Nation
THE STATES
Adamawa
A total of 2,573 Pilgrims from Adamawa and Taraba states were transported to Saudi Arabia from Yola International Airport on Monday.
Malma Liman Muhammad, the National Coordinator of the National Hajj Commission, Yola Zone, disclosed this while speaking with newsmen in Yola.
He said that two Airline operators; Kabo and Max Air, were operating in the Yola zone.
Liman said that Kabo Air had so far transported 1,573 pilgrims from Adamawa in three trips while Max Air also transported 1,000 from Taraba in two trips.
Bauchi
The Bauchi State Government has donated N10 million to the University of Maiduguri to boost learning in the institution.
The Vice Chancellor of the University, Prof. Muhammad Daura, made the disclosure when he received Prof. Musa Maisamari in his office in Maiduguri.
Maisamari is the Executive Chairman of the Bauchi State Commission for Youth and Women Rehabilitation and Development (BACYWORD).
This is contained in a statement signed by Malam Chindo Waziri, the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the commission.
Borno
Gov. Ali Modu Sheriff of Borno State last Monday appealed for the deployment of more soldiers to contain the current spate of killings by suspected Boko Haram sect members.
“I want to appeal for the deployment of additional troops to the state for effective security coverage.
“The number is inadequate, especially when viewed against the fact that Borno is the only state in Nigeria that shared a common border with three countries,” Sheriff said.
Ekiti
Cocoa farmers in Ekiti, under the aegis of Cocoa Growers Association (CAN) are seeking the state government soft loans for them to rejuvenate their aging farms.
The Chairman of the association, Mr. Ibitoye Francis made the request in an interview with newsmen in Ado-Ekiti yesterday.
He disclosed that over 10,000 cocoa farmers were in the state adding that experience also showed that they needed the loan to maintain the existing cocoa farms and cultivate more Cocoa farms in the state.
FCT
ActionAid Nigeria, a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), said election riggers and manipulators should be made to face the wrath of the law.
The Country Director of ActionAid, Mr Hussaini Abdu, made the suggestion following the victory of Dr Kayode Fayemi as Governor of Ekiti State at the Court of Appeal last Friday.
Abdu told newsmen last Monday in Abuja that the judgment passed by the Court of Appeal showed the doggedness and commitment of the judiciary.
According to him, Ekiti people are now going to rip the dividends of democracy.
Katsina
Parents in Katsina State have appealed to the state government to re-consider its decision on de-boarding of secondary schools, which they said was inimical to the education of their children.
They made the appeal last Monday in separate interviews with newsmen in Katsina, Daura, Mani, Malumfashi, Dutsinma and Funtua towns.
Kogi
The Kogi Government has released N72 million to NAPEP to fight poverty in the state.
Dr Grace Gunwa, the state Coordinator of NAPEP, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Lokoja that 295 households would benefit from the fund.
She said the money was approved in March by Gov. Ibrahim Idris when he saw the very good work the state chapter of the agency was doing in empowering the needy to alleviate poverty in the state.
Gunwa said the money would be used to reach out to more beneficiaries, especially in the 11 local government areas the agency had accessed.
Lagos
The police last Monday in Lagos arraigned four men before an Ebute Meta Magistrate‘s Court for allegedly stealing and receiving cosmetics valued at N4.2 million.
The accused Anibueze Ogbuka, 32, Ifeanyi Omenife, 22, Ebere Nwose, 30 and Edwin Ikeanyi, 45, were arraigned on a four-count charge of conspiracy, burglary, stealing and receiving stolen goods.
The accused pleaded not guilty to the charges and were each granted N200,000 bail with two sureties in like sum.
The Magistrate, Mr T. Abolarinwa, adjourned the case till October 27, for further hearing.
Ogun
A Physiotherapist, Mrs Toyin Olatunji, has attributed persistent low back pain among adults to their failure to maintain healthy weight.
Olatunji, who is of the Physiotherapy Department, Federal Medical Centre, Abeokuta, told newsmen in Abeokuta yesterday that the only antidote was through weight control.
The physiotherapist who defined low back pain as “a feeling of tiredness, discomfort or pain in the lower back region”, said that 70 per cent to 85 per cent of the adult population would have back complaints during their lifetime.
Osun
Osun State government has commenced the implementation of Road Traffic Law to decongest vehicles on the roads.
The Commissioner for Works and Transport, Chief Soji Longe made this known in Osogbo last Monday.
Oyo
The appeal case filed by Mr Rauf Aregbesola, governorship candidate of Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) against Gov Olagunsoye Oyinlola of Osun suffered yet another adjournment yesterday in Ibadan.
Aregbesola is challenging the election of Oyinlola as the governor of Osun in the April 12, 2007 governorship election.
Plateau
As the start of 2010 Jos Trade Fair draws near, the Plateau Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (PLACCIMA) has assured participants of adequate security and amenities.
The trade fair starts from October 20 to November 2.
Mr Jack Bot, the Executive Director of PLACCIMA, gave the assurance in an interview with newsmen in Jos last Monday.
He said that the chamber had concluded arrangements with security agencies to ensure that “maximum protection” of all exhibitors was guaranteed.
Sokoto
Two intending female pilgrims from Gada Local Government Area of Sokoto State have been barred from travelling to Saudi Arabia to perform the 2010 Hajj.
Authorities detected that the two women were seven-month pregnant during a screening exercise in Sokoto on Monday.
It also reported that the women were part of the 501 intending pilgrims from Gada Local Government Area, who were to be airlifted in the first batch from the state.
Zamfara
The Zamfara Government has dethroned the District Head of Bakura, Alhaji Bello Yusuf, for undisclosed reasons.
Until his removal, Yusuf was the most senior District Head in Bakura Emirate.
His dethronment was announced yesterday in Gusau in a statement by the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Alhaji Isyaka Zurmi.
It said that the deposition took immediate effect, and directed Yusuf to hand over all government property in his possession to the Secretary to the State Council of Chiefs.
The Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project(HYPREP) has inducted and given orientation to 100 Ogoni youths for training on Creative Arts. The beneficiaries were drawn from Khana, Gokana, Tai and Eleme Local Government Areas of Rivers State.
The induction and orientation ceremony, which took place at the CRAB of the Department of Theatre Arts of the University of Port Harcourt on Wednesday, was a prelude to the training proper, billed to commence next Tuesday.
As usual, HYPREP issued undertaking forms to the trainees, for them to complete and submit as a guarantee that they would subject themselves to the requirements of the programme as well as be of good behaviour throughout the four-month duration of the training.
HYPREP also announced that it would pay N150,000 to each of the beneficiaries monthly, as transport and feeding allowance, stressing, however, that only those who fully participate in the training would be entitled for the allowance.
Speaking at the event, the Project Coordinator of HYPREP, Prof Nenibarini Zabbey, welcomed the trainees to the programme, saying, HYPREP’s projects are evolving and that one thing that is happening today is that the Project has gotten leadership right, by making promises and keeping those promises.
According to him, the Project had equally promised to move away from rudimentary skills acquisition to high impacts acquisition levels, which it has kept today by sponsoring the training on Creative Arts.
He noted that in planning its livelihood programmes for Ogoni youths, HYPREP has taken time out to look for skills that would add value to the lives of the beneficiaries.
Zabbey, who was represented at the event by the Director of Technical Services, Prof Damian-Paul Aguiyi said by packaging the Creative Arts training, it was expected that the Ogoni people would have their own version of Nollywood known as Ogoniwood just as Nigerians are familiar with Hollywood, Bollywood, Kannywood and Nollywood.
To achieve this goal, the Project Coordinator explained that it was the reason for choosing a reputable establishment like Halibiz Consult Limited, to partner with the Department of Theatre Arts of the University of Port Harcourt, which he described as one of the most prestigious in the Niger Delta, for the training of the beneficiaries.
He also indicated that in doing this, HYPREP was desirous of going for talents that would help the Ogoni people grow in the film industry, and urged the beneficiaries to take the training seriously.
Zabbey equally enjoined the trainees to put in their best so that in the next three to five years, they would carve a niche for themselves and become forces to reckon with in the film industry.
On her part, HYPREP’s Head of Sustainable Livelihood, Mrs Josephine Nzidee said HYPREP does what it says it will, stressing that the process of training Ogoni youths on specialised skills started three years ago.
According to her, the selection process for the training was rigorous and transparent, and was carried out by renowned actors actresses.
She disclosed that the training consists of three major aspects, which include acting, script writing and make-up, while Nollywood actors like Charles Nnoje, Ngezu J. Ngezu and award-winning make-up artist, Jude Odo would be on hand to drill and groom the beneficiaries.
Mrs Nzidee noted that the programme is a specialised training that does not have anything like starter packs but that it is purely a professional certification programme that would launch the beneficiaries into the Nollywood industry in Nigeria.
According to her, the Creative Arts training is one of the four specialised trainings organised by HYPREP to ensure that the Ogoni people are well positioned in vital industries like Aviation, Maritime, Creative Arts and Mechatronics.
She said the last of such trainings on Mechatronics would take place in the coming months, and urged the beneficiaries to take the training seriously so as to put the Ogoni people on the Nollywood map.
She further indicated that while Charles Nnoje and Ngezu J. Ngezu would take the beneficiaries on the practical aspects, Jude Odo would take them on the make-up aspects.
Also speaking, the External Relations Manager of Halibiz Consult Limited, Alabo Experience Douglas said his company gives much premium to standard and quality, and assured that the firm would give the trainees value for the money spent on the programme.
While charging the beneficiaries to be dedicated and punctual, he stressed the need for them to approach the programme with the mindset of being empty so that at the end of the day, they would benefit maximally.
On his part, the Head of the Theatre Arts Department of the University of Port Harcourt, Dr Ovunda Ihunwo said the CRAB is an acronym for Creative Review of Arts and Books, stressing that it was named by renowned playwright, Prof Ola Rotimi.
According to him, the CRAB had nurtured, groomed and produced Nollywood actors and actresses like Bobmanuel Udokwu, Ejike Asiegbu,Francis Duru, Hilda Dokubo, Monalisa Chinda, Julius Agwu, and a host of others, assuring the beneficiaries that they were on fertile environment to hone their talents.
He noted that symbolically, the crab is a nutritious seafood common in the Niger Delta, and reiterated the need for the beneficiaries to come empty for the training, as it were.
Ihunwo disclosed that the theory classes of the programme would run for three weeks while the fourth week would be for the master classes, and urged the trainees to avail themselves of the opportunity to make a difference by telling the Ogoni story, which he described as inexhaustible by themselves, in order to put Ogoni on the map.
A 23-year-old student of Nasarawa State University identified as Jatau Rilokwah, has been reportedly found dead in the university’s senior staff quarters.
A counter-insurgency expert, focused on the Lake Chad region, Zagazola Makama, disclosed this on his X handle on Tuesday.
According to him, the discovery was made on April 27, 2025, by a security officer at the university, Emmanuel Gyawo.
He stated that Gwayo was directed by Prof. Shedrack Jatau to check on his son upon arriving at the residence, and he found Rilokwah hanging from the ceiling.
“Professor Jatau, who was reportedly out of the State at the time, was informed of the incident. A team of police detectives, led by the Divisional Crime Officer of Angwan Lambu, was dispatched to the scene.
“The body showed no signs of violence, and no suicide note was found. Rilokwah was rushed to the Federal Medical Centre in Keffi, where he was confirmed dead by a medical doctor,” he further stated.
He added that the student’s corpse had been deposited in the hospital morgue.
He also quoted police sources as saying that investigations were ongoing to determine the circumstances surrounding the incident.
The Ogun State Government has partnered with Nike Art Gallery to establish a new exhibition space at the Olumo Rock Tourist Centre in Abeokuta, a move Governor Dapo Abiodun says is aimed at boosting annual tourist visits from 20,000 to over 100,000.
Abiodun disclosed the plan on Wednesday while receiving the founder of the Nike Art Gallery, Chief (Mrs) Nike Davies-Okundaye, at his office in Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta.
“I went to Olumo Rock about a month ago and I decided that we needed to do something about restoring Olumo Rock to its old glory. From statistics, Olumo Rock hosts about 20,000 people a year in its current state, and I felt that we could increase that to at least ten times,” the governor said.
As part of the plan, an events hall within the tourist centre will be repurposed as a permanent gallery operated by Nike Art Gallery.
“I told them to shut it down. Practically, we want to bring it down and turn it into a gallery for you to use as an exhibition gallery,” he told Davies-Okundaye.
He added that the gallery will be ready before the National Sports Festival in May, when the State will host about 15,000 visitors.
“I want them to be able to see our tourist sites,” he said, listing attractions such as the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library, the Ransome-Kuti family home, and the Adire market among key heritage spots to be showcased.
Highlighting Ogun’s improved infrastructure, the governor said, “Now that we’ve succeeded in having the intra and inter-state roads in place, you can come to Ogun State by rail; you can come by air. We’ve constructed one of the best airports in Nigeria, and very soon, you will be able to come by sea.”
Davies-Okundaye, in her remarks, praised the state’s efforts to promote tourism and pledged to use the new gallery to attract global attention.
“This gallery will bring many Heads of State. The one I opened in Abuja already has more than 10 Heads of State, including those from South Korea and the Czech Republic. The same will happen here,” she said.
She also applauded the Governor for his commitment to the Adire fabric industry.
“Adire is all over Nigeria, but Ogun has been promoting Adire for over 50 years. Today, the only cloth we can call our own is called Adire. This is what we can sell to the Europeans,” she said.
Abiodun reaffirmed his administration’s backing of the Adire industry, citing policies such as the Adire Ogun Digital Marketplace, compulsory wearing of Adire in the state, and provision of solar-powered production equipment to support artisans.
He also revealed plans to open a creative arts and entertainment village in partnership with Bolanle Austen-Peters, expected to be completed within two months.