Category: SouthEast

Anyone planning to engage in cultism and other crimes at the Federal Polytechnic, Oko, Anambra State will be wise to think twice because the institution is partnering with the Department of State Services (DSS) and the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) to stamp out vices on the campus.

This was revealed when the management of the institution led by its acting Rector, Dr Izuchukwu Onu, visited the DSS

Mr Yusuf Isyaku, the state Director, DSS, called on tertiary institutions in the country to collaborate with security agencies to achieve lasting peace.

He said the collaboration between tertiary institutions and government security organisations was imperative for the realisation of security and peace in the country.

He said his office was particularly happy with the level of peace and security at the Federal Polytechnic Oko and would continue to partner with the management to sustain the tempo.

Isyaku maintained that the Anambra state governor, Chief Willie Obiano, should be hailed for providing the conducive atmosphere in the state.

He said Obiano was passionate about security and peace in the state, urging the management of the polytechnic to share in the governor’s vision.

Isyaku said: “Federal Poly Oko is doing well in security and we will always support you.”

While briefing the DSS boss, the Acting Rector of the institution, Dr Izuchukwu Onu said the familiarisation visit was to appreciate the DSS for their supportive role in efficient security services in the polytechnic.

He said the school had zero tolerance for crime and all forms of criminality, adding that the visit was to consolidate the relationship between the institution and DSS in the state.

Onu and his team also visited Mr Sunday Ajayi, the Anambra State Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Commission FRSC, where he solicited for such support.

Ajayi, assured them of their preparedness to ensure that road users abide by the road safety codes to reducing crashes on the ways, especially in Oko.

Ajayi said: “FRSC is willing to partner the polytechnic to further build the capacity of drivers of the school.”

For close to ten years, the Mgbuji Eha community in Isi-Uzo local council of Enugu state has been embroiled in internal crisis. During the period the community had no functional town union. It was divided into factions that the situation denied it tangible and visible progress.

Known for its leading role in academics and politics in the area, the community was hitherto, a pathfinder in self-help efforts and provision of amenities. As the crises progressed, Mgbuji gradually became a shadow of itself. It revelled in past glory as neighbouring communities were almost overtaking it in development.

But realising the folly and jeopardy the crisis have put the community into, some eggheads of the community decided to put a halt to the crisis. All the warring groups came together. A consensus was reached. They all agreed that an election to raise a new exco for the Mgbuji Town Development Union be held. The existing but ineffective exco agreed to this. The election was held where a new exco was elected.

And on May 18, the new executive was presented to the Governor of Enugu state. The presentation and inauguration took place in the office of the Enugu State Commissioner for Rural Development, Gabriel Onuzuluike who stood in for the governor. The occasion had a mixture of solemnity and joy as the former president of the Mgbuji Eha Development Union, Hon. Eric Ebe described the occasion as “a great day in my life. The big load I have been carrying for years have been off loaded from me.”

The commissioner who represented the governor told members of the newly elected executive that they were witnessing the end of the rancour bedeviling the community for years. He on behalf of the governor congratulated them for the feat. “I am happy that you have put your house in order after several years of crisis. I urge you, the elected to serve the community selflessly and discharge your responsibilities with dedication.

“You should also be aware that there are two important segments of a community – the traditional ruler and the town union. These two organs should work in synergy with each other. I will also implore you to involve the youths in your activities.

“You should try to form neighbourhood watch with a view to checking challenges from herdsmen and to ensure that the facilities in place are not vandalised. Remember as well that transparency and accountability should be your watch word.”

Enugu State Commissioner for Local Government Affairs Chijioke Edoga, who was present at the occasion and a son of the community, described the community as a pathfinder in Isiuzo.

He thanked his counterpart of rural development for his interest and for inaugurating the newly elected executive. He as well thanked the past president and his team for allowing peace to reign.

The chairman of the Isiuzo local council, Dr. Benjamin Edoga described the occasion as very good thing to happen. “It has been a long awaited effort. It has come to fulfilment today. A community without town union is like a ship without crew.”

Certificates of return were presented to the members of the new exco. Among whom include the president, Chukwuma Ede; vice president, Sam Nwodo; secretary, Godson Ogenyi and assistant secretary, Innocent Owoh.

Scholars and literary giants, including the Enugu State Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, have made a strong case for  the revival of reading culture among the youths.

They made the case during the public unveiling of the book, “Where The Rain Started Beating Us”, a book about Igboland written by former governorship candidate of All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Chief Ugochukwu Agballah.

Ugwuanyi and other dignitaries, including former Minister of Power Prof Chinedu Nebo; former Vice Chancellor of University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), Prof. Bartho Okolo; pioneer national secretary of defunct Alliance for Democracy (AD), Dr. Udenta O. Udenta; Senator Anthony Agbo; renowned novelist, Dilibe Onyeama and Mrs. Maria Okwor, who performed symbolic reading of the book, commended the author for the scholarly literary work.

Udenta, said the author had broken new grounds in literary world by presenting a composite picture of the history and culture of the Igbo during the precolonial and colonial days.

The book reviewer, Prof. Damian Opata from department of English and Literary Studies of UNN, described the book as fictional historical narrative of events during the colonial era, depicting Igbo traditions, cultural conflicts and slave trade, its abolition and the concept of Warrant Chief system.

Speaking on his motivation for writing the book, the author, Ugochukwu Agballah said his parents influenced him in reading and writing saying that he started writing at the age of 13.

Agballahnsaid that his first play ‘Sacred Cap’ written while in secondary school; College of Immaculate Conception (CIC), Enugu won the best written play Award at the 1982 Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) Zone C Festival of the Arts and Culture.

He said the book, “Where The Rain Started Beating Us”,  was a fictional portrayal of history and culture of Igbo people, saying that he dedicated the book to Oloko women based on their demonstration which led to the overthrow of despotic rule of the Warrant Chiefs in Igboland.

On Tuesday, over 20,000 Catholic faithful converged on the Mater Dei Cathedral in Umuahia, the Abia State capital, and Christ the King Cathedral (CKC) Church Aba to protest the killing of Catholic priests, fellow worshippers and other Christians in the country.

Theirs was not an isolated demonstration of anger and sadness. Across the nation suxh a protest was also taking place. And it was all in condemnation of the killing on April 24 of two Catholic priests and other parishioners during an early morning mass in Benue State.

The killers have not been found, triggering questions that the Federal Government and its security paraphernalia may not be keen on putting an end to the killings.

The worshippers were killed at St. Ignatius Church Mbalon, Benue State, and were buried on May 22 as Catholic faithful across the country protested in compliance with the directive by the Conference of Catholic Bishops of Nigeria.

The Abia protest brought vehicular and human movements to a standstill.

The Catholic Bishop of Umuahia Diocese, Bishop Lucius Ugorji who led the crowd, addressed the Catholic community at St. Finbar’s Church in Umuahia, telling them to pray against a repeat of such sad event in the country.

He said, “The church vehemently condemns the killing of two priests in Benue and we also strongly denounce the senseless killing of thousands of people in Nigeria by Boko Haram, the Herdsmen, terrorists and others unscrupulous groups or individuals”.

”We wish to stress the sanctity and inviolability of human life. The life of every individual whether Christians or Muslims are sacred.

He pointed out that on the account of the priceless worth of human life, God thus enjoins Christians, “Thou shall not kill, (Ex 20: 13) you must not put the innocent and just to death (Dan 13: 53), Indeed God hates hands that shed innocent blood”.

He condemned the recent killings of people in Iheosu Arochukwu Local Government in Abia State by their neighbouring community from Cross Rivers State.

The Bishop called on the federal government to rise up to the occasion and stop the shedding the blood of innocent citizens of Nigeria.

They said they decided to take to the streets of Aba and Umuahia as a way of showing their unhappiness over the incessant killing of their priests, parishioners in Benue and Christians in other parts of the country by the Fulani herdsmen and Boko Haram insurgents in the Northeast.

In Aba, the Peaceful demonstration which started from Christ the King Cathedral (CKC) Aba, had Priests, Knights, Sisters and all different groups march round the commercial city of Aba under the watch of police and other security agencies.

Rev. Father Obinna Umekwe, Director of Social Communications of the Catholic Diocese of Aba told The Nation that the protest was to draw the attention of the federal government to end the killing of priests, parishioners and Christians of other faiths in the Northeast and Benue State.

“We are making a peaceful demonstration calling on all authorities in our country to rise up and end this. I see this as a satanic attack on our nation.

“The church does not pick up arms to retaliate. That is why we are using both prayers and peaceful means to draw the mind of God and men in authorities to act and save innocent Nigerians.

“We don’t seek revenge. We are seeking the face of God. Nigeria is a secular state and these evil moves and killings are looking religious, but satanically inspired.

“I urge Christians to go back to God and look upon Christ. Let nobody pick up arms. A lot of lives have been lost. We want peace.”

Sir Boniface Ebeh, a Knight of the Catholic Church said that the peaceful procession they  are doing is as directed by the Catholic Bishops of Nigeria because of two of their priests and other church members who are to be buried this Tuesday.

According to Ebeh, the Catholic Bishops decided that the church should peacefully tell the whole and Nigeria that they  are not happy with what we are seeing and therefore, are using the demonstration to urge the  president to realize that they are all Nigerians and do something to stop the killings.

He stressed that all Christians in Nigeria including the Catholics, have no other country to run to except Nigeria.

Sister Maureen Olisa said the Catholic Church in Aba in solidarity with their colleagues all over the country were praying to God to receive the murdered Benue Christians as martyrs.

In Ebonyi State, wives of security officers get N250,000 each to start a business; in Anambra police spouses provide food and job tools for widows. OGOCHUKWU ANIOKE and NWANOSIKE ONU report

It is a season of receiving and giving. For wives of security personnel in Ebonyi State it was a time to stretch forth their hands to receive a N250,000 cheque each from the state government. The gesture was to enable the women start up a business and support their husbands and families.

In Anambra State, police officers’ wives preferred to brighten the lives of widows and other needy people in the state. Some of the beneficiaries got sewing machines, some foodstuff, but all got much-needed affection from the police spouses.

No fewer than 403 wives of security personnel in the state drawn from the police, army, Nigerian Security and Civil Defence and others were given N250,000 each to start a business of their choice in the state.

The event, which coincided with a campaign by Police Officers Wives Association (POWA) against Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), child abuse and other harmful practices, was attended by the wife of the Inspector-General of Police Princess Asma’u Idris.

Speaking on the occasion, Umahi said the gesture was part of his administration’s empowerment policies aimed at improving the economic standard of the people in the state.

He said, “I believe that for our nation to move forward, if we are fighting corruption, we should also fight the root of corruption. So I advocate that our society must provide opportunities for everybody to engage in doing one thing or the other and this is the basis of our empowerment in Ebonyi State

“In the area of empowerment in Ebonyi, we are doing more empowerment than projects. We have empowered one 1000 Ebonyians with a grant of N250,000 each and this is money that is not returnable to the state government.

“Ebonyians doing hawking in Lagos, we also empowered them with a grant of one hundred and forty million naira and a number of them out of the street, Ebonyians in Onitsha who are riding okada due to a lot of accidents, we purchased 400 brand new tricycles and given to them”.

“Four thousand widows have been given a grant of N100,000 each…We give out 50 million every month to the office of religious and welfare matters to pay off all hospital bills of all residents of Ebonyi State with free gifts.

“One hundred brand new jeeps to our traditional rulers I am not sure there is any other state that has given brand new jeep to traditional rulers. And these are funds that are not returnable to the state government.

Wife of the Inspector General of Police and POWA President, Mrs. Asma’u Ibrahim Idris commended Governor Umahi and his wife for empowering the wives of security personnel in the state.

While urging the beneficiaries to judiciously manage the funds given to them Mrs Idris encouraged them to support their husbands and also extend their hands of fellowship to others.

She promised to make case for Ebonyi girls in the ongoing police recruitment.

The atmosphere was electric in Anambra state when the wife of the inspector General of police, Princess Asmau Idris stormed the state to empower seven widows and 30 other women in the state.

She led over 200 other officer’s wives under the Police Officers Wives Association POWA and police Wives Association (PIWA) to walk against child trafficking and drug abuse in children.

She was equally joined in the campaign and empowerment by the state Commissioner of police, Mr Garba Umar, the state chairperson of POWA, Hajiya Khadija Fayek Umar, the wife of the police commissioner.

POWA’s programme was in conjunction with the wife of Anambra State governor Mrs Ebelechukwu Obiano, who was represented by the wife of the deputy governor, Lady Oby Okeke.

The wife of the Deputy inspector General of police and zonal coordinator POWA in the south east, Mrs Chioma Ntomchukwu was also on hand for the walk and empowerment.

The seven widows empowers by POWA were those who lost their husbands in the police, especially the rank and file, including 30 others.

Fifteen sewing machines were distributed to them, including bags of rice, gallons of groundnut oils and many other items.

It was part of her two-day official visit to the state to re-commission the re-branded secretariat of POWA in Awka

While addressing the police officers, she said the most important thing in life was peace in the homes and the society. She also commended the state governor, Chief Willie Obiano and his wife, Ebelechukwu for adequately supporting the police in the state.

Mrs Idris said the empowerment of the women in the police ranks had not ended, as it would cut across to the youth in less than no time.

In her address, the wife of the state Commissioner of police and POWA chairperson in the state, Hajiya Khadija Fayek Umar, said the aim of the association was to develop the late officers wives who lost their lives for the country to become treasures and meaningful in  the society irrespective of their marital status.

She said POWA was not just an association, but an association that was interested in empowerment of the women, youths and vice versa which was strong, supportive and dictated since inception.

During the awareness campaign that took off from the police headquarters in Amawbia, a distance of seven kilometres to Eke -Awka market, Mrs idris said child trafficking and abuse of drugs by the children were giving everyone headache in the country.

“It is a popularly held belief that the youths of any nation are the leaders of tomorrow. They are the vehicles through which positive changes can be realised.”

“This is why many tend to invest on the future developments of its youths, governments, parents and guardians devote a lot of time and resources to order to explore and harness the potentialities of youth.

“Therefore, societies that neglect youth development may negatively affect future national development. Youth when neglected, can find escape and solace in such things as drug abuse, cultism, pick pocketing, loitering, rape, auto theft, truancy, delinquent or criminal act and indulgency”

The market women and children were addressed at the roundabout along Zik Avenue by the POWA executive and state government led by the commissioner for health, Dr Joe Akabuike.

Lectures on drug abuse were delivered by the state Director, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency NDLEA, Mr Sule Momodu, a Professor of clinical Psychology, Nnamdi Azikiwe University Unizik, Awka, Prof Ugokwe Osayi.

Speaking with The Nation, the wife of the state Commissioner of police, Hajiya Umar, said POWA had decided to take such initiative because of the decadence in the society, especially on the part of children.

Some of the widows who benefited from the POWA empowerment, Mrs Constance Jonah, Anthonia Tosin told the Nation that they were grateful to POWA for remembering them, adding that such empowerment would help their families a great deal.

A former governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi has urged Nigerians to change their attitude towards education.

He decried the “the lack of treating education with the seriousness it deserves by classifying money spent on it as expenditure rather than investment”.

Making this observation on a visit to Good Shepherd Anglican Academy, Lokoja, Kogi State, Obi urged Nigerians interested in the meaningful development of the country not to leave the task of improving education to government alone.

He appealed to wealthy Nigerians to deny themselves the pleasure of the huge expenditure on the things and habits they do not necessarily need, and commit some of that money to support schools across the country.

Elaborating on his mission to Lokoja, Obi said, “Some years ago, I joined in the advocacy for the policy of adopting schools; where you take it upon yourself to provide necessary epistemic infrastructure to the school adopted — laboratories, computers & Internet connectivity, power-generators, sick bay, among others. For the WASC and NECO examinations, one could also undertake to pay the registration fees for a number of candidates”.

Obi commended the Anglican Archbishop of Lokoja, Most Rev. Dr.  Emmanuel Sokowanju Egbunu for his efforts to promote education, and demonstrated his support for his school with the sum of N2 million for its infrastructural improvements.

He further advised the students to remain focused on their school work as education is “the most potent currency for competition in the world”.

Earlier, the Archbishop of Lokoja Province of Anglican Communion, Most Rev. Egbunu described Obi as a modern-day apostle of education. He said he was humbled by Obi leaving Anambra State and visiting and supporting schools in all the parts of Nigeria, from Abia State, to Nasarawa, to Sokoto, to Benue, to Kogi and every part of the country.

Describing Obi’s views on education as borne out of practical experience, considering what, according to him,  he did in Anambra State, he encouraged other wealthy Nigerians to key into his vision.

For his infrastructural growth effort, Abia State Governor Okezie Ikpeazu has been honoured by one of the oldest elite clubs in Aba, the state’s commercial capital. The Aba Sports Club, incorporated as Aba European Club on March 12, 1926, presented him with a plaque of honour highlighting his efforts in renewing infrastructure in Enyimba City.

The governor was honoured during the inauguration of the club’s 64th president Mazi Nwosu and members of his executive council.

Ikpeazu, a member of the club, is the first Ukwa Ngwa native to become governor. Another member, Mr. Chibuike Nwokeukwu, recently became a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN). Several others have proved themselves in their chosen fields.

The event also attracted the presence of Sir Chikwe Udensi (APGA 2015 governorship aspirant), Chief Mr. Ahamdi Nweke, 2015 APGA Abia Central Senatorial Candidate, Abia Deputy Gov. Rt. Hon. Udo Okochukwu (representing Governor Okezie Ikpeazu), Senators Enyinnaya Abaribe (Rep Abia South Senatorial District), Mao Ohuabunwa (Rep Abia North Senatorial District), Rt. Hon. Cosmos Ndukwe, Deputy Speaker, Abia State House of Assembly among captains of industries including the MD/CEO Tonimas Oil who gave the event the touch of class it deserves.

The new president Mazi Nwosu thanked his predecessor, Mr. Geoffrey Uzoagbara, a lawyer, for restoring the glory of the club through innovative and infrastructural development.

Nwosu called for support, saying he and his team were would welcome advice and carry everyone along, adding that his vision for the club was to make the club the best in the east of the Niger and the country at large.

He said, “I need your shoulders to lean on, and as you join hands with me, we shall recreate Aba Sport Club 1926 as a foremost club you will be proud of. Your support will go beyond awards and your names on plaques, but will remain as a testimony for posterity when the history of Aba Sports Club 1926 is told.

“It feels wonderful and great to be the president of a club of elites and stakeholders of Abia State. Aba Sports club represents the goodness of Abia State. It represents what Abia State can offer. It represents the industrialists of Nigeria. It represents great businessmen of great repute. So being one of the presidents of Aba Sports Club is leading a part of people who are incredibly and tremendously endowed with strength of purpose and making a difference wherever they are. This is why am very grateful to God that He gave me the opportunity to lead these extreme and wonderful people.

“Let me say that under my watch, we will take the golf section of the Aba Sports Club to a great height. It will be a place where the PGA (Professional Golf Association) will come to. As we speak, we have gotten companies, especially in the Southeast and Southsouth to sponsor Golf Tournaments. That in itself is tourism. By bringing these golfers to come to Aba Sports Club to come and play tournaments, the multiplier effect is that hotels will be booked, things will be sold in Aba and it will reengineer the economic activities in Aba as a metropolis.

“Let me say that Aba Sports Club is not only a sporting club. We have social responsibility to our host community, which is Aba community. And by extension, you have a group of businessmen who are members of Aba Sports Club and by what they do at their individual companies is also the manifestation of the preaching of Aba Sports Club, that wherever we are, we are our brother’s keeper. Through that, we create a lot of charity. We have equally invited people from outside to come and talk about issues of national importance that will help to develop Abia State.

“In the near future, we are going to be discussing on issues of succession for example and all and sundry will be invited to listen to the dart of succession in Igbo businesses. You have men and women who do businesses and by the end of the day, when they die, there won’t be anybody that would succeed them and that becomes the end of the business.  It is part of the reason why our social responsibility is not only peculiar to Aba Sports Club but to our entire Aba community.

“What we have done in the past 4months, after being elected in November 2017 is what most past presidents do in 2years. We have attracted a 150KVA generator from the governor of the state valued at over N9m. We have asphalted the whole golf parking lot at a cost of over N9m. we have reroofed most of the buildings in Aba Sports Club. So, in the past 4months, we have done quite a lot and we have been able to meet our administrative and financial obligations as at when due.

“Decision making and planning are that of a good leader. You don’t have to come and take your chair and sit in a place and wait from morning till evening to provide excellent leadership. What we have done is that we are 12members of management committee and part of my job is to enable my committee members to be proficient in each person’s area of competence. We have been able to come together and achieve results beyond measure.

“So, I have the time. If I have been able to run my business, I should be able to run Aba Sports Club.”

Uzoagbara in his speech thanked members of ensuring a free and fair election, adding that the outcome of the election which produced the incumbent leadership was a confirmation of the trust and acceptability that Jude Nwosu led team would deliver veritable landmarks for the continued growth of the club and its members.

Uzoagbara further encouraged the newly inaugurated team headship to continue on the path of discipline, stressing that without discipline nothing can ever be achieved especially as the strength of the club is growing daily.

Abia State Deputy Governor Udo Okochukwu who represented Governor Ikpeazu, thanked members of the club for their contribution in the economic and infrastructural development of the city and the state at large.

Ikpeazu while urging the new leadership not to lose focus while pursuing the dreams and aspirations of the club used the opportunity to thank the club for the award of “Game Changer” that was bestowed on him.

Highpoints of the events were taking of oath of office by the new executive, handing over of awards to individuals and performances from cultural dance troupes in attendance.

The Non-Interest Banking (NIB) Group of Sterling Bank recently launched the Hajj Savings Plan in partnership with Nasrul-lahi-li Fathi Society of Nigeria (NASFAT) in Lagos. The novel savings plan is designed to make it easy for interested Muslims to choose the year they would prefer to perform the Hajj and plan their contributions, either weekly or monthly, towards achieving the objective. In this interview, Chief Missioner of NASFAT, Alhaji Mahroof Onike, commends Sterling Bank for the initiative and also highlights the benefits of performing the Hajj at least once in the lifetime of a Muslim.

Purpose of Hajj

Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam where Allah commands that Muslims who can afford it should go on Hajj at least once in their lifetime.

Every year, millions of Muslim pilgrims from all over the world embark on a five-day Hajj pilgrimage. The main activity of the pilgrimage is for the pilgrims to circle Islam’s most sacred site, namely the cube-shaped Ka’aba in the Saudi Arabian city of Mecca, seven times.

Pilgrims also take part in a series of rituals intended to bring about greater humility and unity among Muslims. This activity is known as Hajj.

Embarking on Hajj is seen as an opportunity to clean off past sins and start afresh. Many Muslims seek to deepen their faith during the Hajj which is why you see women covering their hair with what is commonly known as the “hijab” upon returning from the holy pilgrimage. Muslims are required to perform Hajj because it is the most complete form of worship. It requires that Muslims bear the hardships of travel and sacrifice the comfort of their homes to please their Creator, the Almighty Allah.

Hajj Savings Plan

Muslims who have not gone on Hajj should take advantage of Sterling Bank’s Hajj Savings Plan to set a future pilgrimage date for performance of the Hajj (major pilgrimage) or Umrah (minor pilgrimage).

This savings plan initiative by Sterling Bank is a welcome development which I believe will create opportunities for Muslims who intend to perform Hajj at a future date. It is a laudable plan and every Muslim who has knowledge of the initiative should commit to playing a part in creating awareness about it so that a lot of Muslims can benefit from it.

Why Muslims should perform the Hajj

Muslims who have not performed the Hajj may not appreciate the value of Islam as much as those who have gone on the pilgrimage at least once in their lifetime. I will, therefore, like to call on wealthy Muslims to support those who cannot afford the pilgrimage so that their blessings from God will continue to increase.

Performing Hajj involves a lot of physical challenges and many people walk the routes. Those who cannot afford Hajj are sometimes financed by charities or community leaders. Others save their entire lives to make the journey while some even walk thousands of miles by foot to Saudi Arabia, taking months to arrive.

History of the Hajj

The rites of the Hajj are designed to trace the footsteps of Prophet Ibrahim and Prophet Ismail – or Abraham and Ishmael as they are known in the Bible. Muslim adherents believe Prophet Ibrahim’s faith was tested when God commanded him to sacrifice his only son Ismail. Prophet Ibrahim was prepared to submit to the command, but God stayed his hand, sparing his son and gave him a sheep instead.

Hajj is also an opportunity for pilgrims to trace the path of Prophet Ibrahim’s wife, Hagar, who scholars believe ran between two hills seven times searching for water to save her dying son before God brought forth a spring that runs to this day. That spring is the sacred well of Zamzam which is believed to possess healing powers and pilgrims often return from the Hajj with bottles of its water as gifts.

There is no disease that this water cannot heal but you have to have faith in it because Allah says He will heal those who believe and will not heal those who do not believe in Him. So, faith is very important.

Importance of Kaaba to Muslims

Islamic scholars are of the opinion that the Ka’aba was built by Ibrahim and Ismail as a house of monotheistic worship thousands of years ago but over the years, the Ka’aba was reconstructed and it has attracted different kinds of pilgrims, including early Christians who once lived in the Arabian Peninsula. In pre-Islamic times, the Ka’aba was used to house pagan idols worshipped by local tribes.

Muslims do not worship the Ka’aba, but it is Islam’s most sacred site because it represents the metaphorical House of God as well as the oneness of God in Islam. Praying Muslims around the world face the Ka’aba during their five daily prayers.

Rituals performed during Hajj

Pilgrims perform several rituals during Hajj because it is a time when they enter into state of spiritual purity known as “ihram,” which is aimed at shedding symbols of materialism, giving up worldly pleasures and focusing on the inner self.

Another show of corporate responsibility is on display in Enugu State as the managing director of Peace Mass Transit Chief Sam Maduka Onyishi has completed a 600-meter asphalt link road in the Emene industrial layout Enugu.

The road goes through his company’s workshop and vehicle assembly plant as well as other industries.

The individual project running into millions of Naira was recently commissioned by the Enugu State Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi.

The road is the second Chief Onyishi has built.

Governor Ugwuanyi had earlier in March commissioned about 2km road linking Amukwa community in Nsukka Local Government Area to the campus of University of Nigeria Nsukka, (UNN) built singlehandedly by Onyishi to alleviate transport difficulties in the area.

The road has also enhanced economic development and interconnectivity between his community and the university town of Nsukka and UNN.

Ugwuanyi while commissioning the road extolled Chief Maduka Onyishi for the kind gesture, urging other wealthy individuals to borrow a leaf from him.

Onyishi said he cannot afford not to make impact within Enugu city based on the fact that Enugu was the take-off point of Peace Mass Transit.

“These are challenges we have undertaken despite extremely difficult business times in our country. For purpose of history, Enugu is the birth place of PMT and the people are our earliest stakeholders who believed in us, stood by us, grew us and weaned us to the greater Nigeria and ultimately to the world at large.

“Therefore, whatever we can do to improve the lives of Enugu people, we shall not hesitate to do. Is it not said that charity begins at home? It is only natural in our thinking that the greater charity works, our core social responsibility projects are undertaken in parts of Enugu, for the benefit of our people. To God be the Glory.”