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Wike Vows To Form Govt Of National Unity
Frontline Presidential aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Rivers State Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike, has said that he would form a government of national unity, if elected President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in 2023.
Wike gave the assurance when he met with leaders and delegates of the PDP in Lokoja, capital of Kogi State, last Wednesday.
While soliciting delegates votes to clinch the PDP presidential ticket, Wike stated that he would bring a strong leadership to bear in and bridge the current division that the All Progressives Congress (APC) has engendered among Nigerians.
“If we win, we will form a government of national unity in which we will bring everybody together. God didn’t make mistake to have put us all in a country called Nigeria. God has given us everything. All that is required is a strong leadership that can put everything together, and you’ll see Nigeria become what it should truly be.”
Wike stated that he was prepared, desirous and full of energy to lead Nigeria out of its current woes.
He noted the enormity of the challenges, but assured that he would be that president who would not shy away from his responsibility to Nigeria.
“When I take action, you’ll know the president has taken action. It will not be a leadership that is unsure of what decision to make or not. I have the character, and people know me for the character that I have and what I will do. Nigerians know my views on issues. If we want to do something, let’s do it rightly.”
Wike insisted that it was imperative for the PDP to win the 2023 presidential election in order to rescue Nigeria.
He assured that if he was given the ticket and eventually becomes the president of Nigeria, the best brains would be assembled and he would be an effective leader of that team.
“No one person can do it alone. That is why we must have the best. The ability to coordinate those who will work with you to deliver results is the call on leadership.”
Wike, who also spoke on the imperative of tackling the issues of insecurity, said that without success in curbing insecurity, socio-economic life would remain low in the country.
“If there is insecurity, what gain can we make in the economy? If you can’t go to the farm, you can’t also talk of agriculture. If there is so much insecurity, can investors come in? They would not come!
The governor recalled that during his visit to Katsina, last Tuesday, the citizens of that state lamented that despite President Muhammadu Buhari, being their son, the Federal Government under his watch has failed to safeguard them.
“I was in Katsina, yesterday (Tuesday), and people were saying the president is from Katsina; our own son is the president, yet so much insecurity in Katsina State. So, it does not matter now where you come from, what matters now is who is going to do this work.”
The Rivers State urged the delegates to resist the temptation of giving the party’s mandate to people who were not committed to PDP, and do not have the chance of winning the 2023 presidential election.
Also speaking, the former Kogi State Governor, Ibrahim Idris, said the country was in dire strait and desperately requires a focused and determined leader like Wike to salvage her.
“Nigeria is in a very deep hole. We thank God we are breathing air, but where our country is now is very terrible, and to get out of it, you require a man with an understanding of the situation, a man with the capacity, a man with the ability, a man with the vision, who can develop the mission to get us out of this hole. That man from his antecedent, from his track record, from his unifying posture for the whole of Nigeria, that man is Governor Nyesom Wike.”
Earlier, Wike had visited Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, at the Lugard House, where he officially notified him of his presidential ambition.
He commended Bello for his doggedness and involvement of youths in his administration.
Wike reiterated that irrespective of political leanings, political leaders should shun acts capable of causing division and strife in the polity.
In his response, Governor Yahaya Bello, who appreciated Wike for the visit, explained that he was also aspiring to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari and build on his successes and achievements.
“When the time comes, I know we are going to collaborate and join hands together to build this country. Parties are just vehicles, just like you said that will convey us to our different destinations, and the destination is a prosperous, peaceful and united Nigeria. By the grace of God, we shall join our hands together to build it.”
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.
News
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.