Nation
THE STATES
Bauchi
The Bauchi State Government, has released about N10 million to sensitise nomads across the state on the need to allow their children to acquire Western education.
Chairman Bauchi State Agency for Nomadic Education, Alhaji Umar Mustapha , disclosed this on Tuesday in Bauchi in an interview.
Mustapha said the agency was established by the incumbent administration in the state to cater for the educational needs of pastoralists, fishermen, nomads and immigrant farmers.
He expressed satisfaction with the increase in the number of primary schools for nomadic pupils and said that the number increased from 233 some few years ago to 245 this year.
Benue
The Chairman, State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) in Benue, Mr Anum Iho, said on Tuesday that the welfare of teachers in the state would soon be enhanced.
Iho stated in Makurdi while addressing teachers at the Makurdi Local Government Education Authority (LGEA) that he had already initiated discussions with appropriate authorities towards enhancing the teachers’ package.
The chairman said that, being a teacher; he would take up the challenges of the sector with urgency, urged primary school teachers to always channel their grievances to the appropriate authorities through dialogue.
Also, the Education Secretary of Makurdi LGEA, Mr Godfrey Torgeri, commended the state governor for appointing a teacher as the head of the board.
Borno
The Shehu of Borno, on Tuesday renewed call Alhaji Abubakar Ibn Garbai, on the Boko Haram sect to dialogue with the government to end the violence in parts of the country.
Ibn Garbai made the call at the opening of a capacity workshop for Local Government Hajj Fare Collectors in Maiduguri.
“Let me add my voice to the numerous appeals to our brothers in the Jama’atul Ahlis Sunnah Lida’awati Wal Jihad by well meaning Nigerians. “They should seek the course of peace and harmony in the months ahead and beyond.’’
Ibn Garbai pointed out that Islam did not encourage violence in any form. “The bedrock of Islam is peace and this great attribute of our religion must not be overlooked.
“I am appealing to our brothers to stop the acts of violence and come forward for dialogue if they wish to seek redress on any issue.”
Gombe
A consultant haematologist with the Federal Medical Centre, Gombe, Dr Ahmed Girei, has advised intending couples to ensure they go for genotype test before planning marriage.
He gave this advice during the World Sickle Cell Day commemoration in Gombe.
“It is important for intending couples to know their genotype so that they will not produce children who are carriers. “People should be aware that sickle cell condition is an inherited disorder and is in existence.’’
Girei advised people to seek the necessary information to enable them take precautionary measures, noting that for those that inherited the gene, it was possible to live a normal live with proper care.
According to the consultant, sickle cell is not curable but there are measures that patients need to take to limit the crisis and complication.
Kaduna
The Kaduna State chapters of Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) and Jama’atul Nasir Islam (JNI) on Tuesday appealed to residents of the state to be calm “no matter the provocation or agitating passion’’.
Addressing a joint news conference in Kaduna, the organisations also called on the residents to be law abiding and not to take the laws into their hands.
The conference was addressed by the chairmen, Rev. Samuel Kujiat and Alhaji Ja’afaru Makarfi of CAN and JNI, respectively.
The chairmen also told the residents that they would render account of their deeds before God, urging them to cooperate with government and security agencies to restore peace.
Kogi
The Police in Kogi have arrested four persons for allegedly exhuming a corpse for ritual purposes at a cemetery in Ayetoro-Gbede, Ijumu Local Government of Kogi.
Briefing newsmen on Tuesday in Lokoja, the Commissioner of Police, Alhaji Mohammed Katsina, said the suspects were arrested on June 7 by the command’s ambush squad at the cemetery after exhuming the body.
He said his men laid ambush for the alleged ritualists and watched them “desecrate the serenity of the environment” as they exhumed the body.
Katsina said the suspects were in the process of dismembering the head when policemen swooped on them.
Kwara
A labour activist, Mr Emmanuel Aiyeoribe, on Tuesday urged the Federal Government to prosecute those involved in the oil subsidy scam in the interest of the masses.
Aiyeoribe, former Chairman, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Kwara chapter, said in Ilorin that the report of the House of Representatives ad hoc committee was unique.
He said it should be separated from the bribery allegation leveled against Rep. Farouk Lawan and others. “The Federal Government should separate the issue of subsidy scam from the bribery allegation in the interest of the Nigerian masses and justice.
Lagos
A former Chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association, Mr Olisa Agbakoba (SAN), on Tuesday said that good leadership would sustain Nigeria’s existence in the face of security challenges.
Agbakoba, also a rights activist, said that providing dividends of democracy would avert religious and ethnic clashes among Nigerians.
He spoke against the backdrop of continued bomb attacks on churches in some northern states of the country.
“Until the leadership ensures that Nigerians partake in the dividends of democracy, terrorism, kidnapping, robbery and other vices will thrive. “There is the need for governments to make sure that Nigerians are provided with good education, adequate and free medicare. “This is the only way to prevent a revenge of the people,’’ he said.
Plateau
Justice Ambrose Allagoa of the Federal High Court, Jos, Tuesday reprimanded lawyers who appeared before him and expressed regrets that standards had fallen “abysmally low.”
“Some lawyers who come to this court are not worthy to be addressed as lawyers because they mess up cases with their very poor knowledge of even basic processes. “Sometimes, I have to be a teacher for things to move smoothly; this is not good for the law profession to which I also belong,” Allagoa lamented.
The judge said that only “very few solicitors” were serious with the profession.
Sokoto
Secretary of Aliyu Magatakarda Advocacy Group (AMAG), Sokoto, Alhaji Abubakar Yabo, on Tuesday called on members of the National Assembly (NASS) to come up with more stringent laws that would end the senseless killings of Nigerians in some parts of the country.
Yabo said in Sokoto that the NASS should also ensure adequate provisions for the purchase of modern equipment and up-to-date training for security agencies to ensure they could more effectively tackle the current crime situation in the country.
He was of the view that a better trained security force would be able to map out strategies that would lead to the arrest and prosecution of all those involved in planting bombs in some parts of the country.
Yabo said that as representatives of the people, time has come for them to work out security modalities that would guarantee the safety of Nigerians.
Taraba
The Deputy Chairman, Taraba chapter of the PDP, Alhaji Danladi Shehu, on Tuesday called on political appointees and elected representatives of the people to commit their earnings into the well-being of their communities.
Shehu said in Jalingo that a situation where politicians stayed away from their constituencies only to resurface during campaigns was not encouraging.
He added that restiveness in some of the communities nationwide was due to unfulfilled promises by the political class.
Shehu said it would not take much for politicians to create jobs such as vulcanising, carpentry, bricklaying and farming to keep youths in their communities.
He said governments at all levels must also wake up to their responsibility of meeting the challenges of development by providing the required basic infrastructure and social services.
Zamfara
The Zamfara Government has voted N50 million to upgrade facilities and renovate dilapidated structures at the College of Agriculture and Animal Sciences at Bakura.
The Commissioner for Agriculture and Natural Resources, Alhaji Malami Yandoto disclosed this on Tuesday during a facility inspection visit to the college.
Yandoto said that the college would continue to attract the attention of the state government to stand the test of time.
He said that the college remained one of the lasting and virile legacies of the late premier of the defunct Northern Region, Alhaji Ahmadu Bello Sardauna, adding that the state government had prioritised agriculture as the mainstay of the state economy, adding that it would provide facilities that could assist farmers to imbibe mechanised agriculture.
“The government would do everything possible to provide facilities that could transform our farming,’’ he said.
The commissioner said that provision of standard facilities at the college would enhance better learning of modern agricultural techniques and open more grounds for technical training of extension workers.
He said that the knowledge would be imparted to rural farmers by the extension workers so that agricultural production in the state would triple while the local economy could grow fast.
Yandoto said that some of the facilities that would be renovated included classroom blocks and students hostel while laboratory and research equipment would be upgraded.
The Provost of the College, Malam Umaru Muhammad, commended the state government for coming to the aid of the institution.
He promised to make use of the facilities for high quality teaching and learning.
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.
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.
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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