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Tag: Enugu State

  • Guard, 75, defiles 11-year-old in Enugu

    THE Enugu State Police Command has arrested a 75-year-old security guard, who allegedly defiled an 11-year-old girl on a school premises.

    The command’s Public Relations Officer Ebere Amaraizu said in a statement on Tuesday that the suspect was caught in the act by a good Nigerian on August 30.

    Amaraizu said that the suspect wanted to influence the good Nigerian not to bring up the alleged nefarious act.

    He said that the suspect committed the alleged offence in one of the structures at the Community Secondary School, Ugbaike in Igbo Eze Local Government Area.

    Read Also: Enugu trains vigilance groups

    Amaraizu said, “Just as the scriptural saying goes that one’s sin shall find him out, the iniquity of the man has found him out.

    “The 75-year-old man was nabbed over alleged defilement of  11-year-old.

    “It was gathered that the incident took place in one of the structures at the Community Secondary School, Ugbaike,” he said.

    According  to the police spokesman, the suspect has been asking for forgiveness, claiming  that Satan led him into the  crime.

    “The suspect is now helping the police in their investigation,” he added.

  • Nigeria needs committed leaders to be great again, says Gov. Ugwuanyi

    Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State has said that Nigeria needs committed leadership, collective patriotism and sacrifice to be great again.

    Ugwuanyi made this assertion on Tuesday during the 59th Independence Anniversary of the country at Okpara Square, Enugu.

    The governor, who was represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Prof. Simon Ortuanya, said that in spite of circumstances that had threatened the unity of the country, Nigerians had been more united.

    He said that Oct. 1 would remain a reference day in the history of the country.

    “Nigeria has been through the stormy weather and political turbulences that seriously threatened the unity of our Nation, but we have equally recorded brilliant promises that united and made us proud as Nigerians.

    “We have also seen economic prosperity with the economy of the Old Eastern Region rated as the fastest growing economy in the entire Africa,” he said.

    Ugwuanyi said that the country had also witness pathetic economic challenges that had slowed down the development of the nation.

    Read Also: Insecurity: Lawmaker hails Ugwuanyi

    “Our opinion is that Nigeria is still a growing nation and a problem identified is a problem half solved.

    “It is encouraging that we are not shying away from confronting our challenges as one people with one destiny.

    “Therefore, I have no doubt that with committed leadership and collective patriotism and sacrifice Nigeria will be great again.

    “Our heroes past shall smile again from their graves as we build a Nigeria of their dreams,” he said.

    He said that the youths of the country needed to be appreciated for their undiluted loyalty and faith in the nation.

    The governor said that his administration would continue to invest in the education sector as well as empower residents of the state.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the high points of the ceremony were march-past and cultural displays by primary and secondary schools in the state as well as a minutes’ silence in honour of the fallen founding fathers of the country.

    NAN

     

  • Enugu trains vigilance groups

    THE Enugu State government in collaboration with security agencies has started training neighbourhood watch personnel with a view to scaling up security in the state.

    The training programme, which will last for seven days, is taking place at the local council headquarters of Oji River Local Government Area.

    According to the Deputy Commander, Enugu State Neighbourhood Watch, Ernest Ifeme, the exercise is at the instance of Enugu State government, in line with Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi’s drive to ensure adequate security across the state.

    Speaking at the training venue, Ifeme informed that the training is for the 400 selected from the 20 wards of Oji River Council Area.

    “We are undergoing a 7-day training here to equip us with updated skills on how to function effectively in protecting lives and property of our respective communities, in partnership with the Police and other security agencies.

    Read Also: Enugu gets 360 patrol vehicles

    “The police, SSS and Civil Defense officers are here and we hear that the army will be here, as well, on a later date. This training phase covers all the 20 wards in Oji River LGA, with 20 neighbourhood men drawn from each ward, totaling 400 of us,” he said.

    On his part, the Deputy Transport Officer (DTO) in charge of Oji River, DSP Okonkwo, told journalists that the training was aimed at inculcating modern security skills and practices in the trainees.

     

     

  • 10 held in Enugu for ‘vandalising’ EEDC facilities

    The war against vandals in Enugu is yielding fruit as no fewer than 10 persons suspected to have damaged and stolen facilities belonging to Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC) have been arrested.

    The arrests were made betweeen August and September by government security agencies and local vigilance groups across the firm’s franchise area.

    Three of the suspects have been arraigned in court.

    This was made known to reporters by the Head of Communications, EEDC, Mr. Emeka Ezeh.

    Ezeh expressed concern over the increasing rate of vandals’ attack on the company’s installations, despite series of engagement and sensitisation to the general public on the negative effects of such attacks on its operations.

    According to him, Chigozie Nwamba, aged 24, and Chibuike Igboke, 20, who were arrested for their alleged involvement in vandalising St. Dominic 300KVA distribution substation located at Umuosum  Obinagu Udi.

    The pair were last week arraigned before the Enugu State Magistrate Court. They were later remanded in prison custody at Enugu prison, while the matter was adjourned to 2September 23, 2019.

    Read Also: ‘Sniper’ suicide averted in Enugu

    Also, a 30-year-old man identified as Moredays Ambrose, who was arrested with some quantity of transformer oil at Owerrinta, Isialla Ngwa South Local Government Area, was arraigned before the Magistrate Court of Abia State at Umuvo/Umuika, where he pleaded guilty on the first three charges, but pleaded not guilty on the fourth charge. He was subsequently remanded in prison custody, while the matter was adjourned to  September 12, 2019.

    At Ihiala, five suspected vandals were arrested by a vigilance group for being in possession of some electrical materials belonging to EEDC. The suspected vandals who claimed to come from Orizu town in Izzi Local Government Area of Ebonyi State are: Sunday Nwafor, Godwin Monday, Nwafor Ikechukwu, Chinaemere Oguta and Chinonso Nwafor.

    Items said to be in their possession include: Bare conductor, Intermediate cables and Feeder Pillax box, which they claim were purchased from one Ebubechukwu Ebube and Chike Obijiekwu, who are currently at large.

    In a related development, the trio of David Okpani, Agwu Sunday Alazu and an alleged buyer of the stolen items- Siraji Abubakar were arrested through the efforts of some youths of Ukpa community in Afikpo North Local Government Area, Ebonyi State, for allegedly vandalising P&T 200KVA substation, belonging to EEDC.

    “We spend millions of Naira on a monthly basis to replace and repair vandalised facilities, coupled with the revenue loss incurred by the business as a result of this challenge,” Ezeh recounted.

     

     

     

  • Tribunal okays Ekweremadu’s victory

    The State and National Assembly Elections Petitions Tribunal in Enugu State has affirmed the election of Senator Ike Ekweremadu of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), in the February 23 general elections.

    In a unanimous verdict delivered on Monday, the tribunal dismissed the petition filed by Mrs. Juliet Ibekaku-Nwagwu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as lacking in merit.

    The chairman of the tribunal, Justice Haruna Kereng, who read the judgment, said the petitioners failed to prove their allegations beyond reasonable doubt.

    Justice Kereng said allegations of substantial non-compliance with the Electoral Act, thuggery, falsification of figures needed to be proven on the basis of polling unit by polling unit.

    The judge said the few polling unit witnesses brought by the petitioners failed to demonstrate to the tribunal how the election figures were falsified.

    He added that out of the 824 polling units, 81 wards and five local government areas in the state, the petitioners were only able to present 16 witnesses with most of them presenting testimonies that were not convincing.

    “The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared Ekweremadu winner with 86,088 votes against 15,187 scored by Ibekaku-Nwagwu. It is the responsibility of the petitioners to bring their polling unit agents to demonstrate to us how over 70,000 votes will be deducted from the score of the first respondent to make them winners.

    Read Also: IPOB lawyer regrets attack on Ekweremadu

    “They only presented witnesses in few polling units and wards,” he said.

    Justice Kereng said the petitioners ought to have pleaded two sets of results, including the wrong and correct results that would have returned them as winners.

    The judge said certain paragraphs in their petition contained criminal allegations and that the persons whom the allegations were made against remained hidden.

    “Having failed woefully to prove their allegations that the first respondent was not elected by majority of lawful votes cast, we, therefore, affirm the election of the first respondent as winner of the election,” he said.

    Justice Kereng awarded a cost of N750,000 against the petitioners.

    Reacting, counsel to the first respondent, Mrs. Justina Offiah (SAN), described the judgment as thorough, adding that all counsel in the matter had put in their best.

    Offiah requested for a conservative cost against the petitioners to serve as a deterrent to election losers who would want to approach the tribunal with flimsy petitions.

    But the petitioners’ lawyer Mr Patrick Luke said it was the constitutional right of those declared as losers in an electoral process to seek redress in a court of law.

    “It is my humble view that all the parties should bear their costs because all the parties incurred costs,” Luke added.

     

     

     

  • Ugwuanyi concentrates development in rural areas, says Rep

    THE Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Public Accounts,  Wole Oke, has extolled the leadership qualities of Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State.

    Oke described Ugwuanyi as a peaceful, humble, focused, hardworking and grassroots politician who has concentrated massive development more in the rural areas than in the state capital.

    Oke, who spoke when members of the Ad-hoc Committee on Investigation and Monitoring of Recruitment of Nigerians by MDAs visited the Government House, Enugu, stated that they were impressed with the level of progress going on in the rural communities of Enugu State.

    The parliamentarian also described Ugwuanyi as “a lawmaker who makes his point without waging war; without humiliating or harassing anybody”, stressing: “That is the style His Excellency bequeathed to us in the parliament”.

    Oke, who is representing Obokun/Oriade Federal Constituency of Osun State, added that they were delighted that the governor has deployed the style in the governance of Enugu State, as he has “turned to be an apostle of peace, a politician who bears no grudges against anybody, a politician who nurtures no bitterness or ill will against anybody”.

    According to him, that is why Enugu has remained a peaceful state and has witnessed the level of progress we have seen in the rural areas unlike what we have in other states where a governor will concentrate development in the state capital”.

    Oke said: “In the case of Enugu State, we see a governor who is grassroots-oriented, a governor who has employed over 5,000 teachers to look after the young ones, our future leaders. We see a governor who employed 1,700 Forest Guards to enhance the security of the state. We see that as an example for other governors to follow.

    Read Also: Insecurity: Lawmaker hails Ugwuanyi

    “One lesson from Enugu State is that we have a governor who has managerial skills, a governor who has a federal exposure, a governor who is a financial engineer, and that is why Enugu is making progress.”

    On why they were in Enugu, the public accounts committee chairman, explained that the ad-hoc committee was constituted by the 9th Assembly to investigate petitions and complaints by Nigerians over unemployment in the country caused by “those who are in the civil service and have refused to retire, but doctor their files, change their age and block young ones from coming on board.

    “This is what has brought us to the state. So the essence of this is to tell Nigerians that the 9th Assembly is mindful of the trust they have given to us; that we will look after the interest of the electorate who gave us their mandate to represent them in the parliament”.

  • EEDC boosts electricity in Ebonyi

    The Enugu Electricity Distribution PLC (EEDC) has commissioned a new 11KV feeder in Abakaliki, the capital city of Ebonyi State. The newly constructed feeder, which is known as Azuiyiokwu II, has a route length of 1.3kilometers, and costs EEDC a whooping sum of N8.7 Million to execute.

    The Head of Communications, EEDC, Mr. Emeka Ezeh, made this known to newsmen in Enugu today.

    According to him, the project is in line with EEDC’s continuous effort in strengthening its network for improved service delivery and better customer experience.

    Ezeh said that the project was necessitated to address issues of fluctuations on voltage levels in the supply of electricity and other faults resulting to frequent downtime in some parts of the capital city.

    It was gathered that in Abakaliki metropolis, EEDC has four 11KV feeders serving the area which were overloaded and overstretched. These feeders are: Azuiyiokwu (main) 11KV, Township 11KV, Udemezue 11KV and Industrial 11KV.

    With the construction of Azuiyiokwu II, the four feeders serving the urban centres have been deloaded, thereby balancing the load on the feeders and further translating into improved and reliable power supply to customers within the area.

    Other network improvement projects undertaken in Ebonyi state include rehabilitation of EEDC’s portion of the Itigidi 33KV feeder up to Abaomege for improvement of supply to customers at some parts of Abakaliki Local Government Area, Onueke and environs and some parts of Ikwo Local Government Area that feeds from the Itigidi feeder.

    While appreciating the support of the government of Dave Umahi for its continued support in its operations in the state, EEDC appealed to the people of the state to reciprocate these ventures by ensuring they pay electricity bills as and when due.

    Customers are also encouraged to safeguard all EEDC power facilities serving them, as well as avoid meter bypass, energy theft and all forms of illegalities, which impact negatively on the company’s operations.

  • Ex- governor’s aide’s daughter, community leader, wife kidnapped in Enugu

    A former Enugu State governor’s aide’s daughter, a community leader and his wife, were on Thursday abducted by gunmen in two different locations in Enugu State.

    Kosiso, the daughter of former Governor Chimaroke Nnamani’s aide, Frank Anioma, was said to be on her way to the New Haven market when she got missing.

    “Her phone was ringing when we called her number but there was no reply.

    Thereafter, it went into busy,” Anioma posted.

    The second incident occurred Thursday night at Amokwe, Udi Local Council along Old EnuguAwka Road where an Nnewi based businessman, Chief Ernest Otugo and his wife were kidnapped by gunmen.

    They were travelling to Enugu from Nnewi, to attend a social function billed for the next day in a chocolate colour Toyota Venza when the incident occurred.

    The couple also had their children and a family friend simply identified as Chief Reuben with them when the gunmen struck.

    Otugo, his wife and his friend, Reuben, said to be an indigene of Awka, Anambra State, were taken captive leaving behind the children.

    The wife was later released by the kidnappers for her to go and arrange for the ransom.

    The amount was not mentioned.

    Enugu State Police Command through its spokesman, Superintendent Ebere Amaraizu said the anti-kidnap operatives were on top of the situation.

    An advocacy group for the promotion of peace and good governance in Enugu State, Enugu Youths Coalition for Good Governance, has called on President Muhammadu Buhari, to direct the immediate redeployment of the State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Suleiman Balarabe, for lack of capacity and commitment to secure the state.

    The group, which frowned at the spate of crimes in the state since Balarabe assumed office as Enugu State Commissioner of Police, few weeks to the 2019 general election, said that the demand was borne out of their objective assessment of the performance of the police chief and the need to protect lives and property.

    In a statement signed by the Coordinator and Secretary, Hon. Ikechukwu Ibeh and Engr. Jude Onyema, respectively, the advocacy group maintained that Enugu State had been peaceful and one of the safest states in Nigeria, expressing deep concern that “if something urgent is not done to rejig the security architecture of the state; our state’s enviable status will be jeopardized.”

    Read Also: Anger over murder of woman in Enugu

    They stated that the present cases of kidnapping, murder and other criminal activities being witnessed in the state were strange and a sign of failure on the part of the security agencies in the state, especially the police.

    The group added that “this recent ugly experience was never encountered in Enugu State in the past three years when the immediate past Commissioner of Police, Mr. Danmallam Mohammed was in the saddle.”

    Another kidnap incident was recorded in neighbouring Imo State where gunmen abducted the wife of the Anglican Bishop of Ikeduru Diocese, Anuri Maduwuike.

    The incident occurred barely 24 hours after gunmen killed five people in a pre-dawn attack on another community in the state.

    It was gathered that the victim was abducted on her way home from Owerri. According to an eyewitness, the prelate’s wife was ambushed at a bad spot by Ekemele and whisked to an unknown destination.

    According to the source, “wife of the Anglican bishop of Ikeduru Diocese Mrs. Anuri Maduwuike was kidnapped by gunmen. We need prayers for God’s intervention for the safety and freedom of the God’s handmaid.”

    The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Orlando Ikeokwu, a Superintendent of Police, confirmed the development.

    The Police spokesperson told our correspondent that her abductors were yet to establish contacts with the victim’s family

  • Banditry: Rep commends Ugwuanyi’s initiative

    THE lawmaker representing Nkanu East/West Federal Constituency, Enugu, in the House of Representatives, Hon. Nnolim Nnaji, has praised the efforts of the Enugu State Governor, Hon. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, to checkmate the spate of banditry and kidnapping in various parts of the state.

    Nnaji, while speaking with reporters at the weekend, noted that the governor has in the last two weeks held strategic meetings with various interest groups and stakeholders with a view to finding lasting solutions to the security challenges confronting the state.

    “He started first with all the leaderships of the security agencies in the state immediately after the brutal murder of Reverend Father Paul Offu, the Parish Priest of St James the Greater Parish, Ugbawka, Nkanu West Local Government Area.

    “Our peace-loving governor equally held other series of meetings with community leaders and those of the Hausa community in Enugu State during which he sought their cooperation with the security agencies in their quest to arrest the rising insecurity in Enugu.

    “It is also instructive to add that Governor Ugwuanyi has ordered the immediate recruitment of 20 able bodied youths per ward to serve as vigilantes with handsome remunerations.”

    Read Also: Ugwuanyi orders demolition of caves

    He said the vigilantes and the forest guards earlier being engaged will complement the efforts of the security agencies with check points in all exit and entry points in all the local governments and communities of the state.

    “Special Police Squad, (SPS) has also been raised to patrol the black spots within the state while Military Check Points, (MCP) have been increased to further make it impossible for criminality to thrive in Enugu henceforth”.

    The lawmaker, while acknowledging that Ugwuanyi’s strategy was beginning to yield positive results, also commended the leadership of the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria, (MACBAN), Enugu State chapter, for coming out to sensitise its members towards exposing any criminal elements that might infiltrate their ranks.

     

     

  • Ugwuanyi orders demolition of caves

    ENUGU State Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi has ordered the demolition of Agbogugu and Isu-Awaa-Agbudu caves in Ihe-Agbogugu-Ogbaku-Amurri and Isu-Awaa-Agbudu forests to enhance security.

    The governor gave the order yesterday when he visited the area as well as the Umuogbua Ihe tunnel on the Enugu/Port Harcourt Expressway, by Awgu Local Government Area, which serves as a hide-out and escape route for kidnappers.

    Ugwuanyi also inspected the ongoing construction of a military base on the Enugu/Port Harcourt Expressway by Umuogbua Ihe, Awgu council, and directed that the bushes around the tunnel/kidnappers’ den be cleared immediately.

    Read Also: Ugwuanyi sends anti-kidnapping bill to Assembly

    The governor was conducted round the locations by the Chairman of Awgu council, Stanley Okeke, as well as lawmakers representing Awgu North and South in the House of Assembly – Mrs. Jane Eneh and Johnson Chukwuobasi.

    He said a joint security patrol team will begin extensive surveillance of the affected areas to ensure maximum security and strict compliance with the directives.