A humanitarian group, the Ebele & Anyichuks Foundation, has called on all tiers of government to “ramp up their security architecture in order to curb the floodgate of violence and bloodshed in the country.”

The foundation, in a statement to The Nation by its co-founder, Dr. Ifeanyi Odii, specifically made reference to the carnage in Ebonyi State, saying the Ezza-Effium lingering crisis and last week’s killings in Ishielu Local Government Area, called for sober reflection and proactive actions by stakeholders, especially the government and security agencies.

Odii, a United Nations POLAC ambassador, however, lauded the Federal and Ebonyi State governments’ efforts to restore peace to the crisis-torn communities in the state but was quick to add that a lot needed to be done.

His words: “While we commend the governor of Ebonyi State(Dave Umahi) for the many efforts by his government towards securing lives and properties in the state, we call on the government to do more towards providing a lasting solution to the needless pogrom and making insecurity a thing of the past in the state.

“The foundation is not unaware that the government of the federation and that of Ebonyi State are not folding their arms and watching but have been up and doing to clear the nation and the state of elements intent on making life miserable for Nigerians, including Ebonyians.”

He therefore admonished the perpetrators of violence, their sponsors and governments to make Costa Robin’s quote: “at the end of the day, we are all human,” their watchword.

Stressing that “we must relentlessly pursue, maintain and preserve the sanctity of our humanity,” Odii quoted a verse in the Koran(Surat Alma-idah 5:32) that says: “Whoever kills an innocent life is as if he has killed all humanity.”

Odii, who is also a member of the Lagos State University(LASU) Governing Council, said the foundation would always align itself with Greenspoon’s view that “the hallmark of the human species is great adaptability.”

The philanthropist, therefore, appealed to all Nigerians, irrespective of their tribe and religion to realise that “one of the greatest attributes humans is our ability to adapt, bear, tolerate and accommodate the imperfections of one another in the interest of peace, happiness, and prosperity.”

By John Ofikhenua, Abuja

Managing Director of Rural Electrification Agency (REA) Engr. Ahmad Salihijo Ahmad has urged the people of Obudu community in Cross River State to put the commissioned 60kPw solar hybrid mini-grid project to productive use.

He spoke at the commissioning ceremony in Obudu Ranch Resort in Obanliku Local Government Area.

The Minister of Power for Power Goddy Jedy-Agba, who commissioned the project, said he was delighted to tick off another achievement of the REA.

According to him: “The commissioning of this 60kWp solar hybrid mini-grid power plant is coming at the right time to a community that will equally value it and made the best of it as this project has been deliberately designed to serve the needs of this community”.

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The Minister noted it has also become obvious that renewable energy plays a critical role in accelerating energy access across the nation.

He said government’s plan is to continue to do all it takes to ensure the nation’s massive renewable energy resources are efficiently utilisd to energize communities, schools, hospitals and businesses across Nigeria.

The Minister also flagged-off the ground breaking ceremony of 100kWp Isolated Mini-grid at the bottom hill community of Obanliku.

He said: “By the power conferred on me as the Minister of State, Federal Ministry of Power, I set this project in motion and I urge the REA team as well as the project developer to accelerate the completion of this project at the usual pace the Agency is known for”.

Continuing, the REA boss said the commissioned 60kWp project is planned to change the socio-economic status of the Obudu people.

He charged them to take full advantage of the intervention with clean and reliable energy to impact on their growth.

By Chinyere Okoroafor

Law groups in Rivers State have condemned alleged moves by the Rivers, Governor Nyesom Wike, to impose a new Chief Judge.

The groups, under the aegis of the International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA) and the Concerned Lawyers in Rivers State, asked Wike not to approve the recommendation and appointment of Justice Simeon Amadi as Chief Judge.

The groups noted the incumbent, Justice Adama Laminkanra, an indigene of Edo State, who retires in May 2021, was appointed by the Governor based on seniority.

They recalled Wike had promised to sustain the policy of seniority and precedence in judicial appointments.

READ ALSO: Hold FG responsible if Ortom is assassinated, says Wike

They wondered why Wike would abandon seniority and precedence to overlook Justice Joy Akpughunum in the list sent by Judicial Service Commission to the National Judicial Council for consideration for appointment.

They stated Justice Akpughunum is the most senior judge while Justice Simeon Amadi comes a distant second with Justice Teetito coming third.

According to them: “What reasons informed the exclusion of Justice Joy Akpughunum, who, apart from being the most senior judge after the incumbent Chief Judge, is outstandingly brilliant, diligent, fair and most importantly, completely free of any smear of corruption?

“Why was the NJC mischievously presented with a fait accompli to make a choice between candidates that by judicial tradition ought to have been considered only after the most senior was found unworthy or unqualified by the NJC?”

Yobe Governor Mai Mala Buni on Thursday performed the commissioning ceremony of the newly completed 13 floor Twin Tower Ultra modern headquarters building of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) in Port Harcourt.

Buni, who represented President Muhammadu Buhari, commissioned the project in company of the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs Godswill Akpabio and Imo Governor Hope Uzodinma.

The NDDC headquarters has been operating from a rented building since the commission started operating.

The building, which started in 1996 witnessed slow pace of work until 2019 when President Muhammadu Buhari committed to its completion.

In line with President Muhammadu Buhari’s commitment to prudent management of resources, the completion of the office building, Godswill Akpabio said, will create an efficiency of N300 million paid yearly as rent for NNDC’s old office.

The new NDDC office is equipped with facilities including hospital, banking hall, conference hall and restaurant.

By Elo Edremoda, Warri

A Delta State High Court sitting in Warri has restrained the Inspector – General of Police, Mohammed Adamu and police officers from arresting a rights activist, Comrade Israel Joe.

Counsel to the activist, Omemiroro Ogedegbe (Esq.) Confirmed the ruling in a statement.

He noted that Comrade Joe had filed a fundamental right application before the Court.

Joe had been invited by the Delta Police Command on Thursday, March 4 for interrogations on a Facebook post over an accident that killed a woman and a child, January 20, near PTI Junction in Effurun, Uvwie council area of the state.

According to him, the Police had accused him of raising a false alarm that its men were involved in the accident, leading to the burning down of a police van.

The Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Zone 5, and the Delta State Commissioner of Police, CP Ari Muhammed Ali, were also restrained in the order.

Ogedegbe said the Court gave an order restraining the respondents from inviting and arresting his client, pending the hearing of a fundamental right application filed before it.

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According to Ogedegbe: “The facts of the case as revealed in the application is to the effect the applicant’s post on Facebook was responsible for the burning down of the police vehicle on the 20th of January, 2021.

“While the applicant contends the vehicle was already burnt down as at the time he made his post. These are the issues to be determined in the main application, but in the meantime, parties have been ordered to stay all actions.”

Joe, who corroborated the claims of his lawyer, said: “the Court heard a motion restraining the Inspector General of Police, Assistant Inspector-General of Police (AIG) Zone 5 Benin and the Delta State Commissioner of Police from inviting, arresting or harassing me over the alarm raised on social media alleging the Police to have been the cause of the accident which claimed the life of a woman and child at PTI on the 20th of January, 2021.

“The judge granted the order restraining all the above mentioned to maintain the status quo and appear also in court for the determination of the motion filed to enforce my fundamental human rights slated for the 28th of March.”

Our Reporter

To ensure economic growth and promote youth inclusiveness in regional development in the Niger Delta, there is a need to invest in Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) to create employment and ensure global competitiveness.

This was a position canvassed at the maiden edition of the Niger Delta Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises Summit 2021 at the Aztech Event Centre, Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

Speaking at the event, the Convener of the Summit and Chairman Mosilo Group,who is also the Founder of Nigerian Young Professionals Forum (NYPF) and Niger Delta Young Professionals, Mr. Moses Siasia noted that the greatest contributory factor to the growth in Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is a collection of the committed efforts from young people, including youths of the Niger Delta, who are resilient and passionate about building industries and promoting economic prosperity but are most often neglected and denied support by government and relevant agencies.

Siasia noted youths have been at the forefront of pioneering growth and innovations in technology, agriculture, entertainment, and sports which have brought in revenues and boosted the image of the country.

He said the efforts of youths have provided a good international advantage for Nigeria through participation in sports, music, and entertainment as well talent contribution in the areas of medicine, education, engineering, and other aspects of global competitiveness and development.

He, however, regretted that there has not been any concerted effort to harness and grow the potentials of the youths.

Siasia advocated for establishment of a Niger Delta Entrepreneurship Hub, a platform that will bridge the gap currently existing and train, equip and engage teeming Niger Delta youths, thereby creating sustainable livelihood opportunities for them.

According to him, other Initiatives under the Niger Delta Entrepreneurship Hub will include implementation of a workable Niger Delta Entrepreneurship, Dev Fund, which will give life wire to only serious MSME with a genuine need for equipment purchase, expansion, export, technology acquisition, and packaging and to ensure a workable Engagement/ Youth Development Policy, backed by the law of Niger Delta State Houses of Assembly.

“This will enable us to institutionalise proper access to opportunities both at the state and federal level,” he said.

The Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitory Board (NCDMB), Engr. Simbi Wabote, noted there is an emerging global economic order which the youths should brace up and be a part of its evolution.

He said: “We need to continue with the effort to grow the MSME by challenging young people to engage strategically, to strive, and to compete in the new world economic order”.

He noted that energy transition has become an immediate reality for which everyone interested in economic development should be mindful, especially the youths of the Niger Delta.

Wabote went further to address five fundamental issues that he said were critical to various MSME interventionist efforts.

He said there is a need to acknowledge the steady shift from oil to sustainable energy, noting the MSME is the engine room of the economy, which is why there is a need to address the numerous challenges facing them.

He noted that there have been several interventions by the present administration, which are geared towards enabling the growth of small businesses, including the ease of doing business policy and the other programs such as TraderMoni, and others meant to enable MSME.

He highlighted the NCDMB special interventions on MSME growth to include the deployment of partway to stimulate growth in the areas of enterprise development, funding, and human capital development.

Interim administrator of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) Mr. Efiong Akwa, called for greater investment in MSMEs as a way to create sustainable jobs and to boost the economy of the region.

He said the NDDC is undergoing a crucial transformation by way of the ongoing forensic audit, however, that the agency will continue to support the growth of businesses in the region.

Our Reporter

Barely three days after delivering a keynote address at the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) retreat in Calabar, a turnaround expert and immediate past director-general of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr Dakuku Peterside, will mount the podium again for another thought-provoking discourse.

Peterside will on Friday deliver a paper titled “Challenging the way we deliver higher education in a changing world” at the First Honour’s Day Lecture of the Federal University, Otuoke, Bayelsa State.

A statement from the university by the Registrar, Yousuo Donald Iruo, revealed the event is part of activities marking the send forth of the institution’s 2nd Vice-Chancellor, Professor Seth Accra Jaja.

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A columnist and technocrat, Peterside will share his thoughts on re-engineering the way tertiary education is delivered in an era of globalization and rapid technological disruptions and, the need to be innovation-driven.

According to the university, Honour’s Day Lecture is a unique opportunity for town-gown interaction, which aligns with the desire of the institution to create platforms for academics and society to synergise in finding innovative solutions to society’s most pressing challenges.

Federal University Otuoke , Bayelsa State is one of the 12 universities established by the Goodluck Jonathan administration in 2011.

The university, which has over 8,000 students and 200 teaching staff, is fast establishing itself as a force to reckon with in grooming high-level manpower and research.

By Imoh Etimudo

What will you remember Otuekong Idongesit Nkanga for? Many will go for the State Secretariat which is named after him while others will look at his numerous contributions to the development of Akwa Ibom State during and after his administration. Whatever divide one belongs to, the departed leader’s good works have comforted Akwa Ibom. Thus his name,

“Idongesit”, comfort, was not given in error. That is what he has left behind. A good name, they say, is better than riches. Otuekong Idongesit Nkanga had all the opportunities to make wealth but he chose to make name, and spent the whole of his life preserving and guarding his good name jealously.

When destiny thrusted on his lap, the golden opportunity to become the first indigenous military administrator of Akwa Ibom State, he grabbed it with both hands to stencil his name in gold in the hearts of Akwa Ibom people in his life time and even more in death.

The then wing Commander was on the wings to making history from when the aircraft that brought him came to a halt at the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Calabar.

The sight of his wings-shaped mustache could have been a pointer that the man in the cockpit of flight Akwa Ibom was set to put the then nascent State on the wings of development. And he spent every day of the less than two years in office working towards the accomplishment of the noble vision for Akwa Ibom State.

Thus, with the transition of His Excellency, Otuekong Idongesit Nkanga, Akwa Ibom State, Niger Delta and indeed, Nigeria will proudly take consolation in the legacy left behind by the proud son of Akwa Ibom State.

Otuekong Idongesit Nkanga belonged to the bright and beautiful generation of the Nigerian Armed Forces, operating from the flank of the Air Force, from where he was under the radar for his distinction in lifting the tyres and lighting the fires.

He was one of the favourite pilots who retained the honour and privilege of flying Nigerian Presidents across the world with dexterity in the skies.

He dominated the firmament of skies across the globe with attendant awards and rewards from the military and society at large.

Air Commodore Nkanga rtd shone like a star and polished a shining career in the Air Force. He was a perfect example of excellence in his different military courses within and outside Nigeria.

This was not unconnected with his being made Commandant of the Presidential Fleet.

Former Military President, General Ibrahim Babangida, rtd was later to appoint Nkanga the Military Governor of a barely four-year old Akwa Ibom State.

It was an appointment that that gave him the skies to fly Akwa Ibom State in the highest altitude of development through laying of futuristic foundation.

Then Wing Commander Idongesit took Akwa Ibom State to a high altitude of development in a comparatively short but stunning leadership flight.

He laid a critical part of the foundation for a skyscraper for Akwa Ibom State, building infrastructure germane to the development of the State from the State Secretariat to roads and other structures. This earned him the subrogate, ” Idongesit Akwa Ibom”, and indeed, he was that and more. And in his transition, he has consoled Akwa Ibom with his good works on earth while he lived.

Otuekong Idongesit Nkanga was a true patriot in every sense of the word. He played critical role in the political development of Akwa Ibom State, supporting successive administrations to succeed, after his time was up. He was quoted to have said that he did all that to satisfy his conscience and contribute to the development of Akwa Ibom State. He was a pathfinder, and in a sense, a “bricklayer” for the State.

But his pioneering role defied States’ divides. Beyond Akwa Ibom State,  Otuekong Idongesit Nkanga, alongside other prominent and patriotic sons and daughters of the Niger Delta region created a path to the envisaged developed Niger Delta.

He contributed greatly to the vibrancy of groups working towards the welfare and emancipation of the Niger Delta region including the Pan Niger Delta Development Forum, PANDEF.

When the leadership ball of the group was in his leadership court, he never failed or abdicated his leadership responsibilities.

Of the truth, the late Otuekong Idongesit Nkanga was a gift to Akwa Ibom State, a pride to the Niger Delta and an asset to Nigeria.

Hence by his demise, tears will never stain the ornamented decors of his shining legacies. The legacies are rather the source of comfort and consolation on the transition of a great son of Akwa Ibom, Niger Delta and Nigeria as a whole! Nkanga has left a good name with us; a name that is better than riches.

Good night good man with a good name!

By Adeola Ogunlade

Chairman and founder of AfroRedFlag White-Collar Protective Shield Limited Dr. Mannixs Paul has called for more collaborative efforts aimed at tackling the menace of white collar crimes and corruption in Africa.

Paul said this at the launching of the AfroRedflag 2021 Innovation Drive for Africa held virtually recently in Abuja, Lagos and Bayelsa.

The event attracted economic experts, government representative and IT experts from the United State of America, Africa, Asia and United Kingdom.

He pointed out based on the report of transparency corruption index reports, most Africa countries, including Nigeria, are regressive in the fight against fraud and corruption.

He noted regardless of the statistical data analysis, which supports the retrogressive outcomes in most African countries, some relevant laws and policies are in place to regulate those shortcomings and deterrence.

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He pointed out based on the forward trend observed it is good to acknowledge that white-collar crimes and corruption are real threats in the developing world.

According to him, nation-building is a shared responsibility for private and public institutions, adding the growing trend of gross deception and dishonesty among business organisations’ stakeholders are undeniable.

Paul, who is a licensed private investigator, said: “With a wide range of collaborative effort, we are introducing Afroredflag as a game-changer to shift the model for the fight against white-collar crimes and corruption to help the business community to achieve sustainability by mitigating the high risk of fraud and corruption in Africa.”

Auditor General, Republic of Ghana, Mr. Daniel Yaw Domelevo, lamented the spate of crimes in work place across Africa, which according to him undermines democracy, violate human rights, exacerbate human insecurity and help the poor disproportionately.

He noted although “there is no one- sized fix in tackling crimes in Africa but we need a critical mass of people who will not take side on moral issue.”

A forensic psychologist, Dr Tersoo Shaapera, said the traditional methods of fighting crime had been “seriously overstretched from arrest, prosecution and then conviction.”

He said that with AfroRedFlag, fight against corruption would be approached from the mind, adding “we begin to fight it there up to the level of organisations as individuals.”

A Technical Consultant with the group, Mrs. Caroline Ndubuisi, called for sustained effort to nip corruption in the bud for a better nation.