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‘Na Die We Dey’ – Gelegele Indigenes Lament Gas Flare, Environmental Pollution

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Demand Withdrawal Of Operational Licence Of Oil Company

By Joseph Ebi Kanjo

The indigenes of Gelegele in Ovia North East Local Government Area of Edo State, on Friday decried the environmental pollution caused by operation of an oil company in their communities and called for the immediate withdrawal of operational licence of the company.

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INFO DAILY reports that a gas flare stack of the oil company is sited in the heart of the community thereby causing untold heat and other health hazards to the indigenes in the community.

Speaking at a-day Capacity Building Workshop organised by the Health of Mother Earth Foundation, HOMEF, in the community, the indigenes who are mostly farmers and fishermen/fisherwomen, lamented that due to operation of the oil company both their lands and rivers have been polluted.

An indigene and Chairman, Host Communities Network of Nigeria, Prince Preye Pawuru, said operation of the oil company is causing a lot to the indigenes including untimely death, hunger, continuous crude oil spill to their rivers and lands.

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READ ALSO: HOMEF Trains Women On Climate Change Adaptation

He said: “The fact is that, the oil company operating here is actually causing our suffering and untimely death. In fact, it is almost ending the lifespan of this community. We cannot just survive again with the oil company operating in our community. The oil company should leave us and go finally. This is our demand. The flare is located at the heart of the community, and this is causing a lot to our health.”

He added: “If someone falls sick, we don’t have access road to take the person to the city. No social infrastructure. We are predominantly fishermen and farmers but no more fishes in the river because of the pollution. There is a continuous spill of crude oil into the river. The environment is destroyed. We don’t have any means of survival yet the company is smiling home with billions of dollars while leaving the community in penury. The company and government take away the benefits while the community bears the risk. So, we are saying we are tied. The company should go.”

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He said engagements with relevant authorities to address the situation have not yielded results.

On her part, Mrs. Justina Kororo, woman leader, Gelegele community, who spoke in Pidgin English said: “This is our community. We have no where to go. This fire alone Na die, na die we dey. E dey affect our eyes. We never old reach anywhere we no fit read Bible again; we no fit read from our phones.”

READ ALSO: HOMEF Charges Speedy Clean Up Of Ogoniland, N’Delta

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Also, Mrs. Victoria Peter said: “I am a fisherwoman. Before now, when we go to the river, we used to catch enough fishes even for sale and use the money to buy other food items. But now even crayfish you can’t catch. We are dying of hunger. No light, no portable water. We no fit sleep inside our house because of the heat. Na outside we dey stay. I want make government help us.”

Another indegene from the community who also spoke in Pidgin said: “Other communities wey get this kind of oil company dey enjoy. Dem dey help the women for the town. dem dey help the men for the town. But here in Gelegele, nothing like that. Our road is bad.”

Also lending his voice, Mr. Goday Kororo who said he worked in the oil company for 25 years before retiring said: “This fire for this place dey make us dey quick old. E no dey off. E don dey here since 1979. In The night, you must come out and baff, if not you cannot sleep. Our windows go dey shake because of the oil company operation and noise. Many times, pollution dey happen for our river, no fish. We are suffering. We wey near water Na ice-fish dey buy for N3000, N4000. Because no road, we dey pay high from Benin to here. “

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Earlier, HOMEF Programmes Manager and Coordinator, FishNet Alliance, Stephen Oduware, said they were in the community to join their voices for the call for a stop to gas flaring and other oil exploration activities in the community, and also to demand environmental justice and compensation for the people.

READ ALSO: World Earth Day: HOMEF Wants The Earth More Protected

“Gelegele is one of the communities that is highly impacted by oil exploration. There is an oil company here that sites its gas flaring stack right in the heart of the community. There are a lot of issues with this. Number one, on the environment, on the people and even on their well-being and livelihoods. The people are living corpses due to the operation. The temperature here is far higher than normal.

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“So, we are calling for a stop to this environmental injustice in Gelegele. Justice must take its course. We are calling for a restoration and remediation of the environment in Gelegele. And compensation must be paid to the people. So we are here to show that solidarity,” he said.

 

 

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Step Aside If You Won’t Accept, Practice Tradition, Olowo Tells Monarchs

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Chairman of the Ondo State Council of Traditional Rulers and Olowo of Owo, Oba Ajibade Gbadegesin Ogunoye, has kicked against traditional rulers who abandon traditional practices after ascending the throne.

Oba Ogunoye declared that they should either uphold the institution’s customs or vacate their positions.

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He said in Akure, the state capital, during a colloquium held to mark the 10th coronation anniversary of the Deji of Akure, Oba Aladetoyinbo Aladelusi.

The monarch was responding to a critique by one of the discussants during the event, Dr. Festus Adedayo, who submitted that the traditional institution had lost many of its defining myths and cultural values.

READ ALSO: Ondo Govt, Company Sign MoU To Build $15bn 500,000bpd Refinery

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Dr Adedayo, a journalist and scholar, had traced the historical significance of traditional institutions from the pre-colonial era to modern times.

He said that the current generation of monarchs has, in many cases, diluted the institution’s sacredness and public perception.

According to him “The traditional institution must redeem itself if it wants to be taken seriously. It can do this by upholding the myths and comportment passed down from ancient times, including burial rites, sacred appearances, and dignified conduct.”

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Reacting, Oba Ogunoye, urged that there must not be a sweeping categorization of kings but specific references to the ones that go out of the bounds of the institution.

READ ALSO: FULL LIST: Top 10 Highest Scorers In 2025 UTME

He said that “You must identify specific individuals who have violated traditional norms rather than make sweeping generalizations.

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“Personally, I am a traditionalist to the core. Before becoming Olowo of Owo, I lived in the palace with my father for 25 years and fully understood the requirements.

“Tradition is not repugnant, it is a sacred heritage that must be preserved.”

Oba Ogunoye added “that taking up the role of a monarch is a matter of choice, not by compulsion.

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“If you want to be an Oba, be prepared to abide by the customs. If you cannot, then don’t accept the position. It is not by force. Let us embrace our traditions, they are not in conflict with dignity or modernity.”

Oba Ogunoye however, lauded the Oyo State Government for preserving tradition in the recent selection of the new Alaafin of Oyo

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Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, who delivered the keynote address titled “Role of Nigeria’s Traditional Institution in Nation Building: Impediments and Prospects,” described the monarchy as a fundamental part of Nigeria’s heritage, older than oil discovery and even colonial rule.

Makinde maintained that traditional rulers remain pillars of identity, legitimacy, and social cohesion, and called on governments to invest in cultural institutions as part of strategic governance

The colloquium also had in attendance the former Secretary to the Government of the Federation and Oba of Ilu-Abo, Oba Olu Falae, who was chairman of the event; Ondo State governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, represented by his SSG, Dr. Taiye Fasoranti; representative of the Vice President, Dr. Tope Fasua; Ondo State Attorney General, Dr. Kayode Ajulo, Professor Adedayo Afe, the celebrant, Deji of Akure, among others.

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Bayelsa Warns LG Officials Against Pension Payment Delays

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The Bayelsa State Government has warned principal officers of local government councils in the state to desist from delay in presentation of names of prospective retirees in good time for processing and payment of pension benefits.

The Deputy Governor, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, handed down the warning on Wednesday at a meeting with the chairmen and principal officers of the eight local government councils in Government House, Yenagoa.

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Ewhrudjakpo directed that the names of retiring workers should be submitted at the latest by the 18th of every month to the office of the Technical Adviser to the Governor on Treasury and Accounts, Mr Timipre Seipulou, for processing.

According to him, anyone found culpable of sabotaging the policy which is aimed at achieving seamless payment of retirees’ benefits, would be sanctioned.

READ ALSO:INEC Extends Voter Registration In Anambra Amid High Turnout

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He said he was desirous of bequeathing an effective and efficient local government system where his successor would not grapple with the issue of delayed payment of pensions and gratuities.

Ewhrudjakpo, who decried the backlog of unpaid pensions, said the government will work out modalities to ensure that retirees receive their pensions a month after retirement from service.

He specifically directed the chairmen to work closely with the technical adviser on treasury and accounts to come up with a model for the payment, as available funds cannot be used to clear all outstanding gratuities amounting to about five billion naira at once.

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The Deputy Governor equally advised local government administrators to make provisions for annual leave for employees to serve as motivation.

READ ALSO:Bayelsa Poly Workers Protest Withheld June Salaries

He used the opportunity to thank all eight local government chairmen for their cooperation and suggestions that have so far contributed towards the achievements recorded in the various councils.

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Hw said, “Our reason for calling this meeting is to give information, a directive, and a warning. One thing that I have is that I don’t know how to spare indolence, docility, laziness, incompetence, and deliberate obstruction of the wheel of progress.

“We have taken a decision that all those who are retiring every month must be paid their pensions. That decision has come to stay. But the report I am having is that some of you in the local government system are trying to frustrate it by not volunteering the necessary information.

“You were told to timely furnish the Technical Adviser on Treasury and Accounts, Mr Seipulou’s office, with your monthly reports concerning retirees.

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“I am not happy that local government officers are frustrating the process.

“Chairmen, take note: every local government must submit its report by the 18th of every month, provided it is not a Sunday or Saturday. Even if it is a Saturday or Sunday, we will give you the benefit of submitting on the 20th.

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“Any local government that does not do that, next month, I will transfer the treasurer and anybody that is involved in the process.

“Our brothers and sisters who have been on the queue are complaining that those who are going out now are being paid. So, every hand must be on deck to ensure we pay up the backlog.

READ ALSO:INEC Extends Voter Registration In Anambra Amid High Turnout

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We are desirous of paying up pensions. We believe that by the end of this month, as we work round the clock, we are going to see the best way to put it behind us.

“What I want to do, by the grace of God, before I step out of this place, is that I don’t want to leave behind liabilities such as a backlog of unpaid pensions and gratuities for anybody.”

In their separate remarks, the state chairman of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners, Local Government Chapter, Mr Noel Itade, and the Head of Brass Local Government Council, Comrade Clement Etifa, commended Ewhrudjakpo for his effective supervision and initiatives that have repositioned the local councils for efficient service and project delivery.

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Access To Sexual, Reproductive Health, Key To Sustainable Societies – UNFPA

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The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) has said that ensuring access to sexual, reproductive health and rights is a cornerstone for sustainable, inclusive societies.

Dr. Natalia Kanem, the UNFPA Executive Director, stated this in Bauchi on Thursday during the commemoration of the 2025 World Population Day organised by the state government.

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According to her, it is imperative for governments at all levels to also create an avenue where people who wanted to experience the joys and rewards of parenting could meet their fertility goals.

This, she said, would give them the hope for a better tomorrow supportive of their choices and protective of their rights and where they, and their children would thrive.

READ ALSO: Talents Hunt: Bauchi Goes After Students For International Representation

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Represented by Deborah Tabara, the Gender, Reproductive Health Analyst of UNFPA in Bauchi, Kanem reiterated the commitment of the fund in partnering with the state government.

She said the partnership would harness the dividend of the state’s youthful population in developing programmes, strategies, plans, and budgets that promote inclusivity and equality.

“UNFPA remains an agency for reproductive Health and our mission is to deliver a world where all pregnancy is wanted, all maternal birth safe and all young persons achieve their potentials.

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“Family-friendly policies including affordable and accessible childcare, generous and flexible parental leave, and promotion of fathers’ participation in care-giving can help prospective parents balance career and family goals.

READ ALSO: Polio: Community Leader Leads Successful Campaign Against Vaccine Rejection In Bauchi

“Investing in comprehensive sexuality education is another imperative that supports informed choices.

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“Intergenerational understanding is crucial to build trust and strengthen solidarity and fairness across generations,” she said.

Also speaking, Hajiya Amina Katagum, Commissioner for Budget, Economic Planning and Multilateral Coordination, said this year’s theme called for considerations on the crucial role young people play globally, in Nigeria and in Bauchi state.

Represented by Barr. Abubakar Bununu, Special Adviser to Gov. Bala Mohammed on multilateral coordination, Katagum added that it recommended that government and stakeholders listen to young people and respond to their needs and desires.

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READ ALSO: Polio: How UNICEF Moves To Eradicate Menace In Bauchi

She explained that this would contribute positively to the development of their societies and create the families they want.

“It is our responsibility as governments, the Private Sector and other key stakeholders to build a more equitable, sustainable and caring world where young people are empowered to pursue the lives they want for themselves and their families,” she said.

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The theme of the 2025 world population day is ‘empowering young people to create the families they want in a fair and hopeful world’.

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