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Enugu Gov Declares End To sit-at-home, Begs For Nnamdi Kanu’s Release

Published

12 months ago

June 1, 2023

Editor

Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State has appealed to President Bola Tinubu to release the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra Mazi Nnamdi Kanu in a bid to heal the country.

Mbah made the appeal on Thursday while listing out the decisions reached at the end of his first security council meeting with the heads of all the security agencies at the Government House, Enugu.

He said, “I call on our newly sworn-in president, President Bola Tinubu, to consciously work towards the release of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu. We believe that his release will expedite the healing process Nigeria needs at this time.
“It will also be a pointer to his administration’s extension of brotherly hands of fellowship to Ndigbo,” he said.

On the every Monday sit-at-home, the governor declared that effective from Monday, June 6, 2023, there would be no such restrictions, adding that such orders were restricting creativity, entrepreneurship, and productivity in the state.

Mbah, however, expressed his government’s readiness “to engage in dialogue with people, who have genuine grievances towards bringing lasting peace and security to Enugu State.”

At the meeting, which also had the deputy governor, Mr Ifeanyi Ossai, in attendance, the governor reminded the people of Enugu that he had hit the ground running on the day of his inauguration by signing three Executive Orders for the good governance of the state, including Executive Order 002 for the removal of “Unauthorised Street Barriers Across the State Within 100 Days”.

He said, “There is no time to waste. The clock has started ticking on the mandate you gave me and the deliverables I promised,” he reiterated.

“A time comes in the lives of a people when they must decide whether they genuinely want to move forward or remain stuck with the conditions of their underdevelopment.

“The creativity and sense of industry of Ndi Igbo are remarkable. Our DNA is wired with commercial and entrepreneurial prowess.

“If this is what we are known by, then it becomes inconsistent with reality that the spirit of entrepreneurship, commerce and creativity are killed every Monday in our land. Our restless spirit of industry abhors laxity and indolence.

“The idea behind sitting at home on Monday, the first working and business day of the week, is abominable and antithetical to greatness and the spirit of the industry we profess to have inherited from our forebears. This cannot be us. Tufiakwa (God forbid). It does colossal damage to us,” he further added.

Mbah reminded the people of the direct connection between the lofty promises he made to them and the vibrancy of commerce in the state.

“For us to transit from a public service economy to a private sector-driven one, we must free our markets from the shackles of restriction to commerce. If indeed we aspire and anticipate an influx of private sector practitioners and investors in Enugu State, we must know that this will not happen where the perception of us is that of unproductive people.

“Therefore, those that strike on Mondays, putting restrictions in the way of our Igbo spirit of creativity, cannot be our true representatives. In fact, they kill our spirit.

“We know that our land is a fertile ground for commerce. However, businesses, entrepreneurship and commerce require a vibrant workforce and big markets where they can flourish and make money.

“To this end, therefore, from Monday, June 6, 2023, there will be no observance of any sit-at-home in all nooks and crannies of Enugu State.

“Government will enforce this with all the powers at its disposal.

“My charge to all of you – market men and women, the corporate world, industries, schools, civil servants, and all strata of workers in Enugu State – is for us to take back our sense of industry, pride of place and re-enact our glorious past.

“By heeding this call, you would have set us on the path of actualising our mandate,” he stated.
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JUST IN: Court Denies Binance Executive, Gambaryan Bail

Published

37 mins ago

May 17, 2024

Editor

A Federal High Court Abuja, on Friday denied the bail application of a crypto currency firm executive, Tigran Gambaryan.

Justice Emeka Nwite, while delivering the ruling held that the bail application is refused as he has carefully gone through the application submitted before him and resolved that the defendant will jump bail if granted.

Gambaryan, his company, Binance Holdings Limited and a fellow top executive currently on the run, Nadeem Anjarwalla, were charged by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, with money laundering and terrorism financing .

Details shortly….

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Malnutrition: UNICEF Introduces Liquid Supplement To Enhance Child Nutrient

Published

2 hours ago

May 17, 2024

Editor

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has introduced a liquid base supplement to enhance a child’s nutrient diet in order to wage war against malnutrition in Nigeria.

Mrs Philomena Irene, UNICEF’s Nutrition Specialist, Bauchi Field Office, stated this in Gombe on Thursday during a two-day media dialogue on Age-Appropriate Complementary Feeding for Children Aged 6-23 months.

According to her, the intervention was being carried out by the Progressive Action on Resilient System Through Innovation and Partnership (PARSNIP) project of UNICEF.

She however, explained that the project was being implemented in Dukku, Kaltungo and Kwame Local Government Areas of Gombe state.

She said the project basically focused on enhancing young children’s nutrient diet with the liquid base supplements, adding that the commodity is nutrient rich and has both protein, energy, 15 minerals and vitamins.

“It’s for children under the age of 6 to 23 months by adding it to their food. It was formulated for children living in severe food poverty.

“It has shown that these children living in severe food poverty can’t even have a meal in a day that is rich with five food groups which is the minimum.

“The idea is, if you give them one of the sachets of this commodity, they have taken one meal a day that is nutrient dense which contains 100 to 120 calories a day.

“It has protein, carbohydrates, minerals and vitamins,” she said.

The UNICEF Nutrition Specialist also explained that under the project, UNICEF also helps the states to create an enabling environment, health system strengthening and improving diet and practices.

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Rivers Crisis: Fubara Mocks Wike, Says ‘We’ve Defeated Our Enemies’

Published

3 hours ago

May 17, 2024

Editor

The Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, declared on Thursday that his battles were over as he had defeated his opponents, who are not sleeping with their two eyes open.

He said he had turned the tide against his opponents, noting that he was still in office about to mark his first anniversary, contrary to the plan by his detractors.

Fubara spoke on Thursday amid the ranging feud between him and his predecessor and estranged political godfather, Nyesom Wike.

Last October, Fubara survived an impeachment plot by members of the Rivers State House of Assembly loyal to Wike.

As of Wednesday, nine members of his cabinet loyal to Wike had tendered their resignation and exited.

Addressing the national and state leadership of the Ijaw Youth Council on Thursday at the Government House in Port Harcourt, Fubara said he appreciated their support and the assurance that they were with him but said, “there is nothing to call on you for because we have already defeated them.”

According to The PUNCH, the IYC leadership was on a solidarity walk to the Government House in Port Harcourt, to celebrate the Isaac Adaka Boro Day.

The solidarity walk was part of activities to celebrate the heroic exploits of the late Major Isaac Adaka Boro, 56 years after his death, which is observed on May 16, every year.

Boro, it will be recalled, formed the Niger Delta Volunteer Force, an armed militia with members consisting mainly of his fellow Ijaw ethnic group who declared the Niger Delta Republic on February 23, 1966, and fought with federal forces for 12 days before they were defeated.

After he was granted amnesty, he enlisted and was commissioned as a Major in the Nigerian Army, fought on the side of the Federal Government during the civil war but was killed under mysterious circumstances in active service in 1968 at Ogu (near Okrika) in Rivers State on May 9, 1968.

Speaking with the Ijaw youths, Fubara acknowledged the assurances of brotherly support from the council and urged the Ijaw Nation to key into the ongoing celebration of the liberation the state now enjoyed.

“I am happy that you’ve told me this morning that when I call on you, you will respond. But there is nothing to call on you for because we have already defeated them.

“By the special grace of God, what they thought that they would have done to us while we were celebrating our one year in office, they are the ones sleeping with their two eyes open. It shows that we have the Ijaw blood. And what is that blood: it is the blood of action; less talk, more action,” Fubara said.

Fubara noted that Boro genuinely stood for equity, justice, and fair play, and pursued his course to ensure liberation for the Ijaw people and their clans.

He described every genuine Rivers man as a liberator, adding that he was delighted to receive them on such auspicious day to re-enact the common purpose of liberation that they shared.

“Because he (Isaac Boro) stood for that unique thing, even after his death, we still celebrate him because he was a liberator.

“Every Rivers man, it doesn’t matter whether you are Ijaw or upland, the most important thing is that every genuine Rivers man must be a liberator.

“And I’m happy that you have come here today. I have also received you because we have one common purpose: to liberate our dear state. We are not going back on that.”

The governor thanked the crowd for their assurances of being available to respond to his call and stand by him and appealed to Ijaw youths to conduct themselves peacefully as they celebrate Major Isaac Adaka Boro Day.

He stressed that it should be done in the same spirit that had enveloped the state now, celebrating victory over his political detractors.

In his speech, the National President of IYC, Mr Jonathan Lokpobiri, described the day as historic, because Ijaw people were meeting with their governor on Major Isaac Adaka Boro Day of Memorial.

He warned all detractors to retrace their steps and allow the governor, who had the full mandate of the people, to discharge his duties to Rivers people.

He commended Fubara for his courage, bravery and commitment to good governance, insisting that his struggle and triumph resonated with the hope of all Ijaw people.

Also speaking, the Chairman of IYC, Eastern Zone, Mr Tamuno Kpokpo, said the visit was not to signify an ethnic war, but to lend support in the protection of the interest and continuous development of Rivers State.

Kpokpo said the IYC would stand to resist anybody or group of persons anywhere who dared to cause any distraction of governance in the state.

PUNCH