Niger Delta

Bayelsa Recommits To Capacity Building Through Skills Acquisition

Published

4 years ago

February 11, 2022

The Bayelsa State Government has restated its desire towards capacity building for youths of the state.
The state Governor, Senator Douye Diri, who gave the indication of the state’s readiness to partner institutions in its entrepreneurial development during the week at the foundation laying ceremony of the Diri Industrial-skills and Entrepreneurial Training Scheme(DIETS), in Yenagoa,the state capital also restated the importance of technical manpower in development.
He said the skills training centre which was a private-sector funded project has now been taken over by the state government,noting that it would be ready in no distant time for the entrepreneurial skills training for youths of the state, describing it as an economic booster for the state by way of direct and indirect employment opportunities after the graduation of participants in the programme.
The Tide reports that Governor Diri Industrial-Skills and Entrepreneurial Training Scheme(DIETS) is a skills acquisition programme the Bayelsa State government is carrying out in partnership with a firm, the ‘AfricanTide Association’ and Fern University in Hagen, Germany, as well as others.
“Let me start by prefexing my remarks by alluding to the World Health Organisation (WHO) on the acronym ‘DIETS’.
“A healthy diet protects against malnutrition in all it’s forms as well as in non-communicable diseases, such as heart disease, stroke and cancer. An unhealthy diet on the other hand is lack of physical activity and leading to global risk of health.
“When the Commissioner for Labour, Employment generation and Productivity first approached me about this project with the acronym ‘DIETS’ I couldn’t help but to laugh.I find it a happy irony that our presence here today is to lay the foundation for the appropriately titled, Diri Industrial-Skills and Entrepreneurial Training Scheme (DIETS).
“The unavailability of white collar jobs and the attendant frustration it can produce is the leading cause of many social ills in our society today, particularly among our youths and impressionable population. DIETS, as we’ve heard from the Commissioner and the President of the AfricanTide Association,Dr Rosalyn Dressman will be responsible for bringing out best in our youths and in lifting out many from the doldrums of poverty and unemployment.It would create windows of opportunities for our youths to become self-sustaining, professionals and free up the congested labour market and the illusion for seeking non-existence jobs”, Governor Diri said.
In his opening remarks, the state Commissioner for Labour, Employment generation and Productivity, Mr Stanley Braboke commended Governor Diri for his vision and foresight in ensuring that the state’s teaming youths and women were trained in gainful skills for their self development, saying these trainees would in turn impact the economy of the state.
Speaking with newsmen shortly after the event, Braboke said the training centre has the capacity to enable trainees practise their professions at the end of their training programmes.
He commended the AfricanTide Association and Fern University for the partnership, expressing delight that his ministry and others involved in the project would deliver the project as and when due for the continuous empowerment of youths and interested women of the state in various skills needed for the 21st century labour market.
“Government doesn’t have jobs to give to everybody, so with this centre, government would train entrepreneurs with the various skills needed in the 21st century labour market.
“And it’s not just about the jobs,but about practice. This centre would enable participants to practice their jobs after their graduation. Though there’s paucity of fund,God willing, we intend to complete this building in six months time. Hopefully, it would be commissioned when would be marking three years in office”, the Commissioner said.
Also speaking,the president of the AfricanTide association and Diaspora focal person,Dr Rosalyn Dressman thanked the state government for the partnership.
She noted that the building of the centre by the government was a commitment that the Diri’s -led administration is willing to give the appropriately needed skills to Bayelsans to fit into the global labour market, describing the training centre as a ‘Smart building’ with modern ICT gadgets.

Niger Delta

Navy Pledges Improved Patrols, Welfare Boost For Personnel

Published

6 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

9 hours 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

9 hours 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.