Nation

THE STATES

Published

9 years ago

February 27, 2017

Adamawa
The Adamawa State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Malam Ahmad says that, the state government Sajoh, has set up a High Powered Committee to resuscitate all skills acquisition centres in the state.
Sajoh, told newsmen, Thursday in Yola that the decision was taken at the State Executive Council meeting on Wednesday.
Sajoh said that, the committee had Gov.Bindow Jibrilla as chairman with some commissioners and some stakeholders in empowerment and poverty alleviation as members.
“The new focus of this government is youth empowerment, we are reappraising the skills acquisition centres.
“We have taken it so seriously that council has set up a High Powered Committee with the Governor as the Chairman and Chief of Staff to the Governor as Vice-Chairman.

Benue
The National Population Commission (NPC), last Thursday said, it has started the third phase of the Enumeration Area Demarcation (EAD) in Benue State for the 2018 National Population Census.
Mrs Patricia Kupchi, NPC Federal Commissioner in Benue, told newsmen in Makurdi that, the exercise started in Ohimini Local Government Area of the state.
She said that, enumerators would move round communities in the area to number and divide houses into enumeration areas, using satellite maps.
According to her, the exercise is aimed at dividing the enumeration areas into smaller units for effective census coverage.

FCT
Foreign Affairs Minister, Geoffrey Onyeama says, Nigeria is in need of about one billion dollars (N314.8bn) for recharging of drying Lake Chad.
The minister told newsmen last Wednesday in Abuja that the fund would also take care of the humanitarian needs of persons affected by Boko Haram insurgency in North East Nigeria.
Onyeama said that, an international conference of donor countries and agencies has been scheduled in Oslo, Norway, to raise the funds on February 24.
He said the conference was being put together with the support of Germany and Norway, who galvanised the international community to support Nigeria’s efforts in addressing its humanitarian challenge.

Jigawa
Director of Jigawa State Primary Health Care Development Agency, Dr Shehu Sambo, last Thursday said, 3,260 children below the age of five in the state had died of malnutrition between 2010 and 2016.
Sambo disclosed this in a paper presentation on overview of Community-Based Management of Acute Malnutrition at the ongoing advocacy meeting on management of severe acute malnutrition by UNICEF, Bauchi field office.
He explained that, 36,271 out of 280,980 children admitted within the period under review were defaulters who did not complete treatment, hence some of them might have died thereafter while 20,226 of them were cured.
The Director noted that, it was worrisome that over 800 children died of malnutrition in the state in 2016 alone.

Katsina
The Katsina State Government says it has earmarked N12.3 billion for the completion and rehabilitation of some dam projects to boost water supply and irrigation in the state.
The Special Adviser to the Governor on Budget and Economic Planning, Alhaji Abdullahi Imam, said this during a news conference on Thursday in Katsina.
He said N5 billion had been set aside for the completion of Zobe water supply project in Dutsin-ma Local Government Area of the state.
Imam said that, when completed, the project would improve water supply to Kankia, Charanchi, Bindawa, Rimi Batagarawa and Katsina Local Government Areas.
“Government also sets aside N3 billion for the regional water supply in Danja Local Government Area to boost water supply and irrigation, particularly tomato and sugarcane production.

Kano
Kano State Executive Council has approved N780 million for the continuation of projects in various sectors in the state.
The state Commissioner for Information, Malam Muhammad Garba, made this known while briefing newsmen on the outcome of the State Executive Council meeting on Thursday in Kano.
Garba explained that, N60 million was approved for the procurement of chairs and desks for schools by the Ministry of Education.
Garba also said that, 37 junior secondary schools would be upgraded to Senior Secondary Schools and 66 new Junior Secondary Schools would be constructed.

Kogi
Kogi State House of Assembly last Wednesday in Lokoja passed the 2017 appropriation bill of N174.8 billion for the fiscal year.
The bill, passed during special plenary sitting in Lokoja, was based on expected revenue of N174.8 billion and an expenditure of same figure, giving it a balanced outlook.
The budget is made up of Recurrent Revenue of N81.66 billion and Capital Receipts of N93.18 billion as well as Recurrent Expenditure of N58.531 billion and Capital Expenditure of N116.320 billion, amounting to N174.851 billion.
Passage of the Appropriation Bill followed the adoption of report of the Assembly’s Committee on Appropriation and Budget Monitoring as well as clause-by-clause consideration by the Committee of the Whole during the special sitting.

Kwara
The Kwara State Government has earmarked N3.2billion for the take-off of two new campuses of the Kwara State University (KWASU) to be sited in Osi and Ilesa-Baruba.
The state Commissioner for Information and Communication, Alhaji Babatunde Ajeigbe, disclosed this on Thursday during a news conference on the outcome of the State Executive Council’s meeting held on Wednesday, February 22.
The briefing was also attended by the Special Adviser to the governor on Legal Matters, Mr Suleiman Atolagbe, the Senior Special Assistant (SSA), Dr Muideen Akorede and the Chief Press Secretary (CPS), Alhaji Abdulwahab Oba.
Ajeigbe said, the N3.2 billion was for the construction of roads, students’ hostels, lecture theatres, offices and water reticulation for the two campuses.

Lagos
The raid of Sango Ota Rice Garage last Tuesday night by operatives of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) sent “shivers down the spines” of Alaba Rago market rice sellers in Lagos.
The sellers, who expressed fear of a raid by officials of the Customs Service, had adopted more strategies to woo customers.
Some of the sellers told newsmen last Thursday in Lagos that Customs officials ought to restrict their operations to the borders.
According to them, there is no reason for Customs to go into the markets to harass sellers whose business is to sell the commodity and fend for their families.

Nasarawa
The National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) says it has commenced training of drivers on safety strategies to adopt while transporting pregnant women with complications to health facilities.
The Consultant of the NURTW Emergency Transport Scheme Alhaji Ismail Balogun, made this known on Thursday in Lafia, Nasarawa State, while addressing members of the union.
Balogun said that the training was to curb the increasing rate of maternal mortality.
He said that 30 drivers selected from Doma and Nasarawa-Eggon Local Government Areas of the state would benefit from the scheme.
According to him, the training will focus on the safety strategies to adopt while transporting pregnant women with complications to health facilities for proper medical attention.

Ogun
The management of the Home Grown School Feeding Programme in Ogun State last Thursday assured that it remained committed to effective service delivery to benefitting pupils across public primary schools in the state.
The Programme Manager, Mrs Tinuola Shopeju, stated this during an interactive session with food vendors engaged under the programme in Abeokuta-North and Abeokuta-South local government areas of the state.
Shopeju explained that additional vendors would be considered to adequately meet the demands of the beneficiaries.
She assured that the department would sustain the interaction with the vendors at regular intervals, to ensure prompt service delivery and feedback towards resolving various challenges confronting them.
The programme manager enjoined them not to hesitate to forward their observations, as and when due, for necessary attention.

Plateau
A total of 450 entries from 32 secondary schools across Plateau State have been received for this year’s Plateau Internal Revenue Service (PSIRS) Essay Writing Competition.
The students are expected to write on taxation in the state, and specifically offer suggestions toward enhancing such receipts in Plateau.
The Chairman of the eight-man panel of judges assessing the entries, Chief Vonjen Lar, disclosed this to newsmen last Wednesday in Jos.
Lar, a retired Permanent Secretary, described the response from the students and schools as, “very positive and “encouraging”.
“We have already started marking the scripts; we shall move through various stages and eventually arrive at the best three.

Nation

UNIZIK Honours Business Mogul, Ezekwe, For Philanthropism

Published

4 hours ago

March 2, 2026

The Tide

The Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK) has conferred the Award of Digital Academic Promoter on the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Arrowconn Group, High Chief (Dr.) Emeka Ezekwe, for his philanthropic gestures.

Chief Ezekwe received the philanthropist award during a landmark technical workshop organised by the Department of Business Education, Faculty of Technology and Vocational Education, Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK), Awka, recently.

Making the presentation, the Vice Chancellor of the university, Prof. Ugochukwu Stanley Anyaehie, said the award was in recognition of Ezekwe’s philanthropic contributions, academic support, and dedication to human capital development, hailing his commitment to bridging industry and academia.

Ezekwe who is also the Chairman of Port Harcourt Chamber of Commerce Professional Services and Consultancy Trade Group, delivered a keynote address at the event with a theme: “Technicalities and Application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Business and Education.”

In his address, Ezekwe described the current AI surge as a civilizational shift rather than a mere technological upgrade.

He compared AI’s rapid trajectory to past innovations like electricity, computers, the Internet, and mobile phones, which he said, progressed from luxuries to necessities.

“AI is reshaping value creation, knowledge sharing, and decision-making at unprecedented speed. It has moved from experimentation to execution, powering business forecasting, academic research, digital learning, and strategic decisions,” he said.

The business mogul, however, warned that in business, delays lead to losses, while in education, irrelevance spells failure.

“AI is no longer optional, it is a necessity,” he declared.

Ezekwe highlighted the critical AI skill gap, driven by curriculum lags, limited training, and fear of the unknown, but stressed the bigger danger which is exclusion.

“Those who master AI will shape markets, education, and policy; those who lag will be shaped by others,” he said.

The Arrowconn Group boss also outlined AI’s practical advantages for businesses —including data-driven strategies, smarter investments, scalable customer insights, and competitive edges for SMEs.

In education, he clarified that AI empowers rather than replaces teachers, enabling personalized learning, efficient lesson planning, assessment support, and accelerated research.

He advocated a shift from rote memorization to critical thinking, creativity, and problem-solving, while preserving human strengths in engagement, judgment, and collaboration.

Ezekwe urged ethical AI development, warning that “technology without values is dangerous,” and called on institutions like UNIZIK to update curricula, train educators, promote interdisciplinary work, forge industry partnerships, and produce graduates who are solution providers in an AI-driven world.

The workshop also marked the unveiling of the maiden edition of the UNIZIK Journal of Business Education and Entrepreneurship, reinforcing the department’s push for scholarly innovation in AI applications.

Nation

Don Calls For National Forensic Data Bank To Combat Rising Crime

Published

5 hours ago

March 2, 2026

The Tide

The Head of the Department of Anatomy at the University of Port Harcourt’s College of Health Sciences, Prof Gabriel Sunday Oladipo, has underscored the urgent need for Nigeria to develop a comprehensive forensic science infrastructure, warning that the nation’s ability to investigate and solve crime is being hampered by lack of scientific data and systems.

In his inaugural lecture titled, “Man: Fearfully Different, Wonderfully Made,” delivered as part of the 207th Inaugural Lecture Series of the university, Prof Oladipo highlighted that while no two individuals are exactly the same, the country currently lacks the robust systems needed to collect and manage biological and anthropometric data that could support criminal investigations.

He explained that the natural variations among humans — from fingerprints to physical measurements — form the foundation of personal identification in forensic work. These biological differences, he said, are essential for distinguishing one person from another, especially in the context of criminal investigations where clarity of identity can mean the difference between justice and impunity. Without this scientific foundation, he argued, law enforcement agencies lack a critical tool in the fight against crime.

Experts have noted that Nigeria’s forensic science capacity has historically lagged behind needs, with only a few forensic facilities available and many law enforcement agencies struggling to access or use scientific evidence effectively. One review of the state of forensic investigation in Nigeria found that outdated facilities and limited adoption of modern forensic methods have left many cases unsolved or poorly investigated, even as crime rates rise across the country.

In Lagos, efforts to improve forensic capabilities have focused on DNA analysis, with the Lagos State DNA Forensic Centre — the first of its kind in West Africa — providing critical support for criminal investigations and helping to identify human remains, link related cases, and assist with paternity testing. However, such initiatives are yet to be replicated at a national scale, leaving many regions without access to these vital scientific tools.

Prof Oladipo’s lecture went beyond academic theory to propose concrete actions. He called for the establishment of a National Institute of Forensic Science responsible for creating and managing a nationwide anthropometric and forensic data bank. This repository, he stressed, would significantly enhance Nigeria’s capacity to track crime, assist law enforcement agencies, and improve the administration of justice by providing reliable scientific evidence for investigative and legal processes.

He also highlighted the importance of strengthening research and training in forensic science. Many Nigerian universities currently lack the funding and infrastructure to offer complete undergraduate or postgraduate programs in areas such as forensic anthropology, DNA analysis, and crime scene investigation, a gap that forces aspiring experts to rely on collaborations with institutions abroad. By fostering a research-friendly environment and securing greater support from both government and private sectors, Nigerian institutions could produce homegrown experts capable of advancing forensic science in the country.

Awareness of forensic science’s role in criminal justice remains low among the general public and even among some security professionals. Studies have shown that a significant portion of Nigerians are unfamiliar with basic forensic concepts or the existence of tools such as DNA profiling and national forensic databases — tools that are common features of criminal justice systems in countries like South Africa and the United Kingdom.

Prof Oladipo also urged regular training and retraining programs to keep forensic practitioners updated with evolving scientific methods. According to him, continuous professional development is critical in a field where technological advances — from biometric databases to digital forensic tools — are transforming how crimes are investigated and solved.

The lecture was attended by academics, students, and professionals drawn to the intersection of science, identity, and justice, all of whom heard the professor make a compelling case for scientific innovation and institutional reform as central to Nigeria’s effort to contain crime and strengthen its justice system.

The event not only showcased Prof Oladipo’s expertise in human anatomy and forensic psychology but also positioned forensic science as a strategic national priority — one that could bring clarity to investigations, support victims and their families, and ultimately enhance public safety across Nigeria.

Nation

UPWA Hosts Colourful Inter-House Sports Fiesta

Published

3 days ago

February 27, 2026

The Tide

The University of Port Harcourt Women Association (UPWA) on Thursday staged a vibrant and memorable edition of its Annual Inter-House Sports Competition at the University of Port Harcourt Sports Village, drawing an impressive turnout of pupils, parents, staff and invited guests.

The event, organised by the UPWA International Group of Schools, brought together children from the pre-nursery, nursery and secondary sections in a colourful celebration of youth athleticism, discipline and teamwork. The arena came alive with cheers and excitement as pupils, clad in their various house colours, marched in a ceremonial parade before proceeding to compete in a wide range of track and field events, relays, novelty races and other team-based activities designed to promote physical fitness and healthy competition.

Declaring the competition open, the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Port Harcourt, Professor Owunari Georgewill, commended UPWA for sustaining a tradition that continues to nurture young talents beyond the classroom. He noted that sports remain a critical component of holistic education, helping to build resilience, confidence, leadership skills and social interaction among children.

In her remarks, the President of UPWA, Professor Udeme Georgewill, expressed appreciation to parents, teachers and members of the organising committee for their dedication and sacrifice in ensuring the success of the programme despite prevailing economic challenges. She described the event as a reflection of unity and collective effort within the school community.

“This is the first time White House is emerging overall winner, and that shows remarkable improvement and great sportsmanship,” she said. “We all had fun. It is not easy putting an event like this together considering the economic situation, but we are grateful to the parents for being part of this journey. The excitement everywhere is truly heartwarming.”

The competition featured spirited participation from the various houses, including Purple House, San Chicago Red House and White House, with pupils demonstrating strength, speed, coordination and teamwork. Parents and supporters filled the stands, cheering enthusiastically and adding colour to the spectacle, while teachers ensured orderliness and safety throughout the proceedings.

Professor Georgewill emphasized that the true essence of sports lies not merely in winning trophies but in participation and personal growth. “Sports is not just about winning. It is an avenue for growth, discipline and opportunity. The fact that a child is able to participate is already a win. Losing this year does not mean you cannot win next year. Keep trying,” she encouraged, urging pupils to see both victory and defeat as stepping stones to greater achievements.

She further observed that while there are many competing interests in the Nigerian sports sector, consistent grassroots investment remains essential for discovering and nurturing future champions.

The colourful ceremony culminated in medal presentations, trophy awards and group photographs, with UPWA executives, including Vice President I, Professor Adedamola Onyeaso, joining the participating teams to celebrate the day’s achievements.

The annual inter-house sports competition continues to stand as one of UPWA’s flagship events, reinforcing its commitment to balanced education, character formation and the promotion of healthy lifestyles among its pupils.