News

ERA/FoEN Pushes For Zero Waste Environment

Published

3 years ago

May 29, 2022

The Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN) says it is committed to attaining a zero waste environment in Nigeria Edo State in particular.

This was the resolution reached at the organization’s Zero Waste Ambassadors Parliament held in Benin over the weekend.

The parliamentarians who were later paired into three groups with a mandate of proffering a way forward in achieving a clean and zero waste environment in Edo State came up with different recommendations.

In his welcome address, Executive Director, ERA/FoEN, Chima Williams, Esq., said in ERA they believe that no individual can single handedly achieve a zero waste environment, hence the setting up of the Zero Waste Ambassador, which according to him had been on for almost a year now.

While declaring that the activities and engagements by the programme have been yielding positive results since its inception, Chima said: “For us at ERA/FoEN, we believe that nobody can do it alone. The problems are so much enormous. Neither you nor me, neither the government can individually solve our problems. So, this is the time for a collective action; this is the time for a collective engagement; this is the time for a collective projection and collective work, because this is the only way we can solve our problems.”

Tobi Yusuf, in her contribution and recommendation on behalf of other group members, on the sub topic ‘Keeping Liters of our Streets: Our Collective Responsibility,’ attributed indiscriminate dumping of refuse to ignorance, saying that many people do not know that dumping of refuse on the roadside is creating problem to the environment.

She therefore called for periodic enlightenment of members of the pubic on the dangers associated with dumping of refuse on the roadside and what it could cause to the environment.

She also called for the use of alternative such as clothing bags which according to her could serve for months.

While advocating for sorting and segregation of waste, Yusuf said there was need for waste managers to be up and doing in the timely picking up of waste from different locations rather than keeping them for days.

On her part, Hannah Akpan, from group two of the parliament said waste managers need to be trained for effectiveness and efficiency, adding that another challenge of refuse collection is unavailability of waste managers after packaging such waste for days.

Dr. Ekene Biose of group three who said Nigeria needs a system that works, added that in a society that works, waste are properly sorted and disposed without much delay.

Earlier, Mr. Ubrei- Joe Mariere, of ERA/FoEN said the Waste Parliament was introduced by ERA as a way of bringing the government, community, everybody into a common room and chat.

“There is an issue with our environmental policies, there are issues with our Waste Management Policies that is why we are having the Waste Management crisis that we are having in our society today.

“To tackle this, we came up with Zero Waste Ambassadors, they have become our own exit strategy, they in turn were able to come up with Brand Auditing, which is something that even the state government have never done,” he said.

News

Sanwo-Olu makes U-turn, Unblocks Lawyer Who Sued Him Over Blocking On X

Published

6 hours ago

September 13, 2025

Editor

Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has unblocked human rights lawyer, Festus Ogun, on X after a meeting with him at Lagos House, Marina, on Friday.

The lawyer, who had accused the governor of rights violations, announced the development in a post on his X account on Saturday.

According to him, Sanwo-Olu personally invited him for a brief meeting to address his complaints.

“Lagos Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has unblocked me on X (Twitter). I met briefly with him yesterday at Lagos House Marina, on his invitation, to amicably resolve my complaint of human rights violations. We will continue to hold authorities accountable, regardless. Aluta continua!” Ogun wrote.

Tribune Online reports that Ogun had earlier filed a suit against Sanwo-Olu at a Federal High Court in Lagos, accusing him of violating his fundamental rights by blocking him on his verified X account.

In the suit marked FHC/L/CS/1739/25, which he shared on Facebook, the lawyer claimed the governor blocked him over his 2021 “constructive criticisms” and “demand for accountability” on the October 2020 #EndSARS killings.

“In 2021, I noticed that the Governor blocked me on his official X handle @jidesanwoolu owing to my constructive criticisms of his policies and demand for accountability in respect of the October 2020 #EndSARS Massacre.”

Ogun said the action has prevented him from accessing vital government updates and information.

“Blocking me on X has prevented me from accessing public updates and receiving information about policies and governance in Lagos, which constitutes a violation of my right to receive information without interference,” he said.

In his originating summons, he asked the court to declare the move unconstitutional, arbitrary, and discriminatory.

News

Tragedy Deepens As Prime Suspect in Taraba Student’s Death Found Dead

Published

7 hours ago

September 13, 2025

Editor

The investigation into the death of Comfort Jimtop, a 100-level Mass Communication student at Taraba State University, has taken a dramatic turn following the discovery of the lifeless body of Emmanuel Kefas, the prime suspect in the case.

Kefas’s body was discovered on Friday in the Tudiri community, Ardo-Kola Local Government Area, under unclear circumstances, intensifying public concern and adding a tragic dimension to a case that has already gripped the university community and residents across Taraba State.

Confirming the development on Saturday, the spokesperson for the Taraba State Police Command, James Lashen, said the police received a report from the village head of Tudiri about the discovery.

“A lifeless body was found in Tudiri, and a Tecno Android phone was recovered beside it,” Lashen stated.

“Upon charging the phone, investigators found a photograph showing the deceased with the late Comfort Jimtop, suggesting they were in a romantic relationship.”

Lashen added that the body has been taken to the Federal Medical Centre (FMC) in Jalingo for autopsy. At the same time, efforts are ongoing to officially identify the remains through the suspect’s family.

Police have yet to determine whether Kefas’s death was the result of suicide, homicide, or an accident. Investigations into both deaths are continuing.

Comfort Jimtop’s mysterious death had earlier sparked outrage on campus and across the state, with students and rights groups demanding justice. Kefas was named a prime suspect in the case, which remains open.

This latest development has left many unanswered questions and deepened the grief surrounding the case.

Students, residents, and civil society groups are closely monitoring the situation, calling on authorities to ensure a thorough investigation and bring clarity to the tragic chain of events.

News

Ossiomo, Chinese Impasse: This Is Our Story — Management

Published

9 hours ago

September 13, 2025

Editor

The management of Ossiomo Power Plant has cleared the air on the dispute between its Chinese partners and the circumstances surrounding the shutting down of the power plant early this month.

Representative of Ossiomo management, Engineer Festus Evbuomwan, during an interactive session with customers on the impasse between the two partners, said contrary to the rumour making the rounds, the management of Ossiomo Power Plant had paid over ₦2bn to its Chinese partner — Jiangsu Communication Clean Energy Technology (CCETC) — since the power plant started operation.

Recall that representative of CCETC who identified himself as Mr. ‘W’ had, during a telephone phone interview two weeks ago, claimed that “instruction to shutdown was because we lost lots of money and did not get any return on investment,” adding that “all the $20m investment was done by us including the distribution lines.”

But Evbuomwan during the interactive session, said the management was not aware of the $20m investment the Chinese partner claimed, just as he disclosed that “when they generate power, we sell and pay them.”

He disclosed that after shutting down the power plant, the Chinese partners came up with a request of ₦185m to be paid to two Chinese not known to the management, stressing that this was declined.

According to him, the Chinese partner, having seen how lucrative the business is, “went to some quarters and raised some issues probably thinking they can manoeuvre us with the help of some big persons, so that they can use their machines to generate power and sideline us but this is not possible.”

“The Chinese partners also claimed that they borrowed $20m from their native land to invest, we are not aware of such investment, and we do not know where the money was invested up till now.

“They have been also saying they have not been receiving anything, but I want to tell you unequivocally that first, the partners run a joint account where their investment is going into. More so, The Chinese partners have received over ₦2bn so far for the power they generate with their machines. When they generate the power, we sell and pay them.”

Engr. Evbuomwan, while apologising to customers for the power outage caused by the dispute between the two partners, said Ossiomo had started power generation though not in full capacity, assuring that power generation would be fully restored soon.

“We have purchased turbines, and one have started working. They are working on the second one, so, by the time our five turbines start working we will be in full capacity. Even with that, those connected to the government may not be reached immediately. This is because the government bought the poles and contracted the wiring, and we cannot force the government to do our bid. Also, we are making efforts to site 33kva transformer along Airport Road and Lagos Road as soon as possible, so that our customers there will get power.”

He said the Edo State government does not have a stake in the company, just as he appealed to the “government to let us supply power to customers in through their Lines. I want to emphasise that Ossiomo is not completely shut down.”

He further urged the “government to encourage the Nigerian citizens to invest and not to work against local investors.”