The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Sapele

  • Army denies shoot out with notorious kidnapper

    Army denies shoot out with notorious kidnapper

    Authorities of the 4 Brigade Nigerian Army have denied reports that its troop of 19 Battalion had a gun duel before it arrested a suspected kidnapper, Mr. Sunday Okoro aka ‘GI’ and six others at Sapele, Delta State.

    It said there was no shoot out or gun duel during the arrest of Okoro and others.

    In a statement signed by spokesman of the 4 Brigade, Captain Mohammed Maidawa, it also denied that the Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly, Monday Igbuya, mounted pressure for the release of the suspects.

    According to the statement, “The Nigerian Army is replete with highly professional, loyal and dedicated officers that performed their duties diligently with great sense of responsibility and pride.

    “It is therefore preposterous for anyone to allege anything untoward in the handling of the accused or the recovered abandoned vehicles and weapons. All were properly handed over the Delta State Police Command through appropriate channels for further investigation and prosecution.”

     

  • Sapele: Traders, widows protest against Okowa

    Sapele: Traders, widows protest against Okowa

    Widows and traders in Sapele, Delta State on Friday staged a peaceful protest against the state governor, Dr Ifeanyi Okowa, over the state government order revoking stalls allotted to them by the last administration in the state.

    The women condemned the governor’s decision, stating that they were allotted the stalls after they made full payment for them and completed all formalities.

    Leaders of the placard-wielding protesters, Mrs Cecelia Eregare and Mr. Happy Atsegor, said, “It is wickedness for the governor that was voted into power by the people to turn around and throw us into the cold street after paying for our stalls.”

    They lamented that they had been on the issue since 2006 when fire gutted the market and they were ordered to vacate their shops for the market to be rebuilt.

    Eregare recalled that they were re-allotted the stalls in early 2014 after they completed payment and paper works with the government.

    “We applied for the shops; we bought forms, completed and returned them as well as made the requirement payment before we were given the shop. So it is surprising that the new governor is giving us notice to quit,” Mr Atsegor added.

    Meanwhile, the widows and traders who carried several placards that denounced the government’s action, vowed to resist the quit order.

    Besides, they wondered why the government was in a hurry to qui them despite a pending legal tussle over the issue.

    Although Governor Okowa could not be reached for comment, it was learnt that the state’s Director of Information, Paul Osahor, who signed the order, urged all traders currently occupying shops and stalls in the market to evacuate their wares.

  • Patients, workers locked out over unpaid salaries

    Patients, workers locked out over unpaid salaries

    Angry casual workers of the Benin Central Hospital on Sapele Road in Benin, the Edo State capital, locked out the patients and workers yesterday for several hours.

    The over 100 casual workers said they were being owed between six and eight months’ salaries.

    Appeal by some of the workers to allow them enter the hospital was rebuffed. Some had to scale the fence to get to their offices.

    Last week, casual workers at the Stella Obasanjo Hospital also protested th3e unpaid six months’ salaries by locking out patients and the workers.

    Officials of the hospital’s management board had to intervene before the casual workers allowed normalcy to return to the hospital.

    Many patients who were at the hospital for emergency cases were asked to go back. The workers did not resume duty until 10.30am.

    Expectant mothers, who were there for ante-natal, had to wait outside the gate.

    Policemen drafted to maintain order were not allowed in.

    One of the protesting casual workers, who simply gave his name as Oghogho, said they locked the hospital because its management failed to fulfil previous promises on the backlog of salaries.

    “Our salary is just N10,000, but we don’t get it on time. How can I feed my family when these people don’t want to pay us for six months?” Oghogho asked rhetorically.

    An ambulance driver, Tony, said his three children were sent away from school because he could not pay their fees.

    He said: “They have been making empty promises. They always tell us to be patient.”

    The state chapter of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) had to intervene before the casual workers allowed normal activities to resume at the hospital.

    NLC Vice Chairman Sunny Osayande, after a meeting with Health Commissioner Heregie Aihanuwa, promised that the workers would be paid before October 15.

    Osayande said the NLC advised the state government to stop using casual workers since several ministries and agencies were understaffed.

    He said: “The government has decided that these issues will be looked into. This is a social embarrassment to the state government. We will look into them critically to identify those really working. We are negotiating for some of you to be absorbed into the system. By harassing the government, you will create unnecessary tension.”

    The commissioner said casualisation of workers was being addressed.

    “Let them keep calm and let us resolve this for them,” he said.

     

     

     

     

  • Delta impounds over 200 Okada in Sapele

    The Delta State Ministry of Transport, has impounded more than 200 commercial motorcycles, also known as Okada, in Sapele.

    The exercise followed the state government’s decision to phase the use of Okada for commercial purposes in Ika North, South and Sapele council areas of the state.

    Commissioner of Transport Ben Igbakpa, who led the team that carried out the exercise to Ughelli, expressed displeasure at the refusal of Okada operators  in the area to respect government’s order, despite positive gesture from government, which had shifted earlier deadlines to accommodate the views of Okada operators.

    Igbakpa, who said government decided to impound motorcycles to demonstrate its level of seriousness about ending the operation of  commercial motorcycles in the designated places, also denied knowledge of the destruction of some motorcycles in Mosogar recently.

    Igbakpa urged the motorcycle operators to use  tricycles popularly referred to as Keke at a reduced rate from the State Transport secretariat, Asaba if they must remain in business.

    Meanwhile, controversy is trailing the burning of some confiscated motorcycles at the Mosogar end of the Gammon Bridge by yet-to-be-identified persons.

    Though an eyewitness disclosed that the burning of the motorcycles numbering over 100 was ordered by Igbapka,  the transport commissioner denied knowledge of the incident.

    “I am not aware of the burning of any Okada, the fact remains that, any confiscated Okada is not going back to the owner. How such Okadas are being disposed is not the issue, what matter is that all Okadas in these areas must be off the road,” he said.

  • Sapele roads need urgent expansion

    SIR: Sapele is among the early town and cities in Nigeria. It was in fact one of the preferred destinations of the early Europeans who either came to do business or live in Nigeria. The town was famous for its rich timber reserve, a potential which was critical to the establishment of the African Timber and Plywood, ATP in its territory, the second largest timber and plywood industry in Sub Saharan Africa.

    Ironically after many years of unfettered economic growth and prosperity Sapele however became one of the unfortunate victims of long years of military rule, as the economic fortunes of the town took a nose-dive in the 1980s. This was as most of the blue chips company in the area which included AT&P, the major labour employer in the town closed shop. Leading international brands like Kingsway, Kaycee, Singer, Bata, Lenard’s etc, also followed suit. This was accompanied by the closure and conversion of the Sapele Seaport into a naval academy.

    With the departure of these leading business concerns and coupled with the closure and conversion of the Sapele Sea Port to naval academy the town became a shadow of its old self.

    It was only until recently, perhaps since the return of democratic governance (1999) that things started looking up for the town. To cut a long story short, the last few years has seen Sapele gradually returning back to it glory days, as there have been an upswing of business activities in the town, a fact that can be identified in the town’s fast growing hospitality industry, prominent presence of most financial institutions in the country in the town, eye popping shopping malls, the sprouting up of eateries and leisure centres etc. Business and commercial activities in the town has also been significantly boosted by the entrant of Seplat Petroleum Company which bought over Shell’s BP oil wells in the locality.

    Just as there has been an upsurge of business activities in the town in the last few years, so also as there been visible expansion of its population size. One factor that significantly contributed to Sapele’s population explosion in recent years was the prolonged ethnic war in Warri, as a good number of families relocated to the town owing remarkably to its famed peaceful and friendly ambience.

    However, the steady upsurge of the town’s population has also come with its own challenges as its public facilities particularly its roads are presently been overstretched. Suffice it to say that all the major roads in Sapele are today facing the huge challenge of vehicular congestion this is as most of the major roads in the town have become too small and narrow to handle the pressure of vehicles that are constantly plying it, a situation that has made traffic gridlock a common feature in most major roads in the town.

    The road traffic situation in Sapele is made worse by the large number of heavy duty vehicles that are regularly plying major roads in the town, it is either they are conveying petroleum products or bitumen from ASCA at Ogorode, or they are conveying heavy duty materials to and fro from Seplat flow stations at Shell Road or Oton. This is also not talking about the haulage trucks that regularly convey finished products from Flour Mills at Ogorode. The truth is that the traffic situation in Sapele is getting worse by the day, and something urgent needs to be done before the situation gets out of hand.

    It is against this background that I want to appeal to the Delta State Governor Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan to come to the aid of Sapele residents by way of the state government embarking on the expansion of some major roads in the town to ease the suffering motorists and other road users are daily subjected to.

    Sapele is about the only major town in Delta State that is without a dual-carriage way. Other smaller towns even some villages in the state enjoy this gesture of the state government. As they say, ‘’what is good for the goose is also good for the gander’’; Sapele roads needs urgent expansion!

    • Ohwevwo Ufuoma Eugene

    Sapele, Delta State

     

  • Prison boss abducted in Edo

    Prison boss abducted in Edo

    A Deputy Comptroller of prisons identified as T. C Ashibuogwu has been abducted by gunmen suspected to be kidnappers in Benin City, Edo state.

    Ashibuogwu was recently posted to Zone G from Abuja.

    He was snatched along Sapele road close to his residence while returning from work.

    Family sources said the abductors are demanding millions of naira as ransom payment for his release.

    State Police spokesman, DSP Moses Eguaveon confirmed the kidnapping and said efforts were on to track down the abductors.

    Several persons have been abducted in Edo State in recent times, despite crackdown on kidnappers in the state.

    Over 500 suspected kidnappers are awaiting trial in the state and the House of Assembly before going on recess passed a bill prescribing death sentence for kidnappers.

    Governor Adams Oshiomhole is yet to sign the bill.

    Human rights lawyer, Mike Ozekhome and five other persons abducted last month are yet to regain freedom.