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PROTEST: Be Patient With Tinubu; Revamp, Reformation In Economy On Course – Otuaro
The administrator, Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP), Dr Dennis Otuaro, has pleaded to Nigerians to be patient with the President Bola Tinubu-led administration.
Otuaro added that Tinubu has already initiated reforms under his Renewed Hope Agenda to revamp Nigeria’s economy and also fast-track development in the Niger Delta.
The PAP boss stated these in his remarks at the NDDC Executive Management Engagement with Ethnic Nationalities, Youth Leaders and Selected Stakeholders themed, “Let Us Build Together”, in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, on Tuesday.
A statement issued by the Special Assistant on Media to the PAP Administrator, Mr Igoniko Oduma, quoted the PAP boss as urging the people of Niger Delta to own the administration of Tinubu because of his youth-friendliness and love for the region.
READ ALSO: PROTEST: FG Finally Suspend Import Duty On Essential Food Items
Otuaro, who described President Tinubu as a youth-friendly president, urging youths to shun the proposed national protests on August 1.
The boss, while reiterating his call for the sustenance of peace and security in the Niger Delta, noted that the president’s favourable disposition was the reason he appointed him as administrator of PAP, and Samuel Ogbuku as the Managing Director of the NDDC, among others.
He further urged them not to allow any group of persons to force them to go back to the old ways.
Otuaro noted that the President was supporting the Programme tremendously to achieve its mandate for the region.
READ ALSO: BREAKING: Court Restricts Protests In Lagos
He said in line with this, the PAP had designed a scheme to empower more than 1,000 youths that had been engaged this year.
He stated that under the education policy of the programme, the office would increase the number of scholarship beneficiaries to accommodate 500 Niger Delta students to study in universities.
Otuaro also disclosed that the PAP prioritizes women in its stakeholders policy, adding that the office would in the nearest future hold a women’s summit to interface with the region’s female folk.
He commended the NDDC for organising the sensitization meeting, and pledged PAP’s readiness to partner with the interventionist agency.
READ ALSO: PAP: Again, Otuaro Meets Stakeholders, Re-emphasises Importance Of Collaboration
He said, “The government of President Bola Tinubu is a youth-friendly government, and he really loves the Niger Delta. I was at the NDDC before he appointed me to head the Presidential Amnesty Programme Office and Samuel Ogbuku as the Managing Director of the NDDC.
“Therefore, it is time for us to own the administration of Tinubu. Let us not join the protests. We need to be patient with him for his reforms to materialize. Nobody should make us go back to the old ways.
“This year in the PAP, we have a programme to empower over 1000 of our youths. In education, we are going to expand scholarship to 500 beneficiaries of the PAP scholarship scheme.
“For our women, they are our priority. We have had stakeholders meeting with ex-agitators, we are also going to hold another meeting involving women only. In that meeting, our women will articulate their issues. I will not impose anything on our women. The meeting will cut across the Niger Delta. We will partner with the NDDC, we already have the manpower.”
Among dignitaries present at the event were Senate President, Godswill Akpabio; Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu; Chairman of Senate Committee on Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Asuquo Ekpenyong; national chairman of PANDEF, Emmanuel Ibok Essien; President of Ijaw National Congress, Prof. Benjamin Okaba; President of Ijaw Youth Council, Jonathan Lokpobiri; Niger Delta female activist, AnnKio Briggs; Alhaji Mujahid Asari Dokubo; the Ologbotsere of Warri Kingdom, Ayiri Emami, among others.
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Tinubu Orders Defence Minister To Relocate To Kebbi State Over Abduction Of 25 School Girls
President Bola Tinubu has asked the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, to relocate to Kebbi State over the abduction of 25 schoolgirls in the state.
This was contained in a statement signed by Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, on Thursday.
Matawalle, who was formerly governor of Zamfara State, was asked to remain in the state to monitor security efforts to secure the release of the abducted students.
READ ALSO:One Of 25 Abducted Kebbi Schoolgirls Escapes
Gunmen abducted 24 students of Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School in Maga town, Kebbi State, around 4am on Monday.
Matawalle, who is expected to arrive in Birni-Kebbi on Friday, gained some experience in dealing with banditry and mass kidnapping during his tenure as governor of Zamfara State from 2019 to 2023.
On 26 February 2021, armed bandits abducted 279 female students aged between 10 and 17 at the Government Girls Science Secondary School, a boarding school in Jangebe, in Zamfara State. The bandits released all the hostages on 2 March 2021.
President Tinubu had postponed his scheduled trip to Johannesburg, South Africa, and Luanda, Angola, as he awaited further security briefings on the kidnapped Kebbi schoolgirls and the attack on Christ Apostolic Church worshippers in Eruku, Kwara State.
News
Nigeria Now Deadliest Place On Earth To Be Christian – Nigerian Bishop Laments
Catholic Bishop of Makurdi Diocese, Benue State, Most Rev. Wilfred Anagbe, says Nigeria has become the deadliest place on earth to be a Christian.
Bishop Anagbe made this statement on Thursday while testifying before the US House of Representatives Subcommittee on Africa, which is investigating Trump’s redesignation of Nigeria as a ‘Country of Particular Concern’, CPC
Speaking before the US Congress, the Bishop said that the controversy escalated after President Trump designated Nigeria on the CPC list on 31 October 2025.
READ ALSO:Genocide: U.S. Lawmaker Alleges Tinubu Lying, Protecting Own Interest
He alleged systematic persecution of Christians in the country, saying “Attacks by Fulani militants and Boko Haram have intensified, targeting Christian communities with impunity.
“More believers are killed there annually than in the rest of the world combined, yet perpetrators face little accountability.
“Violence is spreading, displacing millions and destroying farmland, creating a humanitarian crisis worsened by food insecurity. Without urgent intervention, Christianity risks being wiped out in Northern and Middle Belt Nigeria.
“Nigeria, already designated a Country of Particular Concern, must now be met with decisive action,” he said.
News
Christian Genocide: Back Nigeria CPC Redesignation With Action, Nigerian Bishop Begs Trump
The Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Makurdi, in Benue State, Wilfred Anagbe, has appealed to President Donald Trump of the United States to match its renewed designation of Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern, CPC, with concrete action.
Bishop Anagbe made this call on Thursday, while testifying before the US House of Representatives Subcommittee on Africa, which is investigating Trump’s redesignation of Nigeria as a CPC
He said, “On behalf of millions of Christians in Nigeria and in the diaspora, we want to thank President Donald Trump for his bold leadership in designating Nigeria as a CPC. I commend you and this subcommittee for ongoing efforts on this matter.
READ ALSO:Trump’s Military Threat To Nigeria Reckless – US Congresswoman
“It is a vital step, but must be backed by serious action. One, use the Magnitsky Act for targeted sanctions against Nigerian government officials and others tolerating or condoning Islamic violence in the country.”
The cleric also called on lawmakers to tie security and humanitarian aid to measurable improvements.
“Expand humanitarian support for IDPs. The IDPs must return to their ancestral homes, and this requires security guarantees from the Nigerian Government,” he said.
READ ALSO:FG Unveils New Counter-terrorism Strategy
Bishop Anagbe told lawmakers that many Christian victims in Benue remain traumatised, adding that one priest he knows cannot walk after surviving a terrorist attack.
‘Deborah Samuel’s murderers remain free’ – US defends designation of Nigeria as CPC
He accused the federal government of downplaying casualty figures and abandoning survivors of repeated assaults.”
Anagbe also argued that President Donald Trump’s earlier CPC designation “aimed to stabilise Nigeria” but “worsened the safety of Christians.”
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