The Federal Government is to reconstitute its team on the Joint Public Sector Negotiating Council (JPSNC) on the implementation of the new minimum wage.
It was learnt that the team, headed by former Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (HoCSF) Mrs. Winifred Oyo-Ita may be reconstituted today.
Dropping the hint, Labour and Employment Minister Chris Ngige said the payment of the new minimum wage for all categories of workers (levels 7 to 17) would be sorted out soon by the Federal Government,
Dr. Ngige gave the assurance during a visit by labour leaders to his office in Abuja.
Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) President Ayuba Wabba led representatives of some major unions to a parley with the minister.
Ngige said that the Federal Government will involve the NLC and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) to speed up the implementation of the new minimum wage to other levels of workers employed by the government.
He said: “The issue of the minimum wage will be sorted out for those other cadre and I am very hopeful that it will be done as soon as possible. The unions of the federation – the TUC and NLC — have not been involved. We will involve you when we come back so that we can have a speedy movement in this respect.
“It is unfortunate that the negotiation was deadlocked on that other level from seven to seventeen and the issue became on what percentage or slide they should use on a sliding scale. We are going to discuss and negotiate it.
“There must be consequential movement and government is not averse to doing the consequential movement. What we are saying is that we should try for all parties to agree that the economy is in doldrums and that the economy has some trouble and therefore, we will have to cut our coat according to our cloth. That is the important thing.”
On the planned reconstitution, Ngige said: “The logical thing for us to do, which the government has agreed, is to reconstitute our own representation of the JPSNC. They have handed over to us on where they stopped.
“Luckily, the president has also put in place a new committee called the Presidential Committee on Salaries and Allowances (PCSA).
“The state governments as at today are duty-bound. They now have the template to pay. When we reconstitute our committee, I don’t see us not agreeing. We can disagree but eventually, we will agree because we know ourselves. I am one of those who believe that a workman is due his wages. If you work in a vineyard you must eat from that vineyard and eat all the fruits that are viable there.”
Wabba appealed to the government to fast track the implementation of the minimum wage so that the entire workforce can benefit.
He said that labour would continue to push for the conclusion of all issues on the minimum wage by the government.
He said: “Few days ago, both the NLC and TUC have received a formal report in writing by the JPSNC informing us that negotiations have broken down and that they want our quick intervention. I think part of the intervention we can make is to use the opportunity of this meeting to see how this issue can be sorted out.
“Minimum wage in Nigeria was first enacted in 1981 and the processes are well spelt out. We have enough empirical data to guide both the committee and government to be able to sort out this issue in quick succession.
“Yes, there are challenges in the economy, but clearly , if you look at the condition of workers from when the last minimum wage was increased to where we are today, a lot of factors have affected their purchasing power, which I am aware have been shared at the tripartite negotiating process, which led to the agreement on the N30, 000 minimum wage.
“While you will be meeting with them on Friday, our plea is that this process can be fast tracked so that the entire workforce can benefit from it. I am aware that levels 1-6 has been effected.
“It is high time we tried to do away with this. I am aware that the process has delayed because the ministers responsible were not in place. Now, the relevant ministers are in place. I think we must also appreciate the workers.
“They have been very patient in this dealing and I think we will continue to ensure that this issue is actually addressed. Having gone this far, I think it is important for us to also conclude the process so that we can get this thing off our sleeves.”
The House of Representatives has mandated its Committees on Health Institution and Healthcare Services to carry out holistic review of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).
The lawmakers explained that “this is to encourage more participation by Nigerians with a view to attaining the Universal Health Coverage for Nigerians”.
They also urged the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) to direct all Health Maintenance Organisations (HMOs) to pay, within three months, all outstanding debts owed healthcare providers across the country.
The lawmakers enjoined the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) to ensure that private medical practitioners register their clinics with the NHIS as accredited health providers of medical services.
This followed a motion by Valentine Ayika and six other lawmakers, titled: “Failure of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) to Function Optimally.”
The lawmaker noted that the NHIS was established by an Act of the National Assembly to ensure that every Nigerian has access to quality and affordable healthcare service through the provision of affordable health insurance.
“…The scheme has a presidential mandate to achieve Universal Health Coverage by 2015 but has failed in that regard, as available information shows that it currently boasts a little over six million enrolees, despite regular budgetary allocations.
“Also, …50 per cent of the Basic Health Care Provision Fund, which represents one per cent of the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the government available for the scheme, part of which was released in May 2019; yet, the scheme still fell short of its targeted objectives,” he said.
The committees are to report back within six weeks for further legislative action.
Little was known about Peter Olayinka until he netted a goal for Slavia Prague in their 1-1 draw against Inter Milan on September 17 in the UEFA Champions League.
The goal by the Oyo State-born star made him the first Nigerian after Yakubu Aiyegbeni to score on his UEFA Champions League debut since 2002.
The former 36 Lion striker has also scored two goals in seven Czech first league appearances, which takes his goal tally for the club to nine goals and four assists in 49 matches.
The 23-year-old joined the Red and Whites in 2018 from KAA Gent having spent time on loan at Dukla Prague and Zulte Waregem (2016-17 and 2017-18 respectively).
At Gent, he did not have playing time during his two-year stay with the Belgian club before being shipped out.
Olayinka started his career in Ibadan before moving to Lagos to join 36 Lions FC, and in January 2012 he joined Bylis Ballsh in the Albanian Superliga, where he initially joined the club’s under-19s due to being just 17 at the time.
On 21 July 2018, Slavia Prague signed Olayinka to a four-year contract from KAA Gent for 3.2m Euros.
Prior to his call-up to the Super Eagles, Olayinka had expressed his desire to feature for Nigeria but there were numerous discussions about making Olayinka, the first foreign player of Albania national football team.
Bernard Simon, the suspect in the murder of Commandant, Armed Forces Command and Staff College Secondary School in Jaji, Navy Commander Oluyemisi Ogundana allegedly planned the murder from a church, The Nation learnt on Thursday.
It was gathered that Simon, who was removed as Parent Teacher Association (PTA) Secretary by Commander Ogundana for alleged illegal practices, was residing in the church days before he allegedly executed the evil act.
It was gathered that Simon, a native of Kogi State, was evicted from his residence by his unnamed landlady who had allegedly expressed displeasure over his behaviour.
“He is the General Secretary of the church and when his landlady sent him packing, he moved his things to the church. He was actually staying in the church at the time he planned and killed her. It is suspected that he killed her on Friday night.
“He tore her net to gain entry into the passage and then to her garage. It is suspected he ambushed her at the garage because that place is inner garage and a bit dark,” said a source.
The Nation gathered that after killing her, mutilating her body with the help of his nephew Ibrahim Momoh which they dumped inside a well near a church inside the cantonment, Bernard returned to her home the following day to steal her belongings including a laptop, money and other valuables.
It was gathered that investigators took the suspect to the church where most of Commander Ogundana’s items were found. Her laptop, it was gathered, was recovered from Momoh’s wife, who allegedly confessed that the duo gave her.
He was said to have also looked for the original copies of her vehicle particulars to aid their selling it but could not find them which prompted his hiring two soldiers to stand as guarantors that the vehicle was genuine.
“After they killed her, they went away with her car but the man came back to her apartment on Saturday and ransacked it. He was looking for the original vehicle documents to ease the sale but it seems he could not get it. Then, he went and got two soldiers to assure buyers that the vehicle was not stolen and it was genuine.
“The soldiers claimed that they did not know the vehicle belonged to the commander and that they did not know anything had happened to her. They have been arrested by the military police because what they did was even illegal,” said another source.
Meanwhile, Commander Ogundana’s colleagues, it was learnt, were planning a condolence visit to her husband said to have returned to Lagos from Kaduna to stay with his young kids who were said to be asking of their mother’s whereabouts.
A source said she had promised them she will be back last week and since they have not seen her yet, they have been asking their father where she was and why she did not come home as promised?
“They do not know yet. They keep asking of their mother and have been told she went for an exercise. Maybe, now that their father is back, he will find a way to tell them,” said the source.
There are many housing estates in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), yet many residents lack accommodation. This is because 80 per cent of the houses in these estates are vacant. Not that the rsidents do not want to rent or occupy them. GBADE OGUNWALE writes that the housing units rot away in their hundreds while residents, in their thousands, continue to groan under excruciating accommodation issues because they cannot afford the price of the housing units.
When it comes to residential accommodation, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) presents a bundle of contradictions. Tens of sprawling residential housing estates adorns the various emerging districts and landscapes within the city and its environs.
Some of these housing estates, which have been in existence for more than a decade, are being joined by new ones that have been sprouting in different locations year in year out.
However, more than 80 per cent of the houses in these estates are vacant. Some have been vacant since they were completed years ago. And having been exposed to the vagaries of the seasons, a good number of the housing units have witnessed encroachments from the elements.
In some instances, the plaster and paint works on the buildings have been peeling off while weeds have taken over fenced compounds in some of them.
Indeed, the housing units in some of the estates are being put up for sale with no one offering to buy. Usually, the prices are far beyond what the targeted individuals in the middle income stratum can afford. And where the housing estates are targeted for rent, the rate imposed by the owners and their agents are prohibitive.
This has been responsible for varying stages of depreciation in the structures. Sadly, the housing units rot away in their hundreds while residents, in their thousands, continue to groan under excruciating accommodation issues.
k WHEN it comes to residential accommodation, the Federal Capital Territory •Abandoned /unoccupied hotel facility at Airport Road PHOTOS: ABAYOMI FAYESE
The ownership status of these sprawling Abuja estates has become a matter of interest to the various anti-graft agencies. The prolonged vacancy in the facilities is enough to attract attention, given the estimated billions of Naira invested in them.
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), recently raised the alarm over some of these estates. According to the ICPC, efforts to trace the owners of a good number of the vacant housing units have met a brick wall. The ICPC said the owners abandon the cluster of housing units the moment the agency initiates investigation into their ownership status.
Chairman of the ICPC, Prof. Bolaji Owasanoye, who was represented by his Chief of Staff, Dr. Esa Onoja, at a recent function in Abuja, said the development has become a great source of worry to the Commission. The ICPC drew a link between illicit financial inflows and the housing estates sprouting up in different parts of the capital city.
•Unoccupied buildings at Aleita, Airport Road Abuja PHOTOS: ABAYOMI FAYESE
The ICPC chief said even in cases where Non-Conviction Asset Forfeiture proceedings are initiated with the buildings attached, nobody comes forward to claim ownership. The agency said it has documented a number of such proceedings involving a good number of such estates, in line with Section 17 of the Advanced Free Fraud Act.
The agency stressed that Sections 37 and 38 of the ICPC Act also empowered the Commission to initiate such proceedings in court where there is suspicion that such assets were proceeds of crime. Owners of many of the houses have abandoned them. And the ICPC Act states that “where nobody comes forward to claim ownership after publication of Temporary Forfeiture Orders from the courts, the assets become the property of the Federal Government”.
The Commission, however, could not immediately provide the number of such Abuja assets so abandoned by their owners.
Consequently, the agency is also relying on members of the public for information that could help trace the owners. Holding brief for the ICPC chairman, Dr. Onoja said: “It’s a big problem that required information from members of the public. We feel that citizens should provide information and after providing information, to act as witnesses. The current administration has a very strong and viable whistle blowing policy.”
Stating that over N.5 trillion has been recovered through the Whistle Blower Policy; the ICPC said the agency and other anti-grant bodies still required more information from members of the public to fight the war.
“A lot more information is required. If we can only get just 25 per cent of what has been stolen and if that money is deployed to education, health, security, I think we would be on the road to joining other countries that our citizens will like to fly to and use their resources”, Onoja said. The ICPC chair said the cost of corruption is borne mainly by the masses and the low income segments of the society, as it’s being witnessed in the accommodation hassles Abuja residents are being made to go through.
He enjoined members of the public to stop seeing corruption as a “victimless” crime, saying that everybody is a victim. “Nigerians should stop seeing corruption as a victimless crime. When funds meant for health, education, security, housing and others are diverted and end up in private hands, we all feel the impact,” he said.
In contrast to the numerous houses lying fallow across the city centre and its outskirts, many residents, particularly those in the low and medium income brackets, are left to find accommodation where the rates are affordable.
Getting decent accommodation within the city is beyond their legitimate earnings. That’s the reason virtually 85 per cent of middle and intermediate level civil servants and their counterparts in the private sector have elected to seek accommodation in the various satellite towns. Some of the preferred satellite towns are Kubwa, Gwagwalada, Kwali, Abaji, Lugbe, Nyanya, Kado and others.
The distance between these settlements and the main city where the workers report for work, ranges from 20 to 70 kilometres. They commute the distance daily, either in their private cars or by public transport.
The adjoining Gwarimpa Estate is not for low income earners. Consequently, high demand for accommodation in the satellite towns has forced property owners in those areas to keep increasing rents on a yearly basis.
These Shylock property owners have succeeded in creating another category of residential accommodation seekers. This category is mainly made up of artisans, labourers, job seekers and their ilk.
They populate the various slums located on the outskirts of the city and the satellite towns. In Abuja, there are two categories of slum dwellers; those living in the periphery of the city and others living in the periphery of the satellite towns.
Those dwelling in the periphery of the city are the most endangered. They easily fall victim to the greed of elite, particularly the political class. In many instances, slum dwellers around the city centre have predators in political office holders or the military establishment.
On many occasions, they are forcefully evicted, their dwelling shanties demolished and the land taken over by the rich and powerful. The slum dwellers are forced to seek accommodation elsewhere, usually in more remote locations far away from the avaricious eyes of their “predators”. And in a jiffy, magnificent structures would start sprouting from the forcefully acquired lands, swelling the number of completed but unoccupied clusters of buildings dotting the landscape. Cases of this might-over-right action are commonplace in the capital city, particularly along the ever busy Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport Road.
Obviously worried by the accommodation plight of millions of underprivileged Nigerians, the United Nations (UN) recently warned the Nigerian government to put an end to forced eviction of its poor and vulnerable segments of the population.
Speaking through its Special Rapporteur, Ms. Leilani Farha, who had just concluded a 10-day housing assessment visit to Nigeria, the UN deplored the ugly trend where highly placed and influential Nigerians are forcibly ejecting poor citizens from their homes and taking over their lands.
Farha noted that these forceful evictions have given rise to informal settlements (slums) ballooning across the country. She described living condition in these informal settlements as inhumane.
Farha stated in her report: “Successive governments have allowed economic inequality in Nigeria to reach extreme levels, a fact that is clearly evident in the housing sector.
Meanwhile, newly built luxury dwellings are sprouting up throughout cities–made possible often through the forced eviction of poor communities”.
The UN Rapporteur noted, sadly, that “these new dwellings do not fulfill any housing need, since many remained vacant, acting as vessels for money laundering or investment”.
Farha also noted in her report, that seven in 10 Nigerians in towns and cities now live in informal settlements, adding that most of these settlements remain without access to running water and toilets. Above all, she noted that these poor and vulnerable citizens live in perpetual fear of being turned out of their homes by the high and mighty.
Worried by the viciousness of the forced evictions and the steady rise in unoccupied buildings within and around the capital city, some stakeholders have called on the authorities to start taxing owners of the vacant buildings.
The taxes, the stakeholders argued, should be as high as levies paid on luxury items. This, they believe, will force down the prices of the housing units and also bring down rents as the case may be. The measures may also check the insatiable appetite of the rich and powerful to despoil the poor and vulnerable by grabbing and sharing their lands.
More than 300 people were on Thursday evacuated from a house in Rigasa, a community in Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State by the police.
They were conveyed in 15 commercial buses after a raid on the building in which the occupants were chained to prevent them from escaping.
The house, named: “Daru Imam Ahmad Bun Hambal” operated as an Islamic school. The children (all male), alleged that they were being sexually abused.
Senior students and instructors perpetrated the sexual act on the boys.
Our reporter, who witnessed the raid, led by Commissioner of Police Ali Aji Janga, observed that majority of the ‘inmates’ were chained on both legs, and others chained to generating sets and vehicle alloy rims.
Some of the inmates who jubilated on sighting the team of policemen, showed reporters the scars of the injuries they sustained from torture in the hands of their instructors.
Many of them claimed they are from Burkina Faso, Mali and Ghana and other African countries.
One of them, Hassan Yusuf, a PhD holder in Energy Economics, recounted how he was dragged to the centre two years ago by his family, who accused him of converting from Islam.
Yusuf said: “I have been here for two years. I just found myself here one morning two years ago. My extended family accused me of converting to Christianity, just because I spent 16 years in the UK and married to a Briton.
“For them, they think they are helping me because, since I became a Christian, I am supposed to die. But bringing me here according to them is to deradicalise me instead of death.
“Now, I am diabetic, I can’t access drugs and all the foods they give us here are carbohydrate.”
Another inmate, Bello Hamza, 42, said he was tricked into the centre by his family. He claimed that his family members were interested in taking over his share of family inheritance.
He said: “I have spent three months here with chains on my legs. I’m supposed to be pursuing my Masters degree in the University of Pretoria, South Africa. I got admission to study Applied Mathematics, but here I am, chained.
“They claim to be teaching us Qur’an and Islam, but they do a lot of things here. They subject the younger ones to homosexuality.
“This is supposed to be an Islamic centre, but trying to run away from here attracts severe punishment; they tie people and hang them to the ceiling for that, but engaging in homosexuality attracts no punishment.
”Within my short stay here, somebody had died from torture. Others have died before I came due to poor health and torture. They give us very poor diet and we only eat twice a day (11am and 10pm).
“They have denied me a lot of things here. I am a family man, I have responsibilities, but I am chained here not knowing what is happening to members of my family.
The police commissioner told reporters that the raid was triggered by a tip off.
CP Janga said: “We received information that something is going on in this rehabilitation centre or Islamic centre. So, I sent my DPO here to check what was going on. On getting here, we discovered that, this is neither a rehabilitation centre nor an Islamic school.
“You can see it for yourself that little children, some of who are brought from neighbouring African countries like Burkina Faso, Mali and others and from across Nigeria. Most of them are even chained.
“These people are being used, dehumanised. You can see it for yourself. The man who is operating this home claimed that parents brought their children here for rehabilitation. But, from the look on things, this is not a rehabilitation centre. No reasonable parent will bring his children to this place.
“So, we are going to investigate them and get to the root of the matter. We will find out the real motive behind this centre, and if they are found wanting they will be charged to court.
“But first, we are evacuating all the people from this place to our station and we will make announcement for parents to come and recover their children.”
The proprietor, simply identified as Malam, said all they do in the centre “is to teach people Islam.”
He said: “All those allegations of torture, dehumanisation and homosexuality are false and mere allegations. We do nothing here other than teaching people Islam.
“They don’t do anything other than, recitation of Qur’an, pray and worship God. Those chained are the stubborn ones who attempt running away. Those who don’t attempt running away are not chained. Some were chained before and after settling down, they were freed.
”Most of them were brought by their parents from across the country and others from outside the country.”
The Abba and Ukpo communities in Anambra State, are at each other’s throat over a land dispute that have remained a bone of contention. Though the Police are everywhere to ensure that both parties maintain peace, the question many are still asking as NWANOSIKE ONU writes, is who owns the land.
Abba and Ukpo Communities are neighbours in Anambra state, that have every reason to be the envy of other communities in the entire Southeast. While Abba community in Njikoka Local Government area is the home of the international author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Ukpo, in Dunukofia Council Area, has as son, an oil magnate billionaire Prince Arthur Eze, whose philanthropic disposition is well acknowledged.
But that is where their good parts ends. The two communities have been torn apart by a bitter land tussle that has degenerated to name calling, harassment and intimidation.
Their acrimonious clashes have all trappings of the late Chinua Achebe’s classic novel Things Fall Apart, where the centre no longer holds.
But one interesting aspect of the scenario in the matter, is that the traditional ruler of Ukpo, Igwe Dr Robert Eze, was one time student of Prof James Adichie from Abba and Chimamanda’s father both in Secondary and University.
When The Nation visited the area, hordes of Police men both in uniforms and plain clothes were spotted, especially, towards the expressway, land and market in dispute.
They are positioned by the state Command to repel any danger and to make sure those trying to foment trouble are not spared, the state Police Public Relation’s Officer, PPRO, Haruna Mohammed, a Superintendent of Police, said.
There had been protests, arrests and detention of many persons, including lawyers, since the trouble erupted, by the police.
The Oye market, which the people of Abba claim is their own, has been destroyed including the fence along the road that links both communities by unknown persons.
The President General of Abba Community, Mr. B.C. Anaekwe, an Engineer, in the documents he made available to The Nation, alleged that the signboards belonging to Abba along the expressway, on the entrance into the community, had been uprooted by the people of Ukpo.
He further alleged that Ukpo community had been mounting offending gigantic billboards bearing their name on a part of their land with the inscriptions ‘Ukpo Junction.’
The people of Ukpo are relying solely on the judgment of the Supreme Court, delivered on 15th February, 2019, by Justice Paul Adamu Galumje, and his other four brothers, who resolved the land case against the plaintiffs (Abba community)
According to one of the Chiefs from Ukpo, Ichie Anayo Ejem, “Supreme Court represents the bus-stop of all litigations in Nigeria; when it rules on any case, one can only appeal to God.
“In line with this time-tested legalistic wisdom, the Chief Judge of Anambra State, upon being served the Supreme Court judgment, issued Ukpo and Ukwulu the clearance (Warrant of Entry) to re-possess their land. Or, is Abba community suggesting that the Chief Judge of Anambra State does not understand the Supreme Court judgment?
“The Commissioner of Police Anambra State has been served the Supreme Court judgment, as well as the Warrant of Entry; that is why the Police is on firm ground in upholding the law and enforcing the peace on the erstwhile disputed land.”
“Or, is Abba community also suggesting that the Commissioner of Police does not understand the Supreme Court ruling?
“Abba insists it has once again filed a suit on the same settled issues at a trial court in Anambra State. The mere fact of Abba filing another suit on same issues on which the Supreme court has ruled is itself seminal and profound”
“Because what Abba is asking Anambra State trial court to do is to set aside the Supreme Court ruling! That is huge, and I am sure, Chimamanda will be able to capture this new gigantic development in her most colorful prose”
Chimamanda Adichie said the ownership ought not to be in contention. “I don’t know who has a legitimate claim to the land – it has for decades been known as Agu Abba and farmed by Abba people in the often-unwritten rules that govern customary land ownership”
“But that is what the courts should determine, in a process free from meddling. Court records should not disappear. No community in Nigeria should be terrorized by state machinery. No private citizen should have the power to turn the police on an entire community”
“Injustice is stalking Anambra State and the rights of every citizen should be protected. It is in protecting the rights of others that we protect our own rights, because we create a system of rights from which all can potentially benefit” Adichie wrote.
However, the traditional ruler of Ukpo, Igwe Dr Robert Eze, told The Nation that the people of Abba would not dictate to them, adding that Ukpo was ready to make peace with their neighbours, if they show any sign of remorse.
He said, “we have given them enough rope to repent, the problem with that community is that they have prominent persons, but they left the leadership of their town in the hands of traders.”
“You cannot go beyond the Supreme Court, it’s like biting the fingers that feed you. They are mentioning the name of Prince Arthur Eze to blackmail him, my subject has nothing to do with what is happening in their Community, they should know is a battle between two communities.
“Ukpo is peace loving and law abiding community, we can never resort to violence in settling disputes. We have been patient since 1999 when the first judgment was delivered in our favour and after 20 years the Apex Court resolved same in our favour, hence, Abba community should allow us to peacefully enjoy the benefit of these judgments” the monarch said.
The two communities are not relenting in pursuit of the said land which has created a wide gap between them.
The monarch, Igwe Leonard Ezeh and his subjects, said their keeping quite in the face of provocation by the people of Ukpo, does not mean they are cowards, rather, it is because they are peace loving people.
According to the President General, Engr B C Anaekwe, “we wish to make it clear that we have not clung to being law abiding and peaceful because we are cowards, but because we are convinced that it is wrong to do otherwise.”
“It is common knowledge that no community has monopoly of violence or unruly behaviour. We most humbly inform you that, as we write, the patience of both our youths and elders are wearing thin with each passing day as the pressure and provocation are not only becoming most unbearable, but equally killing.”
“The simple appeal Abba community is making is, for the Nigeria Police Force to secure the lives and property of the people of Abba in the objective discharge of its statutory assignment. We must not be to defend ourselves,” Anaekwe said.
Despite the claims and counter claims by both communities of Abba -Ukpo and the Supreme Court ruling on the issue, the question that needs urgent answer is, who owns the land?
Prominent Indigenes of Ogbomoso who have distinguished themselves in various fields of human endeavour will be honoured on Saturday.
The organisers, the Ogbomoso Community Foundation (OCF), a social -cultural organisation, said the Night with Stars seeks to honour indigenes who have positively impacted the country, state and the Ogbomoso community.
A statement by OCF leader General Oladayo Popoola (rtd), said it was to appreciate the recipients and further encourage them to do more for the community while encouraging others emulate them.
“The idea is to honour some of these people in their life time.
“Someone like Chief Lere Paimo, popularly called Eda Onileola, who turned 80 years old recently, should be honoured for his great contribution to the entertainment industry in the country.
“It is better to honour people like him in their lifetime to show how they are appreciated,” the statement said.
Others awardees are Late Chief Ogundare Foyanmu, whose unique poetic chants popularised Ijala Ode; the Gongo Aso crooner, Akande Abolore (9ice); Alhaji Ramoni Akanni (RKI), Kolawole Ajoyemi, Alhaji Wasiu Agara, Benedict Ayoolaa, and Prince Femi Oyewumi.
Dr. Samson Adegoke (Maigida), whose impactful donation of a community maternity centre and e-library to the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), will be honoured, among others.
Educated youths under the auspices of the Bayelsa Forward Movement (BFM) have declared support for the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the November 16 governorship elections, Douye Diri.
BFM Coordinator Alfred Kemepado, and other leaders of the group, also promised to work against the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief David Lyon.
A statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr. Fidelis Soriwei quoted Kemepado to have made the declaration during a solidarity visit to the Government House, Yenagoa.
Kemepado, who described the choices in the forthcoming election as a contest between good and evil, said that the enlightened youth populace would not allow Bayelsa to descend on a pitiable mission to Egypt after tasting the soothing air of restoration.
Kemepado said that the Nigerian system created an unacceptable situation that foisted servitude and deprivation on the inhabitants of the Niger Delta, who are the original owners of the oil.
He explained that the oil firms encouraged the creation of armed militia groups in the Niger Delta in the guise of oil surveillance contractors to perpetrate instability in the region.
Kemepado said that it was an aberration for the oppressive system to deprive indigenes of the area of ownership rights only to use them as some glorified pipeline security servants.
He said tha Bayelsa youths would not vote those who would celebrate an arrangement that foists oppression on the region.
He said that the BFM comprising graduate youths, would take the message to all the communities of the state to ensure the sustenance of the PDP legacy of development in Bayelsa State.
He said that the Bayelsa Youth populace would not allow the state to be taken over by agents of darkness and gun-wielding youths come November 16.
He praised the governor for his developmental exploits in all the critical sectors of the state and for the opportunity given to the youths to serve.
In his remarks, Governor Seriake Dickson, said that the state was almost in the promised land and would not retrogress to Egypt.
He said that the group of highly educated and enlightened youths would not be deceived by fake promises from insincere politicians using deceit as their most potent political tool.
He recalled that some politicians were behind a rumour that the APC candidate paid electricity bills for the people of Yenagoa when nothing of that nature occurred.
He said that he would drive in a convoy to Aguobiri in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area in October and do the ground breaking for the Oporoma bridge.
He called on the youths to be firm and not to allow their state to be taken over by darkness.
President Muhammadu Buhari has expressed shock and grief over the death of the former Secretary to the Federal Government (SGF), Chief Ufot Ekaette.
He described him as “a consummate administrator who dedicated himself to duty in the course of his distinguished public service”.
In a condolence statement, the President extolled the late SGF “as a gentleman who had given his best in the service of his country”.
He said: “The late Ekaette would always be remembered not only for his remarkable public service record, but also because of his immense contributions towards bringing peace in the once troubled Niger Delta region.”
While condoling the Ekaette family, the government and people of Akwa Ibom State over the death of the former SGF, President Buhari regretted that “his demise comes at a time when voices like his own are needed to move Nigeria forward in the face of daunting challenges.”
President Buhari, in a statement by the Senior Special Assistant (SSA) on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, assured that “his contributions would never be in vain as the country would always appreciate and remember his great contributions”.
The President prayed God Almighty to comfort the Ekaette family, friends and relations, and grant the soul of the departed eternal rest.
Akwa Ibom State Governor Udom Emmanuel has mourned the former SGF and ex-deputy governor of the state.
Ekaette died on Wednesday at 79.
He hailed from Onna Local Government Area and was also the pioneer Minister of Niger Delta Affairs.
A condolence message by the governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Ekerete Udoh, hailed the deceased’s contributions to the development of the state and Nigeria.
The message reads: “He was a thoroughbred public servant who was transparent, honest and a stickler for excellence, qualities he brought to bear in the execution of the key offices of public trust he held in the course of his career.
“The government and people of Akwa Ibom are grateful for his contributions to the development of our state where he once served as deputy governor. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family; he will be greatly missed.”
