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PDP Govs Sent 10 Ministerial Nominees To Tinubu, Says Wike
Newly sworn-in Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has disclosed how governors of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) sent 10 ministerial nominees to President Bola Tinubu for consideration.
Wike, who assumed office on Monday shortly after he was sworn in by the President, said he would not be biased in sanctioning anyone who violates extant municipal planning laws.
He said even if it was discovered that the PDP national secretariat was without a Certificate of Occupancy, he would not hesitate to pull it down.
“I don’t care how you feel and where you come from, my task is to ensure Abuja comes to where it should be. I am here to turn Abuja around. That is the work I have been sent here to do and I am going to do just that.
“They said PDP will sanction me for taking appointments, did PDP governors not write to beg Mr. President for appointment some people? The president asked the 36 state governors to recommend people for appointment. The PDP governors wrote and nominated 10 persons,” he stated.
Wike also declared that he had not come to Abuja to fly any party’s flag.
At his maiden news conference, the minister who is a member of the main opposition party, PDP, was reacting to questions about whether he would fly the national flag and that of his party or that of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
“Why should anyone be bothered about what party flag I will be flying? Okay, bring PDP flag, I will fly it, bring Labour Party flag, I will fly it. The FCT is in this state and you think the people are bothered about the party flag I fly? I will fly the Nigerian flag and ensure the FCT returns to the dreams of the founding fathers.
“We will bring FCT back to where it ought to be. So many people have complained that this is not the FCT of the founding fathers. We must tackle issue of insecurity. FCT should be where people come for holidays”, he said.
Wike, who spoke at length on his mandate, also pledged to restore the city’s master plan, adding that land allottees who had been given Certificates of Occupancy but failed to develop would also lose their lands to give way to those ready to build.
“If you know you have built where you are not supposed to build, it will go down”, he said.
He also reeled out a 10-point agenda with emphasis on security, city sanitation, preservation of Abuja Master Plan, infrastructure development, restoration of green areas, removal of shanties, plugging revenue leakages, ground rents payment, among others.
He warned that the administration under his leadership, would not take excuses from security agencies as they would be provided with the required tools to work.
On the landscape of the city, Wike said: “Abuja has turned into a slum city. Sanitation is bad with refuse everywhere. We cannot allow that, we will look at issues of waste disposals.
“If you build on a green area, sorry, it will go down. Those who were allocated land and refused to develop them, we will revoke such lands and re-allocate them to those who are ready to develop them. Those who don’t pay ground rent, we will not notify them to do so, but I will not be tired of signing revocation notices.
“Uncompleted buildings that have become a safe haven for criminals will be reclaimed by the government and put them to good use. Land racketeering days are over. Those who refuse to develop, turning to land speculators will lose their lands.”
“Time is up. The goal is to sanitize Abuja and make it safe for everyone.
“We will consult with stakeholders, the natives, and herdsmen to address some of these problems, including open grazing.
“We will provide alternatives to reduce the suffering of the people, particularly those without private vehicles.
“We will bring back mass transit to improve access to public transportation, and therefore, the person in charge of transportation must keep his records clean.
“We will provide security agencies with necessary tools and logistics and after that, we will not want to hear any excuses. What we want to see is results.”
The Rivers State Chief judge, Justice Simeon Chibuzor Amadi has granted pardon to six inmates standing awaiting trial at the Port Harcourt maximum correctional center.
The six lucky inmates granted pardon on Tuesday by the state Chief Judge included Nwekeala Chizoba, Samuel Emmanuel, Aniete Kelvin, Ebube Fubara and Goddey Okpara who were on awaiting trial as murder suspects and have all spent between 10 years to seven years in the custody without a proper information filed against them in the court.
Justice Amadi during a special gaol delivery exercise last Tuesday at the Port Harcourt Maximum Correctional Centre opined that the special gaol delivery was part of activities lined up to commomerate the 2024/2025 legal year in the State and restated the commitment of the state judiciary in decongesting the correctional centre and ensuring that those inmates who are not supposed to be there are removed from the custody.
The state chief judge stressed the need for all stakeholders to work together to build a society that supports rehabilitation and gives a second chance to anyone or group of people who have fallen short of the expectation of the law and have been punished accordingly.
He stressed that the National Judicial Council(NJC) encourages judges to pay more attention to criminal matters to enable them to decongests the correctional facilities, noting that since his assumption into office, his administration has been able to reduce the number of inmates in Nigerian Correctional Centres and the Port Harcourt Correctional Centre in particular, to less than 2,000 as against the over 4,000 inmates previously in the faculty.
According to him, “as they release the deserving inmates, they affirm their commitment to justice, compassion and rule of law but that they must not forget the fundamental principles of justice delivery system which is truth and fairness, integrity and equality before the law.”
I encourage you all the released inmates to return to your families and become better citizens. You must not engage in action that will return you all back to prison. Let me say that while the judges show empathy to you all, it does not absolved individuals from being held accountable for actions against individuals, corporate organisations and state which the law frowns at, ”he stated
The Chief Judge thereafter stood down the exercise to enable the DPP to intervene to case files following the fact that majority of the persons listed to benefit from the exercise are facing murder charges and adjourned to a date that will come before December.
Earlier in his goodwill message, the outgoing state Comptroller of Nigerian Correctional Centre, Port Harcourt, Felix Lawrence, who was recently promoted to the rank of Assistant Controller General, commended the state judiciary led by Chief Judge, Justice Simeon Chibuzor Amadi for their continuous effort aimed at ensuring justice and decongesting the facilities.
Other activities lined up for the event included special church service at St Paul’s Cathedral , Anglican Communion, Rebisi Port Harcourt, inspection of guard of honour by the state Chief Judge mounted by officers of the Nigerian police and a special court session held at the ceremonial court hall.
By: AkujobiAmadi
The Director General of Rivers State Bureau on Public Procurement (RBoPP), Dr. Ine Briggs, has explained that the Sir Siminalayi Fubara administration plans to enforce transparency in governance through public procurement.
Speaking at a one-day Public Procurement Enlightenment workshop organised in collaboration with the State Local Government Service Commission for newly elected chairmen, vice chairmen, secretaries and leaders of legislative assemblies, Dr. Briggs said it is key for grassroot development.
She stated that the Sir. Fubara administration plans to reduce wastage and at same time infuse efficiency in public expenditure.
The RSoPP DG said the local government political office holders remain key drivers in the new vision hence the workshop is to arm them with knowledge on how to execute projects in tandem with needs of the people.
“ Your role in the prudent management of public resources is, therefore, not just administrative it’s the cornerstone of delivering the dividends of democracy. Every procurement decision you make must reflect a commitment to fairness, transparency and accountability” Dr. Briggs submitted.
One of the key goals of the administration she further reminded the participants was to use their offices to foster economic growth through public procurement.
She warned that the law establishing the agency empowers it to penalise defaulters, but that what is more important is voluntary compliance to the laws.
In addition to that, she said urged the local government council leaders that champion the practice and implementation of public procurement law.
On his part, Acting Chairman of Local Government Service Commission, Pastor GoodLife Ben Iduoku averred that the aim of the workshop is to arm key stakeholders in the local government system to generate new ideas, innovation and strategies in tandem with government policies and programmes.
The workshop dealt on various topics on procurement planning, methods, Understanding Bid Process, including types of Construction Contracts and law.
Some participants were awarded excellence and meritorious awards as part of the programme.
By: Kevin Nengia
The 19th anniversary of the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS), Rivers State Chapter, recently ended in Port Harcourt in grand style, with participants from various schools including proprietors, the academia, civil society groups and top government functionaries charting the way forward for educational improvement.
The 19th NAPPS anniversary christened, ‘Innovation and Adaptation: Transforming Challenges Into Opportunities’ was held at Casoni Hotels, Port Harcourt.
In his remarks, the Chairman of the Rivers State Chapter of the association, Dr. Jaja Adafe Sunday expressed gratitude to the members and executives for their untiring efforts towards the achievements of the body.
He sought the intervention of government on the lingering crisis on the economy as it is affecting the running of schools.
He decried high cost of things including fuel and raw materials which has adversely affected the running of schools and payment of teachers.
Dr. Sunday hinted that the current economic situation in the nation is biting hard on the operations of schools, saying inflation, removal of fuel subsidy, fuel scarcity, poor electricity supply, tariffs and lack of government grants are some of the challenges faced by schools, and urged the members to brace up to the challenges, as it is the panacea to building a brighter future.
Guest speakers from the health sector and the academia thrilled the gathering on the essence of basic education which they said is the key to national development.
Former Dean of the Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, Professor Azuru and the Chief Medical Director of Meridian Hospitals, Dr. Odo Iyke were some notable guest speakers who delivered lectures at the occasion.
Some distinguished proprietors also got special recognitions and awards.
The 19th anniversary cake was cut by the Rivers State NAPPS Chairman with representatives of the state government assisting.