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RSG Approves Security Stipends For Rulers …Says No More Abandoned Projects
Rivers State Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike has approved the release of security stipends to traditional rulers to assist them enhance community security.
Addressing the 102nd Quarterly General Meeting of the Rivers State Council of Traditional Rulers on Wednesday, Governor Wike said that the security stipends will assist the traditional rulers generate intelligence which will be forwarded to the security agencies for necessary action.
He said: “the security stipend to traditional rulers which will be disbursed to recognised traditional rulers will start from 2016. This stipend should not be used outside of gathering security intelligence.
“We shall also introduce special awards to traditional rulers who maintain peaceful communities. We believe these awards will encourage communities to take steps to improve security across the state”.
Governor Wike charged the traditional rulers to insulate themselves from partisan politics by ensuring that they remain neutral in all political matters.
He stated that being involved in politics diminishes the respect people accord to traditional rulers.
According to him: “You are custodians of customs and traditions and not custodians of politics. Your duty is to bless anyone that comes to you and not to make political pronouncements”.
Speaking further, Governor Wike said that the support of traditional rulers played a key role in the achievements of his administration.
He noted that his administration has restored the dignity of traditional rulers, noting that he will continue to liaise with them to attain greater development.
In his address, the Chairman of the Rivers State Council of Traditional Rulers, King Dandeson Douglas Jaja, Jeki V, Amanyanabo of Opobo , commended Governor Wike for restoring the Quarterly General session of the council’s meeting. He said the last meeting was held over two years ago.
The Traditional Ruler commended the Governor Wike administration for the execution of pro-people development projects and the release of logistic support to security agencies.
Meanwhile, Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike has declared that under his leadership the era of abandoned projects is gone for good.
Commissioning the completed Abuluoma-Woji-road with Bridge in Port Harcourt on Wednesday, Governor Wike stated that no local government area in the state would be neglected in the renewal programme of his administration.
He said : “I will never do any project that will be abandoned. No part of the state will be neglected in the infrastructure renewal programme of my administration “
The governor urged communities to always provide a peaceful environment for contractors to complete ongoing project.
He appealed to the people of the state to support the administration’s execution of projects for the benefit of the state.
“You can see the level of development in the state. That is why you should always give you mandate to those who will use it to implement projects for all people irrespective of political affiliations.
“We have shown that it doesn’t matter what political parties you belong to. Once a government is formed, it works for everyone”, Governor Wike said.
Governor Wike said that aside the Abuluoma-Woji-road, his administration will in 2016 commence the construction of a Fly-Over on Peter Odili road.
In his address, Rivers State Commissioner for Works, Kelvin Wachukwu said the 1.672kilometre road was inherited at the earthwork and filing stage before Governor Wike carried out the completion of the road, sidewalls, median , toll point, the median and 275 metres bridge.
He said the immediate past administration initially awarded the contract for N3.5 billion, but due to change of scope of work and variations, the immediate past administration increased the cost to N13.6billion in 2014.
Caretaker Committee Chairman of Port Harcourt Local Government Area, Mr Samuel Ejekwu praised Governor Wike for completing the road which will ease the traffic pressure on Aba-Port Harcourt road, Dr Peter Odili road and also enhance free flow of traffic in Obio-Akpor, Port Harcourt and Eleme.
So far, Governor Wike has commissioned the Obonomma-Abonnema link road with Bridge and Eagle Island -Iloabuchi link road.
Vice President Kashim Shettima has arrived in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for an official State visit at the invitation of the Prime Minister, Dr. Abiy Ahmed.
Upon arrival yesterday, Shettima was received at the airport by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, Dr. Gedion Timothewos, and other members of the Ethiopian and Nigerian diplomatic corps.
Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media and Communication, Stanley Nkwocha, revealed this in a statement he signed yesterday, titled: “VP Shettima arrives in Ethiopia for official state visit.”
During the visit, Vice President Shettima will participate in the official launch of Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Programme, a flagship environmental initiative.
The programme designed to combat deforestation, enhance biodiversity, and mitigate the adverse effects of climate change targets the planting of 20 billion tree seedlings over a four-year period.
In line with strengthening bilateral ties in agriculture and industrial development, the Vice President will also embark on a strategic tour of key industrial zones and integrated agricultural facilities across selected regions of Ethiopia.
News
RSG Tasks Farmers On N4bn Agric Loan ….As RAAMP Takes Sensitization Campaign To Four LGs In Rivers
The Rivers State Government has called on the people of the state especially farmers to access the ?4billion agricultural loans made available by the State and domiciled in the Bank of Industry.
This is as the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) of Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP), a World Bank project, took its sensitization campaign to Opobo/Nkoro, Andoni, Port Harcourt City and Obio/Akpor local government areas.
The campaign was aimed at enlightening community dwellers and other stakeholders in the various local government areas on the RAAMP project implementation and programme activities.
The Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Agriculture, Mr Maurice Ogolo, said this at Opobo town, Ngo, Port Harcourt City and Rumuodumanya, headquarters of the four local government areas respectively, during the sensitization campaign.
Ogolo said apart from the ?4billion, the government has also made available fertilizers and other farm inputs to farmers in the various local government areas.
The Permanent Secretary who is the Chairman, State Steering Committee for the project, said RAAMP will construct roads that will connect farms to markets to enable farmers and fishermen sell their farms produce and fishes.
He also said rural roads would be constructed to farms and fishing settlements, and warned against any act that will lead to the cancellation of the projects in the four local government areas.
According to him, the World Bank and Federal Government which are the financiers of the programme will not condone such acts like kidnapping, marching ground and other acts inimical to the successful implementation of the projects in their respective areas.
At PHALGA, Ogolo asserted that the city will benefit in the areas of roads and bridge construction.
He noted that RAAMP was thriving in both the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; Lagos and other states in the country, stressing that the project should also be given the seriousness it deserves in Rivers State.
Speaking at Opobo town, the headquarters of Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Area, the project coordinator, RAAMP, Mr.Joshua Kpakol, said the programme would reduce poverty in the state.
According to him, both fishermen and farmers will maximally benefit from the programme.
At Ngo which is the headquarters of Andoni Local Government Area, Kpakol said roads will be constructed to all remote fishing settlements.
He said Rivers State is lucky to be among the states implementing the project, and stressed the need for the people to embrace it.
Meanwhile, Kpakol said at PHALGA that RAAMP is a project that will transform the lives of farmers, traders and other stakeholders in the area.
He urged the stakeholders to spread the information to their various communities.
However, some of the stakeholders at Opobo town complained about the destruction of their farms by bulls allegedly owed by traditional rulers in the area, as well as incessant stealing of their canoes at waterfronts.
At Ngo, Archbishop Elkanah Hanson, founder of El-Shaddai Church, commended the World Bank and the Federal Government for bringing the projects to Andoni.
He stressed the need for the construction of roads to fishing settlements in the area.
Also, a former Commissioner for Agriculture in the state and Okan Ama of Ekede, HRH King Gad Harry, noted that storage facilities have become necessary for a successful agricultural programme.
Harry also stressed the need for the programme to be made sustainable.
In their separate speeches, the administrators of Andoni and Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Areas, pledged their readiness to support the programme.
At Port Harcourt City, the Administrator, Dr Arthur Kalagbor, represented by the Head of Local Government Administration, Port Harcourt City, Mr Clifford Paul, said the city would support the implementation of the programme in the area.
Also, the administrator of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area, Dr Clifford Ndu Walter, represented by Mr Michael Elenwo, pledged to support the programme in his local government area.
Among dignitaries at the Obio/Akpor stakeholders engagement is the chairman, Rivers State Traditional Rulers Council and paramount ruler of Apara Kingdom, HRM Eze Chike Wodo, amongst others.
John Bibor
President Bola Tinubu has ordered the commencement of personnel audit and skill gap analysis across all cadres of federal civil servants.
The president gave this directive in Abuja, yesterday, while speaking at the International Civil Service Conference, reaffirming his resolve to achieve efficiency and professional service delivery in the civil service.
“I have authorized the comprehensive personnel audit and skill gap analysis across the federal civil service to deepen capacity. I urge all responsible stakeholders to prioritize timely completion of this critical exercise, to begin implementing targeted reforms, to realize the full benefit of a more agile, competent and responsive civil service,” the president announced.
Tinubu further directed all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), to prioritise data integrity and sovereignty in national interest.
He called for the capture, protection and strategic publication of public sector data in line with the Nigeria Data Protection Act of 2023.
“We must let our data speak for us. We must publish verified data assets within Nigeria and share them internationally recognized as fruitful. This will allow global benchmarking organisation to track our progress in real time and help us strengthen our position on the world stage. This will preserve privacy and uphold data sovereignty,” Tinubu added.
President Tinubu hailed the federal civil service as the “engine” driving his Renewed Hope Agenda, and the vehicle for delivering sustainable national development.
He submitted that the roles of civil servants remain indispensable in modern governance, declaring that in the face of a fast-evolving digital and economic landscape, the civil service must remain agile, future-ready, and results-driven.
“This maiden conference is a bold step toward redefining governance in an era of rapid transformation. An innovative Civil Service ensures we meet today’s needs and overcome tomorrow’s challenges.
“It captures our collective ambition to reimagine and reposition the civil service. In today’s rapid, evolving world of technology, innovation remains critical in ensuring that the civil service is dynamic, digital” the President said.
Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Walson-Jack in her welcome address told the President that his presence and strong words of commendation at the conference has renewed the morale and mandate of public servants across the country.
Walson-Jack described Tinubu as the backbone of driving transformation in the Nigerian civil service, and noted that the takeaways from past study tours undertaken to understudy the civil service in Singapore, the UK and US under her leadership, is already yielding multiplier effects.
Walson-Jack assured Tinubu that her office, in collaboration with reform-minded stakeholders, will not relent in accelerating the implementation of the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan, FCSSIP 25.
She affirmed that digitalisation, performance management, and continuous learning remain key pillars in strengthening accountability, transparency, and service delivery across MDAs.
Walson-Jack reaffirmed that the civil service is determined to exceed expectations by embedding a culture of innovation, ethical leadership, and citizen-centred governance in the heart of public administration.