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Tag: Delta State

  • Tribunal sacks James Manager, orders fresh election

    THE Delta State Election Petitions Tribunal (Panel 11) on Saturday nullified the victory of Senator James Manager of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    Former Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan (APC), dissatisfied with the victory of James Manager, had approached the court, seeking redress.

    The tribunal ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct a rerun election in 90 days within the six local government areas of the affected zone.

    In the petition, Uduaghan alleged over-voting in the district, which resulted in massive ballot-box stuffing and distorted result sheets, which the tribunal averred that he proved through video clips, oral and written submissions.

    Justice O.O. Onyeabo, who presided over the matter in suit marked EPT/DT/SEN/11/2019, hinged his verdict on the ability of Uduaghan to prove his allegation of over-voting.

    Read Also: Delta communities now battleground for cultists

    In another judgement, marked suit no. EPT/DT/SEN/01/2019, judgement was given in favour of the Deputy Senate President, Chief Ovie Omo-Agege (APC) against Hon. Evelyn Oboro of the PDP in the Delta Central Senatorial District.

    The tribunal ruled that Oboro’s petition was dead on arrival as she could not prove her allegation of irregularities.

    Also Delta State Election Petitions Tribunal (‘Panel III’) in suit no. EPT/DT/SEN/13/2019, by Senator Peter Nwaoboshi (PDP), judgement was given against Hon. Doris Uboh (APC), a former House of Representatives member.

    Giving verdict on the matter, Justice E. I. Ngene said INEC was right to have declared Nwaoboshi as the winner of the Delta North Senatorial Election, having pulled the highest vote cast, and thereby upheld his victory.

    He blamed Uboh for failing to prove her allegation of over-voting and padding of result sheets.

     

  • ‘I am dying slowly with one kidney’, says bomb blast convict Okah

    THE man convicted of masterminding the 2010 Independence Day anniversary in Abuja, Charles Okah, claims he is dying slowly in prison owning to lack of access to medical treatment.

    Okah who is currently confined in the Maiduguri prison says he has been living with a kidney in the last 37 years but his condition is deteriorating in prison.

    He wants the Comptroller-General of Nigerian Correctional Service, Ja’afaru Ahmed to either transfer him to Abuja or Lagos for better care.

    Okah was jailed for life with his co-defendant, Obi Nwabueze, for masterminding the bomb blasts which occurred in Abuja on October 1, 2010 and, earlier in Warri, Delta State, on March 15 of the same year in a court presided over by Justice Gabriel Kolawole.

    The two convicts were said to have conspired with Henry Okah, who was the leader of the defunct Movement for the Emancipation of Niger Delta (MEND).

    Henry was jailed by a South African court in 2013 for similar offences and sentenced to 24 years’ imprisonment.

    The conviction is currently before the Court of Appeal.

    Read Also: Suspects in Edo prison bomb plot held

    But Okah said he is almost losing the only kidney left with him.

    His plea was contained in a September 3, 2019 letter to the Comptroller-General by his counsel, C. A. Mishael.

    Mishael said “We are solicitor to Mr. Charles Tombra Okah (our client) who is presently under your custody at the Maximum Security Prisons. Borno State. His conviction by Federal High Court Abuja is currently the subject of appeal at the Court of Appeal. Abuja.

    “Our client has been living on a single kidney for the past 37 years and this fact, without gainsaying, makes it imperative for constant medical attention which he has not been getting at the Maiduguri Maximum Prisons.

    “While he was being held at the Kuje Prisons, he had access to medical experts at the National Hospital Abuja.

    “More recently, our client has been experiencing uncontrolled hand tremor and has been passing blood in his urine. He also has developed other ailments that require urgent and expert medical review.

    “The Maximum Security Prison in Maiduguri Borno State, where he is presently being held lacks both the expertise and facilities to treat our client of the kidney related ailments and other health challenges he is currently facing.

    “We therefore apply that the controller in Maiduguri be directed to grant our client permission to attend a medical facility that has the facility to adequately treat him.

    “In the alternative, we apply that our client be transferred back to Abuja or Lagos Prisons from where he can have access to proper medical treatment.

    “While we anticipate your usual cooperation, please accept the assurances of our highest consideration.”

  • Kits for 100 pupils in Delta community 

    Indigent parents and pupils in Onicha Ugbo, a Delta State community on Saturday received school kits and other education materials which were donated by a non-profit group Anioma Youth Network for Development (AYND).

    The group, which was founded by Odita Sunday, a journalist, has, since 2017, embarked on Back-to-School projects where items such as school bags, books, uniforms and other stationery are provided to indigent and orphaned children to boost their drive for education.

    Funded by savings from the Odita’s monthly income and goodwill from some of his trusted friends, he, at this year’s event held at Amed Hotel Event Centre, Onicha Ugbo said the project was dear to his heart because it was a dream he nursed since he was a child.

    According to him, one does not have to be a millionaire to lend a hand of care to the needy, adding that giving to the less privileged people must be done with a determined heart.

    “A total of 112 pupils of primary and secondary schools that are within the bracket of the less privileged people bracket benefited from the AYND back-to-school initiative in 2017. They received school bags, mathematical sets, note books, literature in English books and other learning materials.

    “Last year, 111 beneficiaries similarly received school materials as the new academic session was about to begin. Two widows also received N25,000.

    “This time around, no fewer than 100 students and pupils from Onicha Ugbo, Issele-Uku, Ubulu-Uku, Obior, Asaba, Igbodo communities shared in the school materials made available.

    “The programme was strategically planned to take place at a time when primary and secondary schools in the country would be resuming for a new academic session. It is a period parents are usually under pressure to pay school fees and buy all the necessary materials for their children and wards.

    “It is our little way of demonstrating our passion and commitment to humanity. I am not driven by any political intentions or monetary gains but rather by the passion to be my brother’s and sister’s keeper through this onerous task of trying to lend a helping hand to our less privileged ones,” he said.

    Speaking at the event, the monarch of Onicha Ugbo His Royal Majesty (HRM) Agbogidi Victor Chukwumalieze recalled how difficult it was for less privileged children of his generation to access western education due to poverty and lack of help.

    He explained that less privileged children in contemporary times were luckier than his generation as kind-hearted people such as the AYND founder were ready to render some helping hands which was not the case in his days.

    He advised the children to leverage on the opportunity offered them and shun vices that were ravaging the country.

  • Delta community protests ‘abandoned’ road project

    Those indigenous to Asaba-Ase community in Ndokwa East Local Government Area of Delta State have staged a peaceful protest over the alleged abandonment of the 7km Asaba-Ase/Abari Road linking Ndokwa East, Isoko South and Patani local government areas.

    Ase is a coastal community on the shores of the Ase River, off River Niger in Ndokwa North.

    Ase River derives its name from Ase Town.

    Ase is an idyllic countryside with a spectacular and breathtaking natural beach, evergreen rain-forest vegetation rich in flora and fauna which overhangs the Ase Creek.

    It shares common boundaries with Ibedeni, Onyah, Aviara, Uzere, Patani (all in Delta State) and Trofani (in Bayelsa State).

    During the colonial era, Ase served as the commercial and administrative headquarters for the colonial administrators. Relics of colonial presence still dot the landscape. John Holt and the United African Company (UAC) are some of the companies that had trade offices and warehouses in Ase.

    The town is made up of descendants from Ndokwa speakers who have inter-married with the Isoko and Ijaw over the years.

    The protesters alleged that the road project (a major artery) had been abandoned for over one year ago.

    The scene was charged as women, youths and the elderly, singing solidarity songs trooped out to demand a return of the contractor to site.

    Many placards-carrying protesters decried the neglect and disruption of social life occasioned by the bad road.

    Placards with inscriptions such as “Asaba-Ase is suffering for lack of road”, ‘The Road Master come to our aid” “Our road have been abandoned” and “Senator Nwaboshi, Ossai, Osanebi, Okowa, Buhari, please come and help us Asaba -Ase people’’, dotted huge crowd of protesting residents.

    The residents lamented that farm produce could not get to the cities due to the deplorable nature of the road.

    Speaking during the protest, President-General of the community, Anabogu Nosike Godfrey said: “My people in Asaba-Ase community have been suffering because of the bad road. We have had this problem before 2012 and subsequent government has been coming to say they have been doing this road but thank God Ekuweme (Governor Okowa) you came to office. You awarded contract for this road three times to people but the unfortunate part of it is, the contract was awarded to people without names, signpost or whatever and when they came, the drainage we were managing before, they crushed it and the internal roads were destroyed.”

    Continuing, he said: “Since the award of contract for the 7km Asaba-Ase/Abari Road by you over a year ago, nothing has been done. We are begging you Ekuweme to come to our aid. We dropped our written letter with the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Works in Asaba about this road and nobody has come to verify our complaint.

    “The road from Uzere in Isoko South Local Government Area to Asaba-Ase was destroyed by the 2012 floods. When the community cried out, by the special grace of God, intervention came through the Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA) which worked on it.

    But last year’s flood disaster destroyed the road and nothing has been done since despite our cries and series of written letters to the concerned authorities.”

    He further added: “Governor Okowa, we know what you can do. Kindly help us and call FERMA on the Uzere /Asaba-Ase Road and prevail on the contractor handling the Asaba-Ase/ Abari Road back to site to resume construction on the abandoned road in the area to give us a sense of belonging.

    “We are also experiencing ecological problem here; erosion is affecting us seriously and if urgent measures are not taken, Asaba-Ase will be wiped out from the face of the earth. We need help or else Asaba-Ase which is the gateway to other coastal communities in Bayelsa, Rivers, Anambra and other states, will be cut off from the state.”

    Mr. Anagbogu said the road constructed in the late 1980s during General Ibrahim Babangida’s regime, was annually washed off by flood.

    Anagbogu expressed sadness that residents’ commitment to President Buhari’s call to agriculture had been defeated by their inability to move their produce out for higher economic gain, thereby rendering the local farmers hopeless and helpless.

    According to him, the President advised Nigerians to go back to farming which we complied with. But the state of the road has rendered us helpless.

    His words: “The condition we are experiencing is terrible because the place is extremely bad and any moment from now, as the flood is coming, we will not know the state we belong to; Delta, Bayelsa or Rivers.

    “Our only occupation is farming and if there are no roads to market our goods, then we are in danger. We are part of Delta State and we also want to feel the presence of Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, Senator Peter Nwaoboshi, Ossai Ossai and Friday Osanebi and government in Asaba-Ase. We are peace-loving people hence this peaceful protest. We are begging government to come to our aid,” he said.

    Mrs. Queen Obodoagu lamented the poor patronage of their farm produce because of the bad nature of the roads.

    She said: “Customers are no longer coming to buy our goods because of the bad nature of Asaba-Ase Road and for that reason our goods from the farm are getting bad on daily basis because nobody is coming to buy or trade market with us.”

    But, in a swift reaction, Delta State Commissioner of Works, James Augoye debunked the insinuation that the road project has been abandoned. He said this while briefing reporters in Asaba, the state capital.

    His words: “We appeal to the community, especially the demonstrators, to bear with us as the contractor will mobilise fully to site as soon as the rains subside.”

  • Kidnappers free Okowa’s sister-in-law

    The younger sister to wife of Delta State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, abducted last week has been released, The Nation has learnt.

    Elizabeth, younger sister to Mrs. Edith Okowa, was allegedly abducted by gunmen at Temple Clinic junction along Anwai road near Government House in Asaba ,the State Capital.

    The victim was said to have released on Thursday morning after over N150million was allegedly paid as ransom to secure her freedom.

    Read Also: Delta won’t regret voting for me, says Okowa

    A source from Government House confirmed her release but denied knowledge of payment of ransom.

    Delta State Commissioner of Police, Adeyinka Adeleke, denied knowledge of the release.

    He said: “I’m just hearing it from you, I don’t have that information that she was abducted not alone to have information that she been released. I no hear go, so is not possible for me to hear come.”

     

  • Stakeholders disagree on NDDC Board’s composition

    THE reconstitution of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) Board drew more reactions on Monday.

    Some of those who reacted hailed President Muhammadu Buhari for the caliber of people he nominated into the Board. Others kicked and demanded a reversal of the presidential decision.

    The Western Ijaw Consultative Assembly kicked against the nomination of Bernard Okumagba, an Urhobo as the Board chairman, arguing that an Ijaw ought to have been nominated to head the board.

    In a statement titled: “Western Ijaw Consultative Assembly Delta Ijaw rejects NDDC Board MD nominee” and signed by Chief Ebipade Gbegha (Chairman) and  Ogbein Zidideke (Secretary), the Assembly described Okumagba’s nomination as injustice to the Ijaw.

    The groups’ spokesman said: “The Ijaw in Delta State wish to notify President Mohammadu Buhari and the National Assembly that the nomination of Bernard Okumagba of the Urhobo extraction in Delta State as the Managing Director (MD) in the new Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) board instead of an Ijaw nominee from the state is totally unacceptable.

    “This is because it is a clear case of oppression, injustice and alienation of Ijaw in Delta State by some selfish politicians acting like new pirates in power.

    “We state without fear of equivocation that any executive position slot for Delta State should be given to the Ijaw as it is our turn in line with the rotational arrangement as prescribed by the NDDC Act of 2000 Section 12 (1) which states that ‘there shall be for the commission, a managing director, and two executive directors who shall be indigenes of oil producing areas starting with the member states of the commission with the highest production quantum of oil and shall rotate amongst member states in the order of production’.

    “The emphasis on the rotation within member states with the highest production quantum of oil is to ensure equity, justice and fairness in states like Delta, where there are more than one ethnic group producing oil.The Ijaw riverside communities are the highest producers of oil and gas in the region, and by implication, the highest revenue generators in Nigeria.

    “We also bear the brunt of the pollution, degradation and environmental impacts of oil and gas exploration, production and transportation. In spite of our enormous contributions and sacrifices, we are still the most underdeveloped part of Nigeria.

    “The NDDC, which is a product of the Niger Delta struggle, was initiated as an interventionist agency to cater for the oil-bearing/impacted communities from age-long neglect.

    ‘Though all members of the region contributed to the struggle, the Ijaw no doubt sacrificed and contributed the more in the struggle. Youth of the Ijaw laid down their lives in agitating for creation of the NDDC and were tagged all sorts of names in the process.”

    But in Akwa Ibom, some youth groups hailed the appointment of a former commissioner for Culture and Tourism in the state, Victor Antai, into the NDDC Board, saying that the nomination would promote peace and bring development to the region.

    Oro International Youth Forum and Akwa Ibom Integrity Youth Foundation described Antai as a grassroots politician who will bring peace and progress to Niger Delta.

    According to them, with Antai at the helms of affairs of the Commission in the state, youth restiveness would be a thing of the past.

    In a message by its President, Christian Bassey Nyong, the Oro International Youth Forum described  Antai  “as an astute politician, a sterling administrator and effective leader, your service as a state commissioner was equally glorious and satisfactory to the Oro people, thus your willingness to sacrifice your time and effort for the development of your people in many capacities have contributed to your being selected for this new challenging responsibility which is not a surprise to us.

    “We are grateful to the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, President Muhammadu Buhari for appointing a grassroots politician with a heart of gold as NDDC Board Member and based on your pedigree, we believe that you will contribute effectively to the development of the region and help to further develop the Oro Community and Akwa Ibom State at large.”

    Read Also: Governors reject NDDC board nominees

    The Akwa Ibom Integrity Youth Foundation said: “We are particularly grateful to the President and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, President Muhammadu Buhari for finding an illustrious son of Akwa Ibom State to occupy this very exalted position to beer reposition the region for a more rapid development.”

    In Ondo, two groups – the Justice Council of the Oil Producing Communities in Ondo State (JCOPC) and National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN) urged the President to reverse the appointments in the interest of justice.

    They charged the Federal Government to honour the Act establishing the NDDC in the interest of the rule of law.

    JCOPC said its members and the entire oil producing communities in the state were shocked that the constitution of the board as announced by the government violated the NDDC Act.

    A statement by its spokesman Prince Segun Odolo said: “We condemn the purported composition because it violated the Act of NDDC and it is capable of causing disharmony among the member states of the commission.

    The NYCN in a statement by its Secretary General Blessing Akinlosotu called for immediate review of the appointment.

    He said the office of the chairman must rotate among the member states in alphabetical order, while that of Managing Director (MD)/Executive Director (ED) shall rotate according to the production volume.

    The group said: “Based on the Act, Delta State is to produce the next chairman of the commission while Ondo State will produce the MD in line with the provision of the Act.”

    According to JCOPC, “Ondo State is the fifth largest producer of oil in the country, following the quantum of its production in ranking order as Akwa Ibom (31.4 per cent); Delta (21.7 per cent); Rivers (21.4 per cent);  Balyesa (18.1 per cent); Ondo (3.7 per cent) Edo (2.1 per cent); Imo (1.1 per cent); Abia 0.7 (per cent) and Cross River (0.8 per cent”.

    The group lamented that Ondo has never occupied the position since the establishment of the interventionist agency.

    It rejected the appointment on the grounds that the composition violated the Act that established NDDC, describing it is a continuation of the subversion of the commission’s Act.

    JCOPC said: “The composition is an aberration and a rape on the sanctity of the Act that established the NDDC. We call on Mr. President, a man of justice to right the wrong.

    “While Ondo state was denied the opportunities of becoming the chairman and Managing Director, the stakeholders said some states had occupied the position on two occasions. Apart from the position of the managing director, nobody from Ondo state has ever been considered for the post of Executive Directors in the NDDC.

    “As the fifth largest producer behind  Akwa Ibom, Delta, Rivers and Bayelsa states, who have taken their turns, it is now the turn of Ondo State to occupy the position of the MD of the commission.”

  • Governors plan relief for travellers as Enugu airport is shut

    SOUTHEAST governors have initiated relief measures to soften the pains for travelers as a result of the closure of the Akanu Ibiam Airport in Enugu for runway repairs.

    The governors will meet tomorrow to fine-tune the plans, Enugu and Ebonyi State Governments said yesterday.

    Some of the measures partly unfolded include giving security cover and transportation to people flying into the region through the Oerri airport and the Asaba Airport.

    Enugu State Government, according to a statement by Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Prof. Simon Uchenna Ortuanya, said: “Following the closure of the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu for repairs, Enugu State Government is deeply concerned about the plight of air travelers from the state, who have to travel through Sam Mbakwe International Cargo Airport, Owerri, Imo State and Asaba Airport, Delta State to get to their various destinations.

    “The state government is specifically concerned about the challenges of transportation and security the air passengers will face.

    “In the light of the above, the governors will meet on Saturday, August 31, 2019, to among other issues, deliberate on the challenges and come up with a regional plan to be adopted.

    Read Also: Enugu gets new police commissioner

    “After the meeting, Enugu State government will announce its palliative measures and strategies to cushion the effect of the challenges on the air travelers.”

    The Ebonyi State Government said in addition to the security escorts it will provide free transport services and accommodation for its citizens in Owerri, the Imo state capital.

    It, however, called on indigenes of the state to reduce their trips, pending the completion of the renovation of the Enugu Airport.

    A statement issued by the Secretary to the Ebonyi State Government, Kenneth Ugbala, urged indigenes to be security conscious while traveling until all the palliative measures have been put in place within two weeks.

    The government urged its citizens to route their air travels to the alternative airport in Owerri, Imo State pending the completion of the renovation of Enugu Airport.

    The statement said:  “Ebonyi State Government under the leadership of Governor David Nweze Umahi, has expressed great concern over the safety of Ebonyi citizens and visitors to the state following the closure of the Akanu Ibiam International airport, Enugu.

    “Government also calls on her citizens to minimize the rate of traveling as much as possible within this period and being security conscious while traveling until all these palliative measures are put in place within two weeks from now”.

    “Following this closure and its attendant challenges on air travelers from Ebonyi State, the state government is making the following palliative measures for her citizens as long as the renovation works last.”

  • Delta community protests ‘abandoned’ road project

    Those indigenous to Asaba-Ase community in Ndokwa East Local Government Area of Delta State have staged a peaceful protest over the alleged abandonment of the 7km Asaba-Ase/Abari Road linking Ndokwa East, Isoko South and Patani local government areas.

    Ase is a coastal community on the shores of the Ase River, off River Niger in Ndokwa North.

    Ase River derives its name from Ase Town.

    Ase is an idyllic countryside with a spectacular and breathtaking natural beach, evergreen rain-forest vegetation rich in flora and fauna which overhangs the Ase Creek.

    It shares common boundaries with Ibedeni, Onyah, Aviara, Uzere, Patani (all in Delta State) and Trofani (in Bayelsa State).

    During the colonial era, Ase served as the commercial and administrative headquarters for the colonial administrators. Relics of colonial presence still dot the landscape. John Holt and the United African Company (UAC) are some of the companies that had trade offices and warehouses in Ase.

    The town is made up of descendants from Ndokwa speakers who have inter-married with the Isoko and Ijaw over the years.

    The protesters alleged that the road project (a major artery) had been abandoned for over one year ago.

    The scene was charged as women, youths and the elderly, singing solidarity songs trooped out to demand a return of the contractor to site.

    Many placards-carrying protesters decried the neglect and disruption of social life occasioned by the bad road.

    Placards with inscriptions such as “Asaba-Ase is suffering for lack of road”, ‘The Road Master come to our aid” “Our road have been abandoned” and “Senator Nwaboshi, Ossai, Osanebi, Okowa, Buhari, please come and help us Asaba -Ase people’’, dotted huge crowd of protesting residents.

    The residents lamented that farm produce could not get to the cities due to the deplorable nature of the road.

    Speaking during the protest, President-General of the community, Anabogu Nosike Godfrey said: “My people in Asaba-Ase community have been suffering because of the bad road. We have had this problem before 2012 and subsequent government has been coming to say they have been doing this road but thank God Ekuweme (Governor Okowa) you came to office. You awarded contract for this road three times to people but the unfortunate part of it is, the contract was awarded to people without names, signpost or whatever and when they came, the drainage we were managing before, they crushed it and the internal roads were destroyed.”

    Continuing, he said: “Since the award of contract for the 7km Asaba-Ase/Abari Road by you over a year ago, nothing has been done. We are begging you Ekuweme to come to our aid. We dropped our written letter with the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Works in Asaba about this road and nobody has come to verify our complaint.

    “The road from Uzere in Isoko South Local Government Area to Asaba-Ase was destroyed by the 2012 floods. When the community cried out, by the special grace of God, intervention came through the Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA) which worked on it.

    But last year’s flood disaster destroyed the road and nothing has been done since despite our cries and series of written letters to the concerned authorities.”

    He further added: “Governor Okowa, we know what you can do. Kindly help us and call FERMA on the Uzere /Asaba-Ase Road and prevail on the contractor handling the Asaba-Ase/ Abari Road back to site to resume construction on the abandoned road in the area to give us a sense of belonging.

    “We are also experiencing ecological problem here; erosion is affecting us seriously and if urgent measures are not taken, Asaba-Ase will be wiped out from the face of the earth. We need help or else Asaba-Ase which is the gateway to other coastal communities in Bayelsa, Rivers, Anambra and other states, will be cut off from the state.”

    Mr. Anagbogu said the road constructed in the late 1980s during General Ibrahim Babangida’s regime, was annually washed off by flood.

    Anagbogu expressed sadness that residents’ commitment to President Buhari’s call to agriculture had been defeated by their inability to move their produce out for higher economic gain, thereby rendering the local farmers hopeless and helpless.

    According to him, the President advised Nigerians to go back to farming which we complied with. But the state of the road has rendered us helpless.

    His words: “The condition we are experiencing is terrible because the place is extremely bad and any moment from now, as the flood is coming, we will not know the state we belong to; Delta, Bayelsa or Rivers.

    “Our only occupation is farming and if there are no roads to market our goods, then we are in danger. We are part of Delta State and we also want to feel the presence of Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, Senator Peter Nwaoboshi, Ossai Ossai and Friday Osanebi and government in Asaba-Ase. We are peace-loving people hence this peaceful protest. We are begging government to come to our aid,” he said.

    Mrs. Queen Obodoagu lamented the poor patronage of their farm produce because of the bad nature of the roads.

    She said: “Customers are no longer coming to buy our goods because of the bad nature of Asaba-Ase Road and for that reason our goods from the farm are getting bad on daily basis because nobody is coming to buy or trade market with us.”

    But, in a swift reaction, Delta State Commissioner of Works, James Augoye debunked the insinuation that the road project has been abandoned. He said this while briefing reporters in Asaba, the state capital.

    His words: “We appeal to the community, especially the demonstrators, to bear with us as the contractor will mobilise fully to site as soon as the rains subside.”

  • ‘I love mentoring young artists’

    In this interview with Edozie Udeze, Philip Nzekwe, an Asaba based artist and owner of the Academic Studio of Art talks about how he has used his platform to mentor and empower many young artists in Asaba and its environ. He says it is time to expand the frontiers of the art

    Philip Nzekwe is an artist, who owns that popular and conspicuous studio located at the outskirts of Asaba, the Delta State capital.  The name of the studio/workshop isa Academic Studio of Art.  It is where he engages more on woodworks, sculptures and metal works.  But today Nzekwe is on his way to Lagos, where he has secured a place not just to diversify his trade but to also extend the frontiers of Academic Studios, his brand of arts which involves working and mentoring.  “Oh, yes, my studio is in Asaba.  But I come to Lagos often to do my shows, meet with people and make other contacts.  Now, I think it is time to move on; time to relocate to Lagos.  I have therefore acquired a place for my new studio at the outskirts of town”. he said.

    Nzekwe was trained at the Delta State University, Abraka and the University of Benin.  Presently a Doctoral degree student, he says he pursues his profession with undue dexterity.  “It is located around Mountain of Fire Church, along Ibadan – Lagos Expressway.  In fact, I have just set up a studio there.  What I intend doing is come here to Lagos for three weeks, work and then move to Asaba for the same period of time.  I will still maintain my studio at Asaba for the sake of the name I have made and the set of people and clientele that I have formed over the years”.

    For the past 17 years, Nzekwe has been an unmistakable image at that spot where you can hardly pass without starring at his works.  Within those years he had mentored a lot of artists some of who are now abroad pursuing different careers in fashion, architecture and more.  “Yes, when I want to work on woods or heavy metals, I work in Asaba, but the rest will be here in Lagos.  The rest like urban life style will be done here.  It makes it lots easier.  First, when I began in Asaba I rented a place but before too long I had acquired that permanent place where I have Academic Studio.  Since 2010 I have been running that permanent place.  It is now time to have another branch.  I think this is in the spirit of growth; time really to expand”.

    In the past years, Nzekwe had been involved in a lot of exhibitions in Lagos and beyond.  His works have often spelt him out on those occasions, having been known to be an exceptional sculptor who captivated his admirers with outstanding works of art.  “I have a lot of buyers in Lagos”, he intoned with a blissful smile.  “It is time to be closer to them now.  The truth is that the artist cannot be separated from his life style and way of living.  So Asaba studio for me is where I live so also is Lagos.  But most importantly in Asaba after all these years, I have been able to influence a lot of people not only in the place but in the whole of Delta State.  I have my pieces in public places there; I also have art and community workshops which I organize from time to time for the young ones.  I used to use that to reach out to the whole community.

    He explained further: “In fact I have enriched generations and generations of artists in those areas.  So there is no way I can completely abandon my Asaba studio.  It is not possible.  What happens is that there are one or two artists who will man the place while I am away.  There too, I used to visit secondary schools to teach students the rudiments of art.  It is termed the outreach.  Once every two weeks, I’d pick a secondary school where I’d go to teach them; I mentor them as well.  This way a lot of them have gone into the university to study Fine Arts.  One is now in France studying Architecture.  The other one is studying in England.  So it gives me pleasure to do this, to see many young people go into this profession”.

    As he makes it here in Lagos Nzekwe does not want to forget the name of the studio he has spent a long time to establish for himself.  “Yes, it is still the Academic Studio of Art.  It is my identity; it is my signature”, he replied with enthusiasm.  “Asaba is the main studio.  In the studio, people often come to me after work in evening to relax and discuss.  This is basically why I named it Academic Studio.  There we talk about global issues, environmental issues and social issues as they pertain to us as a people.  Outside woodworks, metal works and other forms of the visual, we have time to delve into social issues.  Thus, it was apt for me to name my studio Academic Studio of art.  We, in the process, also talk about the girl-child, how the people can show interest in the art and how genital mutilation and rape can be stopped”.

    This was how his studio was gradually turned into an avenue for intellectual discussions.  With time the popularity grew in the whole of Asaba and beyond.  Nzekwe became an artist who gave room for others to interact and mingle with him while he worked.  “You can see that generally art is reflected in the overall life of the people.

    In Asaba you might not have people who usually stroll in to collect arts and paintings and sculptures like you have them in Lagos, in New York or in Berlin.  But I think the people of Asaba and Delta generally have an artistic culture.  Sometimes they come in to commission portraits and the like.  They love those sorts of art.  They buy little art pieces.  When you go into their houses, you see these adorn their homes.  This is more or less what thrives most in the area”, he explained.

    However, he believes art can be given space and time to grow in that area.  It is only the artists from that area who can make this a call of duty.  For me the people have deep sense of fashion too.  All of these come to define their sense of the visual.  Moreover visual literacy is topmost there in Delta.  You can’t take it away from them”.

    By coming to Lagos it is also for him to learn more beyond the expansion itself.  “Even tomorrow I may decide to move to New York or Berlin or Toronto to have another studio.  Art is all about expansion, experiencing new areas and so on.  I can even go to Accra, Ghana or somewhere around the shores of West Africa”.

    Generally, Nzekwe does not believe in Art Schools, rather he believes in what knowledge an artist can acquire in the process of learning.  “Some people are self-taught” he quickly chipped in.  “So, what art school are you referring to then?”  Yes, for him an artist is first of all, an artist.  What comes second is where you were trained.  Isn’t it?

    We are all artists who live to experience and explore a world of images.  It is only you as an artist who sees it the way you see it.  And you are now bringing the images to your world.  All the things in it you are the one in control.  Now going to an art school is just to give you direction, where you probably meet other artists and are taught by professional artists of higher levels.  I don’t see why the public has to look at your background, the school you are coming from to be able to judge you.  I don’t think this is proper.  It is not so important.  In fact sometimes going to a formal school just to get trained has a way of boxing your ideas; those original concepts of art you already had”.

    He had a new way of doing his art before he got to school.  However that rawness somewhat got redefined while he was at school.  “When I got out of school I had too many things in my head I said I wasn’t satisfied with.  So I said I needed to rediscover myself again.  That was what led me to go for my Masters degree.  Then I discovered that I further got boxed.  It was another problem for me.  But then I went for a residency in Kenya where I interacted with artists who did not go through formal training to be good artists.  Those experiences helped me tremendously.  Today I have begun to unlearn those issues that I do not want, that the kept boxing me up”, he said finally, with a broad grin on his face.

  • Man found hanging in front of shop in Delta

    The body of a middle aged man has been found hanging in front of a shop in Asaba, the Delta State capital.

    The incident, which occurred in the early hours of Friday in the Umuagu area of Asaba, left many residents of the area in shock.

    The residents told newsmen that the man, whose identity was unknown, was found hanging on the roof of a store on a road.

    Read Also: Girl found dead in Delta hotel

    Some residents of the area, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said they do not know the man in the neighbourhood.

    A resident of the area told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the owner of the shop refused to open for business until the corpse was removed.

    When NAN contacted the spokesperson of the Delta Police Command, DSP Onome Onovwakpoyeya, she confirmed the incident, saying the force was already on top of  the situation.

    “ The police have received the report of the incident and we are investigating the case to ascertain the cause of death,” she said.

    The police image maker also  added that the police had since evacuated the corpse of the man to the morgue.

    NAN