Nation
THE STATES
Bauchi
Governor Mohammed Abubakar of Bauchi State on Saturday directed medical personnel in the state to offer free treatment to victims of auto crash that occurred along Bauchi-Gombe road.
Report that Abubakar gave the directive at Bara Town, Kirfi Local Government Area of the state, when his convoy stopped at the scene of an accident.
He directed that, some of the vehicles accompanying him should be used to convey the victims from Bara to Alkaleri General Hospital for treatment.
Abubakar, who was on his way to Gombe for an official engagement, had arrived few minutes after the accident occurred, and ordered his personal physician to offer first aid treatment to the victims.
An eye witness told newsmen that the accident occurred when a vehicle conveying 14 passengers had a tyre burst and somersaulted.
Benue
A reprisal attack by suspected herdsmen on Tse Igba Uke and Aliade villages in Gwer Local Government Area of Benue State has left one person dead and many others injured, the police have confirmed.
Asp. Moses Yamu, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), for the command in the state, confirmed the incident to newsmen last Thursday in Makurdi.
He said, the suspected herdsmen carried out the attack on Wednesday night, following an attack on their cattle by some youths of the village.
He also said, the corpse of the villager killed during the incident had been deposited at the Aliade General Hospital and the injured receiving treatment in the same hospital.
Yamu also told journalists that, angry youths took to the streets, on Thursday, following the reprisal attack on the village and barricaded Aliade Federal highway to protest the killing of one of their own.
Ekiti
The Ekiti State Police Command last Thursday, confirmed the killing of Mr Sunday Afolabi, an Assistant Superintendent with the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), in Ekiti State.
Reports had it that, Afolabi was allegedly killed by yet-to-be-identified assailants along Afao Road in the evening of Wednesday.
The Public Relations Officer (PRO), of the state police command, Mr Alberto Adeyemi (SP), told newsmen in Ado-Ekiti that preliminary investigations had revealed that Afolabi was killed by suspected cultists.
He said that, his body had been deposited at the morgue of the Ekiti State Teaching Hospital in Ado-Ekiti.
The NSCDC spokesman, Mr Tolu Afolabi, who also confirmed the killing to newsmen in Ado-Ekiti, on Thursday, said that further investigations into the incident had commenced.
FCT
The Chief of Army Staff, Lt-Gen. Tukur Buratai, has urged troops in the North East to remain steadfast in prosecuting the counter insurgency as history would not forget them.
The army spokesman, Brig-Gen. Sani Usman, said in a statement on Sunday, that Buratai stated this during a visit to troops at Pulka and Gwoza in Borno.
Usman, said the visit was to assess troops in the ongoing “Operation Deep Push” to clear remnants of Boko Haram terrorists around Sambisa forest.
Buratai, who was represented by the Chief of Administration (Army), Maj-Gen. Idris Alkah, said that, the Nation was proud of their efforts in maintaining peace and order.
Kano
The Kano State chapter of RedCross Society on Sunday distributed relief materials worth millions of Naira to 516 Internally Displaced Persons (IPDs), in the State.
The Red Cross Chairperson in Kano, Dr. Urrata Balla, presented the materials to the IDPs at Hotoro in Tarauni and Gaida in Kumbotso Local Government Areas of the state.
Balla said, the gesture was necessary due to the condition IDPs found themselves.
Katsina
The Police Command in Katsina State says, it has arrested 22 victims of Human Trafficking in Katsina Metropolis.
The command said it has also arrested their Trafficker, Mannir Suleiman.
Superintendent of Police, Andrew Alpolsus, the Officer in charge of the Federal Anti-Robbery Squad in the state, presented the victims and the Trafficker to newsmen last Thursday in Katsina.
“The Police have arrested 12 young women of between the ages of 17 and 22 years and 10 men at a house at Kwando area of the Katsina metropolis.
Alpolsus said, the victims were on their way to Niger Republic when policemen intercepted and rescue, them.
Lagos
The president, of the Nigerian Army Officers Wives Association (NAOWA), Mrs Umma-Kalsum Buratai, on Saturday received the wife, of the Bangladeshi Chief of Army Staff (COAS) at its secretariat in Lagos.
Mrs Buratai, who received the wife of the Bangladeshi COAS, Mrs Shoma Huq, at the NAOWA Secretariat, Ikoyi, Lagos expressed appreciation for the visit.
She added that, it was a good development that would further strengthen the relationship between the two countries.
Mrs Buratai urged women to always be positive, adding that if the women get it right, the family will also get it right.
Mrs Huq commended NAOWA for their charity programmes, adding that, life was all about giving.
Ogun
The Octagon Nigeria, an NGO on Saturday, said it had given scholarship of N1 million to children of widows in Ado-Odo/Ota Local Government Area of Ogun.
Mr Olatunji Egbewunmi, the founder of the NGO, disclosed this at the 3rd Anniversary Lecture/Award ceremony organised by the organisation in Ota, Ogun.
The lecture was entitled, “The Role of a True Leader in Economic Development”.
The Octagon Nigeria was established in 2014 with a mission to support the plight of the vulnerable segment, especially widows and their children, to become productive in the society through advocacy, economic empowerment and human rights programmes.
Egbewunmi, said that 10 children of widows benefited from the scholarship programme.
He said that the initiative was to provide qualitative but free primary and secondary education for gifted children of the poorest widows in the country.
Oyo
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Oyo state command, said it arrested 51 suspected drug traffickers and addicts from January to date.
A statement by the state command’s Public Relations Officer (PRO), Mrs Mutiat Okuwobi, on Sunday in Ibadan, disclosed that, 1,933.28 kg of drugs were also seized during the period.
The PRO added that, the agency also got the conviction of 17 drug traffickers with jail terms ranging from six months to five years in the period under review.
She said, interventions were also given to some drug dependant persons through counselling after which they were reintegrated into the society.
The PRO said some drug users were still undergoing rehabilitation.
She said that, the command would continue to do its best to frustrate the activities of drug peddlers in the state.
Yobe
A Yobe philanthropist, Dr Muhammed Goje, last Saturday, awarded scholarship to 20 students from Gujba and Gulani Local Government Areas, to enhance education recovery in areas most affected by Boko Haram insurgency.
Muhammad, presented the awards to the beneficiaries in Damaturu.
He said, the beneficiaries were mostly orphans who lost their parents to insurgency and others from financially less privileged families.
“The beneficiaries have the required qualification for admission into tertiary institutions but lack the support to advance their studies,” he said.
He said, Gujba and Gulani Local Government Areas were the most devastated areas by insurgency that needed special approach for education recovery.
“The level of damage is so monumental for government to handle alone, individuals, groups and non-governmental organizations must give Yobe state government, a helping hand.
Zamfara
The Nigeria Police Force, is set to construct 500 housing units in Zamfara under its new Housing Scheme.
Maigari Dikko, the Deputy Inspector-General of Police (DIG), in-charge of Logistics and Supply, said this last Thursday, while on a one-day working visit to the Zamfara State Police Command in Gusau.
The DIG said that, part of his visit to the state was to solicit land allocation from the state government for the police to construct the housing units.
Dikko, said that the new housing policy was initiated to end the housing problem among the rank and file, and would be on an “Owner-occupier basis”.
“It is unfair for one to have served the nation for 35 years and end up with no personal accommodation,” he said.
Strategic regulators and other stakeholders have expressed satisfaction with the pace, quality and magnitude of work carried out by the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) in Ogoniland, in line with the recommendations of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
In their separate speeches at the 2025 4th quarter key regulators / asset owners meeting held in Port Harcourt, the strategic stakeholders commended HYPREP for the significant milestones achieved with excellent efficiency and transparency, demonstrating capacity and commitment to sustaining collaboration with development partners for the overall success of the Project.
The regulators particularly lauded HYPREP for the landmark success in the implementation of the land and shoreline remediation, mangrove restoration, provision of reticulated potable water, the various sustainable livelihood programmes, donation of ambulances to health facilities in Ogoni, the construction of Centre of Excellence for Environmental Restoration, as well as the ongoing Ogoni Power Project, adding that their independent field reports have shown proofs of HYPREP driving even beyond its mandates.
The goodwill messages were made by representatives of the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA), Centre for Environment and Human Rights Development (CEHRD), Society for Women and Youths Affairs (SWAYA), Stakeholders Democracy Network (SDN), Nigerian Pipelines and Storage Company (NPSC), and Federal Ministry of Environment. Others are the Rivers State Ministry of Environment, the Rivers State Ministry of Health, the National Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), the Rivers State Ministry of Power, the Rivers State University, the Rivers State Ministry of Water and Rural Development, and Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited.
Following the Monitoring and Evaluation Unit’s presentation on the status of HYPREP projects, participants offered feedback on areas of concern. They reassured HYPREP and the people of Ogoni of their continued support for the Project’s success. They also suggested that the quarterly review meeting be sustained as it enables them to report, evaluate and proffer solutions to areas of concern.
Participants also commended HYPREP for improved community and stakeholder engagement and for adding to what they saw the previous time. “We commend HYPREP for the quality work done at sites. The progress is phenomenal, because HYPREP is scoring good grades, above average,” Prof. Iyenemi Kakulu from Rivers State University said.
In his speech at the event, the Project Coordinator of HYPREP, Prof Nenibarini Zabbey, who was represented by Prof Damian-Paul Aguiyi, Director of Technical Services, commended the regulators and asset owners for their cooperation with the Project, and for making themselves available for fieldwork and the regular review meetings.
Prof Zabbey reiterated HYPREP’s commitment to best practice in waste management, particularly waste generation and disposal, calling on the Regulators for adequate logistics support, saying HYPREP’s priority is to focus on the core recommendations by UNEP, especially, remediation(soil, shoreline) mangrove restoration, provision of potable water, interventions in public health care services and sustainable livelihood for the people.
The Project Coordinator further highlighted the status of the Project, the successes achieved across all thematic areas, and assured that HYPREP will soon complete most of the ongoing projects and roll out others. He explained that the purpose of the meeting was to review the progress of the Ogoni cleanup, ensure quality control, and foster effective collaboration.
Consequently, the quarterly key regulators/asset owners meeting is HYPREP’s strategic stakeholder management model, further underscoring the Project’s commitment to transparency, partnership for development, and accountability, all of which are harbingers of effective project delivery.
Speaking to newsmen, HYPREP Project Support Lead and representative of Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited, Engr Ehioze Igbinomwanhia, described his involvement with HYPREPas an encouraging and insightful experience, saying, the Project is implementing a wide range of projects across Ogoniland, spanning immediate remediation works as well as livelihood support initiatives aimed at improving the welfare of affected communities.
Engr Igbinomwanhia emphasised that Renaissance Africa Energy remains fully committed to supporting the objectives of the Ogoni cleanup project, noting that the company has a long history of collaboration with HYPREP.
He added that the partnership has been characterised by continuous learning, adaptation and a willingness to respond to observations and recommendations aimed at improving outcomes.
He further emphasised the importance of safety in all project operations, particularly given the challenging terrain and operating conditions in Ogoniland.
He noted that safety is treated as a critical priority and that contractors are continually reminded to maintain high safety standards, stressing that lessons learnt from previous operational challenges like the collapse of the water tank in Gwara Community are being applied to strengthen safety practices and overall performance.
The Rivers state Government has identified six local government areas with the highest burden of maternal and Neonatal mortality in the state.
State Commissioner for Health Dr Adaeze Chidinma Oreh said this in an interview with newsmen at the Maternal and Neonatal Reduction innovation initiative ( Mamii)Rivers state activation workshop and state engagement meeting in Port Harcourt.
The event was organized by The Federal Ministry of Health in conjunction with its Rivers state counterpart in Port Harcourt.
Dr Oreh also restated the preparedness of the state government to support current efforts by the federal government towards the reduction of maternal and infant mortalities in the country.
She mentioned the affected Local Government Areas to include, Andoni,Akuku Toru and Ahoada West
The rest according to the Commissioner are, Bonny, Etche and Emohua Local Government Areas.
She said the workshop will enable the team from the federal ministry of health and social welfare to brainstorm with the view to finding solution to the problem.
The Commissioner also gave reasons why the Mamii initiative was the best as far as finding solution to maternal mortality was concerned.
“The uniqueness of the Mamii initiative driven by the federal ministry of health and social welfare was that we used evidence to elicit the reasons for this deaths, so that the solutions will be context specific and tailored to the particular environment where those deaths are occuring
“For us in Rivers state we have six Mamii LGAs , nationally we we have 172 local government areas “the Commissioner said.
Earlier in her opening remarks,Dr Oreh said the state government is prepared to work with the federal ministry of health and social welfare to check the rate of maternal mortality in the state.
She commended The Minister of Health and Social welfare Professor Ali Muhammad Pategi for driving the Mamii initiative across the country and expressed optimism that the programm will see to the end of maternal mortality in the country.
Also speaking the National Coordinator Nigeria health sector Renewal Initiative Dr Adam Ahmed said Rivers state is the last state among Mamii states in the country to host the team.
He said the team will visit the affected Local Government Areas with the view to interacting with the people on how to check the trend.
He expressed the hope that with continuous efforts, maternal mortality will be checked.
Also speaking the permanent secretary Rivers state Ministry of Health Professor Justinah Jumbo said the government is not leaving any stone unturned towards reduction in maternal deaths.
The permanent secretary said Governor Siminalaye Fubara is a health friendly Governor who is desirous in improving the quality of health of Rivers people.
John Bibor
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