Metro

[UPDATED] Official Activities Paralysed As Students’ Govt, IYC Shut NPDC, Benin Office

Published

4 years ago

October 27, 2021

Editor

Mail gate of the NPDC office, Benin

Official activities at the the Benin office of the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company, NPDC, were brought to a partial halt on Wednesday as Niger Delta Students’ Union Government in collaboration with Ijaw Youths Council, IYC, Western Zone shut down the office.

The students and IYC members who arrived the Benin office as early as 9:00am shut all entries to the office, thereby obstructing staff, contractors and visitors from going out or coming in.

The angry students and IYC members who waited at the entrance for several hours were later asked to present representives for a meeting of which they did and they were inside for the meeting which lasted for hours.

But coming out of the meeting, they all expressed disappointment as it shows all over their faces

Fielding questions from newsmen after the meeting, Comrade Romeo Emieye, coordinator, Petroleum Industry Act, PIA, workshop which was organised by the NPDC for the students, said there was an agreement reached as regards the the workshop but unfortunately what they met on ground was different from the agreement reached hence they came to express their displeasure.

He lamented that they were expecting to hold a meeting with the management team of the company but unfortunately the manager, security and other staff who do not have a say in the company came to attend to them.

Emieye who told journalists that they were told by those that attended to them in the meeting that top management staff of the company were all not around because but were out to join one of the management staff whose daughter is getting married tomorrow, further lamented, “this means they know what they are doing. Just to show us the blueprint of the workshop is an Issue. The Community Relations Department is currently running away from us.The manager, security is saying he is not aware of all the approval made.”

He continues, “At this point, we now understand that, the NPDC management is playing a game with the Niger Delta students. They are saying we should reconvene here tomorrow and that the management team will be on ground, of which we are not sure.
We will not accept a laptop bag that has no laptop but just a cord.”

The Coordinator vowed that they were going to reconvene at the office tomorrow morning, and that if they failed to yield to their demands they would shut NNPC office in Abuja and other subsidiary offices across the Niger Delta.

Also speaking, Olu-Derimon Omaghomi, secretary, Ijaw Youth Council, IYC, Western Zone, said the meeting ended in a deadlock as nothing was achieved.

Omaghomi who corroborated Emieye’s claims that there were some agreement that were reached as regards transportation fee, feeding and daily stipends for all participants, called for the sack of the Managing Director, NPDC.

Omaghomi said, “These students from the nine Niger Delta states are stranded. The workshop is supposed to end today and the accommodations will expire today. The training is in two batches of 25 persons. The first batch are stranded and the last one is also stranded.

“We want the Managing Director, NPDC to be sacked. He is a northerner. We cannot be producing crude oil, and a northerner who doesn’t have oil in his state to head the company. We call on the Federal Government to sack the MD with immediate effect.”

Also speaking, Osemudiamen Ogbidi, one of the participants and spokesperson, Nigerian Students and Youth Association (NISAYA) said “We cannot benefit and boast as Niger Deltans. Over the years, we have had series of meetings amounting to neglect and marginalization from corporate organizations. I belong to the second batch list for the workshop, but we were given a laptop bag without laptop in it.”

Another participant who does not want his name in print noted, “They promised to organise a workshop with payment of stipend and a laptop to each participant. But on the day of the workshop, they came with laptops bag that had no laptop but only charger. And the stipend they promised to pay, they have been playing prank on us.”

Metro

Retired Principal kidnapped In Edo, Abductors Demand N70m

Published

18 hours ago

October 14, 2025

Editor

Gunmen suspected to be Fulani herdsmen have reportedly kidnapped a retired headmaster identified as Mr. Eliaser Olorunloju near a Fulani settlement in Akoko-Edo Local Government Area of Edo State.

The incident was said to have occurred between Sasaro and Ayetoro, along the dilapidated Igarra- Uneme-Nekhua – Ibillo Road in Akoko-Edo Local Government Area.

Olorunloiu was said to be going back to Ugboshi-ele from Igarra, the headquarters of the local government where he was said to have gone to make photocopies of documents ahead of his son’s resumption at a tertiary institution.

It was gathered on Monday that his abductors have reportedly contacted the family and were demanding N70 million.

Confirming the incident, the Director of Operations and Strategy, Concerned Minds Initiative of Akoko-Edo (CMIA), Comrade Victor Arogunyo said “The incident occurred around Aiyetoro–Somorika Junction, close to a Fulani settlement on the Ibillo–Uneme–Nekhua–Igarra Road. This is another sad reminder that Akoko-Edo is under siege.

“In the last few months, this is about the fight kidnapping that is taking place on the same spot, close to that camp which is less than five minutes trekking away from there. The government must do something about this. I called his traditional ruler and he said they called on Sunday evening demanding N70 million.”

He identified bad roads, criminal herders, poor funding of security, low morale among vigilantes and hunters, and weak prosecution of arrested suspects as key factors fueling insecurity across the entire Edo North axis.

The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Moses Yamu could not be reached as at the time of this report.

Metro

Police Bust Child Trafficking Syndicate In Rivers, Rescue Babies

Published

2 days ago

October 13, 2025

Editor

The Rivers State Police Command said its operatives have busted a child trafficking syndicate that manipulates young mothers and vulnerable pregnant women, steals their babies, and sells them to waiting buyers.

The police said the four-member syndicate is led by an ex-convict identified as Blessing Jack, who had previously been arrested, tried, and imprisoned in Calabar, Cross River State, for a similar offence.

The spokesperson for the State Police Command, Grace Iringe-Koko, disclosed this in a statement issued in Port Harcourt on Monday and sent to newsmen.

Iringe-Koko, a Superintendent of Police, said Blessing, aged 54, was arrested by men of the Command’s C4i Intelligence Unit on October 9 in Igwuruta, near Port Harcourt, following a discreet probe into the activities of the syndicate.

She said Blessing’s arrest led to the location of her other three female partners, who were consequently taken into custody.

The statement read, “The Rivers State Police Command has made a significant breakthrough in its investigation into the activities of a child trafficking syndicate in the state, with the arrest of several suspects.

“The syndicate, allegedly led by one Blessing Jack, a 54-year-old female resident of Timber Road, Igwuruta, Port Harcourt, exploits vulnerable young mothers, stealing and selling their newborn babies for significant financial gains.

“On October 9, 2025, at about 1500hrs, operatives of the Command attached to the C4i Intelligence Unit, through technically aided policing, arrested Blessing Jack at Igwuruta in Port Harcourt.

“A conversation between Blessing Jack and one Marley Oburu ‘m’ revealed the syndicate’s modus operandi. She discussed a recent incident where her associate had taken a woman’s baby, claiming the baby had died, but had been paid the sum of ₦2,000,000 for the transaction.”

She continued, “The transaction suggested that Blessing and her associates use fake scans and manipulate vulnerable pregnant women to obtain their babies.

“Other suspects arrested include: Chinonso Raymond, a 30-year-old male of Igwuruta, Port Harcourt; Chinyere Okorie, a 32-year-old female of Pipeline, Rumuoholu, Port Harcourt; and Nkechi Nwankwo, a 50-year-old female of Pipeline, Rumuoholu, Port Harcourt.

“A preliminary investigation revealed that Blessing Jack had previously been imprisoned in Calabar for three years for child trafficking, highlighting her long-standing involvement in the illicit business.”

The state police image maker said all the suspects voluntarily confessed to the crime, detailing their individual roles.

“Suspects are currently in police custody, while an in-depth investigation has been launched to arrest other members of the syndicate and dismantle the network,” Iringe-Koko stated further.

The State Commissioner of Police, Olugbenga Adepoju, commended the operatives for their diligence in investigating and apprehending the suspects, saying the Command will continue to work tirelessly to protect vulnerable individuals and combat human trafficking in the state.

CP Adepoju appealed to members of the public to report any information that may aid in the investigation and prosecution of human trafficking cases, saying, “Together, we can build a safer and more secure society for all.”

Rivers State Police Command, in September, said its operatives have arrested three suspected kidnappers who allegedly killed two of their victims after collecting a total ransom of N10.4m.

Earlier in August, the Command said its men busted an armed robbery/kidnapping syndicate terrorising residents of Bori, headquarters of Khana Local Government Area of the state, and its environs.

Metro

BREAKING: Lagos Re-arraigns Kidnapper Evans Over Police Officers’ Killing

Published

2 days ago

October 13, 2025

Editor

Lagos State Government on Monday re-arraigned convicted billionaire kidnapper, Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike, popularly known as Evans.

The Lagos High Court sitting in Ikeja is hearing the case of the murder of two police officers by the billionaire kidnapper.

He and his co-defendant, Joseph Emeka, were arraigned before Justice A. O. Ogala on a five-count charge bordering on murder, attempted murder, and conspiracy to commit kidnapping.

They both pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Details later…