Niger Delta

Dame Jonathan Unveils Special Album On Presidenta

Published

15 years ago

February 28, 2011

President Goodluck Jonathan is Divine Choice”, is the title of a Music CD billed for official unveiling in Port Harcourt on Saturday, March 6, this year.

Expected at the event as Special Guest of Honour is Nigeria’s First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan, while three States Governors of the South-South, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, Rivers, Chief Timipiri Sylva, Bayelsa and Dr. Godswill Akpabio, Akwa Ibom are expected to be Guests of Honour.

The album launch which is slated for the Apostle Diri Hall, NULGE Consulate along Moscow Road, Port Harcourt, is to be chaired by Second Republic Senator, Chief Dr. Tari Sekibo-Odoabaji and promises to attract the cream of top politicians, captains of industry, government officials and lovers of music.

President Goodluck Jonathan Is Divine Choice”, is the third musical release by Aunty Sarah Dikibo and the Victorious Trumpeters, a Port Harcourt based Eight member gospel group. This new work is a 9-tracker of a musical explosion that celebrates a new dawn in the political and socio-economic struggles of the long neglected Niger Delta.

Facilitator of the Red Rose Dikibo Oasis of Love Foundation and Lead Singer of the Victorious Trumpeters, Aunty Dikibo, in a release in Port Harcourt said the emergence of President Jonathan at the helm of the nation’s political affairs was not by accident but by divine intervention.

Interestingly, the spiritual consultant, philanthropist and rare humanist had earlier predicted the present political· outcome long before Late President Umaru Musa Yar’ Adua’s protracted ill-health and eventual passage on May 5, 2010, when the singer, in her second album prophesied that the Most High had unshackled the Niger Delta off its bounding chains.-

The present political scenario is thus, a prophecy come true and deserving of .celebration, she staid. .

Aunty Dikibo’s soul moving musical ministration, a style uniquely has, is indeed soulful, pleasing to the ears and electrifying in rendition. Enriched by the native water pot sound and effectively laced by the ever captivating flavour of the trumpet, . “President Goodluck Jonathan Is Divine Choice”, indeed holds the promise of emerging a chart buster

All songs are in English and the singer’s native Okrika dialect. This work is third in Aunty Dikibo’s rich repertoire, after Afike (She Is Not Dead) a musical dirge in honour of her late mother, and IA Canaan Mu-abe (Am enroute Canaan)’, the prophetic air that early last year predicted today’s political dawn.

Niger Delta

Stakeholders In Delta Seek Stronger GBV Action, Women’s Leadership

Published

1 day ago

March 2, 2026

The Tide

Stakeholders in Delta State convened in Asaba for a leadership workshop organised by Otdel Health Heritage and Environmental Initiative (OHHEI), focusing on Gender-Based Violence (GBV) and women’s participation in decision-making processes.

OHHEI Project Director, Mr. Peter Olayinka, represented by a consultant, Juliet Obiajulu, urged participants to contribute meaningfully toward advancing women’s leadership and combating GBV across communities in the state.

He said the workshop aimed to strengthen participants’ capacity to influence policies, challenge harmful cultural norms, and reinforce initiatives designed to prevent and respond to GBV.

Olayinka said women often faced bias even when they occupied leadership positions, and stressed that gender diversity improved the quality of decision-making and promoted innovation and accountability in governance structures.

Speaking, the Chairperson of the Association Against Child Sexual and Gender-Based Violence, Mr Eris Jewo-Ibi, identified cultural norms, domestic responsibilities, political resistance, and grassroots barriers as constraints to women’s participation.

Delta State GBV Desk Officer, Mrs. Rosemary Okpuno, emphasised that effective decision-making required women’s perspectives, adding that inclusion remained critical to addressing persistent gender-based challenges.

Voke Angbagh of the Delta State Ministry of Justice outlined penalties for rape and called for the establishment of special courts to handle sexual offences cases.

Angbagh said frequent adjournments delayed justice for survivors, stressing that dedicated sexual offences courts would ensure timely trials and stronger protection for victims in Delta State.

The Tide’s source reports that facilitators identified cultural acceptance of violence, unequal power relations, discrimination, poverty, limited education, and low self-esteem as major drivers of GBV.

They emphasised that violence and exclusion resulted in social, physical and emotional harm, imposed economic costs, reinforced harmful stereotypes, and widened existing gender inequalities.

The source also reports that OHHEI, a local non-profit organisation, focuses on education, health, environment, and social justice, promoting sustainable development initiatives with gender equality at the centre of its interventions.

Niger Delta

C’River Suspends Taskforce Activities Over Drivers’ Protest

Published

1 day ago

March 2, 2026

The Tide

The Cross River State Government has suspended all taskforce activities connected to commercial transportation and ticketing across the state.

The State Governor, Bassey Otu, announced the suspension at an emergency stakeholders meeting on Friday in Calabar.

It would be recalled that commercial drivers in Calabar metropolis took to streets on Thursday to protest alleged multiple taxation and extortion by government agencies.

During the protest, the drivers alleged that taskforce groups claiming to represent the state government openly harassed and extorted them.

Represented at the meeting by Ekpenyong Akiba, his Special Adviser on General Duties, Otu said the suspension would subsist pending further review of the situation.

The Governor stated that the state government did not commission anyone to extort drivers in the name of task force.

He urged commercial drivers and other road users to remain law-abiding while government worked out a lasting solution.

On his part, the Chairman, Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria, Calabar Metropolis, Mr. Sunday Dennis, expressed optimism that the dialogue would yield positive results.

He said the meeting had provided an opportunity for the aggrieved commercial drivers to present their concerns directly to the state government.

Also speaking, the Chairman, Unified Drivers Association, Mr. Nta Henshaw, described the harassment on drivers as worrisome, and urged the state government to be decisive in resolving the matter.

Niger Delta

A’Ibom Assembly Urges More Private Investments In Agriculture

Published

1 day ago

March 2, 2026

The Tide

The Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly Committee on Nutrition and Food Security has called for more private sector investments in agriculture.

The Chairman of the Committee, Mr. Moses Essien, made the call when the committee visited Aviclaire Farms, a private establishment in Usung Idem, Uruk Usoh in Abak Local Government Area.

Essien, who represents Ibiono Ibom in the Assembly, commended the Management of the farm for partnering an NGO, ECEWS, to promote private investment in agriculture.

He commended the partners for adopting climate-smart agriculture initiatives in their operations, adding that such move would promote food security.

“Your interest in using transformative intervention to promote food security is a veritable way of complementing the efforts of the state government,” he said.

The lawmaker continued that adopting practical climate-smart agriculture model would help to generate employment, improve nutrition outcomes, and strengthen food sufficiency.

He further said he was impressed with the strides recorded by the partners, saying, “your investment has created jobs for no fewer than 2,000 youths.

”You are an example of an environment-friendly investor. I urge Akwa Ibom residents to embrace environment-friendly and technology-driven agriculture models,” he said.

Earlier, the Chief Executive Officer, ECEWS, Dr. Andy Eyo, who conducted the committee round the farm, said the collaboration was conceived to demonstrate the viability of climate-smart farming in ensuring food sufficiency.

Eyo said the farm, which commenced operations with four greenhouses, had expanded to 14 within two years, and currently supplying high-quality produce to major markets in Uyo and neighbouring communities.

He said ECEWS was exploring cooperative frameworks to enable rural farmers and women’s groups to adopt greenhouse technology for sustainable livelihoods.

In her remarks, the Chief Executive Officer of Aviclaire Farms, Mrs. Victoria Eyo, said the controlled-environment ensured precision cultivation and consistent yields.

She further said the farm served as a capacity-building centre for students, interns, and agri-business trainees.