Headline

Diri Takes Swipe On Arewa Youths, Says ‘You’re Ignorant Of Happenings In N’Delta’

Published

4 years ago

December 4, 2021

Bayelsa State governor, Senator Douye Diri, has taken a swipe at the Arewa Consultative Youth Movement, describing them as the most ignorant of what is happening in the Niger Delta for saying that he was over politicizing the Nembe oil spill.

Diri, who was speaking as the guest of honour at the All Ijaw Summit, organised by the Ijaw National Congress, INC, in Yenagoa the Bayelsa State capital, weekend, averred that he will never play politics with the health and development of the people but will continue to defend the territory and people who elected him as governor no matter whose ox is gored.

The governor who stressed that he is particularly vexed with the proportion of the Nembe oil spill, said he does not need to be a petroleum engineer to comment on the spill.

He challenged environmental activists to come to Nembe to see the level of pollution and environmental damage done to the flora and fauna of the Ijaw people.

While warning that no one should take the hospitality of the Ijaw nation for granted or doubt the determination of the state government in protecting the sanctity of communities and the livelihood of the people, Diri added that the people and state will not swallow this flame in the name of decorum.

His words: “I laughed this morning when my attention was drawn that Arewa Youths are opposing my statements and my views, I laughed at it. But for me, they are not only opposing me, they are opposing Bayelsa State and the Ijaw Nation.

“I have never played politics with the health of our people, I have never played politics with the development of our people and if Arewa Youths think that what I said is to over politicized the situation in Nembe, then I want to believed that Nigeria and indeed Arewa Youths are the most ignorant people of what is happening in the Niger Delta.

“Merely presupposing that the Governor is not a Petroleum Engineer, I don’t need to be a Petroleum Engineer to defend my people. If they have forgotten that our own President of the country is not also a Petroleum Engineer he is the President of Nigeria. That I am only a Political Scientist, yes I accept, a political scientist and an educationist and I have been elected to defend the territory and people of Bayelsa State.

“On the heels of very recent conference of political parties, what has been tagged as “COP 26”, I was in Scotland, United Kingdom to represent Bayelsa State, and in that event, there is already a global action to curb pollution. And recently in the UK as I said, I was and we will remain particularly vexed with what is happening in Nembe and that is why I will not stopped to call on all environmental activists to come on to Nembe to see the level of pollution and environmental damage done to the flora and fauna of the Ijaw people.

“Whereas we appreciate the oil and gas sector, current continuing in future importance to our country, there should be no doubt about our own commitment to stop the impunity that threatens the present and undermined the future survival of our people. No one should take our hospitality for granted or doubt our determination to protect the sanctity of our communities and indeed the livelihood of our people. We will not swallow this flame in the name of decorum.”

He commended the INC for providing a touch to illuminate the path of the Ijaw people under the present circumstances in the country noting that all is not well.

He stated further, “For too long we have only operated a pseudo-federalism in reality what we have in our country today is a unitary system of governance and dressed in the borrowed robes of federalism.

“We cannot procrastinate in returning the terms of engagement where the regions or state expropriate their own resources and pay taxes to the centre more and more, we are creating a cast where the categorization of subordinate and super-ordinate is entrenched. Not surprising, states and ethnic nationalities are increasingly clamouring for self determination or even in outright cases secession that is in very extreme cases.

“I am proposing without insisting that the idea and ideal situation would be the devolution of powers from the centre to the state such that the federal government would be responsible with the issue of currency, foreign policy, national security, commands in the military, appointment of ambassadors and any other matter that have common bearing on all states. But I am willing to abdicate my views if there is a superior collective counsel arising from this summit.”

In his welcome address, the President of INC, Prof Benjamin Okaba, said the crossroad Ijaws find themselves in the Nigerian federation is the most compelling reason confronting the convocation of the All Ijaw Summit, with the theme: “The Nigerian State and the Ijaw Question.”

He said the Ijaws need to agree on a common direction, adding that, “We need to evoke common understanding of our perculiarities and determine common panacea.”

The Summit which was chaired by HRM Justice F. Tabai, retd, was attended by prominent Ijaw sons and daughters across the country.

Headline

‘Pioneer Of Cable TV News’: Key Facts About CNN Founder, Ted Turner

Published

1 week ago

May 9, 2026

Editor

Ted Turner, the media businessman who founded CNN died at the age of 87. He died peacefully on Wednesday, surrounded by family, according to Turner Enterprises.

Contents

Launched 24-hour news television

Built a media network

Expanded through sports

Recognition and influence

Philanthropy and global causes

Environmental efforts

Health and later years

Early career path

Leadership and legacy

Personal life

Exit from business

Family

Below are key facts about his life and impact:

Launched 24-hour news television

Turner founded CNN on June 1, 1980, introducing the first 24-hour news channel and changing how audiences follow global events.

Built a media network

He moved from billboards into broadcasting, turning an Atlanta TV station into a national superstation in 1976. His business later grew to include CNN International, TNT, Turner Classic Movies and Cartoon Network.

Expanded through sports

Turner invested in sports broadcasting and owned teams including the Atlanta Braves and the Atlanta Hawks, using television to reach wider audiences.

Recognition and influence

In 1991, he was named Time magazine’s Man of the Year for his role in shaping modern news coverage.

Philanthropy and global causes

He founded the United Nations Foundation and supported campaigns against nuclear weapons. In 1997, he pledged $1 billion to the United Nations.

Turner supported conservation work, including reintroducing bison in the United States, and backed environmental education through the “Captain Planet” cartoon.

Health and later years

In 2018, Turner revealed he had Lewy body dementia. He also recovered from a mild case of pneumonia in early 2025.

Early career path

He took over his father’s billboard company at 24 after his father’s death and later expanded into radio and television, despite limited experience in journalism.

“I worked until 7 o’clock, and when I got home the news was over,” he once said. “So I missed television news completely. And I figured there were lots of people like me.”

Leadership and legacy

“Ted was an intensely involved and committed leader, intrepid, fearless and always willing to back a hunch and trust his own judgement,” Mark Thompson, Chairman and CEO of CNN Worldwide, said in a statement. “He was and always will be the presiding spirit of CNN. Ted is the giant on whose shoulders we stand, and we will all take a moment today to recognize him and his impact on our lives and the world.”

Personal life

Turner married actress Jane Fonda in 1991, and they later divorced after 10 years, though they remained close.

“I would never love anyone like I love him,” she said. “But I just couldn’t keep moving in his world, along the surface for the rest of my life. I knew that I would get to the end of my life and regret not doing the things that I also needed to do for me.”

Exit from business

He sold his company to Time Warner in 1996 and later stepped away following its merger with AOL.

Reflecting on his life, Turner once said: “I lost Jane. I lost my job here. I lost my fortune, most of it. Got a billion or two left. You can get by on that if you economize.”

Family

He is survived by his five children, 14 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

Headline

Iran’s Nationwide Internet Shutdown Hits 70 Days

Published

1 week ago

May 9, 2026

Editor

NetBlocks, a monitoring group, has disclosed that an internet shutdown enforced by the Iranian regime has entered its 70th day, severing key access from swathes of the population under the shadow of war.

NetBlocks reported on Friday that the blackout has now surpassed 1,656 hours, marking more than two months since US-Israeli strikes pounded Tehran and escalated across the Middle East.

“Digital connectivity is vital in times of crisis,” NetBlocks said in a post on X. “Limiting service harms those most in need – people with disabilities, students, small businesses and the general public.”

According to CNN, Iran imposed a separate internet shutdown on the country’s 92 million people earlier this year, when it launched the most lethal crackdown on anti-government protesters since the Islamic Republic’s founding 47 years ago.

CNN further reports that the latest blackout has cut off another potential lifeline for Iranian residents faced with high unemployment and economic pressure exacerbated by the US-Israeli campaign.

(CNN)

Headline

Gas Prices In US Edge Down After Two Weeks Of Increases

Published

1 week ago

May 9, 2026

Editor

The cost of a gallon of regular gas in the United States (US) has edged down a little more than a penny to $4.55.

According to AAA’s readings, this marks the first decline in the average gas price after 15 straight days of increases.

The decline is minuscule compared to the large increases in gas prices over the last two weeks.

According to CNN, gasoline costs rose an average of nearly 4 cents a day during that period and had several daily increases of between 7 and 9 cents.

Also Read: Trump insists US-Iran ceasefire intact despite recent exchange of fire

CNN also reports that based on past gas spikes, it will likely take weeks for gas prices to get down below $4 a gallon.

The report, however, states that a previous two-week stretch of gas price declines only shaved 14 cents off the average price, taking the average price to $4.02, before the recent 15-day run of increases.

According to CNN, it could take months for the average price to fall below $3 per gallon, as it did before the war in Iran.

CNN further reports that only one state – Oklahoma – now has an average price of less than $4 a gallon, and its average stands at $3.98. California has the highest average price at $6.16.

(CNN)