Nation
Bizman, Chief Task Nigerians On Prayers
Chairman of Bullion Records, Ambassador Olufemi Ajadi Oguntoyinbo and the Chief Tofseer of Ilorin Emirate Al- Adaby, Alfa Usman Sannu Shehu have called on Nigerians to continue praying for the country, her progress and for those in government.
They said Nigerians need to constantly pray for their leaders in government as their actions and inactions will definitely affect the people of the country.
They made the admonition last Saturday while speaking at the Ramadan Lecture (Season 2) organised by Bullion Records in Ibafo, Ogun State.
Ajadi, who was the Ogun state governorship candidate of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) in the 2023 general elections equally advised the leaders to focus more on the masses.
If we have the mindset of praying for our leaders, I am very sure God will touch their hearts and they will begin to know what the masses are clamouring for.
“So, I will urge the masses to keep praying purposely because of this season of Ramadan and I know God will answer our prayers.
“They have a lot of things to do for the masses because the masses are currently going through excruciating suffering”, Ajadi said.
He called on the Federal Government to create Vocational Centres across the 774 local government areas in the country for the youths to be engaged.
“On the 1st of January this year, you know I advised Nigerian leadership to go and make sure that they open Vocational Centres so that the citizens especially the youths will be empowered.
“This will really help because those that are jobless will have something doing. If the government can do this in all the 774 local government areas in the country, it will help the government to secure a lot of jobs for the youths.
“With this in place, the youths will not be engaged in bad things. They will be engaged and be doing something to keep themselves busy instead of lazy around and becoming the willing tools in the hands of the devil.
“If governments fail to provide jobs for the youths, they should not forget that 2027 is around the corner and everyone’s eye is open now.
“The purpose of government is to provide jobs for the people. Government must therefore empower the youths”, Ajadi said.
Also speaking, the Guest Speaker at the Lecture, the Chief Tofseer of Ilorin Emirate Al- Adaby, Alfa Usman Sannu Sheu said the Country’s leaders needed to do four things to succeed.
“One is that they should return to God. Invite God to guide their decisions. Secondly, is that the subsidy removed from the petroleum products should be used to assist the masses. Thirdly, they should continually think of the welfares of the governed. Giving huge money to the governors to supply palliatives to the citizens is not the solution.
“They should increase the pay of the civil servants, once the people working with governments are well paid, the country will be better. Fourthly, they should always seek the prayers of Nigerians.
“We should be praying for the people in government. Nobody should curse our leaders and the country. If we curse the people in government, it will come back to us. We should just be praying for our leaders and it shall be well for our country”, Alfa Sheu said.
Speaking while delivering his lecture titled, “Submit Yourself To Who God Has Shown Mercy To”, Alfa Sheu said God put people in position of leadership and the best thing is for everyone to accept God’s decision.
“Leadership is through God. It has nothing to do with age, place of birth or the position in the family.
God chooses the leader and we don’t have choice but to accept whoever God has put in position of leadership”, Alfa Sheu said.
The lecture which was spiced with music saw musicians like Alhaji Kehinde Oriyomi, Alhaja Ashabi Modinat Barrytide, Femo Lancaster and Tope Indomie entertained the crowd.
Guests at the lecture include, Ogun NNPP Public Relations Officer, Kehinde Olowu, South West Publicity Secretary of the NNPP, Hon Kilamuwaye Badmus, Hon. Modaowoni.
Nation
HYPREP Inducts 100 Ogoni Youths For Creative Arts Training

The Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project(HYPREP) has inducted and given orientation to 100 Ogoni youths for training on Creative Arts. The beneficiaries were drawn from Khana, Gokana, Tai and Eleme Local Government Areas of Rivers State.
The induction and orientation ceremony, which took place at the CRAB of the Department of Theatre Arts of the University of Port Harcourt on Wednesday, was a prelude to the training proper, billed to commence next Tuesday.
As usual, HYPREP issued undertaking forms to the trainees, for them to complete and submit as a guarantee that they would subject themselves to the requirements of the programme as well as be of good behaviour throughout the four-month duration of the training.
HYPREP also announced that it would pay N150,000 to each of the beneficiaries monthly, as transport and feeding allowance, stressing, however, that only those who fully participate in the training would be entitled for the allowance.
Speaking at the event, the Project Coordinator of HYPREP, Prof Nenibarini Zabbey, welcomed the trainees to the programme, saying, HYPREP’s projects are evolving and that one thing that is happening today is that the Project has gotten leadership right, by making promises and keeping those promises.
According to him, the Project had equally promised to move away from rudimentary skills acquisition to high impacts acquisition levels, which it has kept today by sponsoring the training on Creative Arts.
He noted that in planning its livelihood programmes for Ogoni youths, HYPREP has taken time out to look for skills that would add value to the lives of the beneficiaries.
Zabbey, who was represented at the event by the Director of Technical Services, Prof Damian-Paul Aguiyi said by packaging the Creative Arts training, it was expected that the Ogoni people would have their own version of Nollywood known as Ogoniwood just as Nigerians are familiar with Hollywood, Bollywood, Kannywood and Nollywood.
To achieve this goal, the Project Coordinator explained that it was the reason for choosing a reputable establishment like Halibiz Consult Limited, to partner with the Department of Theatre Arts of the University of Port Harcourt, which he described as one of the most prestigious in the Niger Delta, for the training of the beneficiaries.
He also indicated that in doing this, HYPREP was desirous of going for talents that would help the Ogoni people grow in the film industry, and urged the beneficiaries to take the training seriously.
Zabbey equally enjoined the trainees to put in their best so that in the next three to five years, they would carve a niche for themselves and become forces to reckon with in the film industry.
On her part, HYPREP’s Head of Sustainable Livelihood, Mrs Josephine Nzidee said HYPREP does what it says it will, stressing that the process of training Ogoni youths on specialised skills started three years ago.
According to her, the selection process for the training was rigorous and transparent, and was carried out by renowned actors actresses.
She disclosed that the training consists of three major aspects, which include acting, script writing and make-up, while Nollywood actors like Charles Nnoje, Ngezu J. Ngezu and award-winning make-up artist, Jude Odo would be on hand to drill and groom the beneficiaries.
Mrs Nzidee noted that the programme is a specialised training that does not have anything like starter packs but that it is purely a professional certification programme that would launch the beneficiaries into the Nollywood industry in Nigeria.
According to her, the Creative Arts training is one of the four specialised trainings organised by HYPREP to ensure that the Ogoni people are well positioned in vital industries like Aviation, Maritime, Creative Arts and Mechatronics.
She said the last of such trainings on Mechatronics would take place in the coming months, and urged the beneficiaries to take the training seriously so as to put the Ogoni people on the Nollywood map.
She further indicated that while Charles Nnoje and Ngezu J. Ngezu would take the beneficiaries on the practical aspects, Jude Odo would take them on the make-up aspects.
Also speaking, the External Relations Manager of Halibiz Consult Limited, Alabo Experience Douglas said his company gives much premium to standard and quality, and assured that the firm would give the trainees value for the money spent on the programme.
While charging the beneficiaries to be dedicated and punctual, he stressed the need for them to approach the programme with the mindset of being empty so that at the end of the day, they would benefit maximally.
On his part, the Head of the Theatre Arts Department of the University of Port Harcourt, Dr Ovunda Ihunwo said the CRAB is an acronym for Creative Review of Arts and Books, stressing that it was named by renowned playwright, Prof Ola Rotimi.
According to him, the CRAB had nurtured, groomed and produced Nollywood actors and actresses like Bobmanuel Udokwu, Ejike Asiegbu,Francis Duru, Hilda Dokubo, Monalisa Chinda, Julius Agwu, and a host of others, assuring the beneficiaries that they were on fertile environment to hone their talents.
He noted that symbolically, the crab is a nutritious seafood common in the Niger Delta, and reiterated the need for the beneficiaries to come empty for the training, as it were.
Ihunwo disclosed that the theory classes of the programme would run for three weeks while the fourth week would be for the master classes, and urged the trainees to avail themselves of the opportunity to make a difference by telling the Ogoni story, which he described as inexhaustible by themselves, in order to put Ogoni on the map.
Nation
Nasarawa Varsity Student Commits Suicide

A 23-year-old student of Nasarawa State University identified as Jatau Rilokwah, has been reportedly found dead in the university’s senior staff quarters.
A counter-insurgency expert, focused on the Lake Chad region, Zagazola Makama, disclosed this on his X handle on Tuesday.
According to him, the discovery was made on April 27, 2025, by a security officer at the university, Emmanuel Gyawo.
He stated that Gwayo was directed by Prof. Shedrack Jatau to check on his son upon arriving at the residence, and he found Rilokwah hanging from the ceiling.
“Professor Jatau, who was reportedly out of the State at the time, was informed of the incident. A team of police detectives, led by the Divisional Crime Officer of Angwan Lambu, was dispatched to the scene.
“The body showed no signs of violence, and no suicide note was found. Rilokwah was rushed to the Federal Medical Centre in Keffi, where he was confirmed dead by a medical doctor,” he further stated.
He added that the student’s corpse had been deposited in the hospital morgue.
He also quoted police sources as saying that investigations were ongoing to determine the circumstances surrounding the incident.
Nation
Ogun, Nike Art Gallery Set To Transform Olumo Rock

The Ogun State Government has partnered with Nike Art Gallery to establish a new exhibition space at the Olumo Rock Tourist Centre in Abeokuta, a move Governor Dapo Abiodun says is aimed at boosting annual tourist visits from 20,000 to over 100,000.
Abiodun disclosed the plan on Wednesday while receiving the founder of the Nike Art Gallery, Chief (Mrs) Nike Davies-Okundaye, at his office in Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta.
“I went to Olumo Rock about a month ago and I decided that we needed to do something about restoring Olumo Rock to its old glory. From statistics, Olumo Rock hosts about 20,000 people a year in its current state, and I felt that we could increase that to at least ten times,” the governor said.
As part of the plan, an events hall within the tourist centre will be repurposed as a permanent gallery operated by Nike Art Gallery.
“I told them to shut it down. Practically, we want to bring it down and turn it into a gallery for you to use as an exhibition gallery,” he told Davies-Okundaye.
He added that the gallery will be ready before the National Sports Festival in May, when the State will host about 15,000 visitors.
“I want them to be able to see our tourist sites,” he said, listing attractions such as the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library, the Ransome-Kuti family home, and the Adire market among key heritage spots to be showcased.
Highlighting Ogun’s improved infrastructure, the governor said, “Now that we’ve succeeded in having the intra and inter-state roads in place, you can come to Ogun State by rail; you can come by air. We’ve constructed one of the best airports in Nigeria, and very soon, you will be able to come by sea.”
Davies-Okundaye, in her remarks, praised the state’s efforts to promote tourism and pledged to use the new gallery to attract global attention.
“This gallery will bring many Heads of State. The one I opened in Abuja already has more than 10 Heads of State, including those from South Korea and the Czech Republic. The same will happen here,” she said.
She also applauded the Governor for his commitment to the Adire fabric industry.
“Adire is all over Nigeria, but Ogun has been promoting Adire for over 50 years. Today, the only cloth we can call our own is called Adire. This is what we can sell to the Europeans,” she said.
Abiodun reaffirmed his administration’s backing of the Adire industry, citing policies such as the Adire Ogun Digital Marketplace, compulsory wearing of Adire in the state, and provision of solar-powered production equipment to support artisans.
He also revealed plans to open a creative arts and entertainment village in partnership with Bolanle Austen-Peters, expected to be completed within two months.
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