Nation
THE STATES
Benue
The Benue House of Assembly, has directed the state government to establish functional fire service stations in its three senatorial zones.
This followed a motion by Mr Baba Odeh of Otukpo/Akpa constituency which urged the government to embark on the project to save lives and property.
Odeh said the stations should be located in Gboko, Katsina-Ala and Otukpo local government areas.
He said the motion was necessary because the main station located in Makurdi with two sub-stations were inadequate to cater for the state.
Ekiti
The Ekiti State Government last Thursday disbursed N18.9 million to 126 law students.
The students received N150,000 each as their 2012 bursary allowance.
At a ceremony in Ado-Ekiti, the state’s Commissioner for Education, Dr Eniola Ajayi, said that the gesture was in line with the eight-point agenda of the present administration in the state.
The commissioner, who presented cheques to the beneficiaries, advised them to be prudent in the use of the allowance.
FCT
An Information Technology expert, Mr Kio Bestman, last Thursday in Abuja advised computer training institutes in the country to run certification programmes.
Bestman in an interview with newsmen said that was the only way the Nigerian IT training centres could remain relevant in the global IT market.
“Our computer schools should run certification programme. Whether you have a B.SC or not, certification mean you are competent enough to use that platform.
“If it is website design, you have a certification programme. If it is Microsoft office, you have Micro-office specialist certification. If it is networking you also have networking certification.
Gombe
The Chairman of the Association of Resident Doctors (ARD), Gombe State chapter, Dr Raymond Dankoli, last Thursday in Gombe called on members of the public to take precautionary measures to curtail the effects of harmattan on their health.
Dankoli, who stated this in an interview with newsmen in Gombe, noted that the harmattan period comes with several health challenges, especially respiratory tract infections because of the dust .
“The risk of respiratory tract infection is higher during the period, hence the need for precaution.
“Children are more vulnerable; therefore parent should make sure that they take precautionary measures.”
Jigawa
The Jigawa Executive Council has approved N186 million for the procurement of laboratory equipment and the execution of other school development projects in the state.
The Commissioner for Information, Alhaji Banbandi Ibrahim, disclosed this last Thursday in Dutse while briefing newsmen on the outcome of Wednesday’s meeting of the State Executive Council.
Ibrahim said of the N186 million, N110 million would go to the procurement of laboratory equipment for distribution to all senior science secondary schools across the state.
He said that N33 million was earmarked for the rehabilitation of hostels at the College of Remedial and Advance Studies, Kafin-Hausa.
Kaduna
A Kaduna Sharia Court has sentenced one Babangida Ibrahim, 33, to six months imprisonment for stealing a motorcycle at a mosque in Kaduna,
Ibrahim had stolen the motorcycle on November 20, removed its number plate but was arrested at a police check- point in the city for riding without number plate.
According to Police Prosecutor, Cpl Bitrus Kwaji, subsequent investigation revealed that Ibrahim had stolen the motorcycle.
Katsina
The Joint Consultative Forum (JCF) of the three tertiary institutions in Katsina State, has given three weeks ultimatum to the government to meet its demands or its members will embark on strike.
The three state-owned tertiary institutions are Hassan Usman Katsina Polytechnic, Katsina, Isah Kaita College of Education, Dutsinma and Yusuf Bala Usman College of Legal and General Studies, Daura.
The forum comprised of both academic and non-academic staff of the institutions.
The Chairman of the forum, Malam Tukur Dahiru, and the Secretary Malam Muttaka Mamman, gave the warning last Thursday in Katsina in a statement they signed and issued to newsmen.
Kwara
The Kwara House of Assembly has passed the Asset Management Bill 2012.
The Clerk of the House, Mr Oyetunde Oyeniyi, announced the passage of the bill after reading it for the third time on the floor of the Assembly.
The bill seeks to protect the state government’s asset and liabilities in ministries and parastatal agencies against theft and vandalism.
It also spells out penalties for anybody or group of persons who damages or steals government property.
Lagos
Assistant Director, Lagos Zonal Inspector, Directorate of Police Education, Mrs Esther Gbadegesin, last Thursday said that affordable and qualitative education would make the nation develop faster.
Gbadegesin made the observation in an interview with newsmen in Lagos.
She explained that making school fees affordable would give the children more opportunities to acquire education.
“When more children are given the opportunity to be educated as a result of affordable school fees, our society would develop faster,” she said.
Ogun
A Mathematician, Prof. Abayomi Arigbabu, has called on all levels of government to declare a ‘State of emergency‘ on the teaching and learning of Mathematics in the country.
Arigbabu, Dean of College of Science and Information Technology, Tai Solarin University of Education (TASUED), ljebu-Ode, Ogun, made the call while delivering the 2nd Inaugural lecture of the University.
The dean, who is also a Professor of Mathematics, spoke on the Topic: “Beyond The Cuboid: lmperatives For An Aids-Free, Mathematically Literate Society”.
Osun
A Climatologist, Prof Temi Ologunorisa, has identified ICT as a useful tool in the management and mitigation of the effects of climate change in communities.
Ologunorisa said at an International Conference on “Climate Change and ICT”, held at the Osun State University, Osogbo, that ICT development would help in reducing hazards associated with climate change.
The conference was jointly organised by the Xavier University, USA, International Centre for IT Development, USA, and Osun State University’s Centre For Climate Change and Environmental Research, to showcase the importance of ICT in disaster management.
“Climate change and its associated problems, such as sea level rise, flooding, erosion, desertification and heat, are gradually becoming issues of concern to us all.
Plateau
The Plateau Government said it would set up family courts in order to protect the right of children in the state
Plateau Commissioner for Justice and Attorney-General, Mr Edward Pwajok, told newsmen in Jos last Thursday that the court would assist in curtailing many injustices against children.
“The protection of rights of children in our society today is very vital, and should not be neglected because they are the leaders of tomorrow.
“This suggests why we in Plateau will not be left behind in struggling to give our children a better future,” he said.
Zamfara
The National Council for Women Societies (NCWS) in Zamfara has urged women in the state to participate actively in political activities and other developmental programmes.
President of the society, Hajiya Larai Ibrahim, made the plea last Thursday in Gusau at a sensitisation programme organised for women activists in the state.
It was jointly organised by the Gender Awareness Trust and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
Ibrahim said that traditional and religious impediments had hindered women’s participation in politics and governance, adding that it was responsible for gross gender inequality in the state.
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
