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FG To Shutdown Third Mainland Bridge For 72 Hours

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The Federal Controller of Works, Lagos, Mr Olukayode Popoola on Tuesday announced a 72-hour total closure of the Third Mainland Bridge to cast concrete on the expansion joints.
Popoola told The Tide source in Lagos that the shutdown will take effect from midnight Friday to midnight on Tuesday.
He added that construction works had reached the stage for casting concrete on additional three expansion joints.
“There is going to be total closure of Third Mainland Bridge in order to allow for the casting of three number expansion joints on the Island Bound lane
“ The effective date of the closure will be from 12:00 midnight of 25th of December. So people will be allowed to use the Third Mainland Bridge to celebrate Christmas.
“By the time the Christmas is winding down which is 12:00 midnight, we are going to close it so thata we will be able to cast the concrete on Saturday the 26th and 27th we cast again.
“ And we need about 72 hours for this concrete to set. Therefore, the opening will be on the 28th December midnight, that is 72-hour closure.
“This is to prevent vibration of the bridge. If we allow vehicles to be moving on one lane, there is going to be vibrations and the concrete will not set properly,”he said.
The controller said that all the alternative routes were in good condition and traffic regulatory agencies had been deployed to effectively divert and manage traffic to avert gridlock.
He appealed to road users to cooperate with traffic regulatory agencies.
Popoola also announced a 48 hours partial closure of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway from December 28 to December 29 to complete some work on a fly over bridge on the project.
“The contractor, Messers Julius Berger wants to install cross beams at Kilometre 16, that is, around MFM,” he said.
He explained that the Piers were already standing on both sides of the road and the contractor was to lay the cross beam on top across the road.
“That area will be cordoned off, there will be closure within that section from 12:00pm on 28th of December and it will be opened to traffic by 5:00am the following day.
“ 200 meters to get to that particular location we have diversion and another diversion 200 meters away from that place.
“One lane will be opened to traffic, it is only one lane we are closing to traffic at a time. The first lane that we are going to close is outward Lagos, that is the Ibadan bound carriageway, we will close it on the 28th.
“ And then the second day which is 29th, we are moving to the other lane which in inward Lagos. The same 12:00pm to 5:00am,” Popoola said.
He appealed for patience and understanding of road users saying that the construction was part of the progress that the Federal Government had achieved on the project.
“We regret all the inconvenience and hardship this might have created,” he said.
He said that all the construction zones had been cleared and the highway had been opened to traffic which was responsible to seamless movement on the road.
The Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos, which was going through series of repairs, had to be partially shut on July 24 for another round of rehabilitation works.
The repair expected to last six months was extended by one month due to the recent #EndSARS protests in Lagos extending the completion date from January 2021 to February.
The construction was initially divided into two phases of three months on each carriageway, starting with the Oworonsoki bound carriageway whose completion dragged to four months.
Traffic was partially diverted on a stretch of 3.5km where construction is ongoing between Adeniji Adeniji Ramp and Ebute Meta, while different time belts were allotted for traffic diversions on the bridge.
The 11.8km bridge is the longest of the three bridges connecting Lagos Island to the Mainland.
The bridge starts from Oworonshoki, which is linked to the Apapa-Oshodi Expressway and the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway and ends at the Adeniji Adele Interchange on Lagos Island.
Constructed in 1990, the bridge was adjudged as the longest in Africa until 1996 when the Oct. 6 Bridge in Cairo, Egypt was completed.
The reconstruction/rehabilitation of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway on the other hand was flagged off in 2013 by former President Goodluck Jonathan and was awarded to two firms.
Julius Berger is constructing section one which spans from Ojota in Lagos to Sagamu Interchange while RCC is working from the Sagamu Interchange to Ibadan.

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Rivers Judiciary Denise Media Reports On Issuing Judgement Sacking SOLAD

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The Rivers State Judiciary has denied claims of media reports circulating online that a judge of its High Court issued a ruling in favour of Governor Siminalayi Fubara against former Governor Nyesom Wike and President Bola Tinubu, there by sacking the sole Administrator of the state, vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (rtd).

A statement signed by the Chief Registrar of the State High Court, David Ihua-Maduenyi yesterday in Port Harcourt, described the purported report as false and misleading, particularly for linking a judge of the State High Court, Justice Boma Diepirii, to a ruling that reportedly came from a Federal High Court.

According to the statement, Justice Boma Diepirii is a Judge of the Rivers State High Court and not of the Federal High Court and currently on Easter Vacation, which commenced on Monday, 14th April.

The Chief Registrar further clarified that the Federal High Court and the State High Court are separate entities, stressing that “the inclusion of Justice Diepiri’s name in the fabricated report underscores the crass ignorance of the author.”

“The attention of the Rivers State Judiciary has been drawn to a fake news report alleging that His Lordship, Hon. Justice Boma Diepiri, delivered a judgment sacking the Sole Administrator of Rivers State. This is false in its entirety,” the statement read.

“Justice Diepiri is a judge of the High Court of Rivers State, not of the Federal High Court as was falsely reported”.

” Additionally, His Lordship is currently on Easter vacation which began on Monday, April 14, 2025, Ihua-Maduenyi stated.

The statement however advised the general public and members of the media to always cross checked information concerning the judiciary before publishing and as well disregard the said report in its entirety as its an embodiment of falsehood and fabricated story.

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Senate Passes Bill For Establishment Of University In Abia

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The Senate yesterday approved the bills for the establishment of Federal University of Medical  and Health Sciences and College of Education, Bende at its plenary session.
The two bills sponsored by the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon . Benjamin Kalu came to the Senate for concurrence after the approvals from the House of Representatives.
The Deputy Leader of the Senate, Sen. Lola Ashiru in the absence of the Majority Leader presented the recommendations of the Lower Chamber for consideration and Concurrence .
The Bill for an Act to establish Federal College of Education, Bende in Abia State seeks to provide full-time courses, training in technology, applied sciences, commerce, social sciences, arts and humanities among others.
Kalu had in his lead debate stated that Bende has remained undivided since its creation in 1976, even though with the size of four local government areas as found in comparative federal constituencies.
“Despite its strategic location in Abia and sharing a border with Akwa Ibom, with a growing population and landmass, there is no tertiary institution in the Federal Constituency operated either by Federal or State Government. Bende deserves to have the presence of a tertiary institution to serve the education need of the teeming youthful population, especially now that the need for well-trained educationists has risen. This is accompanied by the need to fill the gaps created by both the consequences of brain drain and the lack of qualified educationists to provide quality training at all levels of education,” he said.
For the bill seeking the establishment of Federal University of Medical and Health Sciences, Bende, Abia State, he said when it becomes law, the university will be charged with the responsibility to, among other things, offer full-time training leading to the award of degrees in medical and health sciences.

Nneka Amaechi-Nnadi

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South East Caucus Kicks As  Senate Rejects  Nwosu’s Immortalisation

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South East Caucus of the Senate has  appealed to President   Bola Ahmed Tinubu  to immorttalise late Professor Humphrey Nwosu  considering his commitment  to achieving a  practical democracy for Nigerian.
The Senators visibly  angered by the  Senate’s  rejection of the  need to immortalise the late National Electoral umpire who stood for democracy through the turbulent  1993 elections  stormed out of the Senate Chambers   and spoke to the press .
The Chairman of the South East Caucus, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe ( Abia South),  as he did in plenary on Wednesday, presented a motion for immortalisation of Humphrey Nwosu by naming the national headquarters of the Independent National Electoral Commission ( INEC) , after him , for laying the foundation in 1993 and conducting the freest and fairest Presidential election in the country .
The late Professor Nwosu was the National Chairman of the National Electoral Commission ( NEC) , now known as Independent National Electoral Commission ( INEC) , who through option A4, conducted the June 12, 19993 presidential election , adjudged to be the freest and fairest in the country.
Abaribe in the motion co – sponsored by 15 other Senators , said  late Humphrey Nwosu deserved to be immortalised like other heroes of the June 12 , 1993 presidential election .
He also urged the Federal Government to honour the late former electoral umpire with post humous  national honours .
But Abaribe’s request , seconded by Senator Victor Umeh (Anambra Central) and supported by Senators from the South East including forner Senate Leader, Yahaya Abdullahi ( Kebbi North) , was roundly rejected by other Senators who said the deceased deserved no immortalization .
Specifically , Senator Adams Oshiomhole ( Edo North) , in his contribution to the debate said the motion to him, was nothing but an attempt to manipulate and rewrite  history.
“ Professor Humphrey Nwosu as NEC Chairman in 1993, failed to deliver on the June 12 , 1993 Presidential Election for lack of Courage
“ He who is not ready to die for something , will die for nothing
“ If he was afraid of the gun from announcing the election results and winner in 1993 , he cannot be rewarded now , more so, when many Nigerians died for what he inadvertently created “, he said .

Nneka Amaechi -Nnadi

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