Nation
THE STATES
Borno
The Borno State Road Maintenance Agency (BORMA) has unveiled “Operation Zero Pothole” to repair roads in the state.
The Chairman of the agency, Alhaji Satomi Ahmad told newsmen in Maiduguri that the road repairs project was on major towns in the state.
Ahmad said the agency had completed arrangements to commence work on the roads in Maiduguri metropolis, adding that similar projects would be executed in Biu town.
He listed some of the roads to be fixed to include Post Office-Industrial Court, Jidari-Polo and Pompomari-Jidari.
Ekiti
The Ekiti State House of Assembly has sent letter of protest to the Acting Chairman of Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Mr. Ibrahim Magu over the arrest and detention of the Commissioner for Finance, Mr. Toyin Ojo and the Accountant General, Mrs. Yemi Owolabi.
In the letter, the Assembly described the arrests of Ojo and Owolabi as “premeditated, malicious, politically motivated, contemptuous and unconstitutional in all ramifications;” saying it smacked of “gangsterism by an agency that derives its power from the constitution but acts in clear contempt of the rule of law.”
The letter, which was dated October 2 and signed by the Speaker, Mr. Kolawole Oluwawole was delivered at the EFCC’s Abuja office last Tuesday.
FCT
Mrs. Patience Jonathan has asked President Muhammadu Buhari to treat her the way her husband, former President Goodluck Jonathan treated Aisha Buhari when he (President Buhari) lost the 2011 presidential election.
Patience, who is under investigation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission said this in a statement by her Chief Press Secretary, Belema Meshack-Hart recently.
The former first lady said she was being probed because of the prominent role she played during the build-up to the 2015 elections.
Patience had described Buhari who was the then presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress as a brain-dead man.
Kaduna
Resident doctors in Kaduna State have begun an indefinite strike over “ the sorry state” of healthcare facilities in state government hospitals.
President, Association of Resident Doctors in the state, Dr. Joseph Jokshan said at a press briefing in Kaduna that the state government had not responded to any of the doctors’ demands issued 21 days ago.
He said that the doctors were pained to begin the strike, but “unfortunately, we cannot effectively carry out these tasks in the current sorry state of our healthcare facilities.”
Jokshan listed issues that prompted the strike to include poor funding, equipping and staffing of hospitals and non- provision of living environment for medical, health workers and patients.
Kano
The Kano State Chapter of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) in collaboration with the Islamic Banking and Finance Institute Nigeria (IBFIN) recently organised a sensitisation workshop for journalists in the state on the Fundamentals of Islamic Economy, Banking and Finance.
The Managing Director of the IBFIN, Alhaji Sani Aminu said the aim of the one-day workshop was to enhance the knowledge of the journalists on the importance of non-interest banking in the country.
He said the purpose of choosing journalists to benefit from the training was due to their importance and contributions towards the development of the nation’s economy.
“When you educate a journalist, you educate the entire people because they are enlightening and educating and informing the general public.
Kebbi
Governor Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi State has promised to provide skills acquisition equipment and other materials to inmates of the two prisons in the state with a view to properly rehabilitating them.
Bagudu made the promise in Birnin Kebbi while donating tailoring machines to the inmates of the two prison inmates in the state.
The governor urged the inmates to consider their incarceration as an act of God meant to reform them and not to abuse their personality.
He called on them to change their attitudes, before and after the expiration of their prison terms.
Kogi
Kogi State Government has solicited the co-operation of media organisations in the state to help in sensitising the people on the need to obey environmental sanitation laws.
The Commissioner for Environment and Natural Resources, Mrs Rosemary Osikoya made the call in an interview with newsmen in Lokoja.
According to Osikoya, the call is necessary because the media remains a critical stakeholder to the society and the ministry, adding that it also touches the life of everybody and affects people in several ways.
Kwara
Kwara State Government has received N3.5 billion as its share of the federal allocation for September.
The state Commissioner for Finance, Alhaji Demola Banu who disclosed this in a statement in Ilorin said the amount was an increase over the N2.5 billion it got in August.
Banu gave the breakdown as N2.7 billion being statutory allocation and Value Added Tax (VAT) of N813 million, totaling N3.5 billion.
The commissioner said that the 16 local governments in the state received a combined allocation of N2.5 billion for September, against N1.8 billion they got in August.
Lagos
The Migrants Reintegration Centre in Ibeju-Lekki, near Lagos has rehabilitated no fewer than 100 Nigerians deported from various countries in the past four years.
The operator of the centre, Mrs Bose Aggrey told newsmen in Lagos that the deportees were mostly people, who went abroad in search of greener pastures.
Aggrey, who is also the founder of the Web of Hearts Foundation said that she had been collaborating with the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons (NCRMI) in looking after the returnees.
Nasarawa
The Nasarawa State Government says it has sponsored 19 medical and engineering students who are indigenes of the state in United Kingdom and Ukraine universities.
The Executive Secretary of Nasarawa State Scholarship Board, Mr Suleiman Abdulwahib disclosed this in an interview with newsmen recently in Lafia.
Abdulwahib said that over N160 million was spent on foreign scholarship to 16 indigenes of the state who studied medicine and engineering courses in Ukraine from 2007 to 2012.
He added the government had also spent over N33 million on three indigenes who did their post graduate programmes in UK from to 2016.
He explained that although presently, the state did not have any foreign students, it was working out modalities to award scholarships to indigenes to study in foreign countries.
Oyo
Private hospitals, mission homes and traditional birth attendants in Ibadan are recording tremendous increase in patronage following the on-going nationwide strike by health workers.
Reports indicate that the health workers’ strike which began September 20 had affected normal medical services in federal government-owned hospitals and the 54 teaching hospitals in Nigeria.
A survey of patronage in some private hospitals in Ibadan revealed that there was a high increase in the number of in- and out-patients at these hospitals.
At Ibadan Central Hospital, a senior nursing officer who pleaded for anonymity said that the hospital had been treating an average of 76 new patients daily since the strike began.
Plateau
The War Against Indiscipline (WAI) Brigade has trained 85 volunteers to fight indiscipline and corruption in Plateau State according to the State Director of the National Orientation Agency (NOA), Mr Bulus Dabit.
Dabit told newsmen last Monday in Jos that the volunteers went through three months of rigorous training that armed them to tackle the two vices and also inculcate values of patriotism into the society.
“The trainees are ready to serve Nigeria; they are ready to be engaged by the Police for community policing and intelligence gathering,” he said.
He said that the WAI volunteers also known as Community Support Brigade could also augment the efforts of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency in the fight against drugs abuse.
“Some communities have become notorious for crimes as well as drugs sale and intake”.
The Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project(HYPREP) has inducted and given orientation to 100 Ogoni youths for training on Creative Arts. The beneficiaries were drawn from Khana, Gokana, Tai and Eleme Local Government Areas of Rivers State.
The induction and orientation ceremony, which took place at the CRAB of the Department of Theatre Arts of the University of Port Harcourt on Wednesday, was a prelude to the training proper, billed to commence next Tuesday.
As usual, HYPREP issued undertaking forms to the trainees, for them to complete and submit as a guarantee that they would subject themselves to the requirements of the programme as well as be of good behaviour throughout the four-month duration of the training.
HYPREP also announced that it would pay N150,000 to each of the beneficiaries monthly, as transport and feeding allowance, stressing, however, that only those who fully participate in the training would be entitled for the allowance.
Speaking at the event, the Project Coordinator of HYPREP, Prof Nenibarini Zabbey, welcomed the trainees to the programme, saying, HYPREP’s projects are evolving and that one thing that is happening today is that the Project has gotten leadership right, by making promises and keeping those promises.
According to him, the Project had equally promised to move away from rudimentary skills acquisition to high impacts acquisition levels, which it has kept today by sponsoring the training on Creative Arts.
He noted that in planning its livelihood programmes for Ogoni youths, HYPREP has taken time out to look for skills that would add value to the lives of the beneficiaries.
Zabbey, who was represented at the event by the Director of Technical Services, Prof Damian-Paul Aguiyi said by packaging the Creative Arts training, it was expected that the Ogoni people would have their own version of Nollywood known as Ogoniwood just as Nigerians are familiar with Hollywood, Bollywood, Kannywood and Nollywood.
To achieve this goal, the Project Coordinator explained that it was the reason for choosing a reputable establishment like Halibiz Consult Limited, to partner with the Department of Theatre Arts of the University of Port Harcourt, which he described as one of the most prestigious in the Niger Delta, for the training of the beneficiaries.
He also indicated that in doing this, HYPREP was desirous of going for talents that would help the Ogoni people grow in the film industry, and urged the beneficiaries to take the training seriously.
Zabbey equally enjoined the trainees to put in their best so that in the next three to five years, they would carve a niche for themselves and become forces to reckon with in the film industry.
On her part, HYPREP’s Head of Sustainable Livelihood, Mrs Josephine Nzidee said HYPREP does what it says it will, stressing that the process of training Ogoni youths on specialised skills started three years ago.
According to her, the selection process for the training was rigorous and transparent, and was carried out by renowned actors actresses.
She disclosed that the training consists of three major aspects, which include acting, script writing and make-up, while Nollywood actors like Charles Nnoje, Ngezu J. Ngezu and award-winning make-up artist, Jude Odo would be on hand to drill and groom the beneficiaries.
Mrs Nzidee noted that the programme is a specialised training that does not have anything like starter packs but that it is purely a professional certification programme that would launch the beneficiaries into the Nollywood industry in Nigeria.
According to her, the Creative Arts training is one of the four specialised trainings organised by HYPREP to ensure that the Ogoni people are well positioned in vital industries like Aviation, Maritime, Creative Arts and Mechatronics.
She said the last of such trainings on Mechatronics would take place in the coming months, and urged the beneficiaries to take the training seriously so as to put the Ogoni people on the Nollywood map.
She further indicated that while Charles Nnoje and Ngezu J. Ngezu would take the beneficiaries on the practical aspects, Jude Odo would take them on the make-up aspects.
Also speaking, the External Relations Manager of Halibiz Consult Limited, Alabo Experience Douglas said his company gives much premium to standard and quality, and assured that the firm would give the trainees value for the money spent on the programme.
While charging the beneficiaries to be dedicated and punctual, he stressed the need for them to approach the programme with the mindset of being empty so that at the end of the day, they would benefit maximally.
On his part, the Head of the Theatre Arts Department of the University of Port Harcourt, Dr Ovunda Ihunwo said the CRAB is an acronym for Creative Review of Arts and Books, stressing that it was named by renowned playwright, Prof Ola Rotimi.
According to him, the CRAB had nurtured, groomed and produced Nollywood actors and actresses like Bobmanuel Udokwu, Ejike Asiegbu,Francis Duru, Hilda Dokubo, Monalisa Chinda, Julius Agwu, and a host of others, assuring the beneficiaries that they were on fertile environment to hone their talents.
He noted that symbolically, the crab is a nutritious seafood common in the Niger Delta, and reiterated the need for the beneficiaries to come empty for the training, as it were.
Ihunwo disclosed that the theory classes of the programme would run for three weeks while the fourth week would be for the master classes, and urged the trainees to avail themselves of the opportunity to make a difference by telling the Ogoni story, which he described as inexhaustible by themselves, in order to put Ogoni on the map.
A 23-year-old student of Nasarawa State University identified as Jatau Rilokwah, has been reportedly found dead in the university’s senior staff quarters.
A counter-insurgency expert, focused on the Lake Chad region, Zagazola Makama, disclosed this on his X handle on Tuesday.
According to him, the discovery was made on April 27, 2025, by a security officer at the university, Emmanuel Gyawo.
He stated that Gwayo was directed by Prof. Shedrack Jatau to check on his son upon arriving at the residence, and he found Rilokwah hanging from the ceiling.
“Professor Jatau, who was reportedly out of the State at the time, was informed of the incident. A team of police detectives, led by the Divisional Crime Officer of Angwan Lambu, was dispatched to the scene.
“The body showed no signs of violence, and no suicide note was found. Rilokwah was rushed to the Federal Medical Centre in Keffi, where he was confirmed dead by a medical doctor,” he further stated.
He added that the student’s corpse had been deposited in the hospital morgue.
He also quoted police sources as saying that investigations were ongoing to determine the circumstances surrounding the incident.
The Ogun State Government has partnered with Nike Art Gallery to establish a new exhibition space at the Olumo Rock Tourist Centre in Abeokuta, a move Governor Dapo Abiodun says is aimed at boosting annual tourist visits from 20,000 to over 100,000.
Abiodun disclosed the plan on Wednesday while receiving the founder of the Nike Art Gallery, Chief (Mrs) Nike Davies-Okundaye, at his office in Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta.
“I went to Olumo Rock about a month ago and I decided that we needed to do something about restoring Olumo Rock to its old glory. From statistics, Olumo Rock hosts about 20,000 people a year in its current state, and I felt that we could increase that to at least ten times,” the governor said.
As part of the plan, an events hall within the tourist centre will be repurposed as a permanent gallery operated by Nike Art Gallery.
“I told them to shut it down. Practically, we want to bring it down and turn it into a gallery for you to use as an exhibition gallery,” he told Davies-Okundaye.
He added that the gallery will be ready before the National Sports Festival in May, when the State will host about 15,000 visitors.
“I want them to be able to see our tourist sites,” he said, listing attractions such as the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library, the Ransome-Kuti family home, and the Adire market among key heritage spots to be showcased.
Highlighting Ogun’s improved infrastructure, the governor said, “Now that we’ve succeeded in having the intra and inter-state roads in place, you can come to Ogun State by rail; you can come by air. We’ve constructed one of the best airports in Nigeria, and very soon, you will be able to come by sea.”
Davies-Okundaye, in her remarks, praised the state’s efforts to promote tourism and pledged to use the new gallery to attract global attention.
“This gallery will bring many Heads of State. The one I opened in Abuja already has more than 10 Heads of State, including those from South Korea and the Czech Republic. The same will happen here,” she said.
She also applauded the Governor for his commitment to the Adire fabric industry.
“Adire is all over Nigeria, but Ogun has been promoting Adire for over 50 years. Today, the only cloth we can call our own is called Adire. This is what we can sell to the Europeans,” she said.
Abiodun reaffirmed his administration’s backing of the Adire industry, citing policies such as the Adire Ogun Digital Marketplace, compulsory wearing of Adire in the state, and provision of solar-powered production equipment to support artisans.
He also revealed plans to open a creative arts and entertainment village in partnership with Bolanle Austen-Peters, expected to be completed within two months.