Cross River State Governor Ben Ayade has said he is harnessing the state’s rich agricultural potential to create jobs.

This, he said, necessitated his one industry per local government policy.

Ayade spoke in Calabar when he welcomed officials of an agricultural servicing firm, CRO-PIT, to a presentation.

He said: “… Apart from the opportunity we present in the agro sector, we also present a state that has the right environment and industrial harmony for industrialisation to thrive.

“We have nearly one industry per local government. If you speak with the commissioner for Agriculture, he will tell you of the glucose syrup factory in Obubra, coming up to take full beneficiation of the cassava production.

“There is a sesame seed processing plant in Obudu. We are tying every local government to its area of priority and that is where your mapping capability comes in because we need to do a proper soil profiling of the entire state…”

Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of CRO-PIT Kenneth Ahaneku said his firm manages over 600,000 farmers in the country, and would partner Cross River in agricultural management.

He said: “CRO-PIT is involved in the management, financing and production of crops for farmers in partnership with the Central Bank. We are managing over 600,000 farmers and our target is to hit five million. We will be seeking partnership with Cross River State in storage, bagging and distribution of rice produced at the Ogoja rice mill.”

 Ogochukwu Anioke, Abakaliki

A Group, Coalition of Southeast Youth Leaders on Wednesday called for dialogue and cooperation to tackle the country’s rising security challenges.

The group made the call in a statement signed by the President, Goodluck Egwu Ibem and Secretary, Kanice Igwe.

The group lamented that almost all the states in Nigeria are currently faced with one form of security challenge or the other

“From terrorism to banditry and to kidnapping, no single state within Nigeria is without any form of criminality or insecurity,” they said.

They noted that provision of adequate security is a collective task which government alone cannot handle.

“The issue of security is undoubtedly the primary duty and responsibility of any government to its citizens and no progress significant or otherwise can be recorded without guarantee of security. It behooves the needful is done since it follows that security is a collective task”.

“The current security state of Nigeria is not a task one person, even the military top brass alone can handle. Intelligence sharing, technical and logistical support, increased funding and financial support will, no doubt, go along away in remedying Nigeria’s predicament but will not be enough to address her security woes.”

The Youth Leaders noted that the kind of violence presently confronting the country is largely from non-state actors and internecine warfare.

They said: “While funding and logistics are vital and still part of the main, the place of experience cannot be gainsaid. It is here that Senator Theodore Ahamefula Orji comes into the Nigerian security picture so well’.

“Experience is vital in any human affairs and much so in the area of security. Today in the United States, Britain and other developed democracies, military strategy has been sought from the hands of veterans, active and retired politicians and strategic scholars in military and war discipline including security experts to navigate through the woods of insecurity. Nigeria should not be any different”.

“Variously, angry calls have – in the past and present times – been made by political oppositions; by the media (through releases, feature and opinion articles); by civil society and advocacy groups all demanding the immediate relief of various service chiefs.

“To this end, the president (commander in chief of armed forces) has upbraided his service chiefs calling their best not “good enough” but what largely remains undone in tackling the problem is consultation, especially with men of experience outside those with military training and background”.

“As governor of Abia state, Senator Theodore Ahamefula Orji was faced with challenges of insecurity ranging from kidnapping to even armed robbery. Theodore Orji at that time was able to deploy both local and national intelligence infrastructure to curb the ugly situation.

“School children, owners of businesses and captains of industries were preyed upon by a cliquish group led by one Osisikankwu, a notorious kidnap kingpin”.

“With collaboration of federal government of the day, governor Orji was able to see the end of men like ChinChon and Osisikankwu, both ringleaders of heist, organized crime and kidnap gangs.”

“Security, we believe, is never beyond Nigeria and can never be the exclusive preserve of any group but all. Recently, the army chief, General Tukur Buratai, in a seeming hapless response said Nigeria can only overcome her security challenges if Nigerians are willing.”

“Even though on a surface his position seemed out of place but if Nigerians with experience are brought in the picture better milestone could be reached. What is happening in Southern Kaduna, Benue, Borno and by extension other parts of the country can be best managed if experienced people the calibre of Senator T. A. Orji are brought in”.

“Southern Kaduna, Benue, Nasarawa and Katsina are all parts of Nigeria and deserve national support in times like this. The picture of things presently does not tell well about what would be our Post Covid-19 economy”.

“In addition to dwindling oil price occasioned by the virus, investors, in a rash and sudden flight seem to be leaving Nigeria for a more secure clime. Businesses, economies (whether micro or macro scale) thrive best in atmosphere of relative calm and peace”.

The group added that what is bedeviling the nation is basically an internal problem coming from within the states and local governments within.

They noted that if the security architecture of the day is built to enhance local policing and intelligence the situation will be better adding that the governors cannot tackle and combat the challenges alone.

 

Enugu Commissioner of Land and Urban Development Dr. Victor Nnam has described allegation of forgery with respect to land transactions against him as false.

He attributed the allegation to handiwork of desperate land grabbers.

In a statement by his lawyers, Nnam noted the allegation arose since the government took the decision to revoke land in question.

He alleged Private Estate International West Africa were desperately looking for a way to make him a victim of their attempt to forcefully take over an ancestral land without due process.

The statement reads in part: “It is his instruction that it has come to his notice certain media publication suspected to have been sponsored by Private Estates International West Africa Limited, a limited liability company which, the said media publication, claimed to the effect that our client, Dr. Victor Chukwuemeka Nnam, the Honorable Commissioner for Lands and Urban Development, Enugu State has been charged to court for land acquisition and other sundry allegations therewith.

“We will like to state first that our client, Commissioner for Lands and Urban development has never been served with any criminal summons or charge as therein alleged in the publication.

“However, we owe a responsibility to provide the general public with the facts of the matter.

“So if there is anything like that same must have been planted by some mischief makers but until it is made known to our client and same brought to his notice will then take the necessary steps towards it.

“We want to state categorically that as a public officer, the first line of responsibility and allegiance of the Honorable commissioner would remain to the Enugu State Government.

” He will not be beholden to his former clients in the course of his erstwhile private practice or even to land grabbers and will continue to discharge his duties accordingly to ensure sanity in land administration in Enugu State.

“Therefore, any efforts or attempts to malign him and smear his character with false allegations will be highly resisted though within the ambit of the law.

On what constitutes the facts of the matter, the statement explained: “The substantive matter is the revocation of 1’097 Hectares of land at Obeagu/Amechi Awkunanaw covered by building Certificate of Occupancy registered as 20/20/1622 issued to Private Estate International West Africa Limited by Enugu State Government which was said to have been done without due process.

“Private Estates International West Africa Limited, has been laying claim over the parcel of the land allocated to Private Estate International West Africa Limited at Obeagu/Amechi Awkunanaw vide Certificate of Occupancy dated 10th March, 2009 and registered as No. 20/20/1622, Enugu.

“However, ten years after the Certificate of Occupancy was issued, the Enugu State Government observed that the development partnership between Private Estates International West Africa Limited and the State Government was neither presented nor approved by the State Executive Council; consequently, no yellow paper was issued under the seal of the Government of Enugu State to sanction such magnitude of project.

“The said company, Private Estates International West Africa Limited, has been in continuous breach of improvements premium charge of N4, 470,750,000.00 (Four billion, four hundred and seventy million, seven hundred and fifty thousand naira) as contained in conditions of the revoked title as preceding the issuance of Certificate of Occupancy and ground rent totalling N330, 000,000.00 (Three hundred and thirty million naira) only per annum for the past ten years.

“The state government also notes that the said company, Private Estates International West Africa Limited, which has transacted profitably on the land since 2009 till date, has not made any payment to Enugu State Government as proceed or as compensation.

“In addition, the Survey Plan to the Building Certificate of Occupancy bears private survey plan number which is not attributable to Enugu State Survey delineation numbers.

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“Consequently, the Enugu State Government policy on public/private partnership on land development made the land available to the company to build houses and sell at affordable prices to the public, the reason for which premium was deferred, but that the said land has been percellated and spaces allocated to the public, when the ministry remains the allocating authority.

“Further to the above, there was no Building Approval from Enugu Capital Territory Development Authority prior to the construction of buildings in the layout and the grant of Building Certificate of Occupancy to the company was to catalyze urgent development of this area which the company’s current mileage of work and development has grossly undermined, leaving the vast area hugely underdeveloped for close to ten years running.

“In addition, the development control unit of the state has observed that the development so far carried out on the property is not in accordance with Government Approved Layout Plan while the Ministry of Lands observed with dismay that a good number of members of the host community (Amechi and Obeagu) are residing in the land in question, consequently, there have been litany of ongoing litigations between the company, the Government and the community who claim that their Customary Right of Occupancy was not revoked and as such no compensation was paid to them”.

It added: “It should be recalled that in the 1985 Enugu State University of Science and Technology (PLAN EN (A) 594) which was purportedly signed by Late Surv. Igboanugo is dated 1985 when the University was not in existence is an aberration.

“While a notice of an Intention to revoke was served on the company and there was no response from the company. Consequent upon the above infractions, the Building Certificate of Occupancy was revoked by the State Government in order to resolve the issues surrounding the land in question.

“Private Estates International West Africa Limited has gone to court to challenge the legitimacy of the revocation done by Enugu State Government and the matter is yet to be determined.

” To this effect, the court had advised the parties (i.e. Enugu State Government, Private Estates International West Africa Limited, and the Host community) to go and discuss an out of court settlement option.

“It can be recalled that on Saturday 25th July, 2020, the Governor of Enugu State, His Excellency, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, had in a meeting with the parties at the Government House where they discussed possible ways of settlement. The meeting was adjourned for further consultations and discussions”.

The statement urged the general public to disregard the allegations and treat such claims against the commissioner to be an attempt to arm twist the commissioner into serving the interest or for the benefit of few private individuals who are bent on taking advantage of the state and not in the collective interest of Enugu.

Sunny Nwankwo, Aba

The chairman, Christian Association of Nigeria, Southeast; Bishop Goddy Okafor has lamented the activities of herdsmen in Nigeria and Southeast in particular, stressing that it poses a great danger to the food security policies/programmes of President Muhammadu Buhari led government.

Bishop Okafor who stated this in Aba, the commercial nerve of Abia State in an interview with our reporter said it was high time the service chiefs and heads of other security agencies in the country thinker a way of pulling the country out of the current insecurity and endless bloodletting going on in the country, especially in the Northeast.

The Southeast CAN leader who joined the call for President Muhammadu Buhari to rejig his Service Chiefs said “The killing going on in Southern Kaduna is very disturbing. We’re one people and we believe we’re one Nation. But for these persistent killings going on in Southern Kaduna to keep occurring without the Federal Government doing something drastic to stop it, is very disturbing.

“We (Nigerians) are beginning to ask questions. We want to know if the Federal Government of Nigeria does not know what to do to bring peace to Southern Kaduna? Does it mean that they do not have the political will to stop the killings?

“Nigeria is a great country, but if we keep allowing things like this to persist, it will throw everyone into confusion and one will be wondering do I really belong here.

“Or could it be that what Femi Adesina said two years ago is beginning to play out when he said that if Nigerians want to stay alive, they should give their lands?

“Could it be that someone is interested in possessing the land belonging to Southern Kaduna wants to wipe them out in order to take over their land?

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“Are the bandits are really human beings or spirits? If they’re human beings, our law enforcement agents should go after them and stop them.

“These people that are being massacred day after day are Nigerians. Federal Government owes it to them as a duty to protect them; it is their responsibility to protect lives and property.

“Every day bandits with AK-47 will go into Southern Kaduna, and begin to kill people and burning houses. They’ll finish and go and nothing will happen. And when the Southern Kaduna people who are being killed say let’s try and defend our land and few of their men pickup sticks, cutlasses or den gun to scare away their invaders, they’re the people the government will go after.

“The bandits are not been talked about. This is very disturbing and Southeast CAN have become uncomfortable with the killings.

“We’re calling on the federal government to their best and stop this. Let them prove to Nigeria’s that there is no government connivance in these killings.

“Let them prove that FG is not in any way in support of what’s happening there. Governor of Kaduna State once said that he had a meeting with these evil bloodsuckers and even settled them at a time.

“So, if they can hold a meeting with them, why can’t they arrest them? Why can’t they do something drastic to stop this?

“Nigerians should no longer be massacred on the altar of religion, tribal or differences. Federal Government should do something as a matter of urgency.”