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Tag: Ogwashi-Uku

  • ASUP, NASU, SSANIP strike ground activities at three Delta Polytechnics

    ASUP, NASU, SSANIP strike ground activities at three Delta Polytechnics

    Academic and other activities in all three Delta state government-owned polytechnics were paralyzed on Thursday as academic and non-academic staff unions of the institutions embark on an indefinite strike over disagreement with the government.

    The joint unions of the three state polytechnics‎ located in Otefe-Oghara, Ogwashi-Uku and Ozoro in the three senatorial districts of the state embarked on the action to protest against alleged failure of the state government and ministry of education to implement discussions on emoluments and conditions of service.

    “As I am talking to you now exams activities that were supposed to start at Delta State Polytechnic, Ogwashi-Uku did not hold Thursday.

    “I can also confirm to you that I am in Ozoro now and there is no lecture and all staff have stayed away in obedience to the call to down tools till further notice. The situation is the same in Oghara,” a source at Ozoro said.

    The Academic Union of Polytechnics (ASUP), Senior Staff Association of Nigeria Polytechnics, (SSANIP) and Non-Academic Staff Union, (NASU) members said the indefinite strike was to press home their demands in the staled negotiation with the state government.

    Comr. Thomas Ojuye, Chairman of the Joint Union, told newsmen on Wednesday that the State Government failed to revisit understanding reached at the meeting the unions held with the Commissioner for Higher Education, Mr. Jude Sinebe, earlier.

    He lamented the failure of the State government to begin “full implementation of the new revised scheme of services for polytechnics and other similar Tertiary institution in Nigeria, stoppage of promotion from Consolidated Tertiary Institution Salary Scheme (CONTISS) 11 to 13, non-implementation of migration of technologists, executive and technical officers, instructors and confidential secretaries cadre on CONTISS 12 and above.

    “Migration of CONTISS 11 and below, stoppage of payment of promotion arrears, withdrawal of 65 years retirement policy, dismissal of Chairmen of ASUP and NASU in Delta State Polytechnic, Ogwashi-Uku, and the recent law on the acquisition of PhD certificates as prerequisites for promotion to the post of Chief Lecturer”.

    The statement further added that, “In the light of the above lingering issues since 2014 and the State Government indiscreet disposition to the demands of Staff of the respective polytechnics, after the Union had reached an understanding in the meeting previously held with the Honourable Commissioner for Higher Education, Engr.Jude Sinebe, with the chairmen of the Governing Council, Rectors and Joint Union Executives of the Delta State owned Polytechnics, Ozoro,Ogwashi-uku,and Otefe-Oghara on Monday 5th June 2017 at the conference Hall, the Ministry of Higher Education, Asaba , hence the action”.

    The Joint Union Chairman, Comrade Thomas Ojuye, strongly advised the Union members to remain steadfast and united as they prepare for a long gihtt to address the challenges facing  the Union.

    He assured them that “victory is not farfetched from them to achieve their aims and objectives.”

     

  • BEDC restores power to Ogwashi-Uku seven years after

    Ogwashi-Uku, the headquarters of Aniocha-South Local Government area of Delta State, was aglow at the weekend with the restoration of electricity in the area, by the Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC) after seven years of power cut from the national grid.

    According to BEDC, the power supply will be extended to all residents of Ogwashi-Uku in due course as more transformers will be installed and energised in the next few days as enumeration revalidation, network rehabilitation and safety checks continue in earnest.

    The restoration process started with a town hall meeting organised by members of Ogwashi-Ukwu D-Forum in collaboration with the management of BEDC led by the Chief State Head (Delta), Mr. Ernest Edgar, the Business Manager, Asaba Business Unit, Adekola Abiodun and his technical team, among others.

    The town hall meeting, which had in attendance delegates from the various quarters and sub-clans that make up Ogwashi- Uku and environs, was meant to brief the residents on the extent of job done so far,  which include the completion of re-enumeration in some areas, the installation of transformer statistical meters as initiated by the company at no cost to the community.

    Edgar expressed shock at the level of vandalism of the network in spite of rehabilitation work carried out by BEDC in June 2016 and pleaded with the community leaders to work with the company to educate the public on the need to protect the equipment.

    He further emphasised the need to re-orientate and sensitise the residents through safety lectures as delivered by BEDC Safety Manager, Mr. Gilbert. Nweke who enlightened the delegates on basic safety tips to be disseminated to their people in readiness for the gradual restoration of power in phases to the various areas.

    The Director-General of D-Forum Pastor Joseph T. U. Nwadiashi while acknowledging the meters, praised BEDC for keeping fate with the community in line with Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission’s (NERC) directive after many years of waiting. He pleaded that the company should keep to its promise of ensuring that within a short period all parts of Ogwashi-uku will be supplied with electricity.

    Edgar also seized the opportunity to educate the people of Ogwashi-Uku on the NERC directive on the methodology for estimated billing, said  that individual estimated bills would be delivered to each customer based on the global readings from the statistical meters installed on each transformer feeding the respective customers connected to the same transformer.

    He explained the “Weighted Average Cluster load” approach and urged for cooperation with the enumerators currently carrying out revalidation and load audit as customers were under-stating their load capacity and in some cases out-rightly refusing access to the enumerators to assess their homes.

  • Delta Govt. disowns 700 staff in tertiary schools

    Delta Govt. disowns 700 staff in tertiary schools

    Over 700 academic and non-academic staff of some tertiary institutions in Delta state, whose names were not on the State’s payroll have been disowned over ‘illegal’ employment.

    The state’s Commissioner for Higher Education, Mr Jude Sinebe, announced this at a news conference in Asaba on Wednesday.

    The commissioner said there was no provision for such employment before the staff were engaged.

    “In tertiary institutions, we don’t just employ workers for the sake of employment. We only employ when there is a need for such workers.

    “This issue can be likened to a case of illegal employment and I can tell you that it is not only in the Delta Polytechnic, Ogwashi-Uku; we have similar cases at the State Colleges of Education in Agbor and Warri.

    “The affected staff were employed out of the institutions’ statutory provisions. The system that we operate,  does not recognise them as our staff, as such, we cannot pay them”, Sinebe said.

    The commissioner further explained that many of the schools went out of their way to employ the affected staff without recourse to approval from the state government.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), reports that many of those employed between 2013 and 2015, were lecturers, technicians, information officers, clerical officers and messengers.

  • Ogwashi-Uku Festival celebrates unity

    Ogwashi-Uku Festival celebrates unity

    For the people of Ogwashi-Uku community in Aniocha South Council Area of Delta State, an annual carnival brings the people together from the Diaspora, affording them the opportunity to socialise.

    The Ogwashi-Uku carnival, a three-day fiesta, parades carnival float procession, cultural dances, musical concert, fashion shows, dinner party, quiz competition, talent hunt and display targeted at the progress and development of the community.

    According to its director of operations, Uche Nwulu, the Ogwashi-Uku carnival, which started in December 2010, is celebrated every December, specifically from Christmas Day, and serves as a springboard for tourist attraction and investment to potential development in Ogwashi-Uku, which he said was the dream of the initiator and president of the dance carnival, Anthonia Oguah.

    With consistency and the right sponsorship, Nwulu said, Ogwashi-Uku carnival would reach its zenith in no distant time. According to him, the sixth edition of the fiesta would commence on Christmas Eve with a road show and paying of homage to various clans.

    The carnival proper, he said, will be on Christmas Day with a cultural extravaganza and will be rounded off on Boxing Day with Olobo Masquerade Festival and a reunion dinner and awards party.

    Nwulu lauded MTN, one of the sponsors of the festival, for throwing its weight behind the 2015 edition of the festival.

    He also thanked Leadership Newspapers, Hero Beer, Chivita, Guinness Nigeria PLC, Flour Mills, Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC), 7UP Bottling Company, Goge Africa, Bellanaija.com, The Nation and Thisday Newspapers, as well as Airtel Nigeria for supporting the event.

  • Fear grips Ogwashi-Uku over wave of kidnapping

    Residents of Ogwashi-Uku, headquarters of Aniocha South Local Government Area of Delta, now live in fears following the renewed wave of kidnapping there.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) investigations revealed that no fewer than five cases of kidnapping had been reported in the community in the last two months.

    NAN recalls that the community had allegedly been hit by a wave of high-profile kidnappings and cult killings in the last one year.

    A community youth leader and Port-Harcourt-based philanthropist, Chief Peter Osume, told NAN on Tuesday in Ogwashi-Uku that the resurgence of violent crimes in the community was worrisome.

    He called on the traditional institutions and security agents in the community to lived up to their responsibilities and address the security challenge that had bedeviled the community over the past two years.

    “It is unfortunate that we are still where we are today. Kidnapping and secret cult killings in our community have left us perplexed and helpless.

    “It is equally unfortunate that the traditional institutions and security agents in our community have failed to do what is expected of them.

    “The time has come for all stakeholders in the community to do something urgent, because we cannot pretend to be safe in the face of this wind of destruction that is blowing our community,” Osume said.

    Another indigene of the community, Mr Uwazu Ofordu, said that the situation there called for a proactive measure in dealing with it.

    He called for the deployment of military personnel to the community to assist the police to stem the tide.

    “The situation in Ogwashi-Uku calls for the presence of the military to checkmate this wave of violent crimes. Our community has not known peace over the past two years because of criminal gangs.

    “Only recently, a relative called to say that I should consider relocating my aged mother away from the community, that is the irony of the situation we find ourselves,” Ofordu said.

    NAN reports that the latest outcry by the community marked the peak of the tension that had gripped its residents following last week’s kidnapping of 90 year-old Madam Helen Ojeogwu.

    The nonagenarian, alleged to have been forcefully abducted by a six-man armed gang from her family home in Azungwu Village on July 27, had since remained in the captivity of her abductors.

    However, the state police command through its spokesman, DSP Celestina Kalu, allayed the fears of the residents of the community, adding that the situation was under control.

    Kalu told NAN on phone that the command would rescue the old woman and apprehend the hoodlums terrorising the community.

    She said that security operatives were on the heels of the kidnappers.

     

  • Ogwashi-Uku…a town of giants with ‘gigantic’ problems

    Ogwashi-Uku…a town of giants with ‘gigantic’ problems

    Ogwashi-Uku, a town with not less than 27,000 inhabitants, is the headquarters of Aniocha South Local Government Area of Delta State.

    The ancient community was also the headquarters of Aniocha Division in the defunct Bendel and Midwest states.

    The town then had administrative jurisdiction over Asaba, Issele-Uku, Ibusa, Akwkwu-Igbo, Onicha-Ugbo and many other communities in the neighbourhood.

    Political analysts believe that Ogwashi-Uku has contributed a lot of human resources to the country’s development, both at the federal and state levels.

    Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the Minister of Finance, Chief Ralph Uwaechue, former minister and ambassador, and the late Dr Emmanuel Osamor, a former Minister of Police Affairs, hail from the community.

    The list appears endless. In the defunct Bendel State, an indigene of Ogwashi-Uku, the late Mr Isaac Okonjo was Secretary to the State Government, while his compatriots, Azuka Obichie, Charles Okolo and John Iwowo, among others, were commissioners.

    Jay Jay

    However, some residents of the community, which has also produced famous footballers such as Austin “Jay Jay’’ Okocha and the late Victor Oduah, claim that the town has nothing to show in terms of infrastructural development.

    They noted that the community has not been getting regular power supply in the last one year, resulting in excessive use of generators across the town.

    Narrating the residents’ ordeal, Chukwudi Nwandu, a primary school teacher, said the Azungwu area of the town, where he was living, had been without electricity for over 11 months.

    Corroborating his claims, Jude Ilom, a motorcycle repairer, and Miss Nkem Obianaba, a teacher, said they could not remember the last time they enjoyed power supply.

    A cold room operator, Ignatius Okobi, said he and his colleagues in the business had no other option than to venture into other lines of business since it had become extremely difficult for them to operate cold rooms with power generators.

    He noted that several enterprises in Ogwashi-Uku, which depended on electricity supply, had been forced to close down because of their inability to cope with high costs of production.

    Okobi said the situation had forced many artisans, including welders, air conditioner and refrigerator repairers, tailors, barbers and computer operators, among others, to relocate from the community.

    Emmanuel Okafor, the President General of Ogwashi-Uku Development Union, conceded that the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) had not been supplying power to the town regularly.

    He rejected claims that the community had been without electricity supply for about a year.

    “They give us light at times but the problem is that it is not regular; in a month, we may have electricity for about eight days altogether,’’ he said.

    Nwakamma Okafor, a retired civil servant, recalled that he once led a 17-member delegation to PHCN’s zonal office in Benin about three months ago to discuss the power supply problems.

    He said the PHCN officials admitted that power supply was generally poor around the country, adding that they, nonetheless, pledged that something would be done to improve electricity supply to the community.

    Okafor added that the officials assured them that they would work out plans on how to supply electricity to the community at least three days in a week.

    He said due to the irregular power supply to the community, he spent about N1, 000 every day on fuel to power the generator in his house.

    Emperor Ijenwa, a taxi driver, rejected the notion that the community was experiencing a total power failure, insisting that the electricity supply was just epileptic.

    Mrs Esther Okolie, PHCN’s Public Relations Manager in Asaba, who acknowledged the power supply challenges facing residents of Ogwashi-Uku, said irregular electricity supply was a general problem.

    She said Ogwashi-Uku area alone needed about 105 megawatts of electricity, while only 22 megawatts were available for distribution among all the customers, including government and public offices.

    “The situation is so bad and people are bound to complain; their complaints are genuine but I must appeal to our customers in this area to be patient with us.

    “Let us pray that the 33 KVA step-down transformer on Ibusa Road will be completed and operational before the end of this year or early next year,’’ she said.

    The residents of Ogwashi-Uku and other towns in the area have been appealing to all the relevant authorities to ensure regular power supply to the neighbourhood.

    Analysts urged the Federal Government to carry out pragmatic reforms in the power sector to improve the power supply situation across the country.

     

    • Ifeajika  is of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)

     

  • Okonjo-Iweala’s mother kidnapped

    Okonjo-Iweala’s mother kidnapped

    Mother of the Finance Minister, Dr Ngozi Okonjo -Iweala was on Sunday abducted at the Ogwashi-Uku palace in Delta State.

    The 82 years old  octogenarian,  Professor Kanene  Okonjo who is the queen mother of Ogwashi-Uku  was abducted at about 1:47pm by a gang of armed men who seized her at  the palace gate and took her away to an unknown destination.
    The police have however  arrested a man who allegedly left the palace compound few minutes before she was kidnapped.
    The man was said to have informed the housemaid that he was in the palace to take the queen mother to somewhere in the town.
    It was gathered that the kidnappers numbering about 10 were lurking around the palace until the Minister’s mother and her maid came down to serve workers at the gate  drinks.
    Eye witness account said as soon as the woman came down from the main  building  towards the gate, the kidnappers also moved in from the gate, grabbed  and pushed her into a waiting Golf Volkswagen car.
    “The abductors when they walked into the compound were heavily armed.
    They were about ten. They bailed up the men fixing the interlocking tiles and asked them to lay face down. Immediately they saw her (the King’s wife who was coming towards the gate with her maid to serve the workers drinks, they bundled her into a waiting vehicle the Golf car while another car was parked outside”.
    One of them, bracing all odds, reportedly went upstairs to collect the woman’s handbag. The eyewitness said another maid who sighted the kidnapper upstairs hid herself in the Kitchen.
    On coming down from the upstairs, the kidnapper informed his gang members that there was no one else in the house before  they zoomed off.
    At the palace of Prof. Chukwuka  Okonjo yesterday, the atmosphere was  gloomy as many sympathizers and well wishers, including members of the  community’s vigilante group gathered discussing the development.

    When contacted, the State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Charles Muka confirmed the report