News
CARNIRIV Kicks Off, Today
The Rivers State Government has dedicated this year’s Arts and Cultural Festival popularly known as CARNIRIV to the hands of God to ensure a hitch free celebration.
The event tagged CARNIRIV praise jam, heralds the official opening ceremony of the week-long activities today. Other events slated for the day include. Pilgrimage ’88 and Dance of Fire Flies (DOPF).
The Director General of Rivers State Tourism Development Agency (RSTDA), Dr. Sam Dede, disclosed this to newsmen yesterday at the Liberation Stadium Port Harcourt.
According to him, “Praize Jam gives our people the opportunity to enjoy themselves, while we praize God for all we have gone through in the last 12 months, we have come a long way and we are still here and standing very strong in spite of the problems we have had as a state.
He stressed that 25 artistes are expected to perform at the praize jam and almost all of them are home based including Chioma Jesus, Aphy Douglas and a host of others. He also noted that this year’s CARNIRIV will give opportunity to up and coming artistes most of whom have not been on stage before to perform on the big stage. The international artiste will perform using the same equipment.
The Director General maintained that this was just a way of empowering them and expose them to the International Community.
He debunked reports that last year, CARNIRIV was dominated by Lagos-based artistes and International Stars while the local artistes were not carried along and those that participated received peanuts.
According to him, the aim of the CARNIRIV is to create a carnival that is recognized worldwide, adding that we need to bring internationally acclaimed artistes to perform and not to put the foreign artistes above our own indigenous artistes.
He recalled that “last year, Shaggy and Duncan mighty did a song together and it was a good experience for our people and that is what we aim at.”
According to him “This year, the expectations are very high and we expect this year’s carnival to be better that last year because we have tried to correct all the mistakes of last year, if there were any.
“We are very committed to ensuring that our people own the carnival and to make it their own, so everybody should come and let us celebrate what we have together”, he said.
The RSTDA boss disclosed that for the first time in the history of CARNIRIV, the agency was introducing a 70-horse Durbar which is popular in the Northern part of Nigeria which they have brought to stay in the state.
He explained the 70 horses will be at the parade during the international heritage parade and promises to be a colourful event, he concluded.
Dr. Sam Dede further stated that this year’s edition of Carniriv will provide a thrilling and entertaining display between December 15, to 21 in Port Harcourt City.
Speaking on the line up of activities slated for the carnival, he said “We have the international culture parade which is essentially culture driven, series of cultural displays at the carnival village that takes place daily showcasing the 23 local governments.
“We also have traditional wrestling which is a spectacular event we introduced last year that has caught on into the major event of the carnival as well as the international aquatic festival which is the boat regatta. “It is a spectacular event that you don’t want to miss. So we are telling the world that what we took to Notting hill, what we took to Trinidad and Tobago, what we took to Rio carnival is just a little of what they expect to see at the carnival. I think that the Rivers people should be proud of what we have to showcase.
Further, he said: “We will also have participation from some neighbouring states like Anambra, Bayelsa, Akwa- Ibom and Abia in the cultural event. We also have the Trinidad and Tobago troupe coming. What we want Rivers people to understand is that carnival is a unifying factor. When we do carnivals, nobody talks about political divides, religious divides, everybody comes together, they wave their flags and along the street of the carnival roads, nobody stands aside and says I am on this side or that I am on that side.
“I think we need to take advantage of the spirit of goodwill that carnival brings to us for the period and we just enjoy carnival for the fact that it brings all of us together as one and if you listen to the theme song of the carnival. There is a line there that says “after all we have been through, look at where we are, we still stand strong as a people”, he said.
Dede said Rivers people have come a long way, adding “look at where we are, we are still celebrating our essence as a people. I think that we should take advantages of the unifying factor of the carnival and just get on with it.”
Jacob Obinna
News
I’m Committed To Community Dev – Ajinwo
News
RSG Tasks Rural Dwellers On RAAMP …As Sensitization Team Visits Akulga, Degema, Three Others

Rivers State Head of Service, Dr (Mrs) Inyingi Brown, has called on rural communities in the State to embrace the Rural Access and Agricultural marketing project (RAAMP) with a view to improving their living conditions.
This follows the ongoing sensitization campaign by the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) visits to Degema, Abonnema, Afam headquarters of Degema, Akuku Toru and Oyigbo Etche and Omuma local government areas respectively.
Dr Brown who was represented by the Deputy Director, Special Duties in her office, Mrs Dein Akpanah, said RAAMP was initiated by the Federal Government and World Bank to economically empower rural dwellers.s
She said the World Bank understands the plights of rural farmers and traders in the State, and therefore came up with the programme to address them.
According to her, RAAMP will improve the conditions of farmers, traders and fishermen, and therefore, behoves on every rural communities in the State to embrace the programme.
The Head of Service also said the programme would support the youths to be gainfully employed while bridges and roads will be built to link farms and fishing settlements.
Also speaking, the State project coordinator, Mr Joshua Kpakol, said the programme has the potential of creating millionaires among farmers and fishermen in the State.
Kpakol who was represented by Engr. Sam Tombari, said RAAMP would help farmers and fishermen to preserve their produce.
According to him, the project will build cold rooms and Silos for preservation of crops and fishes while access roads will also be created to link farmers and fishermen to the market.
He, however, warned them against any act that will lead to the suspension of the projects by the World Bank.
Kpakol particularly warned against acts such as kidnapping, marching ground, gender based violence and child labour, adding that such acts if they occur may lead to the cancellation of the project by the World Bank.
During the visit to Oyigbo local government area, Mr Joshua Kpakol, said the team was there to let them know how they will benefit from the Raamp.
The coordinator who was personally at Oyigbo said the World Bank introduced the project to check food insecurity in the State.
He said already 19 states in Nigeria are already benefitting from the project and called on them to embrace the project.
Meanwhile, stakeholders in the three local government areas have commended the World Bank for including their areas in the project.
They, however, complained over the incessant attacks by pirates on their waterways.
At Degema, King Agolia of Ke kingdom said land was a major problem in the kingdom.
King Agolia represented by High Chief Alpheus Damiebi said many indigenes of the kingdom are willing to go into farming but are handicapped by lack of land.
Also at Degema, the representative of the Omu Onyam Ekeim of Usokun Degema kingdom, Osoabo Isaac, said Degema has embraced the programme but needed more information on the implementation of the programme.
Similarly, while High Chief Precious Abadi advised that the project should not be narrowed to only crop farming, a community women leader, Mrs Orikinge Eremabo Otto, called for the construction of cold rooms in all fishing settlements in the area.
At Abonnema, Mr Diamond Kio linked the problem of the area to incessant piracy along waterways.
He also expressed fears over the possibility of the project being hijacked by politicians.
Also at Abonnema, a stakeholder, Ikiriko Kelvin, called on the World Bank to design an agricultural project that will suit the riverine environment, while at Oyigbo, HRH Eze Boniface Akawo expressed satisfaction with the project.
John Bibor
News
Senate Replaces Natasha As Committee Chairman

The political mudslinging between the Senate leadership and Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan continued yesterday as the Senate named Senator Aniekan Bassey as the new Chairman of the Committee on Diaspora and Non-Governmental Organisations.
Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, announced the appointment during yesterday’s plenary, confirming Bassey’s replacement of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, who is currently on suspension.
Akpoti-Uduaghan was reassigned to the Diaspora and NGOs Committee in February after she was removed as Chair of the Senate Committee on Local Content during a minor reshuffle.
Bassey is the senator representing Akwa Ibom North-East Senatorial District.
Although no reason was given for her removal yesterday, the change is believed to be connected to her unresolved suspension.
In May, Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court ordered her reinstatement and directed her to tender an apology to the Senate.
However, the Senate has insisted it has not received a certified true copy of the court judgment.
Akpoti-Uduaghan who represents Kogi Central, has yet to resume her legislative duties despite a recent court ruling that voided her suspension.
In a televised interview on Tuesday, Akpoti-Uduaghan said she was awaiting the Certified True Copy of the judgment before officially returning to plenary, citing legal advice and respect for institutional process.
Although the Federal High Court described her suspension as “excessive and unconstitutional”, a legal opinion dated July 5 and attributed to the Senate’s counsel, Paul Daudu (SAN), argued that the ruling lacked any binding directive to enforce her reinstatement.
Akpoti-Uduaghan, one of only three female senators in the current assembly, said the continued delay in allowing her return was not only a denial of her mandate but also a blow to democratic representation.
“By keeping me out of the chambers, the Senate is not just silencing Kogi Central, it’s denying Nigerian women and children representation. We are only three female senators now, down from eight,” she said.