The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Abakaliki

  • Ebonyi threatens to revoke C-of-O of undeveloped lands in Abakaliki

    Ebonyi threatens to revoke C-of-O of undeveloped lands in Abakaliki

    The Ebonyi State Government has threatened to revoke the Certificates of Occupancy (C-of-O) of undeveloped lands across Abakaliki and its environs.

    Mr Stanley Okoro-Emegha, Special Assistant to the Governor on Capital Territory, disclosed this on Monday.

    Okoro-Emegha said that the government was serious on the issue because such lands had become haven for the perpetration of crimes by hoodlums, among other practices that were inimical to societal well being.

    “All lands within Abakaliki and environs must either be put to use, developed or the owners will stand the chance of forfeiting their C-of-O.

    “The owners should use them for agricultural purposes or make them available to government for use to enhance its agricultural programmes,” he said in a statement.

    He also advised the residents of the town to keep their surroundings clean by properly disposing their refuse to ward-off diseases.

    “The state government has invested much to enhance the aesthetic nature of the state capital and the citizens should complement this effort by keeping their surroundings clean,” he said.

  • Paralysed academic activities at GTC Abakaliki as students protest

    Paralysed academic activities at GTC Abakaliki as students protest

    The protest by students of the Government Technical College (GTC), Abakaliki on Wednesday paralysed academic and social activities in the institution.

    A correspondent of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), who monitored the protest reports that the students were protesting alleged poor feeding, poor hostel management, lack of functioning technical equipment, among others.

    Mr Uche Nwankwo, the Senior Prefect (SP) of the college, who spoke to journalists alleged that the school has been poorly managed since its handover by Ebonyi Government to the Catholic Church in 2016.

    Nwankwo alleged that the management of the school was not committed to both academic and welfare of the students.

    “We are protesting so that the government, the church and the general public can hear us because several efforts we have made as students to get the school management listen to our grievances have failed.

    “We have on so many occasions complained to the principal of the school the hardship we are facing due to poor learning environment, poor feeding, lack of functional laboratory and technical workshop as well as lack of hostel maintenance.

    “Since the full takeover of the school administration by the Catholic Church in January, 2017 there has not been any practical in any of the subjects we offer in the school and this is a technical college.

    “The principal stopped all recreational and sporting activities in the school and as I speak to you there are no functional electric bulbs in any of the dormitories and the school refectory.

    “We have complained and complained and the principal was not receptive to the problems we are going through and that is why the students decided to embark on the protest as a last resort.

    “We demand that the principal should be removed and that the school be properly funded to meet the academic and social needs of the students, ” Nwankwo said.

    Efforts to speak with the principal, Rev. Sister Amaka (other name not given) was abortive as she was alleged to have been smuggled out of the school to avoid being attacked by the students.

    Meanwhile, Vice Principal, Rev. Fr. James Nwofoke, said that the withdrawal of the N5,000 subvention paid by the state government for each student per term was affecting the effective running of the school.

    He said that the management depended on the N5,000 paid per term by students for the running of the school, which he explained was not sufficient to provide the needs of the students.

    “We depend on the N5,000 paid by students which includes the tuition and hostel service charge for the running of the school and the money is hardly sufficient to provide the basic needs of these students.

    “The school management is working hard to ensure that the students’ academic and social welfare are taken care of.

    “We are appealing to the students to be calm and go back to classes and avoid any conduct that will truncate the academic time table of the school,” Nwofoke said.

    Meanwhile, the Ebonyi Commissioner for Education, Prof. John Eke, who intervened decried the development and said that government would interface with the school management and Catholic Church to address the problem.

    The commissioner who debunked the alleged removal of N5,000 subvention paid on each student by government per term appealed to the protesters to remain calm and go back to the classrooms.

    He further assured that government was committed to sound and qualitative education for the Ebonyi child.

    “We have listened to the grievances of the protesting students. We are going to interface with the school authority and the Catholic Church, the owner of the school and I want to add that the state is committed to the payment of the N5,000 feeding subvention.

    “As a government our commitment is to ensure that we provide functional, qualitative teaching and learning, including the provision of enabling environment conducive for acquisition of proper knowledge, ” Eke said.

    The students barricaded the popular old Abakaliki /Enugu road and caused traffic gridlock which lasted for several hours, before they were dispersed and chased back to the school premises by a detachment of the police.
    Mr Jude Madu, the Police Public Relations Officer, Ebonyi Police Command, confirmed the incident.

    He said that the Command immediately drafted men and officers of the Kpiri-kpiri Police Division to the school to calm the situation.

    “We got the distress call and we immediately moved our men from the Kpiri-kpiri Police Divisional Headquarters to calm the situation and ensure that law and order were maintained.

    “It was a peaceful protest and the students have gone back to their dormitories. Our men went to ensure that hoodlums did not exploit the situation to unleash mayhem on innocent and law abiding citizens, “Madu said.

  • Governor’s wife wants policewoman arrested over teenage house-help molestation

    Governor’s wife wants policewoman arrested over teenage house-help molestation

    The Wife of Ebonyi Governor, Mrs Racheal Umahi, has called for the arrest of a policewoman who allegedly poured hot water on her 15-year-old house-help for wrongfully  applying condiments in a pot of soup.

    Umahi made the call  after officials from her office and the State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development rescued the girl from the policewoman at her home in Mile 50, Abakaliki.

    Mr Donatus Owo, the Chief Press Secretary to Umahi, said in a statement in Abakaliki on Saturday that she was touched by the fact that girl’s body looked irritable because she was not given proper medical care.

    “The matter has been reported to the police while the victim was taken to Police Clinic for medical treatment,’’ she said.

    The victim, Chinyere Igwe, who hails from Igbere in Bende Local Government Area of Abia, said she had lived with the policewoman for two years within which she suffered various forms of maltreatment.

    Igwe said was preparing  soup on that fateful day when her employer  got annoyed that she did not prepare the soup according to her instruction.

    “Only my mother is alive and I have been living with my madam for over two years now. This is as a result of my father’s death coupled with my mother’s financial handicap.

    ” I failed to follow her instruction and in anger she came out and carried the pot of soup together with the egusi (melon) and threw at me and it landed on my back.

    “She also carried iron and hit me on my body and ordered me to bend  down and raise my leg up but I refused because my back was paining me seriously.

    “She locked me up in a room while she went to boil water to pour on me.

    “I pleaded with her to have mercy on me but she went inside and brought teargas, then I started crying when she rushed to get hot water and poured on me,’’ Igwe said.

    The victim said that Mr Kingley Okochi, the husband of the suspect,  also hit her after the wife complained to him about the incident.

    ”Her husband also beat me up, but he was not aware that I had such injury because it was in the night.  He later apologised and asked his wife to use honey to treat my back,’’ Igwe said.

    The suspect, Mrs Joy Okochi, however, claimed when the team from Government House, Abakaliki, came to her apartment that she did not pour hot water on the girl intentionally.

    The Director of Child Welfare Development in the State Ministry of Women Affairs, Mr Godwin Igwe, and the State Chairman of International Federated of Women Lawyers, Miss Olivia Okpaleke, said the culprit must face justice.

    Meanwhile, the Police Public Relations Officer in Ebonyi,  Mr Jude Madu,  said he had not  received the report.

  • Two journalists attacked by thugs in Abakaliki

    Two journalists attacked by thugs in Abakaliki

    Two journalists, Mr Charles Otu of the Guardian newspapers and Mr Samuel Nweze, Publisher of the People’s Leader, have been attacked in Abakaliki, Ebonyi.

    The Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Jude Madu, confirmed the two incidents and said that the police have launched investigation to unravel the motive behind the attacks.

    “The reports of the attacks on two journalists are before the police and we have launched investigation to unravel the motive behind the attacks and identities of those involved”, Madu said.

    Otu told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), in Abakaliki on Saturday that suspected political thugs accosted him at about 6.p.m. on Friday at Vanco Junction in Abakaliki and started beating him with clubs and other dangerous weapons.

    He said the beating attracted passers-by, “but the thugs threatened to shoot anybody that interfered.’’

    He said he was later abducted and taken to the `Ebonyi Cabinet Office’ where he was asked to write an undertaking never to write any story against the state government or be silenced permanently.

    He said the thugs later drove him to the Kpirikpiri Divisional Police Headquarters.

    “I was asked by the group to write a statement that I was rescued by the Ekubaraoha Youth Assembly from a mob that was attacking me.

    “The thugs who accosted me at the Vanco Junction arrived in a 16-seater Toyota bus with the inscription of Ekubaraoha Youth Assembly.

    “They accused me of being a threat to the state government and threatened to silence me unless I signed a written undertaken never to write anything against the state government.

    “I collapsed at the police station having lost consciousness due to the severe beating they gave me but I was revived at the emergency ward of the Federal Teaching Hospital, Abakaliki”, Otu said.

    Similarly, Nwaeze, Publisher of the People’s Leader, said he was shot by gun men at about 7.p.m. on Friday, June 2, in front of his office at 2, Awolowo Street in Abakaliki.

    “I narrowly escaped death. I was lucky the assailants who came on a motorcycle missed the target; the story would have been a different one.

    “I heard a bang and I felt sharp pains and blood gushing out from my back.’’

    Nwaeze added that he saw two men running with guns in their hands; “it was then that I realised that I had been attacked by drive-by shooters.”

    He said he had reported the incident to the police.

    The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Ebonyi council, condemned the attacks.

    Chairman of the union in the state, Mrs Veronica Oshim, called on security agencies to rise to the challenge.

    She told NAN that journalists must be provided with safe and secure environment to inform and educate the public.

    She said that unprovoked attacks on journalists were inimical to the development of democracy and also threatened press freedom.

    “It is with shock and disbelief that we received the brutal and mindless attacks on Mr Charles Otu of the Guardian newspaper and Samuel Nweze, Publisher of the People’s Leader, an Ebonyi based tabloid.

    “We condemn these senseless, unprovoked and barbaric attacks on two of our members.

    “We call on the police and other security agencies to rise to the challenge of protection of lives and property of every citizen of the state.

    “NUJ wishes to remind the merchants of death and evil that journalists in Ebonyi will never be distracted or intimidated by their machinations as they will always use their platform to expose evil through sincere and objective reporting

     

  • NiMet predicts cloudy, thundery, rainy weather for Monday

    NiMet predicts cloudy, thundery, rainy weather for Monday

    The Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) has predicted cloudy weather conditions over the Central States of the country on Monday.

    NiMet’s Weather Outlook by its Central Forecast Office in Abuja on Sunday also predicted day and night temperatures of 25 to 36 and 16 to 25 degrees Celsius, respectively.

    According to NiMet there will be prospects of localised thunderstorms over Jos, Kaduna, Minna, Bida and Yola axis in the afternoon and evening hours.

    The agency predicted increase morning cloudiness over the southern states with chances of localised rain over Lagos and Calabar with day and night temperatures of 31 to 35 and 21 to 25 degrees Celsius, respectively.

    NiMet also predicted prospects of localised thunderstorms over Ado Ekiti, Oshogbo, Abeokuta, Owerri, Awka, Abakaliki, and Port Harcourt during the evening and night period.

    According to NiMet, northern states will experience partly cloudy conditions with day and night temperatures of 38 to 40 and 24 to 26 degrees Celsius, respectively.

    “ Influx of moisture laden winds observed over the entire country is expected to result in an increase in weather activities over most part of the country in the next 24 hours,’’ NiMet predicted.

  • Ebonyi governor’s wife empowers widows

    Ebonyi governor’s wife empowers widows

    The wife of the Ebonyi Governor,  Mrs Rachael Umahi, on Friday empowered no fewer than 1,710 indigent widows with N171 million for self-sustenance.

    Gov. David Umahi, while presenting the money to the aged and widows in Abakaliki, said the money would enable them to start small-scale businesses.

    He explained that the empowerment came through his wife’s pet project, Family Succour and Upliftment Foundation’’.

    “The widows were selected 10 from the 171 political wards across the state.

    “N100, 000 should be given to each of you to improve your lives, l urge you to use it judiciously.

    “When a widow is empowered, all her children and other dependants are empowered too, so, we will open bank accounts for them where the money will be transferred,” he said.

    Umahi urged them to identify with the ongoing agricultural programme in the state, where they would be given loan to cultivate either cassava or rice.

    He called on the Local Government Chairmen, Co-ordinators and management committee members to complement efforts of the government toward improving the lives of widows, aged parents and traditional rulers in the state.

    The governor also ordered that bank account should be opened with N1 million and an award of scholarship to university level for a child delivered during the event by one of the widows.

    In her speech, the governor’s wife, Mrs Rachael Umahi, commended efforts of the governor, adding that the gesture would not only improve the lives of the beneficiaries directly but also their children and other relatives.

    ”Daughters of Jesus make proper use of the money given to you to better your lives and families,” she said.

    During the event, octogenarians received N20, 000 each; while 280 who were already placed on salaries, also received N5, 000 and 10kg bag of rice each.

  • NGO urges Ebonyi residents to pursue environment-friendly activities

    NGO urges Ebonyi residents to pursue environment-friendly activities

    An Abakaliki-based Non- Governmental Organisation (NGO), City Cleaners International, has urged residents of Ebonyi to pursue activities that would protect the environment from pollution and degradation.
    The Executive Director, Mr James Aja, who spoke in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), on Thursday in Abakaliki, described the environment as one of man’s greatest gift from God.

    According to him, the organisation is committed to enhancing cleanliness through regular clean-up exercises in major towns and communities across the state.
    Aja explained that the initiative was to complement the state government’s efforts in ensuring clean and disease-free environment.
    He appealed to residents of the state to join in the crusade against unhygienic environment by cleaning their surroundings regularly.
    ‘‘The environment is man’s greatest gift from God and all our activities take place within our environment, hence conscious effort must be geared toward making it healthy for our habitation.
    ‘‘Again, what we do is to use our activities to complement the efforts of government, because the task of environmental cleanliness and protection should not be left to government alone.
    ‘‘We have identified and clean-up no fewer than 40 blocked water drainages in Abakaliki and other parts of the state, including clearing of bushes along major highways and streets in the state.
    ‘‘The organisation is also assisting government in clearing refuse dump sites and engages in other activities that promote the beauty and aesthetics of the city environment,’’ he added.
    Aja appealed to wealthy individuals and corporate organisations to assist the NGO by donating fund to enhance its operations, noting that the organisation was being sponsored through contributions from members.

  • Ebonyi anti-hawking, loitering campaign yield results

    Ebonyi anti-hawking, loitering campaign yield results

    The Ebonyi School Committee on Anti-loitering and Anti-hawking during school hours by children of school age, says the campaign is yielding the desired results.
    Dr Boniface Nwofia, the committee’s chairman, stated this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Abakaliki.
    According to him, the campaign which is part of government’s effort at repositioning the education sector began in 2015.
    He said that since the exercise began, school children in Ebonyi had imbibed new orientation and were now more disciplined.
    “The campaign is a tasking exercise, but I am happy to announce that the committee has been able to deliver on its mandate.
    “The success which we celebrate today will not have been possible, but for the support the committee enjoyed from parents, guardians and stakeholders in the education sector.
    “We also congratulate the press for identifying with us in the war through the dissemination of the committee’s activities.
    “The good news is that loitering, hawking and other forms of indiscipline associated with school children have reduced by 99 per cent, while teachers’ productivity has appreciated,” Nwofia said.
    He stressed that the government was committed to executing and enforcing the spirit and consciousness of the free and compulsory Universal Basic Education.

    Nwofia described primary and secondary education as critical, as the success of other levels of education was hinged on them.
    “You cannot get the tertiary education right unless the primary and post primary levels are well repositioned and streamlined for excellence.
    “The war on loitering and hawking are part of conscious efforts geared towards addressing problems confronting primary and secondary education in the state.
    “Government has tackled problems of lack of infrastructure, repaired and rehabilitated dilapidated school buildings in parts of the state; as well as trained and retrained teachers for improved capacity,” he added.
    NAN reports that the committee is charged with the responsibility to arrest and detain any school child caught hawking, loitering or selling any item during official school hours.

  • No crisis in Ebonyi NLC – Acting Chairman

    Mr Leo Nkah, the Acting Chairman, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Ebonyi Chapter, says there is no faction in the union in the state as the former Chairman, Ikechukwu Nwafor was legitimately removed from office.
    Nkah spoke on Tuesday in Abakaliki, while commenting on the alleged mediation visit by Mr Uchenna Obigwe, South East Zonal Chairman of the NLC.

    Nkah who spoke in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), said that Mr Virginus Nwobodo, Enugu State NLC Chairman, who represented Obigwe, never visited the present NLC leadership.

    “ If the visit was mediatory, why did the representative of Obigwe not visit the present NLC leadership in the state?
    “ Why did he not intimate the present leadership before the visit?
    “Since they were here for fact finding, why were they so fast in conclusion, instead of taking their findings to the regional body.

    “The visit of NLC South East region is questionable.’’

    Nkah said that from the actions, “it is doubtful if the visit was authorised.’’
    He said that there was no truth in Nwafor’s claim that the union was fictionalised.
    “There is no faction in the union as Nwafor was removed by more than two- third of state executive council-in- session.’’
    Nkah, who is also President, Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE ), Ebony Chapter, said that Nwafor failed to exonerate himself of allegation of gross abuse of power, levelled against by the state council.
    He also alleged that the former chairman played double-standard on issues concerning the contributory pension scheme introduced by the Ebonyi Government.
    Nkah appealed to Ebonyi workers to be patient as a 14-man committee has been set up to address all issues concerning the new pension scheme and other workers’ welfare.
    NAN recalled that Nwafor was suspended indefinitely on March 15 “for alleged gross misconduct and financial misappropriation.’’

    The former chairman, however, denied the allegations

     

  • Abakaliki Prisons solicits support for inmates

    A university undergraduate and winner of Glo Campus Storm, Mr Gabriel Ajah has called on members of the public to helping prison inmates.

    He made the appeal in Abakaliki, the Ebonyi State capital, when he paid a visit to inmates of the Abakaliki Prison.

    Speaking to The Nation, Mr Ajah said he was in the prisons to enlighten the inmates on the need to have positive mindset and be useful to the society after their stay in the prisons.

    He used the occasion to donate drugs, blankets, motivational books, exercise books and other items to the inmates.

    Mr Ajah, student of Ebonyi State University, noted that the money for the items was from the prize money he won during a recent edition of the Global campus stor.

    He urged members of the public to always remember the prisons inmates who he noted are really in a precarious condition.

    According to him, ‘their is live after the prison sentence and that is what we want the inmates to note, being a convict or ex-convict does not mean it is the end of the world, it starts with having a positive mind set and building yourself up with a determination to become a better person’.

    High point of the event was a talk to the inmates by a lecturer in EBSU Amiara Solomon Amiara on being responsible citizens during and after their stay in the society.

    Meanwhile, the Nigeria Prison Service, Ebonyi state comand have solicited assistance from members of the public for the inmates.

    The NPS noted that the inmates depend on the society to survive.

    Deputy Comptroller of the Prisons, Maduaku Emmanuel stated this when a Glo campus Ambassador, Gabriel Ajah visited the prisons.

    He called on government, NGOs and public spirited individuals to impact positively on the inmates by visiting and sharing with them whatever they have.