The Nation Newspaper

Category: SouthEast

  • Visually-impaired pupils learn job skills

    Visually-impaired pupils learn job skills

    As part of activities marking this year’s World Youths Skill Acquisition Day held every July 15, as declared by the United Nations, The HannahMay Foundation, a non-governmental organisation, visited a school for the blind in Afara Umuahia to teach them some skills.

    Founded by the wife of former Abia State governor C, HannahMay went to the school to teach them how to make beads and liquid soap so that they can be self-dependent when they leave the school.

    The foundation which held a two-week skill acquisition programme in conjunction with the association of the blind in the state saw about 100 blind students being taught how to make the items.

    Speaking at the event, Mrs Orji said that the foundation will never stop impacting on the vulnerable in the society despite the fact that her husband has left office. Mrs Orji who was represented by the coordinator of the foundation, Amah Mba said that the foundation decided to empower the blind students who will be leaving the school in no distant time so that they could be useful to themselves and the society in general.

    The former governor’s wife said that she has been at the forefront of ensuring that the vulnerable in the society will never leave the school to become beggars, adding that scholarships have also been offered to the indigent ones and empowering the widows.

    She explained that she is joining the UN which has set aside the 15th of every July to mark this years’ own so that the blind in the society would be empowered through skill acquisition to enable them make a living for themselves.

    Mrs Orji said, “The foundation spend two weeks at the school of the blind training them on how to make beads and liquid soap so that they could be self-dependent when they leave here instead of depending on others for their livelihood.

    She then called on those who have been blessed by God in the society to join hands with HannahMay foundation in alleviating the sufferings of the downtrodden, “As wealth is meaningless unless it is used to impact on the people who need it most.”

    In her welcome address the principal of the school, Mrs Ngozi Olughu who is blind thanked the founder of the foundation, Mrs Orji for being at the forefront of ensuring that the students are never beggars after leaving the school.

    Mrs Olughu said that what Mrs Orji has done will go a long way in bringing back hope and smiles to the students who will be leaving the school soon, stressing that the bead and soap making will help to put food on their tables.

    She said, “We want to appreciate the foundation for a job well done including those who spent their time to teach on how to make those items. As you continue with your programmes, we pray that you will come back as those so impacted will soon leave and we pray that others coming behind will equally benefit from your foundation.”

    In his contribution, the president of the Association of the Blind who is also a beneficiary, Wisdom Kalu Okechukwu said that the foundation has done them proud by giving them a place to stand in the society as they have been provided with the avenue to show case their talents.

    Okechukwu said, “We have been hearing about bead and soap making but today we are now makers of both important items in the society which will go a long way to also enrich our pockets and make us self-dependent”.

    He recalled that when Mrs Orji was the First Lady that she never left them alone as she was always coming to see them, “Now she is out of office she has also not abandoned us which shows the milk of kindness in her, please thank her for us”.

    The highlight of the occasion was the displaying of the beads and liquid soap they made and the giving out of materials for the bead making while the chemicals for soap making would be delivered later.

  • 4,000 sign up to anti-graft fight in Imo

    4,000 sign up to anti-graft fight in Imo

    The anti-corruption crusade gathers steam in Imo State where thousands of teachers and pupils have joined the battle. OKODILI NDIDI reports

    It is just as well that the anti-corruption fight is focusing on the young and their teachers, rather than on fat cats in high places. Jail them or make them cough up what they stole, high-profile crooks are unlikely to drop their old habits, but take the anti-corruption message to young people with impressionable minds, and you might win them over before they become monsters.

    That is what is happening in Imo State where no fewer than 4,000 volunteers comprising teachers and pupils of secondary and primary schools have signed the anti-corruption inducement form of a non-governmental organisation African Initiatives Against Corruption and Examination Malpractices (AIACEM).

    The NGO said it was committed to taking the crusade against corruption and exam malpractices to primary, secondary and tertiary institutions across Nigeria.

    The NGO visited over 10 schools in Imo on the 2017 World Anti-Corruption Day to counsel students against corruption and examination malpractices.

    Addressing a large crowd of students at Christ the King International Anglican Secondary School on the topic “Catch Them Young,” the Director of the NGO, Mr. Frances Abioye described corruption as the greatest problem confronting the nation.

    He said corruption has eaten deep into the fabric of the nation, adding that the NGO was willing to tackle and curtail it.

    He said, “It is unfortunate that even students at various levels do not know that cheating or examination malpractice is part of the corrupt practices in Nigeria. We are determined to change the story and we have begun the crusade with primary, secondary and tertiary institutions in Imo, but soon we’ll carry the message across the country.”

    Abioye said that within two months of its formation the NGO has recorded over 3,000 volunteers in its Anti-Corruption Club (ACC). That figure will change after the Imo tallies.

    He hinted that most Nigerian graduates are no longer employable due to the fact that they depended on cheating and malpractices during their school days, adding, “I want to warn all of you in this seminar to shun corruption and exam malpractice because it can only lead you to doom”.

    Also addressing the students, Prof. Okey Okoro of the Department of Library Science, Imo State University disclosed that the only way to guarantee Nigeria’s future is by catching the younger generation.

    “If we don’t do what we are doing today,” he said, “this nation will still be prone to all kind of negativity. We must begin now to redirect the mindset of school children because they are the leaders of tomorrow but if we allow them to build themselves with cheating and malpractices, we cannot get it right again.”

    Okoro condemned all manner of examination malpractice, and commended the NGO for initiating the idea and championing the crusade against corruption and examination malpractices.

  • Abia police parade suspected robbers, cultists

    Abia police parade suspected robbers, cultists

    The efforts of the police and other security agencies in Abia State have led to the arrest of suspected criminals, the rescue of kidnap victims as well as the recovery of stolen items in the state.

    Abia State Commissioner of Police Adeleye Oyebade paraded some suspects at the state command headquarters in Umuahia, the state capital, saying that the suspects were those nabbed in June and July. Oyebade attributed the arrests to intelligence gathering and prompt information to the police by members of the public about the activities of hoodlums in their neighbourhoods.

    Oyebade hailed his officers for being alive to their duties, saying that they were not going to rest on their oars but remain more committed and resolute in combating crime in the state.

    He urged his men to be professional and do their work with the fear of God.

    Oyebade explained that the stop and search operation in Aba and other parts of the state is not to extort money from road users, but to checkmate activities of hoodlums. He added that any policeman found wanting will face the music.

    Giving a breakdown of the command’s activity in June and July, Oyebade said “On 01/07/2017 at about 1200hrs, sequel to information received on the missing of one Peter Alaebuonu Eseonu, a tricycle operator, 67 years ‘m’ of Ekenaobizi Umuopara Umuahia on 27/06/2017, detectives attached to Central Police Station, Umuahia swooped on one Chinonso David Ibekwe, 25 years ‘m’ of Ndiotu Ntalakwu, Bende LGA. The suspect, a 200 level Computer Science student of Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike Abia State gave a lead towards the recovery of the decomposing body of the said Peter Alaebuonu Eseonu in a ditch at Amuzukwu Umuahia. He has however, confessed to the crime while the decomposing body of the deceased has been deposited in the morgue for preservation and autopsy. The suspect has been charged to court and remanded in prison custody.

    “On 09/07/2017 at about 1100hrs, information was received that someone was shot dead along Obohia road Aba. Sequel to this, a patrol team attached to Ndiegoro Division on routine patrol rushed to the scene at No. 22 Obohia road Aba where the deceased was met in a pool of her own blood. The Divisional Police Officer, Ndiegoro mobilized other patrol teams and proceeded to the scene where one Ogbonnaya Igwe ‘m’ of 22 Obohia road was arrested in his hide-out at the ceiling of the house. One Pump-Action rifle and double barrel gun with 15 live cartridges and four expended cartridges were recovered from the suspect and at the scene respectively. Corpse of the deceased later identified as Ijeoma Chibuzo was deposited in the mortuary for autopsy.

    The police released more information on the arrest of several other suspected hoodlums and the recovery of stolen items.

  • Going global with made-in-Aba products

    Going global with made-in-Aba products

    If you do not say I am here, nobody will say there you are. When a church wishes to expand its membership it embarks on evangelism outside its base. The essence is to find, and minister to the unconverted and convert them.

    Since he became Governor of Abia State on the 29th of May 2015, Dr Okezie Ikpeazu has stridently campaigned for and promoted made in Aba brands with unparalleled vigor and focus.

    It all started with his decision that all through his tenure, as Governor, he will only wear made in Aba clothes, shoes and accessories.

    To date, he has kept that promise to the admiration and acknowledgement of all, by always wearing openly branded made in Aba clothes and shoes, even outside the shores of Nigeria.

    In addition, he has added serving of only Abia or Ebonyi rice at Government House, and has even gone ahead to support the large scale production of local rice in Abia.

    He also prioritizes the use of local construction companies to execute his much talked about “caterpillar revolution” that has delivered more than 40 roads, mostly with the innovative Rigid Pavement Technology, also known as cement road construction, at Aba.

    Nationally, the focused promotion of Made In Aba brands by the Governor has attracted the attention of the Federal Government with the current Acting President, Prof Yemi Osibanjo, being one of the strongest supporters of the Governor’s MSME growth initiatives. Nigerian military has long ordered for and received more than 50,000 Aba Made shoes while the National Youth Service Corps is currently considering a proposal to make all their uniforms from Aba at a much reduced cost.

    Little wonder Abia State recently won the Best state in Promotion of made in Nigeria products and best state in the promotion of SME in the Businessday Newspaper States Competitiveness and Good Governance Award of 2017.

    While delivering his 2017 budget address to the National Assembly in December 2016, President Muhammad Buhari noted that his administration will focus on local procurement of goods and services to support growing industrial and innovation hubs like Aba.

    According to president Buhari,    “…We will buy Made in Nigeria goods. We will encourage garment manufacturing and Nigerian designers, tailors and fashion retailers. We will patronise local entrepreneurs. We will promote the manufacturing powerhouses in Aba…”

    Many viewed that policy statement as a direct result of the strident promotion of made in Aba brands championed by Governor Ikpeazu.

    Only recently too, the Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, said that tailors and designers in Aba make the best clothes in the world.

    Ngige who equally praised shoes produced at Aba made the assertion while speaking to newsmen in his office at Abuja during the recently celebrated 60th anniversary of Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA) also urged the group to synergize with Aba SMEs to deliver much better results.

    He said that NECA in its existence has not done well, urging them to do more by bringing other employers across Nigeria  into their folds.

    “Imagine there is no presence of NECA in Aba, the tailors there make the best clothes in the world. The shoe making outlets there are the best shoes producers in African continent and are owned by private owner.”

    After receiving the Best state in Promotion of made in Nigeria brands and best state in the promotion of SME in the Businessday Newspaper States Competitiveness and Good Governance Award 2017, Governor Ikpeazu followed up the following day by launching the made in Aba fashion show that attracted the creme de la creme of the Abuja society, including diplomats, Nollywood practitioners, government officials, entrepreneurs, professionals and the fashion conscious residents of the Federal capital city.

    Since the highly successful event at Abuja, many have come to understand better the evangelistic disposition of the Governor Ikpeazu with his campaign for made in Aba products. In this wise, he considers Aba and Abia the base of the “already converted” and decided to launch out to the deep of Nigeria and the globe to further spread his message of Aba’s technological and innovative ingenuity to others.

    Such is the passion of the Governor to promote products made in his state that even international organizations like Ford Foundation are willing to stake a claim to the positively changing narrative of Made In Aba brands. The organization is sponsoring international media campaigns using CNN and other global media platforms to sensitize consumers of the quality brands being produced at the SME capital of Nigeria.

    Speaking at the Made-in-Aba fashion show, the Executive Director/CEO, Nigerian Export Promotion Council, Mr. Segun Awolowo, emphasized the need for Nigerians to patronize Aba products.

    He also decried the neglect of Aba by government and commended Governor Ikpeazu for his unflinching desire to reposition Aba and products from the commercial city.

    Testimony from producers of Made in Aba brands confirms the benefits of the focused promotion of the brands by the Ikpeazu led administration. One of the participants at the recent Made In Aba fashion show at Abuja, Mr Andrew Anya Etim of Shoeplanet, captured the gratitude of the participants when he stated during a TV program that his sales of Aba made shoes have grown in leaps over the past one and half years.

    According to Mr Anya, “my company started buying and making Aba Made brands in 2015 and we are now making much more in volumes and profits than we made when we were importing foreign shoes and clothes. My customers are happy to buy our products which are clearly marked as “Made In Nigeria” and I must admit that we owe a lot of that to the Governor of Abia State, Dr Okezie Ikpeazu.”

    A foreign visitor to the Made in Aba Fashion show at Abuja was so visibly impressed by the quality of the products he saw on display and modeled by some of the best models drawn from the Aba environment that he asked his Nigerian escort to swear that “these beautiful products were actually produced in Nigeria”.

    In an interview with newsmen after receiving the Business Day Award, Governor Ikpeazu captured the thinking behind his administration’s efforts to promote Made in Aba brands. According to him, “we want to help our local producers grow and make more profits, contribute to reduction in unemployment and add to the GDP of the nation in such a way that the country will wean itself from over-dependence on oil revenue.”

    If the success recorded so far is anything to go by, it is expected that over the tenure of Governor Ikpeazu, Aba will move from the production and export of more than one million pairs of shoes weekly to become the African fashion products manufacturing hub. This notion is supported by the fact that Aba producers are supported by one of the best equipment fabrication industry in Africa that produces high quality machines and equipment to aid mechanized manufacturing.

    Made in Aba is already leading at the national front, while making very strong competitive impact globally. Even those who dericively focus on the geographical location of Aba are now taking note.

    When you buy and use made in Aba brands you are contributing to NIGERIA’s socio-economic development.

     

    • Appolos is Chief Press Secretary to the Governor

     

  • Akanu Ibiam Poly students make table water

    Akanu Ibiam Poly students make table water

    To ensure that its students are employable or self-employed after graduation, the Akanu Ibiam Federal Polytechnic Uwana, Ebonyi State, established a department for entrepreneurial studies.

    The plan worked. The department has now procured its own water purification machine for the production of bottled table and sachet water. The processing plant is run by the students themselves, and their products are already sold within the school and Afikpo community with plans to extend the market farther afield to other parts of the state and beyond.

    The Executive Secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund, (TET-FUND), Dr Abdullahi Bichi Baffa commissioned the facility during an assessment tour of the facilities with a promise to make more funds available to the institution to enable it continue the laudable entrepreneurial programme.

    He noted that the programme is in line with the President Muhammadu Buhari government’s agenda on empowering students and graduates with the requisite skills and knowhow to become job creators upon graduation and by so doing bridging the unemployment gap in the country.

    Baffa said the TET-FUND has been making giant strides in the tertiary education sector of the country by providing funds for the upgrade of facilities and building the capacity of the lecturers.

    He said, “Perhaps the best measure is for anyone to work into any campus of any university, polytechnic or college of education in the country whether state or federal government owned and one will see the very clear impact of TET-FUND. I can say without any fear of contradiction that more than 60 percent of the physical infrastructure in any tertiary education institution is provided by TET-FUND. Just imagine our institutions without TET-FUND support, probably they would have crumbled.”

    The Executive Director also commissioned other facilities built by the institution which include twin lecture theatre halls with 3000 sitting capacity, school of environmental design and technology housing seven different programmes, a workshop for the animal production department of the institution.

    He expressed satisfaction on the use of the funds by the institution and promised that TETFUND will expedite action on outstanding 2014, 2015 and 2016 funds yet to be accessed by the institution to enable it complete some ongoing projects and commence new ones.

    Earlier, while receiving the Executive Secretary, the Rector of the institution, Ven. Ogbonnaya Ibe-Enwo thanked TET-FUND for the support it have been giving the institution in the past and appealed for release of more funds to enable it carry our more projects and complete ongoing one.

    Members of the board of the institution led by the Chairman, Prof J.T. Orkar and Director of Administration and Training of Nigeria Television Authority, Dr Steve Egbo joined the Rector in receiving the Executive Secretary.

  • Succour for homeless widows in Anambra

    For 22-year old Nonye Igbokwe, an indigent widow in Oraifite, Ekwusigo Council Area of Anambra State and four other widows of similar status, Christiana Chukwugelo, Chinenye Onyekum, Theresa Iwuchukwu and Augustina Oba, fate has at last soothed their heartache since they lost their husbands and breadwinners.

    For these women, who are mothers to between three and six children each, life ground to a halt after they were saddled with the huge responsibilities of catering for their children, as well as contending with the challenges of obsolete traditions associated with widowhood.

    Homeless, helpless and hopeless, some of them were denied their husband’s inheritance and thrown out of their homes, their children denied education and love.

    This was the pitiable condition of these indigent widows before their case was brought to the attention of the wife of the Imo State Governor, Nneoma Rochas Okorocha. Today their plight has been lifted and they can once again behold the rays of joy and laughter.

    Moved with compassion, Mrs Okorocha, who has built over 200 bungalows for indigent widows in Imo State, under her pet project, She Needs a Roof Project (SNARP), went on a verification tour to Oraifite, where she was confronted with the heartrending testimonies of the widows.

    She handed over five fully furnished two-bedroom bungalows to the widows in a ceremony that drew tears from the audience.

    The governor’s wife said she was inspired to build the homes for the helpless widows under her pet project, She Needs a Roof Project (SNARP) by the plight of the widows.

    She stated further that the gesture was not politically motivated but was rather spurred by a genuine passion to show love to a section of the society that has been denied joy and fulfilment by happenstance of life.

    She said, “Some of these indigent widows have long forgotten how to smile or be happy. Life for them has become one tortuous journey for no fault of theirs. But with what we have done today, these ones can now smile and know how it feels like to be happy. Today they have become owners of modern buildings which is a clear departure from the decrepit homes they were once used to”.

    Urging wealthy Nigerians to continue to assist the poor and downtrodden with their resources,  the Imo Governor’s wife,  added that,  “we can actually help the poor among us because there is no way we can live in two homes or wear two different clothes at a time. We can actually give put those surplus to lift the plight of the indigent ones, especially these widows that have lost their breadwinners and are left to shoulder the burden of raising the children alone”.

    She said, “For me and my husband, giving is a calling and we will continue to do our best to assist to making life better for the underprivileged people. In Imo State, for instance, we have given out over two hundred such bungalows to widows and orphans and it is still counting “.

    On whether the project will continue after her tenure of office, she assured that,”as you know my family have been involved in philanthropy and I don’t look at money as a barrier when it comes to doing things like this.  It is my passion; it gives me joy to see smiles return to the faces of these people, so God helping me I will continue to the best of my ability to provide succour to the indigent people “.

    Commenting further on the initiative, Mrs. Okorocha, explained that, ”this project was conceived after I visited my husband’s brother and friend,  Sir Emeka Offor when he was hosting a large number of widows under his Foundation,  Sir Emeka Offor Foundation and I was touched and promised to assist my building five bungalows for five of the widows.  Today that dream has come true and I feel so happy that I have assisted in my own little way.“

    Lauding the gesture, wife of Emeka Offor and Vice President of the Emeka Offor Foundation,  Mrs Adaora Offor, thanked the Governor’s wife for alleviating the sufferings of the widows,  “I thank you for what you have done for these widows, even though they are not from Imo State. It is my prayer that God will continue to bless and reward you as you serve humanity.

    One of the recipients, 30-year old Nonye Igbokwe who lost her husband in a motorcycle accident two years ago, while narrating her emotional ordeal, said that she was sleeping in a hut with her six children before she was sent away by her husband brothers.

    She said, “After I was driven away by my husband’s brothers, members of my extended family gave me one room in an uncompleted building where I was staying with my children. At night I hardly slept for fear that reptiles may attack my little children. During the day, I do menial jobs to feed my children.  Life was so tough for me that most times I think of committing suicide.  But thank God today my sufferings have come to an end.  I thank the Imo governor’s wife and others that God has used to rescue me and my children “.

    Apart from the buildings, the widows were also given wrappers and cash to start petty trading to take care of their children.

    The beneficiaries include Nonye Igbokwe, Christiana Chukwugelo,  Chinenye Onyekum, Theresa Iwuchukwu and Augustina Oba.

     

  • Abia monarchs to police: we aren’t safe

    Abia monarchs to police: we aren’t safe

    Despite a raft of measures by the police and other security agencies in Abia State, traditional rulers say there is little respite from hoodlums. SUNNY NWANKWO reports

    To say the police and other security arms are not fighting crime in Abia State is to twist facts. Still, traditional rulers in Aba, the state’s commercial capital, say they are a long way from safety. That much they told the state commissioner of police Adeleye Oyebade at a meeting, urging him to ramp up security in the state.

    The monarchs knew that security agents have not been sitting on their arms. They have gone after kidnappers, knocking down, on one occasion, one of their hideouts on the precincts of Aba. The military has also tracked down oil thieves in the bush and set their camp on fire, though by the time they arrived, the outlaws had fled. So many robbers and car thieves, even child traffickers, have also been nabbed. In fact, the police periodically brief the press and announce their successes in anti-crime fighting.

    But the traditional rulers are not fooled. They told Oyebade that on account of insecurity they cannot meet with their council of chiefs or with other monarchs. They could be kidnapped. In fact, traditional rulers in Aba North Local Government Area of the state are worried and want the police to protect them.

    The rulers made their appeal to Oyebade when he visited the palace of the chairman Aba North Local Council Traditional Rulers HRH Eze Love Nwogu at Ogbor Hill, Aba.

    The traditional rulers who spoke through their secretary told the state commissioner of police that they were worried by the increase in crime within the Aba metropolis and its environs.

    They further told the police boss that the increase in crime in Aba has put their lives under threat, adding that insecurity in the council area has equally affected their meeting time which they said could not give them the opportunity to properly discuss issues affecting their communities.

    The traditional rulers however expressed their readiness to partner with the police and other security agencies in the state in fighting crime in their respective communities.

    Oyebade assured the traditional rulers of their safety, adding that the police were doing their best to ensure there is peace in Aba and its environs.

    The police chief shared some of the achievements recorded by the command under his watch, disclosing that the police command in Aba and Umuahia are working collaboratively with other sister agencies in the state to ensure that crime was reduced in various parts of the state.

    According to Oyebade, the recently launched Tactical Response Squad (TRS) with its operational base at Abayi Police Divisional Headquarters would complement efforts of their men in other squads already on the ground in Aba in tackling activities of hoodlums in the city.

    The state police boss thanked the Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris for giving the command two Armoured Personnel Carriers (APC) and Governor Okezie Victor Ikpeazu for paying some allowances to the officers in the state.

    He said that it was the desire of the command that Abians and visitors to the state would go about their businesses freely and to sleep with their eyes closed. Oyebade urged members of the public to provide the police with useful information about the activities of hoodlums in their areas, stressing that the police whose response to distress calls have improved would not hesitate to come to their rescue at all time.

     

  • Obiano’s wife gives delivery kits to expectant mothers

    Obiano’s wife gives delivery kits to expectant mothers

    The wife of Anambra State governor, Mrs Ebelechukwu Obiano has continued her tour of communities in the state with free delivery kits for expectant mothers.

    The Mama Kit created excitement amongst the women in the state who turned up at centres in various communities.

    The packs were handed out to 10 expectant mothers at Ezinifite, Nnewi South Local Government Area, one of the five communities she visited.

    Other communities where the kits were distributed on the same day included, Ebenator, Ukpor, Osumenyi, and Akwaihedi.

    Speaking while handing out the kits to the lucky expectant mothers, Mrs. Obiano stated that no woman should be exposed ýto unsafe delivery due to lack of basic sterilised equipment in the rural communities.

    She said, “My NGO, Caring Family Enhancement Initiative (CAFE) decided to use the opportunity of this tour to reach out to pregnant women to ensure that they observe necessary antenatal visits and have the Mama kits ready and handy on their Expected Delivery Date”

    “We are grateful to our donors GEANCO Foundation, a US based organization which made it possible for us to get this modern kit to assist us in promoting safe delivery as a means of reducing high maternal mortality rate in our state and country”

    She told the women that her husband, Governor Willie Obiano treats the welfare of women as priority and does not want to hear that any woman could not deliver safely in any part of the state.

    “I am supporting the effort of our governor in promoting the health and safe delivery of pregnant mothers by giving them these delivery kits and each pack contains all the tools for safe delivery”

    “I want you to keep the kit inside your packed bag unopened to avoid contamination until it is handed over to the Nurse whenever you enter labour.”

    One of the lucky expectant mothers at Ezinifite, Mrs. Chizoba Obiakor thanked the wife of the governor for the gift and for giving women in Anambra a sense of belonging in many positive ways.

    Each Mama Kit pack contains sterile scalpel, OB pad, pair of non- latex gloves and 4×4’’ gauze, Sterile Bulb Syringe, Sterile Umbilical Clamps, Plastic Underpad, Receiving Blanket, Non-Woven Towels, BZK Towelette, Plastic Placenta Bag, Plastic Apron, Twist Ties, Trash Bag, and Apgar Scoring Chart.

  • My biggest challenge as governor, by Obi

    Former governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi said that his biggest challenge as governor was the battle to change the mindset of the Anambra people.

    Speaking while addressing students of St. Michael’s Model Comprehensive Secondary School, Nimo, Obi explained how tough it was trying to make his Executive Council and others who worked with him to understand the concept of accountability and responsibility in governance.

    Mr. Obi expressed happiness that the battle he fought to return schools to the missions has been yielding fruit in the improvement in infrastructure and general performance. He thanked the Church for their efforts, and called on the wealthy to support the Church to make the society a better place

    He said, “When I expressed the intention to return schools to missions at a State Executive Council meeting only three out of 30 members supported me. Even Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT) threatened to go on strike if I tried that and actually did. But I knew I was right and insisted until I had my way. Today I am so happy to see the transformation in this school since I took the bold but unpopular decision.”

    In his remarks, the manager of the school, Rev. Fr. Francis Obi Okoye thanked Mr. Obi for coming. He said Anambra people would ever remain grateful to him for his disposition towards education which has continued even after he left office.

  • Peace, at last, in Oko?

    Peace, at last, in Oko?

    For years, Oko a community in Orumba North Local Government Area of Anambra State, was at war with itself. For its pride, the only polytechnic in its land, was at daggers drawn with the monarch of the community. Established by former Vice President Dr Alex Ekwueme, the Federal Polytechnic Oko was torn apart by the acrimony between its leadership and the community’s traditional institution headed by Igwe Laz Ekwueme, brother of the former vice president. The monarch accused the Rector, Prof. Godwin Onu of marginalising the host community, while the rector charged the ruler with seeking to suppress the institution by demanding that every appointment and contract pass through him as the traditional head of the community.

    At a time, it led to killings and destruction of property in the kingdom by the two camps which involved security operatives from both the state and federal levels.

    The battle ground later shifted to Abuja with both parties boasting of highly connected people.

    Today, the story has changed with the new governing council of the institution, Hon Lasbry Amadi leading others including the Rector of the school to the traditional ruler of the kingdom, Igwe Prof Laz Ekwueme to talk the way forward.

    The longstanding misunderstanding between both camps had indeed denied both the polytechnic and the host community a lot of good things from outside the state.

    The 10th new governing council of the institution was inaugurated recently by the minister of Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu in Abuja.

    Speaking at the palace of Igwe Ekwueme, the chairman of the council, Hon. Lasbry Amadi said the Polytechnic and the council hold the monarch in high esteem and would do everything possible to seek a wholesome synergy from the wealth of experience of the monarch and his people.

    He said, “We have gone to the institution and have seen the developments on ground and we have equally seen the challenges. And we think we will achieve more by the esteem cooperation of the Igwe and his entire subjects”

    “There is no alternative to peace and we cannot work without the inputs and contributions of the community. The council will do its best to achieve greater developments and peace is a panacea to attaining such goals”

    “We are hopeful that with peace, the cooperation of the Igwe and the entire polytechnic community, coupled with the experiences of all the Council, the polytechnic will be placed in a first position among its peers”

    “The polytechnic is what the nation needs for technological advancements in this country”

    “Therefore the Council is here to tap from your fatherly disposition and we hope to rely on your wise counsel to achieve greater results,” Amadi emphasised.

    However, he commended the president, Mohammaadu Buhari and his team for finding the new council worthy to serve in the federal institution.

    The member, representing Orumba North and south at the National Assembly, Hon Ben Nwankwo, advocated for peace and progress, while charging the council to restore the confidence of the community.

    He said he was already working on a bill to make the institution a university of technology, adding that the Rector of the school had done well, stressing that the school should work closely with the host community.

    On his part, the traditional ruler of the community, though visibly angry over the alleged treatment he received from the institution in the past, commended the new council for toeing the line of peace and solidarity, which he said had been lacking before now.

    He maintained that Oko community is a peaceful place that has coexisted with the polytechnic since its inception, while accepting to work with the new council.

    He revealed that Federal Polytechnic Oko under his watch as the past Chairman of the Board of the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) was rated high in academic and physical developments and charged the present council to work harder to achieve the aim of making Oko a Federal University of Technology to serve the Southeast.

    He bemoaned the strained relationship with the institution’s management adding that Oko continue to create open hands for peace to reign stressing that it is still not late to renew a positive and resourceful relationship which will be rewarding to both the school and the host town, Oko.

    He called on the council to restore the lost glory of symbiotic relationship between the school and the host community adding that the town is well disposed to accept peace at all times.

    The Rector, Prof Godwin Onu revealed that his initial intention which is conspicuously present in his maiden address is to make Oko look like Massachusetts Institute of Technology in development and innovations.

    He quickly appealed for forgiveness for the past misunderstandings between his administration and Oko community stressing that detractors may be feeding fat from the feud.

    He regretted situations where some people were sending wrong signals to the either parties in the struggle adding that there is no alternative to peace.

    According to Onu, “war has never been an alternative to peace and the scares of war does nobody any good.

    “I came with passion to transform Federal Polytechnic, Oko, and even with the massive progress we have put in place, we could have done more if not for the negative turn out of the strained relationship.

    Onu, therefore pleaded with the traditional ruler Igwe, Prof Laz Ekwueme to forgive and forget as he sued for a more cordial relationship that he believes is what is the only option for progress of the school and the Oko town.

    “Initially I was so afraid of this visit occasioned by wrong signals, but I was so encouraged by the Council Chairman with other members to join in the visit. And I thought it wise to use this opportunity to amend the wrongs and chart a course for a more positive relationship”

    “I will also want to use this same opportunity to ask Dame Beatrice Ekwueme who represented the former Vice President of Nigeria, His Excellency, Dr Alex Ekwueme at this occasion to send my candid apologies to him”

    “I respect him a lot and would never do anything to despise him”

    Also, the council paid a visit to His Royal Highness, Igwe Chika Uchime of Ufuma, another host community housing Ufuma Campus of the institution.

    The monarch, Igwe Uchime, stressed that Ufuma Community has remained the most patient town for not seeing any development on the Ufuma Campus, since over three decades the town handed over the Community School to the polytechnic.

    He said that the institution has not make judicious use of the campus and have not erected any structure on it until the emergence of the present management that renovated all the existing buildings and is also erecting two structures.

    He thanked the management for their initiatives and called on the council to do more with the large expanse of empty lands begging to be developed.

    The council on their part pledged to transform the place through mechanised agriculture and other academic activities.

    Highlights of the visit included inspection of over 15 modern structures and 10 others at various levels of completion by Onu’s administration.

    Other facilities inspected included construction of roads within the campus, beautification, modern community radio and television stations.