The Nation Newspaper

Tag: COMMUNITY

  • Ogun community protests poor power supply, high tariff

    Residents of Ado-Odo Community Development Association, in Ado- Odo Local Council Development Area (LCDA) of Ogun State have protested what they described as unjustifiable poor power supply in the area.

    The peaceful protest, which was held at the head office of the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC), Ring Road Ibadan, was embarked upon by community leaders and members of the community.

    The protesters said the current economic hardship experienced in the country is being compounded by epileptic power supply, as many small businesses in the area have been crippled due to lack of electricity supply.

    They claimed that the tariff, which is largely based on estimation, is unjustifiable as it is not commensurate with services rendered.

    Speaking on behalf of the community, the chairman of community development association for power distribution in Ado-Odo, Mr. Abayomi Aina, said the company has not been fair to residents of the community in terms of power supply.

    He said: “We are here to protest the poor power supply in our area. The manager in our local government, Mrs. Falusi purposely drops our light without justifiable reason.

    “We hardly have light a day in a week. When we complained about the abnormality, the manager becomes angry. As a result of this poor power supply, our cables are always stolen. The bills they bring to our people are always outrageous.

    “We have severally presented our case to the IBEDC office in Sango Ota but nothing was done about it. We want you to come to our rescue for our people to enjoy more power supply. We are ready to pay if they give us light.”

  • Abia community seeks oil blocks

    Indigenous people of Ukwa West Local Government Area of Abia State have asked the federal government to allocate oil blocks to them.

    Ukwa West is rich in oil and is only about 30 minutes’ drive from Aba, the commercial hub of the state.

    Its people have complained of being neglected by the government, and of deplorable roads and lack of social amenities, among other challenges.

    At a stakeholders’ consultative meeting for sustainable development of Niger Delta, organised by the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) the people of the oil-producing community advocated for the issuance of oil blocks to some of the oil-producing areas.

    The meeting was attended by traditional rulers, representatives of groups, youths and other stakeholders, who deliberated on the way forward for the NDDC and their host communities.

    Speaking at the event, the Deputy Director for Community and Rural Development of NDDC, Otunba Isima Abosede, represented by Mr. Friday Nwachi, said the meeting will enable the Commission to interact with stakeholders on the way forward.

    He said the new board of the NDDC has started redefining the vision of the Commission in a manner that would mutually benefit the people of the area.

    “There is need for all stakeholders to take care of all our projects, to protect and cherish them at all times,” he said.

    The communiqué asked the commission to dutifully implement budgetary allocations by adopting the subsisting intrastate revenue sharing formula on the basis of 60% volume of oil production, 20% equality among lgas, 10% pipeline communities, and 10% oil exploration zones, whether the zone produces oil  or not .

    He said, “NDDC should boost agricultural production activities in the Niger Delta region by providing financial support, seedlings and cultivates extension services, value-chain deliverables and sundry incentives to farmers. For ownership and sustainability of NDDC projects and programmes; community-based institutions should be empowered as appropriate. NDDC should hold the stakeholders’ consultative engagement meeting periodically.”

  • Monarch urges security in community

    The Ologudu of Ogudu in Kosofe Local Government Area of Lagos State, His Royal Majesty Oba Waidi Ayinla Fashola Fagbemi 1, has appealed to the Lagos State government to provide pedestrian bridge and security personnel to protect lives and properties of the residents.

    Oba Fashola, who made the appeal during his10th year coronation anniversary held at his Ogudu Waterfront Area, noted that loss of lives caused by road accidents is recorded regularly was giving him concern. He spoke through his palace public relations officer, Chief Ibrahim Durojaiye.

    The monarch said: “This event has afforded me the opportunity to call on Governor Akinwunmi Ambode to consider the provision of good road network, neighbourhood security outfit, water and job opportunities for the youth in Ogudu community so that they can be useful to themselves and the society as well as discourage them from engaging in criminal activities.”

    He added that the Lagos State government should provide more security personnel at Ogudu bus stop to monitor activities of hoodlums who attack innocent citizens who are either waiting for bus or passersby.

  • APC chief denies leading attack on community

    An All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain in Ebonyi State and National Coordinator of Buhari/Osinbajo Initiative for Demonstrating Change, Comrade Chinedu Ogah, has denied allegations that he was involved in the destruction of property in Item Amagu community of Ikwo Local Government Area.

    Ogah told reporters in Abakaliki, the state capital, the allegation was baseless, spurious and politically motivated.

    The family of the late Boniface Nweke accused the APC chieftain on the state-owned media, EBBC, of leading the squad that destroyed their property.

    But Ogah said on the day of the incident, he was with APC State Chairman Ben Nwobashi, executives of the party, including some reporters at Ekpomaka Ward in Ikwo Local Government Area for a solidarity rally for President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.

    He said: “I am an APC member, formerly of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). So many other persons have defected to APC because of me. Nobody should use his position to level unfounded allegation against me as I am not at war with the present administration in the state.

    “On the day of the incident, there was a solidarity rally we organised for President Buhari’s administration and the APC chairman in the state. The following morning, I left for Kaduna. I’m not a ghost and I cannot be in two places at the same time.

    “I cannot fight a community that has benefited from me in job creation, construction of health centres, churches and roads. This is merely an attempt by some desperate politicians to tarnish my image.”

  • Community leaders sue for peace in Ifako, Oworo

    Leaders of Ifako community have appealed to residents of the area to continue to live in peace with their neighbours in Oworonshoki.

    Their spokesman, Otunba Adeoye Ogundunmade, said the appeal became necessary because of violence in both communities.

    Ogundunmade, the Otun Baale of Ifako, said Ifako was not under Oworonshoki, adding that only five hectares of land were released by the Lagos State Government to the Oworo family by virtue of a 1994 consent judgment in suit ID /390/94 delivered by Justice Olayinka Adagun (rtd).

    The five hectares, he said, were carved out from the 5000 hectares of land in Oworoshoki/Oko-Cole compulsorily acquired by the defunct Western Region in 1958.

    Ogundunmade said the Saliu family, in an October 12, 1994 letter, accepted the five hectares “in full and final settlement of their claim to the land”.

    Ogundunmade said he has petitioned the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) to complain about the acts of thuggery by some people.

    He listed Waidi aka Obasanjo, Supol, Barrister, Sondoko and Nuru aka  Aremo as those fuelling the crisis.

    Baale of Ifako, Chief Sule Kadiri said Ifako was not under Oworo, stating: “There are four ruling houses in Ifako namely, Kadiri, Oso-Are, Okedeyi and Omotosho ruling houses.

    “For the avoidance of doubt, I want to emphasise that Ifako is not a town appendix to, or under Oworonshoki. The two towns are separate and distinct communities”.

    He traced Ifako history to 1765 when Pa Sanni Oso-Are, a descendant of the Oloto Royal family of Lagos, founded the community and became its first Baale.

    “His brother Okedeyi Oso-Are who had joined him became the second Baale . Asani  Oso-Are became the third Baale,” the Baale  said.

     

  • Stand with your son, Abia governor tells community

    Abia State Governor Okezie Ikpeazu has urged the people of Isiala Ngwa South Local Government Area to stand by their son, who is the Speaker of the House of Assembly, Chikwendu Kalu.

    Speaking when he received the people of the area who came on a solidarity visit to him, Ikpeazu said those behind the plot to recall the speaker should give peace a chance.

    The people of the area, through their council chairman, Ifeanyi Isikaku, read a communique a four-point communique, saying: “That we pass a vote of implicit confidence on our son, member representing Isiala Ngwa South State constituency and the Speaker, Abia State House of Assembly Rt Hon Chikwendu Kalu.

    “That we disassociate ourselves and indeed the good people of Isiala Ngwa South council area from the purported malicious publication in some national dailies of 22nd March, 2017 on the recall process against the speaker.

    “That we urge the good people of Abia State and the House of Assembly to disregard and discountenance the said publications as being frivolous and the handiwork of faceless detractors who have no good in tensions for our people and the state.

    “We hereby pledge our unalloyed loyalty to our son and the speaker of Abia State House of Assembly, Rt Hon Chikwendu Kalu a s well as the Abia State government under the leadership of Dr Okezie Ikpeazu.”

    At the House of Assembly, Kalu thanked his people for coming to stand by him and assured them that he would work for the good of the state.”

    At a meeting held by the political stakeholders in Isiala Ngwa South local government area, they condemned the recent call by some people suspected to come from the area calling for Kalu to resign or be recalled.

    They released a communique signed by 87 people condemning the actions of some members of the council and called them to retrace their steps or face the consequences.

    The four-point communique reads: “That we pass a vote of implicit confidence on our son, member representing Isiala Ngwa South State constituency and the Speaker, Abia State House of Assembly Rt Hon Chikwendu Kalu.

    “That we disassociate ourselves and indeed the good people of Isiala Ngwa South council area from the purported malicious publication in some national dailies of 22nd March, 2017 on the recall process against the speaker.

    “That we urge the good people of Abia State and the House of Assembly to disregard and discountenance the said publications as being frivolous and the handiwork of faceless detractors who have no good in tensions for our people and the state.

    “We hereby pledge our unalloyed loyalty to our son and the speaker of Abia State House of Assembly, Chikwendu Kalu a s well as the Abia State government under the leadership of Dr Okezie Ikpeazu.”

     

  • Okowa hails firm for community relations

    Okowa hails firm for community relations

    •Inaugurates projects

    Delta State Governor Ifeanyi Okowa has hailed Seplat Petroleum Development Company for the progress it is making in the development of its host communities in Delta and Edo states.

    He spoke at the inauguration of eight projects embarked on by the NPDC SEPLAT Joint Venture in Ugborhen community, Sapele Local Government.

    The projects inaugurated by the governor include: the 3.6km Elume-Ugborhen road; 3.4km Ugborhen-Ugbukurusu road; 3.76km Ugborhen-Ikeresan road; 1.09km Okuovu-1 community road; Concrete drainage system/road protection in Ugborhen; Ugborhen Housing Scheme; Ugborhen Solar Powered Water Scheme; two blocks of four-classrooms and science laboratory at Adaka Grammar School; Ugborhen Ultra-modern town hall and civic centre.

    Okowa noted that investments by companies, such as  Seplat in the development of host communities would enhance the confidence of indigenes of oil producing communities, while encouraging peace in the Niger Delta and the country as a whole.

    He advised other oil prospecting companies to emulate Seplat’s effort in developing their host communities.

    Okowa said: “I am glad to see partnerships like this between oil prospecting companies and their host communities. The job of government will be much lighter if oil companies and communities partner in this manner to develop our communities. I congratulate Seplat for the good work it has done since it came into operation. I also congratulate the community for working together with the company as I look forward to seeing more oil prospecting companies engaging in this kind of positive relationships.”

    He donated ten million naira to the community for the furnishing of the town hall and civic centre.

    The governor promised to build an examination hall at the Adaka Grammar School, Ugborhen.

    The Chief Executive Officer of Seplat Petroleum, Mr. Austin Avuru, who thanked the governor for honouring Seplat’s invitation, said the welfare of members of the communities hosting the company’s operation would always remain its priority.

    He said Seplat was committed to the progress of residents “of these communities and this influenced the decision to periodically embark on development projects affecting the health, education and general well-being of the people as contained in the global MOU Seplat signed with its host communities in 2010.”

  • Niger community signs $250m rice production contract

    Niger community signs $250m rice production contract

    The Loguma community in Agaie Local Government Area of Niger State has signed a $250 million contract with Uzza Rice Mill in Kano State.

    The contract is expected to address the increasing price of rice in the country. Under the contract,  the community’s farmers will send the rice they planted to the mill for processing.

    The Loguma Cluster Chairman, John Ndagi, said the contract would improve the lot of farmers and give an awakening to rice farming in the state.

    He said all year round, rice farming was now possible with the intervention of Fadama 3 Additional Financing which rehabilitated the irrigation scheme in the community and trained them on contract farming and group dynamics.

    “Because of Fadama’s intervention, the harvest last year was wonderful. We have signed a $250 dollar contract with Uzza Rice Mill in Kano. Fadama have helped the rice farmers in the community to widen their scope and improve their economic base,” he said.

    Ndagi said the rehabilitation of the irrigation scheme has helped a lot in the cultivation, adding that 140 hectares of rice farm was covered by the irrigation scheme. He also said the road network constructed by Fadama in the community has also helped in easy movement of goods into towns.

  • Ogun community protests poor power supply, high tariff

    Residents of Ado-Odo Community Development Association, in Ado- Odo Local Council Development Area (LCDA) of Ogun State have protested what they described as unjustifiable poor power supply in the area.

    The peaceful protest, which was held at the head office of the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC), Ring Road Ibadan, was embarked upon by community leaders and members of the community.

    The protesters said the current economic hardship experienced in the country is being compounded by epileptic power supply, as many small businesses in the area have been crippled due to lack of electricity supply.

    They claimed that the tariff, which is largely based on estimation, is unjustifiable as it is not commensurate with services rendered.

    Speaking on behalf of the community, the chairman of community development association for power distribution in Ado-Odo, Mr. Abayomi Aina, said the company has not been fair to residents of the community in terms of power supply.

    He said: “We are here to protest the poor power supply in our area. The manager in our local government, Mrs. Falusi purposely drops our light without justifiable reason.

    “We hardly have light a day in a week. When we complained about the abnormality, the manager becomes angry. As a result of this poor power supply, our cables are always stolen. The bills they bring to our people are always outrageous.

    “We have severally presented our case to the IBEDC office in Sango Ota but nothing was done about it. We want you to come to our rescue for our people to enjoy more power supply. We are ready to pay if they give us light.”

    The Chairman of the community association, Alhaji Rahaman Balogun, said the community is ready to pay, provided the company is supplying power to them steadily.

    When contacted, the manager, Mrs. Falusi said members of the community were not paying their bills and that was why the company is not supplying them light regularly.

    The customers care officer in charge of Sango axis for IBEDC Mr. Akinbodunse Shedrach promised to intervene in the matter.

    He compelled the community leaders to ensure prompt payment of their bills in order to enjoy improved power supply in the area.

  • Community raises alarm over activities of land grabbers

    The Akinyemi Ogundimu Family of Ijere in Obafemi Owode Local Government Area of Ogun State has urged the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Mr Ibrahim Idris, to prevail on the police especially Zone II Command to check the activities of some alleged land grabbers in the area.
    The family’s lawyer, I. O. Akinfenwa, in a petition to the Ogun State Commissioner of Police, dated March 22, 2017, said following a judgement delivered by Justice O.O. Majekodunmi, on April 15, 2015, the Akinyemi family had been adjudged as the owners of Ijere land and its environs.
    He said the judgement was sequel to suit number: AB/44/2009- filed by Rev. Olatunji Abiodun and others (Ogundimu family) against Mr Joshua Alejolowo (Orunmakinde family) in which the judge granted all reliefs of the Ogundimus and dismissed the counter claim of the Orunmakinde.
    The lawyer added: “It is important to stress that another action, suit number AB/65/2009 – Mr. Joshua Alejolowo vs Solomon Ezekiel and others initiated by the Orunmakindes against the Ogundimus was also dismissed while the other one, suit number: AB/71/2009- Royal Q2 Properties Limited vs Rev Olatunji Abiodun and others instituted by one of the privies of the Orunmakindes was equally dismissed on April 15, 2015, by Justice Majekodunmi.”
    But he said sometime in December last year, the Ogundimus were shocked that some thugs were planning to forcibly take over the Ijere land.