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Tag: Port Harcourt

  • AMAA goes to Port Harcourt

    AMAA goes to Port Harcourt

    From Port Elizabeth, South Africa, where it held its last edition, foremost pan-African reward scheme, the Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) is repeating a prefix, with plans to host its 2016 edition in Port Harcourt, Nigeria.

    In a statement released on Tuesday, the award show will hold on June 11, to be preceeded with a Nominations Gala on May 11; another suffix in date, that appears a stylish coincidence.

    As part of the pre-AMAA activities, the state will host a sponsorship night in conjunction with the Africa Film Academy to mobilize corporate sponsors for the awards while interestingly, the braodcast mileage for this year’s show, being the 12th edition, also holds so much promise for the enduring scheme, with the rebranded Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) as major broadcast partner, for Live Telecast to over 100 million people across the globe.  As if that is not enough, Africa Magic, OHTV UK, SABC South Africa and ONTV have also signed on as media partners.

    There are indications AMAA has found a new home in the Garden City of Port Harcourt, capital of Rivers State, going by a statement jointly signed by the State Commissioner of Culture & Tourism, Mrs. Tonye Briggs Oniyide on behalf of Governor Wike and the founder of AMAA, Ms. Peace Anyiam-Osigwe.

    Briggs said: “We are repositioning Rivers State as a state ready for business to Nigerians and the rest of the world and our partnership with AMAA will become a veritable platform to attract tourists, global and Nigeria icons in business and the entertainment industry. We want to showcase Rivers State as a peaceful place where socio-economic activities thrive and also the hospitality of our people. There is a huge economy around entertainment and show business in Port Harcourt. While our state is known for her hydrocarbon resources, His Excellency, Governor Wike’s administration through the Ministry of Culture & Tourism through initiatives like AMAA wants the world to know and take advantage of the business opportunities that abound in Rivers State.”

    Also speaking on the new partnership, Anyiam-Osigwe said it marks the beginning of a new phase in the journey of the continental awards that started 12years ago: “We are very happy with this development and express our gratitude to Governor Wike and the good people of Rivers State. We value this partnership and we promise that it will be a rewarding one for the government and people of this great state.”

    Recall that AMAA had held eight editions in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, while three other editions took place in Abuja, Lagos and South Africa respectively.

    The previous nomination nights had taken place in Accra, Nairobi, Johannesburg, Banjul, Lilongwe, Ouagadougou and Los Angeles.

    Before last year’s nomination show which took place in Los Angeles, United States, the pre-event Gala had rotated venues from Accra, Ghana; Nairobi, Kenya; Johannesburg, South Africa; Banjul, Gambia; Lilongwe, Malawi and Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.

     

  • Enyimba will work hard to win in Tunisia – Agwu

    Enyimba will work hard to win in Tunisia – Agwu

    Chief Felix Anyansi-Agwu, the Chairman of Enyimba International Football club of Aba, on Sunday, said the team would work harder in the second round of CAF Champions League match against Etoile Du Sahel of Tunisia to win.

    Agwu told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Port Harcourt that in spite of winning the first leg match 3-0, Enyimba would go to Tunisia with renewed vigour to get a good result.

    He said “we will not go home and sleep thinking that 3-0 is a big win. The goals can be cancelled in 10 minutes.

    “I think the game is not over yet. As it is, three zero in football is not a big win. We cannot go and sleep because Etoile is a big team.

    “We will go to Tunisia prepared to win and in football, you have to be prepared for every game.”

    The chairman said though Enyimba was not favoured to win with a big margin, the team was appreciative of the support from fans.

    He added that the team would prepare for the second leg match, knowing that it would be tough when they play in Tunisia.

    “We have the experience playing against teams from North Africa and would use such tactics in the second leg.

    “We are going to manage them. There is nothing to be afraid of. We are going there to fight because it is not over yet. Three zero, very good result, but it is not over,’ he added.

    He commended Gov. Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia for assisting the team despite the hard times in the country and assured that the team
    would not disappoint the state and the country.

    “Obviously, the state government has been very wonderful. We thank Gov. Ikpeazu for his support despite the hard times,” Agwu noted.

     

  • Kaduna economic summit: FCT, Port Harcourt golfers, others storm tournament

    As preparations for the Kaduna State Economic and Invest Summit (KadInvest) continued over the weekend, golfers from across the country on Saturday participated in the Kadinvest 2016 Golf tournament held in Kaduna.

    Wife of Kaduna State Governor, Hajiya Hadiza El-Rufai, who performed the tee-off as golfers from the host club, Kaduna Golf Club, were joined by players from golf cubs in Abuja, Kano, Minna, Jaji and Port-Harcourt.

    Hajiya El-Rufai was supported at the opening of the tournament  by senior government officials, including Dr. Manzo Maigari, Commissioner of Agriculture and Forestry, Hadiza Bala-Usman, Chief of Staff to the Governor and Chris Umar, Deputy Chief of Staff in the office of the Deputy Governor.

    Welcoming the golfers, Executive Secretary of the Kaduna Investment Promotion Agency (KADIPA), Gambo Hamza, explained the thrust of KadInvest as a platform to stimulate private sector investments in the many opportunities that Kaduna State offers.

    Hamza said: “Securing and fast-tracking investments is the best way to create sustainable jobs, grow the economy and improve livelihoods for our people,” he explained.

    Golfers like Senator Ben Birabi, His Royal Highness Alfred Diete-Spiff and General Zamani Lekwot participated in the tournament which was sponsored by Pinnacle Investments.

    Kaduna State Governor, Malam Nasir El-Rufai, who made a surprise appearance at the gala dinner for the tournament where trophies were presented told the golfers that he had just returned to Kaduna from Paris where he met the management of Peugeot Citroen to further discuss the bid for Peugeot Automobile Nigeria.

    According to the governor: “Jobs and prosperity are essential to restoring our Kaduna as a cosmopolitan city that welcomes all and provides opportunities to start and grow successful businesses.”

    El-Rufai commended the sponsors and participants in the golf tournament for providing such a wonderful platform for unveiling KadInvest 2016.

  • Entertainment portal berths in Port Harcourt  

    Gists around Port-Harcourt, Rivers State have it that a new online event platform, wetindeyhapon.com, was unveiled on Sunday in the Garden City. The platform which was created by Elexcysweb Limited is headed by experts in showbiz and event managers.

    The unveiling of the online platform which took place at  Cosmo Lounge, Abacha-Road Port Harcourt attracted event lovers, students and talented artistes from the Niger Delta region.

    Addressing guests, Mr. Oyet Uk,  an event manager and one of the brains behind the platform who spoke on behalf of his team said they came up with the idea after realising that visitors to Port Harcourt found it difficult to find event venues in town.

    Uk said with the launch of wetindeyhapon.com, any visitor coming to Port Harcourt can now find where to relax or have fun by logging into their event platform.

    He noted that there are a lot of events taking place in Port Harcourt which may not be easily located by a visitor, or residents who have no eye for entertainment, adding that the information on the website about event in town  are current.

    “We have decided to open a big market to showcase the entertainment industry and showbiz in this part of the country,” he said.

    “Thing are happening here but people are not aware, how can a visitor enter Port Harcourt and begins to search for a place where it is happening. So this platform has made it easy for such a person, all he needs is to log-in.

    ”It is not just showbiz alone, we have information on the best hotel in town, clubbing, wedding, burial ceremonies, celebrity lifestyle, information about our artistes, campus celebration etc.  We want the people to know that event is life.”

  • Passenger dies on Port Harcourt-Lagos flight

    Two days after a middle-aged female passenger died at the toilet of the Lagos Airport, a  female passenger on board Arik Air’s Port Harcourt-Lagos flight was yesterday confirmed dead on arrival by medical personnel at the Murtala Muhammed Airport Domestic Terminal 1, Ikeja, Lagos.

    The spokesman of Arik Air, Mr Adebanji Ola, disclosed this yesterday.

    The lady, believed to be pregnant, according to the airline, boarded the flight from Port Harcourt in company of her husband and cousin. The cause of death is yet to be ascertained.

    Meanwhile, Arik Air is increasing its frequency on the Lagos-Dakar (Senegal) route to a daily service up from six weekly flights commencing February 22, 2016.

    The new schedule will operate with four of the Lagos-Dakar flights routed via Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire instead of the previous routing via Banjul. The other three flights will continue to operate via Accra, Ghana.

  • Passenger dies on Port Harcourt-Lagos flight

    Passenger dies on Port Harcourt-Lagos flight

    Two days after a middle – aged female passenger died at the toilet of the Lagos Airport, Friday another female passenger on board Arik Air’s Port Harcourt-Lagos flight was confirmed dead on arrival by medical personnel at the Murtala Muhammed Airport Domestic Terminal 1, Ikeja, Lagos.

    The spokesman of Arik Air, Mr Adebanji Ola disclosed this Friday.

    The lady according to the airline boarded the flight from Port Harcourt in company of her husband and cousin.

    The cause of death is yet to be ascertained.

    Meanwhile, Arik Air is increasing its frequency on the Lagos-Dakar (Senegal) route to a daily service up from six weekly flights commencing February 22, 2016.

    The new schedule will operate with four of the Lagos-Dakar flights routed via Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire instead of the previous routing via Banjul.

    The other three flights will continue to operate via Accra, Ghana.

    The Lagos-Abidjan-Dakar service will operate on Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Friday while the Lagos-Accra-Dakar service will operate on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

    With the new schedule, Arik Air will be able to provide its customers convenient access between Lagos, Abuja, Accra, Abidjan and Dakar markets.

    The airline will also be increasing its frequency on the Lagos-Banjul route from three weekly to four weekly flights effective March 14, 2016. All the flights will be operated via Accra using a Boeing 737-700 Next Generation (NG) aircraft.

    The Lagos-Accra-Banjul service will be operated on Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Sunday, making Arik Air the only airline operating non-stop from Banjul to Accra. Additionally, Abuja passengers can connect conveniently to Banjul via Accra on all four days.

    Arik Air’s Chief Commercial Officer, Mr. Suraj Sundaram commented: “Being the largest airline in West and Central Africa comes with the responsibility to meet the increasing demand from our customers to improve connectivity in the region. We are committed to improving these connections to facilitate the movement of passengers and cargo seamlessly across our expanding network.”

  • College celebrates 20th anniversary in Port Harcourt

    College celebrates 20th anniversary in Port Harcourt

    •Discloses plan to expand school to the Southsouth 

    The Board of Governors of Trinity International College Ofada, Ogun state says it would establish the school in the South-south of the country to give more parents opportunity to give the desired quality education to their children.

    The chairman of the Board, Samuel Olatunji spoke at the 20th anniversary celebration of the college held in Port Harcourt, the Rivers state capital recently.

    Olatunji said the plan was concluded 10 years ago but was suspended following increased cases of insecurity in the area, but said the Board has no choice to implement the plan any soon to allow parents and their wards who have been hindered by distance the chance to access the kind of education they desire.

    “We don’t have a choice, it is a question of time because we cannot remain only a Lagos school forever, the country is growing and our kind of school will be needed and the South-south and Port Harcourt is one area that we have drawn a lot of students overtime, going be this,  it is only natural that the school  be built here as well.”

    The college he said was founded in 1995 to fill the gap created by decay in education sector of the country by restoring the lost qualities, values, commitments, uprightness that used to be the norm in the sector before.

    “Trinity International College is a secondary school we started 20 years ago basically for our own children because of the concern we had at that time for the state of education in the country, morals were going down, a lot of crisis in the sector, we were just very highly concerned about the state of affairs and thought of how we were going to solve the problem at our level, so we challenged ourselves and started the school.

    “The early days of the school was dominated by our own children because that was the primary motivation and the values we set out to impact and we went about it, the commitment and the passion, that became clear to many more people and they sent in their wards, and the college has since then continued to grow. It is today one of the largest private secondary schools in the country.” He said.

    Speaking on what distinguishes the college from other schools said, “Commitment to work, values, academic excellence, uprightness among others and in this 20 years we have continued to keep to our focus and ensure that everybody does his work, with those values kept to the letter.”

    He said the celebration was shifted to the Southsouth as a way to express the high level of patronage the school has enjoyed from inception from residents of this area, especially Port Harcourt.

    “Right from the year we started, parents from this part of the country have been part of the college family and increasingly so overtime.” “… a large amount of support has come from here as well and we’ve also noticed that it will not be easy for every of our parent from this area to come to Lagos for this, it is only proper for us to come to our second largest catchment base (the South-south), to stage the celebration, as a way to show our gratitude for being a part of our family.”

    Parents who spoke at the occasion extols the virtues of the school and expressed their satisfaction with their qualities and standard.

    The chairman of the event and one f the parents, Ugochukwu Ohuabunwa, described the college as being original. He said the passion of the founders in running and growing a school in its original form is a distinguishing factor. He called on school operators to put aside quick profiteering in education business.

    “Education is not a quick profit oriented business, but a sustainable investment development which has to take a long time before yielding profit, and Trinity International College is a typical example of how school business should be ran.” He stated.

     

  • Port Harcourt Catholic Knights caution Biafra agitators

    Catholic Knights of Saint Mulumba (KSM) of Port Harcourt diocese have called on pro-Biafra protesters to desist from acts capable of bringing back the ugly experiences encountered during the war.

    The knights spoke at a news conference held at Dr. Obi Wali International Conference Centre Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital.

    The head of Supreme Knight of Saint Mulumba, Bro. Anthony Onuh, said those advocating for Biafra were young people who did not even witness the war.

    Onuh explained that the challenges ravaging the country which ranges from Boko Haram insurgency, nonpayment of salaries are some of the issues which need to be addressed.

    He noted that even as they have disagreed with pro-Biafra protesters, it is necessary that government at all level must be proactive to address so many challenges affecting Nigerian youths especially the welfare of Nigeria Citizen.

    Onuh said: “I went to the war, I was a lieutenant on the Biafra side and had a bullet wound. And when the war ended I said thanks be to God. So I won’t want anybody to drag us to that experience again. No matter what the problem may be.

    “We are facing insurgency in Nigeria, which everybody is praying should be over soon. We have challenges in every phase of our lives. So we are praying that things will be better for all of us. It touches us and we pray that this issue of Boko Haram should be a thing of the past.

    “Most of the retired people are collapsing and dying just because they want to get salary from the government. While oversees, they will seat in their houses and receive their salaries through their banks, because they have worked when they were strong.”

  • Dana air begins daily low cost flights from Lagos to Accra

    Dana air begins daily low cost flights from Lagos to Accra

    As part of its ongoing domestic route network expansion plans, Dana Air has commenced daily flights from Lagos to Accra. The addition of Accra brings the current route network of the airline to five destinations – Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, Uyo and Accra.
    According to the Accountable Manager of Dana Air, Mr. Obi Mbanuzuo, “business and leisure travelers to the beautiful city of Accra in Ghana, will experience the Dana Air -hospitality as we extend our operations to the cosmopolitan city of Accra.

     

    “We are working with the objective of integrating other cities from Accra into our route network and making air transport accessible by developing new routes and linking same to our existing routes.”
    He stressed that, with Dana Air’s far-reaching domestic route network in Nigeria, guests arriving Lagos from Accra will also benefit from a choice of onward connections from Lagos to Abuja, Port Harcourt, and Uyo.”
    Speaking further Obi said: Accra is a preferred destination for Nigerian businessmen and women and Dana Air’s foray into the city will further boost investments in the city and deepen the bilateral relationship between the two countries.”

     

    He noted that Dana Air’s daily flights to Accra will bring options, comfort and relief to its teeming guests who have been longing for an airline with superior on-time performance and world-class in-flight service.”

     

    The airline has also set an introductory online fare of N22,000 to boost leisure and business trips from Lagos to Accra.
    Only recently, Dana Air marked its 7th anniversary announcing more customer-friendly initiatives like online check-in, frequent flyer program for loyal guests and was also recently unveiled as one of the 100 most respected companies in Nigeria by BusinessDay.
    The airline is the only domestic airline to have undergone an operational audit conducted by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and its foreign partners – flight safety group.

  • JULIUS AGWU HOLDS THANKSGIVING IN PORT-HARCOURT

    JULIUS AGWU HOLDS THANKSGIVING IN PORT-HARCOURT

    Comedian Julius Agwu is still thanking God following a successful surgery in the United States. Last weekend, the diminutive entertainer played host to his family, friends and colleagues to another thanksgiving session in his home town, Choba, Rivers State. Earlier, a thanksgiving service took place at This Present House Ministries in Lagos for the same reason.

    The latest thanksgiving service which took place at his community Church, Our Lady of Fatimah Parish, Choba also attracted politicians such as the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in the last election, Mr. Dakuku Peterside, who stormed the church with his entourage.

    Some months ago, Agwu was diagnosed with tumour and was flown to the U.S. for surgery.

    Agwu, who is also referred to as ‘Da Genius’, danced out his heart when it was time for the thanksgiving. He thanked his mother, Mary Agwu, Pastor John Paul, D. Chris Agwu, Magrette Ariochi Agwu, Mr. and Mrs. Abel Omokoya and his wife, Ibiere Agwu.

    Joining the comedian to thank God, Peterside said, “God has healed you and given you a second chance. Julius Agwu you will never go back to Egypt again.”

    After, the crowd moved to David Ibiyeomie’s Salvation Ministries before finally heading to Cravings for a lavish reception.