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“100m Widows Suffer Discrimination Worldwide”

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About 100 million widows worldwide still suffer harmful discrimination and obnoxious traditional practices in most parts of the globe, particularly in Nigeria.
The wife of the Rivers State Governor, Dame Judith Amaechi made the revelation in a goodwill message during the commemoration of the International Widows Day in Port Harcourt.
Dame Amaechi lamented that despite the burden widows bear as bread winners of their families after the demise of their husbands they still suffer from malign discrimination.
She however declared that as a deliberate policy to reverse the trend, her pet programme, the Empowerment Support Initiative (ESI) had demonstrated effort to support women and widows.
Consequently, she disclosed that about N600million has been earmarked for disbursement to widows under the present administration in the form of micro-credit loan scheme.
Other initiatives introduced by the government, Dame Amaechi enumerated include commercial taxi loan scheme, soap making for youths, women and widows, as well as rural-based nursery school for less privileged children, particularly children of widows.
She called on the Rivers State House of Assembly to come up with stiffer legislations against all forms of discrimination and inhuman practices against widows.
She also urged the media and civil society to reinvigorate their campaign in the promotion and improvement of widows rights.
Earlier, Speaker of the Rivers State House Assembly, Rt Hon Tonye Harry has tasked the government and private sector to increase their effort to improve healthcare delivery to reduce mortality rate.
He further declared, “even as no one prays to be a widow, we also do not know what tricks life will play on us. We all should therefore see widows in our midst and their families as an extension of ourselves.
Rt Hon Harry stressed the need for legal binding provisions to be made to guide the devolution of estates of their late husbands empowering their wives with gainful employment to mitigate their sufferings.
He promised that the House would ensure that high impact bills are made to protect the right of the widows and children.
Presenting the plight of widows to the Speaker of the House during a protest by the women, Commissioner for Women Affairs, Mrs Manuela Izunwa underscored the strategic role the assembly could perform to improve the plight of widows.
She requested the House to enact legislations that would empower widows, “no action can rightly arrogate to itself the status of being developed, when women, who in most cases constitute over half of the population are left behind in the development process”, she added.
Mrs. Izunwa lauded the assembly for enacting laws that are gender friendly, especially the dehumanising and harmful traditional practices law No. 2 of 2003.

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Rivers Is Poised To Join Top Tourist Destinations – Commissioner

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The Rivers State Government says the administration of Governor Siminalayi Fubara is taking practical steps to revitalize the tourism sector in the State and promote its rich cultural heritage to make Rivers State a premier destination for investment in culture and tourism.

The Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Hon. Israel Lebura Ngbuelo  stated this at the opening ceremony of the Abuja International Carnival 2024.

He said beside the huge investment on security and critical infrastructure, Fubara is determined to fully harness the tourism potentials and rich cultural heritage of the State for the sustainable growth and economic prosperity of Rivers State.

Dr. Ngbuelo said several initiatives by the governor are ongoing to make Rivers State a choice tourism destination, thereby fostering social cohesion and making tourism a viable alternative revenue source in Rivers State, to boost the revenue of the State and promote sustainable development.

He said the initiatives include the current move to activate the long-abandoned Port Harcourt Tourist Beach to become a treasure center for the promotion of arts, culture and tourism.

Dr. Ngbuelo said concrete steps are also being taken by the governor to resuscitate the abandoned Rex Lawson Cultural Centre in the old Port Harcourt Township with the goal of maximizing its utilization including establishing an Art and Culture Training School at the center.

The Commissioner said investments in culture and tourism are not only safe in Rivers State but also guaranteed to thrive due to the sustained peace and security in the State as a result of the commendable efforts of the governor in the area of security of lives and properties in the State.

The Commissioner led the Rivers State contingent to a scintillating, spectacular and superlative outing at the Abuja International Carnival 2024.

The contingent which comprised diverse cultural troupes from across the 23 local government areas of Rivers State, showcased colourful and stunning Rivers costumes as they marched through the major streets of Abuja to the Eagle Square, venue of the Carnival where they mesmerized the audience with their phenomenon performances.

Dr. Ngbuelo expressed optimism that Rivers State would emerge victorious in all categories of competition at the Carnival due to the level of preparedness of the State as well as its rich and unique culture.

He said besides personally rehearsing with the troupes and supervising them to ensure a good outing, Fubara graciously provided all that they requested.

The Federal Lawmaker representing Andoni/Opobo/Nkoro Federal Constituency Hon. Dr. Awaji-Inombek Abiante, the Rivers State Commissioner for Physical and Urban Development Rt. Hon. Evans Bipi, Local Government Chairmen, political appointees and other Stakeholders were among dignitaries and guests from Rivers State who graced the Abuja International Carnival 2024.

 

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RSG To Enforce Building Plan Compliance

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The Rivers State Government has vowed to enforce strict compliance with approved building plans by property owners and developers in the State to guarantee safety and adherence to regulatory standards.
The Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Rt. Hon. Evans Bipi, in his inaugural meeting with the Permanent Secretary, Directors and staff of the Ministry, said he would ensure full implementation of the Physical Planning Development Law of the State.
He warned that the Rivers State Government will no longer condone a situation where developers make deliberate adjustment or completely deviate from approved building plan in the execution of their projects without recourse to the Ministry.
Hon. Bipi solicited the cooperation of the civil servants of the Ministry while promising to run an open door policy and be easily accessible.
He also promised to right the wrongs, make a positive impact and leave an enduring legacy in the Ministry.
He promised to enhance the physical landscape and aesthetic of Old and New GRA as well as other parts of Port Harcourt.
In his remarks, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development, Surv. Wisdom Hebron, assured the Commissioner of maximum cooperation to foster a harmonious working environment.

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Fubara Approves N85,000 New Minimum For Rivers Workers

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Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, has approved the payment of N85,000.00 as the new minimum wage for civil servants in the employ of the Rivers State Government.
This is the agreement reached during a closed door meeting presided over by the Governor and attended by representatives of organised labour under the auspices of the Joint Public Service Negotiating Council in the State at Government House in Port Harcourt on Friday.
Briefing newsmen after the meeting, the Head of Rivers State Civil Service, Dr George Nwaeke, who spoke on behalf of the Government, affirmed that Governor Fubara has graciously approved a new minimum wage of N85,000.00, adding that the government will begin in November, 2024.
Dr George said, “He (Gov Fubara) has pronounced a figure that is higher than the National Minimum Wage. He pronounced a sum of N85,000.00, which is higher than the minimum wage that was prescribed nationally.
“So, as the Head of Service and a major stakeholder in the labour family, I am very happy to say that the Rivers State Civil Servants have never had it this good since the inception of this State.
“The labour union leaders and all the other major stakeholders were happy with this development,” he added.
Responding to possible payment of arrears, Dr Nwaeke, said it is yet to be determined because a technical committee has been set up to critically work out a tenable payment chart, which will cater to issues of arrears.
He clarified, “Issues of arrears will be worked out by the committee that I am going to be Deputy to the SSG. We are already going to work on it in a technical committee that will now get the nitty gritty of the payment and inform the press later.”
On his part, the Rivers State Chairman of the Joint Public Service Negotiating Council, Comrade Emecheta Chuku, explained that this is their first meeting with Governor Fubara to discuss the issue of the new minimum wage as approved by the Federal Government of Nigeria.
Comrade Chuku pointed to the fact that the gracious approval of N85,000.00 new minimum wage is very appeasing to the labour leaders, adding that it demonstrates love for the workers.
He explained, “For the Governor to come, against all the crisis, against all the things that he is facing and more, to say he will pay N85,000.00 minimum wage, I think our hearts are full of joy.
“Of course, we have no doubt, knowing the kind of person we have as our Governor. He is a decent man; very responsible enough; and grew through the rank and file of the system. He understands what it takes to earn a living salary; he understands the difference between gifting money and paying somebody salary that can sustain him or her from the first day to the last day of the month.”
Also speaking, the Chairman, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Rivers State Chapter, Comrade Alex Agwanwor, noted that the amount approved by Governor Fubara puts Rivers State Government ahead of Lagos State as the highest minimum wage paying State to civil servants in Nigeria.
He stressed, “Why do I say that? Lagos State said N85,000.00 and Rivers State is paying N85,000.00. The IGRs of Lagos State and Rivers State are not the same. So, for the Governor to agree to pay the same rate with Lagos, that means we are at the top of it.
“We are the best, and we want to continue to commend the Governor. We assure him that, as far as this State is concerned, labour is going to stand with him. We will be with him even until the next eight years.
“I want to commend His Excellency, Executive Governor of Rivers State, our own Number One Worker in Rivers State, he has, once again, proven that the workers in Rivers State gave him an award on May Day as the Champion of Labour, as the Most Labour-Friendly Governor in Nigeria. He, again, has shown that to us today, and I want to commend him.”
He added that they were returning to the State Secretariat Complex to inform workers of the Governor’s magnanimity and benevolence towards civil servants in the State.

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