News
FG Okays Community Radio Services
President Goodluck Jonathan, yesterday empowered the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) to approve licences for the establishment of Community Radio stations without recourse to the Presidency.
Jonathan gave the directive in Abuja, while declaring open the eighth biennial conference of Africa Broadcasters (Africast).
represented by Vice President Namadi Sambo, the President stated that already, the Federal Executive Council (FEC) had considered and approved the guidelines proposed by the NBC for the licensing of community radio in Nigeria.
“We have devolved to the commission, the power to consider and issue the licences without further recourse to the Presidency, provided such applicants have met all the conditions stipulated by law,” he said.
The President, however, urged journalists to “maintain professional integrity, by ensuring truth, balance and fairness in their coverage of political activities.
“That is the only way they can truly help to ensure that we achieve the desired free, fair and credible elections we all crave for in this country.’’
He also reminded the journalists, particularly the broadcasters, of the paramount place of content in their programming.
“If we as Africans must tell our story, in our own words, to the rest of the world, then we must pay close attention to the production of edifying programmes using the best available technology.
“The challenge of providing sufficient suitable content is also further underlined by the imminent transition from analogue to digital terrestrial broadcasting, which will further expand the spectrum and offer more space that needs to be filled with content,” he remarked.
According to him, in recognition of the fact that digitisation in the broadcast sector is best driven by policy, the Federal Government will soon send a bill to the National Assembly for a law that will provide the legal framework for the transition.
He expressed optimism that the law would deal with the basic issues of the signal distribution system, the licensing framework, spectrum planning, broadcast standards, training and other issues that would make the transition smooth and meaningful.
“We recognise the crucial need to successfully transit to digital broadcasting, and we shall leave no stone unturned to achieve it within the deadline,” he said.
He, however, commended the management of the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) for inaugurating its digital terrestrial multi-channel station, describing it as a “positive step in the digitisation of programmes.”
The President also paid tributes to the Nigerian broadcast sector for its contributions to nation building.
“Through their programmes, broadcasters have continued to entertain, educate and inform the public about happenings around them, taking elected officials to task on their responsibilities and thus fulfilling their constitutional role of holding the government accountable to the people,” he said.
Earlier, the Minister of Information and Communications, Prof Dora Akunyili, had urged all broadcast-related organisations to partner with the NBC to make Africast an industry platform, as it is being done in other parts of the world.
The minister who was represented by the Minister of State for Information, Mr Labaran Maku, asked Africast to reach out to other international conferences on the African continent as well as in Europe, Asia and America.
According to her, this will create a cooperation arrangement that will help place the conference more firmly and prominently on the global broadcast conferences’ agenda.
The three-day conference is being attended by participants across Africa, Europe, the U.S., the Middle East and Asia.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has cautioned parents to closely monitor their children’s craving for cookies and gummies, warning that some of the products may contain illicit substances being smuggled into the country.
In a statement posted yesterday, NDLEA’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, said recent seizures by the agency’s officers had revealed attempts by criminal elements to introduce prohibited substances under the guise of everyday snacks.
“As parents, if your kids and young ones always crave for cookies and gummies, you may have to pay a little more attention. There may be more to it than ordinary cookies and gummies,” Babafemi wrote, sharing images of seized packages.
The photos showed colourful pouches of “Cookies Delta 8 Gummies” in flavours such as Hawaiian Rain Pineapple Guava and Thai Mango, labelled as vegan and hemp-derived, alongside the actual gummy products.
The warning comes amid a major interception by the Nigeria Customs Service at the Tin Can Island Port in Lagos.
Officers seized two 40-foot containers containing large quantities of cannabis-infused products concealed among legitimate imports such as used vehicles, generators, batteries and fabrics.
The consignment included thousands of Delta-8 cannabis pre-roll cookies, packs of cannabis-infused gummies and other cannabis-infused cookies, with a combined estimated street value of about ?373.8m.
The items were subsequently handed over to the NDLEA.
NDLEA officials described the products, which originated from the United States and were packaged to resemble ordinary vegan snacks with appealing flavours, as an emerging public health threat.
They noted that the attractive packaging could appeal especially to children, students and young people, raising the risk of accidental consumption of concentrated cannabis.
The Rivers State Waste Management Agency (RIWAMA) has announced plans to partner with the Police Community Relations Committee (PCRC) to strengthen efforts at combating illegal waste dumping and improving environmental sanitation across the state.
The partnership was unveiled during a meeting between officials of RIWAMA and the leadership of the Rivers State chapter of the PCRC in Port Harcourt, recently, where both organisations pledged to work together to restore the Garden City status of the state capital.
In his speech, the Supervisor of Market and Community Sanitation in RIWAMA, Mr. Omereji Ukoha, said the collaboration was in line with the vision of the agency’s Managing Director, Dr. Ibimina Wokoma, and the Board Chairman, Dr. Samuel Nwanosike, to promote a cleaner and healthier environment.
Ukoha described the PCRC as a strategic grassroots partner capable of mobilising communities and driving behavioural change through sustained public enlightenment on proper waste disposal.
He expressed concern over the increasing rate of indiscriminate refuse dumping in parts of Port Harcourt, particularly in New GRA, where blocked drainage channels and illegal shanties have continued to contribute to flooding and environmental degradation.
According to him, the agency is determined to intensify enforcement against environmental offenders, warning that unregistered cart pushers and residents who patronise them would be prosecuted in accordance with the provisions of the RIWAMA Act, 2014.
The RIWAMA official urged residents to embrace proper waste disposal practices and patronise only government-approved waste operators in order to safeguard public health and protect the environment.
Responding, the Chairman of the Police Community Relations Committee in Rivers State, Dr. Voke Emore, commended RIWAMA for seeking collaboration with the committee in addressing environmental challenges confronting the state.
Emore said the PCRC would deploy its community-based structures across the state to support public sensitisation and encourage residents to comply with environmental sanitation regulations.
He also called on local government councils to play more active roles in waste management, noting that they collect sanitation levies and should complement the efforts of the state government in maintaining a clean environment.
The PCRC chairman described indiscriminate refuse disposal as a serious environmental and public health concern, stressing that sustained collaboration among government agencies, community leaders and residents remained critical to achieving lasting sanitation goals.
Both organisations expressed optimism that the partnership would promote cleaner communities, reduce environmental hazards and strengthen public participation in efforts to ensure a healthier and more sustainable environment for the people of Rivers State.
King Onunwor
The Rivers State Police Command has arrested five suspected members of a kidnapping syndicate allegedly terrorising communities in Oyigbo Local Government Area of the State.
The State Police Command disclosed this in a statement by its Public Relations Officer, ASP Blessing Agabe, in Port Harcourt, recently.
The suspects were arrested during a coordinated operation at Oyigbo, following directives by the Commissioner of Police, Rivers State Command, CP Olugbenga Adewole Adepoju.
Those arrested were Ezekiel Emmanuel, 44, from Benue State; Chukwuma Mbanefor, 51, from Anambra State; Nicholas Diala, 65, from Imo State; Ndubuisi Uwakwe, 49, from Abia State; and Ifeanyi Nwakwo, 51, from Imo State.
The Command said the arrest represented another significant operational success in its ongoing efforts to dismantle criminal networks operating in the State.
According to the Police, preliminary investigation indicated that the suspects were allegedly involved in kidnapping operations within Rivers State.
The suspects, during interrogation, allegedly confessed to their involvement in kidnapping and further admitted participating in several operations carried out in Kom-Kom, Railway, Obeama and Afam communities.
The Command said investigation was ongoing, with efforts intensified to identify and apprehend other members of the suspected syndicate who may be connected with the criminal activities.
The Police boss said the operation reflected the implementation of operational directives and the intelligence-driven policing strategy of the Inspector-General of Police, IGP Olatunji Rilwan Disu, psc, NPM.
Adepoju reaffirmed the Command’s determination to sustain aggressive intelligence-led operations against kidnapping, cultism, armed robbery and other violent crimes across Rivers State.
He warned kidnappers and other criminal elements operating in the State that there would be no safe haven for them, stressing that the Command would relentlessly pursue, arrest and ensure that those found culpable were brought to justice.
The Commissioner further assured residents of the Command’s commitment to protecting lives and property, urging members of the public to remain vigilant and cooperate with security agencies in the fight against crime.
He appealed to residents to provide the Police with credible and timely information capable of assisting security operatives in preventing criminal activities and apprehending suspected criminals.
The Command urged members of the public who may have useful information on the activities of the suspected kidnapping syndicate or other criminal elements to contact the Police through its emergency lines, assuring that such information would assist ongoing investigations.
King Onunwor