Nation

THE STATES

Published

10 years ago

August 28, 2015

L-R: Special Adviser, Media and Publicity to President Muhammadu Buhari, Mr Femi Adesina,Managing Director, News Agency of Nigeria (Nan), Mr Ima Niboro and Senior Special Assistant to President Buhari on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, during a Guild of Editors’ Dinner in honour of two media icons, Femi Adesina and Garba Shehu in Abuja recently

Ekiti
An Ado-Ekiti Chief Magistrates’ Court, has remanded one
Solomon Edward in prison custody over alleged defilement of a 10-year-old girl.
Chief Magistrate, Idowu Ayenimo, ordered that the accused be remanded in prison custody, and adjourned the case till October 16.
The prosecutor, Sgt. Bankole Olasunkanmi had told the court that the accused committed the offence on August 18 at Iye-Ekiti.
The plea of the accused was not taken, but his counsel urged the court to grant him bail in liberal terms.
The prosecutor, however, objected to the bail application, saying the act of defilement is now alarming.

FCT

The National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN), has asked the
National Assembly to initiate a legislation that will collapse the Federal Government-corruption agencies into a single formidable institution.
The group also said the agency which must be adequately funded, should have a department which would be responsible for tracking and verifying source of income of Nigerians living above their means.
National President of the NYCN, Mr. Ikenga Ugochinyere, stated this in Abuja at the official opening of registers to collect signatures in support of President Muhammadu Buhari’s anti-corruption war.
Ugochinyere, said the registers would be opened in all the 36 states of the federation, the Federal Capital Territory and Nigerian embassies in the United Kingdom, the United States and China for interested youth willing to support the Federal Government graft crusade.
He said the group will on September 17, mobilise thousands of Nigerian youth to stage a mass rally to the headquarters of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission; the National Assembly and Presidential Villa, to assure Buhari of the youth’s commitment to his anti-graft crusade.

Gombe

The Senate of the University of Maiduguri (UNMAID), says it
has approved the establishment of its first Distance Learning Outreach Center in Gombe.
The Vice Chancellor of the Institution, Prof. Ibrahim Njodi, disclosed this when he paid a courtesy visit on the Gombe State Governor, Ibrahim Dankwambo, in Gombe.
Njodi called on the state government to provide a befitting place for the immediate take-off of the centre.
He said that the approval of the programme by the Senate had made the university an institution that provided both conventional academic programmes and the Distance Learning.
Jigawa

The Jigawa State Special Worker Verification Committee has
said it screened 1169 of 1206 teaching and non-teaching staff in Malammadori Local Government Area.
The Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) in the area, Malam Aliyu Balarabe, who made this know to newsmen in Malammadori, Jigawa, said the exercise was conducted smoothly in all public primary and junior secondary schools.
It will be recalled that the state government had embarked on verification of pensioners, teachers and workers of the 27 local government areas of the state.
The council’s Education Secretary, Mukhtar Mukaddiri, said the exercise would enable the government to make proper planning toward improving the welfare of teachers.

Kaduna

Some Kaduna-based lawyers have urged their colleagues to
support President Muhammadu Buhari’s fight against corruption.
The lawyers spoke in separate interviews in Kaduna, while reacting to Buhari’s call on lawyers to desist from protecting crooks.
One of the lawyers, Mr Pascal Nickaf, said the call was timely and even long overdue.
He, however, said that the fight was not a one-man battle but a battle that required the support of all stakeholders.

Kano

The Kano State Agency for the Control of Aids (KSACA),
has asked stakeholders to collaborate with it to fight the spread of HIV/AIDS, particularly mother to child transmission of the disease.
The Director General of the agency Dr Sa’adatu Bala, made the call when she paid an advocacy visit to Hasiya Bayero Paediatrics Hospital in Kano.
She said the call was necessary in order to ensure continued support and stronger collaboration between the agency and the hospital to achieve the desired objective.
Responding, the Medical Director of the hospital, Dr Hafsat Kabir, said that the hospital needed assistance to install some laboratory equipment donated to it by a donor agency, FH1360.
Katsina
The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) in
Daura, Katsina State, has distributed relief materials to no fewer than 2,000 flood-disaster victims.
The NEMA Director-General, Mr Muhammad Sani-Sidi, who handed over the materials to the victims, said the flood had affected seven local government areas of the state.
According to him, the major cause of the flooding was the blocking of drains with refuse and building of houses on water ways.
He said that the intervention was sequel to the receipt of the report of the disaster and subsequent needs assessment from conducted by the State Emergency Management Agency.

Kebbi

Governor Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi State has pledged to im
prove girl-child education in the state.
This is contained in statement issued by Chief Press Secretary to the governor Alhaji Abubakar Muazu, in Birnin Kebbi.
The statement stated that the governor made the pledge when he received a delegation of a non-governmental organisation, Voices of the Girl-Child Education.
Bagudu described female education as vital to human resource and social development, stressing that education could be conveniently combined with motherhood.
The wife of the governor, Dr Zainab Bagudu, who accompanied the group during the visit, said female education was paramount in building a virile society.
Kogi

The Catholic Bishop of Lokoja, Dada Olorunmolu, has reiter
ated Catholic church’s position against gay marriage, saying it was unequivocal and the church would not compromise on it.
The Bishop who made this known in an interview in Lokoja , said that approving gay union would amount to standing the Bible on its head.
According to him, the issue is against the teachings of the church and the Bible; it will amount to bending its teachings, its injunctions, just to accommodate what is unnatural.
The bishop prayed for those who indulged in the act, asking God to give them the grace to understand what was right.

Lagos

A coalition of civil society organisations in the country, has
alleged that former President Goodluck Jonathan, deliberately embarked on policies that directly promoted corruption and impunity in public offices during the six years that he administered the affairs of the country.
They, therefore, said it would be a great disservice to the entire Nigerian populace if his successor, President Muhammadu Buhari, heeded the advice of those asking that Jonathan should not be probed and brought to book.
The CSOs, which jointly addressed a press conference in Lagos, admitted that corruption in public offices did not begin under Jonathan, but they described the Jonathan’s era as one during which “Nigeria literally became a looting field; where big thieves became bigger; where new and powerful thieves were created; and where big, destructive ‘rats’ and ‘termites’.

Nasarawa

A 21-year-old bus conductor, Shedrach Ezekiel of Mararaba,
has been sentenced to18 months in prison by a Mararaba Grade 1 Area Court for stealing a phone valued at N11,000.
The presiding judge, Albert Maga, convicted Ezekiel after he pleaded guilty for the offence of conspiracy and theft.
Earlier the prosecutor, Cpl. Friday Adaji told the court that the convict was first arraigned on August 14 but remanded in custody for his accomplice to be arrested.
Niger

Ward Head, Nuatuko, in Bosso Local Government Area of
Niger State, Malam Usman Aliyu, has, implored the state government to provide the community with potable water and access roads.
Aliyu who made the appeal during interview in Nuatuko, said the only source of water in the community was from Dagbai stream, three kilometres away from the village.
The ward head said the immediate past administration in the state had promised the community a borehole on four different occasions but could not fulfill the promise.
He added that the main road linking the village with Bosso was in a deplorable condition, adding that, “right now, it is not passable, especially in this rainy season.

Ogun

The Ogun State Judiciary has commenced series of refresher
courses for Magistrates, Judicial Assistants, Secretaries, Court Registrars, Clerks and Bailiffs across the state, the Chief Judge, Mrs Olatokunbo Olopade, has said.
Olopade, who made the statement in Abeokuta while speaking with newsmen, said the four-day training was organised in partnership with the National Judicial Institute (NJI), Abuja.
She said the training was organised to improve the standard and quality of the state judicial system and judiciary staff.
The Director of Studies, NJI, Mr Cyprain Ajah, said the training, which includes Information Communication Technology (ICT), became imperative because of the need to build the capacity of judicial officers and staff.

Ondo

A commercial motorcyclist, Kamil Ibrahim, 25, was arraigned
in an Okitipupa Magistrates’ Court, for allegedly assaulting a salesgirl who refused him N200 worth of cigarette on credit.
The prosecutor, Insp. Zedekiah Orogbemi, told the court that the accused, on July 6 around 7:00 a.m. at Okitipupa market, beat up Bolaji Kusoro, and inflicted injuries on her.
Orogbemi added that the accused was still owing Kusoro N1,000, which made her to refuse further credit facility.
Magistrate Banji Ayeomoni, granted the accused bail in the sum of N20,000 and a surety in like sum, and adjourned the case till September 2 for further hearing.

Oyo

Chief Medical Director of the University College Hospital
(UCH), Ibadan, Prof. Temitope Alonge, has said that the hospital will extend its ongoing Human Papillo Virus (HPV) vaccination to rural areas.
Alonge made this disclosure on the sideline of the ongoing 9th Annual Scientific Conference with the theme “The Role of Pathologists in Oncologic Diagnosis and Management”, in Ibadan.
The five-day conference was organised by the West African Division International Academy of Pathology in conjunction with United States and Canadian Academy of Pathology.
Alonge said cervical cancer was the second silent killer in women, noted that vaccination against the virus was the surest way of preventing cervical cancer in Nigerian women.

Nation

Don Seeks Funding of Language Centres

Published

3 days ago

November 3, 2025

The Tide

A professor of English linguistics at the Rivers State University (RSU) Nkpolu Oroworukwu Port Harcourt, Prof. Isaac Enyi Ngulube, has advocated for better and improved funding for language centres in Nigeria, such as NINLAN Aba and Nigeria French Language Village, Badagry, for optimum value and effective local languages development.

He also called for funded research on the development of orthographies and language documents across the country to rescue local languages from extinction, as well as having a well-planned and implemented mother tongue education in all institutions in the country, from primary to tertiary.

Prof. Ngulube made with these assertions while presenting his inaugural lecture at the university’s 121st inaugural lecture with the topic “The Career of Rough Beats: Language, Literature and the Development of our Common Humanity” held in Port Harcourt, Wednesday.

The erudite scholar, in the lecture, stressed that the study of English language, linguistics, and literature is very broad, large, and difficult, adding that he overcame the rough roads through resilience and determination.

He described language as “a purely human and non-instinctive means of communicating ideas and emotions,” noting that “the word is a fundamental need in language; you cannot study language without the use of language.”

He urged parents to be cautious with their utterances, warning that “what they refer to their children as is what they will automatically end up becoming.”

He recommended a branded English language for every profession or course of study, stressing that embedding oral literature in the teaching of students from primary to tertiary level will enable them to know their traditions and roots of origin.

“Tell them the folk stories and moonlight tales; you are sending them back to their people. You must be a human being first before becoming a medical doctor, engineer, or anything else,” Ngulube said.

He also called for better and improved production of quality language and literature teachers, provision of modern teaching/instructional materials, improved welfare packages for teachers, and provision of better infrastructure at both primary and secondary school levels.

He used the opportunity to appreciate the Vice Chancellor for the approval of the Department of English Language and Literature, adding that it had been his long-held dream for the university.

In his speech, the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Isaac Zeb-Obipi, while highlighting the lecture, opined that the lecturer x-rayed the lecturer’s journey into the study of English language, linguistics, and literature, describing the field as broad, large, and difficult, but with determination and focus, he was able to defeat the beasts he encountered on his way.

Zeb-Obipi agreed with the lecturer’s recommendations on ways to improve indigenous languages in the country and directed that modalities be worked out for the university to have the Department of English Language and Literature, among others.

He highlighted RSU’s recent victory in the Bilingual Community Project organized by the French Embassy, describing it as proof of the university’s rising excellence in language studies.

Nation

HYPREP, Contributing To National Peace, Development- Zabbey

Published

3 days ago

November 3, 2025

The Tide

The Federal Government through the implementation of the various projects of the Ogoni cleanup programme is demonstrating a strong commitment to national peace and the development of Ogoniland.

The Project Coordinator of the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project(HYPREP), Prof Nenibarini Zabbey, who made this assertion at a two-day training on Mechanism for Alternative Dispute Resolution(ADR) and other Peacebuilding Techniques for Community Leaders In Ogoni, held in Port Harcourt, said through the ongoing environmental restoration effort, potable water provision, livelihood restoration, public health interventions, and the Ogoni Power Project, HYPREP is contributing to national peace and development.

He explained that by improving the living conditions in communities and creating new opportunities for young people, the Project is also reducing the social pressure that often fuels conflict, stressing that the Project is proud of this service to the Ogoni people and the nation.

Describing traditional leaders and stakeholders as peacebuilders and guardians of community harmony, Zabbey noted that the workshop would strengthen their capacities and reinforce the Ogoni dialogue process, which HYPREP continues to support in line with its mandate on peacebuilding.

He said HYPREP is actively promoting ADR alongside other mechanisms across its project sites and other areas of operation aimed at fostering unity, fairness, mutual respect and faster dispute resolution, stressing that these are qualities necessary for the future of Ogoni people and their communities.

He further indicated that the Minister of Environment and Chairman of HYPREP’s Governing Council, Malam Balarabe Abbas Lawal is disposed to promoting peace and stability across Ogoni communities and HYPREP project sites.

The Project Coordinator, therefore, charged Ogoni leaders to be mindful of their actions, words and body language, as what they say or do can either promote peace or fan the embers of conflict.

Continuing, he stated thus,”We must always ask ourselves: Is my position on this matter in the people’s interest? Does it promote unity and progress? Will it enhance development?”

The Project Coordinator assured the participants that HYPREP is working tirelessly in line with the directive of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda for the accelerated implementation of the Ogoni cleanup programme and ensure that its benefits reach the grassroots where they are needed most.

Stressing the need for Ogoni leaders and stakeholders to explore communication and trust options to prevent disputes from degenerating into violence, the Project Coordinator noted that it was time for all Ogonis to be united for development, leaving behind perceptions that do not serve collective progress.

Similarly, the Director of the Centre for Peace and Security Studies of the University of Port Harcourt, Prof Chioma Daisy Onyige, said the workshop is a strategic platform aimed at strengthening the capacity of traditional institutions and community leaders to sustain peace, foster dialogue and promote non-adversarial engagements in the implementation of the Ogoni cleanup programme.

Prof Onyige noted that the Ogoni leadership structure commands deep respect and legitimacy, and strengthening their capacity in ADR methods such as mediation, negotiation, dialogue, facilitation, and consensus building means strengthening the foundation of peace in the region.

Participants, comprising traditional rulers and key stakeholders in Ogoni, commended HYPREP for the initiative, and assured it of their continuous support to the Project by providing an enabling atmosphere for the smooth implementation of the cleanup project in Ogoniland.

Resource persons who presented thought-provoking lectures at the workshop included the Dean of the Faculty of Postgraduate Studies of the University of Port Harcourt, Prof Kinikanwo Anele; Prof Olariwanju Lawal; Prof Chioma Daisy Onyige; and Dr Gbenemene Kpae; among others.

Nation

Ogoni Cleanup Programme, Enabling Pathways To Development Of Ogoni – Zabbey

Published

1 week ago

October 27, 2025

The Tide

With significant achievements recorded across thematic areas of the Ogoni cleanup programme being executed by the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP), the Project Coordinator of the Project, Prof Nenibarini Zabbey, has said that all these are enabling pathways to the development of Ogoniland.

This is coming on the heels of milestone achievements in the following areas and their impact on Ogoni communities. They are mangrove restoration which is 94 percent complete; shoreline remediation which stands at 67.1 percent; and the phase 2 land remediation progressing to 36.55 percent.

Moreso, HYPREP has constructed 14 water facilities, providing potable water to 40 communities. With the commissioning of the water schemes in Bane and Gwara communities, the number of communities with access to clean and safe drinking water will be 45. The process of operationalising the Centre of Excellence for Environmental Restoration (CEER) which is at 92 percent complete, is ongoing. The same for the Ogoni Power Project which is progressing with wayleave compensation and construction works at Bodo and Wiiyaakaara substations ongoing

Similarly, the Ogoni Specialist Hospital and Buan Cottage Hospital are at 76.8 percent and 98.7 percent respectively.

This is alongside other public health interventions and the Human BioMonitoring Survey also in progress.

Under the livelihood
programme, over 7,000 direct jobs have been created for Ogoni women and youths, while over 5,000 have been trained in multiple skills and provided start-up kits, workshops, education grants, scholarships and other empowerment programmes. This quarter, training will commence in other demand-driven skill areas, such as cybersecurity, full-stack development, mud logging, software development, commercial diving, and underwater welding.

Zabbey had reeled out these achievements, during the third quarter interactive session between the Project Coordination Office engagement with Ogoni youths in Port Harcourt on Friday, in line with HYPREP’s strategic stakeholders policy to provide an interface opportunity to abreast Ogoni youths on the Project’s activities, while garnering their feedback.

Zabbey noted that, “This
quarterly engagement was,therefore, designed as an inclusive strategy to ensure that youth voices are heard, concerns are addressed, and progress updates are provided transparently. Also, it reflects our firm belief that a project of this magnitude must be people-centred, accountable, and participatory”.

” I am delighted to inform you that the Project remains on course to achieve its mandate as outlined in the UNEP Report on the Ogoni environment and the official gazette establishing HYPREP. HYPREP is committed to transparency and accountability in the implementation of the cleanup projects and activities”, he said.

He stressed that HYPREP’s achievements are pathways to a better Ogoniland, assuring that the Project’s goals are aimed at benefiting all categories of Ogoni youths, whether in business, farming, advocacy, education, entrepreneurship or community development.

”This Project belongs to all of you, and its success depends mainly on your participation, unity and constructive engagement. And with your support, we are confident that all challenges will be addressed in the overall public interest,” Zabbey said.

The Project Coordinator urged Ogoni youths to continue to support the Project by promoting peace, discouraging misinformation, and collaborating with project teams working in the communities, and address challenges through dialogue, rather than confrontation.

Prof Dinebari Badey, a Professor of Development Sociology in the University of Port Harcourt, delivered the keynote address, linking the nexus between HYPREP and youths in the development of Ogoniland through unity of purpose while Engr Solomon Akere, gave a talk on Ogoni youths in business.

Participants raised questions concerning the maintenance of the water projects, remediation efforts, and compensation for the Right of Way (RoW), among others.

In attendance were management staff of HYPREP who provided responses to the interventions.