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Tag: Akwa Ibom

  • 2019: Akwa Ibom Deputy Governor speaks on defection, resignation reports

    2019: Akwa Ibom Deputy Governor speaks on defection, resignation reports

    The Deputy Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Moses Ekpo has reacted to news making the rounds that he resigned from Governor Udom Emmanuel’s cabinet.

    Recall that there have been widespread reports about the Deputy Governor resigning in solidarity with former governor of the state and incumbent Minority Leader, Godswill Akpabio who is making final moves to join the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

    The Deputy Governor in a statement signed and released exclusively to the TheNewsGuru.com said his relationship with Governor Udom Emmanuel is perfect and there was no need for him to change party.

     

    Read full statements below:

    Akwa Ibom Deputy Governor debunks resignation story

    The attention of the Office of the Deputy Governor of Akwa Ibom State has been drawn to certain rumours and misrepresentations in a section of the media to the effect that the Deputy Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Mr. Moses F. Ekpo, MFR, has resigned from office.

    The reports, particularly from the online community, further make allusions to the effect that the Deputy Governor has also defected from the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

    Given the temperament of the times and the implications of such innuendos, we are constrained to categorically state as follows:

    (i) There is no iota of truth in the story making the rounds.

    (ii)The purported report is, therefore, nothing but a poorly concocted piece of a malicious hatchet job and a pack of lies, and should be appropriately ignored.

    (iii)It is instructive to note that currently, His Excellency, the Deputy Governor is representing the State Governor, Mr. Udom Emmanuel as Special Guest of Honour at the 2018 International Convention of Ati Annang holding in New York, United States of America, and is yet to return to the state.

    (iv) In his reaction to the rumour from New York on phone today, the Deputy Governor said “I have not resigned. I have no reason whatsoever to resign or jump ship from a government that is both responsive and performing optimally, while giving practical meaning to democratic dividends for the people of Akwa Ibom. I cannot, and will not jump ship”

    (v) To that extent, he has called on Akwa Ibom people, both at home and in the Diaspora, as well as the PDP family in the state to remain resolute and committed to support the Governor, Mr. Udom Emmanuel, to take Akwa Ibom to the next level.

    Ekikere Umoh

    Chief Press Secretary to the Deputy Governor

    Akwa Ibom State

  • Drama in court as kidnappers attack judge after issuing death sentence

    Drama in court as kidnappers attack judge after issuing death sentence

    A judge of the Akwa Ibom State High Court, Justice Okon Okon, escaped death on Tuesday as some convicts attacked him on the court premises in Uyo for sentencing them to death.

    It was learnt that as soon as the presiding judge pronounced the death sentence on the kidnappers, the convicts started to abuse him. They also threatened to kill the Akwa Ibom State Government’s prosecution team.

    The criminals later went berserk, destroying the window of the courtroom and causing pandemonium along Ikot Ekpene Road, where the court is located.

    A source said, “The situation became messy, as litigants and lawyers in other courts ran helter-skelter for dear lives.

    “For about an hour, the kidnappers refused to leave the courtroom. It took the intervention of a combined team of soldiers and policemen to take the convicts to a waiting prison vehicle.”

    The names of the convicts were given as Bernard Ajomaya, Christian Naya, Daniel West and Shedrach Dala.

    They were accused of kidnapping a medical expert in Uyo, Dr Usen Bassey, on May 19, 2015, and demanding N10m ransom.

    They were later arrested with part of their loot, the passport and financial documents belonging to the doctor.

     

  • Akwa Ibom Govt. constructs 1, 701km roads, 35 bridges

    Gov. Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom said his administration has constructed about 1,701 kilometers of roads and built 35 bridges across the state in the last three years.

    Emmanuel disclosed this in his broadcast to mark the 2018 Democracy Day in Uyo on Tuesday.

    He said the administration has kept the promise he made in 2015 to be a servant leader and make the state hub of industrialisation in the country.

    The governor appealed to politicians to be tolerant and ensure that their actions and utterances engender love, unity and togetherness to the Akwa Ibom project.

    He urged politicians to remember that they were brothers and sisters before the advent of partisan politics and would remain brothers and sisters after they have finished their careers in public service.

    According to the governor, there is need for political office holders to leave an indelible mark after office.

    “As the political season dawns, let us remember that we were brothers and sisters before the coming of partisan politics, and we will remain brothers and sisters long after we had finished our careers in public service.

    “Let us show love to one another even when we don’t agree or share same political orientations.

    “May the actions of our leaders inspire us to become more loving, less rancorous, and more united and faithful believers in the immutable essence and definition of the Akwa Ibom spirit.

    “As your Governor and Leader, these are the values I embody and will continue to project them, now and in the future, with your prayers and support,” he said.

    The governor added that security of lives and property had been improved since 2015 when he took over power in the state.

    He said that one by one those who have become menaces in our society have faced the full and merciless wrath of the law.

    The governor urged Akwa Ibom people to keep faith with his government, adding that he would continue to provide more infrastructure dividends of democracy to the people.

     

  • Police recover 47 illegal arms, arrest 17 suspects in Akwa Ibom

    The Nigeria Police Force, Akwa Ibom Command, on Saturday said it recovered 47 illegal arms and 172 live ammunition and cartridges across the state.

    The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, DSP Odiko Macdon, disclosed this while speaking with newsmen at the police headquarters Ikot Akpan-Abia in Uyo.

    Macdon said the recovery was in compliance with the directive of the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, on recovery of prohibited firearms, ammunition and weapons across the country.

    He said that the arms were recovered from suspected bandits, vigilance group and individuals.

    According to him, arms recovered include three AK 47, one G3 rifle, three Pump action gun, three Single barrelled gun and 37 locally made pistols.

    “Today again, the Commissioner of Police has been able to showcase arms that have been recovered. Most of these arms were returned while some were seized during the mop up operations.

    “A total of three AK 47, one G3 rifle, three Pump action gun, three Single barrel gun and then 37 locally made pistols and over 172 live ammunition and cartridges were recovered,” he said.

    The police spokesman also said that within the month, the command arrested 17 suspects over alleged involvement in different forms of criminalities in the state.

    He said that some of the suspects were arrested for murder, armed robbery, cultism and unlawful possession of fire arms.

    “It is unfortunate and dastardly act when you see a family of three and two connived together and kill their brother and cut his head as you can see there.

    “All the persons so paraded, ranging from cultism, unlawful possession of fire arms, murder and burglary will be charged to court,” he said.

    Macdon said it was the determination of CP Adeyemi Ogunjemilusi, to make Akwa Ibom one of the safest states in the country and a destination of choice for tourists.

    He called on Akwa Ibom residents to maintain peace and stay in harmony with one another

  • UNUSUAL: See who Akwa Ibom Speaker became bestman to on wedding day

    UNUSUAL: See who Akwa Ibom Speaker became bestman to on wedding day

    Uyo and surrounding towns of Akwa Ibom state were agog all through the late morning into the early afternoon today when an usual social event became the talk of the town.

    The news soon went viral, hitting the national scene when it filtered into the social media setting it ablaze in frenzied discussions.

    What was supposed to be a not too major event in Akwa Ibom donned a high publicity hue when the identities of the key participants became public.

    It was a wedding; an unusual one in our political climate.

    Tongues started wagging when pictures from the wedding of Kufre Okon, the Chief Press Secretary (CPS) to the Speaker of Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly, RT. Hon. Onofiok Luke surfaced online.

    However, what made news was not the wedding but the Speaker himself who was bestman to his CPS, an unusual combination in Nigeria.

    A state house of assembly speaker standing in as best man not to the state governor or other political bigwig but to one of his staff!

    Social media commentators showered praises on the Speaker, who recently celebrated his 40th birthday for his humility and for the honour done his CPS.

    Friends were, however, quick to point out to TheNewsGuru.com that the Speaker and his Chief Press Secretary have been close friends, a friendship which predates the Speakers high office.

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that Onofiok was first elected to the Akwa Ibom state legislature in April 2011. He was overwhelmingly reelected for a second term on April 11, 2015. On December 21, 2015, the 26-member Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly unanimously elected him as the 11th Speaker of the parliament.

    See pictures from the wedding below:

     

     

  • Silicon Valley-based org brings digital learning to Niger Delta

    Silicon Valley-based org brings digital learning to Niger Delta

    The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) says it is collaborating with a Silicon Valley-based organization to revolutionize education and learning in the entire Niger-Delta Region.

    NDDC Managing Director, Mr. Nsima Ekere, made this known when Senator Ibok Essien, the Founder of Ritman University, Ikot Ekpene, Akwa Ibom State, and the Vice Chancellor of the University, Professor Celestine Ntuen paid him a courtesy visit in his office at the Commission’s headquarters in Port Harcourt.

    “We are collaborating with a Silicon Valley-based organization called the Digital Learning Network and they are coming with partners like Microsoft. The idea is to replace the hardcopy textbooks that we have in primary and secondary schools, convert them into digital formats,” Ekere said.

    According to him, each student in secondary and primary schools would be given tablets and laptops that would contain all the textbooks that they need and all the learning instructions and manuals.

    The NDDC boss told the visiting officials that the Commission also will partner with Ritman University in setting up a youth development centre.

    Ekere noted that the vision of the university, with respect to developing the capacity of students to be self-starters, tallied with that of the NDDC, stating that it was important that young people were given quality education that would prepare them to be self-employed.

    “We must be concerned about the quality of education that we are giving to our youths in the Niger Delta. This is a region that is beset with a lot of difficulties and challenges. Youth restiveness is very common in the region and unemployment has reached alarming proportions,” he said.

    Ekere said that the plan for a youth development centre was the kind of contribution that would teach the young ones how to be entrepreneurs and employers of labour. According to him, “it keys into the vision of the current board and management of the NDDC”.

    He said that experience had shown that there was need to develop a special kind of programme that would lead to sustainable livelihood for the youths. “We had trained 23,000 people over the years and they were given starter packs. Unfortunately, some of them sell the starter packs and return to the ranks of the unemployed,” he said.

    The NDDC Chief Executive Officer said that one of the ways the Commission was tackling the problem was through the establishment of enterprise hubs, for which it was partnering with the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria, SMEDAN.

    He observed that SMEDAN had 23 Industrial Development Centers, IDCs, nationwide and four of the centers were located in the Niger Delta. However, he regretted that all the centres had since closed down.

    Ekere stated that NDDC recently signed an agreement with SMEDAN to convert the IDCs to enterprise hubs and innovation centres because the region was blessed with the best of brains. He added: “The idea is that we will start with one of the IDC’s in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, but ultimately, our intension is to see that all the IDCs owned by SMEDAN in the Niger Delta region are revamped and revitalized.”

    The NDDC boss stressed the need to prepare the youths to face the new world and be competitive with graduates from all over the world.

    Earlier, the Founder of Ritman University, Senator Essien, expressed satisfaction with the development efforts of the NDDC over the past 18 years. He stated: “The region which was hitherto abandoned has been made to come alive with the numerous infrastructure and human capital development spread all over the region.”

    He appealed to the Federal Government to release the outstanding funds owed the NDDC to enable it continue to execute its development projects across the region.

    In his presentation, the Vice Chancellor, Prof Celestine Ntuen, said that Ritman University was determined to change the character of teaching and learning in the country. “We want train students with creative ideas and impart the right type of education which will make them self-starters,” he said.

    The Vice Chancellor said that the goal of the university was to train men and women who would transform Nigeria. He added: “We want to help in building a skilled workforce for our industries. We need to develop functional citizens to help in reducing restiveness. We want to produce graduates that will add value to the society.”

     

  • Recruitment scam: Court convicts two for N2.9 million in Akwa Ibom

    Recruitment scam: Court convicts two for N2.9 million in Akwa Ibom

    The Uyo zonal office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Friday secured the conviction of Idris Abdullahi and Andrew Olije at the Federal High Court sitting in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.‎

    The duo pleaded guilty to ten counts of obtaining the sum of N2. 9 million by false pretence.

    They allegedly obtained the sum from unsuspecting citizens under the guise that they (Idris and Andrew) were staff of SAB (Scientific Advisory Board) in California USA, and were going to recruit them into the said company.

    In view of their guilty plea, the prosecuting counsel N. K. Ukoha prayed the court to convict and sentence them accordingly.

    Justice Riman immediately convicted them on all counts and sentence them to a fine of N155, 000.00 (One Hundred and Fifty Five Thousand Naira only).

    The conviction which followed a plea bargain agreement, came after a full restitution of the complainants by the convicts, in line with the provisions of Section 270 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015.

    One of the charges reads:

    That you Idris Abdullahi and Andrew Olije sometime in 2017 at Uyo within the jurisdiction of this honourable court with intent to defraud did obtain the sum of N153, 000.00 from one Glory Nkan Akpan under false pretence that you are staff of SAB (Scientific Advisory Board) based in California, USA and that she would be recruited into the SAB which pretence you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1 (1)(a) of the Advanced Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act 2006 and punishable under Section 1 (3) of the same Act”.

     

  • Pandemonium as gunmen abduct Apostolic Church pastor in Akwa Ibom

    There was pandemonium on Monday in Akwa Ibom State as gunmen kidnapped an Apostolic Church pastor identified as Mfon Udoneke at Akoa Idem in Ukanafun Local Government Area of the state.

    The pastor, who is the area superintendent of the church, was said to have been abducted around 5am while preparing for women’s fellowship prayer meeting in the church.

    An eyewitness, who pleaded not to be named, said the kidnappers stormed Udoneke’s residence and whisked him away in the presence of his family members.

    According to him, the whereabouts of the abducted priest is unknown, as kidnappers have yet to establish contacts with Udoneke’s family or the church.

    “The family and the church are in a state of confusion right now, because the kidnappers have yet to establish contact with the church or the family as per their demands and where the abducted priest is being kept,” the source said.

    The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Mr. MacDon Oguche, said he had yet to be briefed on the incident in Ukanafun LGA.

    He promised to get in touch with the Divisional Police Officer in charge of the area on the matter.

    It was learnt that the Monday abduction of the pastor, which preceded many other abductions in the past, occurred barely two days after stakeholders from the area met with the security agencies at the state police headquarters, Ikot-Akpana-Abia, to find lasting solution to the frequent incidents of killing and kidnapping in Etim Ekpo and Ukanafun LGAs.

  • FG establishes Digital Job Centre in Akwa Ibom

    The Federal Government has concluded plans to establish a Digital Job Centre in Akwa Ibom as part of measures to create jobs opportunities for the unemployed youths in the state.

    Dr Isa Pantami the Director-General, National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), made the disclosure at the 9th edition of Startup event for Akwa Ibom youths in Uyo on Saturday.

    Pantami said that NITDA would transform the centre to motivate and encourage the youths to come up with ICT solutions to the national challenges.

    According to him, the agency would support youths with ideas through ICT to proffer solutions to problems confronting the nation.

    “To encourage and boost the ICT ecosystem in Akwa-Ibom, NITDA is setting up a Digital Job Centre at the Government Secondary School, Afaha Eket, Eket LGA, Akwa-Ibom State.

    “I thank Gov. Udom Emmanuel and the good people of Akwa-Ibom for their support towards the success of this event,” Pantami said.

    He said the Startup programme was created to encourage every Nigerian to look inward in tackling Nigeria’s economic problems.

    Pantami explained that the centre would focus more in building technology entrepreneurs, adding ”ICT is inevitable and our future depends on it as ICT dominates the economy after oil.

    “We are aware of the harsh conditions in securing white collar jobs in the country, so it has become apparent for the government to focus more in building technology entrepreneurs.

    “A developed indigenous ICT ecosystem would help the country to diversify its economy from oil.

    “Data is the new oil. With the two local content related Presidential Orders, we need to focus on locally produced innovations for our local market.

    “NITDA intends to encourage and support ICT entrepreneurship and promote it as an attractive career option for the youth,” he said.

    In his remarks, the Commissioner for Science and Technology, Prof. Nse Essien, said that the state government had embraced ICT in finding solutions to some issues facing the state.

    Essien, said Startup was a meeting place where all ICT professionals gathered to brainstorm on problems solving.

    He urged the youths to embrace the programme and take serious attention to achieve the required result.

    “We have very good talents in the state to key into the programme. As a state, we are doing everything possible to ensure that ICT is embrace in every spheres of governance,” he said.

     

  • Unknown gunmen abduct monarch in A’Ibom

    Unknown gunmen on Tuesday kidnapped Chief Mfon Udoessien, the village head of Ikot Edet in Etim Ekpo Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom.

    Udoessien was said to have been abducted from his palace by the assailants after a fierce gun battle with the security agents drafted to provide security in the volatile area.

    It was learnt that the monarch is a brother-in-law to a former Head of Civil Service in Akwa Ibom.

    A resident of the area, identified as Eno, told newsmen that the monarch, a retired headmaster and former chairman, Nigeria Union of Teachers in the area, might have been abducted following his stance against cultism.

    According to him, Udoessien has relentlessly been waging war against the activities of gunmen who have kidnapped no fewer than eight people in the village.

    He said the whereabouts of the monarch remained unknown as the kidnappers were yet to contact the victim’s family.

    “We think the kidnappers came after the village head because of how he has been opposing their activities.

    “As of now, we don’t know his whereabouts as the kidnappers are yet to contact any members of the monarch’s family,” said the village resident.

    Spokesman for the State Police Command, DSP Odiko Macdon, confirmed the incieent, saying that the incident occurred in the morning.

    Macdon said a meeting of local government chairmen and security chiefs in the area had been convened to address the security challenges.

    “Security measures are in place; we just concluded a meeting with all the local government chairmen and the security chiefs in the state.

    “That issue came up during the meeting; it is being addressed.

    “The monarch kidnap happened this morning and our men went into action immediately. The DPO led a team to the place,” he said.