News
Obaseki Earns Huge Security Votes With No Impact – Ize-Iyamu
Published
5 years agoon
By
Editor
… My Government Has Improved Edo People’s Lives’ – Obaseki
The governorship candidate of All Progressives Congress, APC, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, yesterday, decried the huge amounts collected by the Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP as security vote yet with little amount given to the police to combat crime in the state.
He expressed his resentiment during the week at a media parley with Journalists in Benin.
He said Obaseki made the state House of Assembly to increase his security vote from N500m to N750m while the money to the police to combat insecurity in the state still remains N5m.
Osagie said the police cannot combat crime with such amount of money noting that hence the governor has decided to increase his own security vote, he should have also done same to the police so that they can be effective in their job.
READ ALSO: Edo 2020: Foundation Endorses Ize-Iyamu, Praises His Social Welfare Plans
The APC governorship candidate said Edo State remains the only state in the south-south region that has failed to invest in its security as Delta State government has succeeded in investing in its security by purchasing crime tracking devices for its police to combat crime thus leading to crime reduction in that state.
Ize-Iyamu said nothing seems to be working in the current government of Obaseki as the citizens of the state depend on their own source of drinking water instead of the government providing it for them adding that has led to the indiscrimate sinking of boreholes thereby destroying the ecosystem.
The APC candidate said with his manifestoes christened the ‘SIMPLE’ agenda which is time bound will address all the myriad problems bedeviling the state.
On the part of the national Vice Chairman, Edo State Governorship Media Committee, Patrick Obayangbon, while corroborating the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress, (APC) governorship candidate, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu on security matters, said security is part of what the ‘SIMPLE’ agenda is going to tackle adding that is it a thing of shame that a governor who receives N750m as a security vote monthly but only succeeds in giving N5m to the security agency.
READ ALSO: Edo Guber: Obaseki’s Ward Councilor, Six Others From Oredo LG Declare Support For Ize-Iyamu
He said it is difficult for the security agency to combat crimes and criminality with such amount of money, noting that that is the cause of the surge of crimes in the state.
For the former Trade Union Congress, (TUC) President, Peter Isele, he said he decided to join forces with the governorship candidate of the APC based on his simplified manifestoes which tend to address the challenges faced by the people of the state.
He said the promise made by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate, Godwin Obaseki on the creation of 200,000 jobs was a bogus one and that there is nothing to show that that promise has been kept.
However, in a shift reaction, Governor Obaseki said his administration has so far better the lives of Edo people through improved education healthcare roads and even infrastructure.
Obaseki assured Edo people that the developmental strides in the state had just begun as the first four year of his administration were used in laying the foundation which will be built on the next four years.
“What Edo people have witnessed in the first for years is only the beginning of greater things. The first term is for laying of foundation for greatness. The foundation has been laid; we will build on it to make life better for Edo people.
READ ALSO: Group Tasks Nigerians To See Fight Against Corruption As Everyone Project
” We have improved education, healthcare,agriculture, roads, infrastructure, environment, civil service and the economy of Edo State, ensuring that the life of every Edo man is improved for better,” he added.
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News
Divestment: CSOs Throw Weight Behind King Dakolo’s Suit Against Shell
Published
48 minutes agoon
June 21, 2025By
Editor
By Joseph Ebi Kanjo
A coalition of civil society organisations has thrown its weight behind the suit filed by His Royal Majesty, King
Bubaraye Dakolo, Agada IV of Ekpetiama Kingdom, Bayelsa State, against Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited in its divestment bid.
The civil society organisations drumming support for King Dakolo in his suit before Justice Ayo Emmanuel of the Federal High Court, Yenagoa, are: Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF); Social Action Nigeria; International Working Group on Petroleum Pollution and the Just Transition in the Niger Delta
(IWG); Bayelsa State Non-Governmental Organisations Forum (BANGOF); HEDA Resource Centre; Kebetkache Women Development and Resource Centre, among others.
In the suit marked: FHC/YNG/CS//2025, HRM, King Bubaraye Dakolo, Agada IV of Ekpetiama Kingdom, is the Plaintiff while Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC) (1st Defendant); Shell Petroleum N.V.(2nd Defendant); Shell PLC (3rd Defendant); Attorney General of the Federation (4th Defendant); Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) (5th Defendant); Minister of Petroleum Resources (6th Defendant) and Renaissance African Energy Limited is the 7th Defendant.
The Plaintiff, through is lawyer, Chuks Ugburu, is seeking a declaration by the honourable court that “the purported sale, assignment, transfer or divestment of the onshore and shallow-water oil and gas assets of the 1st Defendant to the 7th Defendant executed without strict compliance with the mandatory provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) Regulatory Divestment Framework, and without due consultation with and consent from the Plaintiff is unlawful, unconstitutional, null and void.”
The Plaintiff is seeking “A DECLARATION that the failure and refusal of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Defendants to carry out a comprehensive and participatory Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), Host Community Development Plan (HCDP), Decommissioning and Abandonment Plan, prior to initiating and concluding the divestment process, is a violation of the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021 and international environmental law.”
The Plaintiff is also seeking a “A DECLARATION that the 4th, 5th and 6th Defendants have failed in their statutory duties under the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021, including their obligations to regulate and monitor the divestment process, ensure stakeholder consultation and due diligence and safeguard the rights and Interests of host communities like the Plaintiff.”
The Plaintiff is also praying the court to declare “the exclusion of Ekpetiama Kingdom and its leadership from the divestment process amounts to a denial of their right to Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) under international law and renders the divestment process procedurally and legally defective.”
Also, “A DECLARATION that the continued degradation of the environment, livelihoods and health of the people of Ekpetiama Kingdom, as detailed in the expert findings of the report titled “An Environmental Genocide: Counting the Human and Environmental Cost of Oil in Bayelsa, Nigeria”, is a violation of the constitutional and human rights of the Plaintiff, and the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Defendants are liable for the same.”
“A DECLARATION that the continuous oil spills, gas flaring, and other environmentally harmful activities of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 7th Defendants in Ekpetiama Kingdom constitute a violation of the Plaintiff’s constitutional right to a clean, safe and healthy environment.”
The Plaintiff is seeking “A DECLARATION that the 1s, 2nd, 3rd and 7th Defendants are jointly and severally liable for the environmental degradation, economic loss and public health crisis caused in Ekpetiama Kingdom.
READ ALSO: Niger Delta Rights Activist, Ozobo Austin, Exposes Shell’s False Claims On Oil Spills
“AN ORDER directing the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 7th Defendants jointly and severally to immediately embark on comprehensive environmental clean-up, remediation and restoration of all polluted sites within Ekpetiama Kingdom.
“AN ORDER mandating the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 7th Defendants jointly and severally to establish and fund a Community Environmental Rehabilitation Fund for Ekpetiama Kingdom to the tune of $1,000,000,000.00 (One Billion United States Dollars).”
“AN ORDER directing the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 7th Defendants to jointly and severally pay to the Plaintiff the sum of $2,000,000,000.00 (Two Billion United States Dollars) as general and exemplary compensation for the losses, pain, and suffering occasioned by the 1 ^ m – 3 ^ m Defendants’ negligent and reckless operations.
“AN ORDER of perpetual injunction restraining the Defendants from continuing operations in Ekpetiama Kingdom without first conducting an independent and transparent environmental impact reassessment.
“AN ORDER nullifying the purported transfer, sale or assignment of oil and gas assets from the 1st Defendant to the 7th Defendant for substantial and material noncompliance with the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021, including failures to comply with mandatory environmental, social, and host community obligations.
READ ALSO: Bayelsa Communities Panic Over Shell’s Alleged Gas Flare Plan
“AN ORDER of perpetual injunction restraining the 1st 2nd and 3rd Defendants, whether by themselves, their agents, privies or assigns, from taking any further steps in furtherance of the said divestment to the 7th Defendant or any other person, unless and until full compliance with the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021 is demonstrated and approved through judicial and regulatory processes.
“AN ORDER of perpetual injunction restraining the 7th Defendant from entering, operating, managing, or exercising any rights or obligations over the said divested assets located in or impacting the Ekpetiama Kingdom, until lawful compliance with all applicable statutory and regulatory obligations is ensured.
“AN ORDER directing the 4th, 5th and 6th Defendants to immediately conduct a thorough, independent, and transparent regulatory review of the divestment process, including Environmental and Social Impact Assessments, Financial and technical capacity of the 7th Defendant and Decommissioning liabilities and community obligations.”
“AN ORDER compelling the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Defendants to publicly disclose all agreements, undertakings, financial arrangements and environmental plans relating to the divestment and publish a time-bound plan for remediating environmental harm caused in Ekpetiama Kingdom, with the involvement of the Plaintiff.
READ ALSO: PIA: Shell Inaugurates 8 Host Community Development Trusts
“AN ORDER directing the Defendants to jointly and severally undertake immediate remedial measures in Ekpetiama Kingdom as recommended in the “Environmental Genocide” report, including but not limited to clean-up of polluted water bodies and farmlands, provision of potable water and cultural heritage.”
Joining their voices to the Plaintiff, the civil society organisations called on the Federal High Court to “act decisively,” and “restrain Shell and its partners from finalising any asset sale or
divestment until full compliance with environmental and human rights obligations is demonstrated.”
They also urged the court to “compel regulators like the NUPRC to enforce the Petroleum Industry Act
and protect host communities; affirm the rights of indigenous peoples of the Niger Delta to clean environments, safe livelihoods, and full consultation.”
News
SEC Bans CEOs From Becoming Chairmen Without 3-year Break
Published
15 hours agoon
June 21, 2025By
Editor
The Securities and Exchange Commission has issued a new directive prohibiting Chief Executive Officers and Executive Directors from immediately assuming the position of Board Chairman within the same company or group after leaving office.
A mandatory three-year “cool off period” has been introduced before such transitions can take place.
The directive is part of a wider effort to strengthen corporate governance and prevent the concentration of power in public companies and capital market operators deemed to be of significant public interest.
This was disclosed in a circular released by the Commission and signed by the management on Thursday on its website titled “Circular to All Public Companies and Capital Market Operators on the Transmutation of Independent Non-Executive Directors and Tenure of Directors.”
READ ALSO: NANS Secures Release Of Withheld Results At Osun Poly
The SEC expressed concern over what it described as a “worrying trend of the transmutation/conversion of Independent Non-Executive Directors (INEDs) to Executive Directors, including to the position of the Chief Executive Officer.”
It warned that such practices undermine board independence.
The Circular reads,”This practice clearly erodes the neutrality of the transmuting INEDs, compromises their ability going forward to provide objective judgment and is generally antithetical to the principles which underpin independent directorship as outlined in both the National Code of Corporate Governance (NCCG) as well as the SEC Corporate Governance Guidelines (SCGG).”
As a result, the Commission has directed the immediate discontinuance of the conversion of INEDs into Executive Directors within the same company or group structure.
READ ALSO: Bill To Establish Specialised Agric Institutions Passes Second Reading In House Of Reps
The new rules also introduce strict tenure limits. Directors in Capital Market Operators considered to be of significant public interest will now be limited to 10 consecutive years in the same company, and 12 years within the same group structure.
“A Chief Executive Officer or Executive Director who steps down after 10 or 12 consecutive years, as the case may be, cannot be appointed as Chairman until the expiration of a 3-year ‘cool off period’.
“The tenure of such former Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director as Chairman shall be for a maximum of 4 years and no more.”
READ ALSO: Why The Vatican Cut Phone Signal Ahead Of The Secret Conclave Vote
The SEC said these changes are backed by its powers under Section 355(r)(iv) of the Investments and Securities Act (ISA) 2025, which authorises it to set governance standards for regulated entities.
“The foregoing directives take immediate effect and compliance is mandatory. Public Companies and Capital Market Operators are therefore required to take the directives into account in their board appointments and succession planning,” the statement added.
The Commission also clarified that years already served by current officeholders will count toward the newly established tenure caps.
News
We’ve Initiated Policies, Reforms For Sustainable Health Delivery System — Edo Deputy Gov
Published
18 hours agoon
June 20, 2025By
Editor
Deputy Governor of Edo State, Hon. Dennis Idahosa has
said that the Senator Monday Okpebholo-led administration has initiated policies and reforms that will ensure a sustainable healthcare delivery system.
Idahosa stated this while chairing the second meeting of the state taskforce on Primary Health Care (PHC), at the New Festival Hall, Government House in Benin.
According to statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Friday Aghedo, the meeting included the taskforce members, stakeholders, and developmental partners.
READ ALSO: Edo Deputy Governor, Idahosa Preaches Unity As Honour For Martyrs Of June 12
In his keynote address, the deputy governor called for societal vigilance and surveillance to help curtail the effects of the outbreak of Dengue Fever and Diphtheria.
He mentioned that the state was putting up concerted efforts at building a responsive and resilient PHC system.
He encouraged members of the taskforce to be solutions driven, as well as be an instrument of change in their quest to disseminate, enlighten and champion a result driven health process that benefits locals across the eighteen local government areas.
He noted that the plan was to make primary healthcare the most accessible form of healthcare in the state to aid better maternal and health outcomes.
READ ALSO: Shocking! Late Ohanaeze Ndigbo President Lefts Will That Bans Wife From Remarrying
Idahosa singled out and commended the Egor local government chairman, Hon. Kelvin Eguaekun, for his concerted effort to network and maintain cleanliness in his council area.
Idahosa informed the state government move to implement a reward system for local government chairmen who play critical roles in their domains by disseminating and implementing processes that showcase the benefits of a cleaner environment to drive down diseases.
Amongst chairmen who pledged to implement reached decisions at the stakeholders meeting included Hon. Haruna Mohammed of Owan East and Hon. Joy Ohonyor of Owan West.
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