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Aggrieved Trainees Of ‘Ibom 3000 Project’ Threaten Protest

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Some of the trainees of the 3000 project of Akwa Ibom State Government, who claimed to be abandoned, have threatened to stage a protest.

The state government, through the Ministry of Trade and Investment, had in 2021 commenced the training of 3,000 youths in a scheme meant to identify, train, mentor, empower and build the capacity of existing Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and startups across the 31 local councils of the state.

The scheme was meant to run in three phases with each phase having 1000 trainees who would focus on three areas of choice which included, oil and gas, agribusiness, ICT, and SMEs to enable them to secure gainful employment.

However, the beneficiaries of the project, who have successfully concluded their training on April 2021, have expressed worry that they have neither gotten the certification nor startups as promised by the government over one year of the exercise.

It was gathered that the graduation exercise was stalled following the resignation of the then commissioner, Mr. Prince Akpabio in pursuit of his political ambition.

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A trainee, who identified himself as Mfon, narrated to our correspondent that the new Commissioner, Engr. Camillus Essien Umoh, invited them to the state secretariat for a graduation ceremony but later dismissed them promising to fix another date for the exercise as he was very new in office.

Mfon, who lamented that nothing has been done yet, urged the state government to fulfill its promise by giving them the start-ups so as to put what they learnt into practice adding that they are wasting away.

Another trainee, who did not want her name mentioned for fear of victimisation, regretted that despite the stress they passed through and the monies spent on transportation from her local government, Ikono, to the State Secretariat, Uyo which was their rallying point, she is yet to receive the startups from the government.

READ ALSO: Rivers, Edo, Akwa Ibom, 29 Others Attract Zero Foreign Investments In Q1 – Report

She said, “the stress was too much. We would go to the Ministry and the car they made available will convey members to different designated training centres around the local government.

“By 4:00 pm they will convey you back to the secretariat where you go back to your destination. It was not easy for some people from far distance, to transport themselves to the state secretariat, some people from Ini, Ibeno really suffered because they paid their way to Uyo. the government told us that at the end of the training they will empower us, but nothing is being done.”

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Also, another trainee identified as Joseph disclosed that they felt abandoned by the state government noting that plans are underway to embark on a protest.

“Upon all the promises by the state government to us during the training, nothing has been done, no empowerment, nothing, and they will be telling us to come today, come tomorrow. We are planning a day to go out for protest because we are not happy at all,” he said.

However, a source in the Ministry of Trade and Investment, who also pleaded anonymity, explained that the graduation ceremony would have taken place in April but following the resignation of then-commissioner, Prince Akpabio to contest for the House of Assembly, the ceremony was stalled.

He attributed the delay to the rise in the exchange rate adding that the laptops that were supposed to be given to those in ICT were estimated at about N150, 000 each but have risen to N550,000 now adding that the state government is doing something about that.

READ ALSO: APC Has No Governorship Candidate In Akwa Ibom, INEC Declares

According to the source, “from the market survey we conducted so far, the estimated price for laptops has gone up. Another memo has been sent to the governor on the variation so that the Items can be purchased.

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“They should be more patient. If they are given money equivalent they may lavish the money and that may not make meaning to them. The graduation ceremony would be done at the same time.”

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Epileptic Power Supply: Lekki Residents Protest, Call For EKEDC Removal

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Residents of Lekki Phase 1 in Eti Osa Local Government Area of Lagos State, have expressed frustration over the epileptic power supply being witnessed in the area.

Speaking with journalists earlier today, residents stated that this has been their plight for over five years. They noted that the situation worsened since the beginning of the year, attributing it to lack of investment by the Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDC).

One of the residents, Chief Theodore Oniopaku bemoaned the situation, citing instances where they barely get thirty minutes of electricity per day and sometimes endure up to eighteen days without power in a month.

He said, “The situation is really bad. We’ve been trying to avoid protests because we don’t want a situation where hoodlums will hijack it like what happened during the End SARS protest.

“But it seems no one is paying attention to our plight. Some of us are retirees, we live on pensions. How can we afford a litre of diesel at N1,600 per litre? How much do we earn in a month?”

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READ ALSO: Court Dismisses Suit Seeking To Stop Elections, Examinations On Saturday

A retired Justice, Eniola Oluokun reiterated these sentiments, noting a six-year struggle with poor power supply in the area.

Oluokun called for independent power supply solutions for the area, criticizing EKEDC’s lack of financial capacity and technical expertise to address the issue effectively.

He said, “Lekki phase 1 residents should be on an Independent Power supply. It is Nigeria’s heartbeat and destination for holiday fun seekers. Most visitors and tourists prefer to stay in Lekki Phase 1.

“Unfortunately, I don’t think EKEDC has the financial capacity and technical expertise to provide electricity in the area.

“Some of their equipments are old and obsolete. Whenever their equipment is faulty, it takes them five to six days to fix leaving the estate without light. Our neighbours in Banana Island who use the Independent Power plant have constant light, but we don’t. It’s a very painful situation.”

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READ ALSO: Electricity Subsidy No Longer Sustainable – FG

Another resident, a retired civil servant who preferred anonymity, blamed past governments, for the collapse of the power generation in Nigeria.

He cited corruption and lack of transparency during the power privatization process as contributing factors.

“The corruption in the power sector where trillions of Naira were diverted to private accounts and lack of transparency during the power privatisation contributed immensely to the collapse of our power generation. If the government refuse to address these two monsters, Nigerians must not expect power soon”. He said.

Recall that the residents’ frustration have once led to a legal action against EKEDC, due to failed promises and billing discrepancies.

In April 2022, Lekki residents petitioned the presidency, represented by Ambassador Ibrahim Gambari MFR, seeking intervention to compel EKEDC to provide adequate power supply comparable to other affluent areas like Victoria Island, Ikoyi, and Banana Island.

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READ ALSO: NDLEA Seizes 44,948kg Drugs, Vehicles In Lagos, Edo, Ondo Raids

At the time, Mogaji Wale Arisekola a resident and media consultant for the estate, expressed grievances over high-end user tariff plans.

He estimated potential damages of N10 billion to N15 billion from EKEDC’s shortcomings and also urged affected estates to seek legal recourse.

Arisekola said, “It is a case of accepting money under false pretext, which is in section 419 in the Nigeria penal code. The whole of Lekki Phase 1 estate no longer wants to have anything to do with EKEDC again. They are tired of paying for darkness. The tariff they put us on is for a minimum of eighteen hours in a day and we are getting less than six hours. We have enough grounds to approach the court of law to demand our fundamental rights.

“We are looking at a damage of N10 billion to N15 billion from EKEDC and the court order barring EKEDC from disturbing the Independent Power supply engaged by the estate. EKEDC’s excuses are no longer acceptable to us in the estate.”

However, despite previous attempts by EKEDC to address customer complaints, including the inauguration of a Customers’ Complaint Unit in Lekki, residents remain dissatisfied with the quality of service.

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Meanwhile, residents are set to embark on a peaceful protest against the injustice by EKEDC on Saturday 30th of March 2024 at the Lekki Phase 1 Gate.

This was made known through the “notice of protest” being circulated on WhatsApp and Zonal groups, which reads in part “…We are tired of sleeping in darkness. Please all Lekki residents must endeavour to participate. We have been sleeping without power for about a month now…”

 

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Nine Things To Know About Ship That Collapsed Baltimore Bridge

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The Francis Scott Key Bridge in the US city of Baltimore collapsed after a ship collided with it, the Maryland Transportation Authority said early Tuesday.

“I-695 Key Bridge collapse due to ship strike,” the MTA posted on social media platform X, referring to the interstate highway.

It urged drivers to avoid the route over the Patapsco River, which it called an “active scene”.

Earlier, the MTA had said interstate lanes in both directions were closed due to an “incident” on the bridge, and that traffic was being redirected.

A police spokesperson from the Baltimore Police Department told NBC News that people were possibly in the river.

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However, in this report, The PUNCH  highlights nine key things to know about the ill-fated ship as culled from AFP.

READ ALSO: US Bridge Collapses After Ship Collision

1. The ship that caused the collapse of a key bridge in Baltimore is named Dali container ship and was recently built to sail under Singapore’s flag.

2. It was constructed by the Korean Hyundai shipyard in 2015 and is 300 metres long (985 feet), 48 metres wide and 24.8 metres tall, with gross tonnage of 95,000 tonnes, making it an average-sized container ship.

3. It had left Baltimore port at 1 am local time Tuesday for a roughly month-long voyage to Colombo in Sri Lanka, according to the site Marine Traffic. It hit the bridge at 1:28 am.

4. The ship belongs to Singapore-based Grace Ocean Pte Ltd, which is owned by a Hong Kong group, and was carrying containers on behalf of Danish shipping giant Maersk.

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READ ALSO: 4 Die In Bauchi Auto Crash As FRSC Returns N1.6m To Families Of Victims

5. Synergy Marine, the Singapore company that operates the Dali, said it was being controlled by two Baltimore port pilots at the time of the collision.

6. There were 22 crew members on board, according to the port of Singapore, and none were injured, according to Synergy, which also says no leaking has been detected.

7. The Dali frequently links Asian ports with the East Coast of the United States and passes through the Panama Canal on March 13 before stopping at New York, Norfolk, and finally, Baltimore.

8. In 2016, soon after commissioning, the Dali accidentally hit a dock in the Belgian port of Antwerp, according to the sites Vessel Finder and Shipwrecklog.

9. It can hold up to 8,344 cubic metres (2.2 million gallons) of fuel, according to Marine Traffic. It is insured by UK-based Britannia.

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Fedpoly Bauchi Matriculates 5,507 Students

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The Federal Polytechnic, Bauchi, has on Tuesday, matriculated 5,507 new intakes for the 2023/2024 academic session.

Speaking during the Matriculation ceremony, the Rector of the institution, Alhaji Sani Usman, said that the polytechnic received 7,917 applications for both the National Diploma and Higher National Diploma.

Usman said that 6,843 students were admitted into the institution, out of which only 5,507 were registered and matriculating.

READ ALSO: 4 Die In Bauchi Auto Crash As FRSC Returns N1.6m To Families Of Victims

He explained that 2,732 were admitted into the institution for their Higher National Diploma programmes while 2,775 were admitted for their National Diploma programmes.

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He cautioned the matriculants against what he called pitfalls that derail their path to success.

”As you embark on this journey, I must caution you against the pitfalls that might threaten to derail your path to success.

READ ALSO: Court Sentences Chinese To Death For Killing Nigerian Girlfriend

”Corruption, indecent dressing, examination misconduct, drug abuse, and cultism are scourges that have no place within the walls of this Polytechnic.

”I there urge you to uphold the highest standards of integrity, ethics, and moral values. Let honesty be your compass, and let your actions be guided by the principles of righteousness and fairness,” he said.

Earlier, Mallam Abdullahi Garba, Acting Registrar, disclosed that the polytechnic had organised a week-long orientation exercise for the newly admitted students.

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Garba, urged them to be upright and serious with their academic endeavours.

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