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Tag: Bayelsa

  • Bayelsa Assembly re-elects ex-Speaker

    Bayelsa Assembly re-elects ex-Speaker

    The Bayelsa State House of Assembly has re-elected Mr. Konbowei Benson as its Speaker.

    Benson, a former speaker of the House was sacked by the Court of Appeal sitting in Port Harcourt but emerged victorious in a rerun poll conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Southern Ijaw Constituency 4.

    Shortly after receiving his Certificate of Return following his re-election, it was gathered that Benson was inaugurated  as a member of the House and reelected by the lawmakers as their speaker on Monday.

    Benson and Michael Ogbere, who won the rerun election in Ekeremor Constituency III were inaugurated during the sitting presided over by the Deputy Speaker, Mr. Abraham Ingobere.

    The Deputy Leader of the House, Mr. Tonye Isenah representing Kolokuma/Opokuma Constituency I, reportedly moved a motion to re-elect Benson as the Speaker.

    The motion was said to have been seconded by Mr. Monday Bubou Obolo, Southern Ijaw Constituency II.

    Benson is the highest ranking state lawmaker in the history of Bayelsa having occupied the Southern Ijaw Constituency 4 seat in four tenures.

    After taking oath of office as Speaker, Benson, expressed gratitude to the Governor of the State, Mr. Seriake Dickson and members of the House for the confidence repose in him.

    The Speaker assured members of his readiness to work closely with them irrespective of party affiliations and urged Bayelsans to support the House in making good laws for the state.

    He said the recent political development strengthened him to give his best to the state.

    He said: “I will continue to serve my people and the state. I thank the Governor and my colleagues for their confidence in me. I will not fail them. As a House, we will continue to make good laws to better the society”, Benson said.

    The new Speaker is expected to inaugurate the three opposition members-elect who were declared winners of their state Constituencies by the Court of Appeal.

    They are Mr. Alfred Belemote Watson, Brass Constituency II (APGA), Mr. Michael Ogbara, Ogbia III (ADC) and Mr. Munalayefa Gibson, Ogbia II (Labour Party).

  • APC members: probe boycott of Bayelsa rerun

    APC members: probe boycott of Bayelsa rerun

    Aggrieved members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Bayelsa State, yesterday, asked its national leadership to probe circumstances leading to the party’s boycott of the Southern Ijaw Constituency 4 rerun.

    The members said allegations that some APC state officials were induced financially by some Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) officials to abandon the election is disturbing.

    They were reacting to the easy victory of ex-Speaker of the House of Assembly Kombowei Benson in the rerun after a suit by the APC candidate,  Ebifaghe Oruminighe, annulled his last April 11 poll.

    Acting under the auspices of Concerned Progressives for Development and Empowerment (CPDE), the officials said reasons given by the leadership for the boycott  were unattainable.

    CPDE said there were strong allegations that some party executives collected about N80 million to abandon the poll.

    It said the national leadership should investigate activities of the APC State Working Committee (APC).

    The group led by Mr. Francis Diepreye, said the state leadership lacked the commitment to develop the party.

    Diepreye said the manner the party lost the governorship election exposed the selfishness and incompetence of executive.

    He said: “Our preliminary investigation showed that the APC sought the court order annulling the election of the ex-Speaker, Kombowei Benson and a rerun fixed for March 5, by INEC.

    “The decision to withdraw at the last minute reinforced an allegation that a deal was sealed by the help of two ex-militant leaders, with the PDP. It is shameful and should be probed and sanctioned.

    “It was discovered that after N80 million deal was sealed, it was hidden under a  feeble protest to INEC, alleging wrong timing and withdrawal from the race.

    “We are also aware that the deal,which was done without the knowledge of ward and unit heads, led to disenchantment against the party.

    “Some of our leaders claimed to have hated the alleged gross misconduct but refused to act.”

  • Bayelsa engineer floats talent hunt to end cultism

    Bayelsa State has been notorious for cultism. Despite the efforts of the state government in tackling cult-related vices through laws, rival cult wars which usually claim the lives of youths still occur in most parts of the state.

    Engineer Gospel Oboro, who hails from Ogbia Local Government Area of the state, blamed the intractable problems of cultism on lack of deliberate efforts and programmes of the government to engage the youths.

    Oboro said it was unfortunate that sporting facilities, entertainment centres and talent hunt programmes which hitherto used to keep youths busy had vanished from the state. He recently opened an entertainment centre comprising, bar and talent hunt facilities along Azikoro Road Yenagoa.

    He said his new facilities, christened, Renew, was designed to scout for and nurture talents among the youths. He said Renew would produce talents in music, instruments and sports.

    “This place is a fully entertainment centre and it is here to entertain and in the same time produce talents. It will keep the youths busy and diver their attention from criminalities”, he said.

    He added: “We want to produce musicians,instrumentalists and sportsmen and women. We want to bring back our sports”.

    He said the country generally had derailed in the area of youth sustenance and empowerment noting that in their youthful years, the government paid attention to their development. He recalled that there was no problem of cultism during their days as youths because they invested their energy on many noble activities.

  • Bayelsa ANA celebrates authors, young Sylva

    The recently concluded World Book Day was celebrated with fanfare in Bayelsa State. It saw the gathering of writers, authors, publishers and persons with creative ability at the Ijaw House, Yenagoa.

    The writers were assembled to mark their day by the state chapter of the Association of Nigeria Authors (ANA). They seized the opportunity to celebrate their achievements, showcased their works and encouraged reading.

    It was a lively and colorful event as different books, articles, short stories and collection of poems were on display. ANA was particularly concerned about the dying reading culture among the youths. The body spent time to encourage the youths to take reading seriously.

    The state Chairman, ANA, Mr. Mike Afenfia, lamented that over 40 per cent of children between the ages of six to 11 had no access to schools. He said one of the targets of ANA was to bring back the books by encouraging the younger population to adopt the culture of reading.

    He insisted that reading will only benefit the society if it is targeted at the youths adding that youths will stop indulging in criminality by constantly reading books. For example he said ANA through its campaign to promote reading excellence, would focus on girl-child education and advancing excellence among the youths.

    He pointed out that lack of motivation was one the reasons for the dying culture of academic excellence. He derided some multinational companies and private organisations in Bayelsa for their inability to encourage excellence bye celebrating students who came tops in their classes and disciplines. He said the absence of such motivation dampens the spirits of healthy competition among the youths.

    He said: “As responsible members of the society, we owe it to strongly promote education be it girl child education or boy child education.”

    Afenfia said ANA was determined to lead by example. He immediately announced a presentation of a cheque of N25,000 to support Master Benjamin Sylva in his academic pursuit. Sylva emerged as the overall best student in an event organized by ANA at Ayama Montessori Secondary School in Yenagoa.

    Presenting the cheque, Fefegha said ANA spotted Sylva as a talent and would want to encourage him. He said the body’s little gesture would go a long way in encouraging the youth. He said Sylva would grow up knowing that he was once celebrated for his brilliance.

    “I believe strongly that apart from whatever gift he may have and whatever effort the school may have made in nurturing his talent, his parents too should be commended”, he said.

    On the abduction and forceful marriage of Ese Oruru by the Kano State-born Yinusa Dahiru, alias Yellow, Afenfia strongly condemned it describing it as criminal. He called on parents to give their children adequate attention at home.

    In his response, the young Sylva described ANA’s gesture as a wonderful experience. He said it was heartwarming to know that his years of hard labour and studying did not go unnoticed. Sylva said he felt motivated to pursue academic excellence following the encouragement by ANA.

    He advised other children to embrace reading culture saying it would help them in the future. He commended ANA for its kind gesture and advised the body to keep the flag flying.

  • Bayelsa House of Assembly holds public hearing on Child Bill

    Bayelsa House of Assembly holds public hearing on Child Bill

    The Bayelsa State House of Assembly, yesterday, held a public hearing on the Child Rights Bill following its agelong effort to domesticate the Child Rights Act.

     The public converged on the Banquet Hall, Government House, Yenagoa, to make input into the bill.

     The one-day public hearing was in partnership with the United Nation Children’s Fund (UNICEF), European Union (EU), United Nations Office on Drugs and crime (UNODC), Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development and the Bayelsa Child Protection Network (CPN).

    Chairman, Joint Committee  on Judiciary and Justice and General/Social Development, Mr. Bernard Kenebai, described the hearing as a critical requirement to enable the public scrutinise the bill.

     He said the state version of the bill had been on the floor of the House for quite a while, adding that it had gone through many processes of scrutiny.

     UNICEF’s Chief of Field Office Charles Nzuki said the public hearing represented significant milestone with promises to improve laws, policies to promote and guarantee survival, development and protection of children in the state.

  • Ese back in Bayelsa, Police confirms

    Ese back in Bayelsa, Police confirms

    The Bayelsa State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Peter Ogunyawo, Wednesday night confirmed that Ese Oruru is back in Yenagoa where she was abducted and forcefully married by Yinusa, alias Yellow.

    The police boss emerged from the Police Officers’ Mess where Ese was kept to address journalists who were barred from entering the building.m

    He said: “I can confidently tell you that she is in bayelsa and she is right where you are now, hale and hearty.

    “We are just trying to counsel her as you can see my wife just finish speaking with her. And that is what we intend doing in the next few days.”

    On reports that Ese was pregnant, Ogunyawo said: “About the pregnancy, I am a police officer and not a police doctor so I wouldn’t know about that; It is for her parents to decide whether she will go for a pregnancy test or not”.

  • Ese, mum on way to Bayelsa

    Ese, mum on way to Bayelsa

    Ese Oruru and her mother, Rose, are on their way to Yenagoa, Bayelsa State after departing the Port-Harcourt Airport, Rivers State.

    Charles Oruru, the father of Ese who spoke to our correspondent said they were close to the state capital.

    “They have left Port-Harcourt Airport. They are already close to Yenagoa. We are expecting them,” he said.

    Though the father said he was not aware of the first port of call for Ese, it was gathered that they might stop briefly at the Government House before proceeding with their journey.

  • Ese absent as police reunites her with parents

    Ese absent as police reunites her with parents

    The police on Wednesday officially reunited the abducted Bayelsa girl, Ese Oruru, with her parents.
    Ese was however absent at the  event held at the police headquarters in Abuja and presided over by the Force Spokesperson, Bisi Kolawole
    Olabisi  read a prepared speech with titled: “Police Re-Unite Ese with Parents.”
    After the speech was read, the girl’s mother thanked the press, police and  Nigerians for their intervention.
    A source at the Force Headquarters explained that journalists  were not allowed  to witness  Ese’s reunion  with her mother, Rose Oruru, because  ” it is wrong for the girl to be captured by the media since  she is still a minor.”
  • Free Ese Oruru rally suspended in Bayelsa 

    Free Ese Oruru rally suspended in Bayelsa 

    A rally organised on Monday in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State capital, to protest the plight of the kidnapped Ese Oruru has been put on hold.

    It was gathered that the intervention of the Bayelsa State Governor, Mr. Seriake Dickson, compelled the campaigners to suspend the rally.

    Ese, was kidnapped by one Yinusa, alias Yellow, about six months ago, taken to Kano, converted to Islam and forcefully given out in marriage without her parents’ consent.

    A civil society group, Kindling Hope Across Nations Initiative (KHANI), which organised the protest shelved it after Dickson reportedly expressed concerns that the rally could snowball into a tribal clash between Bayelsans and the Hausa community in the state.

    The Executive Director, KHAN, Mr. Kizito Andah, said Dickson presented his concerns when he held a meeting with officials of the NGO on Sunday.

    He said the governor requested he should be allowed to intervene on the matter.

    He said Dickson in their presence called the Governor of Kano State, Mr. Abdullahi Ganduje, on telephone over the issue.

    He said Dickson reported that he had a fruitful discussion with Ganduje and assured them that with collaborative efforts between the two state governments, Ese would be released “very soon”.

    Andah said the governor expressed shock at the way and manner the minor was taken away from the state.

    Andah said: “In view of the personal interest demonstrated by the Governor of Bayelsa State, Seriake Dickson, we have decided to suspend the rally to give both state governments time to urgently bring Ese back.

    “We will however continue the fight to return Ese back to her parents and seek justice for her.”

    When contacted, Dickson’s Chief Press Secretary, Daniel Iworiso-Markson, confirmed that the governments of Bayelsa and Kano were discussing to ensure quick resolution of the matter.

    He said Dickson received full assurances of Kano governor that the issue would be resolved in no distant time and that the girl would return.

    Iworiso-Markson said: “There is government to government relationship over the matter. The two governments are talking to see to the quick resolution of the matter.

    “There is no need to panic. We are on top of the matter. We are talking with the parents of the girl, the security and the relevant stakeholders. Soon, the media will be given report on the final resolution of the matter.”

    Also, the Urhobo Monitoring and Development Group (UMDG) condemned Ese’s abduction and the manner the teenager was forcefully converted into Islam, renamed Aisha and betrothed to Yinusa as her husband.

    The group in a statement on Monday by its President, Mr. Kingsley Oberuruaria, said the abduction and subsequent marrying of the teenager to the suspect was criminal and barbaric and must be condemned in its entirety.

    He said: “The victim was 13 when she was abducted last year.  Only recently, a group of Fulani herdsmen kidnapped and killed the traditional ruler of Ubulu-Uku in Delta State and the trend suggests that the Nigerian state is gradually returning to the medieval era and it must not be allowed to continue.

    “We are also not aware of the allegations that Yinusa kinsmen including the respected Emir of Kano, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, are complicit in the abduction and forceful conversion of our daughter to Islam as the parents alleged that their daughter is within the Emir’s palace.

    “The Kano Command of the Nigeria Police is also conniving with the culprits to detain the girl against her basic fundamental human rights as contained in the Nigerian constitution.

    “We are giving the Kano State government, the Emir of Kano and the Federal Government a two-week ultimatum to produce Ese Oruru and set her free unconditionally or we will evict their people (northerners) from our land (Niger Delta).

    “At the expiration of this ultimatum if our demand is not meant, we will have no option than to forcefully evict all northerners in our domain.”

  • Dickson laments dwindling allocation, says Bayelsa got N2.9b in February

    Dickson laments dwindling allocation, says Bayelsa got N2.9b in February

    Bayelsa State Governor, Seriake Dickson, on Friday, lamented the poor financial position of the state, as it received N2.9 billion for the month of February from the federation accounts.

    A statement issued on Friday by his Chief Press Secretary, Daniel Iworiso-Markson, said the governor stated this in Yenagoa, during the inauguration of three new Special Advisers.

    He called on the Federal Government to take drastic measures to change the harsh economic situation facing Nigerians.

    Dickson explained that the state government got the February allocation after deductions at source, including bonds incurred by the previous administration.

    The governor said it was becoming increasingly difficult for the government to meet its financial obligations.

    He said, “I have not seen anything like what has just been reported to me by the finance team. For this month, what has come into our state is N2.9 billion; it has never been this bad. Meanwhile, our salary obligation to civil servants alone is about N4 billion, so you can see where we are, as a state.

    “Four years ago, when this government started, the first allocation we received was about N16 billion. At some point, it climbed to N18 and even N19 billion. And, that was why we put all your resources in most of these ambitious projects that a number of them, including the Ogobiri bridge, first flyover and several roads have been completed.”

    While advising Bayelsans, particularly the workers to show greater understanding, said the state government would be compelled to take hard decisions after due consultations with stakeholders.

    Delivering his charge to the new special advisers, Dickson stated that they were re-appointed in appreciation of their meritorious service to the state in the last four years.

    He described them as resourceful, tested and tried apostles of the restoration government.

    He, however, urged them to be above board in the discharge of their duties and devise innovative ideas for the government to tackle the challenges of security, information and financial management towards achieving sustainable development.

    The governor assured that his administration would improve on its security infrastructure and strategies to ensure that the state maintains its position as one of the safest states in the federation for investments and other social activities.