Niger Delta

Edo Special Marshals Strategise For Yuletide

Published

6 years ago

November 13, 2019

In order to ensure safer roads during the yuletide and beyond, Special Marshals in Edo State, on Monday, held a sectoral workshop to brainstorm on possible ways of achieving optimal efficiency.
In his opening remarks at the one-day workshop, the State Coordinator of the Special Marshals, Mr Friday Ekhator said that he and his colleagues were working towards being regarded as the best in the country.
Ekhator said that the special marshals were engaged in aggressive paradigm shift that had engendered unprecedented initiatives to achieve the vision of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC).
“Presently, there are no fewer than 774 special marshals in the state, and even with this figure, there is still need for more marshals.
“The theme of the workshop: “Special Marshals Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow”, is apt, as it will provide the incoming marshals an opportunity to know the historical antecedents of the marshals.
“They will know where we are coming from, where we are presently and x-ray into the future prospects of special marshals in the country,” he said.
Ekhator expressed optimism that the workshop would enhance the productivity, efficiency and visibility of the special marshals on the road.
While declaring the workshop open, Mr Boboye Oyeyemi, the FRSC Corps Marshal, said that nobody could separate special marshals from regular marshals.
Boboye, who was represented by Mr Kehinde Adeleye, Zonal Commanding Officer (ZCO), Zone Rs 5, comprising Edo, Delta and Anambra, said that the workshop was meant to prepare the special marshals for better performance on the road.
He said that the workshop would also serve as an assessment on the journey so far by the special marshals since inception as well as enable possible corrections, where needed.
The corps marshal stressed that the synergy and collaboration between the special marshals and the corps was for efficiency and effectiveness, adding that the collaboration went beyond the workshop.
According to him, special marshals are special people drawn from across various vocations, who volunteer to help maintain services on the road.
Boboye, however, threatened to de-marshal any special marshal, who henceforth failed to participate in the National Patrol Day.
Earlier, Edo Sector Commander, Mr Anthony Oko had said that it was a season of rumination on the 30 years of existence of the special marshal.
Oko explained that the services required of special marshals as individuals and as a group were primarily surveillance, traffic control, enforcement and public education.
He noted that the key functions were expected to tame recklessness of road users and eliminate mediocrity among them.
“While I encourage the leadership of the Edo special marshals to maintain their tempo on capacity building for members, it is imperative for them to have enough preparations to handle the practical dimensions of being visible on our roads,” Oko said

Niger Delta

Navy Pledges Improved Patrols, Welfare Boost For Personnel

Published

24 hours ago

January 9, 2026

The Tide

The Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Admiral Idi Abbas, has pledged to ensure improved welfare for personnel and more patrols on the maritime corridors of the nation.

He disclosed this during an on the spot assessment of things at the Eastern Naval Command (ENC), Calabar, on Wednesday.

According to him, there is the need for officers to always be ready, by improving on their welfare, in a bid to keep the country secured.

“I am here for an on the spot assessment of our operations and like you have seen, I have also gone round to check the ongoing buildings.

”These are welfare issues and for us to be able to have our men ready and keep us secured, their welfare needs to be catered for.

“So, we are here to kill two birds with one stone, which are basically operations and welfare issues.

”I am happy with what the command is doing; it is doing well in terms of keeping the maritime environment safe.

“We will continue doing what we are doing and improve on that, which is patrol of the waters and increase in the area of surveillance”, he stated.

As part of his visit, Abbas commissioned the 12×1 Junior Rates Accommodation Block A and B, at the Navy Barracks at Atimbo in Calabar.

The naval chief also inspected other ongoing projects in the Akim Barracks, 1006 flats and the Navy hotel, all within Calabar.

Niger Delta

Delta Begins Uromi Junction Flyover Construction

Published

1 day ago

January 9, 2026

The Tide

The Delta State Government says it has began construction work on the long-awaited Uromi Junction Flyover Bridge in Agbor, Ika South Local Government Area of the state.

Director-General (DG) of the Delta State Bureau for Orientation and Communications, Dr. Fred Oghenesivbe, confirmed the development to newsme in Asaba.

According to him, heavy-duty construction equipment have arrived the site, a project which is being handled by Julius Berger Nigeria PLC, one of the country’s leading construction firms.

Oghenesivbe, described the flyover as a massive infrastructure project with far-reaching socio-economic benefits for the area.

He said the project would significantly transform the Agbor metropolis by easing traffic congestion, improving the city’s aesthetics, and boosting commercial activities within the local government area.

He described the State Governor, Sheriff Oborevwori, as a promise-keeper and pragmatic leader whose administration remains committed to infrastructure development and economic growth across the state.

The DG expressed confidence in Julius Berger’s capacity to deliver the project within record time and according to the highest construction standards.

“The Uromi Junction serves as a major link between different parts of the country but has recently been plagued by severe traffic congestion, making vehicular movement increasingly difficult”, he noted.

He urged residents to cooperate with the contractor and safeguard construction materials and equipment to ensure the timely completion of the project.

Niger Delta

A’Ibom Rejects Ekid Ownership Claim Of Stubbs Creek

Published

1 day ago

January 9, 2026

The Tide

The Akwa Ibom State Government has rejected claims by the Ekid People’s Union that it owns land within the Stubbs Creek Forest Reserve, describing such assertions as “false, misleading and a distortion of the judicial record.”

In a recent statement, signed by the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Uko Udom, the state government said it was compelled to respond in the “overriding public interest,” despite a pending court case instituted by the same group.

The government stated that contrary to claims circulating in the media, the historic case of Ntiaro and Ikpak vs. Ibok Etok Akpan and Edoho Ekid, decided by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in 1918, did not vest ownership of Stubbs Creek land in any ethnic group or community.

“The final judgement merely dismissed the claims before the court and granted title to no party whatsoever”, the government stated, adding that “any assertion to the contrary is false, misleading and a distortion of the judicial record.”

According to the statement, the land was lawfully reserved by the colonial government under Forest Reserve Order No. 45 of 1930, later amended in 1941, 1955 and 1962, with “the principal rights of the land forfeited to the Government upon the change of status.”

It said the area has since been administered under applicable laws by the Akwa Ibom State Government, which “has at all times acted within its lawful authority in the management and allocation of land in the area for legitimate public and economic purposes.”

Citing the 1999 Constitution and the Land Use Act, the government stated that all land in the state is vested in the governor to be held in trust for the common benefit of Nigerians, noting that claims of absolute ancestral ownership are subject to existing laws.

The government “categorically denies allegations of fraud or misrepresentation” regarding Stubbs Creek or investments there and warned it would take “appropriate legal steps” against any individual or group publishing false or defamatory material capable of undermining public confidence or discouraging investment

The statement also assured the federal government of “full access and Right of Way” for the proposed Coastal Highway through any part of the state.

The government statement followed an earlier report in which the Ekid People’s Union accused Governor Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom State of making comments that allegedly linked the community to terrorism, while he was defending the Coastal Highway project passing through the Stubbs Creek.

Ekid People’s Union maintained that the people of Ekid are the original owners of the land known as Stubbs Creek Forest Reserve, arguing that their ancestral ownership predates colonial rule.

The group cited historical occupation, customary ownership and a 1918 Privy Council case, which it claimed affirmed Ekid rights over the territory.

The union also accused the Akwa Ibom State Government of misrepresenting history to justify taking over the land for commercial interests and the proposed Coastal Highway, an allegation the state government has denied.

The group rejected any suggestion linking the Ekid people to criminality or terrorism, insisting they were peaceful citizens defending their ancestral land through lawful and civic means.