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THE STATES
Bauchi
The Dass Local Government in Bauchi State has released N1.9 million as scholarship for students undergoing studies in various institutions of higher learning within and outside the country.
The chairman of the council, Malam Ado Maigoro, told newsmen in Dass that the money would assist indigent final year students of the council to complete their studies.
He said students studying degree programmes would be paid N10, 000 each as allowances for their thesis while those undergoing HND and NCE programmes would be given N5, 000 each.
Maigoro added that some of the final year students studying Engineering, Medicines and Law would be paid N50, 000 each.
The chairman also said that the council had purchased JAMB forms for students in the area that sat recently for the examination.
FCT
A PDP presidential aspirant in the April elections, Mrs Sarah Jibril, recently urged President Goodluck Jonathan to appoint more women in his cabinet.
Jibril, who made the call in an interview with newsmen in Abuja, said the legislature at the state level had set the pace with the election of speakers and deputy speakers.
According to her, the challenge was now with the executive arm of government to ensure that women were given the chance to contribute to the development of the nation.
The former aspirant noted that Nigeria as a signatory to several international conventions on good governance had no excuse not to carry its womenfolk along.
She said that she contested for the position of president because she believed in actualising the cause of Nigerian women.
The politician maintained that Nigerian women had contributed considerably to the development of the country, adding that more than 50 per cent of the votes that brought politicians into the various positions came from women.
Kano
Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso of Kano State, has pledged to improve library services to enhance the educational development of the people.
Kwankwaso made the pledge when he paid an unscheduled visit to the state-owned Murtala Muhammed Library.
“Libraries are veritable sources of knowledge for our students in particular and for our people generally; we will do our best to develop them,” he said.
He specifically promised to complete the projects which had been abandoned at the complex in order to avail them to the general public.
The governor directed the director of the state’s library board to liaise with the vice-chancellor of the state-owned university of science and technology in Wudil to examine how the institution could benefit from the library.
Kwara
Kwara State Muslims’ Pilgrim Welfare Board has warned its co-ordinators at the Local Government Councils against airlift of pregnant women, under-aged and over-aged pilgrims.
The Executive Secretary of the Kwara State Muslims’ Pilgrims Welfare Board, Hajia Fatimah Jimoh, gave the warning at a parley with the State’s Local Government Hajj Co-ordinators on Saturday in Ilorin.
According to her, the Saudi Arabian authority has vowed to severely sanction any state that violates its rules or airlifts pregnant women and under-aged or over-aged pilgrims.
The Executive Secretary explained that the Saudi Arabian authority had ruled that for every absconder in any state, 10 seats would be deducted from the allotted slots of the state.
She pointed out that the state was ready to ensure a successful Hajj operation this year by eliminating every hitch and unethical practices.
Jimoh further said that preparation for this year’s Hajj and Umrah were in top gear, noting that the welfare of the Pilgrims would be improved upon to ensure a hitch-free exercise.
Kebbi
The Bright Capacity Initiative for Rural Community Enhancement, an NGO, has donated 20 computers to the Gwandu Local Government Development Centre in Kebbi State for training.
Presenting the computers and accessories in Gwandu recently, the NGO Board Chairperson, Dr. Aisha Adamu, said it was aimed at training people who lacked access to credit facilities.
She said that the group had trained 2,000 family members since its inception in 2006.
“To create for them the enabling environment for economic independence, reduce poverty and support assets creation management”.
Adamu said the group was in partnership with SMEDAN for building the capacity of rural dwellers, stressing that an endowment fund would be raised to support operational cost of the centre.
Kogi
The new chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Lokoja branch, Mr Mohammed Musa, has called for the establishment of a Court of Appeal Division in Kogi.
In his post-inaugural speech after his election on Friday in Lokoja, Musa said absence of the court in the state was working against the interest of litigants.
Musa, who promised to be diligent, transparent and honest in his new assignment, also pledged that his team would complete the on-going NBA secretariat project .
The new NBA leadership, he said, would liaise with the Judiciary to build a warehouse for safe-keeping of goods seized from litigants.
In the election which took place at Lokoja Chief Magistrate Court 1, Musa polled 72 votes while his opponent, Chief Moses Enwere got 16.
Mr Osas Erhabor, the 2nd Vice President of the NBA who monitored the election, urged the two contestants to the chairmanship position to exhibit maturity over the outcome of the election.
Lagos
Mr Sijibomi Olusanya, the Acting Provost of Federal College of Education (Technical), Akoka, on Saturday said that the World Bank’s 250,000-dollar-grant to the institution would be used to facilitate ICT-based learning.
He said this in Lagos, while speaking at a forum organised to sensitise the staff and students of the college of the need to embrace the Science and Technology Education Post Basic (STEP B) project
He said that the project targeted only science and technology-related educational institutions, senior secondary schools, polytechnics, colleges of education and universities, as well as research institutes.
Olusanya said that the primary objective of the project was to improve the quality and relevance of science and technology education, while enhancing the development of positive attitudes and values in ICT practitioners.
He said that with the grant, the college would now join the league of educational institutions and research organisations that had benefited from the immense opportunities provided by the project.
Olusanya said that modern teaching and learning could only be meaningful and purposeful, if they were ICT-based.
He said that the STEB B project was a planned effort of the Federal Government, in partnership with the World Bank, to adopt modern approaches to educational processes.
Niger
The Governor of Niger State, Dr Muazu Babangida-Aliyu, has identified disunity among the Nupes as bane of development of Nupe land.
Babangida-Aliyu made the observation on Saturday as a quest speaker at a lecture entitled: “Democracy and the Development of Nupe Land,’’ as part of activities to mark the 3rd Nupe Day festival.
He noted that the Nupes as an ethnic nationality had produced prominent Nigerians who had contributed numerously to the development of the country.
The governor, who was represented at the ceremony by his Deputy, Alhaji Ahmed Musa-Ibeto, said that lack of unity among the Nupes had retarded the progress and development of the people and the land as a political entity.
Babangida-Aliyu also commended the effort of the Etsu Nupe for bringing together all the people of Nupe extraction for the purpose of assisting one another.
Plateau
Ten years after it was established, the Plateau State Emergency Management Agency is still fighting for the enabling law to function effectively, according to its Executive Secretary, Alhassan Barde.
Barde told newsmen in Jos on Sunday that the absence of such statutory recognition was hindering the efficiency of the body hurriedly put together to coordinate emergency activities during the 2001 Plateau crisis.
“We should also be able to link up with other stakeholders and reach out to sister agencies to work out ways to coordinate the proactive measures. But we just cannot do these without legal backing. We cannot move if we are not recognised by law,’’ Barde said.
According to him, a bill for the establishment of SEMA passed the first reading in the Plateau House of Assembly last year, but was abandoned during the second reading when it was pointed out that it should actually originate from the executive arm of government.
Sokoto
The Sokoto State wing of the NLC has condemned the demand by state governors that petroleum subsidy be removed to enable them to implement the new N18,000 minimum wage.
The Nigerian Governors’ Forum had recently set the removal of the petroleum subsidy by the Federal Government as one of the pre-conditions for the implementation of the minimum wage.
Ahaji Abubakar Tambuwal, the Auditor of the congress in the state, told our correspondent that the call for removal of subsidy would visit untold hardships on the people.
Tambuwal, who is also the state’s Chairman of the Agriculture and Allied Employees Union of Nigeria, said the withdrawal of the subsidy would pitch civil servants against others who are not.
Rather, he said, the governors should look for other means of improving on their internally general revenue to be able to implement the new minimum wage.
Zamfara
Governor Abdulaziz Yari of Zamfara on Saturday in Gusau inaugurated a committee to review the dethronement of the Emir of Bakura, Alhaji Muhammad Sani.
The committee, which was given one week to complete its assignment, is headed by a former Assistant Controller General of Prisons, Alhaji Muhammad Jekada.
Sani, who is the elder brother of the former governor of Zamfara, Sen. Ahmad Yarima, was removed last year in the heat of the political rivalry between Yarima and the then governor, Mahmuda Shinkafi.
Shinkafi’s second term bid was, however, truncated by an ANPP opposition led by Yarima which won the April 26 gubernatorial election.
Inaugurating the committee, Yari said the review of the emir’s removal was a fulfillment of his administration’s promise to correct all wrongs irrespective of political leanings.
Yari, who was represented by his deputy, Alhaji Ibrahim Muhammad, said the committee had the mandate to verify the insinuation that the removal was politically motivated.
He advised the committee to make wide consultations and listen to variety of opinions so as to be guided by the truth in handling its assignment.
The President General of Ogbakor Ikwerre Cultural Organisation Worldwide and the Mgboh XIII of the Mgboh Royal Family of Emohua Kingdom in Emohua Local Government Area of Rivers State, Eze (Barrister) Godspower Onuekwa, penultimate Friday celebrated his 80th birthday with pomp, pageantry and fanfare.
The celebration, which commenced with a symposium organised in his honour at Rivers State University on Thursday, August 21,2025, got to a resounding climax on Friday at Suntai Event Centre in Port Harcourt, where people from all walks of life, including business associates, friends, well-wishers, relatives, community folks, traditional rulers, and admirers, gathered to pay glowing tributes to the celebrant.
Before then, a well attended thanksgiving service was held that same Friday at Emmanuel Anglican Church, Okoro-Nu-Odo, to honour him and return gratitude to God Almighty for the fruitful and eventful life and accomplishments of the Emohua leader and icon.
The service which was officiated by Rt Rev Wisdom Budu Ihunwo, Bishop of Niger Delta North had other renowned and respected clerics like Most Rev(Dr) Blessing Enyindah, Dean, Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion); Rt Rev(Dr) Emmanuel Oko-Jaja, Bishop, Diocese of Niger Delta; Rt Rev Innocent Ordu, Bishop, Diocese of Evo; and Ven Solomon Eze Nelson, Archdeacon, Okoro-Nu-Odo; among others lined up as officiating ministers.
The service lived up to its billing, as it featured powerful and soul-lifting praise and worship; point-blank prayers; and beautiful renditions, which electrified the entire atmosphere, essentially packaged to thank God for the life of the celebrant.
However, the crowning moment actually came when the who is who, the crème de la crème of the society, thronged the terraces and fabulously decorated expansive hall of Suntai Event Centre, to celebrate Eze Onuekwa, amid accolades, aplomb and panache, wining and dining, and clinking of glasses with him and all.
The chairman of the colourful ceremony, Chief Evans Woherem, who was represented by Eze(Prof) Christian Akani of the prestigious Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, praised the celebrant for his youthfulness in spite of clocking 80 years, generosity, humility, humaneness and selfless services to the Ikwerre ethnic nationality, the Niger Delta and Nigeria, and called on all and sundry to emulate his good legacies and simple disposition towards life and existence.
Goodwill messages also poured in in torrents to underscore and salute the doggedness, resilience, astuteness and uniqueness of the endearing life of the celebrant, with Prof Emenike Wami, the Ochia Ohna Ikwerre(XIV), taking the lead.
Prof Priye Iyalla, the wife of late renowned writer, novelist and playwright, Dr Elechi Amadi, held the audience spellbound as she masterfully reeled out the profile of the celebrant, amid intermittent applause from the crowd.
The Tiv Community from Benue State, resident in Rivers State, were not left out, as they honoured and decorated Eze Onuekwa in their complete traditional regalia.
Cultural displays from Baptist Church, Rumuowhor; ADNA Wogbuji Dancing Group, Egbeda; Tiv Dancing Group; and Promoter Eze and Rumu-Mgboh Emohua Wrestling Group, equally added colour and grace to the occasion, with the celebrant and his wife, Dame Ann Onuekwa, joining them to wriggle their waists and bodies in ecstasy.
In his response, the highly elated celebrant, Eze Onuekwa thanked all those gathered to celebrate with him, saying, celebrations would never cease in their homes, and attributed everything he represents in life, including his modest accomplishments to God.
Eze Onuekwa, while addressing newsmen, harped on the need for hard work among the youths and members of Ogbakor Ikwerre Cultural Organisation Worldwide, as a way of sustaining and giving meaning to the motto of the organisation, which he noted is anchored on peace, unity and progress.
He specially thanked God for sustaining his life, and for making everything possible for him and his family, saying, he was joyous that he has today become an octogenarian and elder statesman in Rivers State.
His son and medical practitioner, Dr Samuel Chizia Onuekwa expressed delight that people from far and near had come together to celebrate the father, whom he described as a role model and great inspirator.
He said it was a good thing that the children were celebrating their father when he is alive, stressing that the last time Eze Onuekwa was celebrated in such magnitude was 20 years ago, during his 60th birthday celebration, and prayed God to grant him many more years in good health.
Among dignitaries who graced the event were Senator Andrew Uchendu; Chief Sampson Agbaru; Prof Emenike Wami; Dr Peter Didia; Eze(Prof) Samuel Ugo Onyeka; and a host of others. Justice Iche Ndu(rtd); and C O Kattey were among personalities that attended the thanksgiving service, while the Vice Chancellor of Rivers State University, Prof Isaac Zeb-Obipi led the academics who graced the symposium, alongside Eze G A O Omodu.
As the 100 Ogoni youths trained by the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) in Creative Arts close out their training on Tuesday at the Theatre Arts Department, University of Port Harcourt, the Project Coordinator of HYPREP, Prof Nenibarini Zabbey, has urged the beneficiaries to use the skills acquired to ensure that the Ogoni stories are told and heard in the right way.
The trainees, who had completed a four- month training in script writing, film production and make-up are beneficiaries of the HYPREP sustainable livelihood programme, aimed at providing high demand skills to Ogoni youths in the lucrative creative arts and entertainment industry.
Zabbey described the Creative Arts training as well as other programmes and interventions as HYPREP’s strategic sustained effort to create alternative sources of livelihood.
”Targeted capacity building for Ogoni youths and women remains a central strategy in HYPREP’s livelihood restoration and improvement efforts. Our goal is to reach every part of the Ogoni community and ensure that no group or talent pool is left behind. This training is a deliberate step to empower young people who aspire to make their mark in the creative and entertainment industry”, he said.
While commending the trainees for producing four short films within the training period, one of which was premiered at the ceremony-Dirty Festival, the Project Coordinator noted that the training would serve as a springboard into the industry, and enable them earn a living, become entrepreneurs, and open new doors of opportunities for themselves and their communities. The three other movies are Open Pain, Bomu and Green War.
He enjoined them to utilise their skills and platforms to promote civic responsibility, peace, and environmental sustainability, urging them to ensure that Ogoni is heard in the right way, speak for HYPREP and highlight the progress being made in implementing the recommendations of the UNEP Report.
Other speakers at the event, including the Director of Technical Services of HYPREP, Prof. Damian-Paul Aguiyi; Dr Ovunda Ihunwo, Head of the Theatre Arts Department of the University of Port Harcourt; Chief Douglas Experience, the Project Coordinator of Halibiz Consult Limited; and Mrs Josephine Nzidee, Head, Sustainable Livelihood of HYPREP, all applauded HYPREP for the training, and charged the trainees to maximise the opportunity.
The trainees were later presented certificates of participation.
Visibly elated Ms Lebee Tornwe, one of the beneficiaries, thanked HYPREP and the Project Coordinator for offering the trainees the rare opportunity to acquire skills in the creative arts and entertainment industry, and expressed delight that Dr Ihunwo and Halibiz Consult Limited gave their all in grooming them.
With the wrapping up of the Creative Arts training(100), HYPREP has trained 230 Ogoni youths in high demand skill sets ,viz; seafaring(100); and aviation (30). The Project will this year, commence training in other skill areas, including Mechatronic, Aviation, Full-Stack Development, Commercial Diving, Underwater Welding and Geographic Information Systems (GIS).
Still in the offing is the training for Ogoni Persons Living with Disabilities in five skill sets- fish farming; basic computer skills; photography; fashion and design; and shoemaking in line with their Needs Assessment and HYPREP’s policy of inclusivity.
The National Youth Council of Ogoni People (NYCOP) had called on stakeholders to work collaboratively towards the development and empowerment of Ogoni youths.
NYCOP made the call in a communique issue over the weekend after an emergency Congress in Port Harcourt and signed by its President, Comrade Raymond Nwibani Marcus.
In the communique, NYCOP endorsed President Bola Tinubu’s appointments of the Governing Council and Board of Trustees (BOT) members of the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP), particularly Rt. Hon. Emmanuel Nwika Deeyah as Chairman of HYPREP’s BOT.
It respectfully appealed to the President to consider appointing a representative from the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) under the leadership of Engr. Olu Andah Wai-Ogosu, being the pioneering social vehicle for Ogoni advocacy since the inception of the Ogoni struggle, adding that it would significantly contribute to the decision-making process.
The body commended the overall management of HYPREP and urges the President to continue funding the HYPREP project.
NYCOP furthermore recommended considering the conversion of HYPREP from a project to a full-fledged agency of the Federal Government of Nigeria.
The communique also stated that NYCOP thanked President Tinubu for establishing the Federal University of Environmental Technology, and for appointing key staff, forming a dialogue committee, and initiating infrastructural projects like the Eleme axis of the East-West Road and the Bonny-Bodo Road, significantly enhancing regional connectivity and economic prospects.
In solidarity with the Renewed Hope Agenda, the endorsed President Tinubu’s second-term bid, saying it believes his leadership embodies the aspirations of the Ogoni people and Nigerians at large.
“After thorough consideration of the Disciplinary Committee’s report, NYCOP resolves:
” To indefinitely suspend Comrade Nade Nade Burale from his position as Secretary General due to misconduct.
“To declare Comrade Saviour Imeabe persona non grata on Ogoni youth issues, given his actions’ potential to instigate crisis in Ogoni and beyond” the communique stated.
NYCOP in his resolution issued a 7-day ultimatum to former HYPREP BOT Chairman Mike Nwialeghi to explain the $100 million HYPREP fund investment, warning of potential litigation.
NYCOP reaffirmed its commitment to safeguarding Ogoni youth interests and preventing personal aggrandizement.
According to the communique the resolutions demonstrate NYCOP’s efforts to promote the collective welfare and advancement of Ogoni youth.
“We will no longer tolerate any individual or group using the name or issues of Ogoni youth for personal aggrandizement.
” Our mandate is clear: to promote the collective welfare and advancement of Ogoni youth” the communique said.
NYCOP passes a vote of confidence in Hon. Emmanuel Nwika Deeyah, acknowledging his impeccable credentials and credibility to lead the BOT of HYPREP effectively.
Kiadum Edookor
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