The Nation Newspaper

Category: SouthEast

  • Firm identifies hindrance to speedy construction work on Odukpani-Itu highway

    Firm identifies hindrance to speedy construction work on Odukpani-Itu highway

    • Restates quality delivery

    An indigenous construction company handling a section of the federal road project linking Cross River and Akwa Ibom states, Sermatech Construction Company, has restated its commitment to deliver on the project. It, however, identified some hindrances and challenges it was facing.

    Speaking to select reporters on tour of the project, which recently received mixed reactions; a condemnation from a group of concerned stakeholders in Cross River State and a commendation from the Minister for Works, who inspected the work a month ago, the Site Agent, Sermatech Nigeria Ltd, Joe Okpata, said: “So far, the company has covered 40 per cent of its scope of work and the project is a five-year project, which started in 2021 and will end in 2026.”

    He said Sermatech is handling the section of the road from the Odukpani power plant to Oku-Iboku, which is a 28.6-kilometre dual carriageway and made up of four bridges, drainages, caves and over 50 culverts.   

    Okpata said the hindrance they faced was the issue of compensation, which was not under their purview.

    “There are sections where people have built structures and have farms and they are not given right of way, insisting on compensation. So you see areas where we leave out and rather work in areas we have right of way.”

    He added that the issue should be handled by the government, both federal and state, in order to enable the company meet up with its commitment.

    The site agent regretted that the group calling for revocation of their contract was doing so from a standpoint of ignorance.

    He said the portion captured by the forum in their claims against Sermatech was not under the purview of Sermatech Nigeria Ltd.

    “It’s better to seek proper information in order not to mislead the public or embark on campaign of calumny,” he said.

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    Okpata said Sermatech had the capacity and expertise to handle the 38.6-kilometre stretch of the Calabar-Itu road construction spanning Ikot-Nyong in Odukpani Local Government in Cross River State to Oku-Iboku in Itu Local Government of Akwa Ibom State.                     

    He said the bottleneck was not Sermatech.

    “People are happy with our quality of work and it’s important that serious indigenous companies should be encouraged, as it helps reduce dollar and capital flight.”

    Another official seen at the project site, the Head, Pigment Evaluation Unit, Department of Material Geotechnics, Ministry of Works, Olamide Bamgboye, who was on the project audit and compliance check, said the essence was to ensure the company had not exited the quality of materials recommended and to also certify that the samples were in order.

    The Minister of Works, while on inspection of the project a month ago, expressed satisfaction about the quality of work and the pace Sermatech had gone on the project.                                               

  • Bayelsa LP candidate seeks Diri’s, Sylva’s disqualification

    Bayelsa LP candidate seeks Diri’s, Sylva’s disqualification

    The Labour Party (LP) governorship candidate in Bayelsa State, Udengs Eradiri, has approached the tribunal seeking the disqualification of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Senator Douye Diri, and his counterpart in the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Timipre Sylva.

    Eradiri, who rejected the results, insisted that he was the only eligible candidate that scored the valid votes cast and deserved to be declared as the duly elected governor of the state.

    Addressing stakeholders, ward and local government officials of the party at his campaign office in Yenagoa, Eradiri said he decided to explore the legal path after assessing the outcome of the election. 

    He said: “After the election, we said we were going to look at the issues, and I am here to officially inform the leadership of the party that we have gone to court, and we pray the court to declare me winner.

    “The reason is that the two leading parties, the PDP and the APC, produced candidates that were not eligible to contest the election, and I won the valid votes cast in the poll, so I should be declared governor of Bayelsa State.

    “There are issues of eligibility of the two candidates, and that is the ground we have gone to the tribunal for. Many people have lost hope in the judiciary, but that small thread we hold onto is the basic for me to challenge the declaration. 

    “After studying the entire process, I have decided to ask the tribunal to declare me governor. With the spread of my 950 votes you will see that in seven out of the eight local governments, I got the constitutional requirements, so if you invalidate the PDP and APC votes, I should be declared winner.”

    Eradiri said he decided to explore the court options in the interest of the suffering people of Bayelsa, adding that he would continue to raise issues affecting the people.

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    He said: “If the court decides they’ll look the other way, we will still challenge it because of that small thread of hope. We still believe that there are people of integrity in the judiciary and that is what we are holding on to”.

    On the crisis rocking the party in the state, he said there was no faction, adding that the party stakeholders and leadership had decided to appoint an acting chairman in accordance with the constitution. 

    Eradiri said the former chairman of the party in the state lacked the constitutional power to suspend him. 

    He said: “Some persons decided to leave the party, they voluntarily left. The natural system of discipline in the party kicked him out not me. So there’s no faction.

    “The position of the party is clear, if you participate in anti-party activities, it is expulsion. We have a constitution that dictates our modus operandi. I have demonstrated the principles to put the party together so I can’t at this time destroy it myself.”

  • Calabar-Odukpani road: Firm denies alleged N42b road contract

    Calabar-Odukpani road: Firm denies alleged N42b road contract

    A construction firm, Zeka Global Company Limited, which undertook the construction of Calabar-Odukpani dual carriageway, has described as false and baseless, claims that it received N42 billion as contract for the building of the dual carriageway.

    Dismissing the alleged N42 billion claim, a director with the construction firm, Ibrahim Adesina Tiamiyu, an engineer; disclosed that the contract was not even half of the figure being bandied by an online news portal.

    According to Tiamiyu, “it is completely false and mischievous to insinuate that the cost of the contract was N42 billion. The actual cost of the project was N17bn.”

    Offering insight into how Zeka Global Company Ltd was engaged by the Cross River State government, Tiamiyu said: “We came into the picture when other contractors were asking for cut-throat fees to handle the project and the government could not muster that. What Zeka did for the Cross River State was more or less a direct labour service which went a long way in reducing the cost of constructing the road. The award or engagement letter issued to us was to function as a “Service Provider” under a direct labour arrangement with the state Infrastructure Company, Infra-Cross. It was on the basis of our rich profile that Zeka was engaged. In fact, some contractors had charged the government about N60bn before the immediate past governor had to look in our direction that we should come in as a service provider.”

    The director lamented that in spite of their diligence and commitment to the completion of the project, “we are yet to be fully paid. The company is still being owed a balance of N2bn. This is besides debts owed the company from projects executed outside the dual carriageway for the state government

    “It is unfortunate that the purveyors of the phantom N42 billion contract sum were less concerned about fact-checking with the relevant ministries and agencies of government before speculating on the contract sum. “

    Located on 147 Ndidem Usang Iso Road, the company which began the construction in 2020 finally completed and delivered the project in 2023

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    Speaking on some failed portions of the road, Tiamiyu disclosed that “normally in road construction, there is a period called defects liability period where the road is open to traffic during a six months period in order to observe its behaviour. If there is a defect during the six months period, the contractor returns to site to fix or address whatever the defects are. So it’s not right to say the road has failed. In fact, it is mischievous to insinuate as such.”

    According to the director, there are a lot of factors that could have caused a road to fail. He clarified that “the portion of the road that gave way was later discovered to be sitting on shale materials. That was what caused that particular portion to give way. And with what we have noticed, we are waiting for the rains to cease so that we can return to the site to get it fixed, despite that the shale materials we found was not captured in the Bill of Engineering Measurement and Evaluation (BEME).”

    Corroborating Tiamiyu’s assertion, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Works, Dr. Godwin Akeke, Director, Civil, Ministry of Works, Dr. Desmond Ewa and Pius Okpa, Director, Inditek Partners and Consultant to the Cross River State Ministry of Works all agreed that “the issue on the portion of the road that gave way is not about the competence of Zeka as a company that handled the work. There were underlying issues which were not foreseen such as underground seepage of water, presence of amco pipes buried under the ground and prevalence of borrow pits. If these were not foreseen and were not part of the contractor’s design and schedule, the contractor would not handle them because they were not covered under the terms of engagement. So there will be need for variation because he did not know that undersee page was taking place there. Against this backdrop, the portion of the road was likely to give way. However, since it is still within the defects liability period the contractor will go back to site but with variation in the contract.

    So the issue of competence does not arise. People are making insinuation simply because it is an indigenous contractor and they will do everything to discredit them.”

    Tiamiyu, however, appealed: “We will greatly appreciate if the government can pay us the outstanding balance of N2bn due to the company to help quicken our return to site to fix the failed portion.”

  • Otti signs Aba Development Authority Bill into Law

    Otti signs Aba Development Authority Bill into Law

    Abia State Governor Alex Otti yesterday signed into law, the Greater Aba Development Authority (GADA) Bill recently passed by the House of Assembly.

    Speaking after assenting to the bill, Dr.  Otti said the establishment of the Greater Aba Development Authority is to give Aba a special focus as a commercial hub. He added: “Everyone who had followed the process of the campaigns and elections would have remembered that we have said that we needed a special focus on Aba, the commercial nerve centre of the state.”

    The governor said Aba combined what many cities had individually, noting that Aba was not just a commercial zone, but also an industrial hub where “we have all sorts of light manufacturing, heavy manufacturing, micro small and medium scale businesses, trading. Virtually every street in Aba is a market. Although we are working and organising them, it is a strength we recognise.”

    Otti said: “When we invest heavily in infrastructural renewal in Aba, it is because we recognise the potential Aba has and we believe if we improve on ease of doing business, we attract a lot of businesses.” 

    He congratulated the Speaker of the House of Assembly, other lawmakers and members of the Executive Council on the passage of the bill, saying with the law, Aba’s rejuvenation had got a legal backing to bring about the needed development in the city.

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    Presenting the bill earlier for the governor’s assent, Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Ikechukwu Uwanna, said it was passed into law by the Assembly on December 8, 2023.

    He said the Greater Development Aba Authority bill is the first bill Otti is signing into law and congratulated the governor on achieving the feat 

    The Director General of the Greater Development Aba Authority, Mr. Uche Ukeje, described the law as a special vehicle that would drive the development of Aba and realise the governor’s vision about the city. 

     Secretary to the State Government, Prof. Kenneth Kalu; Special Adviser on Legislative Matters, Luke Onyeani; Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr. Ferdinand Ekeoma, among other top government officials, were present at the event.

  • Fishermen list pollution, trawlers’ incursion, others as obstacles to vocation

    Fishermen list pollution, trawlers’ incursion, others as obstacles to vocation

    Traditional fishermen operating in the creeks, rivers and Atlantic coastlines of Bayelsa State have listed oil pollution, incursion by industrial fishing trawlers and unnatural fishing methods as obstacles to their vocation.

    They identified the challenges yesterday at a capacity building workshop organised by Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF) in Yenagoa.

    The fishermen identified the obstacles at a brainstorming session facilitated by the Research and Publications Lead at HOMEF, Dr. Ogechi Cookey, saying they were responsible for dwindling catch by fishermen across the Niger Delta.

    According to them, industrial fishing trawlers restricted by law from operating near the coastline often encroach to ‘sweep’ the waterways by overfishing and catching fingerlings that ought to grow to replenish the fish stock.

    They also lamented that some fishermen use some local leaves and mix them with chemicals to boost catch to the detriment of the food chain.

    A community leader in Ikarama, Yenagoa Local Government, Chief Washington Odoyibo, noted that oil exploration and associated spills had wiped out fish species and made the waters toxic to support fishing.

    He said during oil spill incidents, the booms used to trap crude from spreading obstruct navigation by fishing boats and regretted that oil firms often abandon the booms even after clean up.

    Also, a community leader in Ikarama, Chief Mrs Ayibakuro Warder, noted that prolonged exposure to crude and inhaling the toxic fumes had increased the prevalence of asthma and other respiratory ailments.

    Warder said: “The frequent spills in Ikarama has led to diagnosis of many new strange ailments previously not common, and women are worst hit because they stay longer on the farms and get exposed to crude.

    “The report by Bayelsa Oil and Environmental Commission found higher than normal levels of heavy metals in breast milk of breastfeeding mothers.

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    “High rate of miscarriages among women of reproductive ages in oil communities was also reported by the study.” 

    A renowned environmentalist, Chief Alagoa Morris, praised HOMEF for building the capacity of fishermen to defend their environmental and human rights.

    Morris, who is also technical adviser on Environment to Bayelsa Governor, urged the fishermen to make contributions that would help policy makers to formulate policies to improve fisheries.

    Senior Special Assistant on Tourism to Bayelsa State Governor, Dr Piriye Kiyaromo, in his goodwill message, noted that there was a link between fishing and tourism.

    He said tourists often accompany fishermen on fishing expeditions even as they also add to the culinary experience of tourists who crave local dishes.

    Kiyaramo noted that the proposed State Ministry of Blue Economy in Bayelsa would take care of the concerns and challenges faced by fishermen, who form a significant segment of the blue economy.

  • UNIPORT gets 65 new professors

    UNIPORT gets 65 new professors

    The University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT) has promoted 42 senior academics to the rank of professors and 23 others to associate professors.

    Spokesman Dr. Sam Kpenu said in a statement in Port Harcourt yesterday that the new professors passed through stringent selection criteria set up by the university.

    “The promotions followed approval by the Minister of Education on December 8.

    “The academics were promoted following the recommendations of the Central A & PC Academic meeting of UNIPORT held on November 23.

    “The university hereby announces the promotion of 42 officials nominated as professors of their disciplines and 23 others as associate professors (readers),” he said.

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    A breakdown of the promotion showed the professors’ category has 10 new professors from the Faculty of Education; Faculty of Science got 10, Faculty of Humanities, eight, College of Health Sciences, eight; Faculty of Agriculture, three; Faculty of Engineering, one; Faculty of Social Science, one, and Faculty of Management Sciences,  one.

    In the Associate Professor (Readers’) category, Faculty of Education produced seven new readers; Faculty of Humanities, five, and Faculty of Science, three.

    Others are Faculty of Engineering, two; Faculty of Science, two; College of Health Sciences, two; Faculty of Agriculture, one and Faculty of Computing, one.

  • Bureau trains security personnel in handling guests 

    Bureau trains security personnel in handling guests 

    Cross River State Tourism Bureau, in an effort to ensure proper handling of guests by security personnel, yesterday trained military and paramilitary personnel to better serve tourists during the Christmas festival/carnival 2023.

    The Managing Director, Cross River State Tourism Bureau, Prince Ojoi Ekpenyong, said the security personnel expected to undergo the training included those from the Army, Navy, Air Force, Police, Civil Defence, VIO, Road Safety, Immigrations, Customs and even private security services. 

    He said: ”The essence of this training is to return Cross River State to that world-class destination. Security men are our first gatekeepers, they’re the one who interact with our visitors, so we are here to let them know that they must welcome our visitors with a smile. They must do their jobs with love and professionalism.

    “The training is aimed at promoting a police friendly environment in Cross River. Whether you like it or not, when the police and other agencies solve the problem on the road with love, more people will come to Cross River State.” 

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    Launching the one-day training, House of Assembly Speaker Elvert Ayambem hailed Ekpenyong for taking steps to train security personnel as part of the modernisation of the tourism industry.

    “Most of the countries people travel to, they don’t even have what we have in Cross River State. I’m thanking the governor for rejigging the tourism of Cross River State.”

    Giving the overview of the training, Vice President, Federation of Tourism Association of Nigeria (FTAN), Justina Ovat, said the training would inculcate the spirit of hospitality and excellent service to drive exceptional guest experience during Calabar Carnival. 

  • Rivers exco okays N800b ‘Renewed Hope’ Budget 2024

    Rivers exco okays N800b ‘Renewed Hope’ Budget 2024

    • Gives lion’s share to infrastructure, education, health

    Rivers State Executive Council has deliberated and approved an estimated N800billion budget christened: ‘Renewed Hope, Consolidation and Continuity for the 2024 fiscal year’.

    The meeting presided over by Governor Siminalayi Fubara yesterday, was held at the Executive Chamber of Government House in Port Harcourt.

    Information and Communications Commissioner Warisenibo Johnson said N412billion  was allocated to capital expenditure, while recurrent expenditure had N361billion.

    Johnson said: “We had the 5th council meeting of Rivers State. We deliberated on the Medium Term Expenditure Framework, which is usually a precursor to discussing the budget.

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    “An 83-page document was also presented, which has the budget estimate. The budget estimate for 2024 is N800 billion and it is tagged: ‘Budget of Renewed Hope, Consolidation and Continuity’.

      ”Essentially, the budget is focused on some key areas, with infrastructure taking the lead with N128bilion of the budget, followed by education, health and security.”

    The Secretary to the Rivers State Government (SSG), Dr. Tammy Danagogo, said the budget estimate was aimed at giving Rivers people a renewed hope that will guarantee projects and human capital development.  

    He said: “We approved an estimated budget of N800,392,485,433.33kobo, which we believe, by the time it gets to the House of Assembly, the public will be made to see and understand all the projections and fundamentals.

    “Basically, the essence of the budget is to give the people and residents of Rivers State Renewed Hope and to ensure that there is a consolidation and continuity in what has been happening in terms of the harvest of projects we have been having in the state and of course other areas, particularly in human capital development, security, investment drive and ease of doing business.”

  • Stakeholders push for six-month paid maternity leave in Bayelsa

    Stakeholders push for six-month paid maternity leave in Bayelsa

    • Lament low rate of exclusive breastfeeding among nursing mothers

    Stakeholders in Bayelsa State primary health care, including government health agencies, international health organisations and civil society organisations, have pushed for a law to implement six months’ paid maternity leave and two weeks’ paid paternity leave.

    They are also pushing for the implementation of breastfeeding initiatives and establishment of crèches in work places as part of the initiatives to encourage and promote six months exclusive breastfeeding among nursing mothers.

    The stakeholders called for stronger synergy between the government and other stakeholders towards ensuring that there was a legal instrument to guarantee at least six months paid maternity leave and two weeks paternity leave for the breastfeeding mothers and their spouses.

    The stakeholders said this at a one-day advocacy and sensitisation of legislators and head of service for the passage of the bill in support of six months paid maternity leave and two weeks paid paternity leave.

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    The programme was organised by the Ministry of Health and the state Primary Health Care Board, in collaboration with the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF), in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State capital.

    Executive Secretary, Bayelsa State Primary Health Care Board (BSPHCB), Dr. Appah Williams, said the importance of exclusive breastfeeding, particularly in the first six infancy months, could not be overestimated and tasked the legislative arm of government to consider the passage of the bill.

    The Chairman, House of Assembly Committee on Health and member representing Sagbama Constituency 1, Dr. Godbless Onyike, and the Chairman, House Committee on Women, Children and Social Welfare, and lawmaker representing Yenagoa Constituency 1, Mrs. Ayibanengiyefa Egba, said exclusive breastfeeding was paramount for the mental and physical development of the child.

    The lawmakers promised that they were willing to partner in sponsoring a bill extending the already existing number of months for maternity leave to at least six months, as canvassed in the programme.

    Onyike said: “But for bureaucracy, a legislation from the assembly to extend maternity and paternity leave should be ready by the second quarter of 2024. We will collaborate with stakeholders and our colleagues in the House to sponsor a bill to extend the number of months allotted for maternity and paternity leave, to enable our breastfeeding mothers  practise exclusive breastfeeding.

    “As a medical practitioner that I am and my colleague here with me as House Committee chairperson on Women, Children and Social Welfare, we want to reassure ‘Bayelsans’ that we will partner to bring the practice of exclusive breastfeeding in the state by breastfeeding mothers to fruition. There is no alternative to it,” Onyike said.

    The State Nutrition Officer (SNO), Mr. Wilson Ebimieboseigha, stressed the importance of exclusive breastfeeding and child nutrition as the need for extended maternity and paternity leave.

    He, however, lamented that latest surveys from the National Demographic Health Survey (NDHS) and UNICEF put the ratio of the practice of exclusive breastfeeding in the state at a record low six per cent.

    He said: “A recent research showed that investing in breastfeeding has the following potential for Nigeria: it’ll prevent 103,742 child deaths annually, 10 million cases of childhood diarrhoea and pneumonia will be prevented annually and it will save Nigeria, Bayelsa State inclusive, the sum of USD 22 million (22 million Dollars), which when converted to Nigerian currency at the current exchange rate amounts to N6.93billion.

    “Investing in breastfeeding will also eliminate an estimated USD38 million (N11 billion) worth cost of breast milk substitute, it will generate additional USD 21billion (N 6.6 trillion) income for the economy, representing 4.1per cent gross national income over children productive years.”

  • Otti debunks arrest of community leaders

    Otti debunks arrest of community leaders

    Abia State Governor Alex Otti has debunked the arrest and detention of some youths and leaders in Aba South Local Government.

    The Senior Special Assistant to Governor Otti on Public Communication, Mr. Dodoh Okafor, in a statement yesterday, described the story making the rounds as a figment of the imagination of the purveyors of the fake news.

    Okafor, who insisted that the governor at no time ordered the arrest of the individuals, said: “Our attention has been drawn to a trending social media report wherein the authors, for whatever purpose, alleged that Abia State Governor, Dr. Alex Otti, had some young people and elders arrested after he allegedly invited them for peace talks in Umuahia. 

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    “The fact of the matter is that Governor Otti did not at any time order the arrest of anyone or group of people in connection with any remote or immediate event before and after the launch of the rehabilitation and reconstruction of Port Harcourt Road in Aba. 

    “To begin with, the majority of Ndi Abia from all clans across the state, irrespective of their cultural and religious leanings, are appreciative of Governor Otti’s resolve to rehabilitate the long-abandoned Port Harcourt Road, which until its collapse in the mid-1990s, was a major hub for the sale and repair of heavy duty machinery and spare parts, serving Port Harcourt industrial complex, further consolidating Aba’s reputation as a major market for manufacturers and big businesses across the country and beyond. 

    “It is estimated that the collapse and subsequent abandonment of Port Harcourt Road by previous administrations cost the city hundreds of billions of naira in earnings, job opportunities and other missed opportunities.

    “It is unbelievable that anyone or group would wish to stand against the resolve of the Otti administration to fix that stretch of road, solve the perennial flooding problems in that part of Aba and make the environment business-friendly once again, as envisaged by the late former Governor Sam Mbakwe of old Imo State, who built the road to expand the frontiers of economic opportunities in Aba.“