Category: South East

Philanthropist Ambassador Mmerigwo Henry Iyke aka Ife na ala Ife, has built a three-kilometre road, equipped with street lights for Uli people.

The road, according to him, is part of his philanthropic gestures to members of the community as a way of giving back to the community where he grew up.

He said the gesture was to mark his birthday on November 4.

The International award-winning businessman has helped lift many families out of poverty said he wishes to thank God for adding another year to his life.

Onwa na ala Uli, as he is popularly known, is one of the most successful young entrepreneurs in Nigeria today who dedicates most of his fortune to helping humanity.

Through the Uli- born philanthropist, many widows have been empowered to provide for their children and families.

He has helped to lift many families out of poverty and his massive investment in health care had helped supplement the efforts of governments in providing affordable health care to the less privileged people in his community.

He has also provided pipe born water to the people of Uli.

Onwa na Uli has received numerous recognitions at home and abroad and have won various awards for his unequalled humanitarian services, notable among them is his conferment of AGPFI Ambassador For Peace by the Advocates For Global Peace Forum International (AGPFI), for his Outstanding contributions to the development of his community and for the advancement of united nations Mission in Nigeria.

AHEAD of tomorrow’s governorship election in Anambra State, a youth advocate, Uche Okonkwo, has advised young persons to eschew violence and stand to defend their rights to vote and help facilitate the quick return of peace to the Southeast.

Okonkwo, who insisted that, more than anything else, the election should be used by the youth, especially to correct the impression that the Igbo have suddenly become ungovernable and haters of themselves.

He said: “When I look towards my dear state, I shudder at the amount of militarisation our space has seen. I cringe at the size of weapons cracking holes of death on the bodies of our youths, fathers and mothers in Igbo land, and I ask what has become of our heritage as the epicentre of tomorrow’s possibilities. This must stop, I plead.

“As a youth dedicated to the profound capabilities of our collective energy and strength, I know as a fact of history that conversations by violence by any group, for whatever reason, is largely the nemesis to peace and progress of any nation. We should not persist in that direction, nor ever wish to experience it, to believe it.

On tomorrow’s governorship election, Okonkwo said: “Let it never be our regret that we watched and were denied the great opportunity of electing our governor democratically and freely in an election believed to parade the best contenders Anambra State has in recent years.

“We should say no clearly to the sinister conspiracy to make us burn our harvests when the fruits are due, and our barns are waiting because that would be too heavy a prize to pay.

“The candidates have spoken; we have heard and seen them. Our duty now is to choose to vote and defend our votes. This is because no matter the regrettable fear factor, a refusal to vote will confer legitimacy to those that profit from violation through this violence.”

Making a special appeal to the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), the Convener of Let’s Get Empowered Foundation, an advocacy group for supporting youths in leadership and entrepreneurship, said it was obvious that “when a child cries and points to a direction, if his mother is not there, then certainly the daddy is”.

Read Also: Okonkwo, Soludo, Uba, Ozigbo pledge peaceful Anambra poll

Okonkwo said: “The direction of IPOB youths is on self-determination, based on grievous acts of marginalisation, inept failure of governance everywhere, and a sense of unbearable exclusion.

“They have built a massive social capital with followership no one can ignore. Therefore, their challenge in styles and strategy to manage such huge human capital for purposes of broader consensus is an avenue for leaders and governments to exploit conversationally.

“Of course, the tendencies for extralegal activities that gave rise to radicalisation, lockdowns and collateral criminalities, alien to their original essential intents, are matters for engagement surgery.

“I, therefore, appeal to them to, in fact, lead the de-escalation of tensions in the Southeast for a surprised winning margin.

“How great it would have been, if determined and organised as they have proven, IPOB took the window of the political recruitment in Anambra State, and by that begin the influence what good governance should be in our Igbo landscape. And if they did and get it right, it will blossom unstoppably but constitutionally.

“I rue that their leader is held and being tried on capital charges. I’m unhappy that so many are in detentions, killed the way we see. But I’m glad our governors have shed their hubris, the bishops have joined their moral strength and our traditional rulers, their wisdom, alongside other critical stakeholders to build a convergence in that option.

“I again passionately urge them to grow faith and trust these elders so that together, the festering cancer of terror in Igbo land will abate and hopefully come to an end.

“Anambra State and the Southeast deserve a return to value life, liberty, and good governance. They are trusting on their youths to make it happen. We can do it by saying no to violence as a start; no to election rigging using us, and yes to voting in safety.”

Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has cancelled its earlier one week sit-at-home order slated to begin yesterday till November 10.

The group said the cancellation followed intervention of elders, traditional and religious leaders, as well as several appeals by mothers who earned their daily living from proceeds of their businesses.

In a statement by its Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful, IPOB urged Anambra State residents to go out and exercise their franchise tomorrow.

The statement reads: “Following the genuine intervention of our elders, esteemed traditional institutions/rulers and religious leaders, and after a due consideration of the positive impacts of their engagement, and sequel to the fact that our elders have spoken in our terms, the leadership of IPOB, ably lead by Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, hereby and immediately calls off the one-week sit-at-home earlier declared to begin on November 5 till November 10, 2021.

“We have equally considered several appeals by our mothers who earn their living based on their daily economic activities, which will obviously be affected if Biafra land is locked down for one whole week. It’s never our intention to add to the pains of our people, hence our decision to suspend the sit-at-home.

“IPOB leadership is only interested in our referendum and peaceful agitation for self-determination, and cannot, under any guise, be seen to be interfering with any electoral process.

“The people of Anambra State should go out en masse and peacefully exercise their franchise on November 6, 2021 and, accordingly, choose a leader of their choice and should not be intimidated by anybody, group of persons or security agents.

“Credible intelligence available to us confirmed that the Nigeria Department of State Services (DSS) has concluded arrangement to deploy a branch of their trained terrorist group to Anambra State on November 6, 2021, to unleash mayhem on our people and attribute the killings to peaceful IPOB members.”

The National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) has warned that any broadcaster or station that breaches any of the provisions of its Code guiding coverage of elections in the country will be liable to severe penalty.

NBC Director General Balarabe Shehu Ilelah urged all broadcasting stations covering the Anambra State governorship election to avoid airing campaigns and coverage that compromise the nation’s unity.

In a statement he personally signed, Ilelah said: “Please, note that any broadcaster that breaches any of the listed provisions of the Code shall be liable to severe penalty.

“The commission implores all broadcasters to desist from using or allowing their platforms and facilities to be used for the broadcast of contents that may lead to the breakdown of law and order.”

He added: “For the avoidance of doubt, broadcasters are advised to note the following sections of the Nigeria Broadcasting Code, which provide that the broadcaster shall:

3.11.1(a) ensure that language or scene likely to encourage or incite to crime, or lead to disorder, is not broadcast;

3.11.1(b) ensure that no programme contains anything which amounts to subversion of constituted authority or compromises the unity or corporate existence of Nigeria as a sovereign state;

5.4.1(f) not transmit divisive materials that may threaten or compromise the indivisibility and indissolubility of Nigeria as a sovereign state, among others.

There was a beehive of activities yesterday in markets in Aba, the commercial nerve of Abia State.

Shoppers from various parts of Nigeria and Africa, who were in the commercial town for businesses, besieged the markets to shop for their needs, ahead of the lockdown by security agencies to prevent likely trouble from some quarters.

Initially, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) was said to have ordered a sit-at-home between November 5 and November 10.

But the organization yesterday announced that it had lifted the restriction to enable eligible voters in Anambra State to cast their votes.

While commercial banks had customers that thronged banking halls, traders in major markets had their hands full while attending to customers.

Many residents of the commercial town were in the markets for last minute shopping for household essentials and to stock their homes with foodstuffs.

Our correspondent’s visits to various commercial banks revealed an upsurge in the number of customers at the banks to perform various financial transactions that they might not be able to perform within the period of the lockdown.

Others who could not withstand the crowd in the banking halls resorted to the use of Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) which equally had long queues.

It was gathered that some business owners who had branches and relations outside the Southeast equally relocated from Abia State to their chosen base to enable them continue with their business transactions.

A shopper, Mrs. Clara Onyeka, regretted the high cost of foodstuffs and feared that hunger might force to defy the lockdown.

Southeast governors yesterday said they were consulting various stakeholders to ensure a hitch-free governorship election in Anambra State tomorrow.

The governors said they were working with security agents and local interest groups to secure the lives and property of the residents.

The Chairman of Southeast Governors’ Forum and Ebonyi State Governor Dave Umahi thanked Ohaneze Ndigbo for the good job its various committees were doing in proffering solutions to issues raised by Igbo youths.

He said: “Southeast governors are studying their reports with the elders and leaders of the various Southeast states and very soon, we will be meeting with the Federal Government on these issues, including deploying political solutions in the case of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, which we have already initiated.”

He also thanked religious leaders, Conference of Bishops and Archbishops of South East, the traditional institutions of Southeast and Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) of South East for their interventions and mediations.

He urged security agencies deployed for Anambra election to secure the lives of people in accordance with the rules of engagements.

Ahead of the November 6 governorship election in Anambra State, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has begun the distribution of electoral materials to the 21 local government areas of the state.

The INEC team in charge of the distribution is led by the commission’s National Commissioner and Chairman of Information, Voter Education and Publicity Committee, Festus Okoye.

They are currently said to be on the premises of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in Awka, the state capital, handing over the materials to the electoral officers.

In the past months, there has been unease and doubt over the possibility of the governorship election taking place, owing to violent attacks in the state and the sit-at-home order by the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

The Federal Government maintained that the election will take place on the scheduled date.

Candidates in the election signed a peace accord yesterday in Awka.

INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, was at the ceremony which was facilitated by the National Peace Committee.

Yakubu said the commission had done all it could to make the election process hitch-free.

He urged residents to keep the peace so that election will be violence-free.

Three persons sustained injuries yesterday, as hoodlums reportedly attacked the security operatives attached to the taskforce on illegal motor parks and street trading in Port Harcourt.

The Coordinator of the task force, DSP Felix Nwadibeyi (rtd.), who confirmed the incident, said that it occurred at Slaughter-Oginigba market, Trans Amadi in Obio/Apkor Local Government of Rivers State.

He said members of the task force were at the area to enforce the ban when the hoodlums attacked them with stones, guns, machetes and other dangerous weapons.

“I led the team to Trans Amadi, precisely Slaughter area, where street trading was taking place.

“The traders, on sighting us, started throwing stones at us. As a result, my boys tried to resist them. We also had some armed policemen who shot in the air to scare them.

“Suddenly, they came after us with rifles, machetes and other weapons. This scared our boys who ran away from the scene,” he said.

Nwadibeyi said that three task force members, one policeman and two boys were lying critically at a hospital, with their fate still hanging in the balance.

The newly-elected executives of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Enugu State have begun reconciling aggrieved members, to position the party to wrest power from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in 2023.

The party has directed members to stop libellous social media attacks against its leaders and members, promising to sanction culprits.

These are contained in a communiqué at the end of the party’s maiden state executive committee (SEC) meeting in Enugu, with the state Chairman, Ugochukwu Agballah, taking full control of the structure.

In the communiqué, the executive elected through the party  congress on October 16 directed the ward and local government executives to start genuine reconciliation and harmonisation across the rank and file of the party.

The lawmaker representing Ughelli North/South and Udu Federal Constituency, Francis Waive, has appealed to warring Urhobo communities to sheathe their swords and embrace peace.

Waive, who made the appeal in a statement, lamented that the communal conflicts had claimed lives in the two communities.

He said: “From Gbowiameh/Erhiawarien, to Ekuigbo/Iwhreko, to Obubu/Oleri, to Oghior/Ukpiovwhin, to the communities around Utorogu Gas Plant and now Okwagbe/Owhawha, we are all one people with a common heritage. Our ancestors lived together for hundreds of years without any war among them. We have also lived together peacefully without any acrimony until the recent misunderstanding.

“What is happening now is strange. Strange to our history, culture and religion. Lives have been lost and properties worth billions of Naira destroyed. The livelihood of our people is affected.”

Waive, who said most of the conflicts are centred around ownership of land, noted: “We know that land belongs to God. We all met the land and will all die one day, leaving the land behind. The fight among us is needless. Anyone can initiate a war by inciting others, but no one can tell how a war will end or who will be the casualties.

“I have had to spend hours and days reaching out to community and youth leaders, security agencies, traditional rulers and leaders, local government chairmen, political and religious leaders and others in different spheres of influence during these challenging times to restore and maintain peace.

“Negotiation is better than war. Violence puts a stop to development. War causes pain and suffering. We need tolerance and negotiation, which are unfailing peace strategies.”