Nation
THE STATES
Benue
The Benue State Fire Service has said that it saved 1000 lives and goods worth five billion naira from 136 fire outbreaks in the state in 2016.
The Acting Chief, State Fire Service, Mr Andrew Omakpo disclosed this in an interview with newsmen in Benue.
Omakpo, however, put the estimated property destroyed by fire during the period at N4million.
According to him 1,000 lives were saved from fire incidents while seven died in the period under review.
He explained that fire resulting from electrical faults were more prevailing, adding that other cases of fire affecting life and property were from bush burning, kerosene explosion and fire outbreak at fuel stations.
Omakpo appealed to members of the public to always place emergency calls in case of any fire outbreak for prompt response, rather than resorting to self help.
Borno
The Borno State Government has banned the sale of charcoal and firewood on major streets in the metropolis to prevent pollution in the city.
The Commissioner for Justice, Alhaji Kakashehu Lawan, disclosed this in a statement made available in Maiduguri.
Lawan said that sellers of the commodities were expected to relocate to a new market on Damboa Road designated for the sale of charcoal and firewood.
He said that the operation of charcoal and firewood sellers on major streets had constituted environmental hazard in the state.
Lawan gave a two-week notice to all sellers to either relocate to the market or face prosecution.
Kaduna
Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State has approved the appointment of Prof. Muhammad Tanko as the new Vice Chancellor of the Kaduna State University (KASU).
Information on the approval is in a statement by the Special Assistant to the Governor on Media and Publicity, Mr Samuel Aruwan, in Kaduna.
Aruwan stated that the approval followed recommendations by the Governing Council of the university.
He noted that Prof. Tanko was former Deputy Vice-Chancellor of KASU and holds a Ph.D in Accounting and Finance.
The new vice chancellor has teaching experience at undergraduate and graduate levels, with significant quality supervision and valuable inter-disciplinary collaboration, the special assistant added.
He stated that Tanko also had strong track record of research as evidenced by the quality of his papers in peer-reviewed journals.
Kano
A newly-formed Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) in Kano, ‘Kungiyar Hausawan Africa,’ has commenced recruitment of youth as volunteers in rendering voluntary services.
The President of the association, Dr Abdulkadir Koguna, made the disclosure while briefing newsmen on the genesis of the association in Kano.
Koguna said the youth were being recruited from all shades of opinion to be trained on the skills of rendering voluntary services in times of accidents and natural disasters.
He said the initiative was aimed at uniting the Hausa people both in Nigeria and in the diaspora with a view to achieving a common objective.
According to him, the existence of the Arewa Elders’ Forum was never meant to champion the cause of the Hausa people alone but the entire people of the northern part of the country.
Kogi
Prof. Gbenga Ibileye of the Federal University, Lokoja, has expressed “deep concern” over the worsening menace of ghost workers in the country, and recommended “strategic measures” toward tackling it.
Ibileye, in a paper presented at the 2nd Public Lecture of the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria (CIPMN), held in Lokoja, suggested periodic surprise payroll audit as one measure to scare culprits that hurl in such ghost names.
Other measures, he said, included technological driven personnel sysem that would alert management of any addition to existing workers’ figure, as well as a centralised approval of all pay checques.
Kwara
Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed of Kwara State had launched a N41-million micro-credit loan scheme for the empowerment of women in the 16 local government areas that spread across the three senatorial districts in the state.
Ahmed said this while delivering his speech during the women empowerment programme in Ilorin.
He said that his administration was committed to supporting the course of the women folk in the state, and noted that women were critical to achieving the shared goal of prosperity.
The governor presented cheques for N20 million to the first set of beneficiaries, also promised that the remaining N21million would be disbursed in the next few weeks.
Nasarawa
Eighty-nine cultists from five tertiary institutions in Nasarawa State had denounced their membership.
National Coordinator of National Campus Cult Eradica
tion Foundation (CCEF), Samuel Ejembi, disclosed this to newsmen in Lafia.
According to him, the group which is a non-governmental organisation (NGO), is working in conjunction with the Nigeria Police Force to eradicate and rehabilitate cultism.
He said that the cultists were students from the Federal University, Lafia (FUL); Nasarawa State Polytechnic, Lafia (NSPL), College of Agriculture, Lafia (COAL), College of Education, Akwanga (COEA) and the Nasarawa State University, Keffi (NSUK), respectively.
He said that with the support of the Inspector General of Police (IG), the group recently denounced 53cultists from different cult groups across various tertiary institutions in Benue State.
Responding, Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIGP) in charge of Training, Sani Muhammed, said the leaders of the NGO were former cult-members who denounced their membership voluntarily.
Ondo
The amalgamated union of artisans in Ondo State has commended the outgoing administration of Governor Olusegun Mimiko for its adequate loan empowerment to the various artisan-groups in the state.
The union leadership, who spoke with newsmen in Akure, said that artisans and trade unions in the state accessed no less than N1billion as soft loans in the last eight years from the Mimiko-led administration.
The union comprises of Carpenter and Furniture Makers’ Progressive Union, Ondo State Artisan and Trader Union (OSATU) and Ondo State Association of Hairdressers and Cosmetologists.
Others are Nigerian Automobile Technicians Association (NATA) and Nigeria Union of Tailors (NUT).
Osun
Governor Rauf Aregbesola of Osun State, has charged young varsity graduates to shift attention from searching for white collar jobs and embrace agriculture as a means of self employment.
The governor gave this advice in a statement signed by his media aide, Semiu Okanlawon in Osogbo.
He said that the present economic situation had shown Nigerians the need to encourage farming as the only alternative to crude oil.
Aregbesola stated that graduates should stop searching for formal jobs that seemed not to be available any longer.
Oyo
The Deputy Governor of Oyo State, Mr Moses Adeyemo, has commended the military for efforts in restoring peace to the North-East and the entire country.
Adeyemo gave the commendation in Ibadan during the 2017 Armed Forces Remembrance Day celebration.
The deputy governor said the military needed to be celebrated because of their contributions to ensure peace and stability in the nation.
In his remarks, the Chairman, Nigeria Legion, Oyo State chapter, Mr Michael Olagunju, urged the Federal Government to make the welfare of the military at the war front a priority to serve as a morale booster.
Plateau
Pastor Paul Ojoh of Shepherd House International Assembly, Jos has said that good plans could only work with the right strategy.
“It is not enough to have a good plan; one must have the right strategy to pursue that plan to fruition,” Ojoh said in a sermon in Jos.
The cleric, in the sermon titled: “Strategy for another kind of them’’, said that plans must be well examined and thought out, pointing out that strategies for success must be anchored along spiritual and physical means.
The Pastor emphasised the need for spiritual principles which encompasses tithes and offerings, as well as obeying the law on the first fruits.
Sokoto
Worried by the plight of the families of Nigeria’s fallen heroes, Governor Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State has solicited more support for their children and wives.
Tambuwal, who spoke at an event to commemorate the 2017 Armed Forces Remembrance Day in Sokoto, said the children and wives of the fallen soldiers should be taken care of.
He commended the armed forces for their sacrifices in helping to secure and keep the nation.
He said:”One of the best ways to honour Nigeria’s fallen heroes is to take care of the loved ones they left behind.
Yobe
The Yobe Government has said that it would enhance the process of resettlement and rehabilitation of victims of insurgency in the state.
The Deputy Governor, Abubakar Aliyu, stated this while receiving four people suspected to be associated with Boko Haram, but were cleared and released by military authorities in Maiduguri.
Aliyu is also the chairman of the state’s Committee on Resettlement and Rehabilitation of Internally Displaced Persons.
He was represented by the Commissioner for Justice, Alhaji Ahmed Mustapha, who said the government would provide them with humanitarian and rehabilitation assistance to rebuild their lives.
Zamfara
The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has donated 1,100 bags of assorted grains and building materials to victims of bandits and cattle rustlers attacks in Maradun and Maru local government areas of Zamfara State.
This is contained in a statement issued to newsmen by the Information Officer of NEMA, Sokoto Operations Office, Malam Aliyu Muhammad, in Gusau.
The items are: 200 bags of beans; 100 bags of rice each of; maize and guinea corn; 200 bundles of roofing sheets; 100 packets of zinc nails and 500 pieces of blankets for the victims in Maradun local government 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.