Nation

THE STATES

Published

16 years ago

June 7, 2010

Adamawa

Prof. Isa Chiroma of the University of Maiduguri has called for the introduction of e-learning and distant programmes in polytechnics and universities.

Chiroma made the call at a pre-convocation lecture entitled: “Challenges Facing Tertiary Education Adminstration in Nigeria” on Friday in Mubi, Adamawa.

He said it was high time to change the pattern of tertiary education to meet the socio-economic and technological demand of the country.

Chiroma said e-learning would address inadequate funding militating against smooth operations of the institutions.

“Since funding and infrastructure are the challenges, tertiary institutions should consider e-learning and distance learning programmes with sister institutions.”

Bauchi

Bauchi state Ministry of Education has set up a committee to investigate Sunday’s demonstration at the Government Technical College, Gumau.

The Commissioner for Education, Alhaji Aminu Ibrahim, disclosed this in an interview with newsmen in Bauchi on Friday.

Ibrahim said that in spite of the committee, the college had also constituted its own internal panel to probe the incident.

On Sunday, students of the college protested against “a strange man” who had allegedly been sneaking into the girls’ hostel.

The Commissioner said he had visited the college and met with the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of Gumau town.

FCT

The Federal Government on Friday said it was committed to the dual task of reviving and creating an enabling environment for the smooth functioning of existing automobile industries in Nigeria.

A statement signed by Alhaji Umar Sani, the Senior Special Assistant to Vice President Namadi Sambo, said Sambo made the statement at a forum in Abuja.

It said the forum was a meeting between the management of Peugeot Automobile Nigeria (PAN) and Bank of Industry (BOI), Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Bureau for Public Enterprise (BPE) and Union Bank Nigeria (UBN) PLC.

Kaduna

Zaria Local Government Education Authority in Kaduna State has introduced a new system of checking the performance of teachers, the council’s Secretary, Alhaji Mustapha Umar, said on Friday.

He told newsmen in Zaria that the measure would ensure

effective teaching and learning in primary schools.

He, however, expressed concern over the poor performance of class five and six pupils, and stressed that most of them could not even write a sentence in English.

He said: “It is unfortunate that some primary five and six pupils cannot write a sentence in English and some cannot even write their names correctly”.

Kano

Rep. Faruk Lawan, the Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Education, has joined the governorship race in Kano State on PDP platform.

He presented his letter of request to the PDP state’s executive committee members in Kano on Friday.

Lawan, who represents Bagawai/Shanono federal constituency, said his decision to run for the governorship post was informed by his desire to “restore the glory” of the state.

He particularly expressed concern over the high rate of drug abuse, especially among youths in the state as well as the ‘sorry state of education.’

He said such issues would be tackled if given the opportunity to govern the state.

Katsina

The Federal Government is to establish legal aid centres in 72 local government areas across the country this year.

Already, government has earmarked N300 million in the 2010 budget for the project.

The Director-General of the Legal Aid Council of Nigeria, Mrs Nwaka Akinlami, said this in Katsina shortly after paying a condolence visit to the former First Lady, Hajiya Turai Yar’Adua.

“With this development, each of the 36 states of the federation will have three legal aid offices; one in the state capital while the remaining two will be in local government areas,”she said.

Kebbi

The Kebbi Government has spent N15 million on the formulation of a 10-year strategic plan to develop the education sector.

The Commissioner for Education, Alhaji Sani Rukubulo, made the announcement in Birnin Kebbi on Friday, when he addressed stakeholders, serving and retired educationists.

Rukubulo said the plan was targeted at upgrading 1,476 primary schools, 228 Junior Secondary Schools (JSS), 90 Senior Secondary Schools (SSS) and six tertiary institutions in the state.

He said the policy was also to improve the one teacher to 100 pupils ratio as well as the one teacher to 75 students to improve learning in schools.

Lagos

The immediate past Chairman of EFCC, Mallam Nuhu Ribadbu returned to Nigeria on Friday through the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.

The Delta Airline aircraft with registration number DL 053, which he travelled in from the US , touched down at exactly 4.40pm.

Ribadu simply said, “wonderful, wonderful, wonderful,’’ when asked by journalists how he felt coming back home.

“I am very happy, I feel very great, I am happy to be back home. I am just coming now, I am happy to be back home,’’ Ribadu said when pressed further.

The Tide’s source reports that the EFCC’s former chairman was received by his wife and three children.

Niger

The Concerned NITEL/MTEL Staff Association of Nigeria (CNSAN), Niger chapter, on Friday, protested the non-payment of their 26 months salary arrears and pension entitlements.

The Tide’s source reports that members of the association carried placards calling for the payment of their life pension scheme to reduce their suffering.

One of the placards read: “26 months without salaries; 308 dead.”

Mr Oluti Gabriel, President of the association told the source in Minna on Friday that, “members want to be returned to life pension agreement we signed with the Federal Government.”

“Government should pay for declaring us redundant and asking us to go before our time.”

Ogun

A don, Prof. Labode Popoola, has appealed to the Federal Government to show serious concern to the catastrophe posed by climate change.

Popoola, a professor of forest economics and the Dean of Post Graduate School at the University of Ibadan, gave the warning on Thursday in Ota, Ogun State, at a capacity building workshop on climate.

In his paper ,“Understanding Climate Change: Context, Drivers and Impacts”, Popoola, represented by Dr. Jimoh Saka, a lecturer in the university, said that 80 per cent of the inhabitants of the Niger stood the risk of being displaced as a result of climate change.

Plateau

The National Directorate of Employment (NDE) in Plateau, on Friday in Jos, presented working tools to 30 women under the 4,700 jobs scheme.

The disbursement is in addition to the recent training of 50 persons on information and communication technology and events management, while 30 people were trained in agriculture.

Speaking shortly after the Friday event, the Plateau NDE Coordinator, Mr Monday Dalyop, said that 20 other women penciled to receive the tools could not do so because they could not present guarantors.

Sokoto

A Non-Governmental Organisation under the aegis, “Unity Education Empowerment Initiative,” has donated 10 wheelchairs worth over N160,000 to physically–challenged students of Abdulrashid Adisa Raji Special School,Sokoto.

Its Chairman, Sqn.Ldr Aminu Bala-Sokoto(rtd),told newsmen in Sokoto, that the beneficiaries included seven female and three male students respectively.

“They were drawn from the nursery, primary and secondary sections of the school. They were hitherto crawling to their classes from their hostels.”

“The gesture is aimed at alleviating their suffering. We have plans to donate crutches, brail machines, walking sticks and hearing aids to more students of the school soon,’’ he said.

Yobe

The Yobe House of Assembly has passed into law a bill compelling every household in the state to plant trees in its environment.

The law also prohibits illegal felling of trees.

The state Commissioner for Environment, Alhaji Wakil Sarki, announced the enactment on Friday in Damaturu at a news conference to mark the World Environment Day.

He said the law was aimed at inculcating the habit of collective environmental sustainability in the people and also giving them acceptable guiding principles.

According to him, the law will teach them how to plant trees and spell out punishment for anyone found guilty of cutting trees illegally.

Nation

UNIZIK Honours Business Mogul, Ezekwe, For Philanthropism

Published

3 days ago

March 2, 2026

The Tide

The Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK) has conferred the Award of Digital Academic Promoter on the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Arrowconn Group, High Chief (Dr.) Emeka Ezekwe, for his philanthropic gestures.

Chief Ezekwe received the philanthropist award during a landmark technical workshop organised by the Department of Business Education, Faculty of Technology and Vocational Education, Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK), Awka, recently.

Making the presentation, the Vice Chancellor of the university, Prof. Ugochukwu Stanley Anyaehie, said the award was in recognition of Ezekwe’s philanthropic contributions, academic support, and dedication to human capital development, hailing his commitment to bridging industry and academia.

Ezekwe who is also the Chairman of Port Harcourt Chamber of Commerce Professional Services and Consultancy Trade Group, delivered a keynote address at the event with a theme: “Technicalities and Application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Business and Education.”

In his address, Ezekwe described the current AI surge as a civilizational shift rather than a mere technological upgrade.

He compared AI’s rapid trajectory to past innovations like electricity, computers, the Internet, and mobile phones, which he said, progressed from luxuries to necessities.

“AI is reshaping value creation, knowledge sharing, and decision-making at unprecedented speed. It has moved from experimentation to execution, powering business forecasting, academic research, digital learning, and strategic decisions,” he said.

The business mogul, however, warned that in business, delays lead to losses, while in education, irrelevance spells failure.

“AI is no longer optional, it is a necessity,” he declared.

Ezekwe highlighted the critical AI skill gap, driven by curriculum lags, limited training, and fear of the unknown, but stressed the bigger danger which is exclusion.

“Those who master AI will shape markets, education, and policy; those who lag will be shaped by others,” he said.

The Arrowconn Group boss also outlined AI’s practical advantages for businesses —including data-driven strategies, smarter investments, scalable customer insights, and competitive edges for SMEs.

In education, he clarified that AI empowers rather than replaces teachers, enabling personalized learning, efficient lesson planning, assessment support, and accelerated research.

He advocated a shift from rote memorization to critical thinking, creativity, and problem-solving, while preserving human strengths in engagement, judgment, and collaboration.

Ezekwe urged ethical AI development, warning that “technology without values is dangerous,” and called on institutions like UNIZIK to update curricula, train educators, promote interdisciplinary work, forge industry partnerships, and produce graduates who are solution providers in an AI-driven world.

The workshop also marked the unveiling of the maiden edition of the UNIZIK Journal of Business Education and Entrepreneurship, reinforcing the department’s push for scholarly innovation in AI applications.

Nation

Don Calls For National Forensic Data Bank To Combat Rising Crime

Published

3 days ago

March 2, 2026

The Tide

The Head of the Department of Anatomy at the University of Port Harcourt’s College of Health Sciences, Prof Gabriel Sunday Oladipo, has underscored the urgent need for Nigeria to develop a comprehensive forensic science infrastructure, warning that the nation’s ability to investigate and solve crime is being hampered by lack of scientific data and systems.

In his inaugural lecture titled, “Man: Fearfully Different, Wonderfully Made,” delivered as part of the 207th Inaugural Lecture Series of the university, Prof Oladipo highlighted that while no two individuals are exactly the same, the country currently lacks the robust systems needed to collect and manage biological and anthropometric data that could support criminal investigations.

He explained that the natural variations among humans — from fingerprints to physical measurements — form the foundation of personal identification in forensic work. These biological differences, he said, are essential for distinguishing one person from another, especially in the context of criminal investigations where clarity of identity can mean the difference between justice and impunity. Without this scientific foundation, he argued, law enforcement agencies lack a critical tool in the fight against crime.

Experts have noted that Nigeria’s forensic science capacity has historically lagged behind needs, with only a few forensic facilities available and many law enforcement agencies struggling to access or use scientific evidence effectively. One review of the state of forensic investigation in Nigeria found that outdated facilities and limited adoption of modern forensic methods have left many cases unsolved or poorly investigated, even as crime rates rise across the country.

In Lagos, efforts to improve forensic capabilities have focused on DNA analysis, with the Lagos State DNA Forensic Centre — the first of its kind in West Africa — providing critical support for criminal investigations and helping to identify human remains, link related cases, and assist with paternity testing. However, such initiatives are yet to be replicated at a national scale, leaving many regions without access to these vital scientific tools.

Prof Oladipo’s lecture went beyond academic theory to propose concrete actions. He called for the establishment of a National Institute of Forensic Science responsible for creating and managing a nationwide anthropometric and forensic data bank. This repository, he stressed, would significantly enhance Nigeria’s capacity to track crime, assist law enforcement agencies, and improve the administration of justice by providing reliable scientific evidence for investigative and legal processes.

He also highlighted the importance of strengthening research and training in forensic science. Many Nigerian universities currently lack the funding and infrastructure to offer complete undergraduate or postgraduate programs in areas such as forensic anthropology, DNA analysis, and crime scene investigation, a gap that forces aspiring experts to rely on collaborations with institutions abroad. By fostering a research-friendly environment and securing greater support from both government and private sectors, Nigerian institutions could produce homegrown experts capable of advancing forensic science in the country.

Awareness of forensic science’s role in criminal justice remains low among the general public and even among some security professionals. Studies have shown that a significant portion of Nigerians are unfamiliar with basic forensic concepts or the existence of tools such as DNA profiling and national forensic databases — tools that are common features of criminal justice systems in countries like South Africa and the United Kingdom.

Prof Oladipo also urged regular training and retraining programs to keep forensic practitioners updated with evolving scientific methods. According to him, continuous professional development is critical in a field where technological advances — from biometric databases to digital forensic tools — are transforming how crimes are investigated and solved.

The lecture was attended by academics, students, and professionals drawn to the intersection of science, identity, and justice, all of whom heard the professor make a compelling case for scientific innovation and institutional reform as central to Nigeria’s effort to contain crime and strengthen its justice system.

The event not only showcased Prof Oladipo’s expertise in human anatomy and forensic psychology but also positioned forensic science as a strategic national priority — one that could bring clarity to investigations, support victims and their families, and ultimately enhance public safety across Nigeria.

Nation

UPWA Hosts Colourful Inter-House Sports Fiesta

Published

6 days ago

February 27, 2026

The Tide

The University of Port Harcourt Women Association (UPWA) on Thursday staged a vibrant and memorable edition of its Annual Inter-House Sports Competition at the University of Port Harcourt Sports Village, drawing an impressive turnout of pupils, parents, staff and invited guests.

The event, organised by the UPWA International Group of Schools, brought together children from the pre-nursery, nursery and secondary sections in a colourful celebration of youth athleticism, discipline and teamwork. The arena came alive with cheers and excitement as pupils, clad in their various house colours, marched in a ceremonial parade before proceeding to compete in a wide range of track and field events, relays, novelty races and other team-based activities designed to promote physical fitness and healthy competition.

Declaring the competition open, the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Port Harcourt, Professor Owunari Georgewill, commended UPWA for sustaining a tradition that continues to nurture young talents beyond the classroom. He noted that sports remain a critical component of holistic education, helping to build resilience, confidence, leadership skills and social interaction among children.

In her remarks, the President of UPWA, Professor Udeme Georgewill, expressed appreciation to parents, teachers and members of the organising committee for their dedication and sacrifice in ensuring the success of the programme despite prevailing economic challenges. She described the event as a reflection of unity and collective effort within the school community.

“This is the first time White House is emerging overall winner, and that shows remarkable improvement and great sportsmanship,” she said. “We all had fun. It is not easy putting an event like this together considering the economic situation, but we are grateful to the parents for being part of this journey. The excitement everywhere is truly heartwarming.”

The competition featured spirited participation from the various houses, including Purple House, San Chicago Red House and White House, with pupils demonstrating strength, speed, coordination and teamwork. Parents and supporters filled the stands, cheering enthusiastically and adding colour to the spectacle, while teachers ensured orderliness and safety throughout the proceedings.

Professor Georgewill emphasized that the true essence of sports lies not merely in winning trophies but in participation and personal growth. “Sports is not just about winning. It is an avenue for growth, discipline and opportunity. The fact that a child is able to participate is already a win. Losing this year does not mean you cannot win next year. Keep trying,” she encouraged, urging pupils to see both victory and defeat as stepping stones to greater achievements.

She further observed that while there are many competing interests in the Nigerian sports sector, consistent grassroots investment remains essential for discovering and nurturing future champions.

The colourful ceremony culminated in medal presentations, trophy awards and group photographs, with UPWA executives, including Vice President I, Professor Adedamola Onyeaso, joining the participating teams to celebrate the day’s achievements.

The annual inter-house sports competition continues to stand as one of UPWA’s flagship events, reinforcing its commitment to balanced education, character formation and the promotion of healthy lifestyles among its pupils.