The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Enugu

  • Face of governance in Enugu

    Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi assumed office in 2015, at a very difficult time, when the nation witnessed not only severe economic recession but also a change of government at the centre, with all the bureaucratic intricacies associated with such transition. Three years after, Ugwuanyi has been able to lead the state through the economic crunch to an enviable height with the meagre resources at his disposal. He has provided effective leadership and accelerated infrastructural development in the state, concentrating more in the rural areas than in the urban centres, through his administration’s rural development initiatives.

    Also, he has been able to bring governance to the doorstep of the masses, ensuring that the peace and security of the state took their pride of place as veritable ingredients for rapid development and good governance. The Ugwuanyi administration has in the last three years spent over N45 billion on road construction and rehabilitation across the length and breadth of the state, covering about 300 kilometres.

    The foregoing facts were recently confirmed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Yakubu Dogara, who described Ugwuanyi as “an established leader who is being celebrated widely because of his closeness to the people and effective delivery of dividends of democracy in spite of the nation’s economic challenges”.

    Dogara, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), made the assertion when members of the Enugu State caucus in the National Assembly hosted Ugwuanyi and endorsed him for a second term.  added that the governor is “a very nice man to a fault”, and has “done so exceptionally well in office that members of the National Assembly in particular and the people of Enugu State in general are exceedingly proud of what he has achieved”.

    No doubt, Ugwuanyi’s uncommon leadership style has unified leaders and people of the state, irrespective of political, cultural, social and religious differences, ending the hydra-headed issue of dichotomy.  Through his administration’s peace and grassroots development initiatives, the governor has initiated and prosecuted well-thought-out people-oriented programmes germane to the future of the citizens of the state.

    Besides effective provision of critical infrastructure and remarkable achievements in other sphere of development, Ugwuanyi has through his human capital empowerment programmes and special interventions aimed at improving the living standard of the lowly, long neglected and under-privileged, ensured that dwellers who had been hitherto denied access to basic amenities, qualitative and affordable education, healthcare delivery, among others, are remembered.

    For instance, in line with his administration’s educational policy and the need to discover and assist under-privileged intellectuals, especially in the rural areas to further their studies, the governor recently granted scholarship to 340 indigent students of the state’s Polytechnic in Iwollo, Ezeagu Local Government Area. A few weeks after, the same gesture was extended to 340 students of the Institute of Management and Technology (IMT), Enugu, totalling 680 students within one month. The scholarship which covers the beneficiaries’ tuition fees for four years is spread across the 17 local government areas of the state. And so in the next four years, the state government would have produced 680 graduates in various fields of engineering technology with a multiplier effect of advancing development in the state and the nation at large. It would also promote the harnessing of their potentials for knowledge transfer, economic growth and self-reliance.

    Also, Ugwuanyi recently extended his milk of human kindness to 95 widows of fallen heroes of the Nigerian Army, residing in Abakpa and Awkunanaw barracks, Enugu, who are predominantly non-Igbos, through a N19.6 million empowerment grant to assist them start businesses of their choice to ameliorate the hardship they had encountered as a result of the death of their husbands. This singular act, is not only heart-warming but has also gone a long way in pulling the widows and their families out from the shackles of socio-economic degradation, providing them with the ample opportunity to transform their lives for the better.

    Expectedly, the gesture role has earned the governor commendations from stakeholders from all walks of life, such as the Nigerian Army, ex-servicemen and a popular Nollywood actor, Pete Edochie, who recently re-emphasized the significance of the act towards the promotion of love and national unity.

    Another commendable legacy of the Ugwuanyi administration is the recent integration of faith-based organizations’ facilities into the Free Maternal and Child Health programme of the state to deliver more medical services in the rural areas. Pregnant women and children under five, who hitherto have no means of treating their health challenges, can now access free medical treatments at the faith-based organizations that have health centres and hospitals in their areas, courtesy of the state government’s new programme. This will in turn reduce the rate of maternal and child mortality rate in the state.

    Workers of the state have been receiving the salaries regularly on the 23rd of every month, even at the time 27 states could not pay. This policy footing is to help reactivate the state’s economy for all-round growth, considering that Enugu is a civil service state. As a workers-friendly governor, his administration last year introduced the 13th month salary for all civil servants both at the state and local government levels as Christmas bonus.  There is a N10 million “one community, one project” scheme which has ensured that communities that had never experienced any government presence in the past benefited, accordingly.

    In keeping with its commitment to a conducive environment of learning that would guarantee qualitative education for the children, the administration through the Enugu State Universal Basic Education Board (ENSUBEB) constructed and renovated over 300 primary and secondary classroom blocks across the state. Interestingly, contract for the construction and reconstruction of another set of 208 structures, worth of over N2.5 billion was recently awarded by the state government. It is also pertinent to note that the administration has recruited the highest number of primary and secondary school teachers ever in the history of the state, among others.

    Not left out is Enugu State First Lady, Mrs. Monica Ugwuanyi, who has also kept faith with her husband’s legacies through her pet-project, Ugo-Touch of Life Foundation, established to empower and avail indigent members of the society, especially the women, children, aged and other vulnerable groups, access to adequate free medical attention and other sundry humanitarian interventions.

     

    • Amoke writes from Enugu State.

  • Women mark Widows’ Day in Enugu

    In their determination to give back to the society, members of the God’s Battle Axe Women Fellowship International (GBAWFI) in Enugu have feted more than 60 widows drawn from the five Southeast states of the country.

    The occasion which took place at the Living Praise Worship Centre For All Nations, Ugwuaji Road, Independence Layout, Enugu, was part of activities marking the 2018 World Widows’ Day whose theme was “The Spirit-Filled Woman”.ý

    In her address, the leader of the group, Dr. Linda Oge Okoye said the association founded in 1995, holds the event annually with a view to giving succour to the widows who are in deep financial hardship.

    She stated that having been blessed with some level of resources and good health, there was no better way to appreciate God than to touch the lives of the needy.

    The GBAWFI boss said, “It will be interesting for some of us who can afford to eat daily, to also think of our next door neighbour who is in pains, we should see ourselves as God’s servants”

    Okoye, a former dean of the Faculty of Dentistry, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, told the widows not to lose hope, but to see their present condition as temporary.

    Citing Luke chapter 2, verse 25 in the Holy Bible, Dr. Okoye, recalled the story of Anna who lost her husband after seven years but God came to her rescue after praying and fasting for over 60 years, saying “any time you cry, God will hear you”.

    The group’s leader further explained that the association’s mission statement was built on raising and grooming women to greatness, as instruments of change in our society, adding that “every woman is a sharpened instrument in God’s hands”.

    She called on the wealthy and corporate bodies in the country to always remember the needy in their budget.

    Mrs. Gloria Aniakor, who spoke on behalf of the widows thanked Dr. Oge Okoye and all members of the Battle Axe Women Fellowship for remembering them in their time of difficulty and prayed God to continue to bless them with resources and good health.

    The widows who were entertained lavishly later went home with a bag of rice each.

    The spiritual director of the Living Praise Worship Centre, Enugu, Pastor Emeka Okoye, and top government officials from Anambra, Enugu and Ebonyi states were among dignitaries who graced the occasion.

  • Women mark Widows’ Day in Enugu

    In their determination to give back to the society, members of the God’s Battle Axe Women Fellowship International (GBAWFI) in Enugu have feted more than 60 widows drawn from the five Southeast states of the country.

    The occasion which took place at the Living Praise Worship Centre For All Nations, Ugwuaji Road, Independence Layout, Enugu, was part of activities marking the 2018 World Widows’ Day whose theme was “The Spirit-Filled Woman”.ý

    In her address, the leader of the group, Dr. Linda Oge Okoye said the association founded in 1995, holds the event annually with a view to giving succour to the widows who are in deep financial hardship.

    She stated that having been blessed with some level of resources and good health, there was no better way to appreciate God than to touch the lives of the needy.

    The GBAWFI boss said, “It will be interesting for some of us who can afford to eat daily, to also think of our next door neighbour who is in pains, we should see ourselves as God’s servants”

    Okoye, a former dean of the Faculty of Dentistry, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, told the widows not to lose hope, but to see their present condition as temporary.

    Citing Luke chapter 2, verse 25 in the Holy Bible, Dr. Okoye, recalled the story of Anna who lost her husband after seven years but God came to her rescue after praying and fasting for over 60 years, saying “any time you cry, God will hear you”.

    The group’s leader further explained that the association’s mission statement was built on raising and grooming women to greatness, as instruments of change in our society, adding that “every woman is a sharpened instrument in God’s hands”.

    She called on the wealthy and corporate bodies in the country to always remember the needy in their budget.

    Mrs. Gloria Aniakor, who spoke on behalf of the widows thanked Dr. Oge Okoye and all members of the Battle Axe Women Fellowship for remembering them in their time of difficulty and prayed God to continue to bless them with resources and good health.

    The widows who were entertained lavishly later went home with a bag of rice each.

    The spiritual director of the Living Praise Worship Centre, Enugu, Pastor Emeka Okoye, and top government officials from Anambra, Enugu and Ebonyi states were among dignitaries who graced the occasion.

  • ‘Government must stop killings’

    Pan-Igbo socio-cultural group, Igboekulie has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to address the orgy of killings in the country.

    The president of Igboekulie Prince Ben Onuora in a statement said last Saturday’s killings in Plateau State, where over 100 citizens were killed was condemnable.

    He said Nigerians were becoming hopeless on security

    He added:  “Our President cannot continue to do the same thing all over again and expect a different outcome. After each round of killings in Benue, Taraba, Zamfara, Nasarawa, Kogi, Enugu, Delta, Ondo and other places, Mr. President, Muhammadu Buhari condemns the killings, promising to improve on the security of the nation.  These promises are hardly kept because nothing seems to change beyond the presidential commiseration.”

    The group said government’s failure to arrest and prosecute the killers and their collaborators was making the situation hopeless.

    “Igboekulie condemns in very strong terms the unabating massacre of innocent Nigerians by invading and rampaging herdsmen who appear to have immunity against arrest or prosecution.

    Read Also: Killings: Buhari to put more pressure on security chiefs

    “We also, condemn the unwholesome nonchalance of the Federal Government of Nigeria to the unprecedented loss of lives in the past three years.  An FGN that has successfully dealt with restive groups across Nigeria cannot suddenly be helpless, unless out of mischief, when it concerns the murderous herdsmen.

    “After three years of unrelenting bloodshed, it is time for the President, as Commander-in-Chief, to critically evaluate the performance of the security agencies and rejig same to reflect the diversity of the country in line with the federal character principle.

    “This nation is being brought to its knees daily with unprovoked violence by people who insist on illegally grazing their cattle on the farmlands of other Nigerians.  If this journey to anarchy is allowed to continue, no one is sure of how it would end.”

    “We call on all other socio-cultural groups to rise and condemn the spate of killings by the protected invaders against the weak in our society and the contrived helplessness of the FGN.  An injury to one is an injury to all.  If this madness is not halted, it could be the turn of your community tomorrow.”

  • Monarch’s death: Enugu raises judicial panel of inquiry

    The Enugu State Government has set up a Judicial Panel of Inquiry to establish the circumstances surrounding the death of a traditional ruler in the state, Igwe Stephen Nwatu.

    Chieftaincy Matters Commissioner Emeka Okeke said yesterday in  Enugu that the state government was upset by the ugly and unfortunate incident.

    Okeke said that the government would not fold its arms and watch lives and property of its citizens destroyed with brazen impunity.

    The incident occurred in Ogbozinne Akpugo Autonomous community in Nkanu West Local Government Area of the state, where the monarch was gruesomely murdered.

    Okeke stated that the panel of inquiry will also ensure that the culprits are brought to book as well as prevent a reoccurrence of the ugly incident.

    “Government assures that further measures will be put in place to avoid a repeat of this sad incident in the said community or any other community in Enugu State.

    “As this is not in accordance with the peace and secure environment which this government has been working for assiduously,” he said.

    Gov. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, who had expressed regret on the Igwe’s untimely death, expressed the determination of his administration to unravel the circumstances surrounding the monarch’s demise and as well ensure that the culprits were brought to justice.

    He urged the panel to make necessary recommendations that would deter future occurrence of such dastardly act.

  • Enugu Catholic parish gets committee on indecent dressing

    Blessed Iwene Tansi Catholic Church Phase V1 Trans-Ekulu Enugu has agreed on a committee to check indecent dressing in the parish.

    The parish priest, Rev. Fr. Chukwudi Ani, said this was one of the many measures put in place to checkmate the trend in the church.

    He spoke last week Ani at a Holy Mass organised for the Catholic Women Organisation (CWO) in the parish.

    He expressed worry some Christian mothers had thrown caution and decent conduct to the wind by their mode of dressing both in the church and outside.

    He said that to curb the trend, the parish would inaugurate a committee on indecent dressing.

    “The members of the committee would be at the gate of the church to send women who dress indecently to go home and get properly dressed if they must attend mass.’’

    The clergyman therefore advised mothers to shun indecent dressing to avoid being embarrassed.

    He said that indecent dressing not only debased womanhood, “it is despicable and does not speak well of the woman’s family background.’’

    “Mothers are supposed to be good ambassadors of their families.

    “I don’t know why we Christians like to expose our body. We forget that the bible says that our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit.

    “If you see Moslem mothers, they always cover their body from head to toe.

    “In fact, they see it as a taboo for another man, who is not their husband to see any part of their body,’’ Ani stressed.

    He expressed disappointment with mothers, who were in the habit of dressing indecently.

    “It is regrettable that a large percentage of women now dress indecently, hence competing with teenagers.

    He admonished Christian mothers to live a consummate life of decency and discipline “so that their children would emulate them’’.

  • Enugu to probe monarch’s death

    The Enugu State government has raised a judicial panel of inquiry to probe the immediate and remote causes of the crisis which happened in Ogbozinne Akpugo Autonomous community in Nkanu West Local Government Area, which led to the death of Igwe Stephen Nwatu.

    Commissioner for Chieftaincy Matters Emeka Okeke said: “The government will not watch life and property destroyed with brazen impunity.

    “The panel of inquiry would ensure that the culprits are brought to book and prevent a recurrence.

    “The government promises that further measures will be put in place to avoid a repeat of this sad incident as it is not in accordance with the peace and secure environment which this government has been working to attain.”

     

  • Mob kill monarch in Enugu

    A traditional ruler of an Enugu community, Ogbosinne Autonomous Community, in Nkanu West Local Government Area have been allegedly killed by his subjects.

    The royal father’s name was given as Igwe Stephen Nwatu.

    A source close to the community disclosed that the traditional ruler met his untimely death in the hands of his subjects when he allegedly wanted to prevent them from attending a scheduled meeting with Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi on Monday afternoon.

    In the ensued fracas, the Monarch was alleged to have ordered his driver to overrun his subjects but the driver refused to yield to his orders.

    The driver was said to have mistakenly knocked down one elderly man with his car and broke his legs when he attempted to reverse.

    This angered members of the community who have formed a mob mobilized to carry out the deed.

    No fewer than 200 people allegedly descended on the royal father and gave him the beating of his life.

    He was later rushed to Enugu State University Teaching Hospital, (ESUTH) Parklane, where he died.

    Confirming the development the chairman of the council area, Henry Okenwa said : “I was informed about the incident on Monday afternoon and I rushed to the Parklane Hospital where I met him unconscious. He was later revived and he spoke with me. So, I left the hospital to allow him get more stabilised.

    “Regrettably, around 1 a.m. I received another call that the traditional ruler has passed on. I equally rushed back to the hospital were I found it to be true. We made efforts to deposit him to the mortuary.

    “Since Monday night police have been battling to ensure that there was peace. The burning of houses might have started after the police left the community and I have briefed the governor. As we speak, I am with the commissioner of police discussing the situation”, he said.

    Contacted, the spokesman of Enugu State Police Command, Superintendent Ebere Amaraizu also confirmed the incident but no arrest has been made.

    He said: “‎The command through the operatives of the state criminal intelligence and investigations department have commenced a full scale investigations into the incident with a view to finding out the circumstances surrounding the incident as well as those involved amongst other things.”

  • Psychiatric hospital reunites 120 inmates with families

    The psychiatric hospital in Eket local government area of Akwa Ibom state has treated and discharged no fewer than 120 inmates and reunited them with their families.

    The official, a medical doctor, who did not want to be named, disclosed to journalists during an interaction that the rehabilitation and re-integration exercise took place on June 7.

    He said the patients were delivered to their various families within and outside the state by the State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Welfare.

    “Thursday was a day to discharge and integrate these former lunatics with their families; this year, government embarked on a mop up exercise and brought the lunatics to psychiatric hospital for two months.

    “They were under intensive psychotic care in the hospital for two months before they were discharged to their families.

    ” During the two months they were in the psychiatric hospital, the rate of lunatics on the streets of Eket, Ikot Ekpene and Uyo reduced because the exercise was targeted at the three LGAs.

    “The government has done well to take them away from the streets to reduce the nuisance they constituted to the public.

    Read Also: Ibom Specialist Hospital records first neuro surgery

    “These people will be with their families, take their medications and come back after one month for their medical check-up,” he said.

    “These inmates who have received treatment did not go to their relatives on their own; the ministry of women affairs and social welfare took them to their relatives.

    “They were taken to their families in Lagos, Enugu, Abia, Imo, Uyo and Cross River.

    “Money was given to them for support and upkeep before their coming back for medical check-up in a month’s time”.

    The official said that during the period that they were at the hospital, a major challenge was insufficient bed spaces.

    ”They were sleeping on the floor due to lack of beds space in the hospital”.

    The medical doctor commended the generosity of Gov. Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom and appealed to the relatives and parents of the discharged inmates to complement the efforts of the state government by providing care and love to the people.

    When contacted, Dr. Dominic Ukpong, the Commissioner for Health, Akwa Ibom, confirmed the development but told our correspondent that the exercise was not handled by his ministry.

    “The mop up exercise was not carried out under my ministry but the ministry of women affairs and social welfare.

  • Enugu governor’s wife harps on children’s wellbeing 

    The wife of the Enugu State Governor, Mrs. Monica Ugwuanyi, has appealed to parents and guardians to intensify efforts in taking proper care of their children/wards as future leaders and  precious gift from God.

    Mrs. Ugwuanyi added that “the children deserve to be treated right”, look “healthy, neat and cheerful” and have access to basic education in spite of the nation’s economic challenges.

    She spoke at Itchi in Igbo-eze South Local Government Area during the free medical outreach programme of her pet project, Ugo-Touch of Life (U-TOLF), which focuses on the wellbeing of under-privileged women, children and youths in the rural areas.

    She reiterated her commitment to rapid development in the rural areas, where the greater number of women, children and youths reside.

    Mrs. Ugwuanyi advised the people against self medication and urged them to always go for proper medical checkup whenever they notice any symptom of illness, saying: “This is a wake-up call”.

    She emphasized the need for consumption of organic food for healthy living, stressing that we need to go back to our natural ways of feeding.

    Mrs. Ugwuanyi added that her empowerment programme was designed to make people self-reliant to ameliorate their suffering, disclosing that the first round of the free medical exercise has been successfully carried out in the 17 local government areas of the state.

    “We have covered all the local government areas of the state with our free medical exercise since May this year. This is the second round and within the period of this assignment, we have discovered that most of the ailments afflicting our people are caused by poor eating habit.

    “Our people prefer canned food bought at supermarkets instead of our local delicacies. That is why we invite experts that educate us on balanced diet. These fruits and vegetable are with us, and our empowerment scheme is based on what is obtainable within the locality. So, our people should try and avail themselves of every opportunity”, she stated.