Nation
THE STATES
Adamawa
The Adamawa House of Assembly, last Thursday passed a bill empowering the state government to acquire loan from the capital market.
The House passed the bill into law at plenary, presided over by the Speaker, Alhaji Ahmadu Fintiri. The bill was passed by the legislators after it was introduced for third reading by the Majority Leader, Alhaji Ishaq Bala and seconded by the Deputy Minority Leader, Mr Simon Isa .
The law now empowers the state government to raise loan from the capital market through the issuance of debt securities in the form of registered bonds, for projects implementation.
An earlier report on the bill, submitted by the Deputy Speaker, Mr Laori Kwamoti (PDP-Numan) and which was adopted by the assembly, said the aim was to open new sources of funds to finance development projects in the state.
Benue
The Benue Government on Wednesday expressed its willingness to collaborate with the Canadian Government on training of teachers.
The state’s Deputy Governor, Chief Steven Lawani, who made the announcement when the Canadian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr Chris Butter, paid him a courtesy visit in Makurdi. He said that the State Government was interested in the training of teachers in order to upgrade the standard of education in the state.
Lawani who commended the cordial relationship existing between Nigeria and Canada , expressed optimism that teachers from the state would be given adequate training by Canadian experts.
Earlier, Butter said that the Canadian Government was sending over 200 teachers to Nigeria for training exercises annually.
Kaduna
The Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA) on Thursday advised its top officials to adopt best information management practice, in line with the Freedom of Information Act.
Managing Director of FERMA, Gabriel Amuchi, gave the advice in Kaduna at a two-day seminar on the Act, with the theme, “ Information Management and Security of Document”, organised for Zonal Directors and Engineers under the agency.
He said, “although the Freedom of Information Act was to make public records and information more freely but as top officials your documents should be safe and secure at all times.”
Amuchi added that the Act covers all public agencies, including FERMA, but cautioned the officials on the adverse consequences of mismanaging information.
Kano
As part of the country’s Democracy Day activities, the Kano State Government said last Wednesday that it registered 16,000 commercial tricycle operators.
Commenting on the development, the Managing Director of the state Road and Traffic Control Agency (KORATA), Alhaji Mohammed Diggol, said that the policy was to replace the ban on commercial motorcyclists in February.
Diggol said the decision to register the tricycles was due to government’s desire to regulate the activities of the operators and ensure sanity in the business.
He said the tricycles were issued with code numbers for easy identification due to the security challenges facing the state.
Katsina
A total of 157 students have been registered to begin 40 days programme on the memorisation of the Hadith, Sheikh Shuaibu Abubakar, Coordinator, Centre for the Memorisation of Hadith, has said.
Hadith are compilations of the sayings and deeds of Prophet Muhammad and is the second most important source of knowledge on Islam after the Holy Qur’an.
Abubakar, told newsmen on Thursday in Katsina that the participants were drawn from the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, adding that the programme was designed for those who had memorised the Holy Qur’an, have appreciable level of proficiency in Arabic and had obtained a minimum of Senior Secondary School Certificate.
Kebbi
Chairman, Kebbi Chapter of National Association of the Local Government Chairmen of Nigeria (ALGON), Alhaji Musa Dan-Illela, says the nation’s mineral deposits are not optimally exploited.
He said in Birnin Kebbi on Thursday that many state governments were not harnessing their mineral deposits to generate revenue and create employment.
Dan-Illela suggested that governors should partner with their local governments in the extraction and utilisation of mineral resources for their economic development.
“Kebbi State is endowed with gypsum, bitumen, iron ore as well as precious stones in commercial quantities.
Kwara
The Senator representing Kwara South Senatorial District, Sen. Simeon Ajibola, has advised politicians to shun politics of deceit and make the well-being of the electorate their priority.
Ajibola gave the advice in Ilorin on Saturday while presenting an 18 seater bus to Kwara South chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
He said that only sincerity of purpose and harmoniousworking relationship between political office holders and their constituents would ensure speedy development.
“It is only sincerity of purpose and total avoidance of politics of deceit that can fast-track development. “Closeness to the people at the grass roots as well as the general well-being of the electorate should be given greater attention,’’ he said.
Jigawa
The Chairman , Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria (RIFAN) in Jigawa State, Alhaji Adamu Maigoro, has commended the efforts of the government in revamping the agricultural sector.
Maigoro who gave the commendation in Dutse on Thursday said that the state government, in collaboration with the Federal Government, had distributed 7,200 tonnes of fertiliser and 2,000 tonnes of improved rice seeds, to encourage paddy rice production in the state.
He added that the state government also made available about 2,000 tube wells and hand pumps to irrigation farmers and called for the adoption of practical measures to encourage the establishment of rice mill, to add value to the local produce.
Kogi
The wife of Kogi Governor, Hajia Halima, has promised to work with the National Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ) in order to improve upon the life of people of the State.
Wada who made the promise in Lokoja on Friday at the opening ceremony of the Zonal Delegates Conference of the association enjoined the association to extend its activities to the rural areas to further promote the cause of women, children and the less privileged.
She commended the association in the state for touching the lives of the people through its activities and lauded it for getting the people well informed about happenings around them
Nasarawa
The Executive Chairman, Nasarawa State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Malam Abdulkarim Abdullahi, has commended the state government for transforming its education sector.
Abdullahi who made this known in an interview in Lafia last Thursday, said that the transformation had improved the standard of education for the overall development of the state during the last two years.
“Gov. Tanko Al-Makura deserves commendation for giving top priority attention to education sector by improving the standard of primary, secondary and tertiary education in the state.
Osun
The Osun Waste Management Agency says it arrested 200 persons, including 50 whom it prosecuted for contravening the state sanitation laws between January and May, 2013.
The agency’s General Manager, Mr Ganiyu Oyeladun, who made this known in an interview in Osogbo, last Thursday said that the offenders, who were tried by mobile courts, paid penalties ranging from N2, 500 to N5, 000 fines.
“Although our service is not to necessarily fine or punish, we are interested in enforcing total compliance. “The period of grace is over and we want total compliance with environmental laws,’’ he said.
He said that the bi-monthly sanitation exercise in Osun had paid off, adding that there had been a drastic reduction in incidences of communicable diseases related to poor environmental management.
Sokoto
The Chairman, Wurno Local Government in Sokoto State, Alhaji Shehu Chacho, said recently that his administration spent N45 million to construct Almajiri schools in different parts of the state.
Chacho in Sokoto that the council spent N1 million to construct each of the schools, and that the programme was part of the council’s resolve to prevent street begging among youths in the area.
He said that local teachers charged with the responsibility of teaching the youth had been placed on monthly allowance.
Chacho added that the administration was also working on modalities to provide lunch for the students.
Plateau
Sen. Joshua Dariye (LP-Plateau Central) has advised politicians to look beyond 2015 elections and work for better and united Nigeria.
Dariye gave the advice in an interview in Jos last Thursday, said “Whether 2015 comes or not, we should look beyond it. This one wants to be, the other wants to be that, I don’t think this should be the case,” he said.
The Senator, however, expressed delight that the country’s 14 years of unbroken democracy was on course, in spite various challenges confronting the nation.
Dariye, one-time Governor of Plateau, also expressed optimism that the country’s democracy would thrive, if the mistakes made were identified and corrected.
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