Rivers
HYPREP Set To Clean Up Ogoni Shorelines …To Plant 5m Seedlings
The Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) is now set to clean up polluted shorelines in Ogoni communities in Rivers State and at the end of the exercise plant about five million seedlings on the restored mangroves across Ogoniland.
The Project Coordinator of HYPREP, Dr Ferdinand Giadom gave this indication during a shorecline remediation sensitisation workshop at the council secretariat of Gokana Local Government Area in Kpor community on Tuesday.
Giadom said the remediation of shoreline inter-tidal areas fall under the semi- complex and complex sites, saying, it is the phase of remediation that most Ogoni people have been waiting for considering the vastness of pollution and damage to the saline environment and the swarming biodiversity that it hosts, stressing that the high expectation is borne out of the fact that remediation in the area can generate multiplied job opportunities for the teeming youths whose livelihoods and that of their dependents could be enhanced.
He noted that in preparation for take-off of the shoreline inter-tidal remediation, HYPREP has assessed a total area of 2,196 hectares and allotted same into 549 grids of 200 metres per grid, adding that the assessed coastlines are in B-Dere, K-Dere, Kpor and Goi communities in Gokana Local Government Area, which he said would host the pilot of the shoreline remediation and from there progress to the rest coastal communities where there is pollution.
According to him, the sensitisation programme was the first in the series of scheduled activities to commence the shoreline remediation works.
Giadom hinted that HYPREP would be transparent and principled in choosing the workforce that would be on site, as it would adopt the Bodo remediation model of open balloting to select the workers. The Bodo remediation model is acclaimed to be highly successful.
According to him, 60 per cent of the workforce will come through balloting and the remaining 40 per cent will be supplied by each community leadership.
He contended that those that would be chosen shall be trained and certified in the International Maritime Organisation (IMO Levels 1 and 2), and their supervisors will have the privilege of having IMO Level 3 certification, stressing that the IMO certification component of the shoreline remediation is a deliberate permanent effort to empower Ogoni youths to work on similar projects anywhere in the world.
The project coordinator said actual shoreline remediation work will commence at the end of the contracting processes and mobilisation of contractors to site, stressing that remediation work in the swamp shall include but not limited to removal of oily soaked debris and stumps, raking of alga mat, flushing of sediment, among others.
He indicated that the re-vegetation of the mangrove in particular would create massive jobs for those who will nurse the five million mangrove seedlings that would be planted, and listed those to benefit from the overall shoreline remediation to include middle level manpower like supervisors, office assistants, safety officers, nurses and first aiders, while the unskilled labour will be cleaners, security guards and community contact persons, saying, those are reserved positions for the communities but it does not in any way preclude any qualified persons in the communities that have higher skills from applying to work for the remediation companies.
Giadom solicited the support of the communities and other Ogonis for HYPREP to achieve set goals and objectives going by the enormous economic opportunities the shoreline remediation would generate for the people, saying, “We need not fight ourselves rather we should close ranks at this time and work together”.
The project coordinator cautioned against re-pollution of the environment after the clean-up exercise.
The highpoint of the event was the presentation of the Bodo Remediation model by the project coordinator, which is going to be adopted for the shoreline remediation of the impacted complex sites in Ogoniland.
By: Donatus Ebi
The Rivers State Primary Healthcare Management Board (RSPHCMB) says it will commence Supplemental Immunization activities on Saturday, May 3, 2025, to vaccinate children from 0-5 years across the State.
The State Health Educator, Dr. Diana Babbo, who stated this during a sensitisation meeting with Media Advocate for Health, Rivers State, on the update of immunization exercise in Rivers State, said the National Immunization Plus Days (NIPDs) is a re-enforcement of the routine immunization at the health facilities.
According to her, it is aimed at boosting polio immunisation against the circulating variance of polio virus currently threatening the total eradication of polio in the country.
She further stated that there are four pillars of polio eradication, namely routine immunization (administered on babies in the health centre), supplemental immunization activity (supplements to boost the babies), surveillance (searching for children that have weakness in their legs or some oart of their bodies), and outbreak response.
The Health Educator noted that the Novel Oral Polio Vaccination Type 2 (NOPV 2) will be administered to children under the age of 0-5 years, which targets a specific polio still in existence in communities and capable of causing paralysis among the stated categories of children, despite the country being certified a polio-free nation.
Dr. Babbo further stated that this year’s NIPDs will address the high number of unresolved non-compliance cases in the State.
She debunked what she tagged a false rumour by mischief makers which claimed that the vaccines are responsible for the development of autism in children.
She said, “vaccines are not known to be responsible for the development of autism. We’re just hearing that. The truth is that one cannot know everything.
“That aspect that has been found, have we looked into other aspects, such as genetically modified foods, drinks, and milks that our children are taking?
“Have we also looked at genetic compatibility between couples before we now say vaccines are causing x, y, z things?
“Are we looking at the environment where these things are happening, what they are peculiar to?
“It must not be peculiar to all the families, there could be something also that’s happening around that we have not known. Research is evolving, let us not accuse our precious vaccines that have succeeded so far in my knowledge, to keep as many sicknesses at bay.
“The reason we do not have small pox in our world today, apart from the lab (a bio-lab) is because we vaccinated to the point where we were able to move small pox totally out of existence from human beings. We can succeed with that same pattern with all kinds of viruses”.
She stated that the connection between autism and vaccination could merely be coincidence.
Babbo, therefore, urged all parents, churches, and school owners to avail their children/wards the opportunity to be vaccinated against polio the stated exercise.
Sogbeba Dokubo
Engr Obi Fortune, a renowned philanthropist, has donated 80 desks to four secondary schools in Etche Local Government Area of Rivers State. The donation is part of his commitment to advancing education in the area.
The schools that benefited from the gesture includes- Community Secondary School Umuoye.
Community Secondary School Akwa- Government Secondary School Ozuzu and Community Primary School Okehi 2 and all the schools got 20 units each of the desks.
Speaking during the brief handing-over ceremony held recently in okehi recently, Engr Obi stated that the donation fulfills his promise to use proceeds from his book sales to procure desks for schools in the LGA.
He disclosed that more desks will arrive soon and expressed his continued commitment to supporting education in the area.
Obi urged the schools to make good use of the desks and called on other individuals to contribute to the educational needs in the area.
This gesture demonstrates Engr Obi’s dedication to improving education in Etche LGA.
A professor of social and political philosophy at Rivers State University (RSU ) Nkpolu Oroworukwu port Harcourt, Prof Agha Eresia _Eke has emphasized that citizenship participation is crucial for achieving true democratic government. He stressed that citizens’ involvement in exercising their basic rights, such as freedom of speech, assembly, and religion, is essential for a democratic institution to thrive.
Eresia _Eke stated this while presenting his inaugural lecture at the 111 university’s inaugural lecture series with the topic “Nigeria Democratic practices:a contextual paradox”held at the university senate auditorium in Port Harcourt, last Wednesday.
According to him, core democratic values which include:,- Respect for individual rights and freedoms, Protection of human rights and fundamental freedom, Equality before the law, Freedom of speech, assembly, and association, Protection of privacy and personal autonomy.
“Through out history, the problem that has agitated social and political philosophers has been to work _out a model for the realization of the common good of man.
Man has always sought and developed methods and systems of organising himself according to his true nature as a rational being.”he stated.
Eresia-Eke notes that Nigeria is not practicing a true federalism and highlights the importance of a pragmatic approach to democracy, where ideas and solutions are tested and refined in real-world environments.
He emphasized that citizens must hold their leaders accountable and demand respect for human rights, stressing that by doing so, citizens can undertake their civic obligations and responsibilities, strengthening society as a whole.
Earlier in his address, the Vice chancellor of the university, Prof Zeb _Obipi commended the lecturer for his brilliant performance, adding that he has justified and proven that he is a professor in his area of specialization.
The VC averred that the university has been consistent in the inaugural lecture monthly and assured that his administration will continue to continue to keep the trend.