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Tag: leader

  • Edo APC sacks embattled youth leader

    Edo APC sacks embattled youth leader

    The Edo State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has sacked its embattled Youth Leader, Comrade Osakpamwan Eriyo, for alleged indiscipline.

    Eriyo, who has been remanded in Benin Prison for alleged murder attempted, was replaced by Comrade Valentine Asuen.

    He was sacked at a meeting of APC leaders in Oredo Local Government.

    Also sacked at the meeting were: the Chairman of APC in Oredo, Peter Okoro; Woman Leader, Lauretta Uhunmwagho; Sunday Osaguana and Imafidon

    Oziegbe, among others.

    Godwill Alari was named the acting Chairman of the APC in Oredo Local Government.

    APC State Secretary Osaro Idah said the leadership change was meant to inject fresh blood into the party at the local level.

    He said some of the party executives were removed because the party did not tolerate indiscipline.

    The lawmaker representing Oredo West in the State House of Assembly, Chris Okaeben, said the party’s supremacy prevailed to show some members that they were not bigger than the party.

  • Stay away from Bayelsa, ex-militant leader, Africa, tells Avengers

    Stay away from Bayelsa, ex-militant leader, Africa, tells Avengers

    A prominent ex-militant leader, Mr. Africanus Ukparasia, yesterday, vowed to resist renewed threats by the Niger Delta Avengers (NDA) to begin attacks on oil installations in the region. Ukparasia, formerly known in the creeks of the Niger Delta region as ‘General’ Africa warned the NDA to stay away from the region, especially his home state of Bayelsa.

    The former commander of the Movement for Emancipation of Niger Delta (MEND) reportedly spoke in Yenagoa when he patrolled the creeks of Bayelsa. Ukparasia, who chairs the Bayelsa State Waterways Security Task Force (BSWSTF), said he would not joke with his mandate to secure the creeks of the state and stop the nefarious activities of avengers and their ilk. He said the gods of Bayelsa would not allow avengers to cause chaos, and further degrade the state’s environment, noting that his task force was ready to deal decisively with anybody, who tried to turn the state into a theatre of a needless war and destruction of lives and property.

    Ukparasia said he would not fold his arms and watch a ragtag group to give the military reasons to invade Niger Delta communities. “We advise Bayelsans to report any suspicious movement in their communities, as it is the duty of all to be vigilant against the nefarious activities of criminals who cause problems to give the military reason to invade our communities for innocent people to suffer,” he said.

    He said the task force would no longer allow the destruction of oil facilities in Bayelsa, with the attendant consequences of low federal allocation and nonpayment of salaries. He also advised youths not to fall for the antics of some persons deceiving them to buy firearms to partake in a phantom arms buyback programme of the Federal Government.

    He said: “The Waterways Security Task Force headed by me was legally established by the Federal Government in collaboration with the Bayelsa state Government to stop crime and criminal activities along the waterways of Bayelsa state. “We pledge to work with the security agencies to maintain peace and order in the state.

    We, hereby, warn that anyone trying to sabotage the peace in the state will be decisively dealt with as no stone will be left unturned to maintain the peace currently being enjoyed in the state. “We call on the security agencies to watch the activities of some undesirable elements in our society to avert any possible breakdown of law and order.” He advised Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State to imitate his Bayelsa State counterpart, Seriake Dickson, by working with all persons that could bring peace to the region regardless of party affiliations.

    In a related development, following the renewed threats by avengers, the Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta and Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP), summoned all the former Niger Delta agitators to an emergency meeting. A statement by PAP’s Media Consultant, Mr. Wabiye Idoniboyeobu, said the meeting held in Benin City, the capital of Edo State, on Wednesday, adding that all the ex-agitators vowed to maintain the peace in the region.

  • Woman is varsity’s pioneer students’ leader

    Woman is varsity’s pioneer students’ leader

    Students of Ritman University (RU) in Ikot Ekpene, Akwa Ibom State, have elected Victoria Ihekweaba president of the Students’ Leadership Team (SLT). The 200-Level Accounting student makes history, becoming the team’s pioneer and its first woman president.

    Victoria beat Kindness Nwosu and George Obot to clinch the post, which is the equivalent of Students’ Union Government president.

    The election was the climax of the  Students’ Week, which featured Old School Night and award. The week-long activities started with a football match between the school team and the Young Talents Football Club of Ikot Obiokpon.

    During the manifesto held at the University Chapel, Victoria promised to improve students’ welfare by organising seminars and vocational training to equip students with skills.

    If elected, George said his administration would ensure that management responds promptly to issues affecting the students. Kindness said she would be transparent and accessible to all, while upholding students’ rights.

    Enobong Nyahette of the Faculty of Biological Sciences was elected Vice President. Others are General Secretary, Idongesit Thomas, Treasurer, Juliet Ekanem, Director of Socials, Pearl Abasita, Public Relations Officer, Idongesit Sunday, Director of Sports, Deborah Ahiakwo, and Financial Secretary, Queeneth Archibong.

    The Vice-Chancellor, Prof Celestine Ntuen, advised the students’ leaders to be disciplined, warning that the institution would not condone indiscipline. He said the school expected students’ leaders to abide by rules and fiscal responsibility.

  • Community leader accuses police of disobeying court

    A 76-year-old community leader has accused the police of flouting a court order releasing his Honda CRV with registration number OWORO 1 to him.

    Alhaji Mustapha Durojaiye Ajisegiri said the Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV) was released to him by Chief Magistrate O.I Adelaja, following amicable settlement of the feud between him and Oba Bashiru Saliu Salami of Oworo.

    In an application brought by him, Ajisegiri is asking Chief Magistrate S.K Matepo to imprison an Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) for allegedly disobeying Mrs. Adelaja’s September 22 order.

    In a 10-paragraph affidavit in support of the motion, Ajisegiri averred that sometime in March, the State Central Investigation and Intelligence Department (SCID) at Panti, Yaba, Mainland, Lagos took him and Oba Salami to court to bind them over to be of good behaviour in Oworoshoki.

    The matter, he said, was resolved, following the intervention of stakeholders and a peace agreement signed by him and the monarch on April 14 was entered as the court’s judgment.

    He claimed that his SUV, which formed part of the verdict, has not been released to him despite series of letters by his lawyer.

    Ajisegiri alleged that the ASP is insisting on holding to the vehicle in disobedience of the court and his bosses’ order.

  • Union defends leader on retirement

    The Nigeria Civil Service Union has said its National President, Comrade Kiri Mohammed, is still in the service of Jigawa State Government. It debunked claims that he has been  retired  describing the allegation as baseless and unfounded.

    Acting General Secretary of the union, Comrade Felix C. Ifoh, said in a statement that the alleged retirement of Comrade Mohammed, who is also the Deputy National President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, was laid to rest in January when the Jigawa State Head of Service dispelled the rumour.

    Comrade Ifoh said the union has no vacancy in the office of the President, as the union’s ‘National Executive Council (NEC), at its meeting in October, 2015, ordered all the serving National Administrative Council (NAC), State/Federal Administrative Council members to serve out their tenures till October, 2017 for the National Delegates Conference (NDC) of the union.

    According to Ifoh, the decision was also ratified by the Special Delegates Conference (SDC) of the union held in Kaduna in March 2016.

    He added that the Jigawa State Head of Civil Service had disowned the purported letter, saying it was forged.

    According to him, the forged letter with reference No AP/631/EST/21/ VOL.2, dated 26/10/2015 and signed by one Abdullahi Musa, for Director of Establishment, was addressed to the General Secretary, Nigeria Labour Congress.

    He further said that while those who alleged that Comrade Mohammed had retired from service claimed that the NLC wrote a letter to the Jigawa State Civil Service seeking clarification, the NLC has denied writing any letter seeking clarification on the matter as there was no controversy over Mohammed’s employment status in the Congress.

    Ifoh said that the denial by the Congress was contained in a letter dated January 25, addressed to the Office of the Head Service, Jigawa State, and was signed by the General Secretary of the Congress, Dr. Peter Ozo-Eson.

  • How to revive economy, by union leader

    The General Secretary, Nigeria Textile Union and Vice President (Africa) of the IndustriALL Global Union, Comrade Issa Aremu, has urged the Federal Government to revive key industries for rapid industrialisation, job creation and poverty reduction.

    He made the call at a press briefing in Abuja to mark the 2016 Africa Industrialisation Day with the theme: Back to Basics: Revival of Basic Industries and Creation of Sustainable Employment.

    Aremu urged the government to make electricity supply steady to drive the industries.

    He said it was imperative for the government to diversify the economy and chart a road map to encourage industrialisation so as to exit recession.

    “The sectors include textile, garment, oil and gas, power, steel, engineering, solid minerals among others,” he said.

    Aremu implored  the  government to implement the 2014 National Industrial Revolution Plan for the country’s  growth.

    He noted that major stakeholders  agreed on the plan, pointing out that Nigeria is not short of development policies, but rather lacked the will to properly implement its many development policies.

    Aremu said it was unfortunate that many  years after their independence, African nations were still exporting their raw materials instead of adding value to them.

    According to him,  it is time for African countries to start processing their raw materials locally in order to generate employment and create wealth.

    He enjoined security agencies to curb smuggling across borders, noting that smugglers are undermining the growth of local manufacturing.

    Highlight of the activities to mark the 2016 Africa Industrialisation Day observed on November 21 include march for industrialisation, job creation and revival of the textile industries.

    Members of the union marched from Eagle Square to Yar’adua Centre, Abuja, chanting labour slogans and displaying various placards bearing their demands from the government.

    Some of the placards read: “Industry key to mass decent jobs,” “Copy China,” “re-industrialise Nigeria,”“Nigerians stop smuggling fake and counterfeiting of textiles,” “Buy quality, save jobs, buy Made-in-Nigeria,” “Africa produce what you can consume,” “consume what you produce,” amongst others.

  • What PMB needs as a leader

    SIR: In those tense and terrifying days leading up to the 2015 presidential election, Muhammadu Buhari was ridiculed, by his detractors, for having already been rejected three times by the Nigerian electorate. Well, making a fourth run for the presidency after three earlier consecutive defeats was not a mark of shame but a badge of honour. After all, it has been written that, “the greatest glory is not, in never, falling, but in the ability to come back after a fall”. His ability to rebound after each electoral defeat, and then, finally win the presidency was something of a “triumph of the will”. It was a testament to his indomitable will.

    Buhari’s strong will and incorruptibility represented refreshing contrasts to Goodluck Jonathan’s spineless and sleazy presidency, which accentuated the moral and ethical regression of the Nigerian society and its propensity for lawlessness. Lawlessness and its associated corruption is enervating and suffocating Nigeria. Until corruption is reduced to a manageable level, the country cannot take the next step forward. Therefore, the war against corruption by the Buhari administration is most apropos.

    Lamentably, in the war, his administration is swimming against the tide because it has failed to carry the country and its institutions along. Nigerians remain the same. They are as greedy, opportunistic and prone to corrupt practices as ever. Nigerian institutions remain unchanged. Even institutions, like the police and the judiciary, that should spearhead the war on corruption are lethargic, moribund and unrepentantly corrupt.

    The question then is, is Buhari a leader? This question must sound outlandish and seem redundant to many Nigerians because, to them, a president is automatically a leader. The office of the president provides a wonderful platform for leadership but if the occupant is inherently unequipped, and/or lacks the disposition for leadership, he ends up not leading.

    Like a leader, Buhari has a message in his anti-corruption crusade, but, unlike a leader, he has failed to connect with Nigerians on an emotional level. Leaders rally their followers to action by appealing to their emotions and sentiments for in politics and statecraft sentiments rule over reason. Most successful leaders were confident and versatile public speakers. The masses are stirred to action, and inspired to selflessness and sacrifice by electrifying oratory. They are roused to thinking and behaving differently, with increased willingness for self-sacrifice towards the realization of the leader’s vision, by riveting oratory. Buhari has not demonstrated a flare for oratory. Consequently, his message has not struck a responsive chord in the Nigerian minds. As such, the only weapon in his arsenal for the war against corruption is fear: fear of arrest, prosecution and imprisonment. Instructively, fear is the least effective deterrent to crime.

    The 18th Century German sociologist, Max Weber, once defined power, as, “the ability to get others acting in accordance to your will”. The renowned American diplomat, John Galbraith, distinguished between three types of power: condign, compensatory and conditioned power; every exercise of power involves one or a combination of these types of power. Condign power, which dictates obedience based on fear of punishment, he wrote, is the weakest and most ineffective form of power. Conditioned power, which gets people to comply with the dictates of power, because they have been conditioned to believe that it is the right thing to do, and so, they do it without compulsion and fear of punishment, is the most effective form of power.

    The war on corruption is laudable. It will send some corrupt government officials and their business associates to jail and deter some corrupt activities. However, until it is attended with a re-orientation of the Nigerian minds towards the law, Nigerians will remain lawless and corruption will continue to thrive. This needed re-orientation of the Nigerian minds is pivotal to the war against corruption because the effectiveness of the law to a large extent is dependent on voluntary obedience by the generality of the people. After all, “the root of constitutionalism”- the rule of law – “lies in the hearts of the people”.

     

    • Tochukwu Ezukanma,

     Lagos.

  • Okere-Urhobo crisis: Stakeholders berate community leader

    concerned residents of Okere-Urhobo Kingdom in Warri South Local Government Area of Delta State have accused a chief of escalating the crisis in the area.

    In a statement by Alex Eda, Emmanuel Eminokanju, George Eburu, Ochuko Akporiaye and Onome Egboro on behalf of the residents, the stakeholders accused Okumagba of usurping the duties of legally constituted authorities.

    But Okumagba said those labelling him a troublemaker were at the root of the crisis in the kingdom.

    The community leader said his accusers were soiling the name of the kingdom by engaging in violence.

    In their statement, the stakeholders expressed anger at the attempt by Okumagba’s group to ostracise two founding families.

    They said the kingdom was founded by five families: Olodi, Itifo, Makro, Ighogbadu and Oki, not just three, as Okumagba and his people were reportedly peddling.

    Describing the Land Committee, chaired by Okumagba, as an illegal entity created to usurp the duties of the legally constituted Community Management Committee, the stakeholders said the chief’s activities had set him against the community.

  • Ngige mourns Anambra community leader Igbonwa

    Ngige mourns Anambra community leader Igbonwa

    The Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, has said the death of Chief Lazarus Igbonwa, the father of a former Deputy National Youth Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Okife Uzoma Igbonwa, is a huge loss to Alor town in Idemili South Local Government Area of Anambra State.

    He was 84.

    Igbonwa, a foremost community leader and successful businessman, was also a leader of the Alor Peoples Convention, a community welfare organisation formed in the 1950s to champion the town’s development.

    The organisation is instrumental to various development projects, such as electricity, schools, potable water, security, peace and progress of the town.

    The late Igbonwa was said to have used his religious convictions in the Anglican faith to promote the growth of the church as well as his tolerance at a time that such had turn an instrument of divide in some communities.

    In a tribute to the deceased, Ngige said Igbonwa was a “leader whose impact was felt in Alor community where his outstanding contributions as an elected member of Alor Peoples Convection will speak for ages to come”.

    The minister regretted that Alor Peoples Convention had become the butt of ridicule because some people allegedly usurped its leadership for “selfish purposes”.

    He urged the residents to bring the community back to its glorious days which the late Igbonwa and contemporaries championed.

    Ngige described the late Igbonwa “as cousin to the Umu-Udenwa lineage of Umu-Ngige clan, to which I proudly belong. He was a trove of filial bond whose wisdom and sound reasoning mirrored his reliable forthrightness”.

    He added: “There could have been no other reason that made him, despite the huge difference in age, the closest maternal cousin to my late father, the patriarch of Umu-Ngige, Ozo Akunnia Pius Okonkwo Ngige, and his siblings than this.”

    Ngige prayed God to grant him eternal rest.

  • Thank God Jonathan lost 2015 election Niger Delta leader

    Thank God Jonathan lost 2015 election Niger Delta leader

    In the face of the growing criticisms against the present administration’s handling of the economy, the  Chairman of the Niger Delta Nationalities Forum in Lagos, Mr. Seigha Manager, has given the President Muhammadu Buhari-led government a pat in the back. He said  the president is doing his best in spite of the fact that things are terribly hard.

    In a chat with The Nation, Manager noted that if Jonathan had won the election in 2015, he would have been in a big mess with the current oil price. “I doubt if he will not be stoned by Nigerians and even Niger Deltans if the economy could be as bad as it is now. If he had won he would not have left as a great leader that he is today. So, I thank God that he lost the election and it is Buhari that is presently in office and those who believe in him are still hopeful,” he said.

    Manager also lauded Federal Government’s decision to dialogue with leaders of Niger Delta region saying: “The dialogue is extremely necessary and even overdue. President Buhari is right in dialoguing with the leaders but for not doing this since 2015, I feel very strongly that he is overwhelmed by the undue pressure and misinformation from either his party or overzealous folks, otherwise as a former head of state, and a former Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF) chairman, he should be the most qualified, most guided and most experienced leader to handle the Niger Delta crisis with utmost care.

    To bring about lasting peace in the Niger Delta region, Manager said: “The president should look into the issue of amnesty programme and give it everything he can. He should bring in more restive youths into it and pay them their stipend as and when due. Although we talk of the infrastructural development and all sorts of development in Niger Delta, the one that is immediate and can affect the lives of the youth is the amnesty, which is the only successful interventionist programme in Niger Delta. The president should ensure that they are not only trained but counselled at the end of the amnesty programme to be able to fit into the civil society.

    “As for other interventionist agencies like the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) and the Niger Delta Ministry, the president should make up his mind either to fund them properly or scrap them completely. If he is unable for whatever reason to fund the agencies properly, he should scrap them rather than create the impression that there are so many interventionist agencies in the region and that the government has done so much for them even when they are not properly funded.”

    Aside from the amnesty programme, Manager also asked the Federal Government to take another look at allocation of oil blocks. “The allocation of oil blocs and wells to Nigerians without recourse to the Niger Delta people is another issue. The richest woman in Nigeria cum Africa is from the southwest and her source of wealth is oil. The richest man in Nigeria cum Africa is from the northwest and his wealth is largely tied to oil exploit.

    “Oil bloc allocation is the prerogative of the president of Nigeria at any point in time and when he allocates, until such allocation is changed by law, it remains so. We are grateful to the late General Sani Abacha, who created Bayelsa State and allocated oil blocs to three deserving Nigeria citizens from the Southeast, Northeast and South-south (Niger Delta).

    “These three oil blocs are OPL 244, OPL 245 and OPL 246. OPL 245 was allocated to a Niger Delta citizen and the only one I know to be so. While the other two have enjoyed peace and tranquility in the hands of their owners, that of  the Niger Delta citizen, OPL 245, is akin to a bird standing on a tiny rope. Neither the bird nor the rope has seen peace till date.

    “It is the only oil bloc that every passing regime has poked into simply because the allottee is a Niger Deltan. It is the only oil bloc that has been allocated, cancelled, later returned to the allottee and then is under probe at any given time. All of this is happening because the allottee is from the Niger Delta, yet the owner does not fall in the bracket of rich persons in Nigeria not to talk of Africa. There are other issues like that.”

    He further said: “Recall that Senator Ita Enang once stated on the floor of the Senate how about 85 percent of oil blocs are allocated to northerners and others to the exclusion of Niger Deltans. I am not aware if that situation has changed. Yet, it is the only oil bloc allocated to a Niger Deltan that has become a source of dispute and sought after by others. That is the height of injustice against the Niger Delta people. This is not only wicked but also evil and shameful. President Buhari as a man of integrity must intervene in this matter.

    “These are the things that bring restiveness to the Niger Delta. Therefore, I am appealing to Mr. President and even the National Assembly members, whom we know that as at today, have constituted committees again and again to probe this particular oil bloc, to please sympathise with us in the Niger Delta and allow us to have some peace. Let the Niger Deltan who owns the oil bloc own it for good, while the president looks into other issues. But, in all of this, we are watching the role of our legislators.