The Nation Newspaper

Category: SouthEast

  • Teen author fights vice in book

    Teen author fights vice in book

    At 16, he wrote an inspirational book. At 18, he is already in his second year at the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA. What will he do next upon graduation or even before?

    It is not the easiest of tasks grasping the phenomenon called Vincent Anioke. When did he start preparing for authorship or even leadership? But this much is clear: the teenage writer looks set for the heights. In his 547-page book, “Whirlwind of Metamorphosis”, he tackles some of the nation’s most distressing challenges: kidnapping, cultism and family tribulations.

    He is studying Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at it he hopes to keep writing in order to help bring about change in the world, starting with his native Nigeria. Vincent was born in Enugu on August 26, 1996. He started writing the book at the age of 15 while in the Nigerian Turkish International College, Abuja where he developed a passion for Mathematics and writing. While in primary school in Enugu, Vincent won prizes for his academic excellence. Twice he represented Nigeria at the International Mathematics Olympiad, and was the overall best student in his school’s graduating class of 2012.

    His “Whirlwind of Metamorphosis” was recently presented to the Nigerian public. At the launch, chairman of the event, former Minister of Power, Professor Barth Nnaji, in a recorded message,  praised the writer for producing such a monumental work.

    “I cannot tell you how impressed I am about this book. For being a matured writer, this is tremendous. For a young man, it is extraordinary,” Nnaji said.

    The professor of Engineering applauded the writer’s parents, Mr. and Mrs. Uche Anioke who guided their prodigious son to the path of greatness. Nnaji congratulated Vincent, hoping that he would write more books.

    Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Bora Farms and former Chairman of Enugu North Local Government Area, Hon. Herbert Oji, spoke in a similar vein.

    Oji said it is impressive that a young man at the age of 15 started writing such a captivating book, concluding it at16.The former council boss described Vincent as a literary giant and mathematician, pointing out that his achievements across the two fields, is a measure of his intelligence.

    “It is amazing and we are very proud of him. It is a credit to Enugu State. He took off from there and came to Abuja. Now, he is in the United States studying at MIT,” Oji said.

    Whirlwind of Metamorphosis received more accolades from the book reviewer, Professor Frank Asogwa who is Dean, Faculty of Law, Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT).

    Asogwa said the book makes for scintillating and captivating reading, while capturing the travails and tribulations of the Nigerian society. Although the author would be 18 years this August, Asogwa assured that adults would find the way he captured things in the Nigerian society quite amazing.

    “It is amazing in the sense that you pick a copy of the book and you find out that he is somebody who has given a lot of thought to Nigerian society. We take things for granted. Nigerians read a lot but the converse is the case. Nigerians don’t read,” Asogwa said.

    On the impact the book would make on the lives of Nigerians, the Law Professor stated: “It will influence people to think twice, He addressed parents. He addressed youths. He addressed Nigerian society and once you read the book, you need to think twice on burning and topical issues he raised in the book.”

    Here are excerpts of a telephone interview with the author:

    Where did you get the inspiration to write this book?

    At times when I am just walking around or sitting at home, I really get ideas about people’s lives and things like that and when the idea comes, I like to write about it. I do like watching television. There was one night I was watching the news with my parents and there was a kidnapping on television, someone who had been kidnapped. So, I was with them when they were talking about it. And I just had to imagine what it felt like to be kidnapped. And so, from there, I wanted to write a story about someone who has been kidnapped and how it will affect the family. From there I felt the passion to write about Nigeria’s problems and how the problems of our country can affect the family. So, it is there on TV that I just became inspired to write about our problems in the country.

    At what age did you get inspired to write?

    I have been writing short, short stories since primary four. Then I was about 7 or 8, but I wrote this particular book when I was 16.

    Do you have other books in the pipeline?

    Yes, I have a lot of them. There are some I have begun and have not finished. There are some I am just starting right now. I have a lot on the line.

    How do you manage to cope with your studies and then writing?

    Yeah, if you just have time, let’s say about two hours in a day, you do it. In just two hours it will accumulate. My writing, I do it about one or two hours every day. I spent the rest of the time, may be about 12 hours or more in a day studying. So, writing is what I do about one hour or two hours a day but over time it begins to accumulate.

    Do you have a role model in writing?

    Yes, I have two. One is Stephen king. He is an American writer. The other one is Chimamanda Adichie, the famous Nigerian writer. I read her book, Americana and I was so blown away by it.

    Are you proud to be a Nigerian?

    Yes, I am very proud to be a Nigerian. Most of my stories now are focused on the country. The next book I am going to come out with is different from this one. It is going to talk about poverty. The characters will be broken in that kind of way.

    There is this fear that you end up as a writer than an engineer.

    Yeah. I hope so. In future, maybe I have a job in an engineering company or along these lines. But on the side, I have always cherished writing. It is a balanced I maintained in the past and it is balance I intend to maintain throughout my life.

    Can you tell us the role your parents played in your writing career?

    Well, I don’t think I will have the interest or urge to write if I didn’t grow with the kind of books that they gave me that I read. And the more stories that I read, the more I wanted to write my own stories. So, they supplied me with the materials that inspired the passion. They always inspired me.

    Does writing run in your family?

    I believe so. I know that my father  writes a lot too. And ever since the book launch, my younger brother has been trying to write his own book. But I think his own purpose is to make money.

     

  • ‘We want new master plan for Aba’

    ‘We want new master plan for Aba’

    When town planners gathered in Aba, Abia State, only one thing was on their minds: how to make the Enyimba City one to adore. SUNNY NWANKWO reports

    What do you not know about Aba? Home of creativity and showpiece of local technology, where virtually everything made can be re-produced.

    But what do Aba people think of their famous vibrant city? They want a new face, one with beauty and allure. They want the commercial hub of Abia State restored to the master plan and beautified.

    Once a farmers’ town, Aba has grown into an economic giant in the Southeast, serving as a gateway to some Southeast and Southsouth states.

    This growth has overstretched its amenities, building pattern and distorted the colonial master plan. People now build on every available space including waterways, leading to flooding during torrential rains.

    The distortion of the original master plan has not only contributed in defacing the city, it has equally affected the aesthetics of the eastern commercial pride.

    It will be recalled that the state governor Theodore Orji in 2012 during a press briefing, threatened to pull down 1,800 buildings allegedly built on sewer lanes which were obstructing free flow of water through the canals.

    Orji said that efforts he had made to build the city had been stalled by flooding, which resulted from the blocking of drains and sewer lanes, alleging that those whose houses were built on drainages did not get approvals before erecting such structures.

    The state governor, did not stop at making such policy statement, he went further to constitute a taskforce on environment and allied matters headed by Rtd. Capt. Awa Udensi whose legal framework or mandate was to demolish all manner of illegal structures in the state, including houses or structures built on waterways which are still ongoing.

    Apparently worried by the ugly sight and reported cases of economic loss associated with occasioned flooding Town Planning Practitioners who are trained in the science and art of spatial ordering of land use for the purpose of creating a well ordered, beautiful and functional environment in the state initiated annual luncheon to brainstorm and foster ways of assisting the government in making the state habitable and conducive for its citizenry.

    In a lecture “Urban Planning in Nigerian Cities” delivered at the event by Dr. Kingsley Chijioke Ogboi of the department of Urban and Regional Planning, University of Nigeria Enugu Campus, he examined the overwhelming challenges of urban planning in Nigeria and the consequences of planlessness, mirroring Abia State situation.

    According to Ogboi, the situation in Aba reflects vividly the environmental conditions in many Nigerian cities which has led to “wild” sprawl and disorderly urban growth in many Nigerian cities despite the existence of urban laws, he attributed to poor infrastructure (or lack of them), uncontrolled housing developments and land uses.

    Ogboi, listing disorderliness and chaotic urban settlements, poor sanitary condition, urban congestion compounded with traffic gridlocks, crime and urban violence, threat of disease outbreaks due to squalor conditions, environmental degradation among others as some of the consequences of planlessness and poor urban development said that Aba as a city that has laid its foundation on commerce and with huge potentials including population and development, it needed to improve on its business environment and city management, develop adequate infrastructure.

    According to the guest speaker, cities like London, Paris, Frankfurt, Dublin etc have been able to stand the taste of time because they are well planned and effectively managed, adding that the more a city improves in planning and basic infrastructure and amenities, the more it will continue to attract investment that will in turn accelerate the growth of that city.

    He expressed hope that a joint partnership of private sector experts/entrepreneurs and government in planning and would help to meet the challenges posed by urban development.

    The chairman House of Representatives Committee on Climate Change, Hon. Eziuche Ubani and chairman of the occasion lauded the group for such initiative, adding that the event has provided room for intellectually-stimulated discussions that could turn around the fortunes of the city.

    Hon. Ubani in a paper titled “Mainstreaming Climate Change Response in Urban Planning”, recalled “Going back in time, we can say, in relation to the question, we can say that urbanization proceeded in a deliberate and orderly manner in the 1940s. Early patterns of development in Aba for example, indicate that the chaos in spatial management was not envisaged by colonial administrators as clear roles and powers were given to planning professionals by extant ordinances and statutes. The crisis we have in urban management cannot be divorced from the general crises of growth and development of Nigeria, where decay hugs development in equal intensity.”

    The lawmaker who noted that the issue of climate change could be addressed through a planned housing system or arrangement called on town planning practitioners to use more techniques of planning human settlements and land use practices to address issues of climate change in the country.

    Abia State Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Renewal, Elder Godwin Nna, represented by the permanent secretary, Elder Bernard Ogbonna however expressed the desire of the state government to partner with stakeholders/professionals in the planning and development of cities to tackle the challenges of physical planning in the state and the country at large.

    Elder Ogbonna, the permanent secretary of the ministry stated that it has become imperative for government to synergize with individuals in the private sector to bring development into the state.

    “All the years, physical planning and implementation of plans in this country have been left in the hands of successive governments, coupled with total loss of political will to plan, and lack of proper awareness of the public on the gains of physical planning have left a yawning gap between urbanization and committed efforts to arrest its challenges.

    “Involvement of the private sector and collaboration among stakeholders in the practice of the physical planning will inject new impetus towards catching up with the demands of the livability of our settlements. This approach will undeniably, capture the whole essence of physical planning which is to create human settlements that are orderly, functionally efficient, economically viable and esthetically pleasant for living, working recreating and circulation.

    “It will also lay credence to the necessity of a comprehensive approach to tackling the challenges of physical planning development in the state and perhaps in the country as a whole.”

    In an interview the chairman Local Organizing Committee, Elder Nelson Nwaosu said that the choice for the theme “Consequences of planlessness in our cities” was to “beam our searchlight on the implications of absence of not having planned cities and its resultant effects on economic and physical development.”

    The LOC chairman said that in line with the vision of NITP, “we  remain committed to our vision, which is provide aesthetically pleasing and very functional cities, as to create employment, draw investors that will usher in improved economic status of the state in particular and the country in general.”

    Earlier in an address, NITP Abia State chapter chairman Mr. Lekwa Ezutah listed four cardinal functions of town planners as people trained to arbitrate between activities and space, deal with the physical layout of communities; make proposals and initiate policies designed to make life comfortable, enjoyable and profitable, project future space needs and accommodate them to ensure the environment created today will meet the demands of tomorrow and people that places public interest over individual interest with respect to location of various land uses.

    Ezutah however expressed hope that the luncheon would provide the needed platform for planning professionals to brain storm and interact well on how to develop a planned physical environment and also to see the need to protect same.

    In a unanimous resolution at the end of the event, they agreed as thus; that the city of Aba can be improved to its former glory that will attract investors, be security friendly and as such, orderly planned if all the stakeholders join hands with government and town planners to make it achievable.

    It was also agreed that master plan is the pre-requisite of orderly development of major towns in the world; Aba in Abia State inclusive, adding that the old master plan by the colonial masters is no longer dependable because it has been overtaken by the present population.

    According to them, the old Aba master plan cannot cope with the population which has been swallowed by the number of people that settled in Aba and as a result overstretches social amenities.

    “We are asking and requesting for completely fresh and new Aba master plan that will take recognizance of the present population of Aba as to provide the required facilities.

    “When the master plan is operational, we will upgrade some the areas that presently exist without adequate access road and facilities. So that they will be upgraded and of course those that cannot be upgraded completely can now be relocated to a more appropriate place.

    “It is presently being done in Abuja today whose suburbs were not completely planned before people overwhelmly entered to settle their. So what FCDA are doing today is to upgrade, that is what we may do to those areas that are presently built without proper plan.

    “We are not going to embark on the demolition of peoples’ houses because they built ignorantly, we are rather going to upgrade; upgrading means, if you don’t have access road around your area, access road will be provided for to the best of the ability of the environment,” a spokesman of the group stated.

  • NGOs inspire grassroots women in Anambra

    NGOs inspire grassroots women in Anambra

    It was not about giving rice and stew condiments. Women, especially those at the grassroots in Anambra were encouraged to take their fate in their own hands.

    Non-governmental organisations or NGOs preferred to provide inspiration, rather mere food. They told the women to play more roles in governance and take up life-enhancing jobs that will lift their profiles.

    At the forefront of the drive is Development in Practice (DIP), an NGO, which organised the event.

    The women came from different communities in the state which took place at Udoka Housing Estate in Awka, the state capital.

    The programme was entitled, “Coaching Anambra Women Towards Political Participation and Success”.

    Other non-governmental Organisations (NGOs) that were present included Voice to the People (V2P) funded by UK aid, African Centre for Leadership, Strategy and Development, Civil Rights Concern (CRC) and Justice Development and Peace Commission (JDPC), all these centres are at Onitsha, Awka and Nnewi.

    It drew participants from various  political parties in the state, with women leaders turning up from several communities.

    Beneficiaries of previous sessions of the programme who now hold political offices shared their experiences at the event.

    Tochukwu Ibe, technical adviser to DIP, said the meeting aims to achieve increased participation and representation by women and adolescent girls in informal and formal decision-making structures in the state.

    In her paper-presentation, on formal and informal opportunities for women in leadership, the chief Executive Officer of (DIP), Ojobo Atuluku highlighted the opportunities women have both at the formal and informal levels to make governance work better.

    She pointed out that a leader is not just that woman or man who is placed at the fore front, but that who can convince people to be part of a process.

    Atuluku further charged the participants to develop the charisma and the ability to stand out in the crowd such that whatever they do will attract the positive attention on on-lookers and the public.

    Also, Dr. Chris Abakare of the Department of Philosophy, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka delivered a paper entitled “the relationship between Governance, Constituency and Candidacy”.

    He drove them to what makes the good and bad governance as well as drawing examples from Nigeria and other parts of Africa and indeed the world.

    Agada Abah, Programme analyst with DIP in his paper, “Contesting in an election”, pointed out the step by step approach to winning in an election.

    He encouraged women to build support and good character to enable them make positive challenge in their endeavours as well as wining the hearts of the people even when they are not contesting election.

    The women also, were made to know that they can make a mark only if they are transparent and have performance in their minds.

    Meanwhile some of the participants told the Nation that they will abide by the rules of the game.

    Onyinye Okongwu of the All Progressive Congress, who is the State Woman leader of the party said they would go further to the remote areas in the state to sensitize the rural women.

    Also, her colleague Chikodi Nnonyelu of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) told the Nation that the issue is not participation but implementation.

    She said she would brief the rural women in the communities of the need for them to be active in politics, adding that they would no longer allow the men to run the political offices.

    Politician s over-heating the polity with their utterances

     

  • Foundation lifts communities,the less-privileged

    Foundation lifts communities,the less-privileged

    Today being his birthday, instead of Comrade Ogah partying with friends and family at home, he decided to spend it with the less-privileged in his community.”

    Those were the words of Senator Emmanuel Onwe while inaugurating a 300KVA transformer at Amagu Ikwo in Ikwo Local Government Area of Ebonyi State.

    The transformer was one of the new projects executed and donated to various communities in Ikwo Local Government Area by Comrade Chinedu Ogah (OON), founder of Chiboy Foundation, a non-governmental organisation (NGO) as part of activities to mark his 38th birthday.

    Ogah, who was accompanied by former Senator representing Ebonyi Central, Senator Emmanuel Onwe, former member representing Ohaozara/Ivo/Onicha Federal Constituency, Darlington Okereke, top government functionaries at the state and local government levels toured round the council to inaugurate the projects executed by his foundation.

    The projects carried out and donated to various individuals and communities were two 300KVA transformers in Agubia Ikwo and Igwelodohia Amagu Ikwo, three boreholes and two town halls and cultural centres, among others.

    He also donated 200 bags of cement for the building of a modern town hall in Nwakpu Alike community to be named after the state governor, Martin Elechi.

    Receiving the team at Nwakpu Alike, a community leader and proprietor of the famous Folks Technical College Ikwo, Chief Francis Igwe described Comrade Ogah as a peacemaker who has brought peace to Ndufu-Alike and the entire Ikwo Local Government Area.

    Leaving Nwakpu Alike community after inaugurating the projects, the team moved to St Theresa’s Catholic Church for the inauguration of a borehole after which a 300KVA transformer was inaugurated at Agubia community.

    Comrade Ogah described the community as the engine room of Ikwo politics, stressing that the provision of the transformer was a fulfilment of a promise he made to the community in 2011.

    After the inaugurating the project at Agubia community, the team proceeded to Igwelodoha-Amagu where another 300KVA transformer was also inaugurated in addition to a mini-bridge known as Apina which was also inaugurated to ease the suffering of the people of the area who have been having trouble crossing the river.

    At Ohatekwe, a borehole and a town hall executed by the foundation was inaugurated, even as a medical team was on ground to give free medical treatment to members of the community.

    Comrade Ogah explained that the free medical treatment was simultaneously ongoing at three different locations in the area.

    Another town hall and borehole was also inaugurated at Ndiofoke-Amagu by the team after which it proceeded to Item-Amagu cultural centre for the grand finale of the event.

    At Item-Amagu cultural centre, 20 wheelchairs were given to the physically challenged while six motorcycles were given out to some youths to empower them, while one Mr. Friday Nnabu was given a Toyota L300.

    Also, 35 sewing machines were given out to women who have been trained in fashion designing.

    The widows in the area were not left out as they received 100 bags of rice, wrappers, and cash.

    Speaking at the event, Comrade Ogah revealed that the foundation was determined to give hope to the hopeless and to inspire those that want to be inspired.

    He also disclosed that his foundation has secured job opportunities for members of the community in both the state and federal civil service, including recruitment of 215 youths into the Nigerian Police in the last recruitment exercise with the help of the governor.

    “We have, in the past, built 120 bungalows for widows in the state among other achievements.

    “What matters in life is the legacy one left behind. That is why I preferred to celebrate with the less-privileged people in order to alleviate their suffering as much as we can. We have no choice but to help them,” he said.

  • 62 traffic offenders convicted

    A mobile court set up by the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Aba Unit, has tried and convicted 62 persons for road traffic offences, the Unit Commander Mr. Chika-Ero Akachukwu has said.

    But he added that the offenders were not remanded in prison because they all opted to pay fines.

    The Aba unit commander while reviewing the activities of his command in the past six months disclosed that out of the 12 crashes recorded in different locations under his command, one person died, while 29 others sustained different kinds of injuries, unlike in 2013 where 18 crashes were recorded, injuring 78 and leaving 7 dead within the same month under review.

    The Aba FRSC boss attributed the cause of most of the accidents to both human and mechanical faults as he noted that most drivers do not carry out routine check on their vehicle before setting out on the road which put their lives and that of their passengers at great risk.

    He urged drivers to report promptly to their mechanic(s) whenever they noticed any abnormality to avoid human induced road mishaps.

    According to him, there is a continuous road safety continuation exercise going on at different motor parks and continued spontaneous checks on vehicles by men of the corps on the expressway aimed at checking the excesses of both commercial and private car owners using the expressway.

  • August, a time women build

    August, a time women build

    Some now snicker, but August has remained a remarkable month in Igbo land. It is a time women gather, assess their challenges and those before their communities and start resolving them. So many health centres have been built after the August convergence. Dilapidated schools have been touched up and brought back to life. Intractable feuds have also been settled at the gathering and everyone returned home cheerfully.

    In Imo State, the women are counting down to this year’s edition. Many will come in from every part of the world and join their home counterparts in every local government area of the state, with the wife of the governor playing a prominent role. It lasts through the month.

    Preparing for the August meeting is no mean task, especially for the average woman who will strive to keep up appearance. It is also a trying time for the men as they have to work hard to meet the needs of their wives. This is because their husbands’ social and economic status is reflected in the women’s appearance during the August meeting.

    Indeed, this has provided critics with barbs to throw at the August meeting backers. They say quite a measure of vanity has slipped into the annual convention and that the women have found a whole month to flaunt their real or imagined clout and glamour.

    Still, no one can deny that out of the yearly get-together have come many dividends. For instance, most community projects like health centres, markets, schools, women development centres and settling of some frictions among some members of the various communities or members of a household are often conceived and funded by women groups after every August meeting.

    Women have been identified as agents of development and during such large gatherings, communal challenges like poverty, diseases and sometimes communal crisis are tackled by the women who usually influence their husbands to assist in community development projects.

    The August meeting, which is compulsory for all women, also affords the women the opportunity to re-unite after years of separation and build stronger ties between the women at home and those based abroad.

    Also, misunderstandings and business matters involving Igbo women in the cities are resolved during August meetings and appropriate punitive measures are taken to discourage acts that could endanger the unity of the women.

    It is also during the meetings that issues of scholarship to deserving brilliant but indigent students and empowerment programmes for widows and other vulnerable women in the society are conceived and implemented.

    The beauty of the August meeting is that it helps to bring the people together to tackle their problems unanimously under the Igbo aphorism Igwebuike or unity is strength.

    Some regret that the annual convergence is not quite what it used to be. They say manipulative politicians may have hijacked the fixture to further their interests. It is also said that governors’ wives have become too visible, and that the meeting has become no more than political assemblies. The women are also said to seize the opportunity to show off their good looks, wealth and even power.

    Another regrettable deviation in the August meeting is the high expenditure involved in the preparation of the month-long event. Average women are forced by peer pressure to borrow money or pressurise their husbands to do so in order to meet up the standard set by the politicians.

    It is also painful that with the introduction of partisan politics in the running and organisation of the gathering, most people with different political views are no more comfortable to attend or allowed to fully participate in the proceedings.

    No everyone is a critic. Commenting on the gains of August meeting, Sir Peter Okala, a community leader, said the gathering together of the women will lead to the galvanisation of ideas for the future and development of the various communities where the women belong to. It is good that women gather to share ideas and experiences.

    He said: “When great minds gather, they can canvass for peace and development in the society. It is highly important for people to come together, not just the women but also the men and youths to brainstorm the challenges confronting the society.”

    He, however, added that, “but one major disadvantage is allowing the gatherings to be sponsored by mischievous politicians who hijack it to cause disunity and disaffection. Some of the women who could ordinarily not afford to attend the meeting can go to extremes to attend in order to show off, a situation that has resulted in some married women doing all manner of evil just to meet up. They now attend the meeting for the mere reason of showing off their cars, clothes and jewelries.

    “It is also significant to note that after August meetings, most families are thrown into chaos because the women return home to mount pressures on their husbands after the display of wealth they were exposed to during the August meeting.”

    For Mrs. Grace Ejerenwa, a woman leader in Mgbidi, Oru West Local Government Area of Imo State, something urgent should be done to reposition the August meeting in order to achieve the set goals of the founding members. This is so because the concept, she said, has been swallowed by partisan politics.

    She said: “August meetings these days are no longer what we used to know them for. In the yesteryear, every woman is allowed equal opportunity to contribute her idea towards solving the problems of the community. No one was discriminated against or anyone treated as a sacred cow.

    “All women were equal and spoke in one voice. But today, many families discourage their women from participating in August meetings due to the non- pleasant results which had led to the breakdown of many families.”

    She further said that religious groups that now frown at the conduct of the women during the gatherings have also withdrawn majority of their members from attending the meetings.

    “Most churches now see August meeting as a sinful gathering which is attended by all manner of evil and as such bar their women from participating. It has actually turned to political jamboree, where the rich and fortunate ones intimidate the poor women among them,” she said.

    A clergyman, Reverend Mathias Izuka called for a return to the old ways of organising the August meeting.

    “In the past, our women were always eager to return home to be part of the event. The men are also happy to release their wives to be part of the event but this is no longer so because politicians have hijacked the August meeting,” he said.

    For instance, the grand finale of last year’s August meeting in Imo State which was held at the Heroes Square, was a huge political gathering; with the state Governor, Rochas Okorocha and his cabinet members in attendance.

    A quick look at the women in attendance revealed that they were all powerful and successful women who could fit into the power play and open display of material wealth of the day.

    There were no widows or indigent women in the forefront. The few that might have summoned the courage to attend were “swallowed” by the euphoria of the event, leaving one to ponder if August meetings are still tools for community development in the hands of Igbo women.

    Although at the event, Governor Okorocha showered praises on the women for their resilience, steadfastness, creativity and accommodating spirit, he said August meeting under his watch has seized to be some sort of political jamboree, adding that his administration has evolved some innovations with a view to adding value to the gathering of families, communities and the entire people of the state.

  • APC’ll not impose candidates on electorate, says Okorocha

    Imo State Governor Rochas Okorocha has assured members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state that they would be given a free hand to choose their candidates for  various positions in  the 2015 election, adding that the party will  not impose any candidate on them.

    Okorocha spoke at the party’s rally organised by the Owerri Federal Constituency at the Freedom Square while meeting with party chieftains and senior government officials.

    At the meeting were the Deputy Governor, Prince Eze Madumere, Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Prof. Anthony Anwuka, Chief of Staff, Government House, Sir Jude Ejiogu and a host of others.

    Governor Okorocha maintained that he would not rest until Imo is made better, noting that “this is the government of the masses, by the masses and for the masses. I will never choose or impose any candidate on APC but will allow the masses to make their choice.”

    He commended the party stalwarts in Owerri Federal Constituency for their doggedness, even as he warned the aspirants against destructive propaganda. He said they should rather present their work plan to the people. Only those approved by majority of the people will be accredited for primaries coming up in October.

    Governor Okorocha stressed that the bulk of his achievements in the past three years lay in the actualisation of ‘freedom’ for Imo people from what he called ‘the party of oppressors to party of the masses’ and ushering them into greatness and achievements.

    “The chain has been broken and the people are free. Imo children no longer pay school fees, kidnapping is gone, no more traffic congestion, intimidation is gone because the chain is broken,” he stated.

    Continuing, he said: “A vote for APC is a vote for sustainability of free education, community government council, more infrastructural development, good road network, transformation of more rural areas to modern cities, quality healthcare delivery, enhanced agriculture and many other dividends of democracy already achieved in the state.”

    The governor disabused the minds of Nigerians to the effect that APC is a party of Boko Haram, pointing out that it is the only party that seeks for the needed change in the leadership of Nigeria and to give the people a sense of belonging.

    Presenting the aspirants to Governor Okorocha, Prince Madumere, who noted that APC is the fastest growing party in Nigeria, thanked Governor Okorocha for establishing the Freedom Square and other laudable projects in the state.

    He assured him of a formidable team in Owerri zone that would attract numerous supporters from their wards to join the moving train of the Rescue Mission in making Imo better.

    The Chief of Staff Chief and Commissioner for Special Duties who is also the APC Apex leader in the Owerri Federal Constituency, Sir Jude Ejiogu thanked the Governor for coming to wipe away the tears of Imo people, pledging the peoples’ continued allegiance to the party.

    Speaking earlier, the Chairman of APC in Owerri Federal Constituency, Apostle Hillary Ihebom said APC has come to stay in Imo State. He assured the governor that they would fulfill their promise to stand by him and would not do anything that will bring down the party irrespective of oppositions.

    Highlights of the occasion were the public presentation of the APC aspirants vying for political positions at the local, state and federal levels in the constituency and a march past by supporters.

  • Chime,others for youths’ award

    Chime,others for youths’ award

    Enugu State Governor Sullivan Chime has been listed among nine people to be honoured by Nsukka Youths, a forum in Enugu North senatorial zone. The governor will receive an award for good governance while the others will be honoured for their efforts in lifting the profile of the state and its people.

    The award will be given at the Continuing Education Centre (CEC) Niger Hall, University of Nigeria.

    In a statement jointly signed by the forum’s chairman, Eze John and secretary, Ugwueze Cornelius, the youths noted that Chime’s vision and commitment in office have endeared him to the people of the senatorial zone.

    They also stated that the transformation in the state in terms of good road network, education, agriculture prompt payment of workers salary, maternal health delivery system, infrastructural development among others showed exemplary leadership of the governor.

    Others on the youth forum’s honours list include members of the National Assembly, Senator Ayogu Eze, Hon. Ifeaanyi Ugwuanyi and Hon. Mrs. Stella Ngwu.

    Some others are M/D CEO, Peace Mass Transit, Evang. Samuel Onyiishi, Chief William Agbo vegetable oil mogul, Chief Mrs. Sera Adukwu, Chief Tony Ugwu, former Chairman, Nsukka Local Government Area, Speaker, Enugu State House of Assembly, Chief Eugene Odoh, and the state chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Mr. Vita Abbah, among others.

    A bimonthly newspaper of the youth forum, Youth Voice The award will feature launching of the maiden edition of a bimonthly newspaper Youth Voice will be launched on the day of the awards.

     

  • Teen author fights vice in book

    Teen author fights vice in book

    At 16, he wrote an inspirational book. At 18, he is already in his second year at the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA. What will he do next upon graduation or even before?

    It is not the easiest of tasks grasping the phenomenon called Vincent Anioke. When did he start preparing for authorship or even leadership? But this much is clear: the teenage writer looks set for the heights. In his 547-page book, “Whirlwind of Metamorphosis”, he tackles some of the nation’s most distressing challenges: kidnapping, cultism and family tribulations.

    He is studying Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at it he hopes to keep writing in order to help bring about change in the world, starting with his native Nigeria. Vincent was born in Enugu on August 26, 1996. He started writing the book at the age of 15 while in the Nigerian Turkish International College, Abuja where he developed a passion for Mathematics and writing. While in primary school in Enugu, Vincent won prizes for his academic excellence. Twice he represented Nigeria at the International Mathematics Olympiad, and was the overall best student in his school’s graduating class of 2012.

    His “Whirlwind of Metamorphosis” was recently presented to the Nigerian public. At the launch, chairman of the event, former Minister of Power, Professor Barth Nnaji, in a recorded message,  praised the writer for producing such a monumental work.

    “I cannot tell you how impressed I am about this book. For being a matured writer, this is tremendous. For a young man, it is extraordinary,” Nnaji said.

    The professor of Engineering applauded the writer’s parents, Mr. and Mrs. Uche Anioke who guided their prodigious son to the path of greatness. Nnaji congratulated Vincent, hoping that he would write more books.

    Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Bora Farms and former Chairman of Enugu North Local Government Area, Hon. Herbert Oji, spoke in a similar vein.

    Oji said it is impressive that a young man at the age of 15 started writing such a captivating book, concluding it at16.The former council boss described Vincent as a literary giant and mathematician, pointing out that his achievements across the two fields, is a measure of his intelligence.

    “It is amazing and we are very proud of him. It is a credit to Enugu State. He took off from there and came to Abuja. Now, he is in the United States studying at MIT,” Oji said.

    Whirlwind of Metamorphosis received more accolades from the book reviewer, Professor Frank Asogwa who is Dean, Faculty of Law, Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT).

    Asogwa said the book makes for scintillating and captivating reading, while capturing the travails and tribulations of the Nigerian society. Although the author would be 18 years this August, Asogwa assured that adults would find the way he captured things in the Nigerian society quite amazing.

    “It is amazing in the sense that you pick a copy of the book and you find out that he is somebody who has given a lot of thought to Nigerian society. We take things for granted. Nigerians read a lot but the converse is the case. Nigerians don’t read,” Asogwa said.

    On the impact the book would make on the lives of Nigerians, the Law Professor stated: “It will influence people to think twice, He addressed parents. He addressed youths. He addressed Nigerian society and once you read the book, you need to think twice on burning and topical issues he raised in the book.”

    Here are excerpts of a telephone interview with the author:

    Where did you get the inspiration to write this book?

    At times when I am just walking around or sitting at home, I really get ideas about people’s lives and things like that and when the idea comes, I like to write about it. I do like watching television. There was one night I was watching the news with my parents and there was a kidnapping on television, someone who had been kidnapped. So, I was with them when they were talking about it. And I just had to imagine what it felt like to be kidnapped. And so, from there, I wanted to write a story about someone who has been kidnapped and how it will affect the family. From there I felt the passion to write about Nigeria’s problems and how the problems of our country can affect the family. So, it is there on TV that I just became inspired to write about our problems in the country.

    At what age did you get inspired to write?

    I have been writing short, short stories since primary four. Then I was about 7 or 8, but I wrote this particular book when I was 16.

    Do you have other books in the pipeline?

    Yes, I have a lot of them. There are some I have begun and have not finished. There are some I am just starting right now. I have a lot on the line.

    How do you manage to cope with your studies and then writing?

    Yeah, if you just have time, let’s say about two hours in a day, you do it. In just two hours it will accumulate. My writing, I do it about one or two hours every day. I spent the rest of the time, may be about 12 hours or more in a day studying. So, writing is what I do about one hour or two hours a day but over time it begins to accumulate.

    Do you have a role model in writing?

    Yes, I have two. One is Stephen king. He is an American writer. The other one is Chimamanda Adichie, the famous Nigerian writer. I read her book, Americana and I was so blown away by it.

    Are you proud to be a Nigerian?

    Yes, I am very proud to be a Nigerian. Most of my stories now are focused on the country. The next book I am going to come out with is different from this one. It is going to talk about poverty. The characters will be broken in that kind of way.

    There is this fear that you end up as a writer than an engineer.

    Yeah. I hope so. In future, maybe I have a job in an engineering company or along these lines. But on the side, I have always cherished writing. It is a balanced I maintained in the past and it is balance I intend to maintain throughout my life.

    Can you tell us the role your parents played in your writing career?

    Well, I don’t think I will have the interest or urge to write if I didn’t grow with the kind of books that they gave me that I read. And the more stories that I read, the more I wanted to write my own stories. So, they supplied me with the materials that inspired the passion. They always inspired me.

    Does writing run in your family?

    I believe so. I know that my father  writes a lot too. And ever since the book launch, my younger brother has been trying to write his own book. But I think his own purpose is to make money.

     

  • Abia reclaims erosion sites

    Abia reclaims erosion sites

    The government of Abia State has commenced the reclamation of an erosion site somewhere in old Umuahia which has claimed many houses and if left to continue will claim more houses and farm land and the state and its people will be worse off for it.

    Touched by the huge gully that the erosion had created in the place, the state governor, Chief Theodore Orji directed that the site be worked upon to safe guard the remaining property round the erosion site and reduce the suffering of the people of the area.

    It could be recalled that there are many erosion sites in the state numbering over 1,000 of different categories; in fact the worst area with the highest number of erosion site is in the Isuikwuato Local Government area.

    It is a known fact that the magnitude of the erosion sites at Isuikwuato area are beyond the financial capacity of the state government, as the government at various times called on the Federal Government to come to its aid in tackling the menace that has been ravaging the entire length and breadth of the state.

    The magnitude of the erosion sites has made the funds required to tackle them to keep increasing from small to big. During the administration of the former governor it was said that the then government will require about half a billion naira to tackle the menace and as at this point the financial implication has increased tremendously to well over N100 billion.

    However, the erosion site, which the state government had decided to work upon is the one it could manage with its lean resources and which it could handle with little or no pains to its pocket.

    At the flagging off of the checking of the menace of the erosion, the state governor, Chief Theodore Orji said that one of the ways to tackle the menace of erosion in the state is through the construction of building roads.

    Orji said that contractors who have been engaged by his government should do well to check erosion before building any roads else the roads they would have suffered to build with the resources of the state would be washed away in no distant time.

    The governor said that the erosion site at Afo-Ibeji in Old Umuahia, Umuahia South local government area if not controlled at the Holy Hills Umueledi near Assemblies of God Divinity School, that the school will stand the risk of being washed away.

    He maintained that until the erosion site is controlled, many houses along its way will be attacked and stand the risk of being swept away by the erosion which he described as one of the worst natural disaster in the country.

    Orji noted that many erosion sites exist in the state, stressing that he decided to start with this because of its proximity to residential area and the Assemblies of God Church, School of Theology and called for cordial relationship with the Federal Government to achieve more.

    Orji urged all to be grateful to President Jonathan, disclosing that a reputable contractor was chosen for the work and thanked the people of Old Umuahia for accepting to lose their crops to enable the control of the site permanently.

    He said that their courage to lose their crops to safe their houses and future shows an uncommon courage which other people in the state should emulate, stressing that one has to sacrifice today for a better tomorrow and that they should never regret their action.

    In his speech, the President General of Old Umuahia Development Union Federated and Overseas, Chinedum Ureka appreciated the governor for the much he has done for the people of the area and for keeping to his promise of doing the erosion site.

    In his speech, the member representing Ikwuano/Umuahia in the Federal House of Representatives, Oluchi Ibeji thanked Governor Orji for the good relationship existing between him and the people of Old Umuahia, describing the occasion as uncommon one.