News
RVHA Threatens Arrest Of Halliburton’s MD …Moves To Review Abattoirs’ Laws
The Rivers State House of Assembly (RVHA), yesterday, threatened to issue warrant of arrest on the Managing Director of Halliburton Energy Services, in the Trans Amadi area of Port Harcourt, if he, again, refuses to appear in person before the House.
The Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon. Ikuinyi- Owaji Ibani, who gave the warning at the Assembly’s plenary session in Port Harcourt, also rejected the request of the representatives of the managing director of the company led by one Engr. Ferdinand Abara, to brief the House on behalf of the company.
It would be recalled that the Rivers State House of Assembly, over two weeks ago, had summoned the managing director of Halliburton Energy Services to appear before it to explain the alleged systematic marginalization against indigenes of the state in the company.
The Tide learnt that the managing director has turned down the invitation severally without reasons.
The speaker, who described the attitude of the managing director as an insult, alleged that it was a deliberate attempt by the managing director not to appear before the legislative arm by sending a representative to the House.
According to him, the House has nothing to do with any representative of the company on such a serious matter that concerns the livelihood of indigenes, who were alleged to be treated as slaves in the company.
In a motion to discharge the representatives of the company from the plenary session, the Majority Leader of the House, Hon. Martin Amaewhule, expressed dismay over the managing director’s negligence to the Assembly.
Amawehule said the attitude of the MD showed that the management of Halliburton did not have any respect for the state government.
Amaewhule also vindicated the petitioners against the company, saying that the tricky tactics of the Halliburton’s management toward the state government showed that the company was culpable.
It would be recalled that the Majority Leader of the 8th Assembly, Hon. Martin Amaewhule, had presented a petition from some of the employees of the company over what they described as systematic marginalization of Rivers indigenes in the company.
In the petition, the employees accused the management of denying them redundancy benefits, as well refusing to give permanent employment to many indigenes of the state in the company.
Meanwhile, the Rivers State House of Assembly (RVHA) has stated its readiness to update the state Abattoirs’ Laws to include prohibition of tyres in roasting meat for consumption in the state.
The Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon. Ikuinyi-Owaji Ibani, made this known, yesterday, at the Assembly’s plenary session in Port Harcourt, while addressing the two commissioners and Permanent Secretary summoned to explain the reason behind the continued use of tyres by butchers in abattoirs in the state.
According to him, Commissioner for Agriculture, Mrs Ominim Jack, and Commissioner for Environment, Prof Roseline Konya, and the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Health, Mrs Caroline Wali were invited to appear before the House to explain their level of implementation of relevant laws on abattoirs operations, especially the use of tyres in roasting meat for consumption.
He said, the Assembly expected firsthand knowledge on the level of compliance by the abattoirs to the rules and regulations guiding their activities, and the challenges they face in the implementation of the laws.
The speaker, who noted that there were less reactions by the relevant ministries and agencies regarding the use of tyres in burning meat, expressed optimism that the meeting with the commissioners would proffer solution and policy framework for a workable legislation on the issue.
Briefing the House, the state Commissioner for Agriculture, Mrs Caroline Wali, stressed the need for the Assembly to pass legislation to prohibit the use of tyres in roasting meat for consumption.
She said the existing law guiding the abattoirs does not include prohibition of tyres in roasting meat.
According to her, the main law being implemented presently was the Meat Inspection and Sale Law, which she said the ministries and the relevant agencies lack the powers to enforce, especially when it comes to the arrest of those using tyres for roasting meat.
The commissioner said over 33 abattoirs operating across the state often use tyres in roasting meat despite several measures applied by the ministry to stop the practice in their different locations.
On her part, the state Commissioner for Environment, Prof Roseline Konya, admitted that it was obvious that the use of tyres in roasting meat has serious implications on the environment and the health of the people.
According to her, tyres contained zinc, sulphur oxide, carbon dioxide, among other elements, which she believed to be dangerous to health.
She urged the Assembly to give legal backing to the operations of the abattoirs regarding the use of tyres in roasting meat.
Also speaking, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Health, Mrs Nemi Jack, said the 83 veterinary doctors deployed to take charge of over 33 abattoirs in Rivers State always have positive reports from their places of assignment on the health implication of the animals slaughtered for meat.
The permanent secretary also noted that some of the abattoirs violated the rules by slaughtering animals before inspection by the ministry.
She said, some slaughtered their livestock in the midnight before the arrival of the inspection team, which she described as one of the impediments in the proper compliance to the rules and regulations guiding their operations.
She supported the call for a new law to prohibit the use of tyres in roasting meat at abattoirs.
Enoch Epelle
Vice President Kashim Shettima has arrived in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for an official State visit at the invitation of the Prime Minister, Dr. Abiy Ahmed.
Upon arrival yesterday, Shettima was received at the airport by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, Dr. Gedion Timothewos, and other members of the Ethiopian and Nigerian diplomatic corps.
Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media and Communication, Stanley Nkwocha, revealed this in a statement he signed yesterday, titled: “VP Shettima arrives in Ethiopia for official state visit.”
During the visit, Vice President Shettima will participate in the official launch of Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Programme, a flagship environmental initiative.
The programme designed to combat deforestation, enhance biodiversity, and mitigate the adverse effects of climate change targets the planting of 20 billion tree seedlings over a four-year period.
In line with strengthening bilateral ties in agriculture and industrial development, the Vice President will also embark on a strategic tour of key industrial zones and integrated agricultural facilities across selected regions of Ethiopia.
News
RSG Tasks Farmers On N4bn Agric Loan ….As RAAMP Takes Sensitization Campaign To Four LGs In Rivers
The Rivers State Government has called on the people of the state especially farmers to access the ?4billion agricultural loans made available by the State and domiciled in the Bank of Industry.
This is as the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) of Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP), a World Bank project, took its sensitization campaign to Opobo/Nkoro, Andoni, Port Harcourt City and Obio/Akpor local government areas.
The campaign was aimed at enlightening community dwellers and other stakeholders in the various local government areas on the RAAMP project implementation and programme activities.
The Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Agriculture, Mr Maurice Ogolo, said this at Opobo town, Ngo, Port Harcourt City and Rumuodumanya, headquarters of the four local government areas respectively, during the sensitization campaign.
Ogolo said apart from the ?4billion, the government has also made available fertilizers and other farm inputs to farmers in the various local government areas.
The Permanent Secretary who is the Chairman, State Steering Committee for the project, said RAAMP will construct roads that will connect farms to markets to enable farmers and fishermen sell their farms produce and fishes.
He also said rural roads would be constructed to farms and fishing settlements, and warned against any act that will lead to the cancellation of the projects in the four local government areas.
According to him, the World Bank and Federal Government which are the financiers of the programme will not condone such acts like kidnapping, marching ground and other acts inimical to the successful implementation of the projects in their respective areas.
At PHALGA, Ogolo asserted that the city will benefit in the areas of roads and bridge construction.
He noted that RAAMP was thriving in both the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; Lagos and other states in the country, stressing that the project should also be given the seriousness it deserves in Rivers State.
Speaking at Opobo town, the headquarters of Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Area, the project coordinator, RAAMP, Mr.Joshua Kpakol, said the programme would reduce poverty in the state.
According to him, both fishermen and farmers will maximally benefit from the programme.
At Ngo which is the headquarters of Andoni Local Government Area, Kpakol said roads will be constructed to all remote fishing settlements.
He said Rivers State is lucky to be among the states implementing the project, and stressed the need for the people to embrace it.
Meanwhile, Kpakol said at PHALGA that RAAMP is a project that will transform the lives of farmers, traders and other stakeholders in the area.
He urged the stakeholders to spread the information to their various communities.
However, some of the stakeholders at Opobo town complained about the destruction of their farms by bulls allegedly owed by traditional rulers in the area, as well as incessant stealing of their canoes at waterfronts.
At Ngo, Archbishop Elkanah Hanson, founder of El-Shaddai Church, commended the World Bank and the Federal Government for bringing the projects to Andoni.
He stressed the need for the construction of roads to fishing settlements in the area.
Also, a former Commissioner for Agriculture in the state and Okan Ama of Ekede, HRH King Gad Harry, noted that storage facilities have become necessary for a successful agricultural programme.
Harry also stressed the need for the programme to be made sustainable.
In their separate speeches, the administrators of Andoni and Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Areas, pledged their readiness to support the programme.
At Port Harcourt City, the Administrator, Dr Arthur Kalagbor, represented by the Head of Local Government Administration, Port Harcourt City, Mr Clifford Paul, said the city would support the implementation of the programme in the area.
Also, the administrator of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area, Dr Clifford Ndu Walter, represented by Mr Michael Elenwo, pledged to support the programme in his local government area.
Among dignitaries at the Obio/Akpor stakeholders engagement is the chairman, Rivers State Traditional Rulers Council and paramount ruler of Apara Kingdom, HRM Eze Chike Wodo, amongst others.
John Bibor
President Bola Tinubu has ordered the commencement of personnel audit and skill gap analysis across all cadres of federal civil servants.
The president gave this directive in Abuja, yesterday, while speaking at the International Civil Service Conference, reaffirming his resolve to achieve efficiency and professional service delivery in the civil service.
“I have authorized the comprehensive personnel audit and skill gap analysis across the federal civil service to deepen capacity. I urge all responsible stakeholders to prioritize timely completion of this critical exercise, to begin implementing targeted reforms, to realize the full benefit of a more agile, competent and responsive civil service,” the president announced.
Tinubu further directed all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), to prioritise data integrity and sovereignty in national interest.
He called for the capture, protection and strategic publication of public sector data in line with the Nigeria Data Protection Act of 2023.
“We must let our data speak for us. We must publish verified data assets within Nigeria and share them internationally recognized as fruitful. This will allow global benchmarking organisation to track our progress in real time and help us strengthen our position on the world stage. This will preserve privacy and uphold data sovereignty,” Tinubu added.
President Tinubu hailed the federal civil service as the “engine” driving his Renewed Hope Agenda, and the vehicle for delivering sustainable national development.
He submitted that the roles of civil servants remain indispensable in modern governance, declaring that in the face of a fast-evolving digital and economic landscape, the civil service must remain agile, future-ready, and results-driven.
“This maiden conference is a bold step toward redefining governance in an era of rapid transformation. An innovative Civil Service ensures we meet today’s needs and overcome tomorrow’s challenges.
“It captures our collective ambition to reimagine and reposition the civil service. In today’s rapid, evolving world of technology, innovation remains critical in ensuring that the civil service is dynamic, digital” the President said.
Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Walson-Jack in her welcome address told the President that his presence and strong words of commendation at the conference has renewed the morale and mandate of public servants across the country.
Walson-Jack described Tinubu as the backbone of driving transformation in the Nigerian civil service, and noted that the takeaways from past study tours undertaken to understudy the civil service in Singapore, the UK and US under her leadership, is already yielding multiplier effects.
Walson-Jack assured Tinubu that her office, in collaboration with reform-minded stakeholders, will not relent in accelerating the implementation of the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan, FCSSIP 25.
She affirmed that digitalisation, performance management, and continuous learning remain key pillars in strengthening accountability, transparency, and service delivery across MDAs.
Walson-Jack reaffirmed that the civil service is determined to exceed expectations by embedding a culture of innovation, ethical leadership, and citizen-centred governance in the heart of public administration.