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Gunmen Attack Oyo Commissioner, Kill Driver

The Oyo State Police Command, yesterday, confirmed the killing of a driver attached to the Commissioner of Lands, Housing and Survey in the state, Mr. Abdulraheem Abiodun.
The police spokesman, Mr. Gbenga Fedeyi told newsmen that the fleeing assailants who attacked the commissioner at Academy area of Ibadan, the state capital also shot the police orderly attached to the commissioner.
Fadeyi said, “The incident occurred around 8.30 p.m. on Wednesday and the police commissioner has directed that the fleeing armed men be apprehended.
“They killed the driver and also shot the police orderly attached to the Commissioner for Lands. They will be tracked and arrested to face prosecution,” Fadeyi added.
A government source said, “The sad development would be thoroughly investigated especially coming 24hours after Governor Seyi Makinde launched 100 vehicles to aid security patrol in the state.”
An eyewitness also confided to our correspondent that the commissioner with a team of sympathisers rushed the deceased to the Accident and Emergency Unit of the University College Hospital, last Wednesday night.
“I saw the commissioner making calls to the governor, on what happened to him and his aides. The governor ordered the security adviser to immediately proceed to the UCH because it was not quite long after the call, that he (adviser) arrived.
“The motive behind this attack could not be ascertained as these armed men after attacking the convoy reportedly took away the gun belonging to the wounded police officer,” he added.
Similarly, some gunmen suspected to be kidnappers have abducted six persons, including a nursing mother with her three-week-old baby at Hayin Danmani Community in Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State.
It was gathered that the incident took place last Tuesday night but community residents got to know about it last Wednesday.
Our correspondent also gathered that the kidnappers may have returned to the community on Wednesday night.
A source said, “We heard gunshots Wednesday night and it is possible that they (kidnappers) revisited.”
Meanwhile, it was also gathered that the kidnappers contacted the family of one of the victims and demanded a ransom of N10million.
A source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, told our correspondent that when the gunmen invaded the community, they shot indiscriminately and went from house-to-house to pick their victims.
One of the community leaders said the residents of the community were not living in fear.
He said while the kidnappers picked the nursing mother and her three-week-old baby, her husband managed to escape.
He added that the kidnappers made away with six other people, who were mostly peasants.
He said, “The incident actually took place on Tuesday night but the community discovered the abduction Wednesday morning.
“We learnt that they made away with a nursing mother and her three-week-old baby.
“You know that Mahuta, Mando, Rigasa, Danmani communities share common boundaries with Dogon Daji which lead to Birnin Gwari, where a military operation is ongoing. It is possible that the military operation is becoming unbearable for the bandits. So, they are being pushed into the communities mentioned.”
As of the time of filing this report, the state command of the police had yet to confirm the incident as the spokesman of the command, DSP Yakubu Sabo, didn’t respond to our correspondent’s telephone call.
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I’m Committed To Community Dev – Ajinwo
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RSG Tasks Rural Dwellers On RAAMP …As Sensitization Team Visits Akulga, Degema, Three Others

Rivers State Head of Service, Dr (Mrs) Inyingi Brown, has called on rural communities in the State to embrace the Rural Access and Agricultural marketing project (RAAMP) with a view to improving their living conditions.
This follows the ongoing sensitization campaign by the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) visits to Degema, Abonnema, Afam headquarters of Degema, Akuku Toru and Oyigbo Etche and Omuma local government areas respectively.
Dr Brown who was represented by the Deputy Director, Special Duties in her office, Mrs Dein Akpanah, said RAAMP was initiated by the Federal Government and World Bank to economically empower rural dwellers.s
She said the World Bank understands the plights of rural farmers and traders in the State, and therefore came up with the programme to address them.
According to her, RAAMP will improve the conditions of farmers, traders and fishermen, and therefore, behoves on every rural communities in the State to embrace the programme.
The Head of Service also said the programme would support the youths to be gainfully employed while bridges and roads will be built to link farms and fishing settlements.
Also speaking, the State project coordinator, Mr Joshua Kpakol, said the programme has the potential of creating millionaires among farmers and fishermen in the State.
Kpakol who was represented by Engr. Sam Tombari, said RAAMP would help farmers and fishermen to preserve their produce.
According to him, the project will build cold rooms and Silos for preservation of crops and fishes while access roads will also be created to link farmers and fishermen to the market.
He, however, warned them against any act that will lead to the suspension of the projects by the World Bank.
Kpakol particularly warned against acts such as kidnapping, marching ground, gender based violence and child labour, adding that such acts if they occur may lead to the cancellation of the project by the World Bank.
During the visit to Oyigbo local government area, Mr Joshua Kpakol, said the team was there to let them know how they will benefit from the Raamp.
The coordinator who was personally at Oyigbo said the World Bank introduced the project to check food insecurity in the State.
He said already 19 states in Nigeria are already benefitting from the project and called on them to embrace the project.
Meanwhile, stakeholders in the three local government areas have commended the World Bank for including their areas in the project.
They, however, complained over the incessant attacks by pirates on their waterways.
At Degema, King Agolia of Ke kingdom said land was a major problem in the kingdom.
King Agolia represented by High Chief Alpheus Damiebi said many indigenes of the kingdom are willing to go into farming but are handicapped by lack of land.
Also at Degema, the representative of the Omu Onyam Ekeim of Usokun Degema kingdom, Osoabo Isaac, said Degema has embraced the programme but needed more information on the implementation of the programme.
Similarly, while High Chief Precious Abadi advised that the project should not be narrowed to only crop farming, a community women leader, Mrs Orikinge Eremabo Otto, called for the construction of cold rooms in all fishing settlements in the area.
At Abonnema, Mr Diamond Kio linked the problem of the area to incessant piracy along waterways.
He also expressed fears over the possibility of the project being hijacked by politicians.
Also at Abonnema, a stakeholder, Ikiriko Kelvin, called on the World Bank to design an agricultural project that will suit the riverine environment, while at Oyigbo, HRH Eze Boniface Akawo expressed satisfaction with the project.
John Bibor
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Senate Replaces Natasha As Committee Chairman

The political mudslinging between the Senate leadership and Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan continued yesterday as the Senate named Senator Aniekan Bassey as the new Chairman of the Committee on Diaspora and Non-Governmental Organisations.
Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, announced the appointment during yesterday’s plenary, confirming Bassey’s replacement of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, who is currently on suspension.
Akpoti-Uduaghan was reassigned to the Diaspora and NGOs Committee in February after she was removed as Chair of the Senate Committee on Local Content during a minor reshuffle.
Bassey is the senator representing Akwa Ibom North-East Senatorial District.
Although no reason was given for her removal yesterday, the change is believed to be connected to her unresolved suspension.
In May, Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court ordered her reinstatement and directed her to tender an apology to the Senate.
However, the Senate has insisted it has not received a certified true copy of the court judgment.
Akpoti-Uduaghan who represents Kogi Central, has yet to resume her legislative duties despite a recent court ruling that voided her suspension.
In a televised interview on Tuesday, Akpoti-Uduaghan said she was awaiting the Certified True Copy of the judgment before officially returning to plenary, citing legal advice and respect for institutional process.
Although the Federal High Court described her suspension as “excessive and unconstitutional”, a legal opinion dated July 5 and attributed to the Senate’s counsel, Paul Daudu (SAN), argued that the ruling lacked any binding directive to enforce her reinstatement.
Akpoti-Uduaghan, one of only three female senators in the current assembly, said the continued delay in allowing her return was not only a denial of her mandate but also a blow to democratic representation.
“By keeping me out of the chambers, the Senate is not just silencing Kogi Central, it’s denying Nigerian women and children representation. We are only three female senators now, down from eight,” she said.