The Nation Newspaper

Category: SouthEast

Market killings: Police quiz nine NDLEA officials

The police in Abia State command have started interrogating nine staff of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency who were said to have been involved in the shootings at Ariaria International Market on July 31.

The officers reportedly went to “Black Kingdom” (a popular drug market located around the Bakassi Shoe Plaza) to arrest a drug dealer.

It was alleged that when the operation failed, the NDLEA men started shooting in the market at the peak of business activities which resulted in the death of some shoemakers while over six others were injured.

The Abia State Commander of the anti-drug agency, Mr. Dele Akingbade promised that the agency was going to cooperate with the police in their investigation on the matter, adding that they would also be looking at the type of the ammunition retrieved from the deceased and injured persons on the fateful day in order to ascertain whether it was the one used by the agency or not.

The Abia State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Ezekiel Onyeke Udeviotu confirmed that nine persons from NDLEA reported to be among the personnel of the drug law agency that went for the Ariaria operation were undergoing interrogation at the State Criminal Investigation Department.

Udeviotu also said that Fire Arms Experts would be involved for analysis to ascertain the owners of ammunition that were used during the operation if the need arises, even as he expressed confidence that the panel investigating the incident were professionals who would to do a thorough job.

“We can’t say that all of them were involved in the shooting. There so many issue surrounding the incident. It is not just the issue of people who went to work we equally have the issue of who shot and what made them to shoot. It is not something that we are going to do overnight. I don’t know the level of investigation and would not want to preempt the outcome of the investigation. Put I can confirm that they are in our custody and that they are helping us with the investigation.

The caliber of the ammunition that were used will be determined by the people investigating the matter at the state CID and fire arm experts will be involved if the need be. But I must tell you that I am confident that the people doing the investigation will do a very good and thorough job. So, if the need to verify the type of ammunition arises, the fire arm experts will be involved in the matter” the PPRO stated.

Meanwhile, traders at the Shoe Line where the incident happened have expressed worries that the NDLEA officials involved in the mayhem were yet to be brought to book in order to serve as a determent to others and however, advised the agency to ensure that they organized training courses for their officers on gun handling in order to ensure that there won’t be a recurrence of such.

According to one of them who gave his name as Chukwuma, “There is no amount of punishment given to them (NDLEA) staff that would be enough to pay for the death of the three persons that died that very day.

“All we want is for the officers that were involved in the unfortunate incident to be brought to book. But let me also advice that the NDLEA should regularly send their officers to shooting training. They should be properly thought on how to handle gun and what to do even when they want to scare people away from mobbing them as they claim was the case that unfortunate incident happened.

“How can trained personnel of the drug agency while wanting to allegedly scare away people bend down and started shooting sporadically? Is that what they (NDLEA) teach their personnel? I am not sure that that is the case, but if that is the case, I guess it was high they were restricted from using arms. It is untrained personnel that will behave the way the officers behaved.

“This should not be swept under the carpet. Let the investigating officers at the Abia State Command do a thorough and professional job to ensure that justice was done in this matter”, he pleaded.

August 28, 2015
Imo ex-Commissioner makes case for Buhari

A former Commissioner for Health in Imo State, Dr. Joe Obi-Njoku has faulted the insinuation by some politicians that President Muhammadu Buhari is not keeping pace with his promise in handling Nigeria’s problems.

Obi-Njoku who disclosed this in an interview in Owerri, the Imo State capital, said, “Those accusing Buhari of being slow in handling the country’s problems miss the point”.

He explained that President Buhari was taking his time to diagnose Nigeria’s problems properly before administering treatment to achieve effective results.

The medical practitioner further maintained that “Nigeria’s enormous problems could not be tackled without proper diagnosis, otherwise no good socio-economic result would be achieved”.

He commended the president for taking stock before embarking on appointments and other key matters of governance.

The former commissioner appealed to Nigerians to exercise patience with the Buhari administration, adding, “The President has vowed to put Nigeria in the right direction and his determination to fight corruption showed that he understood the major causes of Nigeria’s backwardness”.

Obi-Njoku argued further that “Nigeria was under threat of collapse under President Jonathan as a result of the overwhelming influence of insecurity but Buhari’s victory saved the Country from collapsing because his military background has been brought to bear in tackling the problem”.

He expressed optimism that Nigerians will witness prosperity under the Buhari’s administration, while urging Nigerians to give him the deserved support to succeed.

The medical practitioner finally dismissed the allegation that President Buhari hates the Igbo, saying, “The President is for all Nigerians and there were Igbo working with him even before now”.

August 28, 2015
Is New Yam feast losing its taste?

At this year’s Iri Ji, the time-honoured annual yam festival, there is a sense of melancholy. Few bother to farm these days, and the ceremonial tubers are now bought, rather than cultivated. OKODILI NDIDI reports

Few crops are celebrated more than yam. In the region, this tuberous produce is not just eaten at the beginning of harvest; it is celebrated with fanfare. But is the king of crops not starting to taste a bit sour, especially at the Iri Ji, the yearly ritual dedicated to its celebration?

How?

Very few people bother these days to till the soil and cultivate it. So, why celebrate what you no longer have any interest in producing as the forebears did?

The grandeur, essence, hallowedness of the annual event is disappearing with each new edition, leaving behind a norm that few traditionalists struggle to keep.

Iri Iji is one of the most significant and popular traditions of Ndigbo. It is celebrated at the beginning of every harvest season to thank the gods of the land for blessing the people with a bountiful harvest and to mark the beginning of another farming season.

In Igbo land, new yams cannot be eaten especially by titled men, until the festival has been celebrated as a mark of respect for the crop that is regarded as the king of all crops, which can only be cultivated by men.

The feast is associated with heavy eating and drinking. Friends and visitors are lavishly entertained with various yam delicacies like pounded yam, yam porridge and roasted yam eaten with vegetable soup and red palm oil and smoked fish.

In the past, great farmers with large barns of yam were recognised and rewarded with traditional titles during the feast.

But with the incursion of civilisation and its resultant effect on farming, the New Yam Festival has lost the meaning and is now another gathering of politicians who use the platform to expand their political frontiers by making endless speeches without corresponding action.

Another factor that has continued to deplete the beauty and mystery of the New Yam festival is religion. With the growing acceptability of the Christian faith, most traditions have been jettisoned as idol worship, including the New Yam Festival. It is no longer acceptable for one to abstain from eating new yams until it is offered to the god of fertility, which the festival signified.

Even the titled men have embraced the new reality and can eat the new yam without observing the tradition nor considering the consequences, more so when the yams are not cultivated anywhere in Igbo land but imported from the Northern parts of the country

This year’s edition of the New Yam festival in Imo State, known as ‘Iri ji’ Mbaise, confirms the fear that this rich cultural heritage may soon go into extinct like many others that have been termed obsolete and retrogressive.

Unlike in the past, where great yam farmers gather at the village square to display their prized yams with the traditional rulers in their royal attires performing the tradition with precise caution to ensure that every detail is religiously observed, this year’s edition can best be described as a political exercise that fell short of all expectations.

For instance, most key actors in the event, who are members of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) boycotted the event because the State Governor, Rochas Okorocha, who is a member of the All Progressive Congress (APC) was invited as the special guest.

Instead of the harmony and unity that had often hallmarked the festival, the titled men also avoided the traditional venue and observed the New Yam festival in their respective homes, an exercise that was lacking in meaning, scope and motive.

Although the Governor in his congratulatory message to the Okorocha Mbaise Nation for the consistent effort in ensuring that the culture and tradition of Ndigbo remain relevant, it is obvious that ‘things are fast falling apart’ and may never be the same again.

The Imo Governor who was represented by his deputy, Eze Madumere, said that “the New Yam festival is another occasion to do honour to our culture and tradition as Igbos. It is not a surprise that year after year the great Mbaise nation, with friends and well-wishers assemble from different parts of the world to promote our culture and Identity as Ndigbo”.

Reviewing the situation, Eze Leo Nwokocha, described the New Yam festival as a veritable tool of unity for the Mbaise nation and a preservation and promotion of the people’s cultural heritage.

But Reverend Father Chijioke, hold a different view. According to him, the New Yam festival has lost its meaning and essence, “today none of these traditional rulers or titled men can boast of a tuber of yam harvested from their farm, so how can you be celebrating a crop you don’t produce. If you go to Benue state where most of the yam consumed in Nigeria is produced, they don’t hold such elaborate New Yam festival”.

He continued that, “the New Yam festival if for anything, should be a time of sober reflection on how our people abandoned the industry of their forbear, which is farming and to look at possible ways of re-launching into agriculture instead of leaving the false life of celebrating what we do not have”.

Nze Ozioma Chukwukere said, “It is painful that every aspect of our public life has been taken over by politics. For instance, the New Yam festival in the past was devoid of any political partisanship but today you notice that PDP members hold their own differently from APC members.

“Another painful aspect is that our people have completely abandoned farming. In the whole of Mbaise nation today you can hardly find a yam farmer with a rich barn of yam as it was in the past. Any tuber of yam you see today is bought from the market. In the riverine areas where the people engage in fishing festival, they don’t buy the fish, they catch the fish by themselves and that is the beauty of the tradition”.

Eze-elect of Umuohiagu autonomous community, Attan Agbakuru, dismissed the insinuation that the aura of the New Festival is diminishing. According to him, “the New Yam festival in the Igbo annual calendar is not all about cultivation of yam but rather a form of thanksgiving system to appreciate God for keeping the people alive from one planting season to another. The yam was choosing as the centre focus because it is regarded in Igbo land as the king of crops”.

Agbakuru, however expressed worry over the growing lack of interest in farming in the state, especially among the youths, adding that, “it is really worrisome that our people no longer cultivate the land because of oil money but I am optimistic that with what the government is doing to revamp agriculture in the state, the people will soon return to the farm”.

In his contribution, Chief Amby Uneze, insisted that the New Yam festival still retains its traditional value and essence. According to him, “we still cultivate the yams used for the festival. In most Igbo communities, especially in Mbaise nation, we still have the yam producers known as the ‘eze ji’ who can still boast of barns of local yams”.

August 21, 2015
‘Moghalu suitable for SGF’

A Group known as NESTLE has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to consider Chief George Moghalu for the position of Secretary to Government Federation (SGF), adding that the office should be held by a core member of the ruling party All Progressives Congress (APC).

The group said that by doing that the President would have given Ndigbo a sense of belonging and helped to strengthen the APC in the zone in addition to giving it a strong footing ahead of 2019.

In a statement signed by the leader of the group, Ben Ezinma, it said that the zone parades a galaxy of decent, reputable citizens with strong character and integrity, adding, “No one fits this position better than Chief George Moghalu”.

He said that Moghalu is one of the national leaders of the party and the best for the SGF position from the Southeast, as he is tested and trusted, ready to work at any given opportunity.

Ezinma said, “Some of the rare qualities Moghalu which differentiates him from other leaders are his calm disposition, stable character, articulation, disciplined life style, integrity and high spirit of service which a good secretary to any organization must possess.

His past experiences speak volume of his capacity and competence to function as SGF in this administration. He has served in out of governments in many capacities.

NESTLE, hereby admonishes President Buhari to consider appointing Moghalu as his SG, a decision the president will never regret. Having served in similar capacity as the national secretary of APP, the office of SGF will be a familiar terrain and environment for him”.

The group said that Moghalu is like President Buhari, as he maintains a tough stand against corruption, having urged the President to set up Anti Corruption Tribunal for faster, efficient hearing, trial and quick dispensation of justice on corruption related matters.

August 21, 2015
Abia NSCDC arrests five over stolen oil product

The Abia State command of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has paraded four men and a woman suspected to have stolen over 33,000 litres of blue diesel.

Parading the suspects at their Isiala Ngwa Junction Exhibit office, the state commandant of the corps, Dr Benito Eze said that the suspects were intercepted following security tip-off.

Eze said that the four men were arrested with a trailer belonging to Chisco, a popular transport company which was loaded with empty crates of Heineken beer, while 75 drums of blue diesel were hidden inside.

He said that the suspects concealed the drums of blue diesel with over 40 creates of empty Heineken beer which the driver was supposed to drop at Enugu plant of the Nigeria Brewery.

The Abia NSCDC boss said that the truck with registration number EKY-847-XB is being investigated to find out if the owners of the truck are involved in the illegal trade, Eze said, “But it has been proved that the truck driver and the owner of the stolen petroleum products are aware of the illegal trade and they will be taken to court for prosecution after investigation”.

The command also paraded a woman who gave her name as Mrs Chioma Okezie who was arrested with a Toyota Sienna car with registration number YAB-699-AE filled with petroleum product known as blue diesel.

The commandant said that the suspect concealed the product in cellophane bags inside the Toyota Sienna Space-wagon car, adding that the product was allegedly loaded at Port Harcourt.

In an interview, Mrs Okezie a mother of four and a widow said that she works with Abia State Environmental Protection Agency [ASEPA] but went into the business with her friend Joy who is now on the run.

Okezie said that she has not been paid for several months by the state government, “So when my friend came and told me that I could make money to take care of my children, I decided to go for it”.

In his own reaction Michael Okechukwu from Ikwo in Ebonyi state the alleged owner of the product in the truck said that he was a taxi driver but that his cab was stolen and since then has been jobless.

Okechukwu said that his friend told him to come and carry the product from Abonema wharf in Port Harcourt since he was not doing anything, “I am not aware that it is an illegal business and I was to be paid after delivering the goods”.

August 21, 2015
Enugu doctors stress standards

The Enugu State Chapter of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) has urged members to uphold standards of the profession.

The doctors, who made this known during their 2015 Annual General Meeting/Scientific Conference held in Enugu, expressed their commitment to quality healthcare delivery, pledging to work with the state government to improve the profession and overall healthcare delivery.

Declaring the event open, Enugu State Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi expressed satisfaction at the dedication of doctors to their obligations.

The governor, who was represented by the state Commissioner for Health, Dr. Samuel Ngwu, also urged the doctors to see their calling as a divine one and approach it with the needed passion.

He further stressed that the state government would continue to do all within its power to see that it worked out hand in hand with the doctors to bring adequate healthcare delivery to the people of the state.

The State Chairman of NMA, Dr. George Ugwu, said that the event, which was tagged ‘Group Medical Practice: Happy Doctors, Happier Patients’, is an annual programme which serves as a platform for doctors in the state to come together and deliberate on issues bothering on effective medical practice.

He expressed commitment to ensure that doctors in the state will continue to key into the principle of group practice which according to him, will make health delivery more convenient for the masses.

Ugwu also noted that the current state of medical practice in Enugu State is encouraging adding however that more still needs to be done to move the profession to greater heights.

He said,“In Enugu State, we have a good crop of doctors that are dedicated and passionate to serve the people. But there is still need for improvement because our goal is to make the state a medical tourist attraction in the Southeast and even in the whole country. We have the brains and all it takes, all we need is encouragement from good spirited individuals and government.

“We are working in collaboration with Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi to ensure that healthcare delivery is taken to the least privileged persons in the rural areas; he is such a compassionate person and has given us the go ahead order on our plans”.

In a keynote address on the theme of the conference, the guest speaker, Dr. I. D. Onyia who is a consultant plastic and reconstructive surgeon, harped on the need for doctors to work as a team in the course of their service delivery.

Onyia, who is the Managing Director of Imperial Specialist Hospital, Enugu, stated that it is when in unity and working as a group that doctors will be able to achieve efficient service delivery while attending to their clients. “We all need to work together because together we will get there and become successful”, he said.

Also, delivering a sub-theme lecture on Reducing Maternal Mortality in our Society, Prof. Frank Ezugwu; a Professor of Obstetrician and Gynecologist enjoins health practitioners and government to ensure that pregnancy and delivery are made safer in our land.

Similarly, the immediate past Commissioner of Health in Enugu State; Dr. George Eze also said that group medical practice should be the vogue of the medical practice in today’s world just as is seen in advanced countries as according to him, “such practice enables total care of the patients since others can be able to make good input”.

He advised that the medical profession should become more people-centered adding “the world is moving towards people-centered health care system and we expect that the health sector should become more responsive to the needs of the masses”.

In an interview with newsmen at the occasion, the member representing Isi-Uzo Constituency in Enugu State House of Assembly, Hon. Dr. Emeka Ugbuagbor, revealed that as part of measures aimed at bringing about the best medical practice in the state, the state legislators have put up laws that will improve medical practice in the state. “I expect that the doctors will review on issues bothering on qualitative medical practice and that the practice of the doctors will become more people centered,” he said.

The conference brought over 2,000 doctors together. It was chaired by the Provost, College of Medicine, University of Nigeria Enugu Campus; Prof. Earnest Onwuasoigwe.

August 21, 2015
Federal roads being fixed in Abia

The Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) has started repairing failed portions of the Ikot Ekpene/Umuahia as well as other federal roads in Abia State.

Inspecting the progress of work at Umudike, FERMA Zonal Coordinator, Southeast, Mr Adebayo Adedayo, an engineer, said that remedial work on failed portions will continue till bad roads are made good again across the country.

The FERMA zonal coordinator urged that people should desist from destroying roads by building speed breakers on them.

Adedayo maintained that the repairs will continue to Ikot Ekpene in Akwa Ibom State, urging road users to bear with them.

The Abia State Resident Engineer of FERMA, Abraham Akange said that all the materials they are using to work are tested at their zonal laboratory.

Akange said people should alert FERMA whenever they notice failing portions on the roads, urging motorists to avoid speeding.

He cautioned people against building on the roads or on drainages, stressing that such are the things that help to destroy the roads whenever waste water gets on the roads.

One of the commuters, a driver with Goshen transport, Godstime commended the management of FERMA for their good works on the federal highway, which he said will make their work easier.

Godstime said that whenever the roads are in good condition that there are fewer accidents on the roads and urged them to move faster to cover other bad spots on the highway.

Another commuter who is a research fellow with the Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, A. A. Ikoro said that people have been expecting FERMA to commence their rainy season road repair and is happy that they have started.

August 21, 2015
Lawmaker draws attention to roads

A LAWMAKER in the House of Representatives Hon. Ossy Prestige has urged colleagues to take action on the deplorable federal roads in Aba, the state’s commercial capital.

•Port Harcourt Road, Aba

Aba roads are woeful; hazardous to commuters, agonising to shopkeepers, business people and residents alike.

When it rains, the city is half-submerged, many areas flooded and practically impassable.

Business has suffered, while criminals have thrived.

How?

It is said that kidnappers exploit the poor roads to swoop on victims and make away with them without much challenge, if any.

The lawmaker may be on the verge of making history because if he succeeds to galvanise enough response from his colleagues to repair the roads, he would have made a difference where governments failed repeatedly.

The Aba-Ikot Ekpene, Ovom-Opobo-Azumini, Ohabiam-Port Harcourt, among other roads, have remained impassable in the past three years or more and if nothing is urgently done, the Osisioma-Aba-Owerri Road which now serves as the only major route in and out of the city may soon collapse due to the volume of commercial buses and articulated trucks that ply it on a daily basis.

A visit to Aba especially during the rainy season shows that successive administrations in the state and at the federal level have failed to address the situation.

The deplorable roads in Aba are not only taking a toll on business and economic activities; virtually all the sectors in the state are affected as hoodlums such as kidnappers and armed robbers take advantage of the situation to unleash mayhem on the innocent citizens.

There are accidents and deaths too.

A driver, who plies the Aba-Ikot Ekpene route, lamented that they are steadily losing passengers due to the woeful road.

Prestige, an All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) lawmaker representing Aba North and South Federal Constituency, drew the attention of the members of the Green Chamber to the plight of the people of his constituency.

His motion was titled “The Deplorable State of Federal Roads and the Insecurity in Aba, Abia State and the Need to Rehabilitate them in Order to Preserve Lives and Properties of Indigenes and Sustain the Status of the City as the Commercial Hub of Southeast and Nigeria”.

He said the roads are so bad that some travellers to Aba for business or other reasons have shelved the idea.

•Onicha Ngwa-Umuokpor Road

The federal lawmaker lamented that the growing rate at which innocent Nigerian citizens and residents of the commercial city were being kidnapped and taken into hiding by hoodlums who uses the abandoned roads as safe havens for keeping their captives feared that if no urgent steps were taken to address the situation, the city may witness a mass exodus of its inhabitants as was witnessed in 2011 when most corporate and financial agencies shutdown operations and over 200, 000 people left the city in droves.

He said that the rehabilitation of federal roads in Aba would boost economic activities, reduce accidents, ensure improved security and similarly attract local and foreign investors who were going to come to the city and the state in general and invest their resources and in the process create job for the teeming unemployed/jobless youths that would be meaningful to the state and their respective families.

The lawmaker urged the Federal Ministry of Works to as a matter of urgency include in 2016 budget, Appropriations that will aim at the reconstruction and total rehabilitation of the entry roads in Aba, called on the Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA) to in the interim; urgently take palliative measures towards the rehabilitation of the roads so as to alleviate agony of the people, mandated the committees on works and road maintenance agency (when constituted) to liaise with the relevant authorities with a vow to ensure compliance and report back to the House fortnightly.

They also urged President Muhammadu Buhari to restore full military patrol and full presence in Aba just like it was done in 2011 to check the menace of notorious kidnappers in Aba.

The House resolution which was made available to The Nation also urged the Inspector General of Police, Solomon Arase to deploy an anti-terrorist squad to police every part of the city and its environs.

They also urged the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to declare Ndiegoro, Obohia, Ohanku, Ngwa road and Port Harcourt road areas as a disaster area and take urgent steps to compensate those whose house/homes were devastated by flood.

August 21, 2015
‘We want to ensure safety of articulated vehicles’

The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has stepped up surveillance of vehicles to ensure they are in good condition to ply the roads.

Of particular interest are articulated vehicles.

This much came to light in Onitsha, the commercial capital of Anambra State, where the FRSC launched “Operation Scorpion”.

The aim, according to the Assistant Corps Marshal, in charge of the Federal Operation of (FRSC), Mrs. Mary Wakawa, is to curtail road carnage.

The action is coming on the heels of the petrol tanker inferno in Onitsha on May 31 which claimed over 70 persons, while many were injured.

The tanker fire shook the entire country with the Vice president, Yemi Osinbajo visiting the state and the state governor Willie Obiano offsetting the hospital bills of injured victims.

Recently, the bodies of unidentified and unclaimed victims were given a mass burial at Obosi community in Idemili North Local Government Area by Obiano.

Following the spate of road carnage in the state, the FRSC has pledged to stop crashes caused by articulated vehicles in the state.

•From left: Kumven, Wakawa and Ajayi

To accentuate the message, Delta Sector Commander, Mr. Rindom Kumven, his Anambra sector counterpart , Mr. Sunday Ajayi with other senior members of the agencyteaamed up with Wakawa.

Wakawa said Operation Scorpion was carried out for all drivers of articulated vehicles- lorries, trailers, trucks, tankers and low-bed vehicles.

The agency mobilised over 100 officers and men, seven vehicles and a tow truck for the operation, while the two state commanders had vowed to see to its success in Delta and Anambra.

The exercise, according to the FRSC boss was meant to sensitise articulated vehicle drivers on the imperatives of putting other road users into consideration.

She said that the commission would continue to enlighten the various articulated vehicle drivers associations and unions, adding that enlightenment and advocacy were keys to FRSC success.

Furthermore, she said that the corps would focus more in Anambra state, as according to her, the state holds two major road corridors, adding that they would not want such crashes to continue further.

According to her, “In recent past, a lot of Road Traffic Crashes (RTC) have been caused by these articulated vehicles and the nation had lost a lot, both in terms of human and finance.

“And we need to check this trend by beaming our searchlight on these articulated vehicles since our country is much depended on road transportation”

“And if we do not, these articulated vehicles crashes would soon cripple our economy and affect the lifestyle of our people’’

“We aim to ensure that their loads are properly secured, their vehicles are properly maintained, their construction strong enough and their vehicles road worthy” she said.

August 21, 2015
Kinsmen honour Ugwuanyi

ENUGU STATE Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi has reaffirmed his administration’s determination to give a new lease of life to the people of the state through economic rejuvenation plans that will also enhance the state’s revenue base.

The governor who was given a resounding civic reception by his kinsmen at Orba, Udenu council area of the state, spoke to a capacity crowd at the Boys Secondary School in the town, venue of the event and told the people that his administration would carry out its plans to modernise Nsukka urban town to the standard of a university elsewhere in the country.

He recalled that he had already inaugurated a committee to actualise his desire to drive the state economy, adding that his administration would also ensure the electrification of Adada River Dam currently being constructed by the Federal Government for irrigation to enhance agricultural activities in the area to create employment.

Governor Ugwuanyi at the event put together by the Orba-Udu General Assembly, noted that the foundation for the construction of Orba General Hospital in the community has been laid which he said would bring health care delivery nearer to the people.

He noted that his administration is facing challenges occasioned by lean resources, calling on all to join hands with government to surmount the challenges for the set goals to be achieved.

He also announced that a modern market would be built in Nsukka where people from all walks of life will converge for business transactions in a such a manner that traders and other business operators who pass through the state on business trips to Onitsha in Anambra state would be made to do the same kind of business in the coming market.

In an address presented by Orba-Udu General Assembly, Chief Charles Mbah, the people described the governor as an astute and sagacious leader, adding that since he took the mantle of leadership of the state that he is carrying everybody along.

The people assured Governor Ugwuanyi of their firm, unflinching and total support of your administration.

In their words, “we are totally committed to and wish to be part of the success story of his administration.”

They added that they would at all time ready to take any challenge or responsibility that would enhance the smooth-sailing of his administration.

They noted that the governor knew the problems of the area, adding that it would be needless to enumerate them for him.

The event was preceded by a church service at the field in which in a sermon an indigenous priest, Very Rev. Father Martins Ozioko noted that foolishness of Adam and Eve pushed them to sin against God which the punishment is shared by the world.

Rev. Fr. Ozioko called on Christians to always embrace wisdom that would encourage them reject wickedness and enthrone intelligence to follow the ways of the Lord.

According to the clergy, Governor Ugwuanyi became governor through hard work and intervention of God. The priest applauded the governor for his acceptability by all, urging him to endeavour to deliver on their mandate.

The highlight of the event was the presentation of gifts by people of the area in their numbers and display of different cultural dances where the people showcased their rich cultural heritages.

August 21, 2015