The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Imo

  • ‘How Imo subdued criminals’

    ‘How Imo subdued criminals’

    Criminals once had a field day in Imo State. Not anymore, thanks to increased policing. Several Commissioners of Police posted to the state did their best to stamp out criminality, but the hoodlums often reinforced and returned to continue with their nefarious activities.

    After the current Commissioner of Police Mr. Taiwo Lakanu took over the command, the state has had a major break from most heinous criminal activities, especially kidnapping and armed robbery.

    Today it is no more business as usual for kidnappers and other criminal elements in the state. In the last three months according to available records, the command has arrested a total number of 120 suspected kidnappers, 109 armed robbery suspects, 78 suspected cultists and 17 child traffickers.

    Also within the time under review, the command rescued five kidnap victims, recovered sizeable number of arms and ammunition and five stolen vehicles, which have been handed over to their owners.

    Speaking on the achievements recorded since his assumption of office, the Commissioner of Police disclosed that the task to rid the state of kidnappers and armed robbers was taken headlong immediately he took over the command.

    He pointed out that the collaboration with the public had assisted the police in fighting criminal elements in the state to a standstill, adding that, “the police rely on credible information to fight crime”.

    He said, “We have made Imo State unconducive for all manner of criminal elements and we will continue with the onslaught until they are totally sacked from the state”.

    On how the police overpowered kidnappers in the state, Lakanu, strategic support from the current Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris and the State Government has motivated the command.

    He added, saying “Immediately after I assumed office, I took a study of the crime situation in the state and discovered that majority of the kidnap incidents are coordinated from the riverine communities, where the kidnappers have their dens where they hid the victims”.

    Lakanu who led most of the rescue operations, especially the rescue of medical doctors who were abducted in the state while on health mission and the abducted Channels Television reporter, stated further that except for few isolated cases where families of victims have withheld the information from the police, all kidnap incidents have been tracked and busted with the suspects arrested.

    Lakanu stressed further that, “we also in our bid to ensure proactive and efficient policing of the state distributed telephone lines where residents can report any incident in any part of the state and get prompt response from the Police. This measure has helped us to foil most robbery cases. I also gave out my personal phone number where people can reach, especially those with useful information and are afraid about the police disclosing their identity. They come to me and I treat the information with utmost confidentiality.”

    On how the police was able to avert Fulani herdsmen and farmers’ clash in the state, the Commissioner of Police disclosed that, “when we got intelligence about looming crisis between cattle herders and farmers in Okigwe Local Government Area, I led a team of policemen to the area and set up a peace committee and resolved the crisis. We also visited all the communities where cattle herders had their settlements in the state and ensured that they lived peacefully with the host communities.

    “We have also continued to partner other stakeholders to ensure that every Nigerian living in the state, irrespective of his or her tribe and religion is free to do business in the state without fear or molestation.

    “The command has also fought against human trafficking, also known as baby factory, sex trafficking of both juveniles and adults.

    ”In order to ensure cohesive community policing, the Command has partnered with state-owned security outfits as well as community-based vigilance groups. The Command has also built strong partnership with interest groups in the communities including traditional rulers”.

    Meanwhile, available records within the time under review showed that, on the 12/08/2016 “following a distress call that a five-man gang of armed robbers had invaded a victim’s compound at Umukabia Nkwerre and carted away properties and cash including a Nissan Xterra Jeep with Reg. No. KSF 829, eagle-eyed operatives of the command were quickly dispatched to the scene and one Chinonso Okoroafor ‘m’ native of Ihiala in Anambra State was arrested while trying to escape with a tricycle. Other members of the gang arrested include; James Eze ‘m’ native of Oguta, in Oguta Council Area, Onyeka Uchendu ‘m’ native of Ubomiri in Mbaitoli L.G.A. Tina Damian (wife of one of the suspects), Items recovered from the suspects include; Nissan Xterra Jeep with Reg. No. KSF 829   Assorted electronic gadgets, a generating set and handsets.”

    The report also informed that, “following information received on 10/07/2016 that one little Chinecherem Njoku ‘m’ aged 4yrs was stolen at Ehume Obowo, operatives of the command swung into action. The baby boy was however recovered on 11/07/2016 and one Ndidi Ihezie subsequently arrested on 13/08/2016.

    “On 13/08/2016 following concerted and well-coordinated effort of operatives of the command, one Charles Anayo Obi ‘m’ 25 years of age, native of Amadaba Ibiasoegbe in Oru West L.G.A and member of 3 man notorious gang of kidnappers believed to be involved in series of kidnap/armed robbery incidents in the state in recent times was arrested. Suspect has made useful statement to the police disclosing the identity of other members of the gang still at large.

    “On 25/7/2016, operatives of the command arrested one Stanley Chukwuemeka Nwaobi ‘m’ aged 21yrs of Umuachalu Oke Uvuru in Aboh Mbaise L.G.A. a member of a syndicate who specialize in dispossessing unsuspecting travellers of their personal belongings as well as stealing children from their parents. Investigation is ongoing and suspect will be charged to court accordingly”.

    Furthermore according to the report, “on 13/08/2016 in the course of routine patrol at Obinze in Owerri West L.G.A., operatives of the command arrested one Chinyere Amadi ‘f’ 47yrs of age from Amaraku in Isiala Mbano L.G.A. with a 3 year old baby girl identified as Uchechi believed to have been stolen from a restaurant at FUTO junction Obinze Owerri West L.G.A. Suspect has made useful statement to the police and investigation is still ongoing.

    “On 22/7/2016, operatives of the command arrested one Private Bright Nwaogwugwu aged 23yrs ‘m’ attached to 33 Artillery Brigade Bauchi State leader of a four-man gang of armed robbers operating along Ohoba/Asah Road in Ohaji/Egbema LGA. The suspects while robbing the driver of a Picnic bus, on sighting dense presence of security, took to their heels.

    “On 29/6/2016, a four-man gang of armed robbers operating in a Mercedes Benz car robbed one Isaac Ugochukwu Mbika of his Sienna car. Operatives of the command immediately swung into action and after a hot pursuit, the hoodlums abandoned the vehicle and took to their heels but one Godswill Amaefule ‘m’ 36yrs from Port Harcourt, Rivers State, a member of the gang was arrested”.

    It continued that, “following a tip off on 14/8/2016 that a gang of armed robbers robbed a residence at Speed Bath, Akwakuma and raped a victim, eagle eyed operatives of the command on 4/8/2016 through a well-coordinated effort arrested one Chukwudi Nwoke ‘m’ aged 24years from Isu in Nwangele LGA in connection to the crime. Suspect has made useful statements confessing to the crime and is assisting the police to trace the whereabouts”.

    The Command also recorded major breakthrough in its fight against cultism with the arrest of 39 suspected cultists.

    Parading the suspects at the Command Headquarters, the State Commissioner, disclosed that the suspects were arrested at different points in the state during their initiation ceremony.

    According to him, “considering the spate of cultism in the state and following a tactically coordinated operation by operatives of the State Police Command through credible source stormed the initiation party organized by the cultists for new members within the Nekede area of Owerri”.

    He continued that, “on the receipt of the information, covert operatives of the Command were promptly mobilised and dispatched to the area to monitor the situation. Notable flashpoints within Nekede and environs namely, ‘South Africa ‘, ‘Shrine Tree Square’ and Pentagon Bar Umuofocha’ were surrounded and cordoned off by ever ready operatives.  As a result, 39 suspected cultists who converged in the aforementioned location for initiation and other cult activities were rounded up.

     

  • Boost for hospitality industry in Imo

    Boost for hospitality industry in Imo

    The hospitality industry in Imo State got a boost with the inauguration of a reputable eatery, the King’s Dine Restaurant and Lounge owned by veteran actor Kanayo O Kanayo. Located in the heart of Owerri, the state capital, the new restaurant, according to the operators, will give customers value for money.

    Despite its high number of hotels, Owerri, before now, could not boast of quality restaurants where diners could eat, relax and have fun.

    Speaking at the opening ceremony, which was attended by the cream of society, Kanayo said the investment, was in response to the government’s call on indigenes to invest in the state.

    The actor assured customers that they would have a taste of world-class services at affordable cost.

    Besides, he said, the investment would also create employment for the youth, adding that about 30 graduates have already been employed as pioneer staff.

    Kanayo urged the government to continue to create enabling environment that will attract the sons of the state and others to invest in the state.

    In his speech shortly before commissioning the restaurant, the State Deputy Governor, Eze Madumere, commended the Actor for investing and adding value to the hospitality and tourism industry in State.

    He assured him of government support since he has decided to heed the clarion call by the state government to invest in the state and help boost the economy and create employment.

    The Deputy Governor tasked the management of the restaurant to patronise the local farmers in sourcing their recipe, while urging farmers to rise to the occasion and tap into the supply chain in the hospitality sector by growing the needed farm produce to support the industry.

    Madumere described the restaurant as one of “the most exquisite hospitality outfits that can readily compete with the best in the world,” adding that Imo State remains a preferred destination for tourism due to the infrastructural development and security.

    He called on other well-meaning Imo sons, daughters and other Nigerians to take the advantage of the incentives and facilities in the State to invest in manufacturing, tourism and any other sector of their interest.

     

  • Imo to recruit 3,000 workers

    Imo to recruit 3,000 workers

    Imo State Governor Rochas Okorocha yesterday said his administration will recruit 3,000 computer literate graduates to stimulate the workforce.

    The governor, who described the state’s workforce as obsolete, added that the new workers would be retrained by experts in the computer system and posted across ministries to enhance performance and capacities of the civil service.

    Okorocha, who addressed reporters in Owerri, the state capital, noted that majority of the state’s civil servants were not computer literate and had not shown the determination to improve on their capacities and service delivery.

    According to him, his administration is no longer comfortable with workers who cannot carry out their daily tasks on the computer when every government business in being computerised.

    Okorocha said the government would confirm the appointments of the teachers recruited under the Youths Must Work Programme two years ago.

    He said: “All the teachers recruited under the Youths Must Work Programme will be confirmed, while fresh 3,000 computer literate graduates will be recruited to beef up the capacity of the civil service. We are also going to begin the payment of pensioners soon.”

     

  • Boost for hospitality industry in Imo

    Boost for hospitality industry in Imo

    The hospitality industry in Imo State got a boost with the inauguration of a reputable eatery, the King’s Dine Restaurant and Lounge owned by veteran actor Kanayo O Kanayo. Located in the heart of Owerri, the state capital, the new restaurant, according to the operators, will give prospective customers value for money and a new experience as they dine and wine in a cosy environment at pocket friendly prices.

    Owerri, with one of the highest numbers of hotels in all the state capitals across the country, before now could not boast of quality restaurants where diners could eat, relax and have fun under a secured and conducive atmosphere.

    Speaking at the opening ceremony, which was attended by the crème de la crème of the society, Kanayo, who is an indigene of the state, said that the investment, was his response to the repeated call by the state government on the illustrious sons of the state to invest in the state.

    The actor, was almost mobbed by desperate fans, said that the brand, will be a clear departure from what used to obtain in the state, assuring that customers will have a taste of world-class services at affordable cost.

    He stated further that apart from quality service delivery and value for money which are the hallmark of the restaurant, the investment will also create employment for the youths of the state, adding that about 30 graduates have already been employed as pioneer staff.

    Kanayo urged the government to continue to create enabling environment that will attract the sons of the state and others to invest in the state.

    In his speech shortly before commissioning the restaurant, the State Deputy Governor, Eze Madumere, commended the Actor for investing and adding value to the hospitality and tourism industry in State.

    He assured him of government support since he has decided to heed the clarion call by the state government to invest in the state and help boost the economy and create employment.

    The Deputy Governor tasked the management of the restaurant to patronise the local farmers in sourcing their recipe, while urging farmers to rise to the occasion and tap into the supply chain in the hospitality sector by growing the needed farm produce to support the industry.

    Madumere described the restaurant as one of “the most exquisite hospitality outfits that can readily compete with the best in the world,” adding that Imo State remains a preferred destination for tourism due to the infrastructural development and security.

    He called on other well-meaning Imo sons, daughters and other Nigerians to take the advantage of the incentives and facilities in the State to invest in manufacturing, tourism and any other sector of their interest.

  • Imo police and insecurity in Ohaji

    SIR: The sister oil-producing communities of Assa, Obile, Awarra and Ikwerrede in Ohaji/Egbema Local Government Area of Imo State have been under serious siege in recent months resulting from the incessant attacks on and killings of innocent indigenes by suspected cultists in the area. These incidents were widely reported in some national dailies early this week.

    In the reports, the Nigeria Police through the Imo State Commissioner of Police, Mr Taiwo Lakanu, claimed to have deployed riot policemen to the troubled area. He also said that the police were working with the military to deploy troops to the area claiming that the “terrain” of the area was posing a great challenge to fighting the cultists. How long this will take to materialise is unknown to anyone.

    However, contrary to Lakanu’s claims, Ohaji generally and the communities in the old Awarra Court Area in particular have a level topography.  The terrain is not as swampy as what we have in the Niger Delta area or as mountainous and arid as the Sambisa Forest, yet military operations are still going on against the Niger Delta Avengers and the notorious Boko Haram respectively.

    Besides, as we speak, there is no single policeman in any of these communities. The claim by the state police boss is not only false but misleading. As if that was not enough, he was quoted as saying that the crisis was not as serious as it was being portrayed. More than 10 people have lost their lives in the last one week alone; the communities have been deserted by their inhabitants leaving the apprehensive aged men and women to the mercy of these unrepentant cultists. The people of the area can no longer go to their farms, their source of livelihood, and hunger has set in. Schools, markets, churches in the communities have been closed down yet the police said that the issue was not as “serious as it was portrayed”. One begins to wonder if the police are waiting for the entire indigenes of the communities to be killed before they can know that we have a serious security crisis in these oil rich communities.

    From the state capital, Owerri, to these communities is less than 30 minutes’ drive by car. The most recent attacks on these communities have lasted for more than one week and the police are still on the level of “mobilisations” and working out the logistics.

    The Governor Rochas Okorocha-led government in Imo State has not helped matters. The state government has been indifferent to the plight of the people of the area. One would have expected Okorocha to come to the rescue of the people who decided, in his favour, his fate of becoming the state governor in 2011 in the so-called supplementary election after the main election was declared inconclusive by the Independent National Electoral Commission.  Governor Okorocha should be reminded that if he could not fulfil the many campaign promises to provide social amenities to the people of Assa and Awarra communities, contributing immensely to the state’s revenue,  he is under obligations to protect the lives and property of  not only the people but also those of other Imo indigenes. This is why they gave him their mandate. That is the essence of the social contract he entered into with the Imo people.

    Remarkably, it takes the state government and security agents less than an hour to mobilise security personnel to the area in the event of suspected attacks on the oil and gas installations but when it is about the lives of the people of the area, the government and the police in particular become insensitive and slow to act. Which is more important: human lives or oil facilities?

    The primary duty of government is to protect lives and property. This is the legitimate demand of the traumatised oil producing communities of Assa, Obile and Awarra on the Nigerian state personified by the police.

     

    • Chamberlin Okechukwu,

    Ohaji, Imo State.

  • Woman crushed in Imo road accident

    A woman was at the weekend crushed to death in an accident on the Owerri/Onitsha Road.

    The accident was said to have occurred at Ogbaku Junction in Mbaitolu Local Government of Imo State.

    An eyewitness said the woman, who was coming from the popular Orie Ogbaku Market, was knocked down by a lorry from Owerri, the state capital.

    The lorry, which was conveying sachet water, reportedly developed brake failure.

    The driver was said to have tried in vain to control the vehicle when he suddenly sighted another vehicle leaving a filling station towards its direction.

    But the faulty brakes reportedly made it impossible for him.

    It hit the woman and dispersed her items, killing her on the spot.

    Police spokesman Andrew Enwerem said the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of  Ogbaku had not briefed him on the accident.

    He said the driver had been arrested and the vehicle impounded.

  • Mixed reactions trail Imo 3-Day Working Policy

    Mixed reactions trail Imo 3-Day Working Policy

    Mixed reactions have continued to trail the recent announcement by the Imo State Government to reduce the number of working days for the state civil servants to three days from the constitutional five days. The state government under the “Back to Land for Agriculture”, had directed the civil servants to only work from Monday to Wednesday and use the other two days, Thursday and Friday to engage in farming to boost food production and the economy of the state.

    The policy according to the State Governor, Rochas Okorocha, is to create an alternative means of boosting the economy of the state and creating wealth for the workers. The government also clarified that the implementation of the policy which began on the 1st of August will not affect the salaries and other entitlement of the workers, except the removal of all forms of casual and annual leave.

    Given the reduction of the number of working days, one would have expected that the workers will laud the initiative with full compliance but the reverse is the case as the workers and the leadership of the Labour Union in the state described the policy as an aberration to the provisions of the International Labour Organization (ILO).

    The Chairman of the state chapter of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Austine Chilakpu in an interview with The Nation, said that the workers have rejected the policy in its entirety and will not comply with the 3-Working Day Policy.

    According to him, the state government did not consult the workers to sample their opinion before going ahead with the policy, “if we were consulted, we should have advised the government on the right thing to do because what they have done is against the guidelines of the International Labour Organization and other such bodies”.

    He continued that, “if the government wants the workers to engage in meaningful agriculture, it should grant them annual leave during the farming season so that they can go and cultivate their farms and not just announce a policy at the middle of the year when the farming season is over in this part of the country.

    “And moreover it is not all the workers that have land to farm on. So government should first of all acquire enough land and allocate to the workers to cultivate or rather the state government should channel the policy towards creating employment for the teeming youths in the state by engaging them in the process instead of the civil servants that are already employed”.

    Other workers who spoke on the condition of anonymity, also rejected the policy, noting that the state government has a sinister motive, which it will unveil as soon as the workers comply with the policy.

    Other stakeholders, who spoke with The Nation, held that the policy, even though well intended, is not in line with the provisions of the constitution of the country.

    Sir Kingsley Uzoechi, a retired civil servant, described the policy as “unusual”, adding that, “there are set of laws that govern the civil service system across the Federation and you cannot just wake up one day and come up with contrary arrangements without first of all revoking the existing law. Imo State cannot be different from other states.

    “It is understandable that the states are going through difficult times as a result of the current economic situation in the country and as such should think of alternative means of survival but this does not include deliberate deviation from extant laws”.

    But the Imo Governor, while urging the workers to embrace the policy, said that, “everything that has to do with agriculture no matter what shape it comes, government will support it. So many countries are going through economic crisis because of the fall in oil. Our nation is also going through very difficult moment. We have taken responsibility as leaders and we are not blaming anyone. Wise nations and leaders save for the rainy days.

    “There were periods the oil price was in our favour. But those in charge then blew the money. They made no savings. Today the oil price globally has crashed and here we are. And we must fall back to agriculture as the panacea”.

    Also the State Deputy Governor, Eze Madumere, insisted that the policy will go a long way to boost the economy of the state and the workers.

    He said, “the policy is in the right direction, because even before now the civil servants don’t go to work on Thursdays and Fridays, when they normally go for their social activities like weddings and burial ceremonies. So what government has done is to convert these idle hours to meaningful venture, which will revive agriculture in the state.

    “We have expanse of farming land lying fallow so if the workers cultivate these lands, not only will there be surplus food in the state, the workers themselves and their families will be better for it and while they are doing this, their salaries are not affected in anyway. I think it is a laudable policy”.

    The Commissioner for Information and Utilities, Vitalis Ajumbe, said that was magnanimous enough to allow the workers two whole days every week to engage in private agricultural activities that will create wealth for them and their families.

    According to him, “the current economic situation in the country calls for proactive and dynamic measures that will cushion the effect on the people, especially when payment of salaries are no more as regular as it used to be, such policy will therefore protect the workers from the adverse effect of the downturn of the economy”.

    Also the traditional rulers in the state under the aegis of the Imo State Council of Traditional rulers, commended the state government for taking measures to revamp farming in the state.

  • How to eat your elephant

    Today’s report is actually the size of an elephant and imagine for a moment that you are faced with the small task of confronting a whole barbequed elephas maximus…? Such is the setting for today’s piece which is partially an account of the Nigerian Guild of Editors’ conference held last week in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

    Obviously triggered by the dark images hanging over the nation’s horizon, the editors (apparently unbeknown to them) put up a crash programme on how to save Nigeria via agriculture revolution. It was  perhaps the most stirring agric summit one had attended and it turned out an eye-opener for the crowd of editors and senior journalists from across the country. The only downside was that the Federal Ministry of Agriculture was missing at a forum that was perfect for presenting its new plan – The Agriculture Promotion policy (2016 – 2020). More on this later.

    Stars of the story: Of the numerous speakers on parade, three examples stand out because their stories are not only stellar, they exemplify the power and ingenuity of youth; signalling to us that our great nation would yet rise to her billowing glory regardless of the scourge of poor leadership.

    The first to wow the crowd was a feisty young man known as Lucas Adeniji. If his energy could be converted to megawatts, it would probably light up half of Lagos; he is the managing director of Niji Farms and Allied Services Limited. Established four years ago in Kajola, Oyo State, the farm, he said, has about 3,000 acres of cultivated land of mainly cassava, yam and maize.

    An internationally-acclaimed agric entrepreneur, Lucas has managed to work his business through the entire agric value chain. In other words, he fabricates production and processing tools, he cultivates, processes and has even developed both local and international markets for his products. He collaborates at various levels with such major organisations as College of Agriculture, Umuagwo; National Root Crop Research Institute; International Institute for Tropical Agriculture, Ibadan and the Honeywell Group to name a few.

    He has a number of processed and packaged foods to his name, such as Niji yam flour, Niji garri, Niji fufu, Niji vita, etc. which are available in markets and malls across the country.

    The ‘uncowed’ milkman: The Economist of London after an interview with Alhaji Muhammad D. Abubakar in his Kano farm, it typically, titled the story ‘uncowed’. Such is the impact Abubakar is making with his L&Z Farms Limited in Kano. According to him, he left his bank job a few years ago to establish his dairy farm. And till today, his is the only full process diary farm in Nigeria which produces fresh milk.

    Successful and self-assured, Abubakar dropped a few, shall we say, verbal bombshells which had the large hall in disarray. One, he said 70 per cent of the powdered milk we have been lapping up in this country is not consumed anywhere else on the globe because they are infused with fat and used only as additive in manufacturing.

    Two, but here is the banger, he told us that MOST OF THE SO-CALLED POWEDERED MILK CONSUMED BY NIGERIANS CAN CAUSE CANCER. He would not name any brands but challenged the foods, drug and consumer agencies to run their tests and disprove him.

    Three, he told us so many other things we did not know. The so-called Fulani herdsmen he said do not actually need to move about or stay in large ranches for that matter. They wander about out of survival instincts. If they were aggregated into small cooperatives and there was a sure market for their products, there won’t be any need for them to ‘suffer’ so much wandering about.

    He continues: “If there were large dairy farms and meat processing factories that are off-takers of their products they would organise themselves around their living quarters and neighbourhoods. It is about creating viable value chains.”

    To drive home his point, he made us to understand that milk is better taken fresh and in liquid form; that is what obtains in other parts of the world except Nigeria. His fresh milk can be found in supermarkets in major cities of the country. He is not shy to say he has become successful from producing and selling milk in Nigeria, a feat no other firm has achieved.

    His company is assessed by the international accounting firm, Price Waterhouse Coopers and at least three multinational companies have applied to partner him. Just like what our leaders are wont to do, foreign companies (investors) come down to Nigeria to seek him out.

    Lastly, L&Z Farms runs on generator for 24 hours because of the nature of its products (fresh milk, yoghurt, cheese and chickens) which need to be refrigerated all the time; he has never borrowed a dime from any bank nor enjoyed any government financing. He urged Nigerian professional to take the huge advantages in agribusiness, especially at the processing end.

    Pretty Miss Farmer: This is the moniker by which Ms Mosun Umoru is commonly known by today. And she is indeed beautiful – tall, delicate and finely slender, any man would want to follow her to the farm if that is what it takes! She is the managing director of Harvesters Farms Limited in Ile Ife, Osun State. A 3000-acre farm city, it is an integrated farm that embodies many agric chains – from production to the dining table. Numerous processed products from the farm which include garri, rice, etc, are already in supermarkets in the country.

    She is hands-on, being able not only to drive her own tractors but she can maintain them as well. A graduate of Lagos State University and Stanford in the USA, she has created the very important though intangible advantage of making agriculture look cool to Nigerian youths who think agric is dirty and not ‘lucrative’.

    PMB’s Agric Promotion Policy (APP): So many other speakers spoke at the NGE conference including the managing director of the Bank of Agriculture and many agric commissioners, but these three stood out and made huge impact. One had expected the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development would have stormed the venue to sell its new strategy document released in June, but that was not to be.

    It is a story that would be told here another day soon. Suffice to say that it is a better articulated work compared to the Agric Transformation Agenda of the last administration. But articulation can be very cheap when put beside implementation.

    Back to the top, Nigeria’s agribusiness today is like a whole barbequed elephant: so gargantuan, so sumptuous yet so dauntingly offensive. How would you approach your elephant?

     

    The Imo conundrums

    Last week on this portion of space, one had interrogated the rationale for the deprecatingly novel three-day work week being mooted in Imo State. It is bad enough that the state’s civil service had been in the doldrums in this dispensation; to now design a lackadaisical work regime is to finally bury the bureaucracy. Perhaps the government may wish to completely do away with the civil service; whereupon we shall have the 8th wonder of the modern world in Imo State.

    Passing through the streets of Owerri, Imo capital last weekend, it is apparent that a hurricane had wreaked havoc on some major streets. Orlu road, Okigwe road and Mbaise road were troubling spectacles with wailing and mourning on the trail of the whirlwind.

    Now these roads were freshly revamped and dualised, but the governor is said to want make them eight-lane roads. Well the motive maybe noble, but eight-lane roads through the city cannot be the priority of a state that cannot pay its workers. Especially if we remember that many inter-state roads in Nigeria are still two-lane. Thus, knocking down shops, offices and buildings without compensation and in a time of hunger borders on callousness. Worrisome signs indeed.

  • Imo’s bulldozers move against kidnappers

    Imo’s bulldozers move against kidnappers

    Imo State continues crackdown on kidnap suspects by demolishing their houses, reports OKODILI NDIDI

    The Imo State government is throwing everything at suspected kidnappers. Many of them have been smoked out of their dens and arrested, while the hunt for others is on. But the government will not slow down on the crackdown. Buildings owned by on-the-run suspects are being pulled down. The word is out that there is no room for criminals in the state.

    The bulldozer action codenamed ‘Operation Oshebee’ is headed by the state Deputy Governor Prince Eze Madumere. It is one of the measures adopted by the State Security Council against suspected criminals.

    Since the operation started, over 100 buildings owned by suspected kidnappers have been demolished in different parts of the state, especially in Ohaji-Egbema Council Area, where kidnappers had majority of their dens where victims were kept allegedly in connivance with the villagers and village heads who are forced to take oath of secrecy.

    In the latest operation at Mgirishi and Umuagwu communities in Ohaji-Egbema council, perhaps the state’s most ambitious effort, over 15 buildings belonging to suspected kidnappers were reduced to heaps of ruins.

    Intent on keeping criminals out of the  state, the government is collaborating with the police and other security agencies in this operation.

    Madumere who supervised the demolition alongside the state Commissioner of Police Taiwo Lakanu, said, “The owners of the buildings that were demolished were caught in the act of kidnapping, armed robbery and other criminal activities including those belonging to their collaborators. Prince Madumere stressed the need to shun the wrong attitude of abetting crime as there are punishments for collaborators and those whose facilities are used for criminal activities.

    He warned the youth to shun crime, adding that the state government will not spare anyone who will engage in any act that will undermine the security of the state.

    The Deputy Governor challenged the youths to take advantage of the state government’s youth empowerment programme like free education and several skill acquisition programmes to adequately prepare themselves for the challenges of the future, instead of taking to criminality.

    He commended the Commissioner of Police, the Army, Civil Defence and other security agencies for their collaborative efforts in ensuring that kidnappers and other criminal elements are kept out of business in the state.

    Speaking further to the mammoth crow of villagers who gathered to witness the demolition, Madumere restated the commitment of the Rescue Mission Administration to stamp out crime from the state and make it comfortable for investors.

    The Commissioner of Police in his brief speech said that “the resolve to take the battle to the criminals has become necessary so as to stop them from operating at all.

    He revealed that a lot of intelligence has gone into the new approach to combating crime.

    Lakanu who expressed joy with the crime-free status of the state, advised that the status should be sustained to avert possible security challenges that may hinder development policies of the state government, especially now that every state of the federation is yearning for investment.

    He assured that the measure will also serve as a deterrent to others.

    The Commissioner of Police further commended the State Governor for improving the security infrastructures in the State and for rapid response in managing some situations.

    Meanwhile, some of the villagers who spoke with newsmen commended the Deputy Governor and the security operatives, while promising to always give vital information that will further help rid the communities of all undesirable elements.

     

  • The Imo formula

    •Gov. Okorocha devises an ingenious means of surmounting economic woes

    In response to the challenges facing the three tiers of government, Gov Rochas Okorocha of Imo State has announced plans to cut down the number of working days per week. The governor said it had become imperative to find an unorthodox means of confronting the huge problem as all other means have failed to restore health to the state’s ailing economy.

    Almost all the 36 states of the federation have been hard hit by the nation’s dwindling economic fortunes. Twenty- seven of the states are practically insolvent, unable to meet their basic responsibilities – to workers, institutions  and the people. Twice, the Federal Government has had to give bailouts to enable states pay their workers’ salaries and streamline their finances. This has driven home the point made by economists that relying on a wasting asset like oil for more than 80% of our foreign exchange earnings is dangerous to the nation’s economy. Yet, successive governments at all levels have consistently paid lip service to diversification of the sources of income.

    Therefore, many states have nearly collapsed owing as much as six months salaries to their workers and unable to embark on new projects. This is reflective of the lazy approach to governance adopted by present and previous governments. The states have been satisfied with going to Abuja with the begging bowls every month. All that public officials are concerned about is sharing, not baking the national cake. Now that what is available for sharing is not enough, many of the governors are still slow in responding to the reality. This is why we commend the Imo State governor for thinking out of the box. He has decided to free workers for two of the working days to enable them augment whatever they get from the shrunk state coffers.

    This approach will solve two problems.  One, for doing less, they will be paid less, thus freeing resources for other purposes. Two, Nigeria is seen mainly as a consuming country, this Imo formula will boost production in the state if well executed. We commend the measure to other states, in realisation that most of the states’ public services are over-bloated. Some can be more effective with less than half of their current size, but, since downsizing would be too harsh a measure to adopt now, cutting down on the working days and the pay packets could be a more realistic option.

    Gov. Okorocha should do more by encouraging the workers to go into farming. This might involve making available to them credit facilities and organising them into cooperatives. Backed by the right machinery and extension services, the result could return the state to buoyancy and the workers to prosperity. In the first republic, states in the Eastern Region were sustained by agricultural products, with palm produce being the mainstay of the economy. It is time to replicate that feat.

    We call on labour to support the Okorocha initiative. Nigeria is in an emergency and all hands must be on deck to get her out of the woods. It is not a mark of honour or chivalry for the labour movement to oppose every measure being adopted to tackle this hydra-headed problem without suggesting alternatives. We also commend the measure to other states since the days of free money dispensed from the federation account appear gone. There is no state in Nigeria that cannot survive on agriculture. The Northern states that survived on groundnut and cotton in the first republic could revive their economy by going into massive cultivation of the same products, adding rice and wheat, among others.

    In the West, the cocoa and kolanut that served as the mainstay of the economy before the oil boom have long disappeared. It is time to return to those days. A restructuring of the national fiscal architecture is inevitable. This will enable the federating units compete positively, thus promoting national development.

    Gov. Okorocha has blazed the trail; it is incumbent on others to also think out of the box.