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Tag: Akwa

  • Akwa Ibom governor’s wife fetes 300 elderly citizens

    Akwa Ibom governor’s wife fetes 300 elderly citizens

    In continuation of her life- touching programmes aimed at improving the quality of life of women, the youth, widows and other vulnerable groups in the state, the wife of Akwa Ibom State Governor and founder, Family Empowerment and Youth Reorientation Programe (FEYReP), Mrs. Martha Udom Emmanuel, has put smiles on the faces of over 300 elderly persons across the state.

    She gave out cash and gift items to mark the 2015 party with the elderly.

    The event took place at the State Banquet Hall in Uyo, the state capital.

    Mrs. Emmanuel appreciated the elderly for coming out to identify with the government, saying even in their twilight, they were still very important members of the society. She said she decided to celebrate them because it was no mean feat to attain the age of 70 and above, promising that as the wife of the Governor, she would endeavour to keep in touch with them at the grassroots level. She also enlightened them on government policies, such as the free medical treatment for the aged, urging that they take advantage of the scheme.

    Mrs. Emmanuel said the ‘dakkada’ initiative launched by the Governor, Mr. Udom Emmanuel, was a call for spiritual and moral rebirth; saying even at 70 and above, they could still rise by praying for the government to succeed in its industrialisation drive.

    Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Welfare Dr. Glory Edet described the day as historic, saying as part of the social activities of Family Empowerment and Youth Reorientation Programme (FEYReP), the wife of governor decided to host the elderly from the 329 wards of the state to rekindle and put smiles on their faces.

    Commissioner for Rural Development Ekong Sampson appreciated the governor’s wife for bringing out the elderly from the rural areas to identify with the government.

    Archbishop Emilia Samuel urged the elderly to always be grateful to God for their lives, saying she was happy that Akwa Ibom people were fast recognising the place of elders in the society. She thanked the governor’s wife for the initiative, praying that God should reward her.

    The event witnessed a health talk where the elderly were advised on diet, medication and lifestyle suitable for their age groups.

  • Akwa Ibom govt ready to invest in pension equities

    The Akwa Ibom State government says it is ready to invest in the pension industry to generate income for the state.

    Governor Udom Emmanuel  spoke in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on the sideline of the on-going World Pension Summit in Abuja.

    He said the N5 trillion pension fund could create a lot of investment opportunities for interested investors.

    “The main reason for this is with over N5 trillion, which is over $25 billion, we have a whole lot of investment opportunities where we are doubly sure the pension fund can actually be invested and they can also realise the money because that is the essence of investment.

    “You don’t invest to lose your capital; you invest to actually get adequate return on your investment. Even in terms of road infrastructure, the economic viability of the roads in the Southsouth (zone) is being linked up by Akwa-Ibom.

    “So, we can actually earmark some of these for the investors to come under the PPP (public private partnership) model. We as a state government will also be interested in taking up some equity.“

    The governor said pensioners in the state were receiving their monthly pension on a regularly.

    According to him, the state government has been concentrating on the development of infrastructure in the past few months.

    “We have concentrated on some of this infrastructures, especially in terms of the human capital development,“ he said.

    Emmanuel told NAN that the state had the natural resources and the creativity to drive development in all sectors of the economy.

    He, however, said adequate funding was required to develop the infrastructure needed to drive the development process.

    “You could actually hear when I talked about the three Cs – cash, commodity and creativity. In this case we are creative in ideas, policies and in our approach on programmers that we invent.

    “In terms of commodity, we all know how wealthy we are in terms of the abundant natural resources. Cash could be a problem, but who owns the cash? It is either the capital market or the pension fund,“ he said.

    Emmanuel advocated the setting up of an institution that would ensure proper and accurate remittance of pension contributions.

    “Once you set up strong institutions, those things are mere administrative. We are after building those strong institutions so that processes and procedures can actually run normally.

    “So, set up strong institutions and things will happen – policies, procedures and processes will actually run,’’ he said.

     

     

  • Pharmacists Council seals 160 drug dispensing premises in Akwa Ibom

    The Pharmacists Council of Nigeria (PCN) has sealed 160 drug dispensing premises in Akwa Ibom State. These comprise five pharmacies and 155 patent medicine shops.

    They were sealed for offences ranging from dispensing poisons without the supervision of a pharmacist, poor storage conditions, selling medicines above the approved list for patent medicine vendors and non-registration of premises with PCN, among others.

    Three other premises were issued compliance directives for poor documentation and untidy environment, the Council stated.

    Addressing reporters at the Southsouth Zonal Headquarters of PCN in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State capital, the Deputy Director and Head of Enforcement, Stephen Esumobi, said the Council which is a Federal Government parastatal charged with the responsibility of regulating and controlling the education, training and practice of pharmacy was in the state to enforce its core mandates.

    Giving a breakdown of their activities, Esumobi said: “Our enforcement teams have been in Akwa Ibom State since the beginning of this week. The teams were in the state capital and also visited 17 out of the 31 Local Government Areas which include Uruan, Itu, Abak, Oruk Anam, Mkpat Enin, Ikot Abasi, Etim Ekpo, Onna, Etinan, Eket, Esit Eket, Nsit Ibom, Nsit Ubium, Ikot Ekpene, Ibiono Ibom and Ikono”.

    He noted that while the level of compliance by premises in the state capital is encouraging, the situation in most of  the local government areas visited were not. He said PCN observed that many premises began operations without following laid-down guidelines.

    While many of the premises are located in environments that are not conducive for the sale of drugs, some others failed to meet minimum requirements for storage and personnel, thus, exposing members of the public to dangers of consuming medicines whose quality, safety and efficacy cannot be guaranteed, Esumobi noted.

    According to him, another category of offenders are  those who failed to renew their premises certificates with PCN. ‘Annual renewal of premises certificate is mandatory and it is to ensure that registered premises continue to maintain or improve on the standards that made them qualified for licensure’, he warned.

    He said the exercise was not punitive but to ensure practitioners operate according laid down guidelines, to preserve the lives of medicine consumers. Those premises sealed will be unsealed once the operators comply and rectify observed irregularities, he assured.

    He said the rule for those wishing to establish a pharmacy or patent medicine shop is to apply for location approval. When the location is approved the premises applies for facility inspection to ensure that the structure and personnel are adequate.

    He urged stakeholders to follow the laws warning that PCN will not tolerate the sale of medicines without submission to regulatory control.

    For members of the public who wish to operate patent medicine shops or pharmacies, the PCN Director advises them to visit the PCN state or zonal offices for proper guidance.

     

  • Medical doctor urges Akwa Ibom indigenes to be health conscious

    The Chief Executive Officer, House of Diagnosis, Medical Diagnostics Service Eket, Akwa Ibom, Dr Kelechi Anyanso, has advised the indigenes of the state to be more health conscious.

    Anyanso spoke last weekend during a three-day free medical test and treatment with the theme: “Caring for the Masses,” in Eket Local Government Area.

    She said the people should continue to be conscious of their health, environment and life-style patterns, to minimise the development of diseases in their bodies.

    Anyanso also advised the people to visit medical experts for regular check up.

    “We should also strive to widen our knowledge of disease prevention as we carefully listen to the numerous workshop and seminar packaged for us in the course of the event.

    “Sometimes, we are the causes of our own sickness, sometimes we do not know because I am sure if we know better we will not do things that will make us sick,’’ she said.

    She said the free medical test and treatment was to commemorate the 55th Independence Anniversary Celebration of the country.

    She added that the essence of the free medical test and treatment was to add value and reach out to the people.

    Anyanso expressed commitment to make the House of Diagnosis to become a global phenomenon in the field of diagnosis, research and a one-stop shop for any kind of investigative procedure.

    “We are using this forum to give back to the community that has welcomed and accommodated us for years,’’ she said.

    Anyanso said that beneficiaries were treated for different kinds of sicknesses included malaria, typhoid, fever, cancer and HIV.

    She explained that if the treatment could not be handled by Diagnosis House, she referred them to the hospital.

    She said that the institution was collaborating with the Society for Family Health (SFH) and Family Health International (FHI) to achieve its objectives.

    Dr Ogbobe Clement, one of the doctors in the House, said that diagnosis entailed treatments of ailments and creation of awareness of the ailments to the people.

    Clement said the House would continue to seek and promote preventive measures rather than curative measures.

    He noted that some of the ailments could be cured if detected earlier.

    “We are also here to correct some misconceptions bordering on some health issues; we all know that HIV is not a killer disease any more.

    “You can live comfortable with it and live your normal life with it; if you know your status early and do what you expected to do,’’ he said.

    Chairman of the occasion, Chief Assam Usoro, thanked the organisers for improving the life of the people, saying that health is wealth.

    Usoro urged other professional bodies to take a cue from the House.

    He called on the indigenes to come out en-mass and make the best out of the free medical test and treatment in the area.

    He advised the people to check their status regularly, to maintain a good healthy living.

    Chairman, Eket Transitional Committee, Mr Frank Archibong, expressed appreciation to the organisers.

  • Akwa won’t concede points in Uyo – Baraje

    Akwa won’t concede points in Uyo – Baraje

    After going down 2-1 to Kwara  United in Ilorin, relegation troubled United football club coach, Zakare Baraje has told other clubs with away fixtures to his side and who are counting on actualising their  target by picking points inside the Nest of Champions stadium, Uyo to look elsewhere in the remaining games of the season.

    Baraje who spoke to npfl.ng in Ilorin and declared that this is not the time  for his club to drop any point on their home ground which he described as a no go area for away teams.

    “The Nest of Champions stadium is our fortress, I don’t see any team coming there to pick any point from us at this period, we are praying for a good finish in the league this season and with our remaining home matches I don’t see the possibility of our dropping any point in front of our  home crowd.

    “Starting this weekend, FC IfeanyiUbah will get the taste of defeat in our hands and so also will the other teams that will be visiting for our remaining home games.

    “A good finishing in the league is our target and I must tell you, relegation is not in our line of thinking but a better position when the league ends. So for those clubs coming to meet us in the Nest of Champions stadium, they should just forget about picking any point because inside that our fortress, we will not allow anyone to benefit from us,” Baraje warned.

    The coach, who described their game against Kwara United as an interesting one, said both sides played out their best but the final result favoured the host.

    “It was an interesting match, my boys played well though we lost. I expected a tough game and it could have gone either way and I salute my players for their performance most especially in this game that the survival of the host in the league was at stake,” he said.

  • Akwa ease relegation worries after win over Nasarawa

    Akwa ease relegation worries after win over Nasarawa

    Akwa United’s 2-0 win over Nasarawa United 2-0 at home in a Nigeria premier league clash on Friday night has eased their relegation worries.

    The Uyo outfit are now 14th on the table with 37 points from 31 matches, four points clear of the drop zone

    “I am feeling a little relieved after seeing myself in that position (relegation),” said Akwa coach Zakary Baraje.

    “The players have been paid their salaries and allowances and their reaction has been better. We will get out of relegation trouble.”

    It was a poor and scrappy first half full of cynical fouls with the referee failing to impose himself on the game.

    However, in the second half Nasarawa chased the game, but even with the league hotshot Esosa Igbinoba on their side, they could not really trouble Akwa United goalkeeper Olufemi Kayode.

    Aniekpeno Udoh put the home team ahead after 36 minutes off a well-taken corner from the left.

    It was his seventh league goal of the season and he also scored the goal that qualified Akwa United to the final of the Federation Cup at the expense of Nasarawa United.

    Adio Yusuf then rifled home an unstoppable free kick from distance in the 71st minute to make the game safe for Akwa United.

  • Enyimba goalkeeper disappointed to drop points at Akwa

    Enyimba goalkeeper disappointed to drop points at Akwa

    Enyimba goalkeeper Femi Thomas has told AfricanFootball.com his side deserved to beat hosts Akwa United on Wednesday in a Week 21 game of the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL).

    He said the 2-2 draw is not the true reflection of the play but admits a point is better than nothing. The result also means Enyimba lost the leadership of the Nigeria league to closest rivals Sunshine Stars.

    “It was a good game for both sides, but in my opinion, we deserved to win the game,” Thomas told AfricanFootball.com.

    “The 2-2 draw was not the true reflection of the game because we created chances and couldn’t convert them. The draw was better than losing anyway. And I must praise the officials for good officiating of the game.”

  • Akwa begin recruitment

    Charles Bassey has revealed that Akwa United have stepped up preparation for the upcoming season.

    The Akwa United technical director disclosed that the club have commenced recruitment for the new season, as they aim to be the team to beat.

    “We are preparing Akwa United for the new season as a team to beat,” he said.

    “A lot of fantastic players have been storming our screening ground and we will get the very best that will help elevate the club to an envious position that everyone will be proud of.”

    Bassey also disclosed that the club will announce the appointment of a new coach this week, as the management has pencilled down some notable tacticians.

  • Tenger blasts Akwa management •Says he won’t return until sack story is debunked

    Tenger blasts Akwa management •Says he won’t return until sack story is debunked

    Akwa United head coach, Justin Tenger has vowed ` not to return to the side except the management recant the purported sack report in one of the Nigerian tabloids.

    An unquoted source in the sports tabloid on Friday said the Akwa United management has sacked Tenger and the entire players.

    However, Akwa United chairman, Isong Isang has come out to deny the reported sack of the coach and the players insisting that no such decisions were taken by the Uyo-based side.

    Tenger said the publication is damaging to his reputation and insisted he will only return to the side’s coaching job except the management recant the report or cause a rejoinder in like manner to be published in same medium.

    “I spoke with the chairman, Isong Isang over my purported sack and the players as boldly reported by the said sports daily and he stoutly denied knowledge of any decision of the management to sack me and the players.

    “Isang pleaded with me to come back to the side on Monday as earlier agreed before I departed to my home town for the burial arrangement of my late elder brother but I told him promptly that I felt embarrassed and blackmailed by the report.

    “I told him that I don’t want their job any longer rather they should work out my entitlement and remit same to me in strict accordance with the contract terms.

    “I said I’ve declared myself vacant and will be available to any side that need my service as I’m not keen to struggle the position with anyone.

    “Isang insisted I should disregard the publication as 100% false and come back to Uyo to commence preparations for the new season but I told him the only condition that will make me return is if the management went ahead to officially clarify the report, refute and give a rejoinder else I’m out of the job completely.

    “I’m not begging for the job, I’ve done my own part keeping the side in the Premier League and if for any reason my service is no more needed we shouldn’t go to the media to embarrass ourselves,” the former Niger Tornadoes coach said to supersport.com.

    Tenger guided Akwa United to berth safely and avoid relegation in the out gone 2012/13 Glo Premier League season as they finished on the 16th spot on 51 points.

  • Udoh confident Akwa won’t relegate

    Udoh confident Akwa won’t relegate

    Akwa United leading scorer Mfom Udoh has said Saturday’s surprise win at Warri Wolves has boosted their chances of staying up this season.

    Akwa United defeated Warri Wolves 1-0 and moved out of the relegation pack with 47 points.

    “The victory is a big step out of relegation, we need to be more focused now because we still have two matches left and we need the minimum six points at stake to be sure of our survival, so the battle has just begun,” said Udoh, who has scored 13 goals this season.

    “It was God that gave us the victory because they were given a penalty in stoppage time, but our goalkeeper Femi Kayode saved it. So we give God all the Glory.”

    On Wednesday, Akwa will host Kaduna at home and on Sunday they will be away to Kwara in Lokoja.