Nation
THE STATES
Bauchi
The Chairman, Joint Health Sector Union (JOHESU),
Abubakar Tafawa Balewa Teaching Hospital branch, Mr Babangida Bingis, has apologised to Nigerians over the three-month strike embarked upon by the union.
Bingis offered the apology when he spoke with newsmen in Bauchi recently.
He said that the union had directed the suspension of the action, adding that members of the union had since resumed work as directed.
“We apologise for the inconvenience the action might have caused and hope that all our issues will be addressed,” he said.
Gombe
President Goodluck Jonathan has promised to generate
power from Dadin-Kowa Dam in Yamaltu/Deba local government area of Gombe state, in addition to assisting farmers, if re-elected.
Jonathan made the pledge when he visited the Emir of Gombe, Alhaji Abubakar Shehu-Abubakar, in his palace in Gombe.
“We are looking at Dadin-Kowa Dam for provision of steady power supply to Gombe State, in addition to assisting farmers in the state,’’ he said.
He said Federal Government’s commitment to farmers in the state could be seen from the provision of fertiliser and other inputs directly to them through the e-wallet system.
Jonathan urged youths in the state to key in to the commercial farming system.
“I also re-assure you that this government will continue to work with the people of Gombe state on how we can continue to move our country forward and move the state forward,’’ he said.
He said that they were at the Emir’s palace to seek for royal blessing and prayers before embarking on their re-election campaign rally in the state.
Kano
The Progressives Youth Wing of the People’s Demo
cratic Movement (PDM) in Kano State has called on the electorate to vote for APC presidential candidate, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, during the February 14 election.
The chairman of the group, Alhaji Ghali Abdallah, made the call while briefing newsmen in Kano.
He said the group had resolved to support Buhari to enable him bring the desired change in the country.
“’Buhari possesses all the qualities required from a leader as he was tested and trusted,’’ he said.
He, however, urged people to vote for PDM’s gubernatorial candidate, Bashir Ishaq, during the February 28 elections.
“Ishaq is the best among the candidates contesting for the governorship position in view of his good leadership qualities.
Lagos
The police have arraigned a 43-year-old woman, Hajiya
Safiya Yakubu at the Gudu Upper Area Court, Abuja, for allegedly receiving stolen wrappers worth N3 million.
The accused, a resident of No. 1, Poultry Road, New Layout, Kurmin Mashi, Kaduna, is standing trial on a charge of receiving stolen property.
The prosecutor, Sgt. Mohammed Garba told the court that one Sanusi Mohammed, of Shop 57, Garki Ultra Modern Market, reported a case of theft of wrappers from his shop by one Amina Ali of Masaka, Nasarawa State on January 21.
Garba said that police investigation in the matter revealed that the accused bought the wrappers from Amina.
According to him, in the course of interrogation, seven pieces of Hollandais wrappers were recovered from the accused person.
Nasarawa
National Coordinator, “Goodluck Jonathan Fulani Sup
port Group” has said Alhaji Hussaini Muhammad, said that Fulani herdsmen would give Jonathan 70 per cent of their votes in the February election.
Muhammad stated this at the interactive session with newsmen at the sideline of the PDP governorship campaign in Kokona local government area of Nasarawa state.
He said that the Fulanis were the highest beneficiary of the Jonathan administration and would reciprocate the goodwill by voting massively for his re-election bid.
Muhammad said that the Fulanis had never had it so good since the return of democratic governance.
Niger
The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) gubernatorial
candidate in Niger State, Alhaji Umaru Nasko, has urged youths across the country to shun violence during and after the February elections.
He made the call when he received a Grand Peace Ambassador award by the Commonwealth Youth Council (CYC) in Minna.
He said youths should not be seen as inexperienced people, rather, they should be given the opportunity to participate in all facets of governance.
He added that, “I accept this Grand Peace award with all sense of humility, responsibility and I pledge not to let Nigerian youths down.
“Today, I stand to advocate that youths should not be seen as inexperienced people, they should be given the opportunity to participate in government activities to gain the needed experience.
Ogun
Governor Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State has prom
ised to declare public holiday to enable the people collect their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs).
Amosun made the promise at Ajebo ward 11 in Obafemi/Owode local government area of the state during his re-election campaign rally.
“We can’t just declare holiday when the cards are not ready; we are doing everything to sensitise our people on the importance of the cards,” Amosun said.
The governor promised to commence work on the OGTV- Kajola – Obafe- Ajebo road if re-elected.
He commended the former governor of the state, Chief Olusegun Osoba, who constructed the road during his tenure.
Oyo
The Olubadan of Ibadan land, Oba Samuel Odugade,
has stressed the need for Ibadan indigenes in Oyo State to promote the tradition, culture and heritage of Ibadan land.
He made the remark in Ibadan at a press briefing to unveil the logo of Oke’Badan festival.
Represented by high Chief Eddie Oyewole, the Ekerin Olubadan, the monarch declared that recognising the culture and tradition of Ibadan land does not translate to paganism.
He said that the Oke’Badan festival, celebrated annually serve as reminder of the historical antecedents of Ibadan people.
According to him, the festival also serves as ‘social melting pot’ where divergent issues affecting the lives of the people are discussed.
Plateau
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
says it will sponsor additional 200 victims of violent conflicts in Plateau to acquire vocational skills, under its Livelihood Support Scheme.
UNDP’s Conflict Prevention and Peace Building Analyst Mr Mathew Alao, made this known in an interview with newsmen in Jos.
Alao said that the organisation had just sponsored 149 victims in the state to acquire training in seven vocational skill areas.
The areas the skill covered were on hair dressing, tailoring, knitting, catering and decorations as well as GSM repair, shoe-making, leather works and computer studies.
The official said that the scheme was being supported financially by the government of Norway.
Yobe
Over 30 families who fled Boko Haram attacks in Borno,
Adamawa and Yobe State without contact for several months have reunited at a HIV/AIDS screening centre in Nguru, Yobe State.
Spokesman of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), Malam Ibrahim Dankanawa, disclosed this to newsmen in Nguru recently.
Our correspondent reports that the National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA) organised a one-week HIV/AIDS screening exercise for the IDPs to ascertain their HIV status and curb spread of the virus.
“The families fled Baga in Borno, Mubi in Adamawa and Buni-Yadi in Yobe, and we lost contact for several months but this screening center has reunited us,” Dankanawa said.
Nation
Accolades, Fanfare As Ogbakor Ikwerre President General Celebrates 80th Birthday

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.
Nation
Ensure That Ogoni Is Heard In The Right Way, HYPREP Urges Creative Arts Trainees

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.
Nation
NYCOP Urges Stakeholders To Develop, Empower Ogoni Youths

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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