Nation

THE STATES

Published

11 years ago

April 1, 2015

L-R: Commissioner for Political Affairs, African Union Commission, Dr Aisha Abdullahi, Head, Commonwealth Observers Mission, former President Bakili Muluzi of Malawi, former President John Kuffour of Ghana, President Goodluck Jonathan, the Head, African Union Election Mission, former President Amos Sawyer of Liberia, Vice President Namadi Sambo and ECOWAS Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security, Mrs Salamatu Suleiman, during the visit of Heads of International Observer Groups to President Jonathan in Abuja last Monday. Photo: NAN

Bauchi
The candidate for All Progressives Congress (APC) vy
ing for the Bauchi South Senatorial seat, Malam Ali Wakili, has defeated Gov. Isa Yuguda of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), to represent the District in the National Assembly.
Announcing the result of the election in Bauchi on Monday, the INEC Returning Officer for the Senatorial District,Dr Shuaibu Musa, said Wakili polled 341708 votes to defeat Yuguda, who secured 115341 votes
Yuguda and Wakili were the only candidates that contested for the seat.
Wakili 55, a 1982 graduate of Bayero University, Kano, had served with the Bauchi State Government, before transferring his service to the Nigeria Customs Service in 1991.
While in Customs, he held command positions at Ikeja Industrial Area, Tin Can Island, Seme Area Command as well as Commandant, Kano Training School.
He retired from the Nigeria Customs Service in 2009 as Comptroller of Customs.
Bauchi South Senatorial District comprises of seven local government areas, namely Kirfi, Alkaleri, Toro,Tafawa-Balewa, Bogoro, Dass and Bauchi.
Benue
Governor Gabriel Suswan has lost in his bid to return to
the National Assembly after an eight-year stint as governor of Benue state.
Our correspondent reports that Suswam was elected governor in 2007 after serving two terms as member of the House of Reps.
Suswam lost to a former National Chairman of the PDP Barnabas Gemade, who contested under APC.
Announcing the results last Monday at the INEC headquarters in Makurdi, the returning officer for Benue North East Senatorial election, Prof Mohammed Adah, said Gemade polled 140, 715 votes to beat Suswam, who polled 118, 603 votes.
The returning officer also announced that a total of 661,067 voters registered for the election with 290,446 accredited, while 266,232 votes were counted as valid.
He said rejected votes were 5,096 while total number of votes cast was 271,328.

FCT
All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate Zakari-
Angulu Dobi was last Monday declared winner of the Abuja South Federal Constituency election.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Returning Officer, Dr. Sani Saka, who announced the result Kwali, FCT, amid tight security, said that Angulu polled 14,486 votes.
Saka said that Angulu defeated his opponent, Mr. Danladi Etsu Zhin, of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who got 12,431 votes, while Usman Jiya of the Peoples Democratic Movement (PDM) got 888 votes.
Our correspondent reports that all the four INEC collation officers comprising Abaji, Kwali, Gwagwalada and Kuje had earlier announced their results separately.
Reacting to the result, Dobi commended INEC for conducting a peaceful and transparent election in the history of the country.
He commended the of people for coming out en-masse to exercise their civic duty, which led to his victory.

Jigawa
A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in
Hadejia, Jigawa State, Alhaji Muhammad Gabi has described the victory of the party in the Jigawa North-East Senatorial election as a ‘’welcome development’.
Gabi said this in an interview with newsmen on Monday in Hadejia.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared the APC candidate, Alhaji Ubali Shitu, winner of the
election.
Shitu scored 193, 960 votes to defeat two other candidates, Alhaji Ahmad Sarawa (PDP) and Ahmed Kaugama (PDM), who polled 97, 196 and 1, 266 votes, respectively.
Gabi said that the outcome of the election was a reflection of the popular wishes of the people.
Kaduna
Human rights activist, Shehu Sani of the All
Progressives Congress (APC), last Monday was declared winner of the Kaduna Central Senatorial seat.
The Returning Officer, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mohammed Kabir-Yakubu, who declared the result in Kaduna, said Sani scored 268,964 votes to defeat five other contestants.
He said Sen. Ahmed Aruwa of PDP polled 168, 241 votes; Talatu Shehu of AP, 2,415 and Sherifat Abdullahi of ADC got 982 votes.
The returning officer said other contestants, including Salihu Halliru of APCN and Inuwa Haruna of PPA, scored 390 and 409 votes, respectively.
Our correspondent reports that with this result, the APC won two senatorial seats and PDP, one.

Kano
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has won
the Kano North senatorial seat, defeating Senator Bello Hayatu, who has been in the Senate since 1999.0
The APC candidate, Alhaji Barau Jibrin, an accountant and World Bank consultant, secured 381,393 votes to end Hayatu’s 16 year’s in the Senate.0
The Returning Officer, Prof. Ibrahim Ahmed, who declared the result on Monday in Bichi, said the incumbent senator, who contested for the fifth time under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), got 107, 845 votes.0
Ahmed said the election had recorded massive turn-out of voters and was conducted peacefully.

Kano
Senator Kabiru Gaya of the All Progressives
Congress (APC) has retained the Kano South Senatorial District in the Saturday’s National Assembly election.
The INEC Returning Officer for the Senatorial zone, Prof. Auwalu Arzai, announced the results at the collation centre in Rano last Monday.
He said that Gaya polled 488, 528 votes, to defeat Alhaji Sani Rogo of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) who got 145, 923 votes.
Arzai, who described the election as peaceful and transparent, commended the voters for their peaceful and massive turnout.
Our correspondent reports that with this result, the All Progressives Congress has won all the three senatorial seats in the state.
Osun
A security expert in Osun State, Alhaji Hassan Hussein,
has commended the Police for the professionalism they showed during the last Saturday’s Presidential and National Assembly elections.
Hussein, a retired police officer and head of a vigilance group, newsmen in an interview in Osogbo that the conduct of the police was unprecedented.
According to him, the Nigeria Police has “really come of age as a desirable institution in a democratic setting”.
‘’It is very clear that we are developing our institutions as a democratic nation; the police is one of the institutions that have really advanced rapidly with time.
‘’Obviously, the degree of professional acumen exhibited by the force on Saturday clearly showed that Nigeria can rely on the police as an agent of democracy.
‘’I urge the Inspector-General of Police to sustain the tempo even after the results of the elections have been declared, so as to avert any form of post-election violence,’’ he said.
Plateau
Mr Timothy Golu, who was declared winner of House
of Representatives seat for Pankshin, Kanke and Kanam constituency of Plateau State, has urged INEC to improve on its new electoral strategy.
Golu, who won on PDP’s platform, made the appeal on Monday in Pankshin, in an interview with newsmen shortly after he was declared winner of the seat by INEC.
“From what we notice during last Saturday’s Presidential and NASS polls, INEC’s introduction of Card Readers did not give room for our electorate to freely exercise their civic rights.
“More than half of the registered voters did not participate in last Saturdays elections because of the technicalities involved in the innovation, “ he said.
The winner, who expressed gratitude to God and the people that stood by him, called on electoral the umpire to improve on the new system by removing all bottle necks associated with it.
Zamfara
The gubernatorial candidate of the Peoples Democratic
Party (PDP) in Zamfara State, Alhaji Mamuda Shinkafi, has commended security agents for providing effective security during the Presidential and National Assembly elections in the state.
Shinkafi, who was the immediate past governor of the state, told newsmen in Shinkafi on Monday that the conduct of the security personnel at polling centres had assisted in making the election peaceful and violence free.
He said that the 2015 elections was a departure of the ugly crisis witnessed in 2011.
“The arrangement by INEC is better than in the past and I am sure it is out of experience as there was orderliness at polling centres to deter any misbehaviour,” Shinkafi said.
He also commended INEC for the smooth conduct of the elections across the styate.

Nation

UNIZIK Honours Business Mogul, Ezekwe, For Philanthropism

Published

4 days ago

March 2, 2026

The Tide

The Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK) has conferred the Award of Digital Academic Promoter on the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Arrowconn Group, High Chief (Dr.) Emeka Ezekwe, for his philanthropic gestures.

Chief Ezekwe received the philanthropist award during a landmark technical workshop organised by the Department of Business Education, Faculty of Technology and Vocational Education, Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK), Awka, recently.

Making the presentation, the Vice Chancellor of the university, Prof. Ugochukwu Stanley Anyaehie, said the award was in recognition of Ezekwe’s philanthropic contributions, academic support, and dedication to human capital development, hailing his commitment to bridging industry and academia.

Ezekwe who is also the Chairman of Port Harcourt Chamber of Commerce Professional Services and Consultancy Trade Group, delivered a keynote address at the event with a theme: “Technicalities and Application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Business and Education.”

In his address, Ezekwe described the current AI surge as a civilizational shift rather than a mere technological upgrade.

He compared AI’s rapid trajectory to past innovations like electricity, computers, the Internet, and mobile phones, which he said, progressed from luxuries to necessities.

“AI is reshaping value creation, knowledge sharing, and decision-making at unprecedented speed. It has moved from experimentation to execution, powering business forecasting, academic research, digital learning, and strategic decisions,” he said.

The business mogul, however, warned that in business, delays lead to losses, while in education, irrelevance spells failure.

“AI is no longer optional, it is a necessity,” he declared.

Ezekwe highlighted the critical AI skill gap, driven by curriculum lags, limited training, and fear of the unknown, but stressed the bigger danger which is exclusion.

“Those who master AI will shape markets, education, and policy; those who lag will be shaped by others,” he said.

The Arrowconn Group boss also outlined AI’s practical advantages for businesses —including data-driven strategies, smarter investments, scalable customer insights, and competitive edges for SMEs.

In education, he clarified that AI empowers rather than replaces teachers, enabling personalized learning, efficient lesson planning, assessment support, and accelerated research.

He advocated a shift from rote memorization to critical thinking, creativity, and problem-solving, while preserving human strengths in engagement, judgment, and collaboration.

Ezekwe urged ethical AI development, warning that “technology without values is dangerous,” and called on institutions like UNIZIK to update curricula, train educators, promote interdisciplinary work, forge industry partnerships, and produce graduates who are solution providers in an AI-driven world.

The workshop also marked the unveiling of the maiden edition of the UNIZIK Journal of Business Education and Entrepreneurship, reinforcing the department’s push for scholarly innovation in AI applications.

Nation

Don Calls For National Forensic Data Bank To Combat Rising Crime

Published

4 days ago

March 2, 2026

The Tide

The Head of the Department of Anatomy at the University of Port Harcourt’s College of Health Sciences, Prof Gabriel Sunday Oladipo, has underscored the urgent need for Nigeria to develop a comprehensive forensic science infrastructure, warning that the nation’s ability to investigate and solve crime is being hampered by lack of scientific data and systems.

In his inaugural lecture titled, “Man: Fearfully Different, Wonderfully Made,” delivered as part of the 207th Inaugural Lecture Series of the university, Prof Oladipo highlighted that while no two individuals are exactly the same, the country currently lacks the robust systems needed to collect and manage biological and anthropometric data that could support criminal investigations.

He explained that the natural variations among humans — from fingerprints to physical measurements — form the foundation of personal identification in forensic work. These biological differences, he said, are essential for distinguishing one person from another, especially in the context of criminal investigations where clarity of identity can mean the difference between justice and impunity. Without this scientific foundation, he argued, law enforcement agencies lack a critical tool in the fight against crime.

Experts have noted that Nigeria’s forensic science capacity has historically lagged behind needs, with only a few forensic facilities available and many law enforcement agencies struggling to access or use scientific evidence effectively. One review of the state of forensic investigation in Nigeria found that outdated facilities and limited adoption of modern forensic methods have left many cases unsolved or poorly investigated, even as crime rates rise across the country.

In Lagos, efforts to improve forensic capabilities have focused on DNA analysis, with the Lagos State DNA Forensic Centre — the first of its kind in West Africa — providing critical support for criminal investigations and helping to identify human remains, link related cases, and assist with paternity testing. However, such initiatives are yet to be replicated at a national scale, leaving many regions without access to these vital scientific tools.

Prof Oladipo’s lecture went beyond academic theory to propose concrete actions. He called for the establishment of a National Institute of Forensic Science responsible for creating and managing a nationwide anthropometric and forensic data bank. This repository, he stressed, would significantly enhance Nigeria’s capacity to track crime, assist law enforcement agencies, and improve the administration of justice by providing reliable scientific evidence for investigative and legal processes.

He also highlighted the importance of strengthening research and training in forensic science. Many Nigerian universities currently lack the funding and infrastructure to offer complete undergraduate or postgraduate programs in areas such as forensic anthropology, DNA analysis, and crime scene investigation, a gap that forces aspiring experts to rely on collaborations with institutions abroad. By fostering a research-friendly environment and securing greater support from both government and private sectors, Nigerian institutions could produce homegrown experts capable of advancing forensic science in the country.

Awareness of forensic science’s role in criminal justice remains low among the general public and even among some security professionals. Studies have shown that a significant portion of Nigerians are unfamiliar with basic forensic concepts or the existence of tools such as DNA profiling and national forensic databases — tools that are common features of criminal justice systems in countries like South Africa and the United Kingdom.

Prof Oladipo also urged regular training and retraining programs to keep forensic practitioners updated with evolving scientific methods. According to him, continuous professional development is critical in a field where technological advances — from biometric databases to digital forensic tools — are transforming how crimes are investigated and solved.

The lecture was attended by academics, students, and professionals drawn to the intersection of science, identity, and justice, all of whom heard the professor make a compelling case for scientific innovation and institutional reform as central to Nigeria’s effort to contain crime and strengthen its justice system.

The event not only showcased Prof Oladipo’s expertise in human anatomy and forensic psychology but also positioned forensic science as a strategic national priority — one that could bring clarity to investigations, support victims and their families, and ultimately enhance public safety across Nigeria.

Nation

UPWA Hosts Colourful Inter-House Sports Fiesta

Published

1 week ago

February 27, 2026

The Tide

The University of Port Harcourt Women Association (UPWA) on Thursday staged a vibrant and memorable edition of its Annual Inter-House Sports Competition at the University of Port Harcourt Sports Village, drawing an impressive turnout of pupils, parents, staff and invited guests.

The event, organised by the UPWA International Group of Schools, brought together children from the pre-nursery, nursery and secondary sections in a colourful celebration of youth athleticism, discipline and teamwork. The arena came alive with cheers and excitement as pupils, clad in their various house colours, marched in a ceremonial parade before proceeding to compete in a wide range of track and field events, relays, novelty races and other team-based activities designed to promote physical fitness and healthy competition.

Declaring the competition open, the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Port Harcourt, Professor Owunari Georgewill, commended UPWA for sustaining a tradition that continues to nurture young talents beyond the classroom. He noted that sports remain a critical component of holistic education, helping to build resilience, confidence, leadership skills and social interaction among children.

In her remarks, the President of UPWA, Professor Udeme Georgewill, expressed appreciation to parents, teachers and members of the organising committee for their dedication and sacrifice in ensuring the success of the programme despite prevailing economic challenges. She described the event as a reflection of unity and collective effort within the school community.

“This is the first time White House is emerging overall winner, and that shows remarkable improvement and great sportsmanship,” she said. “We all had fun. It is not easy putting an event like this together considering the economic situation, but we are grateful to the parents for being part of this journey. The excitement everywhere is truly heartwarming.”

The competition featured spirited participation from the various houses, including Purple House, San Chicago Red House and White House, with pupils demonstrating strength, speed, coordination and teamwork. Parents and supporters filled the stands, cheering enthusiastically and adding colour to the spectacle, while teachers ensured orderliness and safety throughout the proceedings.

Professor Georgewill emphasized that the true essence of sports lies not merely in winning trophies but in participation and personal growth. “Sports is not just about winning. It is an avenue for growth, discipline and opportunity. The fact that a child is able to participate is already a win. Losing this year does not mean you cannot win next year. Keep trying,” she encouraged, urging pupils to see both victory and defeat as stepping stones to greater achievements.

She further observed that while there are many competing interests in the Nigerian sports sector, consistent grassroots investment remains essential for discovering and nurturing future champions.

The colourful ceremony culminated in medal presentations, trophy awards and group photographs, with UPWA executives, including Vice President I, Professor Adedamola Onyeaso, joining the participating teams to celebrate the day’s achievements.

The annual inter-house sports competition continues to stand as one of UPWA’s flagship events, reinforcing its commitment to balanced education, character formation and the promotion of healthy lifestyles among its pupils.