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Rivers Safe For All, Wike Insists
The Governor of Rivers State, Chief Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, has pledged his administration’s continuous support to the efforts of NYSC management towards improving the operations of the scheme in making corps members self-reliant.
Chief Wike, represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Hon. Kenneth Kobani, made the declaration in an address during the swearing in ceremony of 2018 batch “A” corps members at Nonwa-Gbam today.
The Governor who also appreciated the efforts of the NYSC management in harnessing, developing, and building entrepreneurial capacity of corps members, which he described as not only timely and self sustaining but also a remarkable feat, urged the corps members to shun cultism, religious intolerance, political violence, and other forms of anti-social behavior.
Chief Wike called on the corps members not to allow disgruntled and unpatriotic individuals use them for selfish and destructive purposes, reiterating that the state government will spare no resources in ensuring the security of the lives and property of the corps members as they carry out their national service in the state.
The State Governor who said that the scheme has impacted positively on the psyche of Nigerians by contributing immensely to the development of the rural areas through various projects of the scheme, announced that Rivers State is the safest state in the country, and that the establishment of the neighbourhood security agency is a statement of the government’s commitment to safety and security of all law abiding residents of the state.
Earlier, the State Coordinator of NYSC in the state, Mr. Sunday R. Aroni, said that the several awards awarded the Governor attest to the good governance the people of Rivers State are enjoying under the leadership of Governor Wike, thanking him for his support and fatherly disposition to the programme implementation efforts of the scheme despite the harsh economic reality in the country.
Mr. Aroni who announced that 2,770 corps members were deployed to the state during the 2018 batch “A” service year, requested the state government to provide additional boreholes and a dedicated transformer on the orientation camp, and approval of funds to augment that provided by the Federal Government.
Highlights of the event were the swearing in of the Corps members by the Chief Judge of the state, Hon. Justice Adanma Iyayi-Lanmikanra, represented by Hon. Justice C.K. Darpa-Ardo, tug of war and martial arts displays, and match past by the corps members.
Oba of Benin, Ewuare II, has received 119 stolen artefacts from the Netherlands.
The Oba who disclosed this on Wednesday in Benin, the Edo State capital, said plans by some international cartel to re-loot the artefacts were thwarted after he prayed to God and the ancestors.
He said, “I thank President Bola Tinubu for supporting and committing to the efforts former President Buhari put in place to ensure the artifacts are not re-looted because there were groups in this country believed to be an international cartel that had all sorts of conspiracy to re-loot our artifacts.
“They stole and burnt our Kingdom. They killed my people and tried to kill their spirit and their morale. Today, the boldness, courage, and bravery of the Benin people are still there. Events of 1897 reduced that to a significant level that Sometimes when I see my people, they are afraid of the unknown.
“The return of these objects has reawakened the courage we had in our people. We do not want modern-day politics and partisan politics to diminish the courage of our people.
“The Director General of the National Commission for Museums and Monuments has been doing wonderful work. His predecessor was part of the conspiracy to re-loot our artefacts. We had a running battle in this hall.
“I addressed my Chiefs in Benin language, and I said these artefacts belong to my ancestors, and I will not sit on the ancient throne and watch the artefacts re-looted. They would rather remain where they are than be re-looted. I thank the government of the Netherlands for working with us. This is part of the efforts to reawaken the morale and spirit of my people.
“After 1897, the kingdom was reduced. There was a government in this state that wanted to reduce the kingdom more and scatter it. I am angry when I speak about it. Why would anybody want to scatter the kingdom.
“The youths were courageous like the youths of those days. They were not afraid of anybody. I vowed that it would not happen. Not in my reign. Not while I am sitting on this throne. God heard my prayers. My ancestors heard my prayers. This throne is not partisan, but I should support what is good for my people.
“I urge the youths to be tough and strong in the face of adversity. This is not for anybody else. It is for my ancestors.”
The Benin Monarch further prayed for the return of more artefacts.
The NCMM DG, Olugbile Holloway, said the commission and the Benin Royal Palace were working hard to ensure more artefacts were returned.
Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo, who was represented by the Secretary to State Government, Barr. Musa Ikhilor said his administration would continue to build necessary infrastructure to preserve the returned artefacts as well as collaborate with the Federal Government to improve the storage system for the artefacts.
The General Director of the Wereld Museum, Marieke Van Bommel, said, “The artefacts are looted, and we have a policy in the Netherlands to bring them back. We are bringing back 119 artefacts. We don’t have more. These are the collections in the Netherlands. There are more collections in Europe, but that is not up to us. They have been with us for over 100 years.”
The Nigeria Education Loan Fund said its Student Loan Application System has now been fully digitised to streamline and accelerate the student loan processing experience for institutions and applicants.
“With this upgrade, all accredited institutions are now required to request access to SLAS to verify and upload student data related to loan applications. This is a critical step that ensures the timely processing and disbursement of approved student loans,” NELFUND said in a statement by its Director of Corporate Communications, Oseyemi Oluwatuyi.
The Fund also said that institutions that have not yet onboarded the system are kindly requested to send an access request to registration@nelf.gov.ng without delay.
He said once granted access, institutions will be able to view a real-time dashboard of their students’ loan applications, verify submitted data, and track the status of each application.
“We urge all institutions to take immediate action in the interest of their students, as verification and data upload by the institutions are mandatory steps before final approval and disbursement can be completed,” the statement said.
The implementation of the student loan scheme is President Bola Tinubu’s flagship project in the education sector.
Barely a month after his inauguration as president, Tinubu signed the Access to Higher Education Act, which creates a legal framework for granting loans to indigent or low-income Nigerians to facilitate the payment of their fees in Nigerian tertiary institutions.
The law, reenacted, created the Nigerian Education Loan Fund.
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