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Insecurity: RSG Vows To Wipe Out Cultism …As CP Declares War On Criminals On East-West Road, Others
The Rivers State Government has reiterated its determination to stamp out cultism and gangsterism in all institutions of learning across the state.
The state Deputy Governor, Dr Ipalibo Harry Banigo stated this during a familiarisation visit by the Council of Student Union Government Presidents (SUG) at the Government House in Port Harcourt, last Friday.
Banigo urged the student leaders to continue to maintain their peaceful disposition in their institutions and work against anything that could short change them as students.
She said as critical stakeholders, they have important roles to play by preaching the peace and providing mentorship for their followers.
“This government is totally committed to stamp out cultism in our tertiary institutions. We are also not going to condone it in our communities. We have zero tolerance for it, and all the vice chancellors and rectors are committed to it in line with the governor’s passion for zero tolerance for cultism”, Banigo stressed.
According to her, cultism has destroyed our youths and children, even down to the primary schools, noting that it was not fair at all because it destroys destinies.
“God created everyone to be good but some persons deceive and initiate others through false promises in order to destroy them; we must speak against it in order to have a more prosperous Rivers State”, Banigo further stressed.
She assured them that Governor Nyesom Wike’s promise to carry the young people along in his second tenure remains sacrosanct, stressing that his second tenure would herald more infrastructural and human capital development.
In his remarks, the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Zone B Co-ordinator, David Bariereka, who congratulated the governor and his deputy on their successful re-election, informed the deputy governor that they were at the Government House to discuss the welfare of students and chat the way forward.
Meanwhile, the new Commissioner of Police in the Rivers State Command, Mustapha Dandaura says he would declare total war against violent crimes in the state and ensure that criminals terrorising the East-West and the Omagwa-Elele-Omerelu roads are decimated within a short period of time of his administration in the state.
The CP also said he came to the state to fight crime to a stand-still in line with the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar Adamu’s directives through the establishment of Operation PUFF ADDER in the commands across the country, noting that even though the operation has not been fully operational in the state, he has the mandate to crush the monsters of cultism, kidnapping, armed robbery, murder and pipeline vandalism bedevilling the state.
Dandaura made these assertions during his maiden press briefing with newsmen held at the Police Officers’ Mess in Port Harcourt, last Friday.
He disclosed that he was going to tackle crimes headlong and bring them to tolerable level, adding that the state would no longer be conducive for criminals, and urged them to repent or relocate to other states or be prepared to face the full wrath of the law.
According to him, the state was strategic to the economic wellbeing of the country, and therefore, much efforts was needed to curtail and minimise the security challenges that would naturally crop up, given the peculiar socio-economic environment of the state.
“I have come to change the narrative in policing strategy and rekindle the public trust in the police”, Dandaura said.
The state police helmsman said his administration would focus on five cardinal areas, including intelligence-led policing, constructive engagement and community partnership, recovery of illegal firearms, zero tolerance for corruption, and respect for sanctity of human lives as well as the provision of credible leadership.
“I shall engage the communities in my policing strategy and bring policing to the people. I will put in place some proactive measures aimed at preventing crimes. These include: visibility policing with my men dominating the security space stationed at strategic locations. We shall embark on regular raids of identified criminal hideouts and black spots, thereby taking the war to miscreants with a view to dislodging them”, he stated.
He promised to be apolitical and professional in the discharge of his responsibilities, and used the opportunity to call on all political gladiators in the state to join hands with the police and other security agencies to move the state forward.
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.
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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.