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Late Mechanic: Car Owner Denies Reporting Stolen Car To Police

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The last is yet to be heard concerning the death of an auto-mechanic, Chima Ikwunado, who was allegedly tortured to death while in police custody in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, as owner of one the cars the deceased and four of his colleagues were allegedly arrested for snatching has exonerated the victim.
Owner of one of the car, which the late mechanic and four others were arrested for allegedly snatching, Mr. Chinedu Ezenwarili, has denied reporting a case of stolen vehicle to the Rivers State Police Command.
It would be recalled that Ikwunado and four of apprentices were arrested by men of the Eagle Crack (E-Crack) Unit, attached to the Mile One Police Division, while test-driving two cars they were repairing along Olu-Obasanjo Road in Port Harcourt for alleged robbery and cultism.
After the death of Ikwunado, his four apprentices namely: Victor Ogbanna, Osaze Friday, Ifeanyi OsujI and Ifeanyi Onyekwere, were charged to court, and are currently remanded at the Port Harcourt Correctional Centre.
Briefing newsmen at the Ernest Ikoli Press Centre in Port Harcourt, yesterday, Ezenwarili, said he gave his vehicle, a Toyota Camry saloon car, to the late Chima for repairs before he was arrested and charged for stealing same car.
“On December 19, 2019, I gave my Toyota Camry with registration number JRV 29 SX to one Mr. Chima Ikwunado to fix my camber bushing and radiator coat. Chima was my mechanic, and I have known him for more than two years.
“On December 20, 2019, I called his telephone line as prearranged but all my attempts to reach the said Chima Ikwunado via telephone proved abortive as his telephone kept ringing but he did not pick his calls. I got worried as to what must have happened because he was my trusted mechanic.
“The following day, I called Mr. China’s neighbour who told me that Chima was arrested by the Eagle Crack police team from Mile One Police Station for driving against traffic, and he was being detained there,” Ezenwarili stated.
Ezenwarili, who was accompanied by his legal team, wondered why the police released his vehicle to him and still kept late Ikwunado and others in detention until he died 10 days later.
He said he decided to speak to the press in order to dissociate himself from the murder of an innocent man, saying he never reported any matter to the Eagle Crack police team.
Ezenwarili added, “I want the whole world to hear my story so that nobody will associate me with the blood of an innocent man,” he said, pointing out that the deceased never snatched his car and he (owner of the said car) never lodged any complaint in any police station.
Similarly, a group, the Committee for the Defense of Human Right (CDHR) has called on the Rivers State Commissioner of Police, Mustapha Dandaura to identify operatives responsible for the death of a mechanic, Chima Ikwunado while in police custody, and ensure that they face justice.
The immediate past National Publicity Secretary of CDHR, Henry Ekine while speaking to newsmen in Port Harcourt, said the group would take all legal majors to ensure justice for late Ikwunado.
Ekine stated that the reason given by the Rivers State Police Command on what caused the death of Chima Ikwunado is unjustifiable.
He also said the committee for the defence of human right will, pointing out that the group will investigate the cause of death of the detainee and defend the matter in court.
“The news is really disturbing to the Committee for Defence of Human Right. The Committee for the Defense of Human Rights, from our National Secretariat in Lagos and the Rivers State branch, we are committed to ensuring that the truth of this matter is unravelled.
“The unjustified reaction on the side of the police is unacceptable. We are committed to ensuring that justice is done and that those who are involved in this are brought to book to face the law.
“We are going to push on this to the extreme including taking all legal actions,” he stated.
Ekine also called on the state police boss to prove the integrity of the force by ensuring that any police officer involved in the death of Chima Ikwunado is punished.
“The police should be more professional in their dealings with Nigerians in any issue that comes to the police. The law enjoins that the police should sieve and in fact look through thoroughly in the complaints that come before them.
“The information we have gathered is that the police have gone outside of their powers. We enjoin the commissioner of police in Rivers State to ensure that they do not bring this under any cover.

 

Dennis Naku & Charity Opara

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FG Ends Passport Production At Multiple Centres After 62 Years

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The Nigeria Immigration Service has officially ended passport production at multiple centres, transitioning to a single, centralised system for the first time in 62 years.

Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, disclosed this yesterday while inspecting Nigeria’s new Centralised Passport Personalisation Centre at the NIS Headquarters in Abuja.

He stated that since the establishment of NIS in 1963, Nigeria had never operated a central passport production centre, until now, marking a major reform milestone.

“The project is 100 per cent ready. Nigeria can now be more productive and efficient in delivering passport services,” Tunji-Ojo said.

He explained that old machines could only produce 250 to 300 passports daily, but the new system had a capacity of 4,500 to 5,000 passports every day.

“With this, NIS can now meet daily demands within just four to five hours of operation,” he added, describing it as a game-changer for passport processing in Nigeria.

 “We promised two-week delivery, and we’re now pushing for one week.

“Automation and optimisation are crucial for keeping this promise to Nigerians,” the minister said.

He noted that centralisation, in line with global standards, would improve uniformity and enhance the overall integrity of Nigerian travel documents worldwide.

Tunji-Ojo described the development as a step toward bringing services closer to Nigerians while driving a culture of efficiency and total passport system reform.

He said the centralised production system aligned with President Bola Tinubu’s reform agenda, boosting NIS capacity and changing the narrative for better service delivery.

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FAAC Disburses N2.225trn For August, Highest In Nigeria

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The Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) has disbursed N2.225 trillion as federation revenue for the month of August 2025, the highest ever allocation to the three tiers of government and other statutory recipients.

This marks the second consecutive month that FAAC disbursements have crossed the N2 trillion mark.

The revenue, shared at the August 2025 FAAC meeting in Abuja, was buoyed by increases in oil and gas royalty, value-added tax (VAT), and common external tariff (CET) levies, according to a communiqué issued at the end of the meeting.

Out of the N2.225 trillion total distributable revenue, FAAC said N1,478.593 trillion came from statutory revenue, N672.903 billion from VAT, N32.338 billion from the Electronic Money Transfer Levy (EMTL), and N41.284 billion from Exchange Difference.

The communiqué revealed that gross federation revenue for the month stood at N3.635 trillion. From this amount, N124.839 billion was deducted as cost of collection, while N1,285.845 trillion was set aside for transfers, interventions, refunds, and savings.

From the statutory revenue of N1.478 trillion, the Federal Government received N684.462 billion, State Governments received N347.168 billion, and Local Government Councils received N267.652 billion. A further N179.311 billion (13 per cent of mineral revenue) went to oil-producing states as derivation revenue.

From the distributable VAT revenue of N672.903 billion, the Federal Government received N100.935 billion, the states received N336.452 billion, while the local governments got N235.516 billion.

Of the N32.338 billion shared from EMTL, the Federal Government received N4.851 billion, the States received N16.169 billion, and the Local Governments received N11.318 billion.

From the N41.284 billion exchange difference, the Federal Government received N19.799 billion, the states received N10.042 billion, and the local governments received N7.742 billion, while N3.701 billion (13 per cent of mineral revenue) was shared to the oil-producing states as derivation.

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KenPoly Governing Council Decries Inadequate Power Supply, Poor Infrastructure On Campus

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The Governing Council of Kenule Beeson Saro-Wiwa Polytechnic, Bori, has decried the inadequate power supply and poor state of infrastructural facilities and equipment at the institution.

The Council also appealed to the government, including Non-Governmental Organisations, agencies, as well as well-meaning Rivers people to intervene to restore and sustain the laudable gesture, dreams and aspirations of the founding fathers of the polytechnic.

The Chairman of the newly inaugurated Council, Professor Friday B. Sigalo, made this appeal during a tour of facilities at the  Polytechnic, recently.

Accompanied by members of the team, Prof Sigalo emphasised the position of technology, technical and vocational education in sustainable development.

He noted that with the prospects on ground, and the programmes and activities undertaken in the polytechnic, there is no doubt that the institution would add values to the educational system in our society and foster the desired development, if the existing challenges are jointly tackled.

This was contained in a statement signed by Deputy Registrar, Public Relations, Kenpoly,  Innocent Ogbonda-Nwanwu, and made available to The Tide in Port Harcourt.

The chairman who restated the intention of his team of technocrats to ensure that KenPoly enjoys desirable face-lift, said the Council would deliver on its core mandates, accordingly.

Earlier, the Rector, KenPoly Engr. Dr. Ledum S. Gwarah, commended the appointment of Professor Friday B. Sigalo as Chairman of the KenPoly Governing Council.

He described him and his team as seasoned technocrats and expressed confidence in their ability to succeed.

The Rector pledged the management’s support to the Council to ensure that KenPoly resumes its rightful place in the comity of polytechnics in the country.

Facilities visited by the Governing Council include KenPoly workshops, laboratories, skills acquisition centre, library, hostels and medical centre.

 

Chinedu Wosu

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