The Nation Newspaper

Tag: SSG

  • New SSG for Adamawa

    New SSG for Adamawa

    •Tight security in Yola

    Yola, the capital of Adamawa State whose governor was impeached on Tuesday, was calm yesterday as a massive security cordon was woven around it.

    Acting Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri took the first step into his three-month stay yesterday, with the appointment of a university lecturer, Prof. Liman Tukur, as Secretary to the State Government (SSG).

    Fintiri also voided all political appointments made by impeached governor Murtala Nyako.

    While administering the oath of office on Tukur, the acting governor said the new wind of change would bring succour to the people of Adamawa State.

    Fintiri promised that his administration would include all shades of opinion.

    He said although the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had not reopened the state’s statutory Allocation accounts, he had ordered the payment of salaries for June and the May shortfall.

    He promised to pay the two months outstanding from 2012 when the workers were on strike and the former governor had to apply the no-work-no pay rule.

    Fintiri said the state consolidated revenue account is indebted to the tune of N6 billion.

    The acting governor received a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) delegation from the House of Representatives at the Government House.

    The leader of the delegation and member representing Lamurde, Numan, Demsa federal constituency, Anthony Madwatte, said he was happy to see a PDP man at the seat of government. Nyako was an All Progressives Congress (APC) governor.

    Yola and its environs remained calm despite the heavy presence of armoured cars, military and Police personnel. There were also Air Force men and Civil Defence personnel on the streets.

    It was learnt that Nyako had pleaded with his supporters during a solidarity visit two days before the impeachment, that there should be no demonstrations on the streets.

    He pleaded with his teeming supporters to wait for the final outcome of the case in a competent Court of law should the House impeach him.

  • Ex-Oyo SSG Raimi dies at 80

    Ex-Oyo SSG Raimi dies at 80

    A former Secretary to the Oyo State Government (SSG), Dr Dejo Raimi, is dead.

    He died yesterday at a private hospital in Ibadan. He was 81.

    Raimi was also one-time Chairman, Governing Council and Pro-Chancellor of the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA).

    According to a source close to the family, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain was hale and hearty throughout Saturday but was said to have complained of uneasiness around midnight following which he was rushed to the nearby private hospital.

    Trained at a Moscow, Russia university in Medicine, Raimi rose to become the Chief Medical Officer in the old Oyo State. He later went into politics in the Third Republic when he joined the defunct Social Democratic Party (SDP).

    He was appointed SSG by the late former Governor Kolapo Ishola, after winning the election in 1991.

    Friends of the family have been commiserating with them. Among the early callers were former Governor Rashidi Ladoja’s wife, Mutiat and former SUBEB Chairman Prof. Soji Adejumo.

  • Ondo APC chieftain lauds Kekemeke’s election

    Ondo APC chieftain lauds Kekemeke’s election

    A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ondo State, Prince Boye Ologbese, has lauded the emergence of the former Secretary to the State Government (SSG) in the State, Mr. Isaac Kekemeke, as the new State Chairman of the party.

    While describing the development as a new dawn for the progressives in the state, Ologbese called for the unflinching support of party members to ensure that Kekemeke succeeds in his new assignment.

    The APC stalwart commended party leaders in the State, especially the Senator representing Ondo North District, Prof. Ajayi Boroffice, for his role in Kekemeke’s election.

    He also hailed the State Congress Committee led by the former Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Otunba Femi Pedro, for their commitment to the successful conduct of the Congress.

    Also speaking, another APC chieftain in the State, Ambassador Bayo Yusufu, commended the national leaders of the party and Boroffice for the ensuring the success of the state congress.

    On Kekemeke, Yusufu said, “I have worked with Kekemeke in the past and I know what he is capable of doing for Ondo APC. I am certain he would harmonise the party and fortify it to win future elections in the State.”

     

  • Delta denies paying ransom on Clark’s son

    Delta denies paying ransom on Clark’s son

    The Delta State government has debunked claims by the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) that it paid ransom to the abductors of Ebikeme Clark, son of Ijaw leader Chief E.K Clark.

    In a statement by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Ovouzourie Macaulay, the government denied paying the kidnappers, stressing that ransom payment is against government policy.

    He said the state had previous cases of high profile persons kidnapped, adding that in those cases the government did not pay ransom.

    Macaulay said the amount mentioned was ludicrous, stressing that the logistics of moving the money was impracticable as there were only two working days during the period.

    The statement reads: “The Delta State government wishes to state that it did not part with any money as ransom for the release of Ebikeme Clark.

    “It is government policy not to pay or encourage the payment of ransom by families as this encourages more kidnappings.

    “The government has had previous cases of high profile kidnappings, where the victims had been kept much longer than Ebikeme. The government did not pay any ransom. What then is so special about Mr. Ebikeme Clark that will make the government pay ransom?

    “Secondly the volume of money being mentioned. N500 million makes the allegation very foolish. For anyone who knows how government runs and the logistics of that volume of fund movement, it is impossible. There were only two working days during the period.”

    He accused MEND of attempting to blackmail not only the government but Chief E.K Clark.

    “The tactics of blackmail, falsehood, rumour mongering and intimidation in the region are gone.

    “The region is in a phase of infrastructure and human capital development, which will ultimately ensure peace in the region.”

     

  • Obiano reappoints Obaze as SSG

    Governor Willy Obiano yesterday made his first appointment by re-appointing Mr. Oseloka Obaze as the Secretary to the State Government (SSG).

    He also appointed Prof. Joseph Asike as the Chief of Staff and Mr. Willy Nwaokoye as the Principal Secretary to the Governor.

    The oaths of allegiance and oaths of office were administered by the Solicitor-General, Mrs. Emeke Ekwue.

    The appointments were announced after the first Executive Council meeting.

    Obiano said they were his first appointments, expressing confidence that the appointees were capable hands, who had done well in their careers and would carry out their duties efficiently.

    He added: “The task ahead is huge. We need the best of hands and I believe they will deliver.”

    Obaze on behalf of others thanked the governor for the honour, saying they would meet his expectations by meeting the challenges of governance.

  • Ex-Edo SSG hospitalised

    Former Secretary to Edo State Government (SSG) Dr. Simon Imuekheme has been hospitalised.

    Imuekheme and three former officials of the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) were remanded in prison custody by a Benin High Court on Monday.

    They were arraigned on an eight-count of alleged diversion of N113 million SUBEB funds.

    Prison sources said Imuekheme was taken to the unnamed hospital for an unknown ailment.

    Spokesman of the Nigerian Prisons Service (NPS) Aminu Suleiman said Imuekemhe was received by prisons officials on Monday afternoon.

    Aminu said Imuekheme took ill hours after he was brought in and requested for medical treatment outside the prisons complex.

    Imuekemhe’s request was granted yesterday by the prison authorities.

     

  • Students decry non-accreditation of school

    Students of the Oyo State School of Hygiene, Eleyele in Ibadan, have decried the non-accreditation of the institution.

    About 8:30 a.m. yesterday, the students assembled at the gate of the State Secretariat, demanding to see Governor Abiola Ajimobi.

    Security operatives, who initially prevented them from going in, later allowed them into the secretariat.

    The leader of the students, Mr. Ayuba Ibrahim, said their graduate colleagues do not participate in the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) after the Higher National Diploma (HND).

    He condemned the poor state of infrastructure in the institution.

    Secretary to the State Government (SSG) Ismail Alli said the government had sent a bill to upgrade the school to the House of Assembly.

    Alli said the bill would be considered this week, adding that with the upgrade to a college of technology, its facilities would be uplifted.

    He said funds were earmarked to improve the institution’s infrastructure in the 2014 budget.

    Alli said: “The budget includes the upgrade of facilities at your school and the conversion of the institution to a college of technology. Everything you are clamouring for is in progress. They include a functional library and laboratories.

    “The repositioning of your institution is part of the transformation agenda of the Ajimobi administration. This governor believes in quality education and he will ensure that state institutions become first-class. We shall leave your school better than we met it.”

    Commissioner for Health Muyiwa Gbadegesin told the students to set up a committee to monitor deliberations on the bill this week.

    The students thanked the government officials and returned to their school.

     

  • Ondo Speaker Adesina dies at 53

    Ondo Speaker Adesina dies at 53

    •SSG, NUJ mourn

    Ondo State House of Assembly Speaker Samuel Adesina is dead.

    Adesina, who represented Odigbo II, died yesterday after a battle with cancer. He was 53.

    In a statement, the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Dr. Rotimi Adelola, described the late Speaker as “a bridge builder, a man of integrity and a team player, who placed the interest of the state above personal considerations.”

    He said: “The Ondo State government received the news with shock. We commiserate with his family, the legislature and the people on the loss. May God grant us the fortitude to bear the loss.”

    The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Zone B, described Adesina’s death as “a loss to the legislature and the state.”

    In a statement by its Vice-President, Dele Atunbi, the union said the Araromi-Obu born politician used his position to advance the cause of the people.

    It said Adesina died at a time his experience was most needed, adding that he would be remembered for his “belief in the Nigerian project and the economic emancipation of his people.”

    NUJ commiserated with the government, House of Assembly and people on the “loss of a rare gem.”

    It prayed for the repose of the late Adesina’s soul.

     

  • Ekiti SSG: large turnout reflects Fayemi’s success

    Ekiti SSG: large turnout reflects Fayemi’s success

    Secretary to the Ekiti State Government (SSG) Dr. Ganiyu Owolabi has attributed the large turnout for the registration of the All Progressives Congress (APC) membership in the state to the successful implementation of the Kayode Fayemi administration’s Eight-Point Agenda.

    The SSG spoke at Ilupeju-Ekiti after monitoring the registration in the area.

    He said over 60 people were registered at each of the units he visited in the morning and over 115 by 3.30pm. The SSG said the party achieved the feat although the first day of the exercise fell on a market day.

    He urged party members, who had not registered, to do so today, the last day of the exercise, following a two-day extension.

    Dr Owolabi noted that the registration would enable the party plan its programmes towards future elections.

    The SSG stressed that APC would use its register to separate genuine members from fake ones and prevent the fake from disrupting the chances of genuine members.

     

  • Ondo APC elders’ forum backs Akeredolu’s committee

    The Elders Forum of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ondo State at the weekend expressed support for the new Interim Executive Committee led by Mr. Oluwarotimi Akeredolu(SAN).

    Rising from its meeting held in Akure, the state capital, the forum said its members will focus on the progress of the party.

    A statement signed by the Interim Secretary, Dr K.S Shaba; the former Secretary to the State Government (SSG) Prince Fioye Bajowa; Chief S.A Ropitan and Mr. Bayo Olafusi, hailed the efforts of APC national interim executive in building the party across all geo-political zones.

    It described the development as”epical feat unparalleled in the analysis of political history of the country.”

    The forum also lauded the Southwest zonal office headed by Otunba Niyi Adebayo for swiftly inaugurating the interim executive committees of the party in all states in the region.

    The step, it said, has put the party on a sound footing.

    It urged all members and supporters of APC to align with the committee to lift the party to greater heights in Ondo State.