THE STATES

Bauchi
The Bauchi State Director of National Orientation
Agency (NOA), Hajiya Jummai Bello, has called on the people of the state to imbibe the spirit of peaceful co-existence.
Bello who said this in Bauchi last Tuesday, during an interview said that no meaningful development could take place in an atmosphere of rancour and hatred.
She said the agency was committed to sensitising the people of the state on the need to use cultural diversities as a tool for the development of the state.
“Our campaign is geared towards the propagation of the Federal Government’s transformation agenda. We try to entrench positive attitude, peaceful co-existence among people due to the decay that cut across the strata, “ she said.
Borno

Eighteen persons were feared dead after suspected Boko
Haram militants attacked a community along the Alau Dam -Alau Ngawo Fate in Jere Local Government Area of Borno on Sunday night.
A village head in the area, Malam Ibrahim Modu,told newsmen  that the attackers invaded the community at about 10p.m. last Sunday before carrying out their evil act.
He said the invaders divided themselves into groups with some attacking residents while others set fire on the houses.
The spokesman for the 7 Division of Nigerian Army, Col. Mohammad Dole, confirmed the attack.

Ekiti

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA)
on Monday warned residents of the state against indulging in hard drugs.
The State Commander of the NDLEA in Ekiti, Mr Bamidele Akingbade, who gave the warning in an interview in Ado-Ekiti assured that said the agency would step-up efforts toward sensitising residents on the dangers of indulging hard drugs.
The agency, he said, would partner with some radio and television stations in the state in its public enlightenment drive.
He said the sponsored radio and television programmes would also educate the public on the dangers of cultivating, selling and smoking Indian hemp and urged the residents of the state to expose drug peddlers in their midst to the appropriate authorities.

Jigawa

The Jigawa State Government said it spent N75 million
on nomadic education in 2013.
A statement signed by the Alhaji Ali Manu, the Executive Secretary of the state Agency for Nomadic Education, in Dutse indicated that N36.6 million was spent on the construction of eight blocks of classrooms, headmaster’s offices and furniture.
The statement said that N9.3 million was used to procure and distribute instructional materials to all the schools in the state.
It said that N7.2 million was spent on the renovation of two blocks of classrooms in Guraja nomadic school and N6.2 million on furniture in its nine zonal offices.

Kano

The Kano State Government has approved money for
media campaign against increasing rate of rape cases in the state.
The state Commissioner for Justice, Alhaji Maliki Kuliya, told newsmen in Kano last Monday, that the measure was necessary in order to sensitise the public on the problem as no fewer than 100 rape cases were recorded in Kano state between November and December, 2013.
He urged parents and Islamic scholars to take up the challenge by sensitising their wards and members of the public on the alarming rate of the menace in the state.
“The most disturbing thing is that most of the suspects are people that are known to the victims. So parents need to watch where their children go to or whom they relate with,’’ he said.

Katsina

The Katsina State Government last Monday distributed
reflective jackets, helmets and boots to 3,500 registered commercial motorcyclists operating in the state.
Distributing the items to the beneficiaries in Katsina, the Chairman, Committee on Sanitisation of commercial motorcyclists and tricycle operators, otherwise known as ‘’Okada and Keke NAPEP’’ in the state, Alhaji Alhassan Muhammad, said that the items were given free of charge.
Muhammad said that the beneficiaries were selected from the 34 local government areas of the state, adding that the gesture was aimed at regulating the operations of commercial motorcyclists in the state.
Responding on behalf of the beneficiaries, the Chairman of Amalgamated Commercial Motorcycle Riders and Owners Association of Nigeria (ACOMORAN) in the state, Alhaji Dikko Kofar-Sauri, commended the state government for the gesture.

Kogi
The Kogi State Government last Monday said it had or
dered for 40 new trucks as part of efforts to strengthen the activities of the State Sanitation and Waste Management Agency.
The Commissioner for Environment and Natural Resources, Abudulrama Huya, said  in Lokoja that the trucks, on arrival, would be deployed to 40 strategic locations to ensure clean environment.
He said the vehicles would come in from China and Germany, adding that the state government would engage more people to clean the streets to enhance cleanliness in the state.
The Managing Director of the State Waste Management Board (SWMB), Mrs Florence Joseph, also said that the agency had only three trucks and  urged people in the state to be patient as the delivery of the new trucks would positively impact on their operations.

Niger

Eleven members of J’amatul Izalatul Bidia Wa Ikamati
Sunnah (JIBWIS) from Kebbi lost their lives in an auto crash in Suleja, Niger, on Sunday.
The accident occurred when the victims were returning to Kebbi after attending an education appeal fund programme in Abuja.
The unit commander of the Federal Roads Safety Corps (FRSC), Mr Edwin Nwokike,in Suleja, told newsmen  that the incident involved a Toyota Hiace bus conveying members of JIBWIS from Abuja to Suru in Kebbi and a Volkswagen Gulf car coming from Minna and going to Suleja.
The unit commander said that the driver of the Gulf car was alone and died on the spot; nine passengers in the Toyota bus also died on the spot, and one other died in the hospital, while nine sustained injuries.
Ogun
The Chief Judge of Ogun State, Justice Olatokunbo
Olopade, last Monday in Abeokuta charged Magistrates in the state to be proactive and firm while shunning corruption in the discharge of their duties.
She advised the magistrates to carry out researches so as to be in tune with the latest trends in the legal profession, stating that the magistracy was an important and vital part of the judiciary because of its closeness to the grassroots.
She regretted that magistrate courts were becoming “a grave source of embarrassment and a sign of failure of the criminal justice system,’’ attributing delays in trials to the poor attitude of some magistrates to work.

Ondo

Governor Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo State has urged
chiefs and people of Akure kingdom to support and cooperate with the new regent of the land, Princess Adetutu Adesida.
Mimiko said during a homage to the regent last  Monday in Akure that the supports would bring more peace and development in the kingdom.
He said that the reign of the late Oba Adebiyi Adesida, although very short, brought an “unprecedented development” to the land in the areas of sustainable peace and infrastructure development.
The governor said that the late monarch enjoyed tremendous support from his subjects and stressed that he was able to record more successes because of his tenacity of purpose and zeal to develop Akure and make it a befitting state capital.

Plateau

The Plateau State Independent Electoral Commission
(PLASIEC) has cleared 574 persons to contest chairmanship and counsellorship positions in the January 30 local government elections.
The commission’s chairman, Peter Dalyop, said  in Jos  that 39 persons did not scale through the screening exercise.
Some of the chairmanship candidates who were not cleared include Mrs Rose Yakubu Chollom, the All Peoples’ Congress (APC) candidate for Barkin-Ladi Local Government and her Vice, Dung Stephen.

Zamfara

The Emir of Kaura-Namoda, Zamfara State, Alhaji Ahmad
Asha, has warned village and district heads in the emirate against all forms of corrupt practices.
The emir who gave the warning when he addressed the traditional rulers in Kaura-Namoda said it was only by shunning corruption that they would earn the respect of their subjects.
He particularly warned them against tampering with the financial assistance given to the less privileged known as Zakkat by the state government and disclosed that the emirate would inaugurate a monitoring committee to ensure that the funds were not tampered with.

L-R: Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Works, Alhaji Abubakar Mohammed, Minister of Works, Mr Mike Onolememen and Governor Ibrahim Dankwambo of Gombe State, during his visit to the Minister yestersday. Photo: NAN.