Nation
THE STATES
President Muhammadu Buhari (5th right), Vice President Yemi Osinbajo (5th left), Chairman, Centenary City Board, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar (4th right) and Board members of Centenary City, during their meeting with the President at the Presidential Villa in Abuja recently. Photo: NAN
Bauchi
Some disengaged staff of National Identity Management Commis
sion (NIMC) resident in Bauchi, have appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to intervene for them to be paid their complete entitlements.
Making the appeal in an interview with newsmen in Bauchi, their spokesperson, Malam Idris Balarabe, said following the controversy surrounding the manner of their disengagement, the then National Assembly, under the leadership of David Mark and Waziri Tambuwal intervened.
“After joint consultation between House of Representative and Senate, an agreement was reached in 2013 that each disengaged staff be paid one year salary as take home severance allowance.
“Up till now, we are yet to be settled or reinstated.
“We believe that the Almighty God, would guide Mr President and give him the gracious mind to consider our plight , as well as give it the urgent attention it deserves,” said Balarabe.
Ekiti
An Ikole Magistrates’ Court in Ekiti State yesterday sentenced two
landlords, Omoniyi Ajayi and Ola Olowolafe to five and seven months jail term respectively, for violating environmental sanitation laws.
The Magistrate, Mrs A.S. Okunbule, however, gave the landlords option of N5,500 and N7,000 fines respectively.
Our correspondent reports that the convicts first appeared in court on Aug. 25 on charges bordering on failure to provide toilets, indiscriminate defecation, among others.
Mr Tunde Famuyisan, prosecuting officer, Environmental Health and Sanitation, Ikole Local Government, said the landlords owned houses located at No.101, Oke-Owa St. and No. 2, Ilado St. Odo Ayedun Ekiti, respectively.
FCT
The Head Teacher, FCT School for the Blind, Mrs Regina Dung,has
decried the high cost of learning materials for blind students in the country.
Speaking with newsmen in Abuja, Dung said that these materials were not available in the open market and cost a lot of money to order them from the specialised stores.
“Their learning materials is on the high side — braille machines, braille paper, a slate and stylus — they are not just in the open market where you just walk into and buy anything.
“All these are materials that we use in teaching the blind, even the stylus, which is used for mathematics, is not in the open market.
“You have to place order in designated stores which are located only in Jos and Lagos.
“For example, their biro costs N1, 000; but if it is foreign, it goes for N1,500 compared to the N20 biro of the regular students.’’
Gombe
Hope Spring International, an NGO, said it has spent over N6million
to construct boreholes to provide water for some communities in Gombe South and Central Senatorial Districts.
Mr Rambi Ayala, Director of Operations of the NGO, stated this on Thursday in Ladongor-Lawampe and Powishi-Amtadwang villages of Billiri Local Government Area where two boreholes were declared open.
Ayala, who is currently the member representing Billiri East Constituency at the Gombe State House of Assembly, said 15 boreholes were constructed by the NGO in three years.
He said that the boreholes were part of the humanitarian services of the organisation.
“We are preparing to do more in the coming months,” he said.
Jigawa
Association for the Advancement of Women in Nigeria (ASSAWIN),
yesterday organised a one-day sensitisation workshop for pregnant women, nursing mothers and Traditional Birth Attendants (TBAs), in Birninkudu local government area, Jigawa.
The Programme Manager of the NGO in the state, Miss Chinelo Amechina, told newsmen in Birninkudu that the programme was aimed at promoting safe motherhood and safe delivery among women in the area.
She said the effort was also to improve on the livelihood of women and children in the council.
The manager explained that the beneficiaries were drawn from Chiako, Birninkudu and Babaldu towns, respectively.
According to her, the beneficiaries include 80 pregnant and nursing women, 15 men (husbands) and 15 TBAs.
Kaduna
The National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), has called on
stakeholders to support the efforts at standardising vocational training in line with global best practices.
This call is contained in a statement signed by the board’s Public Relations Officer, Suleiman Gwarzo, and made available to newsmen in Kaduna yesterday.
The statement stated that the standard in skills acquisition and vocations could be achieved through the National Vocational Qualification Framework (NVQF).
According to the statement, NVQF is an instrument for the development, classification and recognition of skills, knowledge and competence acquired by citizens through various trainings and skills acquisition.
Katsina
Katsina State Government has ordered that all structures on water
ways and grave yards encroaching on the road across the state should be demolished.
Chairman of the Special Sanitation Taskforce in the state, Alhaji Aminu Danarewa, announced the directive yesterday during a visit to Dandutse grave yard and waste disposal centres in Funtua.
Danarewa said that the visit was part of the ongoing three-day special sanitation exercise embarked upon by the state government.
He directed the Director of Finance and Administration of Funtua Local Government Council, Alhaji Bishir Maikano, to compile the lists of ‘’offensive’’ structures which would be demolished in the area
Danarewa, who is also the Special Assistant to the state governor on Sports Development, said that his committee had the mandate to carry out the demolition.
Kogi
A Lokoja-based legal practitioner, Mr Joel Usman, has commended
the anti corruption posture of the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.
Usman, who gave the commendation in an interview with newsmen in Lokoja yesterday, said that the effort had positive influence on all the sectors of the nation’s economy.
He said that the gains of the government’s anti-corruption crusade could be seen in improved power sector.
Usman said that the effort had also paid off as ‘’everyone is sitting up including the anti-graft agencies.”
“In NNPC, some of the refineries that were not working for some years have started working at almost optimum capacity without any major repairs,’’ he said.
Lagos
Gov.ernorAkinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State has promised to sup
port massive investment in modern medical equipment to meet the health challenges of residents of the state.
Ambode, who was represented by the Deputy Governor, Dr Idiat Adebule, made the promise at the inauguration of Clinix Healthcare, an Ultramodern Diagnostic Centre in Amuwo Odofin, Lagos.
He said that private sector participation in healthcare delivery, had complemented efforts of government and yielded tremendous dividends through qualitative healthcare.
“We are delighted that the private sector partnership has yielded another state-of-the-art health facility, with the opening of this ultramodern diagnostic centre.”
Nasarawa
The Vice Chancellor of Nasarawa State University, Keffi, Prof.
Mohammed Mainoma,has commended the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) for providing funds for educational advancement in the institution.
Mainoma lauded the fund in an interview with newsmen in Keffi yesterday.
He said that the special intervention from TETFUND and Presidential intervention fund had not only changed the physical structure of the university positively, but the academic activities of the institution through staff training and execution of infrastructural development.
He said: “The university management is working tirelessly to ensure that it lifted up the institution to a world class standard, that is why the university is embarking on projects that have direct bearing on the lives of the students and staff for the benefit of all.
“All these efforts of infrastructural development is geared towards achieving academic excellence and to create more conducive environment so as to uplift the university to international standard and to enhance teaching and researching, among others.
Niger
The Niger State Government says it has commercialised
the services of the state’s cultural troupe.
The Permanent Secretary in the state Ministry of Tourism and Culture, Mr Kabir Danasabe, disclosed this in an interview with newsmen in Minna yesterday.
Danasabe said that the action was taken in order to expand the scope of the troupe as well as increase internally generated revenue.
“The state cultural troupe before now entertained people with little or no fee while government invests huge amount of money to keep them going. This cannot go on forever.
“We made the hiring of the state troupe a full commercial venture in order to attract revenue for government.
Ogun
No fewer than 14 persons were yesterday confirmed dead
in two separate accidents at Ogunmakin on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.
Our correspondent reports that the accidents occurred on Wednesday and Thursday in the early hours of the morning.
The first one, which occurred on Wednesday at about 4:05 a.m., involved two vehicles and claimed 10 lives.
Eyewitnesses said a trailer with registration number LSR 392 SB loaded with cows and more than 27 passengers collided with another trailer marked XE 444 KTU.
The eyewitnesses said a total of 30 people were involved in the crash with 20 injured while 10 were confirmed dead at Ifeoluwa hospital in Ogunmakin.
Osun
An Osogbo High Court has fixed September 15 for definite
hearing in the suit filed by Justice Folahanmi Oloyede against the Speaker of Osun Assembly, Hon. Najeem Salaam, and 10 others.
Justice Aderibigbe Adebayo adjourned the matter for definite hearing in a short ruling yesterday.
He ordered counsel to the plaintiff, Mr Lukman Ogunsetan, to serve the defence counsel with the petition personally before the adjourned date.
Earlier, counsel to the respondents, Messers Adewole Afolabi, Surajudeen Ajibola and Adedapo Adeniji had told the court that Ogunsetan did not serve their clients petition personally.
Zamfara
The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA),
has expressed its readiness to forcibly evacuate over 2,000 household in Gangare, Zamfara, to avoid casualty in case of flood.
The NEMA’s Coordinator in-charge of Sokoto Operations Office, Mr Thickman Tanimu, made the disclosure in Gusau, in an interview with newsmen.
He explained that the household would be evacuated from Gangare area near river Gusau, in the state capital.
Tanimu said that the agency had organised training for stakeholders in disaster management on the importance of waste management and flood mitigation.
“Based on the report we received from the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) the state government had over ten years ago directed the people to vacate the area.
The Lagos State Government has disclosed that 26,592 public school students failed the 2024 West African Senior School Certificate Examination, raising alarm across the state’s education sector.
The state Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education, Jamiu Alli-Balogun, during a ministerial press briefing yesterday in Alausa, Ikeja, said that “45.7 per cent of the 58,188 students from public schools who sat for the exams did not pass.”.
This failure rate comes despite the state government’s significant financial backing N1.577 billion was paid on behalf of the students to cover WAEC fees.
“Suffice to say that the sum of N1,577,794,000 only was paid by the state government as examination fees for 58,188 students who were captured for the year 2024 WASSCE,” Alli-Balogun announced.
In a bid to tighten accountability and avoid wastage, the Commissioner disclosed that biometric and image registration was carried out to accurately determine eligible students for government sponsorship for the 2025 WASSCE.
“The exercise successfully captured and registered 56,134 students as bona fide beneficiaries of the Lagos state government’s sponsorship for the examination,” he added.
However, the Lagos State Government rolled out a bold educational intervention – the Eko Learners’ Support Programme for WASSCE and NECO candidates – aimed at reversing the tide of academic failure in the state’s public schools.
Launched on January 14, 2025, the initiative is part of a broader commitment by the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education to equip Lagos students with tools for success.
“This forward-thinking initiative was designed to support and empower young scholars in attestation of the ministry’s commitment to advancing interest and management of the educational system in Lagos State,” Alli-Balogun stated.
Ekiti State Government says it has vaccinated 226,429 eligible girls in the State against the Human Papilloma Virus, an infection believed to be a leading cause of cervical cancer.
The wife of the Ekiti State Governor, Dr Olayemi Oyebanji, said the HPV immunization exercise, which she flagged off in the State in May 2025 was a great success, noting that it reached targeted communities and protected children against cervical cancer.
The governor’s wife made the disclosure in Ado Ekiti yesterday during a one-day stakeholders’ sensitisation meeting on the introduction of Measles Rubella vaccines in Ekiti State.
She said, “The introduction of Measles Rubella Vaccines is a very crucial step towards protecting Ekiti children particularly the target age group of nine to 14 years from diseases.
“I urge all women in the State to regularly scan their breasts. This can be done with the aid of the Mammography machine which is available at Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital, Ado Ekiti”.
The state Commissioner for Health, Dr Oyebanji Filani, noted that the Measles Rubella vaccines would be rolled out nationally in October, 2025.
Filani said that the State was taking proactive steps to sensitise residents of the State before the date to ensure adequate awareness on the vaccines by citizens.
The Acting Ochimba of Ogida in Etche Local Government Area of Rivers State, Eze Ndudiri Azuatalam, says peace remains paramount in the socio-economic development of Etche land.
Eze Azuatalam, however, called on his people to embrace and eschew violence at all times.
The Onwa Nagbara Oha made the call during the official commissioning of his palace at Ogida recently.
The epoch-making ceremony held at his palace saw the attendance of members of the Etche Supreme Council of Traditional Rulers and Chiefs; the academia; the political class; the clergy ; women as well relevant stakeholders within and outside Etche land.
The Ngbaragida of Azuafor re-emphasised the essence of peace and social harmony which he said open the window for meaningful development to take place.
He also sought the support and collaboration of his people to achieve the desired goals of development, progress and prosperity.
He noted that the peace being witnessed in the area must be sustained through collective effort, saying, contributions and sacrifices need to be made by all concerned to live in peace.
Eze Azuatalam said his aim towards building a better Ogida cannot be compromised as he and his people have no other place called home.
The Acting Ochimba said as part of efforts to build a better Ogida, he has instituted a number of development projects, adding that some of his kinsmen have been empowered through his hard-earned money and resources, saying, he will continue to assist the less- privileged around him.
He reaffirmed his desire to impact positively on the lives of his people as the engagement of the youths will help to reduce social vices in the area.
He thanked members of the Etche Supreme Council of Traditional Rulers and Chiefs for honouring his invitation.
He specifically thanked the Onyi Ishi Etche and Ochie of Etcheland, His Eminence E mmanuel Opurum for leading Etche on the path of prosperity, and described the revered King as a role model to the younger generation.
He said his fatherly role has been a source of hope and inspiration to his subjects.
The palace was unveiled by His Eminence with the assistance of Ochimba of Abara, Eze Jonah Nwala and other prominent Etche traditional rulers and chiefs while the Onyi Ishi Etche was represented by Eze Ken Nwala, Onyi Ishi Agwuru, Ulakwo/ Umuselem Clan.
The Onyi Ishi Etche urged other prominent sons of Etche to emulate the kind gesture of Eze Ndudiri Azuatalam as his magnanimity is being seen and appreciated by his people.
Eze Azuatalam also applauded the efforts of Prof Mekuri Ndimele, former Vice Chancellor of the Ignatius Ajuru University of Education in the growth of Etche land.
According to him, during Ndimele’ s tenure, a lot of development projects were sited at the institution, including the development of Etcheland and empowerment of Etche people.