The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Ebonyi State

  • Police arrests seven suspected cultists in Ebonyi

    Police arrests seven suspected cultists in Ebonyi

    Seven suspected cultists including a kingpin have been arrested by the Police in Ebonyi State over recent cult activities in the state.

    The spokesman of the command, ASP George Okafor stated this in Abakaliki, the state capital.

    He the kingpin of one of the cult groups was arrested in Akaeze Ivo local government area of the state in the night while holding meeting with his group.m

    Mr Okafor further revealed that the Police stormed the meeting of another cault group at midnight  of Tuesday where twenty cult members were holding their meeting in Ntezi, Ishielu local government area following a distress call it received from residents.

    He said:‘’On sighting the police, the group ran away but one of them was later arrested and he confessed to be member of Aye confraternity.”

    The spokesman said the command also arrested three cult members in Ezza North local government area and some others in Afikpo North and South local government areas.

    He noted the police is still trailing other fleeing members of the cult groups.

    He expressed dismay over the increasing cases of cult activities in the state and warned that the command will not fold its hands and watch hoodlums disrupt existing peace in the state.

    “Those arrested will be prosecuted after investigation,” said.

  • Ebonyi community seeks govt intervention on collapsed bridge

    Residents of Ezzagu in Ishielu Local Government Area of Ebonyi State have called on the state government to reconstruct the Eguho belly bridge that collapsed three weeks ago.

    The bridge, which connects many communities, has remained a death trap.

    A resident, Benjamin Nworie, said the bridge collapsed last year after a heavy truck crossed it. The military repaired it at the time.

    Nworie lamented the government’s inability to complete the new bridge which was awarded in 2007.

    “Since the Eguho belly bridge collapsed three weeks ago, our people have been forced into untold hardship. Ordinarily, a journey of about 30 minutes now takes over six hours on the deplorable road created as a bypass.

    “When the bridge collapsed, I sent a text message to the Commissioner for Works, who acknowledged and promised to salvage the situation. By then, small vehicles could still pass on it but now it has gotten worse and only motorcycles can ply it. Residents are stranded and the community is cut off from the state.

    “The bridge is the only route linking many communities and as the condition is now, residents are forced to travel through Enugu State to get home.

    “The unity bridge beside the collapsed belly bridge was awarded in 2007 but has since been abandoned,” Nworie lamented.

    The community pleaded with Governor Dave Umahi to offer remedial assistance by repairing the belly bridge while government harps on the best way of completing the abandoned Unity Bridge.

  • Mob snatches policemen’s rifles

    Two policemen attached to the Ebonyi State command have been hospitalised following injuries they sustained when a mob attacked them at Amofia Ngbo, Ohaukwu council.

    The policemen were in the area to make arrests.

    The policemen, whose identity and ranks could not be ascertained, were dispossessed of their service AK-47 riffles.

    They had gone to Amofia Ngbo to arrest a man who stabbed another but they were attacked by a mob that prevented them from arresting the suspect.

    A source said following the attack, stern-looking policemen, in large numbers, stormed the area and started destroying things. Houses were razed in the alleged police reprisal.

    Police spokesman George Okafor confirmed the incident. He said the attacked officers were responding to treatment but their riffles were still missing.

    Okafor added that some arrests had been made.

    Residents, it was learnt, have deserted the community.

  • Ebonyi Assembly passes 2016 budget into law

    Ebonyi Assembly passes 2016 budget into law

    Ebonyi State House of Assembly Thursday passed into law the 2016 appropriation bill of one hundred and one billion, one hundred and fifty four million, six hundred and forty six thousand thirty naira (N101.1 billion) only for 2016 fiscal year.

    The passage followed the presentation of the House’s Committee on Finance and Appropriation’s report on the bill.

    After dissolving into a Committee of the whole house and considering the committee’s report, the house unanimously passed the bill into law.

    Tagged Budget of Divine Actualisation, the law set aside N62, 396,750,000.00 for capital expenditure representing 61.68 % of the budget outlay while N38, 757,896,030.00 was set aside for recurrent expenditure being 38 % of the total estimate.

    The total estimate of about N101.1b is slightly above that of 2015 which was N96.52bn.

    The economic sector got N36.890 billion the largest chunk, being 59 % of the estimate of which the governor said was with the basic aim of tackling challenges in the roads, water, electricity, agriculture, education, commerce and industrial sectors.

    The Ministry of Works got the highest allocation within the economic sector with N25 billion, representing 67.8 %, Ministry of Water Resources, N3billion, Commerce and Industry, N2billion while other Ministries shared N6.89 billion being 18.7% of the budget for the sector.

    The social sector got a total of N10.304 billion representing 16.5 % of the capital budget with education having allocation of N5.909 billion, health N2.445 billion and others N1.95 billion.

    Judiciary and regional (capital city, Abakaliki and environs) received N1.117 billion and N0.203 billion respectively.

  • Police smash robbery gang in Ebonyi

    Police smash robbery gang in Ebonyi

    The recent onslaught against the men of the underworld in Ebonyi state has led to the arrest of 18 persons on suspicion of committing various crimes ranging from armed robbery, attempted murder, unlawful possession of firearms, cultism, vandalism etc, Ebonyi Command of the Nigerian Police have said.

    Nine of the suspects were paraded to reporters on Tuesday at the Command’s headquarters in Abakaliki, the Ebonyi State Capital.

    According to the CP Peace Abdallah Ibekwe, three of the suspects Ndubuisi Iseh, Uchenna Nweke and Sunday Elom were arrested while planning to embark on a robbery attack.

    She said the gang had attacked a police patrol team at Evangel Camp Junction Okpoto Ishielu along the Abakaliki-Enugu expressway in the wee hours of the morning and inflicted bullet and machete cut wounds on them and snatched three AK47 riffles and twenty rounds of ammunition in each of the riffles.

    “While the Police officers are hospitalized, the command through intelligence led policing, diligence and gallantry smashed an intended robbery attack by the same gang the three suspects.

    “The three AK47 riffles were recovered with thirteen live ammunitions. The suspects confessed that they had planned to block Lokoja/Abuja Highway to rob innocent citizens before the command aborted their planned operations”

    She said efforts are still on to track the rest of the fleeing suspects.

    CP Ibekwe also said three other suspects Samuel Agha, Francis Okoro and Chukwu Ogbonnaya were arrested for being in possession of four locally made pistols and four live cartridges and have since been charged to court.

    Also the command arrested one Onyema Nwali, John Nwopokwu and Friday Nwakpa at Ihoto Ameka Ezza South on a tip off and recovered an AK47 from them.

    The command also swooped on a meeting of a cult group known as the Vikings Confraternity who took to their heels and in the process dropped a pistol which was recovered.

    “Again one Nnanna Igwe and Ugbu John were arrested on a tip off while planning an armed robbery operation. One locally made pistol, a live ammunition and one expended cartridge were recovered by the Police,” the CP added.

    The CP said the Police patrol team intercepted one Kelechi Alo at Abaomege-Afikpo Highway and recovered four newly made local pistols with thirteen 9mm live ammunitions from him.

    She further stated that the command’s officers in conjunction with Commercial bicycle (Okada) operators arrested two robbers who robbed two passengers on Okada dispossessing both of them of a total sum of N81,400.

    She commended the Okada operators who trailed the robbery suspects and alerted the police to effect their arrests.

    The command, the CP said, also arrested one Ndubuisi Ogbonnia and Chinedu Gabriel all of Amasiri Community in Afikpo North as they vandalized EEDC Transformer and stole the armored cables. The two suspects were charged to court where they pleaded guilty and were convicted.

    “In the same vein, one Odinaka Nwafor of Ezza Effium and Sunday Akpu of Igbudu Ekka village in Ezza South LGA vandalized EEDC Transformer and stole armored cables at Ndufu Echara village in Izzi LGA. They were arrested and later arraigned in court where they are still facing trial”.

    CP Peace restated her earlier warning to criminals to leave the state or be ready to face the onslaught of the command which have been re- strategized and re-organized for effective policing of the state.

    While appreciating the support and cooperation of relevant stakeholders, CP peace Ibekwe assured residents of the state during the yuletide and at all times.

    “The Command will continue in its efforts to stamp out criminality in the state. The Nigerian Police is driven by a leadership that demands excellence and commitment to selfless service to all Nigerians,” she concluded.

    One of the suspects, Ndubuisi Iseh confessed to the crime.

    He, however, said he was lured into the gang after they had already attacked the Police and robbed them of the guns.

  • APGA condemns Ebonyi new tax policy

    The All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) on Friday condemned the new tax policies introduced recently by the Ebonyi State government.

    The new tax policies,  according ton the party, could lead to collapse of the state’s economy.

    APGA Deputy National Secretary,  Comrade Jerry Obasi, said this in Abakaliki, the state capital.

    He also condemned the government’s demolition of some shops and attachments in the state, saying it was unwarranted because Ebonyi lacks infrastructural development.

  • Gunmen kidnap medical doctor in Ebonyi

    Gunmen kidnap medical doctor in Ebonyi

    A medical doctor, Dr. Johnson Obuna has been kidnapped in his private hospital at Aguogboriga Estate in Abakaliki by unknown gunmen.

    The doctor who is a pastor with Redeemed Christian Church of Nigeria is an Obstetrician gynecologist with the Federal Teaching Hospital, Abakaliki.

    The former state Chairman of Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) was kidnapped by unknown gunmen when he was about leaving his hospital after the day’s work.

    [ad id=”403656″]He was kidnapped on Tuesday around 9pm.

    Reacting to the incident, the Chairman of NMA, Dr. Agwu Umahi said the Association was going to hold an emergency meeting Thursday to sensitize members on the development so that all hands would be on deck to ensure his release immediately.

    In a statement, Ebonyi state police command assured the general public that the medical doctor would soon be released as the command was on top of the situation.

    Already, the Commissioner of police, CP Peace Ibekwe Abdullah  has  visited the victim’s family and deployed officers of the command toward the task of hunting down the kidnappers and releasing the victim without delay.

    Meanwhile, NMA has threatened to embark on strike if their colleague was not released.

    They said such episode has become a trend in the state and should be discouraged by security agencies in the state.

  • Ebonyi workers begin indefinite strike

    The organised labour in Ebonyi State yesterday declared an indefinite strike to begin today, following government’s non-implementation of the minimum wage and non-payment of September 2011 salary.

    Chairman of the Joint Public Service Negotiating Council Comrade Ikechukwu Nwafor, after the union’s meeting with organised labour, accused the government of its unwillingness to meet its demands.

    “Following Ebonyi State government’s unwillingness to meet the demands of the organised labour, with respect to the implementation of the report of the committee, which revisited the table of the Ebonyi State Civil/Public Service Salary Structure and September 2011 withheld salary, the organised labour in Ebonyi State hereby declares an indefinite strike, with effect from March 10.

    “Accordingly, civil/public service workers in Ebonyi State’s employ, local government employees and teachers are directed to proceed on an indefinite strike until government meets our demands.

    “Workers are mandated to stay in their homes and await further directives from the leadership of the organised labour,” the statement said.

  • Tambuwal: we’ll do justice to conference report

    House of Representatives Speaker Aminu Waziri Tambuwal has said the National Assembly is waiting to receive the report of the National Conference.

    He spoke at Agba in Ishielu Local Government Area of Ebonyi State at the funeral late Pa Moses Edeh Akuru, the father of Enugu Methodist Archbishop, Rev. Christopher Nweke Edeh, who died at 84.

    Tambuwal said the House would do justice to the report whenever it was presented to it by the executive.

    His words: “We are waiting for the National Conference report. When we get it, we will do justice to it.”

    The Speaker eulogised Pa Edeh, who was also the father of the lawmaker representing Ishielu/ Ezza North Federal Constituency, Mr. Peter Edeh, for his selfless services to his people.

    He said: “I hail the people of this community for coming out en masse to appreciate the life of our leader and father. He lived well as a community leader and served the people well. There is no better way of appreciating him than to thank God for his life.

    “We console the family and urge them to know that it is only God that can give and take life. Our happiness is that he left behind worthy children, who can do better.”

    The Prelate of Methodist Church of Nigeria, His Eminence Dr. Samuel Kanu Uche, hoped that God would settle the crises rocking the nation before the next general elections.

    He said: “My message to Nigerians is that we should go on with the 2015 elections.”

    Edeh thanked the Speaker, Ebonyi State Governor Martin Elechi, the Prelate of Methodist Church, members of his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) and other guests for attending the funeral.

  • Ebonyi Assembly decries power outage

    Ebonyi State House of Assembly yesterday urged the Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC) to improve electricity supply and provide pre-paid meters to consumers.

    This followed a threat by the residents not to pay electricity bills.

    In a motion of urgent public importance moved by Oliver Nwachukwu (Abakaliki North), the lawmakers lamented that power had moved from epileptic to zero in the state in the last one month, resulting in economic and social losses.

    Nwachukwu said: “The transformation in the power sector by the Federal Government is  threatened by the activities of the EEDC, Ebonyi State District.”

    After adopting the motion, the Speaker, Chukwuma Nwazunku, directed the Clerk to communicate the resolution of the House to the relevant authorities for action.