Emohua Wrestling Group, equally added colour and grace to the occasion, with the celebrant and his wife, Dame Ann Onuekwa, joining them to wriggle their waists and bodies in ecstasy.

 

In his response, the highly elated celebrant, Eze Onuekwa thanked all those gathered to celebrate with him, saying, celebrations would never cease in their homes, and attributed everything he represents in life, including his modest accomplishments to God.

 

Eze Onuekwa, while addressing newsmen, harped on the need for hard work among the youths and members of Ogbakor Ikwerre Cultural Organisation Worldwide, as a way of sustaining and giving meaning to the motto of the organisation, which he noted is anchored on peace, unity and progress.

 

He specially thanked God for sustaining his life, and for making everything possible for him and his family, saying, he was joyous that he has today become an octogenarian and elder statesman in Rivers State.

 

His son and medical practitioner, Dr Samuel Chizia Onuekwa expressed delight that people from far and near had come together to celebrate the father, whom he described as a role model and great inspirator.

 

He said it was a good thing that the children were celebrating their father when he is alive, stressing that the last time Eze Onuekwa was celebrated in such magnitude was 20 years ago, during his 60th birthday celebration, and prayed God to grant him many more years in good health.

 

Among dignitaries who graced the event were Senator Andrew Uchendu; Chief Sampson Agbaru; Prof Emenike Wami; Dr Peter Didia; Eze(Prof) Samuel Ugo Onyeka; and a host of others. Justice Iche Ndu(rtd); and C O Kattey were among personalities that attended the thanksgiving service, while the Vice Chancellor of Rivers State University, Prof Isaac Zeb-Obipi led the academics who graced the symposium, alongside Eze G A O Omodu.

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Ensure That Ogoni Is Heard In The Right Way, HYPREP Urges Creative Arts Trainees

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As the 100 Ogoni youths trained by the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) in Creative Arts close out their training on Tuesday at the Theatre Arts Department, University of Port Harcourt, the Project Coordinator of HYPREP, Prof Nenibarini Zabbey, has urged the beneficiaries to use the skills acquired to ensure that the Ogoni stories are told and heard in the right way.

The trainees, who had completed a four- month training in script writing, film production and make-up are beneficiaries of the HYPREP sustainable livelihood programme, aimed at providing high demand skills to Ogoni youths in the lucrative creative arts and entertainment industry.

Zabbey described the Creative Arts training as well as other programmes and interventions as HYPREP’s strategic sustained effort to create alternative sources of livelihood.

”Targeted capacity building for Ogoni youths and women remains a central strategy in HYPREP’s livelihood restoration and improvement efforts. Our goal is to reach every part of the Ogoni community and ensure that no group or talent pool is left behind. This training is a deliberate step to empower young people who aspire to make their mark in the creative and entertainment industry”, he said.

While commending the trainees for producing four short films within the training period, one of which was premiered at the ceremony-Dirty Festival, the Project Coordinator noted that the training would serve as a springboard into the industry, and enable them earn a living, become entrepreneurs, and open new doors of opportunities for themselves and their communities. The three other movies are Open Pain, Bomu and Green War.

He enjoined them to utilise their skills and platforms to promote civic responsibility, peace, and environmental sustainability, urging them to ensure that Ogoni is heard in the right way, speak for HYPREP and highlight the progress being made in implementing the recommendations of the UNEP Report.

Other speakers at the event, including the Director of Technical Services of HYPREP, Prof. Damian-Paul Aguiyi; Dr Ovunda Ihunwo, Head of the Theatre Arts Department of the University of Port Harcourt; Chief Douglas Experience, the Project Coordinator of Halibiz Consult Limited; and Mrs Josephine Nzidee, Head, Sustainable Livelihood of HYPREP, all applauded HYPREP for the training, and charged the trainees to maximise the opportunity.

The trainees were later presented certificates of participation.

Visibly elated Ms Lebee Tornwe, one of the beneficiaries, thanked HYPREP and the Project Coordinator for offering the trainees the rare opportunity to acquire skills in the creative arts and entertainment industry, and expressed delight that Dr Ihunwo and Halibiz Consult Limited gave their all in grooming them.

With the wrapping up of the Creative Arts training(100), HYPREP has trained 230 Ogoni youths in high demand skill sets ,viz; seafaring(100); and aviation (30). The Project will this year, commence training in other skill areas, including Mechatronic, Aviation, Full-Stack Development, Commercial Diving, Underwater Welding and Geographic Information Systems (GIS).

Still in the offing is the training for Ogoni Persons Living with Disabilities in five skill sets- fish farming; basic computer skills; photography; fashion and design; and shoemaking in line with their Needs Assessment and HYPREP’s policy of inclusivity.

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NYCOP Urges Stakeholders To Develop, Empower Ogoni Youths

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The National Youth Council of Ogoni People (NYCOP) had called on stakeholders to work collaboratively towards the development and empowerment of Ogoni youths.

NYCOP made the call in a communique issue over the weekend after an emergency Congress in Port Harcourt and signed by its President, Comrade Raymond Nwibani Marcus.

In the communique, NYCOP endorsed President Bola Tinubu’s appointments of the Governing Council and Board of Trustees (BOT) members of the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP), particularly Rt. Hon. Emmanuel Nwika Deeyah as Chairman of HYPREP’s BOT.

It respectfully appealed to the President to consider appointing a representative from the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) under the leadership of Engr. Olu Andah Wai-Ogosu, being the pioneering social vehicle for Ogoni advocacy since the inception of the Ogoni struggle, adding that it would significantly contribute to the decision-making process.

The body commended the overall management of HYPREP and urges the President to continue funding the HYPREP project.

NYCOP furthermore recommended considering the conversion of HYPREP from a project to a full-fledged agency of the Federal Government of Nigeria.

The communique also stated that NYCOP thanked President Tinubu for establishing the Federal University of Environmental Technology, and for appointing key staff, forming a dialogue committee, and initiating infrastructural projects like the Eleme axis of the East-West Road and the Bonny-Bodo Road, significantly enhancing regional connectivity and economic prospects.

 

In solidarity with the Renewed Hope Agenda, the endorsed President Tinubu’s second-term bid, saying it believes his leadership embodies the aspirations of the Ogoni people and Nigerians at large.

“After thorough consideration of the Disciplinary Committee’s report, NYCOP resolves:

” To indefinitely suspend Comrade Nade Nade Burale from his position as Secretary General due to misconduct.

“To declare Comrade Saviour Imeabe persona non grata on Ogoni youth issues, given his actions’ potential to instigate crisis in Ogoni and beyond” the communique stated.

NYCOP in his resolution issued a 7-day ultimatum to former HYPREP BOT Chairman Mike Nwialeghi to explain the $100 million HYPREP fund investment, warning of potential litigation.

NYCOP reaffirmed its commitment to safeguarding Ogoni youth interests and preventing personal aggrandizement.

According to the communique the resolutions demonstrate NYCOP’s efforts to promote the collective welfare and advancement of Ogoni youth.

“We will no longer tolerate any individual or group using the name or issues of Ogoni youth for personal aggrandizement.

” Our mandate is clear: to promote the collective welfare and advancement of Ogoni youth” the communique said.

NYCOP passes a vote of confidence in Hon. Emmanuel Nwika Deeyah, acknowledging his impeccable credentials and credibility to lead the BOT of HYPREP effectively.

 

Kiadum Edookor

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