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Tag: Mr Crusoe Osagie

  • Edo, security agencies to go after fake recruitment firm

    …Obaseki urges job seekers to be circumspect of recruitment centres

     

    The Edo State government has distanced itself from the illegal activities of a consulting firm, KAI Environmental, which has been collecting money from unsuspecting job seekers in the state with a promise to offer them jobs in the Ministry of Environment and Sustainability.

    Special Adviser to the Governor on Media and Communication Strategy, Mr. Crusoe Osagie, said the state government is working with security organisations to bring the perpetrators to justice.

    Read Also:Firm reaps N10m from Edo job seekers

    “We received a report that KAI Environmental, a consulting firm, has been defrauding unsuspecting Edo people and residents by posing as a recruitment agency for the Edo State government.

    “We have informed the police and other relevant security agencies to arrest the people behind the scam and bring them to justice,” Osagie said.

    He explained that “EdoJobs is the only platform that recruits workers for the Edo State government,” and advised that “any other company that parades itself as a recruitment body or company for Edo State is out to scam job seekers.”

    He warned that “the Obaseki administration does not collect money for jobs. We have digitised and centralised the process of giving jobs to qualified people in the state and all that is required of job seekers is to simply upload their applications on the EdoJobs portal, and they will be contacted by officials of government. Job seekers should be circumspect and report any organisation that parades itself as a recruitment company for the state government to security agencies.”

    According to the report, the consulting firm,‎ KAI environmental, has allegedly fleeced job seekers in the state of millions of naira.

    “The firm which has its operational Base at Bins Hotel, along Ekenhuan Road in Benin-City, was said to be collecting N2, 000 for registration, N2000 for handouts during training and N15, 000 for uniforms‎ ‎from applicants.

    “Already, the first batch of 150 applicants are said to have concluded training and awaiting to be dispatch to their place of work,” the report said.

     

  • Outrage over state of Edo school

    There was outrage Thursday over the inhuman condition pupils of Holy Aruosa Primary school attend classes.

    The school is located along Akpakpava road at the city centre where the Holy Aruosa Cathedral (Oba of Bénin church) is located.

    What caused the outrage was a video that went viral which showed the pupils being beaten by Wednesday’s rains that lasted several hours.

    The roofs were leaking on the children inside the only two ‘functional’ classes in the school.

    Some of the pupils as shown in the video were packed to one corner of the class room while their books were on the tables during the rain.

    The pupils said the two classrooms were used by all of them from primary one to primary six.

    There are no doors to what was supposed to be the head teacher’s office.

    Read Also:Edo monarchs at war over land

    A visit to the school on Thursday showed that the pupils have been relocated and there was no teacher on ground to talk to journalists.

    Many persons including parents of the pupils were on Thursday seen in the school taking pictures.

    Some of the parents said they were not aware that their children were studying in a leaking classroom.

    They said they were not told that the school has been shut down and the pupils relocated to Agbado Primary school.

    On the social media, the Edo State Government was lambasted for not taking steps to renovate the school and allowing the pupils to remain in such school.

    Following the outcry that traced the video, the state government on Thursday ordered closure of all schools with dilapidated structures across the state.

    Secretary to the Edo State Government, Barr. Osarodion Ogie, announced the government decision when he paid a visit to the Holy Aruosa Primary school to ensure that the pupils were relocated.

    Reacting to the development, Special Adviser to Governor Godwin Obaseki, Mr. Crusoe Osagie, said the state government had earlier ordered the shutdown of all primary and secondary schools with dilapidated structures across the state to pave way for reconstruction work.

    Osagie said pupils and teachers of Holy Aruosa Primary School in Benin City were relocated to nearby Agbado Primary School.

    He stated that teachers in Holy Aruosa Primary School ignored the order and went about their activities in dilapidated structures.

    According to him, “All such schools, with dilapidated structures have been shut down with immediate effect. Students and pupils in the affected schools are hereby relocated to other schools that will be announced soon.

    “The state government has ordered an investigation to ascertain why the initial relocation order of the pupils with their teachers was not enforced.

    “One of the allegations being investigated is the suspicion that some teachers, who are refusing to be transferred out of the school, selfishly kept those kids in the school under unsafe condition.

    Osagie further explained that schools in the state were categorised into grades after an inventory of facilities and enumeration of primary and secondary schools in the state were carried out.

    “After the census, the schools were categorised into three: those in grade A are in good condition; those in B need little intervention and schools in grade C require total renovation.

    “It is obvious that Holy Aruosa Primary School and Osula Primary School, among others, fell in the third category and require urgent attention. The worst of them like Holy Aruosa were shut down.

    “As is the culture of this administration, groundwork has already begun for this renovation process to commence, as only few months ago bid rounds were held for the rehabilitation of some of these schools.

    “The renovation work is expected to cover 1,200 public schools in the state, with the first batch of 230 schools captured in the pilot phase of the exercise.

    “The state government will expedite action on the renovation work to ensure that our pupils learn in conducive environment, even as we roll out the Edo Basic Education Sector Transformation (Edo BEST) programme to some of these schools in coming weeks” Osagie added.

  • Obaseki orders closure of all dilapidated schools

    …Relocates pupils, teachers of Holy Aruosa Primary School to Agbado

     

    The Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki has ordered the shutdown of all primary and secondary schools with dilapidated structures in the state, to pave way for reconstruction work.

    Specifically, pupils and teachers of Holy Aruosa Primary School in Benin City have been relocated to nearby Agbado Primary School.

    Special Adviser to the Governor on Media and Communication Strategy, Mr Crusoe Osagie, said the decision to relocate pupils of Holy Aruosa Primary School, was informed by the shocking reports that despite an earlier relocation order given by the state government, teachers in Holy Aruosa Primary School ignored the order and went about their activities in dilapidated structures.

    “All such schools, with dilapidated structures have been shut down with immediate effect. Students and pupils in the affected schools are hereby relocated to other schools that will be announced soon,” the governor’s aide said.

    He explained that “the Secretary to the State Government, Osarodion Ogie Esq., visited Holy Aruosa Primary School as early as 7: A. M. on Thursday, to announce the state government’s decision.

    Read Also:People with Albinism deserve our support – Obaseki

    “The state government has ordered an investigation to ascertain why the initial relocation order of the pupils with their teachers was not enforced.”

    According to Osagie, “One of the allegations being investigated is the suspicion that some teachers, who are refusing to be transferred out of the school, selfishly kept those kids in the school under unsafe condition.”

    On the ongoing reform in the state’s education sector, Osagie said that “on assumption of office in November 2016, Governor Godwin Obaseki ordered an inventory of facilities and the enumeration of primary and secondary schools in the state.

    “After the census, the schools were categorised into three: those in grade A are in good condition; those in B need little intervention and schools in grade C require total renovation.

    “It is obvious that Holy Aruosa Primary School and Osula Primary School, among others, fell in the third category and require urgent attention. The worst of them like Holy Aruosa were shut down.”

    He maintained that, “As is the culture of this administration, groundwork has already begun for this renovation process to commence, as only few months ago bid rounds were held for the rehabilitation of some of these schools.

    “The renovation work is expected to cover 1,200 public schools in the state, with the first batch of 230 schools captured in the pilot phase of the exercise.”

    He lamented that despite the huge investment in remodeling most of the schools by the Adams Oshiomhole-led administration, “some of them have been vandalised, with facilities looted by hoodlums.”

    To correct this anomaly, the governor spokesman said the Obaseki administration has made commitment to partner communities hosting government projects such as schools and hospitals to ensure they are protected from vandals.

    “We assure that work will soon commence at these schools within Benin metropolis and other parts of the state, and call on communities to protect the structures as soon as they’re built.

    “The state government will expedite action on the renovation work to ensure that our pupils learn in conducive environment, even as we roll out the Edo Basic Education Sector Transformation (Edo BEST) programme to some of these schools in coming weeks” Osagie added.

     

  • ‘Edo prudent with debts, proceeds utilised to drive devt’

    The Edo State Government has flayed the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in the state for making unfounded claims of the state’s debt status, noting that the party was being mischievous with facts.

    Special Adviser to the Governor on Media and Communication Strategy, Mr. Crusoe Osagie, said the state government has been prudent with external borrowings incurred since the All Progressives Congress (APC) came on board and has utilised all the credits judiciously to fund developmental projects.

    Osagie said a significant portion of the debts the state is currently paying off was incurred by the PDP government in the state at the height of its dubious foray into borrowing, for which it got so notorious in squandering, that several multilateral organisations blacklisted the state from their financing facilities.

    According to him, “As at today, Edo state is still paying a N30 billion debt taken from the African Development Bank (AfDB) for the development of water infrastructure. There is also a Union Bank loan taken and put in the balance sheet of Edo Line. These are besides several other such borrowings, which officials of the PDP government took privately and converted to state liability. The State Government is still paying all these debts.”

    Osagie said that it was disheartening that an entity that exhibited the most primitive understanding of public finance would then come out to make unfounded claims about the prudent management of the state’s finances by a globally renowned investment banker.

    He said, “The PDP is still raising evil guts to talk about these debts, when in fact, they are the ones who threw the state into the debts. The PDP were so irresponsible in debts and loans that the World Bank placed a ban on Edo State government. These loans were of single digit interest and the moratorium ran into 10 years.”

    He noted that it was not until the APC came into government and reformed the state’s finance, that they were able to access these financing facilities from multilateral organisations.

    Osagie added, “It was during the reign of the PDP that the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) pulled out of the state because of the irresponsibility of the government at the time. The PDP lacks the credibility and moral standing to make any comment.

    “They are made up of people who lack the capacity to frugally allocate resources for positive outcomes. Debts at low interest rates are actually good for development and shows the state as viable. It is even better when the debts are used to fund developmental projects.”

    Read Also: Okomu expansion project to create 40,000 jobs in Edo

  • Doctors’ Strike: ‘We will adopt holistic approach to health sector reforms’

    …appeals to doctors to go back to work

    Worried by the recurring strike actions by medical doctors and other workers in the health sector, the Edo State government said work on a holistic plan for workers in the sector has reached advanced stage.

    Special Adviser to Governor Godwin Obaseki on Media and Communication Strategy, Mr Crusoe Osagie, said the health sector is a major pillar of the government’s overall policy framework for the state and appealed to the striking workers to be patient with the state government.

    Osagie said: “The Edo State Government is adopting a holistic approach to the reform of the health sector in the state. We urge the health professionals to exercise some patience as hasty and tokenistic efforts cannot produce the high standard of healthcare which the Obaseki-led government has envisioned for Edo people.

    “The plans have been made and partners are being sourced, and in good time, the results will manifest.”

    He added that the governor has tremendous respect for health workers and will not turn a deaf ear to issues that affect their welfare.

    “As you are aware, Governor Obaseki is passionate about getting the health sector to contribute significantly to his administration’s overall goal. This informs his personal involvement in health care programmes, from immunisation to the distribution of long lasting insecticidal nets and the commitment to the construction of primary health care centres across the state.”

    The governor’s aide assured that the health sector will receive more than the usual attention in the months that will follow the unveiling of the reforms for the sector.

    Read Also: Doctors strike: Patients urged to resolve issues

  • Alleged diversion of IDPs rice: Police invites Orbih for questioning 

    Alleged diversion of IDPs rice: Police invites Orbih for questioning 

    Edo State Commissioner of Police, Babatunde Kokumo, has invited Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party, Chief Dan Orbih, for questioning over allegations that the state government diverted rice meant Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).

    Chief Orbih had alleged that 4721 bags of rice meant for IDPs at Ohogua village in Ovai North East local government area were diverted.

    The invitation of Chief Orbih was based on a petition by Governor Godwin Obaseki on the need for the police to make Chief Orbih present facts of the allegations.

    Governor Obaseki had in the petition said Chief Orbih in a a radio interview ‘falsely and maliciously stated that the Edo State Government was involved in a criminal conspiracy to divert 4,721 bags of rice released by the Federal Government for distribution to IDPs in the state’.

    In the petition signed by Secretary to the State Government, Barr. Osarodion Ogie, the Edo Government stated that Chief Orbih further claimed that 300 bags of rice were diverted to a certain Senator in Ondo State.

    According to the petition, “It is instructive to note that in making these allegations to the general public, Chief Orbih claimed that he had facts and records to back up these criminal allegations.

    “The purpose of this complaints is to formally bring these weighty and unsubstantiated allegations to your attention and to request a thorough investigation with a view to establishing the veracity or otherwise of same.

    “It is the contention of the Edo State Government that Chief Dan Orbih should be called upon to provide evidence of the serious crimes he has alleged to have been committed by the Edo State Government and to furnish your Command with facts, details and proof of the allegations he has made in the public domain.”

    State Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Mr. Chris Nehikhare who confirmed the development said Chief Orbih will appear before the police.

    Nehikhare said the Edo PDP also wrote a petitioned for criminal incitement of the public against the leadership and members of PDP by the Edo State Government.

    He stated that Edo Commissioner for Communication and Orientation, Mr. Paul Ohonbamu and the Media Aide to Governor Obaseki, Mr. Crusoe Osagie have consistently issued press releases referring the members and leadership of PDP as bandits, rogues, liars and fraudsters who stole the resources of the people.

    “Edo PDP wants the police to investigate these matters and ensure that those behind these criminal incitements are brought to book.”

    Read Also: Rice, shoes for IDPs: Edo releases distribution roster

  • Lassa fever: Edo halts mortality at Irrua hospital – Obaseki

    Lassa fever: Edo halts mortality at Irrua hospital – Obaseki

    No Lassa Fever death has been recorded in the past two weeks at the Institute of Lassa Fever Control and Research domiciled at the Irrua Specialist Hospital, since equipment purchased by the Governor Godwin Obaseki-led administration were deployed to the Institute, the Edo State government has said.

    In a statement signed by the Special Adviser to the Edo State Governor on Media and Communication Strategy, Mr Crusoe Osagie, the state said the equipment, which include two dialysis machines, one x-ray machine, a ventilator and Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs), were deployed to the center to fast-track the state’s preparedness to ward off Lassa Fever outbreak in the state.

    He said other aspects of the intervention include the refurbishing of the Institute, especially the renovation of the water system at the facility; the state-wide awareness creation campaign on television, radio; market storms to major markets in the three Senatorial Districts; reactivation of the contact tracing system and the emergency response systems in the state.

    According to him, “The State Government was proactive in its response to the Lassa Fever disease outbreak and this was evident with the swift deployment of human and material resources after careful analysis of the situation in the state. That no death has been recorded since our intervention goes to show that we read the signs correctly, mobilised skilled manpower and tackled the challenge head-on.

    “Governor Godwin Obaseki is truly committed to the plight of the common man and he has demonstrated this in a number of ways. The battle against Lassa Fever is another avenue he has shown his commitment to providing for the ordinary man on Edo streets with basic amenities to live a healthy life, irrespective of what happens elsewhere.”

    Noting that the governor was not one to pass the bulk, he said, “Though the facility in which Lassa Fever victims are being treated belongs to the Federal Government, the governor deployed resources to ensure that all that wererequired to address the outbreak were made available.”

    He added that the state prioritises the lives of its people, hence the government cannot fold its hands when such public emergency occurs, noting, “This goes to show that we do not just say that we love and serve our people by mere sloganeering, we mean it and show it.”

  • Rice, shoes for IDPs: Edo releases distribution roster

    Rice, shoes for IDPs: Edo releases distribution roster

    …Urges PDP to respect IDPs

    The Edo State government has released the roster showing how the relief materials approved by the federal government for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the state, were distributed.

    Special Adviser to Governor Godwin Obaseki on Media and Communication Strategy, Mr Crusoe Osagie, said that “Out of the total 6,821 bags of rice allocated to Edo State, the total number of bags of rice received by the Edo State government was four thousand six hundred and thirty nine (4,639).

    “Two thousand one hundred and eighty two (2,182) bags were bad, unfit for consumption and were not collected by the state government. These figures can be verified from the customs and the Nigerian Army who witnessed the process of receiving the items.”

    He explained that “no single jar of vegetable oil was received because all of them were expired according to the dates marked on the containers by the manufacturers,” and urged Edo PDP to accord displaced persons the respect and dignity they deserve and should not make them subjects of their concocted attention-seeking fable.

    Osagie said that “on Christmas Eve, 24 December, 2017, IDP camp in Uhogua received 500 bags of rice. Also on Christmas Eve, fifty sacks of used shoes were given to the IDPs in Uhogua. Two weeks ago, IDP camp Uhogua received another 2,101 bags of rice, which brings the total number of bags of rice received by the IDP camp in Uhogua to 2601.”

    He added that “Displaced people in Edo Central, Edo North and orphanages received 1421 bags of rice. The remaining 617 bags are in the State government’s warehouse. We also have about thirty-five sacks of used shoes in the store scheduled for distribution in the weeks ahead.”

    He further said that aside the IDP camp in Uhogua, “We have displaced persons in Ilushi area in Edo Central, Ogbomerhe in Edo North and various orphanages across the state.

    “Don’t you think it is only fair to ensure that all the displaced people across the state and not just in the IDP camp benefit from the rice donated to IDPs? He asked.

    The governor’s aide said the state government “would ordinarily not engage in this back and forth with the Edo PDP because we are certain that the Edo people they robbed blind are still mostly alive and present and they know fully well who the bandits in Edo State are.

    “However, it is necessary to reassure Edo people with facts that the Obaseki government does not possess the PDP’s traits of banditry and insensitivity to the plight of ordinary people.

    “We know that the callous people who make up the Edo PDP will not mind feeding displaced people with expired vegetable oil and rice but the Obaseki Government will never subject the people to such base treatment synonymous with Dan Orbih and the Edo PDP. Remember that Orbih is still being investigated for stealing land belonging to a female secondary school in Benin which his wife attended.”

    Read Also: All items for IDPs including judiciously distributed – Obaseki’s Aide

     

     

  • All items for IDPs including judiciously distributed – Obaseki’s Aide

    All items for IDPs including judiciously distributed – Obaseki’s Aide

    The Edo State Government says all the bags of rice and other items like shoes, apart from the ones that were damaged in storage before they were allocated, were distributed to the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) and other orphanage homes within the state.

    Special Adviser to Governor Godwin Obaseki on Media and Communication Strategy, Mr Crusoe Osagie, declared as completely false, the allegation of diversion of rice by the Edo State People’s Democratic Party (PDP).

    “The allegation is laughable and completely false and is a design of detractors to smear the image of a performing government,” Osagie said.

    He added, “they have tried and failed on all other fronts, now they have stooped lower to a commodity as cheap as rice.”

    The governor’s aide maintained that “the Edo PDP has a rich history of diverting items meant for the less privileged and the state’s resources and its members think other people are like them.”

    He explained that the state government has made several donations to people in distress in the past and it is irreconcilable that a known donor to humanitarian courses would divert items meant for IDPs.

    “PDP’s allegation that out of the 6822 bags of rice meant for IDPs in Edo State, over 4000 bags of rice were diverted as only 2101 bags were only given to the IDPs, is a figment of the imaginations of members of Edo PDP.”

  • PDP’s Open Grazing Bill premature – Obaseki’s aide

    PDP’s Open Grazing Bill premature – Obaseki’s aide

    The Edo State Government has described as premature, the Bill for a law to prohibit open rearing and grazing of livestock, sent to the Edo State House of Assembly by the Edo State People’s Democratic Party (PDP).

    Special Adviser to Governor Godwin Obaseki on Media and Communication Strategy, Mr Crusoe Osagie, commended the Edo PDP for heeding the counsel of the Edo State government to learn how to be a responsible opposition party that can contribute to the development of Edo State through well-researched policies and laws.

    Osagie noted that while the new role of the Edo PDP is worth commending, the opposition party would require more schooling to fully appreciate that well-researched policies of the Obaseki-led government such as the ban on overnight grazing, the ban on armed herdsmen and the monitoring of herdsmen activities by the government and security personnel, cannot be changed when they are yielding positive results.

    “It is interesting to see members of Edo PDP embrace our advice. However, their proposed bill for a law that will ban open grazing is a faulty start. Policies have clear timelines and set outcomes. Since February 8 when Governor Obaseki unveiled the new set of policies to end the clashes between herdsmen and farmers, there has not been any incident. This means that the policies show promise and no one changes a winning team. So on what basis is the Edo PDP proposing its bill?”

    He maintained that while sending a bill to the House of Assembly is a civilised thing to do, rather than propagation of falsehood at a state-wide circus and making outrageous comments on issues of national security, the Edo PDP’s bill is impulsive.

    “PDP should stop being overtly emotional about issues that require tact and research. They have started learning how to be responsible, but they need to learn more from our technocrat Governor, Mr Godwin Obaseki,” Osagie said.

    He added that the Edo PDP has over the years displayed its lack of capacity to solve the problems of the state and stressed that the opposition party has nothing to offer the state.