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How To Sustain Women, By Jonathan, Azikiwe, Others
Two former First Ladies of Nigeria, Dame Patience Jonathan and Prof Uche Azikiwe have enjoined the menfolk to join forces with the women to move the country and Rivers State forward.
Dame Jonathan, who delivered a keynote address at the Rivers State Golden Jubilee anniversary for Women’s Day at the Dr. Obi Wali Conference Centre, yesterday, in Port Harcourt, stressed that the importance of women in the political and economic life cannot be ignored.
While listing the milestones of some Rivers women in various spheres of governance, Dame Jonathan observed that Rivers State has produced the first female Deputy Governor, a Chief Judge, Customary Court of Appeal and Supreme Court Justices.
She lauded the state Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike, for pursuing the nation’s gender policy which recommends 35 per cent of positions to women, and emphasized that a mix of both men and woman brings balance in governance.
She called on women to stop playing the second fiddle and ensure they assert themselves in politics, saying, “we need to prepare, we need to struggle, we need to pray, we need to fast and we need to follow peace.”
On her part, Prof Uche Azikiwe, in her paper titled, “Status of Women and Politics in Nigeria,” noted that one feat done by the Wike administration was to select a woman as deputy.
The wife of late Owelle of Onitsha and Nigeria’s first President, argued that women are not the weak vessels, but that society has labelled them so as to put them behind.
She urged women to break from such label and submitted that research has shown that women and men have the same intelligent quotient.
Azikiwe believed that when men collaborate with women, the society will be better, recalling that, “before colonial rule, women played serious role in the communities and such role can still be revived today.”
On her part, a woman leader in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Hajia Aisha Aliyu, said the state has a lot to celebrate as the governor for the first time chose a female as deputy.
She was of the belief that after exhausting his tenure, Wike may handover to a female governor, as she urged the governor to continue with the good works he is doing in the state.
Also, Senator Grace Folashade Bent from Adamawa South Constituency, stated that every woman was free and superior, and advised women not see themselves as inferior.
Bent appealed to Wike to always give women support to grow in politics and economically.
Commenting on the paper, Mrs Eunice Igwe, a top woman leader in Rivers State, emphasized the importance of government in women development.
She called on women to be focused and work hard in their professions in order to make impact.
The same view was held by former chairperson of Federation of International Women Lawyers in the state, Mrs. Florence Amiesimaka, who held that women should use their various social clubs in communities as launch pad to display their leadership skills.
Similarly, former chairperson of National Council of Women Societies, Mrs. Hannah Agumah, harped on the need for advocacy.
Through advocacy, she said we can engage community leaders and other players at the local level to fully involve women by jettisoning some harmful practices that bar them in contributing to development.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has cautioned parents to closely monitor their children’s craving for cookies and gummies, warning that some of the products may contain illicit substances being smuggled into the country.
In a statement posted yesterday, NDLEA’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, said recent seizures by the agency’s officers had revealed attempts by criminal elements to introduce prohibited substances under the guise of everyday snacks.
“As parents, if your kids and young ones always crave for cookies and gummies, you may have to pay a little more attention. There may be more to it than ordinary cookies and gummies,” Babafemi wrote, sharing images of seized packages.
The photos showed colourful pouches of “Cookies Delta 8 Gummies” in flavours such as Hawaiian Rain Pineapple Guava and Thai Mango, labelled as vegan and hemp-derived, alongside the actual gummy products.
The warning comes amid a major interception by the Nigeria Customs Service at the Tin Can Island Port in Lagos.
Officers seized two 40-foot containers containing large quantities of cannabis-infused products concealed among legitimate imports such as used vehicles, generators, batteries and fabrics.
The consignment included thousands of Delta-8 cannabis pre-roll cookies, packs of cannabis-infused gummies and other cannabis-infused cookies, with a combined estimated street value of about ?373.8m.
The items were subsequently handed over to the NDLEA.
NDLEA officials described the products, which originated from the United States and were packaged to resemble ordinary vegan snacks with appealing flavours, as an emerging public health threat.
They noted that the attractive packaging could appeal especially to children, students and young people, raising the risk of accidental consumption of concentrated cannabis.
The Rivers State Waste Management Agency (RIWAMA) has announced plans to partner with the Police Community Relations Committee (PCRC) to strengthen efforts at combating illegal waste dumping and improving environmental sanitation across the state.
The partnership was unveiled during a meeting between officials of RIWAMA and the leadership of the Rivers State chapter of the PCRC in Port Harcourt, recently, where both organisations pledged to work together to restore the Garden City status of the state capital.
In his speech, the Supervisor of Market and Community Sanitation in RIWAMA, Mr. Omereji Ukoha, said the collaboration was in line with the vision of the agency’s Managing Director, Dr. Ibimina Wokoma, and the Board Chairman, Dr. Samuel Nwanosike, to promote a cleaner and healthier environment.
Ukoha described the PCRC as a strategic grassroots partner capable of mobilising communities and driving behavioural change through sustained public enlightenment on proper waste disposal.
He expressed concern over the increasing rate of indiscriminate refuse dumping in parts of Port Harcourt, particularly in New GRA, where blocked drainage channels and illegal shanties have continued to contribute to flooding and environmental degradation.
According to him, the agency is determined to intensify enforcement against environmental offenders, warning that unregistered cart pushers and residents who patronise them would be prosecuted in accordance with the provisions of the RIWAMA Act, 2014.
The RIWAMA official urged residents to embrace proper waste disposal practices and patronise only government-approved waste operators in order to safeguard public health and protect the environment.
Responding, the Chairman of the Police Community Relations Committee in Rivers State, Dr. Voke Emore, commended RIWAMA for seeking collaboration with the committee in addressing environmental challenges confronting the state.
Emore said the PCRC would deploy its community-based structures across the state to support public sensitisation and encourage residents to comply with environmental sanitation regulations.
He also called on local government councils to play more active roles in waste management, noting that they collect sanitation levies and should complement the efforts of the state government in maintaining a clean environment.
The PCRC chairman described indiscriminate refuse disposal as a serious environmental and public health concern, stressing that sustained collaboration among government agencies, community leaders and residents remained critical to achieving lasting sanitation goals.
Both organisations expressed optimism that the partnership would promote cleaner communities, reduce environmental hazards and strengthen public participation in efforts to ensure a healthier and more sustainable environment for the people of Rivers State.
King Onunwor
The Rivers State Police Command has arrested five suspected members of a kidnapping syndicate allegedly terrorising communities in Oyigbo Local Government Area of the State.
The State Police Command disclosed this in a statement by its Public Relations Officer, ASP Blessing Agabe, in Port Harcourt, recently.
The suspects were arrested during a coordinated operation at Oyigbo, following directives by the Commissioner of Police, Rivers State Command, CP Olugbenga Adewole Adepoju.
Those arrested were Ezekiel Emmanuel, 44, from Benue State; Chukwuma Mbanefor, 51, from Anambra State; Nicholas Diala, 65, from Imo State; Ndubuisi Uwakwe, 49, from Abia State; and Ifeanyi Nwakwo, 51, from Imo State.
The Command said the arrest represented another significant operational success in its ongoing efforts to dismantle criminal networks operating in the State.
According to the Police, preliminary investigation indicated that the suspects were allegedly involved in kidnapping operations within Rivers State.
The suspects, during interrogation, allegedly confessed to their involvement in kidnapping and further admitted participating in several operations carried out in Kom-Kom, Railway, Obeama and Afam communities.
The Command said investigation was ongoing, with efforts intensified to identify and apprehend other members of the suspected syndicate who may be connected with the criminal activities.
The Police boss said the operation reflected the implementation of operational directives and the intelligence-driven policing strategy of the Inspector-General of Police, IGP Olatunji Rilwan Disu, psc, NPM.
Adepoju reaffirmed the Command’s determination to sustain aggressive intelligence-led operations against kidnapping, cultism, armed robbery and other violent crimes across Rivers State.
He warned kidnappers and other criminal elements operating in the State that there would be no safe haven for them, stressing that the Command would relentlessly pursue, arrest and ensure that those found culpable were brought to justice.
The Commissioner further assured residents of the Command’s commitment to protecting lives and property, urging members of the public to remain vigilant and cooperate with security agencies in the fight against crime.
He appealed to residents to provide the Police with credible and timely information capable of assisting security operatives in preventing criminal activities and apprehending suspected criminals.
The Command urged members of the public who may have useful information on the activities of the suspected kidnapping syndicate or other criminal elements to contact the Police through its emergency lines, assuring that such information would assist ongoing investigations.
King Onunwor