Nation
THE STATES
Adamawa
Following last Friday’s attack in Ganye in Adamawa, State which led to the death of 25 persons, the police in the state have tightened security in Yola, the state capital.
Investigations in Yola revealed that various check points have emerged on major streets of the state capital leading to traffic gridlock.
When contacted on the development, the command’s Public Relations Officer, DSP Mohammed Ibrahim, said the measure was a proactive one.
Ibrahim said, “You saw what happened in Ganye; we don’t want to take any chances. “We need the public support and understanding to ensure security of lives and properties.” He appealed for understanding from the public. fewer than nine out of the 21 local government areas of the state had been attacked within the past one year.
Ekiti
The Ekiti State Traffic Management Agency (EKSTMA) has pledged to tackle road accidents and congestion in the state.
The General Manager of the agency, Mr Charles Fasubaa, said in Ado-Ekiti on Monday that his organisation would restore sanity to the roads.
Fasubaa urged reckless motorists and owners of rickety vehicles to stay away from roads in the state.
He said 300 officers of the agency had been provided with kits by the state government during the inauguration of the agency.
“We are determined to curb cases of avoidable accidents on roads within the state and one can only urge drivers to comply with traffic rules and have regard for human lives,” he said.
The general manager warned residents against bribing staff of the agency, saying any officer caught would be arrested and prosecuted.
FCTT
The Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP), has commended the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) “for serving the course of justice in the ‘APC’ controversy’’.
CNPP’s National Publicity Secretary, Mr Osita Okechukwu, gave the commendation last Tuesday in a statement issued to newsmen in Abuja.
“The CNPP salutes the INEC for defending the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, by rejecting the registration of the African People’s Congress for irregularities in their application.
“We have always known that African People’s Congress was born out of mischief to sustain the one party state foisted on the people. “As of February 28 when their lawyer, Legal World Chamber, wrote to INEC, the sponsors of the legal team and the protem Chairman of African People’s Congress were bona fide members of PDP,” he said.
Okechukwu said that it could have been a paradox for INEC after de-registering more grounded political parties to go ahead to register “mischief makers and opportunists”.
It would be recalled that three political associations, All Progressives Congress, African People’s Congress and All Patriotic Citizens are claiming the acronym ‘APC‘.
Jigawa
The Birniwa Local Government Council in Jigawa State last Monday, distributed clothing materials worth N700,000 to watchmen and messengers to enhance their operations.
The Director of Personnel Management of the council, Alhaji Zubairu Danfaruwa, said in Birniwa that other items given to the guards include rain boots, umbrella, torchlights and caps.
Danfaruwa said 240 bundles of the materials were shared to 38 watchmen and 25 messengers
The director urged them to reciprocate the council’s effort through hard work and dedication to their responsibilities.
The Head of the Guards, Malam Kura Kadai, thanked the council for the gesture and assured that the affected workers would discharge their duties according to the laid down rules of the council.
Kaduna
The Kaduna State Government is to embark on land administration reform to improve its internally generated revenue, an official said last Tuesday.
The Commissioner for Lands, Survey and Country Planning, Alhaji Sani Aminu said in Kaduna that the reform would help in reinvigorating economic activities in the state.
Aminu said under the reform, land in the 23 local government areas would be fully utilised.
“A greater part of the land mass was under utilised due to ineffective policies. “Only three per cent of land in Nigeria is fully utilised. A lot of people do not have access to land, which is one of the major bottlenecks to land value and utilisation,” he said. He said that the absence of planning in the utilisation of land resources in the country had resulted to low economic value for land.
Kano
Operatives of the Joint Military Task Force (JTF) last Monday, conducted a house-to-house search in some areas of Kano metropolis. The areas included the Yankaba and Eastern bye-pass roads.
Residents of the areas said that the search started very early in the morning.
A resident, Malam Yuhuza Rabiu, said “the military people moved in very early in the morning. They caught us unawares and we could not move out to our places of work”.
Most travellers coming into the city from the Jigawa, Bauchi and Maiduguri axis were affected by the early morning search as the road was blocked, disallowing movement in and out of the affected areas.
The JTF Spokesman, Cpt. Ikedichi Iweha, could not be reached on the situation as his telephone failed to connect when our correspondent placed several calls to the line.
Kwara
The Chairman, Irepodun Local Government Area of Kwara State, Mrs Basirat Babalola, has commended principals of secondary schools in the area over the academic achievements of their students.
Babalola gave the commendation while presenting gifts to students who excelled in the 2013 LEAH Reading competition. LEAH Reading Competition is the pet project of the wife of the state’s governor, Mrs Omolewa Hamed.
The chairman, who was represented by the council’s vice-chairman, Mr Abdulazeez Yakub, commended the award-winning students and their principals for the feat.
“Without mincing words, we are indeed happy for doing the council proud and being good ambassadors of the community. “With these achievements, there is an assurance that the future of our children is bright and we are bold to say that their academic performance has improved tremendously, “he said.
The Local Government Education Secretary, Mr Lanre Balogun, said the students were a pride to their schools, their parents and the entire Kwara South District.
Nasarawa
The Police Command in Nasarawa State last Monday in Lafia, paraded two suspects for alleged kidnapping of a minor at Mararaba in the Karu Local Government Area of the state.
The Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr Abayomi Akeremale, who paraded the suspects, said that the abductors were part of a five-man gang who robbed one Mr Nkereuwem Thompson, a civil servant.
Akeremale explained that apart from kidnapping, the suspects also robbed their victim and his family of their belonging, including cars, laptop, mobile phones and N150,000, at gun point.
The police commissioner said that the suspects demanded N10 million as ransom for the release of the kidnapped minor, adding that the mother of the minor pleaded with the suspects to spare her child for all their property but that they ignored her overture and took the boy to an unknown destination.
Akeremale said the police swung into action by setting up a search party immediately the case was reported at the Mararaba Police Station.
Ogun
The Ogun Police Command last Monday said it arrested a 40-year-old man for allegedly initiating the rape of his two sisters in Ijebu-Ososa area of the state.
The command’s spokesman, Muyiwa Adejobi, told newsmen in Abeokuta that the suspect was arrested with two other persons.
“The two other persons arrested with the 40-year-old man are those who eventually raped and robbed the two sisters aged 16 and 18. “He gave the two suspects N80,000 to harass, molest and threaten his two younger sisters who had disagreed with him over the sharing formula of their late parents’ inheritance. “You can speak with him as he had already confessed to the crime; so it’s a very straight forward case and we are charging three of them to court tomorrow,’’ he said.
Speaking with newsmen, the victims’ brother said it was true that he hired two persons to threaten his two sisters over their parents’ inheritance.
“I just asked them (the two other suspects) to threaten my sisters so that they can leave the properties to me; I never paid them to rape my sisters as they had done, ‘’ he said.
Osun
The Osun State government has announced the appointment of Prof. Adekunle Okesina, as the new Vice Chancellor of the state-owned University of Osun.
The appointment was contained in a statement signed by Mr Sunday Akere, the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, and made available to newsmen in Osogbo, Monday.
The statement said the appointment of Okesina, who was the pioneer Deputy Vice Chancellor of the university, took immediate effect, as Prof. Sola Akinrinde, the immediate past Vice Chancellor of the university, vacated the seat in July 20I2.
No fewer than 13 professors had applied to succeed Akinrinde. Among them were Prof. Siyan Oyeweso, the former Provost of the College of Humanities of the university.
External candidates who also showed interest, included Prof. Mojeed Alabi, Political Science Department, University of Ilorin, and Prof. Olu Odeyemi, Department of Microbiology, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife.
Oyo
A group, the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC), has appealed to the Boko Haram sect to release its French hostage and her four children in the light of Islamic teachings.
MURIC Director, Prof. Is-haq Akintola, made the appeal on Monday in Ibadan.
The group referred the sect and others connected with the kidnap to Islam’s prescribed treatment of women and children at peace and war.
A French family of seven- Tanguy Moulin-Fournier, his wife, four children and brother- was seized by the Boko Haram on February 19. The family members were seized while holidaying in a region around Cameroun’s Waza National Park.
Meanwhile, a Muslim group in Oyo State, Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Organisation, has condemned the reported infiltration of the Boko Haram sect into a part of Lagos.
The National President of the group, Mr Abdulquadir AbdulRafi, told newsmen in Ibadan that the reported discovery of the sect’s hideout in Lagos called for concerted efforts by all Nigerians to check the trend.
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.