Nation
THE STATES
Adamawa
The Adamawa State Agency for Mass Education enrolled 14,643
adult students in its 2011 mass education programme, Mr Solomon Adzigare, the
Executive Director of the agency, said.
Adzigare told our correspondents in Yola on Tuesday that out
of that number, 6,659 were females while 7,984 were males aged between 30 years
and 70 years.
“In 2011, the agency admitted a total of 14,643 adults for
mass education programme. And about 8,765 graduated and issued with
certificates,” Adzigare said.
According to the director, the agency is presently offering
about seven courses under the national mass education guidelines and
supervision, explaning that the courses offered by the agency include basic
literacy class for those that did not have access to primary education from
their childhood.
Bauchi
Bauchi State Government has banned all mining activities in
the state, the Commissioner for Environment, Alhaji Mahiru Maiwada, has said.
Maiwada disclosed this in an interview with our
correspondent in Bauchi on Tuesday,
saying that the ban would remain in
force until the law regulating the exploration of mineral resources was amended
by both the Federal and State House of Assemblies.
He said that the state was not comfortable with the
arrangement whereby prospective miners would obtain permission from the Federal
Government to operate in the state.
“We know that mining
is on the exclusive list of the Federal Government, but we’ve domesticated it
here. We have our own local laws which will soon be passed by the State House
of Assembly to regulate the activities of all these illegal miners in the
Bauchi.
Benue
Rehabilitation camps set up by the Benue State Government to
accommodate displaced flood victims in Makurdi need more food supplies to cope
with the feeding of victims, camp workers say.
Some camp workers told The Tide in Makurdi on Tuesday that
the populations in the camps surpassed food supplies to the victims.
At the Wurukum camp, the Assistant Camp Commandant, Mr Justin
Depuun, complained of difficulties in meeting the feeding needs of the people,
especially the children.
Depuun said for a camp with a population of 4,290 people
that comprised 501 families, it was difficult to adequately meet their feeding
requirements and appealed to corporate organisations, political and religious
organisations as well as individuals to donate food items, especially for the
use of the children.
FCT
A black Honda saloon car with registration number CY 691 LND
on Tuesday fell off a bridge near Wuse Market, Abuja, killing the driver.
The driver, a police corporal, died on the spot.
The Tide correspondent, who visited the scene, reports that
the car knocked off the concrete embankment on the bridge before crashing into
the ravine below.
The impact tore the car into pieces with the engine
separated from the body.
Mr Kassim Yusuf, the Divisional Traffic Officer at Wuse
Police Station, confirmed the death of the driver who, he said, was a police
corporal at the FCT command.
Gombe
The transportation of Muslim pilgrims from Gombe State to
Saudi Arabia will commence on October 2,
the state Amirul Hajj, Alhaji Usman Baba-Liman, has said.
The Amirul Hajj told newsmen after inspecting facilities at
the Gombe Airport that arrangements had been made to ensure that this year’s
exercise was the most successful in the history of the state.
Baba-Liman commended Hajj officers in the local governments
for their efforts in properly organising the pilgrims and urged them to remain
focussed throughout the duration of the exercise.
He called on the state Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board to
address the problems the pilgrims often encounter while at the Hajj Camp,
adding that the board had succeeded in
getting visa for the pilgrims with the exception those sponsored by the
government.
Baba-Liman advised the pilgrims to attend induction courses
to get acquainted with the modalities for the Hajj and the laws of Saudi Arabia.
Kano
A Kano-based
electrical engineering consultant, Malam Ibrahim Sani has advised the federal
and state governments to provide special recycling plants for electronic scrap
materials to protect the environment.
Sani, who spoke to The Tide in Kano on Tuesday, described
electronic waste as “dangerous and harmful to human beings”, saying that recycling plants could sort out the waste
into useable and non-useable components.
Sani suggested that as an alternative to the expensive
recycling plants, landfills may be excavated at special locations to dispose of
the wastes. He, however, warned that when buried, certain poisonous chemical
components of the electronic wastes could be passed to underground water,
causing soil pollution and health problems.
Kebbi
The Kebbi State Pilgrims Welfare Agency has said it had
transported 2,000 out of 5,670 pilgrims registered for this year’s Hajj in the
past three days.
Alhaji Usman Suru, the Executive Secretary of the agency,
told our correspondent in Birnin Kebbi
that pilgrims from Aliero, Augie, Bagudo and Koko/Besse local government areas
had departed.
He said the agency had prepared adequately for the
accommodation, welfare, medical and transportation needs of the pilgrims in
Saudi Arabia. “For the 2012 Hajj, Kabo and Max Airlines will transport the
pilgrims to the holy land and back with their luggage on time.”
Kogi
The Federal Government has
directed Julius Berger and two other construction companies to free the
submerged Lokoja-Abuja Road from flooding within three days.
The Minister of
Works, Mr Mike Onolememen, gave the directive in Lokoja when he paid a courtesy
call on Governor Idris Wada.
Onolememen described the flood as a disaster that deeply
touched President Goodluck Jonathan because it affected key national structures
and threatened the link between the northern and southern parts of the
country.
He said he also brought the managing directors of the three
construction companies; Julius Berger, RCC and Dantata and Sawoe and their
teams to assess the impact and address the situation.
Lagos
Public primary and secondary schools in Lagos State could
not resume for the new academic session on Monday because of a teachers’
strike.
The state chapter of Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) on
Thursday declared an indefinite strike starting from Monday following the
failure of government to pay them the 27.5 per cent Teachers Peculiar
Allowance.
Some of the schools visited by our correspondent include
Zumratul Isamiyya Senior High School, Yaba, Surulere Girls’ junior and senior
schools, Jibowu, Biney Memorial Primary School as well as Anglican Primary
School, Jibowu.
Others are Holy Trinity and Anglican primary schools,
Ikorodu, Iponri Estate Junior and Senior School, Iponri, Ola-Olu Primary
School, Shomolu, and Shyllon Primary School, Ilupeju. Oriwu Model College and
Igbogbo High School both in Ikorodu and Ransome Kuti Memorial Junior and Senior
Grammar schools, Jibowu.
Niger
The Sector Commander, Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), in
Niger State, Mr David Usman, has said that the corps would soon personalise
vehicle number plates to help track offenders.
Usman made the plan known when he paid a courtesy visit to
the Niger State Assembly, saying: “that
is why the number plates have to be changed. Right now, the number plates are
registered with the vehicles.’’
He said when operational, the owner of the vehicle would own
the number plate not the vehicle.
The commander said: “if you decide to sell your vehicle at
any time, you detach your number plate from the vehicle and keep it. When you
have a new vehicle, you register it with the number.
Ogun
The Thai Farm International Limited, Ososa in Ogun, has
urged cassava farmers to pool their resources in order to benefit from the
opportunities offered by the Federal Government’s Agricultural Transformation
Agenda.
The Tide reports that
the company is one of Nigeria’s leading producers of high quality cassava
flour.
The Managing Director of the company, Mr Louw Burger, gave
the advice in Abeokuta while presenting a paper at the international symposium
on root crops.
In his paper titled: ‘Building a Strong Partnership for
Cassava Development’, Burger noted that an average Nigerian farmer faced
daunting challenges in cassava production.
Oyo
Chairman, Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) in Oyo State, Mr
Oluseun Abimbola, on Tuesday advised security operatives to focus more on
intelligence gathering in their operations.
Abimbola gave the advice in an interview with The Tide in
Ibadan.
He described intelligence gathering as the most critical
factor in any security operation, pointing out that security was beyond
deploying armed personnel at check points, but more of intelligence gathering.
He said that the security challenges was not peculiar to
Nigeria and advised that the country’s security agencies to learn from the
experiences of other countries that went through similar challenges.
Plateau
Worried by the incessant theft of cattle largely blamed for
violence in Plateau north and parts of Bauchi, the military Special Task Force
(STF) in Plateau has banned grazing at night.
In a communique after a peace meeting with stakeholders from
nine local government areas held on Monday in Barkin-Ladi, Plateau State, the
STF also banned any movement of cows at night.
“There should be no movement of cattle in the night even on
the highways within these states,’’ the communiqué declared.
The STF and stakeholders from seven Plateau crisis-prone
local government areas – Jos East, Riyom, Barkin-Ladi, Kanke, Pankshin, Bokkos
and Kanam, and two others – Bogoro and Tafawa Balewa in Bauchi State, agreed to
arrest anyone with cows at night.
Zamfara
The Zamfara State Pilgrims Welfare Agency has transported
2,140 intending pilgrims to Saudi Arabia one week after the commencement of the
exercise.
The Spokesman of the agency, Malam Yakubu Mafara, gave the
figure in an interview with The Tide in Gusau on Tuesday.
Mafara said that the more than 3,000 pilgrims from the state
would be transported to Saudi Arabia through the Sutan Abubakar International
Airport, Sokoto, adding said that the
intending pilgrims, who had arrived in Saudi Arabia included those from
Maradun, Mafara, Gusau, Kauran Namoda, Shinkafi , Zurmi, Tsafe and parts of Bukkuyyum
local governments.
He said that all pilgrims from the state had arrived in
Saudi Arabia and in Medinah except some female pilgrims, who had been detained
by the Saudi immigration officials.
Mafara noted that
high level talks between Nigerian and Saudi Arabian authorities were on to
resolve the issues surrounding the controversial detention of the 400 Nigerian
female pilgrims.
He said that reports from Zamfara pilgrims’ officials
indicated that pilgrims from the state were in good health and had adequate
welfare facilities to enable them commence the Hajj rites.
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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