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Wike Threatens To Challenge Ekiti PDP Exco Dissolution In Court …Says PDP Action Tyrannical, …Again, Dares Ayu To Suspend G-5 Govs …As Fubara Pledges To Prioritise Education, Security, Others

Rivers State Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike, has described the dissolution of the Ekiti State Executive Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) by the Dr Iyorchia Ayu-led National Working Committee (NWC) of the party as an act of tyranny that would be challenged in court.
The governor, who dared the PDP national chairman, to suspend him or any of the G-5 governors, warned that the resort to despotism by the NWC would not do the PDP any good in the forthcoming general election.
The Rivers State governor stated this while speaking at the campaign flag-off rally by the state PDP Campaign Council in Bori, Khana Local Government Area, last Saturday.
Wike explained that the reason why the dissolution of the Ekiti State Working Committee would be challenged in court was because there were still members of the PDP who believe in the rule of law,warning that the party should respect its constitution.
“Let me also use this opportunity to say to Iyorchia Ayu and his team, your dissolving Ekiti State Exco will not help you in anyway. Your suspending people will not help you in anyway. The battle line has been fully drawn. As I speak to you, we will do everything legally possible to challenge any decision we know is illegal.”
He stressed that the Ayu-led NWC’s resort to tyranny ould do more damage to the PDP as far as the 2023 general election was concerned.
“So, don’t think you can threaten people by saying so, so persons have been suspended. Rubbish! Completely rubbish! We are above that level that you think you can threaten anybody, intimidate anybody with whatever illegal decision you have taken.”
The Rivers State governor dared Ayu and his cohorts to extend the despotic tendencies to the G-5 governors, and see if they would withstand the repercussion.
“So, we are waiting for you to announce my own and any other of my friends. Like I have said, when a man says you will not sleep, he too, will he sleep? Will Ayu sleep? Will those his cohorts sleep? So, don’t worry, we have the capacity to pay back. We have the capacity to tell you that enough is enough.”
Wike urged Rivers State electorate in Khana to vote for the PDP governorship candidate, Sir Siminialayi Fubara, as well as all national and state legislative candidates in the 2023 general election in order to consolidate on the achievements of his administration.
The governor cautioned the people not to vote for the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Tonye Cole, who was facing alleged criminal charges for his role in the sale of Rivers State Government assets by Chibuike Amaechi-led administration.
“Some people are shameless. A man who colluded with his master to strip Rivers State of its resources, sold our gas turbines which were constructed, installed by Dr Peter Odili’s administration. It was sold at the cost of $308million. So, we have filed criminal charges against Tonye Cole.”
The governor described Cole’s claim that all the flyovers constructed by his administration were mainly in Port Harcourt and Obio/Akpor local government areas as hypocritical, since he lives in Port Harcourt.
“Ask him how many flyovers did his boss, the former minister do. It shows you he does not know about governance in Rivers State. His mentor told his people that he was going to construct Trans Kalabari Road. Did he do it? Today, we are at the verge of commissioning the first phase of the Trans Kalabari Road.
“Again, we have agreed with Julius Berger to dualise from Emohua to Tema junction. So, ask him, rather than to siphon Rivers State Government money, what did they do? What has he contributed to the people of the state? Nothing!”
Wike announced that the state government has awarded contract for the reconstruction of internal roads in Bori in fulfilment of his promise during the recent commissioning of the dualisation of the Bori-Kono Road.
Addressing the mammoth crowd at State School 1, Bori, the venue for the state-level campaign rally, the gubernatorial candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the 2023 general election, Sir Siminialayi Fubara, said PDP government in the state has done tremendously well in Khana.
It is on that basis, Fubara stated, that the consolidation team was soliciting votes from the electorate in order to engender continuity and consolidate on the gains made already.
“We are not asking for your votes, for your support without a reason. We are here to ask for your votes because we have performed. Our party has performed, our leader has performed, and we are taking up from there. We are not here to say support us because it is our own turn.It’s not a business of turn;it is a business of performance.”
He promised to build on the gains recorded in education, security, and other critical sectors to bring more development to not just Khana but the entire Ogoni.
“My dear Khana people, we are here to ask for your votes because we have performed very well in this local government area. Governor Nyesom Wike has, among other things, given you a super-highway linking three local government areas of Tai, Gokana, and Khana. I believe this calls for celebration!
“We are now here to tell you to support us because it is our own turn, it is not a business of turn.It is a business of performance and competence. Our leader has performed very well, and we will be taking it up from where he will stop.
“We are going to touch the remaining places yet to be touched.He constructed several schools here, we are going to construct even more. We are going to invest massively in security in Khana Local Government Area to usher in more development to the LGA,” the guber candidate added.
Presenting flags to the two House of Assembly candidates in Khana, the Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Rivers State Chapter, Amb. Desmond Akawor, commended Governor NyesomWike for championing the inclusion of women in elective positions in the state.
“Your Excellency, you have given the female gender a sense of belonging. You do not just talk, you work the talk. No governor in Nigeria has included women in governance like you have done,” he said.
The Director-General of the New Rivers Vision Consolidation Campaign Council, Bro Felix Obuah, expressed confidence that, PDP would win convincingly in the governorship, National Assembly, and state House of Assembly elections in Khana Local Government Area.
In his goodwill speech, the member representing Khana/Gokana Federal Constituency in the Green Chamber, Hon. Dumnamene Dekor, said Khana people would vote massively for Sir Siminialayi Fubara because Wike has done well in the LGA.
“We have 359 electoral units in Khana, and close to 200,000 votes. We are going to give maximum votes to Sim Fubara because you have done well for the people of Ogoni, particularly Khana people,” he added.
In his remarks, the senator representing Rivers South-East Senatorial District,Barry Mpigi, said the crowd was made up of real people of Khana with PVCs, and not like the people from neighbouring states that APC paid N200 for their rally in Etche.
“The people here are Khana people with PVCs, they are not like the people that were paid N200 by APC and taken to Etche. Governor Nyesom Wike’s legacies are Sim Fubara’s blueprints, this is why we are campaigning with the slogan:‘Continuity and Consolidation’,” he stated.
President of KAGOTE, Hon. Emmanuel Deeyaah, said in the last 24 years that democracy has endured; Khana people have continued to support the PDP.
He stressed that the people would show their voting strength on Election Day because they trust the leadership that has been provided to them.
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FG To Seize Retirees’ Property Over Unpaid Housing Loans

The Federal Government Staff Housing Loans Board says it has begun the compilation of list of retired civil servants who have defaulted on the full repayment of housing loans obtained.
Head of Information and Public Relations, FGSHLB, Mrs Ngozi Obiechina, disclosed this in a statement in Abuja, yesterday.
Obiechina quoted the Executive Secretary of the Board, Mrs Salamatu Ahmed, as saying that the move was aimed at recovering mortgaged properties from retirees who failed to meet their loan obligations.
Ahmed noted that the decision followed a recent memo issued by Mrs Patience Oyekunle, Permanent Secretary, Career Management Office, Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation.
According to her, the memo reminded public servants of the mandatory requirement to obtain a Certificate of Non-Indebtedness to the FGSHLB and MDA Staff Multipurpose Cooperative Society as a precondition for retirement.
The Executive Secretary said that the board would take necessary legal steps to repossess properties where applicable, in line with the terms of the loan agreements.
She said this was in line with the provisions of the Public Service Rules 021002 (p), issued by the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation.
“I am directed to bring to your attention the provision of Public Service Rule (PSR) 021002 (p), which mandates all public servants to obtain a Certificate of Non-Indebtedness as a prerequisite for retirement.
“The Federal Government will commence the seizure of mortgaged properties belonging to retiring federal public servants who have failed to fully repay housing loans obtained from the board,” she said.
Ahmed explained that the FGSHLB reserves the legal right to repossess any mortgaged property in cases where a public servant exits service without fully repaying the loan.
She reiterated that the directive also applied to already retired officers who were still indebted.
She urged all affected public servants to regularise their loan status and obtain the required clearance certificate without delay.
“The board is currently compiling a list of such retirees, which will be forwarded to relevant regulatory agencies for debt recovery.
“The FGSHLB remains committed to enforcing compliance and ensuring proper loan recovery procedures are followed, “ she added.
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FG Begins Induction For New Permanent Secretaries, Accountant-General

The Federal Government has kicked off a three-day induction programme for newly appointed Permanent Secretaries and the Accountant-General of the Federation, aimed at equipping them for strategic leadership and effective policy implementation.
The induction, according to a statement yesterday by the Director, Information and Public Relations, Federal Ministry of Information and National Orientation, Eno Olotu, which commenced on Wednesday, is being held at the National Counter Terrorism Centre in Abuja.
Speaking at the opening session, the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs. Didi Esther Walson-Jack, congratulated the new appointees and described their roles as pivotal to governance and national development.
“Permanent Secretaries are the engine room of the government. They are critical to driving policy implementation, institutional performance, and reform across the service”, she said.
The Federal Government has kicked off a three-day induction programme for newly appointed Permanent Secretaries and the Accountant-General of the Federation, aimed at equipping them for strategic leadership and effective policy implementation.
The induction, according to a statement yesterday by the Director, Information and Public Relations, Federal Ministry of Information and National Orientation, Eno Olotu, which commenced on Wednesday, is being held at the National Counter Terrorism Centre in Abuja.
Speaking at the opening session, the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs. Didi Esther Walson-Jack, congratulated the new appointees and described their roles as pivotal to governance and national development.
“Permanent Secretaries are the engine room of the government. They are critical to driving policy implementation, institutional performance, and reform across the service”, she said.
“The expectations are high, and the responsibility is immense. But with commitment and teamwork, we can deliver a more efficient, accountable, and citizen-centred public service.
“This final lap of FCSSIP 25 calls for urgency, accountability, and strategic focus. You must translate vision into measurable results,” she stated.
In her welcome address, the Permanent Secretary, Career Management Office, Mrs. Fatima Sugra Tabi’a Mahmood, described the programme as a strategic investment in leadership capacity and institutional effectiveness.
The sessions featured expert-led discussions, simulations, and strategic briefings facilitated by a distinguished faculty, including Engr. Suleiman Adamu, former Minister of Water Resources; Dr. Hadiza Bala Usman, Special Adviser to the President on Policy and Coordination; Mrs. Beatrice Jedy-Agba, Solicitor-General of the Federation and Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Justice; Alh. Yusuf Addy, retired Federal Director; Alhaji Bukar Goni Aji, former Head of the Civil Service of the Federation; Amb. Mustapha Lawal Suleiman, Mr. Adesola Olusade, and Dr. Ifeoma Anagbogu, all retired Permanent Secretaries.
Participants include Dr. Obi Emeka Vitalis, Mrs. Fatima Sugra Tabi’a Mahmood, Mr. Danjuma Mohammed Sanusi, Mr. Olusanya Olubunmi, Dr. Keshinro Maryam Ismaila, Dr. Akujobi Chinyere Ijeoma, Dr. Umobong Emanso Okop, Dr. Isokpunwu Christopher Osaruwanmwen, Mrs. Oyekunle N. Patience, Dr. Kalba U. Danjuma, Mr. Nadungu Gagare, Mr. Onwusoro I. Maduka, Dr. Usman Salihu Aminu, Mr. Ogbodo Chinasa Nnam, Mr. Ndiomu Ebiogeh Philip, Dr. Anuma N. Ogbonnaya, Mr. Adeladan Rafiu Olaninre, and Mr. Mukhtar Yawale Muhammed, alongside the Accountant-General of the Federation, Mr. Shamseldeen Babatunde Ogunjimi.
The induction programme will feature sessions on public sector leadership, policy delivery, ethics in service, digital transformation, and performance management.
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NNPCL To Undergo Forensic Audit Soon -FG

The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, has announced that a forensic audit of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) will begin soon.
Edun revealed this at the ongoing Nigerian Investor Forum, held alongside the IMF/World Bank Spring Meetings in Washington DC.
The minister explained that the recent changes in the NNPCL management are part of a broader effort by the Federal Government to clean up and examine the company closely.
While addressing top global investors, including representatives from J.P. Morgan, Edun shared key reforms the government has introduced to revive the economy and restore investor confidence.
He told the investors that the government’s bold economic steps have laid a strong foundation to attract private investment.
He stated, “Our goal is not just to maintain this momentum, but to accelerate it. We are targeting seven per cent annual growth, and we believe the policies we have implemented have laid the groundwork to achieve this.”
Edun highlighted that President Bola Tinubu’s administration has rolled out major reforms that are already making a difference.
He added that the Nigerian economy grew by 3.84 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2024 and recorded a 3.4 per cent growth for the year.
Edun further stressed the importance of the reforms, describing them as “unprecedented,” adding that, “We said we would do it, and now we have done it. This time, we’re staying the course.”
He pointed out signs of progress such as lower budget deficits, a better trade balance, and a more stable exchange rate.
He also said that the focus is now on growing key sectors, especially agriculture.
According to Edun, agriculture is at the top of the government’s agenda, with the aim of improving food supply and increasing productivity.
“We aim to close the food supply gap, not by importing more, but by enabling domestic producers to scale and innovate,” he said.
On infrastructure, Edun revealed that the government has rolled out 90,000km of fibre optic cable to improve internet access.
He said this move is crucial for supporting young Nigerians and tech startups.
He also noted that 4,000km of roads have been offered for private sector participation, with the first 1,000km already approved for construction.
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