The Nation Newspaper

Tag: minister

  • Minister, Reps disagree over TCN probe

    Minister, Reps disagree over TCN probe

    WORKS, Power & Housing Minister Babatunde Fashola has demanded the rationale behind the hiring Ron Van Arnault by the House of Representatives as consultant to probe the Transition Company of Nigeria’s (TCN) over the $1.5 billion World Bank loan secured to improve power supply nationwide.

    The minister wondered the propriety of hiring a firm, which according to him, was responsible for crisis that rocked the agency under the previous management.

    He spoke yesterday at the investigative hearing organised by the House of Representatives Committee on Power on the interim management of TCN for the apparent delay in the execution of the National Electricity and Gas Improvement Project (NEGIP).

    The minister pleaded with the lawmakers to streamline their invitation of public officers to allow them enough time for their official duties.

    Fashola wondered why Ron Van Arnault was hired as consultant by the Power Committee, noting that the firm, while working with Manitoba, was behind the management breakdown suffered by the TCN under the previous administration.

    Manitoba Hydro International Nigeria Ltd, a Canadian company, was awarded the management contract for TCN in 2012 but the contract was terminated in 2016 for its failure to revive the company.

    Asked to explain why he questioned the involvement of the Van Arnault, Fashola said that the consultant apart from having worked for Manitoba, also benefited from contracts awarded without procurement approval in the Ministry.

    According to him, the consultant cannot be totally professional in providing advice to the committee.

    Chairman of the Committee, Dan Asuquo, however reminded the minister that he was not in a position to condemn the Committee’s decision to hire Van Arnault as a consultant to the Committee.

    Asuquo claimed he was privy to text messages exchanged between Fashola and the consultant wherein the minister solicited for the consultant’s professional advice.

    The committee chair said: “Just as you have your reasons for taking decisions, I also have my reasons for hiring Mr. Ron and it’s not up to you to question our decision.

    “Today, Mr. Eugene Edozie is seated here as Permanent Secretary of your Ministry, but I could remember in the Seventh Assembly, I served on a panel that investigated him on an allegation that he didn’t have NYSC certificate, and we recommended that he be removed from the post he was holding at the National Integrated Power Project (NIPP), but he’s your Perm Sec and you have not questioned his qualifications.”

    On the management of time and multiple invitations to the National Assembly, Fashola complained that the initiations are taking a toll on the productivity of public officers.

    He pleaded that the lawmakers to synegize and streamline ýthe number of hearings involving the TCN since the subject matter was related.

    His words:  “Like the representative of the Speaker rightly pointed out, we closed here last week, and we are resuming this week with this committee.

    “Committees of the House also will be asking us of our budget performance, and we just need to work in the office so that we can also perform.

    “So, I think there’s a sense here that I respectfully ask you to sufficiently use this time so we can also work to serve the Nigerian people.”

    Fashola said his ministry got a letter issued on December 20 by committee Clerk Nnamdi D. Onuigwe,  stating that the House has constituted an ad hoc committee on the need to investigate the Fiscal Responsibility and Procurement Acts by the TCN, in pursuant to House resolution 114/ADHOT/TCN2 of the 20 December.

    Fashola said: “ýNow, we were waiting to be invited by the ad hoc committee when we got this letter asking us to come today, signed by Ibrahim Sidi, Committee Clerk pursuant to House resolution 189 of 5th December 2017.

    “Although, it’s headed as ‘Need To facilitate Swift action on management of TCN Electric Power Reforms’, it goes in the body to ask us to come and explain to this investigative committee the interim management of TCN on the delay in the implementation of projects such as the Nigerian Electricity Gas Improvement project that will improve power sector in Nigeria.

    “So, I seek clarification in order to assist the committee in its work and if it’s possible to harmonise all of what we want to do together, bearing in mind that this House substantially is handling some possibly over-lapping issues.”

    But Asuquo denied any contradiction or ambiguity in the letters, even as he assured  that the leadership would seek ways of harmonising the terms of reference of both committees with the regards to the TCN probes.

    In his opening remarks, Speaker Yakubu Dogara, who restated the House commitment to tackle the challenges bedeviling the power sector, expressed concern over the delay in the implementation of such projects with the potential to improve electricity supply in the country.

    Dogara said: We cannot emphasize enough the pride of place that electricity occupies in the life of any modern nation. Indeed, electricity is the lifeblood of our national economy.

    “This is why any issue that affects the power sector always receives priority attention from the House of Representatives in particular and the National Assembly in general.

    “We will continue to revisit the challenges that confront the power sector as that is the only way to fix the sector and get our country firmly on her way to unleashing her enormous industrial and developmental potentials.”

    He said the intervention of the House on the matter should not be misconstrued as interference in the job of the executive.

    “However, there is a corollary to this doctrine which is that there is the need for the arms of government to apply some checks on each other in order to create a balance in the system. Today’s hearing is one of the ways that the National Assembly exercises its checks on the executive arm of government.”

    According to him, the aim of public hearings is to give room for fair hearing and citizen participation in legislative processes, and called on all stakeholders present to cooperate with the committee.

     

  • Commotion at Cross River APC secretariat as Minister is suspended indefinitely

    Commotion at Cross River APC secretariat as Minister is suspended indefinitely

    The Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Pastor Usani Usani, was yesterday indefinitely suspended by the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Cross River State.

    The party also recommended his expulsion to the national leadership of the party.  Acting chairman of the party, Sir John Ochala, who was in the company of the South South Vice Chairman, Ntufam Hilliard Eta, was to convey the development to reporters at the party’s secretariat but some aggrieved members disrupted the meeting.

    They ordered reporters out of the building.

    The aggrieved members were angry that many of them who sacrificed for the party have not been taken care of.

    Some of them broke some chairs and threatened to break the camera of one of the private national television stations.

    Usani, a former chairman of the party in the state, was accused of indiscipline.

    Ochala, addressing reporters later at a separate location in Calabar, said they had the powers to suspend the Minister but could not expel him, warranting the recommendation to the national leadership.

    He alleged Usani was into organising illegal meetings against the best interest of the party even after several efforts to reconcile their differences.

    He alleged the minister’s aim was to install a state chairman to do his bidding.

    “We had an emergency meeting which had to do with in discipline among some other issues within the party.

    “Majorly, what we took in the meeting had to do with the formation of caucuses across the state and also the issue of indiscipline which is fueled by the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs.

    “With the powers vested on the state working committee, we had no choice but to invoke the tenets of the constitution which is the suspension of the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs and recommend his expulsion to the national,” he said.

     

  • Kogi to get $1.6m FG grant for healthcare delivery —Minister

    Kogi to get $1.6m FG grant for healthcare delivery —Minister

    For judicious utilization of previous grant, Kogi state will receive $1.6 million (N576m) from the Federal Government for health care, the Minister of Health, Professor Isaac Adewole has said.

    The grant is from the Saving One Million Lives(SOML) counterpart fund to Kogi State government  as “an incentive  to do more’’ towards improving healthcare delivery in the state.

    The state’s qualification for the extra grant is due to its judicious use of the previous $1.5m granted the state last year, according to Adewole.

    The Minister stated this at the Flag-off ceremony of “Health Care Plus’’  intervention programme and the unveiling of delivery kit, post-partum haemorrhage pack and hypertensive pack, held yesterday in Lokoja.

    Adewole called on other state governments to emulate the Kogi state government’s commitment  by investing in health programmes that touch their citizens’ lives.

    He also commended the Kogi governor, Yahaya Bello, for his impressive response, initiative and commitment towards the improvement of the well-being of the citizenry as demonstrated through the investments and several rehabilitation projects recorded in the health sector across the state.

    In his response, Governor Bello, said the ‘Health care Plus’ project was launched to further stem the tide of maternal and child mortality in Kogi state because of the benefit the citizens stood to gain.

    The Governor added that the project was also a fulfillment of the pledge he made to the people when he assumed office two years ago.

    He explained that the package would create a niche for itself in Nigeria as it comprises many positive peculiarities compared with similar projects across the country.

  • Minister to NBC: sanction violators of Broadcast Code

    Minister to NBC: sanction violators of Broadcast Code

    The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has directed the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) to sanction broadcasting organizations that violate the nation’s Broadcast Code.

    The minister, who gave the directive yesterday while addressing participants at the DSO Stakeholders’ Retreat in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, said that the serial violation of the code by many radio and television stations constitute a threat to national peace, security and unity.

    ‘’As I have said on a number of occasions, this administration will neither stifle press freedom nor tamper with freedom of expression. But it will also not condone a situation in which broadcast stations will set the nation on fire by ignoring the minimum standard as contained in the Broadcast Code.

    ‘’If we set the country on fire by our actions, none of us will escape the consequences. For those who may think this is far-fetched, let me remind them that a radio station, Radio Télévision Libre des Mille Collines (RTLM), played a (catalytic) role during the 1994 Rwandan Genocide that left some 800,000 people dead,’’ he said.

    Alhaji Mohammed said the Broadcast Code was clear when it said in Section 0.2.1: ‘’Broadcasting shall influence society positively, setting the agenda for the social, cultural, economic, political and technological development of a nation, for the public good.’’

    He also quoted three other relevant sections of the code: Section 3.1.2 (Materials likely to incite or encourage to the commission of a crime or lead to public disorder shall not be broadcast); Section 3.9.1 (Language or scene likely to encourage or incite to crime, or lead to disorder, shall not be broadcast) and Section 0.2.3g (Broadcasting shall be mindful of the degree of harm and offence likely to be caused by the inclusion of any material in programming, in general or in specific terms).

    ‘’Unfortunately, many of our broadcasters today are wilfully flouting these critical sections of the code by broadcasting inciting materials and language that can encourage or incite crime or lead to disorder.

    The situation has become worse in recent times, in the wake of the farmers/herders’ clashes.

    ‘’The killings in Benue in the new year are unfortunate, condemnable and unacceptable. But the coverage of the aftermath of the killings by many broadcast stations has shown a flagrant disregard for the Broadcast Code, lack of professionalism and outright irresponsibility. Many broadcast stations are guilty of this,’’ the minister said.

  • Why herdsmen/farmers clash, by minister

    Why herdsmen/farmers clash, by minister

    President Muhammadu Buhari  yesterday  met with security chiefs on the herdsmen/farmers clashes in the country.

    Minister of Defence Monsur Dan-Ali told State House correspondents at the end of the meeting that it dwell on the general security challenges.

    He blamed the blockage of grazing routes for the series of herdsmen, farmers clashes.

    The minister said Nigeria was finalising plans to buy jets from the United States.

    He said the ministry and the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) had set up a committee to work out the modalities to transform the Presidential Committee on Small Arms and Light Weapons to a National Commission.

    Asked if the solutions to the clashes were discussed, Dan-Ali said: “Yes we did. First I mentioned about this commission on proliferation of arms into the country. You see, whatever crisis that happens at any time, there is remote and immediate causes.

    “Look at this issue (killings in Benue and Taraba), what is the remote causes of this farmers crisis. Since the nation’s Independence, we know there used to be a route whereby the cattle rearers take because they are all over the nation. You go to Bayelsa, Ogun, you will see them. If those routes are blocked, what do you expect will happen?

    “These people are Nigerians. It’s just like one going to block shoreline; does that make sense to you? These are the remote causes of the crisis.

    “But the immediate cause is the grazing law. These people are Nigerians and we must learn to live together with each other. Communities and other people must learn how to accept foreigners within their enclave. Finish!”

    Asked if he was justifying the killings because of the blocking of the routes, the minister said: “You are going away from what I came here to do. However, this is internal security, I can provide some answers. I have told you that the remote cause is part of the grazing law. Since independence, there are clear routes where these people pass.”

    On arms, Dan-Ali said: “They are all over. In that killings you are talking about, they are also militias that also did the killings. Some people were caught with arms and they call themselves Forest Guards or whatever with AK47. There is nowhere in this country where arms are allowed to be carried apart of legitimate security forces.

    “So, anybody carrying any arm is doing so illegally. Militias were caught in the same land doing the same killings; so, the killings are not done by any particular group, its a communal issue.”

    Asked what Nigerians should believe; that the killings were done by foreign terrorists or militias, Dan-Ali said, “Of course that is why I said they are militias. Militias are part of illegal immigrants. They are the people”.

    According to him, the members of the National Commission are drawn from all security services with Office of the National Security Adviser, Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Interior. It will be headed by a retired general.

    He said that $494 million will be used to acquire the Super Tucano A29 jets from the US as well as training and continuous servicing.

    He said: “Some of the stringent measures include that we will start having them from 2020, which is two years from now. They are also thinking of not allowing our technicians to be part of the production inspection. But this is what we normally do in all the defence contracts we send our personnel to go and understudy especially when it comes to specialised contracts like in Russia, our personnel are permanently based in where the production is being done for this MI35 helicopters,” he added

    Reading the statement on the National Security Council meeting, he thanked the President, Commander-in Chief of the Armed Forces for his continuous funding of the Armed forces to perform their constitutional role, especially as it is now fighting multiple security challenges.

    According to him, he informed the Council that in line with the decision of the government to increase the strength of the Armed Forces to address manpower, the three services have in the last two years enlisted and recruited qualified Nigerians.

    The Ministry of Defence, Dan-Ali said, is also building befitting accommodation for members of the Armed Forces in the six geopolitical zones.

    “Similar accommodation was built by Defence Headquarters and commissioned by the HMOD in Abuja last month. This has gone a long way to solving accommodation problem and boosting the morale of personnel serving in Abuja,” he said

    He added: “In compliance with the presidential directive for the establishment of National Commission on the Control of small Arms and Light Weapons in the country, the Ministry of Defence in conjunction with the office of the National Security Adviser, has set up a committee to work out modalities to transform the Presidential Committee on Small Arms and Light Weapons (PRESCOM) to a National Commission.”

  • Minister seeks end to NYCN leadership crisis

    Minister seeks end to NYCN leadership crisis

    Minister of Youth and Sports Development Solomon Dalung has called for quick resolution to the leadership crisis bedeviling the Nigeria Youth Council.

    The minister made the appeal at the inauguration of a 33-man national transition committee and the congress planning and electoral committees yesterday in Abuja.

    Dalung said the lingering leadership crisis had become an albatross to the progress of the council.

    He said: “The achievement of this milestone is a great testimony to the commitment of all stakeholders, who genuinely worked day and night to ensure that we put an end to the lingering leadership crisis which had become an albatross to the progress of the National Youth Council of Nigeria.”

    The minister also noted that the leadership crisis of the council had denied Nigerian youth quality representation nationally and internationally.

    According to him, the country had become a laughing stock at international gatherings because of the council’s constant leadership crisis.

    He said: “The Nigerian youth has lost so much as the crisis deprived them of quality representation nationally and internationally. In the gathering of youth councils all over the world, Nigeria has become a laughing stock because her youth council, supposed umbrella body of voluntary youth organisations and the voice of the Nigerian youth is in disarray.

    “This is the more reason why we must sacrifice individually and collectively to ensure absolute success of this peace process. I also want to reiterate that we should not be tired of extending the olive branch and hand of fellowship to every stakeholder and dissenting groups.

    “Our ability to convince and bring them on board that we actually meant well for the youth council and welfare of the Nigerian youth will go a long way in healing the old wounds and afford us the opportunity to harvest their wealth of experience.”

    NYCN Board of Trustee  Chairman Dickson Akoh, said the leadership crisis of the council had robbed Nigerian youths of many developmental benefits.

    He said the council has adopted a constitution that would plug all loopholes that had been causing crisis for the NYCN.

  • Minister, Diplomats, Perm Secs, others pay tributes to Adeniji

    Minister, Diplomats, Perm Secs, others pay tributes to Adeniji

    Foreign Affairs Minister Geoffrey Onyeama, diplomats and retired permanent secretaries took turn to pay tributes to the late former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Amb Oluyemi Adeniji.

    Adeniji, a former Nigerian Ambassador to France, died in London on November 30, last year at 83.

    They spoke in Abuja at a tribute service for the late Adeniji organised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Monday night.

    Onyeama said the late  Adeniji had a very distinguished diplomatic career for over 34 years and contributed immensely to the growth of the diplomatic circle.

    Onyeama said the late Adeniji lived a life worthy of emulation.

    Cuban Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr Carlos Trejo-Sosa, who spoke on behalf of the Dean of the Diplomatic Corps eulogised the late former minister, describing him as a great man and icon in the diplomatic circle.

    The Chairman Association of Retired Career Ambassador of Nigeria (ARCAN), Amb John Shinkaye, described the late Adeniji as an iconic figure in the foreign service.

    The Permanet Secretary of the ministrym Olukunle Bamgbosem described the late Adeniji as a mentor and a disciplined officer.

    who had left indelible

    The immediate past Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Amb Olusola Enikanolaye, said the late Adeniji left a legacy that must be built on by all the officers of the ministry.

     

  • Minister, Dickson trade words on militancy

    Minister, Dickson trade words on militancy

    Minister of State for Agriculture Heineken Lokpobiri has said Bayelsa State Governor Seriake Dickson lied against him over sponsorship of militancy and other criminal activities.

    He denied sponsoring a warlord, Oyawerikumor Peregbabofa, aka Karaowei, who was arrested and killed by security agencies for beheading a senior intelligence security officer and killing five soldiers.

    Speaking at a transparency briefing, Dickson accused the minister of buying arms and ammunition for the slain Karaowei and sponsoring criminal activities.

    He said Lokpobiri had done nothing positive with his position and urged President Muhammadu Buhari to call him to order.

    Dickson alleged: “The Minister of State, Senator Lokpobiri, is the one who armed and equipped Kareowei who  killed soldiers and subjected innocent communities to hardship.

    “The guns he used to kill and other ammunition were supplied by Senator Lokpobri. I have evidence that on  January 2, Kareowei and his cohorts  were in Ekeremor, celebrating with Lokpobiri, and that is the person appointed as a minster of state”.

    But Lokpobiri said he never had any relationship with the late militant leader.

    He said he was not at his hometown, Ekeremor, at the time Dickson accused him of meeting the warlord.

    The minister said: “I was with my kith and kin at Ekeremor from December 31 to January 2 to celebrate the New Year. A football match, wrestling contest and lots of fanfare characterised the celebration. I was, however, bade goodbye by family, relations, friends and well- wishers and left in the morning of January 2.

    “The allegation of Governor Dickson is not only false, but also wicked and most ungodly. The same militant even came to threaten me on  New Year’s Eve. He fired shots into the air before leaving.

    “I narrated the incident  to one of our respected security officers on my way to Abuja for a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa on January 3.

    “The accusation of purchase of arms and equipment for the militant is a figment of the imagination of  Governor Dickson. I have nothing to do with the militant.

    “On my contribution to nation building, as minister of state, Agriculture and Rural Development, my constituency is the entire country. There is no denying the fact that my colleague and I have worked hard to reposition the sector to the admiration of Nigerians.

    “Agriculture was reported by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBC) as the highest contributor to GDP last year. The allegation by Governor Dickson that he has not seen anything I have done in my village is, therefore, petty and preposterous.

    “The theatrics of Governor Dickson is a dance of the absurd on the misfortunes of the people of Ndoro community in particular and Bayelsa State at large.

    “Common sense in good governance dictates that the proper thing to do is to attend to the needs of the displaced persons and do the needful to help them return to their community and rebuild their lives. This is what people of good will do and I expect him to do as a governor.

    “Let it be known that the shameful campaign of calumny against me is not an account of stewardship that should be the focus of a transparency briefing.”

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • Minister alerts on meningitis outbreak

    Minister alerts on meningitis outbreak

    The minister of Health, Professor Isaac Adewole has appealed to Nigerians to be on the look out for suspected cases of outbreak of meningitis, saying the country is already approaching its season.
    Professor Adewole made this appeal in Ibadan, Oyo State over the weekend while speaking with the members of Network of Reproductive Health Journalists of Nigeria, on some of his ministry’s preparedness to curtail any reported outbreak of CSM.
    The Minister said the alert is important because the country has no money to vaccinate all Nigerians.
    He said it is known that meningitis is seasonal and this is the season, “that is why we are saying Nigerians should be on the lookout for it. It is so easy to treat. The vaccine is expensive.  When a case is detected we have an epidemic threshold then we quickly vaccinate people in the Local Governments, that is the best we can do for now.  When we are more prosperous then we can vaccinate everybody.”
    Prof Adewole added that the conjugate vaccine will protect everybody for 10 years, the polyvalent vaccine for three years, as he added that for now both are expensive.
    “The conjugate is about $20 a vial, while the polyvalent is $3 a vial, so you can calculate what we need for the Nigeria population, and that is for just the vaccine, not including the syringes and other consumables, so our best bet is to alert Nigerians that this is the season for meningitis and they should beware. We need to contain it,” he noted.
    The Minister retriaiated that anywhere there is an outbreak of CSM, the system is weak, as he explained that Kaduna state had an outbreak but contained it.
    “And there was another outbreak in Zamfara and because the system was weak, it killed many people. Meningitis is seasonal and this is the season and we are alerting Nigerians. The terrible outbreak we had in 2017 was because it was on for three months before we got to know.
    ” All of us know what meningitis is, it requires a lumbar puncture, look at the fluid cerebrospinal fluid, when you check and it is milky, then you know there is infection and you can culture it and begin treatment.
    “It is so easy to treat because the causative organism is responsive to antibiotics, but when we do not know that it is meningitis, we could treat malaria for three to five days, typhoid for one week then by the time we get to know, it would have spread.
    “And it spreads like wildfire. As we attend to patients, 10 people can surround the infected person and that one patient would infect six or seven persons and it spreads like that. So this is the season to alert people to look out and promptly report any suspicion to nearest health facility.”
    “Prompt reporting by people will assist the government to curtail further spread, and even deaths, because, “The government does not have enough money to vaccinate the whole country. The meningococcal vaccine is expensive and what we are trying to do case detection. Once we have a case to treat, it causes what we call an epidemic and we can quickly do its prevention, so help us alert Nigerians that this is the season and we need to curtail it,” said Prof Adewole.
  • Festival to be included in calendar, says minister

    Festival to be included in calendar, says minister

    Minister of Information and Culture Alhaji Lai Mohammed said yesterday that the Ijakadi Festival in Offa, Kwara State will be included in the National Festival Calendar this year.

    The Minister stated this at the grand finale of the 2017 celebration of Ijakadi (traditional wrestling) festival in Offa near Ilorin in Kwara.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the festival was also attended by the Minister of Communication Adebayo Shittu, among other prominent dignitaries.

    Mohammed, who was a guest of honour at the event said Ijakadi festival had come to stay and grown from strength to strength in celebration of rich Offa culture.

    He said  the significance of the festival was not just about the history of the people, rather a celebration of the virtues of “equity, justice and wisdom”.

    The Minister said the festival also showcased the affinity between the Offa and Ile-Ife, and how Moremi Ajasoro, the daughter of Offa rescued the Ife Kingdom from the `Igbo’ marauder.

    “The festival is significant to our culture because it tells us that we are people with very rich cultural background and strong morals.

    “What we have come here to celebrate is history that dated back to 14th century.

    “We have an MoU with the British Council through which every year, we train festival managers all over the country.

    “I want to assure you that the Ijakadi festival will benefit from this training.

    “This kind of festival is one of the reasons why this government has placed so much emphasis on our culture being encouraged and we are going to put Offa in the world map.”

    The minister said the government would assist to put the festival on the world records to attract people from across the globe.

    The traditional ruler of Offa, Oba Mufutau Okikiola thanked the two ministers and other dignitaries for attending the festival.

    He said the annual event was an opportunity to bring the Offa indigenes home and abroad together to celebrate the rich heritage and culture of the ancient town and its tourism industry potential.

    The Oba called on the Federal Government to give traditional institution the opportunity to contribute to national development.

    Also speaking, the National President of Offa Descendant Union, Alhaji Najeem Yasin said the festival had come to stay.

    Yasin, who is the National President of National Union of Road Transport Workers, urged the government to include the festival in national Calendar to attract tourists in and outside the country.

    The festival started with a traditional processions and performances by districts, family houses as well as traditional gun shots.

    Prayers were offered by leaders of the five districts that constituted Offa for the Oba, the town, the state and the nation.

    Tracing the history of the Ijakadi festival through a dramatic performance, the traditional dramatists depicted the story of two brothers who went to a farm and harvested three yams each.

    Coming from the farm, they got to a river to take their birth and one of them lost a tuber of yam in the river.

    Because none of the two brothers wanted to return home with two tubers, an argument ensued which resulted in a fierce fight between them.

    While the fight was going on, an elderly man, a hunter, stepped in, stopped the fight and requested to know the cause.

    The two brothers narrated the cause of the fight both claiming ownership to three of the five yams.

    In resolving the case, the elderly man appreciated the loss of the yam and wanted the two brothers to return home happily.

    He took one of five yams, covered his eyes sliced it into two equal sizes and shared the contentious yams two and half equally between the two brothers.

    He explained that the act depicted the principle of equity, justice and fairness, which governed the traditional Ofa Kingdom.

    There was also a symbolic slicing of a yam into two equal sizes as a reenactment of how the quarrel was settled between the two brothers.

    The festival also witnessed traditional wrestling bouts among representatives of the five Offa districts in different categories.