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Governor Wike Directs Monarchs To Enforce Closure Of Hotels, Markets And Beer Parlours
Rivers State Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike has charged Government Recognised Traditional Rulers to set up Task Force in the respective communities to enforce the closure of markets, hotels and beer parlours across the State.
Addressing Government Recognised Traditional Rulers at the Government House, Port Harcourt on Tuesday, Governor Wike said the shutdown is necessary to slowdown the spread of coronavirus.
He said: “Set up your own Task Force in your respective domains and implement the closure of markets, hotels and beer parlours.
“This Task Force is strictly for COVID-19. The State Government will support all Traditional Rulers to carry out these responsibilities”.
Governor Wike appealed to the Traditional Rulers to work with his administration to check the transmission of coronavirus.
The Governor also called on Council Chairmen to ensure that they support the Traditional Rulers to deliver on the directive.
The Rivers State Governor regretted that the Federal Government has started playing double standards with the issue of relocation of Almajiris.
He said: “When they started relocating the Almajiris in the north, the Federal Government said nothing. Immediately they heard that we have relocated some almajiris, they came up with the declaration that it is against the inter-state movement. Why this double standard?”
Governor Wike noted that his administration has continued to work on the state’s borders to ensure that they remain closed. He charged Local Government Chairmen to take more stringent measures to stop the influx of persons.
The Governor warned that from Thursday any shop that opens in Obio/Akpor or Port Harcourt Local Government Area, the building would be demolished.
On the closure of markets, Governor Wike said that the State Food Purchasing Committee headed by the Secretary to the Rivers State Government will purchase all the foodstuffs and distribute them to the people.
“We will buy off all the foods in the markets and distribute to our people. All you need is to liaise with the office of the Secretary to the Rivers State Government and we will buy and distribute. No Market should be open anywhere in the state,” he said.
Commenting on the compulsory use of face masks, Governor Wike said that he will use politicians and Traditional Rulers as examples.
“I want to use politicians and Traditional Rulers as examples if they fail to wear face masks in their cars. If you are not wearing face masks in your cars, you will be arrested and prosecuted,” he said.
Governor Wike advised Rivers people not to wait for the support of Federal Government, but concentrate on the strategies to reduce the spread of the virus.
He said that anywhere a market continues to operate in the state, the Traditional Ruler will lose his recognition.
“Go home and tell your people, anywhere I see a market operating, the Traditional Ruler will lose his recognition.
“We must check people entering our State and don’t wait for the support of the Federal Government. Lets work to reduce the number.
“As the hotels remain closed, those coming in will have nowhere to stay. When we are safe, we can enjoy what we can. I am not doing this because I hate anyone, but it is for the protection of our people.
No human being will see death and embrace it. We cannot kill ourselves. The only solution is ensure Social Distancing and proper hygiene”.
Responding, Chairman of the Rivers State Council of Traditional Rulers, King Douglas Dandeson Jaja thanked the Rivers State Governor for involving the Traditional Rulers in the fight against coronavirus.
He assured the Rivers State Governor that the Traditional Rulers will live up to his expectations by carrying out the State Government’s directive.
King Jaja thanked Governor Wike for his Palliatives to all the 23 Local Government Areas of the State.
Vice President Kashim Shettima has arrived in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for an official State visit at the invitation of the Prime Minister, Dr. Abiy Ahmed.
Upon arrival yesterday, Shettima was received at the airport by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, Dr. Gedion Timothewos, and other members of the Ethiopian and Nigerian diplomatic corps.
Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media and Communication, Stanley Nkwocha, revealed this in a statement he signed yesterday, titled: “VP Shettima arrives in Ethiopia for official state visit.”
During the visit, Vice President Shettima will participate in the official launch of Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Programme, a flagship environmental initiative.
The programme designed to combat deforestation, enhance biodiversity, and mitigate the adverse effects of climate change targets the planting of 20 billion tree seedlings over a four-year period.
In line with strengthening bilateral ties in agriculture and industrial development, the Vice President will also embark on a strategic tour of key industrial zones and integrated agricultural facilities across selected regions of Ethiopia.
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RSG Tasks Farmers On N4bn Agric Loan ….As RAAMP Takes Sensitization Campaign To Four LGs In Rivers
The Rivers State Government has called on the people of the state especially farmers to access the ?4billion agricultural loans made available by the State and domiciled in the Bank of Industry.
This is as the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) of Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP), a World Bank project, took its sensitization campaign to Opobo/Nkoro, Andoni, Port Harcourt City and Obio/Akpor local government areas.
The campaign was aimed at enlightening community dwellers and other stakeholders in the various local government areas on the RAAMP project implementation and programme activities.
The Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Agriculture, Mr Maurice Ogolo, said this at Opobo town, Ngo, Port Harcourt City and Rumuodumanya, headquarters of the four local government areas respectively, during the sensitization campaign.
Ogolo said apart from the ?4billion, the government has also made available fertilizers and other farm inputs to farmers in the various local government areas.
The Permanent Secretary who is the Chairman, State Steering Committee for the project, said RAAMP will construct roads that will connect farms to markets to enable farmers and fishermen sell their farms produce and fishes.
He also said rural roads would be constructed to farms and fishing settlements, and warned against any act that will lead to the cancellation of the projects in the four local government areas.
According to him, the World Bank and Federal Government which are the financiers of the programme will not condone such acts like kidnapping, marching ground and other acts inimical to the successful implementation of the projects in their respective areas.
At PHALGA, Ogolo asserted that the city will benefit in the areas of roads and bridge construction.
He noted that RAAMP was thriving in both the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; Lagos and other states in the country, stressing that the project should also be given the seriousness it deserves in Rivers State.
Speaking at Opobo town, the headquarters of Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Area, the project coordinator, RAAMP, Mr.Joshua Kpakol, said the programme would reduce poverty in the state.
According to him, both fishermen and farmers will maximally benefit from the programme.
At Ngo which is the headquarters of Andoni Local Government Area, Kpakol said roads will be constructed to all remote fishing settlements.
He said Rivers State is lucky to be among the states implementing the project, and stressed the need for the people to embrace it.
Meanwhile, Kpakol said at PHALGA that RAAMP is a project that will transform the lives of farmers, traders and other stakeholders in the area.
He urged the stakeholders to spread the information to their various communities.
However, some of the stakeholders at Opobo town complained about the destruction of their farms by bulls allegedly owed by traditional rulers in the area, as well as incessant stealing of their canoes at waterfronts.
At Ngo, Archbishop Elkanah Hanson, founder of El-Shaddai Church, commended the World Bank and the Federal Government for bringing the projects to Andoni.
He stressed the need for the construction of roads to fishing settlements in the area.
Also, a former Commissioner for Agriculture in the state and Okan Ama of Ekede, HRH King Gad Harry, noted that storage facilities have become necessary for a successful agricultural programme.
Harry also stressed the need for the programme to be made sustainable.
In their separate speeches, the administrators of Andoni and Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Areas, pledged their readiness to support the programme.
At Port Harcourt City, the Administrator, Dr Arthur Kalagbor, represented by the Head of Local Government Administration, Port Harcourt City, Mr Clifford Paul, said the city would support the implementation of the programme in the area.
Also, the administrator of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area, Dr Clifford Ndu Walter, represented by Mr Michael Elenwo, pledged to support the programme in his local government area.
Among dignitaries at the Obio/Akpor stakeholders engagement is the chairman, Rivers State Traditional Rulers Council and paramount ruler of Apara Kingdom, HRM Eze Chike Wodo, amongst others.
John Bibor
President Bola Tinubu has ordered the commencement of personnel audit and skill gap analysis across all cadres of federal civil servants.
The president gave this directive in Abuja, yesterday, while speaking at the International Civil Service Conference, reaffirming his resolve to achieve efficiency and professional service delivery in the civil service.
“I have authorized the comprehensive personnel audit and skill gap analysis across the federal civil service to deepen capacity. I urge all responsible stakeholders to prioritize timely completion of this critical exercise, to begin implementing targeted reforms, to realize the full benefit of a more agile, competent and responsive civil service,” the president announced.
Tinubu further directed all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), to prioritise data integrity and sovereignty in national interest.
He called for the capture, protection and strategic publication of public sector data in line with the Nigeria Data Protection Act of 2023.
“We must let our data speak for us. We must publish verified data assets within Nigeria and share them internationally recognized as fruitful. This will allow global benchmarking organisation to track our progress in real time and help us strengthen our position on the world stage. This will preserve privacy and uphold data sovereignty,” Tinubu added.
President Tinubu hailed the federal civil service as the “engine” driving his Renewed Hope Agenda, and the vehicle for delivering sustainable national development.
He submitted that the roles of civil servants remain indispensable in modern governance, declaring that in the face of a fast-evolving digital and economic landscape, the civil service must remain agile, future-ready, and results-driven.
“This maiden conference is a bold step toward redefining governance in an era of rapid transformation. An innovative Civil Service ensures we meet today’s needs and overcome tomorrow’s challenges.
“It captures our collective ambition to reimagine and reposition the civil service. In today’s rapid, evolving world of technology, innovation remains critical in ensuring that the civil service is dynamic, digital” the President said.
Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Walson-Jack in her welcome address told the President that his presence and strong words of commendation at the conference has renewed the morale and mandate of public servants across the country.
Walson-Jack described Tinubu as the backbone of driving transformation in the Nigerian civil service, and noted that the takeaways from past study tours undertaken to understudy the civil service in Singapore, the UK and US under her leadership, is already yielding multiplier effects.
Walson-Jack assured Tinubu that her office, in collaboration with reform-minded stakeholders, will not relent in accelerating the implementation of the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan, FCSSIP 25.
She affirmed that digitalisation, performance management, and continuous learning remain key pillars in strengthening accountability, transparency, and service delivery across MDAs.
Walson-Jack reaffirmed that the civil service is determined to exceed expectations by embedding a culture of innovation, ethical leadership, and citizen-centred governance in the heart of public administration.