Labour Party’s only senator, Omo-Agege decamps to APC

Posted on March 7, 2017 by Staff Reporter

Ovie Omo-Agege, senator representing Delta central, on Tuesday defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

He cited the crisis in the LP as the reason for his defection.

Speaking on the ?floor of the senate where he announced his defection, Omo-Agege cited ?section 68 (1) (g) as the basis of dumping the Labour Party for the APC.

“Being a person whose election to the house was sponsored by a political party, he becomes a member of another political party before the expiration of the period for which that house was elected; Provided that his membership of the latter political party is not as a result of a division in the political party of which he was previously a member or of a merger of two or more political parties or factions by one of which he was previously sponsored?,” Section 68 (1) (g) ?reads.

With his defection, the number of the APC ?senators has risen to 66 while the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has 42.

Delta State to criminalise discrimination against physically challenged persons

Posted on March 3, 2017 by Staff Reporter

An executive bill that will criminalize abuse of and discrimination against the physically challenged persons will soon be forwarded to the State House of Assembly, the Attorney-General of Delta State and Commissioner for Justice, Mr Peter Mrakpor, has disclosed.

Mrakpor who spoke recently in Asaba when he granted audience to Persons Living with Disability from Delta North Senatorial District assured persons living with disability in the state of government adequate protection of their fundamental rights and against all forms of molestation, discrimination and abuse.

He said that it was the responsibility of government to protect and promote human dignity and rights of all persons in society against torture, harassment, inhuman or degrading treatment, maintained that every individual is entitled to respect irrespective of status and abilities.

The Commissioner who accepted to be the patron of the Delta North Chapter of the association sought their contribution towards the enactment of a law that protects their rights.

While promising to look into a case of an alleged illegal arrest and detention of one of their members, a deaf and dumb by the police who could neither read nor write and cannot speak because of his condition, Mrakpor advised them to report any case of persons living with disability in prison custody for review.

The Coordinator of the group, Ojeme Monday, while presenting several issues that affect Persons Living with Disabilities in the state, thanked Governor Ifeanyi Okowa for his empowerment package and monthly stipends for some of their members across the state.

Source: Today

Corruption, threat to good governance in Nigeria – Okowa

Posted on February 23, 2017 by Staff Reporter

Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State, yesterday, regretted that over the years, corruption has constituted a serious threat to good governance, rule of law, peace and security, including development programmes aimed at tackling poverty and economic backwardness in the country.

Okowa, at a one day anti-corruption summit held in Asaba, said that the anti-corruption war of the Federal Government would be more effective if it was free from all social, religious and political persuasions.

He said, “Corruption is one of the most recurring discourses in our national life, because, virtually every Nigerian agrees that it undermines the fabric of every aspect of society.

“The fight against corruption is not an easy task, but it can be won through advocacy such as this one that aims at drastic reduction and where possible, total elimination of the practices in every facet of our national life, which our anti-corruption agencies, namely, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Independent Corrupt Practices Commission, Code of Conduct Bureau and Code of Conduct Tribunal, are in the forefront of the fight against corruption.

“In the pursuit of our anti-corruption agenda, greater success will be recorded if our actions and practices are blind to all social, religious and political persuasions. Our actions must be civil and be such that engineers public confidence and participation if the battle is to be won.”

Dealers raise the alarm over adulterated kerosene in Delta

Posted on February 3, 2017 by Staff Reporter

Kerosene dealers in Delta have raised the alarm over the prevalence of adulterated product in the state. Marketers, who spoke yesterday in Asaba, alleged that illegally refined sample was in circulation in all major markets statewide. They added that the fake sold cheaper than the ones from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

It was gathered that the suspected substandard goods were being produced in the creeks of the Niger Delta by operators of illegal refineries. The products, believed to emanate from Warri-South West, Warri South and Warri North, are yellowish, smell badly and go for N250 as against the prevailing N300 and N350 price tag of the original one.

A customer said: “I often buy kerosene from the creek. They are cheaper and sell for N250 against NNPC’s N350.”Several traders in Asaba, Warri, Ughelli and Agbor who spoke to our reporter on condition of anonymity, said the adulterated products had flooded the markets with unsuspecting consumers flocking for them.

He assured the people that the force would soon bring the operators to book. NNPC officials, who pleaded not to be mentioned because they were not authorised to speak on the issue, blamed the illegality on desperation from the jobless youths, adding that efforts were being made to arrest the situation.

Delta residents storm streets with generators to protest power outage.

Posted on January 27, 2017 by Staff Reporter

Some residents of Sapele area of Delta state, Thursday took to the streets to protest a total blackout in the area.

Power supply had been crippled in the area for weeks following the drop in the nation’s power generation capacity from 3,959 megawatts to 3,751.90 megawatts due to dearth of gas.

But the residents, who said they were tired of darkness, took to the streets with generating sets on their heads during the demonstration.

They questioned the Benin Electricity company, BEDC over the continuous power outage which they said had been dragging for months without an improvement

They displayed placards such as ‘No light, no bill payment. BEDC na thief’, ‘We don tire for darkness.’

DAILY POST had reported that commercial activities in the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Abuja have been crippled following total blackout in most parts of the nation’s capital.

A day after VP Osinbajo’s visit, militants ‘blow up’ pipeline in Delta.

Posted on January 18, 2017 by Staff Reporter

A militant group has blown up a crude oil trunkline in Ughelli, Delta state, a day after Yemi Osinbajo, vice-president, paid a visit to the Niger Delta region.

Punch reports that the attack was carried out by an “unidentified militant group”.

No militant group has claimed responsibility for this latest attack on an oil installation.

Osinbajo had on Monday led a federal government delegation to the region to kick-start the process of peace and stability.

During the trip, the vice president had met with traditional rulers and key stakeholders.

Speaking in Gbaramatu kingdom, Delta state, Osinbajo put out a clarion call, urging members of the region to embrace peace and “prepare for the future”.

“Our future is the future of progress and development. Unfortunately, there is no time because the future is already here.

“I have come with a message for the people of Gbaramatu Kingdom and the people of the Niger Delta as whole. It is a short message and I quote ‘we must prepare for the future’,” Osinbajo had said.

Ijaw youths kick as military arrests ex-militant leader in Delta State.

Posted on January 9, 2017 by Staff Reporter

The Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) yesterday warned that the Federal Government was inciting crisis in the Niger Delta by the continued invasion of the oil-rich area, arrest and detention of its residents, especially former agitators.

The group’s spokesman Eric Omare, who spoke on the heels of last weekend’s arrest of former militant leader, Bounanawei Smith (alias King of the Forest) in Warri, Delta State, noted that such aggression was inimical to the sough peace in the region.

Bounanawei, The Guardian learnt, was arrested by a combined team of military personnel while hosting some IYC members in his guesthouse.

He disclosed that a couple of days before his arrest, the ex-militant leader had hosted Ijaw and Urhobo leaders with a view to resolving the perennial inter-communal clashes among Ogbe-Ijoh, Isaba, Diebiri and Aladja communities.

The group wondered why the security agents would arrest such a peacemaker like a common criminal in handcuffs amid sporadic shooting instead of honourably inviting him over to clear any issues with them.

Omare maintained that such invasions were fast becoming a norm, claiming that on January 1 this year, military officers stormed Gbaraun community in Southern Ijaw Local Council of Bayelsa State, shooting sporadically as well as arresting and detaining till date a youth leader, Kalami Saturday Inakemeduo.

He added that several other Ijaw youths were languishing in military detention. Omare listed them to include Aboy Muturu, Ezekiel Daniel, spokesman for the group’s Abuja chapter, IYC Victor Odogu, among others.

He alleged that the affected persons have been in Department of State Services (DSS) and military detention for more than eight months without trial.

IYC warned: “These arrests are capable of truncating the Niger Delta’s peace process. We are surprised that in one breath, the Federal Government is sending Vice President Yemi Osinbajo to Gbaramatu, Delta State to kick-start the peace process on Tuesday (tomorrow) and in another breath, invading and arresting ex-agitators like Bounanawei Smith.”

The group, therefore, called for the immediate release of Bounanawei and the rest captives.

INVESTIGATION: How Ibori received N250m from Delta government. in UK prison.

Posted on December 25, 2016 by Staff Reporter

Former Governor of Delta, James Ibori was paid N250m by the state government while he was in jail in the United Kingdom between 2012 and 2016, an investigation has revealed.

The investigation revealed that the said amount was part of the entitlement due an ex-governor of the state.

According to the Delta State Governor and Deputy Governor Pension Rights and Other Benefits Law 2005 which was later amended in 2009, an ex-governor is entitled to the sum of N50m per year.

In 2012, the then Commissioner for Information, Mr. Chike Ohgeah, who defended the payment, said Ibori would continue to be paid N50m until a court nullified his tenure in office.

He said, “The truth is that like every other elected governor who had served the state, Ibori was paid his pension entitlement and other benefits alongside his deputy under existing law. The law is the Delta State Governor and Deputy Governor Pension Rights and Other Benefits Law 2005 and the Delta State Governor and Deputy Governor Pension Rights and Other Benefits (Amendment) Law 2009.”

Speaking on Saturday, human rights lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN), said pension for ex-governors should be scrapped.

He said, “The matter goes beyond Ibori because he is not the only ex-governor collecting the pension. The law in Delta State does not say an ex-governor should stop receiving pay if he is convicted.

“The matter shows the failure of the Nigerian system. I am not defending Ibori but I don’t think he should be singled out. Pension for ex-governors should be scrapped completely.”

Chief Press Secretary to the Delta State governor, Mr. Charles Aniagwu, said on Saturday that the state will not breach the law by refusing to pay Ibori his entitlements.

“If Ibori is entitled to pension by law, we will not take it away from him because that will be breaching the law. Even if he is owed, it is sure that he deserves the entitlements.’’

It will be recalled that Ibori was convicted on February 27, 2012, after pleading guilty to 10 counts of money laundering and conspiracy to defraud at a Southwark Crown Court, London.

Source: YNaija

BREAKING: Police rescue abducted Delta monarch.

Posted on December 22, 2016 by Staff Reporter

The traditional ruler, Ovie of Agbarha Kingdom, Delta State, Orhifi Enemor II, kidnapped, Wednesday, by suspected herdsmen has been liberated by the police and local vigilante.

Omojuwa.Com gathered that he was rescued Wednesday evening following manhunt by the police and locals in the area, who combed the bush for him.

Our informant said: “The search party saw him at a spot in the bush where the kidnappers, knowing that security agents were hot on their trail, abandoned him and fled. ”

Police Public Relations Officer in the state, DSP Andrew Animaka, had boasted when he spoke to Vanguard on Wednesday that the police would track down the criminals.

Ibori’s associates kick over his inability to return to Nigeria till next year

Posted on December 22, 2016 by Staff Reporter

Although James Ibori, former governor of Delta state, has been released from prison in the UK, he is not likely to return to the country until January.

He was released on Tuesday, having agreed to be deported after serving half of his 13-year prison sentence.

But Amber Rudd, the home secretary, does not intend to deport Ibori to Nigeria until he hands over £18 million of “proceeds of crime”, according to reports.

A high court judge said attempts to detain him were “quite extraordinary.”

Ordering Ibori to be immediately freed from prison, May said: “You don’t hold someone just because it is convenient to do so and without plans to deport them.”

A home office application that Ibori be electronically tagged and subjected to strict curfew conditions was also rejected.

The judge accepted arguments that the home secretary was attempting to misuse her immigration and deportation powers.

On Wednesday, the home office’s barrister said the government was concerned that Ibori might “frustrate confiscation proceedings” and wanted him kept in jail or subjected to strict controls on his movement.

Tony Eluemunor, media aide to Ibori, accused some unnamed top people in the UK of trying to stop his release.

In a statement on Wednesday, Eluemunor said instead of releasing Ibori on December 20, British home office wanted him to be detained on the grounds that his confiscation hearing had not been concluded.

“The apparent decision to block Ibori’s release and detain him appears to have come from the highest echelons of the UK government – the Home Secretary who was accused in today’s hearing of acting unlawfully and misusing her powers,” the statement read.

“In a curious move, the British Home Office, instead of releasing Ibori on December 20, informed him that he would be detained on the grounds that his confiscation hearing had not been concluded.

“In court, Ibori’s lawyers exposed the injustice in the indefinite detention the Home Office had planned for Ibori. They told the Judge that there were no grounds in law under which Ibori could be detained and that his detention for one day by the Home office was unlawful.”

He said Sian Davies, the prosecution lawyer did not object to Ibori’s release and his return to Nigeria but at the last minute the Home Office stepped in.

“There is clear discord between the two arms of the British government,” he said.

“The visibly irritated judge could not understand the Home Secretary’s position and at times was critical of the move to detain Ibori any further. Mrs Justice May rejected the home secretary’s requests for conditions to be imposed and ordered Ibori’s immediate release.

“Ibori and others have long maintained that this prosecution was politically motivated. It was funded by the UK’s Department for International Development, DFID.”

The conviction of Ibori followed a government anti-corruption campaign led by DfID 10 years ago.

Oghara, the hometown of the famous politician, has been agog over his release.

A source close to Ibori, who remained a political aforce in Delta throughout his years of travail, said it was not comprehensible whether Ibori would fly to Nigeria.

Ibori ruled Delta from 1999 to 2007. He was one of the most influential governors during his time and he established a political dynasty that produced his successor, Emmanuel Uduaghan and the incumbent Ifeanyi Okowa.

Despite the legal entanglements and the prospect of Ibori taking his case to the court of appeal, the mood among his kinsmen and politicians in the state, especially Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) faithful is that he should return.

Oghara is wearing a new look with banners bearing pictures of the ex-governor strategically displayed at different roundabouts within the town.

Associates and loyalists are also catching up on the event to pledge their loyalty to Ibori as they adorn the banners with their pictures side by side the former governor.

Some of the banners, which were placed at the Market Roundabout, Ibori Roundabout and entrance of Oghara, have inscriptions such as: ‘Welcome back home, our national leader’, ‘The political messiah and his kinsmen’, ‘The resource control living legend’, and ‘His ordeal, God’s plan to fortify him’.

Former DESOPADEC commissioner representing Ethiope West, Sapele and Okpe, Henry Ofa, told Vanguard: “Without trying to be immodest, the world knows that there is great expectation in Oghara.

“Since he left, there had been lots of misgivings and backwardness in the area in the hope that when he arrives, so many things would change positively.”

“We are prepared to follow him and we are convinced that he is going to lead us to the Promised Land.”

“We have the belief that there is a plan for him by God,” Ofa, a key loyalist said.

Court Jails Ex-Soldier And 7 Others 104 Years For Kidnapping Delta Speaker

Posted on December 14, 2016 by Staff Reporter

The Delta State High Court, sitting in Kwale, Ndokwa West local government area, on Tuesday sentenced an ex-soldier and seven others to 104 years imprisonment for kidnapping the current House of Assembly speaker, Mr. Monday Igbuya.

Mr. Igbuya was allegedly kidnapped in May 2009 in Sapele, the headquarters of Sapele Local Government area by Godspower Omoniyi, an ex-soldier; Godspower Ikoro; Ernest Atteh; John Adapamu; Ife Freedom; Sunday Uba Tiemo; Kemi Koinyan; and Isaiah Mumbor. He released after six days.

SaharaReporters learned that the eight suspects, who were earlier charged to the Sapele High Court in 2011 after their arrest by security agents, were later transferred to Kwale for trial on a six-count charge of conspiracy to commit kidnapping, armed robbery and the substantive case of kidnapping and demanding with menace the sum of N100m as ransom.

In his judgement, the presiding judge, Justice O. Jaloggo-Williams, found the eight accused persons guilty on the two-count charge of kidnapping and demanding property with menace. He sentenced them to 10 years each with hard labor for kidnapping; and three years each for demanding N100m with menace.

Justice Jaloggo-Williams ruled that the accused were responsible for the kidnapping of the Speaker, but discharged them on the count of armed robbery for lack of sufficient evidence by the prosecution. The sentences will run concurrently.

The convicts were charged under the Criminal Code Law Section 364 (I) and (II), which prescribed a 10-year jail term for offenders, before the Delta House of Assembly enacted a new anti-kidnapping Law in 2016 which now prescribes life imprisonment for offenders.

Tipper Crushes Schoolgirl To Death [Graphic Images]

Posted on December 6, 2016 by Staff Reporter

A school girl has been crushed to death by a tipper truck. According to reports, She was on her way to school, along Ogbemudia express road Oleh in Delta State when she was struck down by the tipper and crushed as the tipper went over her head.

Eye witness account reveal that the girl was walking on the road without the presence of a guardian. This fact has brought up the question as to why a child that young was going to school all by herself unaided especially on a busy road.

Investigation into the incident is ongoing and we shall bring you more details as it unfolds.

WARNING! Graphic Pictures of the corpse below:

Governor Okowa Can Kiss Second Term Goodbye – By Fejiro Oliver

Posted on December 2, 2016 by Staff Reporter

“Political aspirants make too much of the people before election, and, if successful, too much of themselves after it. They use the people when they want to rise, as we treat a spirited horse when we want to mount him;–for a time we pat the animal upon the neck, and speak him softly; but once in the saddle, then come the whip and spur”.Christian Nestell Bovee

This may just be a memo or just another sincere piece of my mind to Delta State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa who is fast building a name for himself as “Delta State is broke”, yet those around him live large like kings and queens.

Yesterday made it exactly one year that I had a private meeting with him in Delta State lodge, Lagos. Unfortunately all the things we discussed one year ago have not been fulfilled. It all turned out to be the usual promise and fail from a Nigerian politician, with penchant for lying.

I’m very certain that the result of the Ondo State election where the incumbent governor, Olusegun Mimiko of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) lost to the main opposition, the All Progressive Congress (APC) shocked Okowa to the bone marrows. As I type, I’m certain that he would be in the governor’s lodge trying to analyze where they went wrong, inspite of all the plans they made in Abuja. Mimiko is not your everyday governor who should lose an election, but the people have become wiser that you can’t use them and dump them. On the day of reckoning, they will pay back in your own coins, and they did just that to Mimiko by voting Rotimi Akeredolu.

In Delta State, the people have not fared better under Okowa, despite the huge support they gave him during the last elections, where they fought an incumbent governor just to see him succeed. Everyone who truly supported him are today regretting why they did so, as he has turned the government into a mini cabal, where only few call the shots and gives out crumbs to poor supporters.

Even those he appointed as Commissioners, Special Advisers and Special Assistants are wailing and wishing the government comes to an end, so they can support someone who has the interest of the state and their own welfare. Today, Tony Okowa has practically turned Elomax Hotel into his bedroom, where he wastes millions lodging, while his house in Okpanam Road is left to rot away. His brother is the governor and he’s the Sports Commission boss with so much money to throw around, yet no single success has he recorded in sports since he came onboard, unlike Pinnick Amaju who turned the commission to a budding sports centre.

Who is deceiving Okowa that he’s making life prosperous for Deltans when he has impoverished them and made life worse for them. it is obvious that a cabal has hijacked the government that he and his Principal Secretary are not aware of. It is crystal clear that he may not be fully in control of the government but relies on what his childhood friend who is now a big contractor and consultant in the state tells him. Like someone once asked. “Is Lawrence Oshiegbu the governor”?

Who will believe the slogan of “Delta State is broke”, when we now have civilian billionaires in his government? Okowa should tell Deltans who the Okpuzor families from Ika are? They are unarguably the richest Deltans at the moment. My days of private investigations on them reveal dangerous details that will shock the state if reported?

The governor cannot keep pretending like all is well when everything we all struggled together to achieve is falling apart right before our eyes, and the opposition fast gaining ground. Of what use is giving Uche Okpunor another N2 billion this month for Airport project that does not benefits the common man? Where are all the numerous investors that he held meetings with amidst fanfare and signed MOUs with when he came on board in 2015? Why has the budget for DESOPADEC not been released for the commission to begin work with? Why are people from Delta Central and South crying and those from Ika dancing Skelewu because of the numerous contracts they now get? Is this a government of nepotism and tribalism?

Ondo State victory for the APC should serve as a lesson to Okowa that you cannot continue to take the people for a ride and appeal to them few months to your elections to vote for you. The slogan of “PDP all the way” worked last elections because we saw in him a fresh idea and had to vote people that could work with him. Thankfully enough, we have seen his kind of person and can now judge better.

With the current disenchantment against him and his Ika government, he may just be gunning for one term in office. The emperor in Abuja has already given a mandate to his top strikers from South South to capture Rivers or Delta and the easiest of them is Delta. Rivers State is too violent a state to toy with. Nyesom Wike as a governor is doing extremely well and has cleared all pension arrears in the State, while Okowa is not only owing workers but also pensioners like his failed Ondo State counterpart.

Karma is a dangerous bitch that can never forget the wrongs done. The days of reckoning will soon be close and Okowa will realize that he cannot get the votes of Delta Central through his SSG, Festus Agas or his Commissioner for Environment, John Nani alone but will need the combination of those he has abandoned.

Like one of his top aides said recently “Na only who you follow chop, you dey follow drown”. As it stands, Okowa is cruising alone with sycophants hailing him on. His Commissioner for Economic Planning, Kingsley Emu believes that all is well and that the governor has blocked the loopholes through which funds are siphoned. Whenever he tells me that, I just nod, knowing that he’s not a politician but a technocrat that does not know what goes on in the system and doesn’t feels the anger on the street.

Those who truly supported him in 2014 are already taking a walk out of his government to join hands with the progressives and he doesn’t seem to know. The belief that Nigerians are angry with President Muhammadu Buhari should not mean that if Deltans are given a credible candidate from APC who has not tasted the seed of corruption, they won’t vote for such a person.

As a governor, he’s extremely nice and dedicated to work. He has the heart of gold to deliver prosperity to Deltans. He has the desire to truly make Delta the hub of industrialization and a commercial city of repute, but unfortunately swallowed by unseen hands that manipulate him.

These little things matter.

Delta Government disowns 700 illegally-employed staff of tertiary schools

Posted on December 1, 2016 by Staff Reporter

The Delta Government has disowned over 700 academic and non-academic staff of some tertiary institutions whose names were not in the state’s payroll.

The government said the staff were illegally employed.

The state’s Commissioner for Higher Education, Jude Sinebe, announced this at a news conference in Asaba on Wednesday.

The commissioner said there was no provision for such employment before the staff were engaged.

“In tertiary institutions, we don’t just employ workers for the sake of employment. We only employ when there is a need for such workers.

“This issue can be likened to a case of illegal employment and I can tell you that it is not only in the Delta Polytechnic, Ogwashi-Uku; we have similar cases at the State Colleges of Education in Agbor and Warri.

“The affected staff were employed out of the institutions’ statutory provisions. The system that we operate does not recognise them as our staff, as such we cannot pay them”, Mr. Sinebe said.

The commissioner explained that many of the schools went out of their ways to employ the affected staff without recourse to approval from the state government.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), reports that many of those employed between 2013 and 2015, were lecturers, technicians, information officers, clerical officers and messengers.

Army, Militant Group Disagree Over Attack On NPDC Pipeline In Delta

Posted on November 29, 2016 by Staff Reporter

There are conflicting claims by the Army and the Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate (NDGJM) over an attack on a delivery line operated by the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC) at Otu-Jeremi, in Delta State.

The NDGJM, through its spokesman Gen. Aldo Agbalaja yesterday claimed the attack on the 42-inch NPDC delivery line, while the military joint force in the Niger Delta code-named Operation Delta Safe based in Bayelsa State debunked the militants’ statement.

The acting spokesman for the force, with headquarters at Yenagoa, Lt. Cmdr. Thomas Otuji, said there was no truth in the NDGJM claim. He said: “It was a case of bush burning, which ignited the old pipeline,” urging the public to disregard the statement.

Otuji, who spoke on phone with The Guardian said: “Gentleman, it was a case of bush burning that ignited an old pipeline, no such attacks.”

NDGJM, however, insisted it would not be deterred by military offensive in the region to halt its pipeline attacks, threatening to fight on “till the last man is alive.”

Meanwhile, indigenes of Okpai and neighbouring communities in Ndokwa East Local Government Area, Delta State have protested against what they alleged as illegal oil prospecting by Sterling Global Oil.

The protest followed an attempt by the company to lay pipes right under their doorsteps, allegedly with the help of the 222 Battalion of the Nigerian Army.Speaking through the Secretary of Okpai National Union, John Nwanosike, they said yesterday that they had resolved to stop the company until it respected the rights of the local people.

Lamenting that the oil firm had been operating in the last 10 years without environmental impact assessment, Nwanosike urged the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) and Nigerian Petroleum Investment and Management Service (NAPIMS) to call the Indian firm and its Nigerian collaborators to order.

Efforts to get the company’s response to these allegations however proved abortive. The Public Relations Officer of Sterling Global Oil, Mr. Emeka Nwachukwu, who earlier promised to speak with The Guardian after a meeting with the company, refused to either pick his calls or reply to text messages sent to his mobile phone.

Credit:

http://guardian.ng/news/army-militant-group-disagree-over-attack-on-npdc-pipeline-in-delta/

REVEALED: Pastor Oritsejafor linked to sponsorship of Niger Delta Avengers [NAIJ]

Posted on November 29, 2016 by Staff Reporter

TaShawn, a wife to Bolaino Akwenuke (a warlord/close associate of Tompolo) visited Warri, Delta state, last December with intentions to do mission work in villages affected by the spills. TaShawn spent four months there and was unable to do anything due to high crime in the areas. Recently, she speaks with Bolaino Akwenuke on the current situation in the oil-rich region, which has been constantly suffering from the attacks of the militants.

Mr Akwenuke denied that former Niger Delta warlord Chief Government Ekpemupolo, alias Tompolo, is supporting the activities of the militants. Instead, he claimed that the sponsor of the Niger Delta Avengers is Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor. Akwenuke also speaks about the role of Pastor Ayo in the Dasukigate and government of Muhammadu Buhari.

In life, you never know who you will meet. I say this while reflecting upon my decision to visit Nigeria last December 2015. I would have never imagined I would stumble into a man who is part of a situation that can impact so many lives in a negative or positive way depending on how this story plays out. When I arrived at the airport In Lagos last year I was escorted by the kindest man I had ever met. My travel itinerary contained plans of travel to Warri and then to visit rivers area of Delta state to help victims affected by the oil spills.

We made it Warri but we never reached the rivers area due to high crime, military action and oil pipeline and facility bombings. At the time the incidents were being blamed on Tompolo; I know this because while there I became interested in Nigerian news and we would read the local papers daily. What I did not know is the extent of involvement my host played in the situation. Nor did I know that his involvement would lead to my own.

Fast forwarding to today and here we are: bombings still occurring in the Delta region, Tompolo still being framed, and me assisting Akwenuke Bolaino Marho, the nice man who met me at the airport in Lagos December 2015, to tell his story of involvement; not only how he is involved but also to disclose the real culprit behind the Shell and Chevron Texaco oil facility bombings. In one of the most recent conversations that I and Bolaino have had he mentioned that tribal tension had been on the rise and if things continued than his tribe the Urhobo and the Ijaw tribe, for which Tompolo belongs to may fight each other. As I asked him why the conversation proceeded and this is what ensued:

TaShawn: So why will your tribe (Urhobo) fight the Ijaws?

Bolaino: They are trying to frame me up, I will not fold my hands and allow people kill Americans and blame it on my organization. The only thing that will solve all this is if that pastor is arrested. Ijaw and Urhobo people are killing each other more each day in the villages, and the man who is responsible for this is going out to party. Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, immediate past CAN president Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, immediate past CAN president

TaShawn: Who is this man you speak of?

Bolaino: The man is the devil incarnate himself. He succeeded in making the Itsekiri and Ijaw fight endlessly in Delta state many years ago. He succeeded then and he is succeeding again. This time around the death rate from a tribal war between Urhobo and Ijaw going the way it is already will be devastating. My parents’ house will be burnt to ashes and all houses in the area. As it is now, there is already a refugee crises as Ijaw people are moving out of my area in Udu which is an Urhobo community. Some are being harassed and assaulted, and Tompolo has told me that if all this should continue we will fight each other.

TaShawn: Do you want to fight Tompolo ?

Bolaino: No I do not want to fight, I want peace.

TaShawn: Have you told anyone else about this?

Bolaino: I have been telling everyone for the past few weeks how they want to give me a name that is not my own. From the FBI, CIA, to the State Department. My country, my Senator, my ministers, etc. but they are acting like imbecilas, as if they don’t know A from B. They are forcing my hands. I have called the Nigerian Army. DSS. All of them. I have called the minsters I know. They pick the call and pretend to listen, and tell me they will do something about it but all the while, things are escalating.

TaShawn: How has the situation escalated and you never mentioned the Pastor’s name?

Bolaino: His name is Ayo Oristsejafor. He is now moving his guns and weapons from his church to Urhobo communities to fuel tribal war. They plan on blowing up a Chevron facility and putting the blame on me and my movement (MFPND). That is why I had to go to the creeks this period to plan for this. I have written about this man, there are a lot of things he has done if there is a Satan that is who he is.

TaShawn: So why are you telling me and how do you expect these agencies to help?

Bolaino: I want you to expose this man. It is the only way to end this situation. There is evidence to put him in prison, but Nigerian people are scared of him, because he is a pastor. If you can help to expose him everything will be over.. the militancy in the region, etc.

TaShawn: What kind of evidence do you have and are you sure it will stick to him?

Bolaino: I can tell you everything if you agree to help and are willing to listen. You will need to write all of this down.

TaShawn: Alright I will do what I can to help and am ready to listen…

Bolaino: Ok, firstly, Pastor Ayo is the Chief sponsor of the militant group The Niger Delta Avengers (NDA)

TaShawn: Are you are saying that Tompolo is not the one giving the NDA orders?

Bolaino: That is exactly what am saying. He (Pastor Ayo) sponsors them by giving weapons and ammunition. He gives them targets to bomb in the Niger Delta.

TaShawn: Now Bolaino how can you allege that a Pastor is the sponsor of such a deadly group. What proof do you have of this allegation?

Bolaino: Yes we have very strong proof of his involvement in the bombings of the Niger Delta. But we will only show the evidence to incorruptible government lawyers and we are ready to stand in a competent court of law to defend our allegations. I assure you we have corroborative evidence against this man and the media can attest to its truthfulness. I want to discuss this evidence with men and women of the press.

TaShawn: Ok, what exact evidence do you have on the Pastor?

Bolaino: First and foremost the pastor uses his private aeroplane to ferry drugs and guns from America and other parts of Europe to Nigeria. He has been caught once by the Authorities, but the corrupt government of the former president of Nigeria swept it under the rug.

TaShawn: Why did the former president not apprehend the Pastor at that time he was caught?

Bolaino: The plane was purchased with money from the Government scams involving the Nigerian Army. At the time the pastor was helping with corrupt Government officials in Nigeria to launder money with his bank Eagle Flight Micro Finance Bank . They were stealing money meant for fighting insurgency in the North Eastern part of Nigeria. At the time Colonel Sambo Dasuki was in charge of ripping the army off from the inside, since he was in government at the time.

TaShawn: Please explain more in depth how these men, Dasuki and Ayo operated inside the scandal?

Bolaino: They were supposed to buy aeroplanes, weapons, and ammunition for the Nigerian Army fighting Boko Haram, but these monies were never spent on the things that were needed to be purchased.

TaShawn: Is this a factor of why Boko Haram is still at large in Northern/ Northeast Nigeria presently?

Bolaino: Yes, as a result, Boko Haram invaded the Northeast and Nigerian army men were running away from the battle field because they were not well equipped enough and they became mutinous.

TaShawn: Is that the only evidence you have?

Bolaino: No, we have more, We have evidence that he was caught once more working with Hezbollah organisation in Nigeria. They were helping him to buy weapons in South Africa when his plane was caught with over 9 million dollars. When they questioned him as to what he intended to do with that large sum of money the response was that he wanted to buy arms and ammunition from a South African defence contraction company. After the claims were investigated they were found to be false. This lead us to believe that he was preparing for secession in Nigeria if the ruling party at the time lost. Prior to that time he and others at large had tried to assassinate Mr Muhamadu Buhari, in a twin car bomb attack in Kaduna. Fortunately, Buhari survived.

TaShawn: Bolaino how did you come to learn all this information?

Bolaino: The pastor told us in an informal gathering of warlords that period that they did it because they did not want Buhari to survive; they knew that if they allowed him to contest in the election they would loose and he would win. Afterwards, the pastor came up with the “BuhariBokoHaramOp”. See at the time he was the leader of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) so he had a cult following and he still does to this day.

TaShawn: What do you mean by “he had a cult following” and exactly how did the pastor use his following to further his agenda?

Bolaino: I mean he had a mass following of pastors and their members that would do as he said with no questions asked. He started telling his pastors and their members in churches all over Nigeria that Buhari is a terrorist. That Buhari planned to Islamize Nigeria if he won. Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Tompolo Former Niger Delta warlord Tompolo

TaShawn: Since you say “we” a lot I am assuming there are witnesses other than yourself that can attest to this information you are sharing with me today?

Bolaino: Yes, we have numerous witnesses to this scandal. Myself being one of course. But Pastor Ayo and his followers did this for long, even until this day that propaganda still thrives on, hence the current disposition of my fellow warlords to Buhari. As they still honestly believe that Buhari is the sponsor of the Boko Haram. They don’t know any better otherwise. But as God would have it everything they did in trying to kill Buhari or spoil his image was in vein. At the time of the past election, it has to be mentioned that the pastor was campaigning for PDP which is the party of the former president.

TaShawn: Ok, so to back track a little you mentioned you are a warlord, but that you currently want peace; are you saying that some warlords in Nigeria are fighting for peace?

Bolaino: Yes, I am a warlord, and once again yes I and other warlords want peace to reign throughout Nigeria, as there is no reason to fight. The problem is corruption and greed. To add to my earlier information, we received word of Ayo’s involvement in the assassination attempt on Buhari in 2014 by a former Hezbollah operative we caught at sea after the act. He confessed to it before he died. That was when we started to connect the dots between him and the Hezbollah network in Delta state. After his candidate lost he sent a mole into the APC (opposing political party) in the person of Chief Ayiri Emami.

TaShawn: Who is this Chief Ayiri, what is his background and why did Pastor Ayo choose him as a mole?

Bolaino: Ayiri is known in Warri as a popular assassin and ritualist, so he was welcomed into the APC. Ayiri made sure to enter the APC two days after it was announced that his former party the PDP had lost the election. The APC being a party of Northern extraction did not fully understand the workings of the Niger Delta Politicians/ warlords. So it was from here on that the Niger Delta agitation was hijacked by Pastor Ayo and his cohorts. This is where everything started, this is where the story is today.

TaShawn: And what of Tompolo and how are you so deeply involved and knowledgable of all this information that no one else will speak of ?

Bolaino: Tompolo is a good man, a man that I owe immense gratitude to. He is the one that inspired me to join the Niger Delta struggle for resource control. He was always helping the poor and making them millionaires over night. It was strange because no one else in the region had ever done anything like it before. Although he was an outlaw when I first met him, he was given amnesty and I was not, so I began working with pastor Ayo and Ayiri.

TaShawn: Ayiri, Ayo, Tompolo and You are Warlords? Any other names I should know of that pertain to this story?

Bolaino: Ayiri is a warlord for all the Itsekiri people of Delta state. You have to also know that Pastor Ayo is also of the Itsekiri tribe, with the former Governors of the Delta state. Chief Ibori who was the first democratic governor of Delta state is half Urhobo and half Itsekiri. It was through his cousin Governor Uduaghan who is the immediate past governor of Delta state; he is also Itsekiri, and he is also the brains behind the whole NDA operation. He does the planning, strategizing etc. He is a brilliant man but he only uses his brilliance for evil. He is the evil genius behind all this and he is also the one who set Ibori up. Ibori is currently serving jail time in the UK. Ibori, his wife Nkoyo, and his sisters and lawyers are all serving time in the UK. They were all set up by the same people who are about to set me and Tompollo up. So I started working with Pastor Ayo.

TaShawn: Why is Ibori in jail?

Bolaino: There are newspaper articles to corroborate what I am saying. These things are public knowledge, well not all but some. They are deceiving the Deltans. Did you not hear of the Monseca law firm scandal? That indicted many prominent men and women of the world for tax evasion and financial crimes. Ibori is highly implicated in that scandal, as his name was released in the leaks. Google it. The British government intends on levelling new fresh charges against him.

TaShawn: Alright, now please tell me what you want the media and press to do? Especially the American press…

Bolaino: I have gone to British Media many times. They know all this but are afraid to do anything. Many people only hear my name but they do no know my face. I need to put a face to my name for the sake of peace to reign. I want you and others to take this issue very seriously, please. We want these things to be published everywhere in news in the US because what is happening now concerns them a lot. It is common knowledge that American and British companies like Shell and Texaco operate in Delta state. The Niger Delta Avengers have been blowing up Shell facilities, but they have not been blowing up much of Texaco facilities.

TaShawn: Do you know why it’s mostly the Shell facilities being bombed?

Bolaino: Good question, yes I do. Shell operates in the Ijaw part of the Delta state, namely the Shell oil exporting tank at Forcados, In Ogulagha Kingdom. While Chevron Texaco is located in the Itsekiri part of Delta state. Texaco has an oil exporting tank farm at Ugboroda in Warri Southwest Escravos of Delta state. TaShawn: Are you going to get to how this all escalates into Tribal conflict and future war?

Bolaino: Yes, that is where I am going to. You have to know that for many decades the Ijaws and Itsekiris have been fighting tribal war in the Delta state for long. The fight is usually on and off, and when they fight they burn down everywhere in Warri. The reason we moved to the area (my family and I) we are currently staying is because of the tribal fighting in that part of Warri we used to stay. They were always burning down houses and the house we were staying in Ogborikoko at the time was owned by an Ijaw man. So we were at risk of our house being burnt by the Itsekiris at any time. So after the former president lost the election and Ayiri switched into the APC just two days after his former party lost the election it was assumed that Ayiri had betrayed them at the federal government level of the PDP.

TaShawn: So who are the Urhobo/ Isoko preparing to fight presently?

Bolaino: Currently the Ijaws. Pastor Ayo is giving us all the weapons we need to fight.

TaShawn: So why aren’t you happy about this, why tell me to expose the man who is helping you?

Bolaino: He is a bad man. The reason I am angry is because he tried to kill me when I refused. If not that I am a strong man, a man of the spirits then I would be dead by now and my son would be fatherless for sure, but God Disgraced him.

TaShawn: Why are they fighting?

Bolaino: They are fighting because the pastor set us up to fight and gave the order. TaShawn: So in Nigeria, one must fight when a Pastor gives the order because he is a warlord who hands them out weapons ?

Bolaino: Yes Jesus is God in Nigeria, anything church if you oppose it they will kill you. Do you know how many thousands of people pastors have killed in Delta State? You don’t. They sent people to my house. My father and mother have relocated to other regions. Right now he is distributing Guns out to people under his boy Ayiri and others at large. He is the one (The pastor Ayo) who told the King of Aladja and Urhobo Community that God revealed to him that if he does not tell his fellow Urhobo Kings to drive out Ijaws from Urhobo land that the Ijaws will take over all of Urhobo land in the next year 2017 with the Biafrans. The Biafrans have vowed to tear Nigeria apart by January next year to fulfil America’s prediction of Nigeria breaking into pieces in 2017.

TaShawn: Do you know why he (Pastor Ayo) is doing all this?

Bolaino: He is doing all this to escape prison. Many of the people he shared federal government money with meant to fight Boko Haram, are currently in prison. They are mentioning his name in statements, and soon he will be indicted. So he is doing this in order to escape being arrested. This is what he told me before trying to kill me. He tried to kill me in his church, this is where we hold meetings and that is also where he stores the weapons for the NDA. Tompolo and I were preparing to submit all our weapons to the government, but our hands are being forced to fight one another; if this pastor is caught the bloodshed will cease.

The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent the editorial policy of Omojuwa.Com

Okowa sacks aide for defrauding Dogara of N250,000

Posted on November 24, 2016 by Staff Reporter

Delta state Governor Ifeanyi Okowa has sacked his Senior Special Assistant on Protocol, Mr. Temple Mudi, for allegedly defrauding the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Yakubu Dogara, of N250,000.

The Speaker, it was gathered in Government House, Asaba, yesterday was allegedly defrauded by Okowa’s sacked aide when he visited the Big Heart state for a public function.

Temple was said to have privately approached the Speaker and told him that ‘one of his convoy vehicles hit his Hilux van when he previously visited the state and that he spent N250, 000 to fix it back.’

A top government functionary at the Government House, Asaba yesterday said the Speaker was immediately moved with pity after Temple’s tale, even as he expressed concern and agreeably refunded the money.

“At a second thought, the Speaker decided to discuss the matter with a member, representing Ika Federal Constituency, Hon. Victor Nwokolo, who in-turn tabled the matter before Governor Okowa, before the case assumed a new dimension”, the government official disclosed.

Apparently miffed, the governor, however, summoned the Director of Protocol (Government House), Mr. Victor Eboigbe, with a view to unearthing what actually transpired between the Speaker and the former aide.

“His Excellency, the Governor,was pissed off by the fraudulent character of Mr. Temple, who swindled a distinguished visitor to the state of N250, 000.

His Excellency has directed his D.O.P (Director of Protocol) to relieve him of his appointment,” the source further disclosed.

5,000 APC Members Defect To PDP In Delta

Posted on November 21, 2016 by Staff Reporter

No fewer than 5, 000 All Progressive Congress Party (APC) members in Sapele community, Delta State, at the weekend dumped the party for People’s Democratic Party (PDP).

But a chieftain of the APC in the state, Prophet Jones, described their exit as a blessing to the party, adding that the defectors were political harlots.

Receiving the defectors, the state Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Barr. Kingsley Esiso, assured Deltans that the state under the leadership of Governor Ifeanyi Okowa will execute more development projects in the three senatorial districts of the state in line with his electioneering campaign promises.

“I wish to urge all Deltans to rally round Okowa because that will help him in so many ways to deliver more democracy dividends to all Deltans,” Esisio said.

Leader of the defectors, Mr. John Erukwho, said they dumped APC for irreconcilable difference that had bedeviled the party over the years in the state, adding that it is only in PDP they can achieve their political dreams.

Also speaking, the council boss, Barr. Ejaife Odebala, expressed joy over the decision of the APC members and assured that their coming into PDP would be a blessing for them.

Credit:

http://dailytimes.ng/5-000-apc-members-defect-to-pdp-in-delta/

Niger Delta Avengers Weakened as JTF Foils Another Attack on Chevron Escravos Pipeline in Delta

Posted on November 10, 2016 by Staff Reporter

President Muhammadu Buhari wednesday held a closed-door meeting with the leadership of the Nigerian Senate.

The president also met separately with Senators from the South-east.

The senators at the meeting, held at the president’s office at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, were led by the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, and his deputy, Ike Ekweremadu.
After the meeting with the lawmakers, they exited while Buhari held a personal meeting with Saraki.

The meeting came about a week after the Senate rejected Buhari’s request to borrow $29.9 billion from external sources.

The lawmakers, across party divide, rejected the application without debate, saying it did not come with relevant information such as purpose, means of repayment and among others.

Speaking with journalists after the meeting, Ekweremadu said: “For us from the South-east, we believe that dialogue is better than any other form of engagement. So we decided to visit the president and present to him some of the concerns of the South-east including the issues of roads, general infrastructure: the rail, airports. We also discussed the issue of security with him and of course the issue of Independent Peoples of Biafra (IPOB.) We had a good conversation with the president, and he promised to look into the issues.”

The Chairman of the South-east Caucus in the Senate, Eyinnaya Abaribe, who was also at the meeting with the president, said the South-east caucus came to see the president over raging issues in the region.

He said: “This is the South-east caucus in the Senate and we came to see the president because of the issues we have in the South-east.

“We had a fruitful discussion with the president. He has promised us that he is going to look into the problems of region.

“We know that there are problems everywhere but we also believe that the South-east is the zone that is far much shortchanged at this time than other zones.

We also talked about the issue of appointments from the South-east, especially with respect to the National Security Council. The president also told us that governors of the South-east have also engaged him on the same problems we engaged him on.

“There is a concerted effort from the people of the South-east to be sure that we engage with this government meaning fully.

“We are reassured with the response we got from the president and we look forward to further interaction with him in this manner.”

Others in the delegation were: Sam Egwu, Hope Uzodima, Andy Uba and Chukwuka Utazi.

Credit: ThisDay

Militants hit pipeline in Delta, ‘shoot 4 guards’.

Posted on November 8, 2016 by Staff Reporter

Suspected Niger Delta militants have blown up a crude oil pipeline in Warri, Delta state, according to Punch.

The newspaper quoted a community leader as saying the attackers shot four guards before hitting the facility, which was undergoing repairs after it had been previously bombed.

This is the second known attack in the region after Niger Delta stakeholders held a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari in Abuja.

The leader said the guards “escaped by the skin of their teeth”.

“Unfortunately, only the dynamite on the barge exploded and immediately sank into the water. As I speak to you, the military are at the scene of the incident trying to dismantle the other dynamites, ” the community was quoted to have said.

Punch said an army official, who preferred anonymity, confirmed the incident.

“We heard the shots in the middle of the night, but as you know, we do not patrol the area at night, so there was nothing we could do,” he said.

For peace to return, the militants in the region had given the president a 16 point framework, including, better welfare and an increased allocation of resources from the region.

Residents flee Delta community over suspected herdsmen’s attacks

Posted on November 1, 2016 by Staff Reporter

Following repeated attacks by suspected herdsmen, some residents of Ossissa community in Ndokwa East Local Government Council of Delta State have deserted their homes.

The traditional ruler, HRH Ijibueze Uzu, said the community has sent a petition to Governor Ifeanyi Okowa and President Muhammadu Buhari to come to their rescue.

In the letter, a copy of which was made available to our reporter, HRH Ijibueze Uzu, said the horrendous activities of the herdsmen had continued to prevent indigenes of the town including other inhabitants from their farms in the past two years, thereby creating hunger among them.

The monarch explained that the cattle rearers, among other crimes, had destroyed their farm crops after allegedly attacking the farmers and raping their wives.

Last weekend, thousands of persons mostly women marched through the town, protesting against the activities of the herdsmen in the area. They alleged that two more persons sustained machete cuts and called on security agents to bring the hoodlums to book.

The leader of the women, Mrs. Enechukwu Comfort said: “On October 21, herdsmen numbering about six attacked two of our indigenes; Azuka Okutu and Emeka Nwanne in the bush with sophisticated weapons, including AK 47 riffles and machetes.”

The other demands by the women, which were written on the placards read: “Fulani must go,” “Ossissa, the food basket of the nation, government help us,” “Go back to agriculture, but there is no farmland because of herdsmen,” “Ossissa is a peaceful community, Fulani leave our land,” “Enough is enough, Enough of Fulani harassment of our women” and “Herdsmen are the cause of food scarcity in Nigeria.”

In Gombe State, the police command has deployed special teams to high-risk parts of the state to forestall clashes between farmers and herdsmen.

The state Police Commissioner Mr. Austin Iwar at a security meeting with traditional rulers, council chairmen, farmers association and Miyetti Allah in Gombe yesterday directed all division police officers (DPOs) to constitute teams in order to further strengthen anti-conflict operations of the Nigeria Police.

Meanwhile, members of the National Assembly (NASS) from Ekiti State have declared their support for the state anti-grazing law.

They maintained: “The law must be obeyed by anyone willing to do cattle business in Ekiti State because Nigeria is a federation and each state is empowered by law to make laws to protect its people.”

The NASS members are Senators Biodun Olujimi and Duro Faseyi as well as House of Representatives members, which include Akin Awodumila, Segun Adekola, and others.

Avengers Blow Up Chevron Export Pipeline In Delta

Posted on October 25, 2016 by Staff Reporter

Niger Delta Avengers, NDA, at about 3.40 am, today (Tuesday), bombed a Chevron Nigeria Limited, CNL, offshore Export Pipeline at Escravos, Warri South-West Local Government Area in Delta State. The militant group in a tweet by its spokesperson, self-styled Brig Gen Mudoch Agbinibo, confirming its involvement, said: “At about 3:45am, our strike team 06 took down Chevron Escravos export pipeline at Escravos offshore.”

It stated:”This action is to further warn all IOCs’ that when we warn that there should be no repairs pending negotiation/dialogue with the people of the Niger Delta, it means there should be no repairs.”

“Any attempt to use dialogue to distract us so as to allow the free flow of our oil will halt the dialogue process,” NDA added. Before Niger Delta Avengers claimed responsibility for the attack, today, chair, Ugborodo Community, Ofe Nene, who was contacted by one of our reporters at about 8.00 am, confirmed the explosion, saying: “I do not have details of the incident, but a blast occurred last night at an offshore location.”

A security official, who refused commenting on the incident, said: “It is either an attack or a spill; our men in the field were woken up at about 4.00 am by local fishermen that noticed the spill.”

“For now, we cannot confirm if it was as a result of militant attack or rupture on the pipeline, but all I can say is that as I speak with you, there is a spill in the area from a damaged pipeline belonging to Chevron Nigeria Limited.”

Attempts to speak with the General Manager – Policy, Government and Public Relations, Chevron, Mr. Deji Haastrup, were fruitless at the time of this report.

Credit:

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2016/10/avengers-blow-chevron-export-pipeline-delta/

News Alert: SSG Held Hostage by Delta Community Members

Posted on October 24, 2016 by Staff Reporter

Osissa community in the Ndokwa-East Local Government Area of Delta State are currently protesting and holding the Secretary to the State Government, Mr Festus Ovie Agas, and his convoy hostage over the alleged killing of three members of the community by suspected Fulani herdsmen.

The protesters numbering over one thousand intercepted the convoy of the SSG who was traveling to Asaba after spending the weekend with his family in Ughelli at about 6:55am along the Ughelli-Asaba express on Monday.

Sources revealed that other travelers including those going to Onitsha market in Anambra State were also trapped in the protest.

It can be recalled that suspected herdsmen over the weekend repeatedly invaded the agrarian community injuring at least one person.

Two members of the rampaging herdsmen who invaded the community with their cattle were nabbed by officers from the Ashaka Police Station.

It was also gathered on Monday morning that the situation took another turn Sunday evening when the herdsmen allegedly attacked again killing at least three persons in the community.

The protesters who thronged the road blocking both lanes demanded that Fulani herdsmen vacate their land and the killers prosecuted.

At about 8:30am on Monday, the protesters had not been dispersed despite heavy presence of security men including the military.

A traveler, Akpodhoma Mikoko, who is also trapped in the situation, told our correspondent that about 800 vehicles were being held in the gridlock.

The Needless Fraud That Brought Okowa To Power – Lauretta Onochie.

Posted on October 24, 2016 by Staff Reporter

First things first. I believe Gov. Patrick Ifeanyi Okowa won the election in Delta state as he was the only candidate that ran in the 2015 gubernatorial election in the state. He worked hard on his campaign while the others squabbled and battled, not for the people’s votes, but for the heart and soul of the Urhobo Progressive Union, made up of a few men who represented their personal interests.

But in the desperation of the PDP to win the South-South during their 2015 presidential re-election bid, they massively falsified the Presidential election results, for their hero, Goodluck Jonathan! The whole world expected it but those in PDP, were shocked to find that Gen. Muhammadu Buhari was coasting to a landslide victory over the one who supervised the brazen looting of our commonwealth, more than any other past leaders have ever done.

Presidential election results in Delta state, were then PADDED! We knew what was going on as the nation waited endlessly for Delta state results to come in.

Now the real result of the Presidential election frightened the hell out of the defunct Wadata Plaza (PDP HQ) and Dr. Okowa’s handlers. They did not also realize that he was the ONLY candidate in Delta state. Those who preach Jesus by day on television and indulge in abominable rituals by night went to work. But God pass dem!

Having padded the presidential votes in Delta state, they must also, pad the gubernatorial election results to justify the huge numbers they gave to Jonathan, otherwise it would have clearly shown that the presidential election result, was not representative of the true number of those who voted in Delta state.

So, unscrupulous INEC officials connived with Okowa’s team and they inflated the votes, again, across the state. The result as we showed then, was that, even in Okowa’s ward and across the state, the number of votes was far more than the number of accredited voters. That’s why money needed to change hands with judges and the judges cashed in on this fraud that began with the Presidential Election by the PDP.

We raised the alarm at the time and we were called sore losers! But we knew it was just a matter of time before it all comes tumbling down.

In a normal democratic society, the court would have annulled the Delta state gubernatorial election. Dr. Okowa would have been disqualified from the rerun. He would be tried for electoral malpractices and jailed if found guilty. However, the judges got creative and got paid for the dumb and unnecessary fraud the PDP committed in Delta State.

So we now have a governor who clearly won the election but succumbed to bad counseling from Wadata Plaza, Abuja during the 2015 presidential election. If you ask me, Dr. Okowa is a victim for succumbing to Jonathan’s obsession to win the South-South regional votes, a region he supervised its underdevelopment. But then, Dr. Okowa is a pushover and very loyal to many people in conflicting camps.

Dr. Okowa is a James Ibori loyalist to the core. He is also in partnership with prominent Niger Delta warlord, Government Ekpemupolo ’Tompolo’ who, allegedly, heavily funded his campaign. Even Mrs. Onyemaechi Mrakpor who allegedly lost the PDP nomination ticket for the race for the Aniocha /Oshimili Federal constituency to Paul Adingupu but is now representing us in Abuja, firmly has Okowa in her pocket. She decided who got appointed into Okowa’s cabinet, making her “husband” the Attorney General of the state as well as appointing her brothers, sisters and nieces. So we can see that Dr. Okowa has many Masters/Mistresses.

But when an electoral fraud has been committed, it does not matter that he won the election, fair and square. What the question should be is, “Was any law broken in the electoral process that brought him to power?” If the answer is “Yes”, then everyone involved must answer to the law. Under President Buhari, sins that are swept under the carpet are being unearthed as investigators follow the stench of the smell of sins.

Dr. Okowa’s situation is also made worse by his perceived non-performance in Delta State. Deltans from the Central and South Senatorial districts allege that he has abandoned them and is only working in his area of origin, Anioma. But Anioma people allege that he is only using state funds to complete constituency projects he was paid for when he was their Senator at the National Assembly. Either way, Deltans are the losers as the funds used to oil the palms of judges and INEC officials, come as top priorities and has to be recovered first.

It’s true that at the beginning of his tenure, Dr. Okowa voiced the fact that he inherited a dilapidated economy, raped and bastardized by his predecessor, Emmanuel Uduaghan, the same scenario that confronted Pres. Buhari at the national level. But while Pres. Buhari is holding to account, those who stole public funds under his predecessor, Okowa has feathered the nest for Uduaghan and his co-looters. He has done nothing and can now, not even pay salaries. He has actually gone ahead to call on the Pres. Buhari led Federal government, to stop the war on corruption!

Our society has been messed up by the electoral fraud of our past political leaders under the reign of PDP. We, therefore, do not understand why ex-President Jonathan is running around the continent, projecting himself as a super election monitor. His reign in Nigeria was fraught with colossal election malpractices.

This is one reason we must have a National Assembly that is people-oriented. Our people cannot have those who came to power through paths tainted and paved with criminality, reign over them. Some of our laws need to change. But the National Assembly is busy with “Summoning”, “investigating” and “Probing”, instead of looking into ways to clean up our extant laws and make new ones that can protect the interests of the citizenry.

Our prayer is that Dr. Okowa will have good health. He needs it. It’s tough days and years ahead of him. INEC officials who connived to commit the frauds are already facing the consequences of their actions. So will everyone one else who was involved in duping the people of Nigeria. Judges and Governors too.

– Lauretta Onochie.

SR: Delta State Governor, Okowa, Slumps Over From Mysterious Sickness

Posted on October 11, 2016 by Staff Reporter

Delta State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, reportedly slumped over last Wednesday at the government house in Asaba.

According to an impeccable government house source, who pleaded for anonymity, Mr. Okowa who was billed to attend the World Teachers Day celebration at the cenotaph last Wednesday. However, after all preparations were put in place, Mr. Okowa reportedly slumped over at his office preventing his attendance.

Our source disclosed that immediately the governor was whisked away from the office to an undisclosed place for medical attention and his deputy, Kingsley Otuaro, was called to represent him at the event.

“I can tell you categorically that since that Wednesday till today the governor has not attended any public function. If you watch well, all the public functions, it’s the deputy that is representing him. Though, we can’t tell why he slumped and the illness he is suffering from.

“Before becoming the state governor, he has been battling with unknown health challenges. Even when he was in the senate, he was with this unknown illness but some people close to him said what he is suffering from could not be far from some blood related illness,” our source stated.

All efforts to contact the State Commissioner for Information, Patrick Ukah, proved abortive as his mobile line was switched off. However, the Chief Press Secretary (CPS) to governor, Charles Aniagwu swiftly debunked the story claiming it was not true.

Two teenage robbers nabbed with double-barrel guns in Delta

Posted on October 7, 2016 by Staff Reporter

The Delta State Police Command has arrested two suspected criminals for allegedly being in possession of firearms.

The suspects, Godspower Peter, 18 and Voke Samuel, 15, were nabbed on Thursday by officials of the Safer High Way Patrol on Ekakpamre-Jeremi Road in Ughelli South Local Government Area, LGA, of the state.

The suspects, who are said to be armed robbers terrorizing the state, were nabbed with a fabricated single barrel gun with four rounds of cartridges and a double barrel cut-to-size gun.

The Assistant Commissioner of Police, ACP, in Ughelli Area Command, Mr. Usman Ndanbabo, who paraded the suspects before newsmen shortly after their arrest, said his men arrested the suspects on a motorcycle while carrying a black polythene bag.

“The polythene bag contained cut-to-size guns, with one of the bullets already used, indicating that they were coming from a robbery.

“There were four of them who jumped into a swamp but our men pursued them, and could only arrest two.

“The suspects made statements and the command will not relent in its efforts to make the area crime-free,” the ACP stated.

One of the suspects, Peter, in his statement to the police said, “I am a motorcycle rider. The three boys asked me to carry them from Agbarho in Ughelli North to Otujeremi in Ughelli South and I charged them N1, 000. They agreed.

“They appealed to me to tow their motorcycle, which was bad.

“On our way, we saw a police checkpoint. We were searched and two guns and bullets were found in the bags they carried.

“We fled into a nearby swamp and I was arrested.”

How Delta discovered illegal N400m from scholarship board

Posted on October 4, 2016 by Staff Reporter

The Executive Secretary, Delta State Scholarship and Bursary Board, Comrade Elijah Eloge, has disclosed how his team on assumption of office uncovered N400 million bursary illegally paid to students from other states who entered the list of authentic and qualified Deltans, through fictitious documents.

Eloge disclosed this when he received members of Indigenous Newspapers and Magazines Channel (INMC), Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), Delta State Council, who were led on a courtesy visit by Comrade Spence Friday Idighri.

“On assumption of office we carried out a holistic verification of eligible Deltans in collaboration with National Identity Management Commission (NINC). We discovered that out of 40,000 students on bursary list only 20,000 were genuine and qualified Deltans,” he stressed.

He commended the press for remaining resolute on the side of the masses especially during the struggle for democracy in the military era.

Idighri said Eloge has distinguished himself right from his days as the Vice Chairman, Patani LGA, the State Universal and Basic Education Board (SUBEB) and now at the Scholarship and Bursary Board.

He solicited assistance of the board in the furnishing of the INMC’s secretariat.

Militants Blow Up Another NPDC Facility In Delta

Posted on September 29, 2016 by Staff Reporter

The Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate, NDJM, today, bombed another Nigeria Petroleum Development Company, NPDC, delivery line in Delta State.

The group in a statement by self styled Gen Aldo Agbalaja, said: “As a mark of our commitment to a just course and to prove to the wicked and ungrateful multinational oil companies and their Nigerian military allies, who have been forcefully taking our natural endowment, without any visible returns, that we own our lands, the Opudo Strike Team of the Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate, at about 01. 00 hour today , 29th Sept 2016, bombed the Unenurhie-Evwreni delivery line in Ughelli south/north respectively operated by NPDC.”

“We want to assure the oil multinational companies that we are determined to end their operations in our lands and this we shall if they fail to show the will to change their relationship with our people and their operational attitude in our lands.

“For the avoidance of doubts, we want to say here, categorically, that no amount of military protection/presence can stop this whirlpool, no amount of shoddily arranged military operation can quell the will of our gallant army.” the group said.

It added: “The same way their Operation Crocodile Smile was sunken by our Operation Crocodile Tears is how all their schemes against our land and people will continue to be defeated.”

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2016/09/breaking-militants-blow-another-npdc-facility-delta/

Why We Blew Up Another NPDC Pipeline In Delta- Militants

Posted on September 19, 2016 by Staff Reporter

The new militia, the Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate, on Monday announced that its strike force blew up the Afiesere-Ekiugbo pipeline belonging to the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC) in Ughelli North LG Area of Delta State.

In a statement e-mailed to THISDAY in Asaba the group claimed that it successfully carried out the attack on the oil facility to prove the ineffectiveness of the hordes of security personnel deployed in the Niger Delta region by the Federal Government.

It said that it carried out the attack at about 11:30 pm on Sunday.
“The Opudo strike force, at about 11:30 pm on Sunday, September 18, 2016, struck the Afiesere-Ekiugbo delivery line in Ughelli, operated by NPDC/Shoreline.”

The statement signed by the spokesman of the militia, “General” Aldo Agbalaja, also warned that its destructive campaign code-named “Operation Crocodile Tears” targeting oil and gas facilities in the Niger Delta outside creeks would continue until its demands were met.

“The Operation Crocodile Tears is not slowing down, but determined to achieve target”, the statement, adding, “Until the federal government takes

the proper steps, this song will continue to play.”

The group, which also had harsh words for major oil companies operating in the region, labeled the government’s new military initiative in the oil-rich region? code-named “Operation Crocodile Smile” as a scam designed to coverup financial fraud in the nation’s
“military system.”

The statement said in part, “This is to once again emphasize our earlier revelation that the so-called Operation Crocodile Smile is nothing but a scam: some jumbled job, sewn together to retire some recently embezzled military budget. Were it a serious endeavour, as the entire military system has sought to bamboozle Nigerians and the entire world to believe, the half-baked operation would have at least been reaping marginal results, asides those wrong arrests, lacking in intelligence, that it had realised.

“This is to you, Gen Buratai, let your crocodile continue to smile, your time for reckoning is at hand, probably by the time the smiley crocodile finally sinks, you will see its tears and blood. Under your nose, the very task of guarding oil assets (which we consider a waste of time, resources and a failure of priorities) will fail because you are both insincere and incompetent.

“The Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate is just starting, you are yet to see what we are about, by the time the alpha operations are initiated, you will need more than these fighter jets to keep your troops safe in any part of the Niger Delta.

“To the oil and gas companies, we have observed that you have placed your trust in the guns and fighter jets of the Nigerian armed forces, our words for you are few: keep at it and wait for your rewards, which have almost come upon you.”

Credit: thisdaylive

BREAKING: Militants destroy oil facility in Delta

Posted on September 19, 2016 by Staff Reporter

A militant group, Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate have destroyed a major crude oil delivery line belonging to the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company.

According to reports, the pipeline was attacked at about 11:30pm on Sunday around Ughelli North Local Government Area of the state.

The spokesperson of the group, Aldo Agbalaja claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement on Monday.

Details later…

Pipeline fire erupts in Delta community

Posted on September 16, 2016 by Staff Reporter

Barely three months after a pipeline caught fire in Idheze community, a similar incident has been recorded in Oleh, another Isoko settlement.

Oleh is the headquarters of Isoko South Local Council of Delta State.

The President-General of Oleh Community, Chief James Obeuwou, told newsmen that the facility belongs to the Agip (Eni-NAOC) group, disclosing that a reasonable quantity of crops were lost to the incident.

He said the fire broke out about 1:00 a.m. yesterday, noting that: “A glow lit the sky as if a volcano was erupting in a distance. There was a sound like high-pressured water fall almost like a siren. People living around the area started running for their lives because it was frightening. It was like the world was coming to an end. We have not witnessed anything like this in the community.”

Obeuwou alleged that representatives of the oil company, after entering a mutual agreement with the host community to cordon off the area, later connived with security agents to continue operations.

The council chairman, Sir Ithiako Constantine Ikpokpo, while confirming the inferno, said: The council secretary and Divisional Police Officer (DPO) called me at about 1.30 a.m. that a pipeline had erupted.”

He called on the people to be calm, just as he advised the management of Agip to put its equipment in good shape.

Militants Blow Up Another Pipeline In Delta

Posted on September 13, 2016 by Staff Reporter

A militant group, Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate, NDGJM, in the early hours of Tuesday, blew up the Afiesere-Iwhrenene major delivery line to UPS/UQCC, operated by Nigeria Petroleum Development Company, NDPC/Shorelines Petroleum in Ughelli North Local Government Area of Delta State.

The attack confirmed by a leader of the group, self-styled Gen. Aldo Agbalaja, came as the Niger Delta Avengers, NDA, which ceased hostilities, last month, accused the military of harassing old men, women and innocent youths in the region under the guise of hunting for militants.

Meanwhile, the Ijaw People Development Initiative, IPDI, has warned that the Federal Government’s plan to continue to militarize the region and intimidate the people despite the fact that NDA and other dangerous militant groups had opted for dialogue will not make the region to forsake the Niger Delta struggle.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2016/09/militants-blow-another-pipeline-delta/

Police Arrest 6 Human Trafficking Syndicate, Rescue 12 Kids In Delta

Posted on September 9, 2016 by Staff Reporter

Police detectives attached to the Delta State Police Command, Asaba yesterday arrested six human trafficking syndicate who had been operating in Asaba and Okpanam communities, and rescued 12 out of the 15 children unharmed.

Police image maker in the state, Mrs. Celestina Kalu who confirmed the arrest of the suspects, said three others were on the run, adding that the suspects detained at the Police State CID were currently helping the police with further investigation.

She said that the leader of the syndicates, “Madam Cash” had been operating under cover up in a restaurant around Umuaji “Stop abortion”Quarters in Asaba where allegedly, she would often hoodwink unsuspecting parents of the kids to do business with her, before she ferries them out of the state.

http://leadership.ng/news/550008/police-arrest-6-human-trafficking-syndicate-rescue-12-kids-in-delta

Operation Crocodile Smile: Army destroys bunkering site, tanker in Delta

Posted on September 8, 2016 by Staff Reporter

As part of the exercise to free the Niger-Delta region of the menace of militancy, bunkering, kidnapping and other related vices, the men of the Nigeria Army, 19 Battalion, Koko, Warri North Local Government Area of Delta State have destroyed an illegal bunkering site and a tanker.

The exercise, which the military said is still ongoing in the region, is meant to send a red alert to the militants to retreat and desist from their nefarious act or be ready to face the wrought of the Nigeria military.

The 19 Battalion, under Lt. Col. Anthony Ozemhoya, has assured residents of the area of relative peace, adding that the purpose for the ‘Operation Crocodile Smile’ is to provide adequate security for the residents and government facilities, mostly in the Niger Delta region.

Ozemhoya stressed the need to keep the country and its people safe and ensure that its economy is protected from miscreants that are bent on destroying and bombing of pipelines, thus sabotaging the economy of the nation.

Group condemns WAEC’s relocation of Edo students to Ondo, Delta states.

Posted on September 8, 2016 by Staff Reporter

The Education Rights Campaign (ERC) has condemned the decision of the West African Examination Council (WAEC) to relocate 1,742 candidates sitting for the ongoing November/December West African Senior School Certificate Examination in Edo State to Ondo and Delta states, thereby increasing the financial expenses on poor working class guardians.

In a statement, the national coordinator, Hassan Taiwo Soweto stated that the decision of WAEC is exploitative and insensitive.

“As a public institution, WAEC has a responsibility towards candidates, their parents and guardians. That responsibility involves ensuring that in circumstances of this nature, candidates, their parents and guardians are not unnecessarily over burdened”, he said.

He, however, disclosed that WAEC took the decision to relocate the candidates because of the Edo State gubernatorial elections which was scheduled to take place on September 10, the day the candidates are expected to sit for Mathematics 1 and 2.

Furthermore, he demanded that WAEC bears the full cost of this relocation including cost of transportation and, where needed, accommodation of the candidates.

“As far as we are concerned, since the candidates and their parents were not responsible for the relocation, which was forced by the coincidence of the examination date with the date of the Edo gubernatorial elections, WAEC must bear the full cost including ensuring a hitch free exercise and the safety of the candidates”, he added

Delta Community Alleges Marginalisation In Okowa’s Administration

Posted on September 2, 2016 by Staff Reporter

Delta community cries out over exclusion in government Ukwuani Development Forum, UDF, has asked Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State and Delta State Independent Electoral Commission, DSIEC, to conduct a by-election in Ezhionum to elect a new Councillor to replace Mr. Emmanuel Atuma, who died in a motor accident while returning from work.

In a release after an extraordinary general meeting in Ezhionum, Ukwuani Local Government Area of Delta State, the group, in conjunction with HRM R.C. Osanwuta, the Ezhie of Ezhionum Kingdom and Ezhionum Development Association, EDA, wondered why the government of the day, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, would exclude the community in the scheme of things after giving the party massive support in the April 2015 general elections.

They expressed displeasure over alleged high level of marginalisation of the kingdom by the relevant authorities, saying since the demise of Atuma, the people of Ezhionum Kingdom have been excluded in the scheme of things as they no longer have a voice or representation in the legislative arm for over one year.

Delta Community Cries Out Over Heavy Military Presence

Posted on September 1, 2016 by Staff Reporter

Indigenes of Kokodiagbene, an Ijaw community in Gbaramatu kingdom in Warri South West Local Government Area of Delta State, yesterday cried out over heavy presence of military personnel in the riverside communities in search of illegal oil bunkerers and militants.

The Chairman of the community, Sheriff Mulade, in a statement, said the presence of military in patrol boats in search of criminals in the creeks has forced his people to be relocating deeper into the swamps for fear of attack.

He said though the deployment of the military personnel in the Niger Delta was a welcome development, enough enlightenment ought to have taken place before the commencement of ‘Exercise Crocodile Smile.’

No doubt, the presence of the military is a welcome development since it will help to protect oil installation, facilities and creeks. It will curb and prevent pirates attacking traders; reduce crime and eradicate illegal bunkering activities in the creek of the Niger Delta.

But, we want to strongly advise the military authorities to apply professionalism and diplomacy” adding that the deployment has raised unnecessary tension among the residents of riverine communities who now live in fear.

Most of our people are now relocating to nearby communities for safety due to the rumour of military invasion of flow stations and oil installations in host communities particularly in Gbaramatu kingdom.

“The people have therefore appeal to President Muhammadu Buhari and the military authority to direct the military personnel not to invade Kokodiagbene and other riverine communities in the name of illegal oil bunkers, criminals and militants,” he said.

Instead, the community leader strongly advised the military authority to go after the illegal bunkerers, militants and criminals in their hide out, noting that Gbaramatu kingdom does not host militants and oil illegal bunkerers.

Militants Blow Another Facility In Delta

Posted on August 30, 2016 by Staff Reporter

Despite the ongoing military “Operation Crocodile Smile” in the Niger Delta region, an Urhobo militant group, Niger Delta Greenland Justice Movement, NDGJM, in the early hours of today, blew up the Ogor-Oteri major delivery line, operated by the Nigeria Petroleum Development Company and Shorelines Petroleum in the state.

The group in a statement by its leader, “Gen” Aldo Agbalaja, in a statement, claiming responsibility for the attack at about 3.00 hours, said it was executed by its Uproot Team B, said the group was also launching “Operation Crocodile Tears” since the military had launched “Operation Crocodile Smile” to supposedly worsen the Niger Delta crisis.

It said: “Recent developments around our region, especially as it concerns the issue of justice and our inalienable right to protect our heritage, have proven us right all along. Now it has become clearer who is serious about getting justice for our people and who has been using the name of the region and the destinies of all our peoples to feather their nests, raising dusts merely to harass the Nigerian state and the oil multinationals into parting with money.”

“Although some selfish machinery, merely put together to achieve some pecuniary ends, has been parading in the name of the peoples of the Niger Delta, the Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate will not be derailed on its mission to getting justice for the people.”
The group said those who want to join the self acclaimed leaders of the region to make quick money in the arrangement they had put together were free to do so, but it lacked confidence in the show they put together, calling it a pan Niger Delta initiative. It said those people could speak for Ijaw nation, but certainly not all the nations in the region, adding:

“When lines are blurred, justice is most likely to be miscarried. If there shall be a negotiation, it must be seen and indeed, must be in actual sense, be representing all the individual nations of the region equally.”

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2016/08/breaking-news-militants-blow-another-facility-delta/

Troops Raid Bunkerer, Militant Camps In Delta

Posted on August 30, 2016 by Staff Reporter

Troops of 4 Brigade of the Nigerian Army have raided a suspected oil bunker and militant camps at Afiagbene in Burutu Local Government Area of Delta but nobody was found.

Acting Director, Army Public Relations, Col. Sani Usman, said in a statement on Tuesday that the troops carried the raid in collaboration with the Navy.

Usman said the raid was part of the field training exercise on the day 4 of the ongoing operation nicknamed: “Operation Crocodile Smile” in the Niger Delta.He said the troops, however, recovered two generators, one locally made double barrel gun, one dane gun, three live cartridges and two pumping machines.

Others, he said, were one 32 inches LG television, one Kenwood amplifier and 4 X 50 litres of a liquid suspected to be crude oil at Ayakoromo junction.

Credit: NAN

FG, Delta Collaborate To Check Spread Of Lassa

Posted on August 24, 2016 by Staff Reporter

The Federal Ministry of Health says it is collaborating with Delta Government to enhance disease surveillance and curtail the spread of Lassa Fever recorded in the state.

Prof. Isaac Adewole, Minister of Health made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Wednesday.

The minister was represented during the interview by the Deputy Director, Media and Public Relations of the ministry, Mr Olajide Oshundun.The minister said that the ministry would commence a national campaign to create more awareness on the Lass Fever considering the fact that the disease usually comes during the rainy season.

Adewoye, who advised Nigerians not to panic, however, called on them to maintain good hygiene.

NAN reports that Delta Ministry of Health has confirmed one person dead (a medical doctor) while 32 others are on surveillance, following reported case of Lassa fever in the state on Aug. 18.

Credit: NAN

Two Members Of Niger Delta Avengers Arrested In Delta

Posted on August 13, 2016 by Staff Reporter

The Nigerian Navy, on Saturday, paraded two suspects believed to members of the dreaded militant group, Niger Delta Avengers, who were apprehended by men of the Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) Delta.

Parading the suspects at the Warri Naval Base, Warri, Commander, NNS Delta, Commodore Joseph Dzunve said the suspects were behind series of attack on oil and gas facilities especially in Warri South West Council Area of the state.

Commodore Dzunve, disclosed that the suspects were behind the attacks on Chevron Nigerian Limited (CNL) facilities within May and July 2016.

The two suspects who were identified as Stanley Toghan and Felix Miyenminiye were arrested in Sapele area of the state.

http://punchng.com/navy-arrests-two-niger-delta-avengers-members/

Pregnant Woman Shot Dead Over Land In Delta

Posted on August 12, 2016 by Staff Reporter

Five persons have been declared missing after Enwhe and Igbide communities of Isoko South Local Government Area of Delta state clashed over a disputed plot of land.

It was gathered that a woman with six and half month-old pregnancy was also shot dead during the fracas.

It was also gathered that the five missing persons comprising three women and two men had not been seen by their relatives since last Monday fracas.

Igbide community also claimed that one Prince Palmer Obukeni and a woman with six and a half month old pregnancy were also shot dead during the clash.

A source in the community said that trouble started when some women from Enwhe who had gone to harvest cassava on Monday morning were allegedly attacked by suspected gunmen from Igbide at the site of the disputed land.

The Enwhe community women who escaped the ambush alerted their kinsmen who also mobilised to confront suspected warriors from Igbide community. The clash led to serious injuries.

Source said the five persons have been missing since the incident took place, noting that the push carts meant to carry the harvested cassava home were found abandoned without trace of their owners.

The President General of Enwhe community, Mr Sunday Egboye, when contacted said that the matter has been reported with the police in the area.

Ogboye alleged that the suspected attackers from Igbide community were behind the missing farmers.

He disclosed that a truce committee site up by the Isoko Development Union and headed by Mr Vincent Omurie was working towards an amicable settlement of the land dispute.

He added that he want a lasting peace brokered between the two communities stressing that his people have nothing to gain in a crisis reddened situation.

The President General of Igbide community, Mr Alex Edegware, denied the allegation that the Igbide people were responsible for the violent attack.

http://punchng.com/pregnant-woman-shot-dead-land-delta/

Delta State: Prosper Esegbue Defects To The APC Along With Over 1000 Supporters.

Posted on July 28, 2016 by Staff Reporter

Barrister Prosper Esegbue, former Chairmanship Aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party in Ukwuani Local Government Area of Delta State, has defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC) with his supporters numbering over 1000.

The former PDP chieftain, who addressed his supporters during the defection ceremony at Obiaruku, maintained that he decided with his followers to move to APC after realising that PDP had nothing more to offer Nigerians having destroyed the country for 16 years.

The legal luminary explained that since the inception of democracy in Nigeria, it has been the same old story from the PDP, whereas, they at the leadership positions have failed to address the plights of their electorate, instead, they continue to fill their pockets with stolen money to the detriment of those they are made to serve.

He lamented that even workers salaries had not been paid for one and a half years after, as other social amenities needed by the good people of Delta State were also not forthcoming.

He revealed that a reception party has been arranged for him and his overwhelming supporters from Ukwuani at the state capital by the leadership of Delta State APC and at the National level, predicting that better days are ahead for all APC controlled States as well as the national level.

Barrister Esegbue called on all Deltans particularly the people of Ukwuani Local Government Area to have faith in APC for total transformation and change to the people, appealed that they should give the government of President Muhammadu Buhari maximum support, and have patience with his government.

Militants Bomb Shell Pipeline In Delta

Posted on July 19, 2016 by Staff Reporter

Daring militants monday blasted an oil pipeline belonging to the Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) in Batan community in Warri South West Local Government area of Delta State.

Security sources said that the incident occurred at SPDC Camp Five at about 1 a.m. with a huge fire enveloping the site of the attack.

“Suspected militants attacked the SPDC pipeline in Batan at about 1 a.m. with dynamites. As I am speaking, the place is engulfed with fire but efforts are being made to put it off,” one security source said.

Another community source confirmed the incident, stating that they heard a huge explosion around midnight only to discover it was a pipeline belonging to Shell that had been blasted.

He said: “We heard a huge explosion when we were sleeping. We rushed out and found that the Shell pipeline was on fire. We are not sure whether it was militants that caused it or not.”

The Niger Delta Advengers (NDA), the militant group that has claimed responsibility for the destruction of oil facilities in the Niger Delta, was yet to claim responsibility at the time of filing this report.

Instead, the group disclaimed reports of a meeting between itself and the Minister of Youths and Sports, Solomon Dalung, at Oporoza in Warri South West Local Government Area of Delta State.
Reacting to the minister’s claim that he met with the Avengers at the weekend, the militant group said he must have been duped by fraudsters since it did not send any representatives to “meet with a common minister”.

“The Minister of Youths and Sports, Solomon Dalung narrated how he met with some self claimed Niger Delta Avengers in Oporoza, Gbaramatu Kingdom. We are here to let the general public know that Niger Delta fraudsters have defrauded the minister.

“Niger Delta Avengers can’t stoop so low to send representatives to meet with a common Minister of Youths and Sports that doesn’t know his work.

“Let us make this clear, any meeting with Niger Delta Avengers that the international community is not part of as witness, we will not be part of any such dialogue,” it said in a press release signed by its spokesperson, Mudoch Agbinibo.

Credit: Thisday

NDLEA Arrests 135 Indian Hemp Sellers In Delta

Posted on April 12, 2016 by Staff Reporter

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No fewer than 135 Indian hemp sellers have been arrested by the National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency, Delta State command.

The suspects were caught on Monday with 160 bags of Indian hemp.

Mr. Frank Hannachor, the state commander of the agency, confirmed that operatives of the agency acted on a tip-off in Obiaruku and Kwale community where Indian hemp smoking and cultivation have been beehive of activities in the past three years and arrested the suspects, adding that the suspects were handed over to the police for prosecution.

Noting that hard drugs including Indian hemp were against the laws, the NDLEA boss disclosed that the state command in the past six months has recorded arrests of those involved in the use of hard drugs including Indian hemp, adding that the command will not relent in its efforts to make the state under his leadership free of illicit drugs.

“We have recorded tremendous arrests of drugs users, especially when our men were on routine patrol along Asaba – Benin Express Way, around Issele-Azagba, in Obiaruku, Kwale, Umutu, and some part of Asaba,” he said.
“Indian hemp business thrives, but we will not allow such under my leadership, we believe we can eradicate the ills.”
Hannachor warned that NDLEA will deal with those who refused to eschew the use of hard drugs.

Credit: Punch

Why I Went Back To Secondary School, 60 Year Old Wheelbarrow Pusher Explains

Posted on April 4, 2016 by Staff Reporter

A 60-year-old man, Mr. Adalabu Seribor, who is a Junior Secondary School II (JSS II) student at Izon College, Bomadi-Overside in Bomadi Local Government Area of Delta State, is currently the talk of the town.

Seribor, a wheelbarrow pusher popularly called Oyibo in the community, disclosed how he took the decision to go to school at old age, a development that had kept many people wondering what he wanted to achieve in school at such an age.

Speaking with Southern City News, Seribor said, “I am sixty years now and I decided to go to school at this age because I perpetually feel the pain of being an illiterate in this modern world where everything has to do with English and education.

“My mother died during child birth when I was a little boy while my father was a hunter. I was bred by a grandmother after the death of my mother and later taken to a step-mother when my father remarried.

“I went through pains and hardship at my tender age to adulthood. It would interest you to know that I was so tender at the time my mother died that I was crying for food while she lay dead.

“I went through struggles all through my life history. I had the opportunity to go to school at my young age, when a relative who was a magistrate at Ekeremor in Bayelsa State took me to his house.

“But because of early morning beatings due to my failure to greet him when rising from bed, I went back to my father. I had no opportunity to go to school since then, and continued in hard labour to survive in life, which I am still doing.”

Narrating further how he took the decision to attend school at his current age, he said, “I realized that without education, one cannot do well in this present society. I also do not want a situation whereby someone else would interpret or write for me if eventually I am chosen to hold an office in my community.

“I make a living by pushing wheelbarrow. After school hours, I go back home to look for work to do, which I have been doing for a living. I pay my school fees from there. I am determined to complete my education because of the pains in my heart.

“I see that one cannot do well without education in this society. I do various menial jobs for a living. I pack dirt from gutters; I pack sand, clear grasses in people’s compounds and pack soak-away faeces in the dead of the night. I am a JSS II student and by the grace of God, I will finish from this school.”

Seribor said he would proceed to Teachers’ Training College at the end of his secondary education in order to achieve his dream of becoming a teacher.

“I want to teach and I advised young boys and girls wasting their time and years roaming the streets

to go to school. If I can go to school, then why are young people wasting themselves,” he queried.

His class teacher, Mr. Edsemi Anesah, described Seribor as a committed and hardworking student.

“My encouragement to him is that he should hold onto his determination. He is the oldest student in the school and I advise young people out there to emulate him,” Anesah added.

Credit: Sun

Delta Govt. To Partner With S/African Firm To Establish World Class Hospital

Posted on March 15, 2016 by Staff Reporter

Gov. Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta on Monday said the State would partner South African firm to develop world class hospital to boost medical tourism in the state.

Okowa stated this when he received the management team of Group 5 Construction Company, a South African firm led by Mr Themba Mosai in Asaba.

The governor said preliminary meetings were on to explore the possibility of building the hospital to make the state medical tourism centre.

He said desire to make the state a destination for health services was laudable, adding that a lot of money leaves Nigeria daily based on health care related issues.

The governor said it was innovative for the company to source for resources for the development of the project.

He assured that government would find a reasonable ground to partner with them to ensure that the project was realised.

“If we have a hospital of international standard that will meet the medical need of those travelling abroad for treatment, it will be an investment that will yield results and profits for the state.

“Investing in Delta state is like investing in Nigeria because we are one of the biggest oil and gas producing states in the country.

“I believe that the partnership will be beneficial to both sides and we hope to have a fruitful deliberation with your company”, Okowa said.

Earlier, Mosai said that they were in the state to discuss with the government on partnership to develop a world class hospital in the state to make it a medical tourism destination.

He said the local community would be involved in the construction of the project.

“This will not only create job opportunities for the host community, it will also improve the area economically”, Mosai said.

(NAN)

Supreme Court Dismisses Appeal Filed Against Delta, Yobe, Oyo Governors

Posted on February 2, 2016 by Staff Reporter

The Supreme Court in Nigeria has dismissed appeal filed against the election of the Governors of Delta, Yobe and Oyo States.

Giving the ruling on Tuesday, the Court held that the appeal filed by Emerhor Otega of the All Progressives Congress and great Ogboru of the Labour Party against Governor Okowa of Delta State lacked merit.

Similarly the Court dismissed appeal filed by Rashidi Ladoja of the Accord Party against Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State as abuse of court process.

All the judgments were unanimous and the court has fixed February 15 to give reasons for the judgement.

Credit: ChannelsTv

Okowa Condemns Murder Of Traditional Ruler, Promises Justice

Posted on January 26, 2016 by Staff Reporter

Gov. Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta has condemned the gruesome murder of Obi Ofulue III, the Obi of Ubulu-Uku in Aniocha North Local Government Area of the state and promised to unmask the assailants.

Okowa spoke on Monday, during a condolence visit to the Obi’s Palace at Ubulu-Uku. The governor assured members of the Obi-in-Council and the people of Ubulu-Uku that security operatives would unmask those involved in the heinous crime that led to the death of the traditional ruler.

Okowa described the incident as unfortunate and terrible, adding that a promising traditional ruler in the state had to be killed in his prime.

“This is terrible, this is something nobody prays for, unfortunately, it has happened, he was one of the promising traditional rulers we had in the state; a peace-builder, and at all times you see the royalty in him. “It is my prayer and the prayers of all Deltans that the almighty God will give the people the fortitude to bear this loss. ‘’God alone gives peace and may He give you (the people of Ubulu-Uku Kingdom) the peace of mind required to take the next step in going forward.

“The police have made some arrests, the State Security Service and other security agencies are working to unravel what happened. “Our country is being bedeviled by one manner of kidnapping and abduction or the other. ‘’We never knew that it would deteriorate to a level where a royal father would be abducted and murdered,” the governor lamented. Okowa called for calm saying, “as we mourn, we must ensure that there is peace in the community”.

Mr Joseph Obaze, Secretary to the Obi-in-Council, who responded on behalf of the council, commended the efforts made by the governor and security agencies during the trying period.. He said: “This has never happened in the history of Ubulu-Uku Kingdom and we would like the culprits to be brought to book.”

(NAN)

First Case Of Lassa Fever Confirmed In Delta

Posted on January 18, 2016 by Staff Reporter

The Ministry of Health in Delta on Monday announced that it had confirmed the first case of Lassa fever in the state.

This is contained in a statement signed by Mr. Churchill Oyewo, Public Relations Officer of the ministry and issued to newsmen in Asaba.

The statement said that the index case occurred after a 65-year-old woman from neigbouring Anambra was admitted at St. Joseph’s Hospital, Asaba.

It said that the woman was referred to Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Asaba, when her conditioned worsened.

The statement said that the case was later confirmed as Lassa fever at the Virology Laboratory, Specialist Hospital, Irrua, Edo.

Credit: Nation

How Commercial Sex Workers In Delta Attack Customers Over Unpaid Bills

Posted on January 4, 2016 by Staff Reporter

Pandemonium broke out on Saturday at the popular cable point base of commercial sex workers in Asaba, Delta State when some commercial sex workers went berserk and allegedly attacked their customers over unpaid bills.

At the wake of the melee, it was reliably gathered that the commercial sex workers had resolved to increase their charges and had warned their customers who do not want to comply to steer clear of them but this was not to be as the victims claimed they were not put in the know of their new charges.

Eye witness, Ngozi Njeh said that a round of sex which used to be N1,000.00 was increased to N2,000 while a night often called ‘Day Break’ which used to be N5,000 was increased to N8,000; a situation the victims commercial sex workers.

It was further gathered that trouble started when the victims entered into one of the brothels (name with eld) as usual. At negotiations with the commercial sex workers, they agreed to pay for a night at N8,000 each.

Anabel Onweh, one of the commercial sex workers said “the victims agreed to pay us N8,000 each and we took them in, after using us, the following morning they were giving us N4,000 as against our bargain and we decided to attack them and beat them mercilessly because we know what brought us to this brothel’’.

Investigation revealed that the victims were allegedly subjected to drinking private part washing water after their clothes were torn and injuries inflicted on them before Police at the A-Division came to their rescue.

At the A-Division Police Station, an officer who gave his name as Raphael (Surname withheld) said “we moved into the brothel with our men when we heard a shouting match between the commercial sex workers and their customers and on interrogation we discovered the customers refused to pay their bills and the matter was resolved amicably.”

Credit: Leadership

Okowa Moves To Revamp Delta Steel Company

Posted on December 15, 2015 by Staff Reporter

Delta State Government has instituted a three-man committee on Delta Steel Company, DSC, Ovwian- Aladja, Udu Local Government Area, with a mandate to rally stakeholders in revamping the moribund plant.

The Committee on DSC has former Delta State commissioner, Elegbete Moses Odibo, as Chairman while Sir Emmanuel Okafor, former Permanent Secretary, will serve as Secretary, with Mrs. Lynda Onovughe as member.

Secretary to Delta State Government, Mr. Festus Agas, who inaugurated the committee in Asaba on behalf of Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, charged members to be productive and dedicated in the assigned task.

He listed the team’s terms of reference to include liaising with the Federal and Delta State Governments, the company and host communities to resuscitate the company, submit an interim report to the state governor within 45 days on the best measures to ensure resumption of production within the shortest possible time.

Credit : Vanguard

Fulani Herdsmen Kidnap 3 Building Contractors In Delta

Posted on December 7, 2015 by Staff Reporter

Suspected Fulani herdsmen, weekend, kidnapped three building contractors at Amorji, a suburb Onicha-Ukwani community, Ndokwa West Local Government Area, Delta State.

Though the names of those kidnapped could not be ascertained at press time, it was reported that they were abducted while working at a fenced site in the community.
“According to an eye witness, it was these Fulani herdsmen that kidnapped these persons who were doing their job and took them hostage,” an indigene of the community, Joe Ossai, said.
He said: “For some time now, these herdsmen have occupied almost all the communities in Onicha-Ukwani, particularly Amorji and driven the people out of the village.
“My people are seriously hungry because there is no food for them to eat, the easy access road to Kwale had been taken over by Fulani herdsmen. The worst part of it all is that they went ahead and brought their families to be feeding from the communities’ crops they invaded.”
Also speaking on the development, President of Anti-Cult, Ndokwa nation, Mr. Austin Emu, said: “They have been communicating for ransom, but we do not know if they are purely Fulani herdsmen or if our people are also so involved.”
Contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer the Delta State command, Celestina Kalu said the police was on top of the matter.

Credit : Vanguard

INEC Confirms Delta State Governor Scored More Votes Than Number Of Voters

Posted on August 28, 2015 by Staff Reporter

The Delta State governorship election petition tribunal, sitting in Asaba, has admitted four key documents, including card readers’ accreditation report, tendered by officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission.

The accreditation report submitted by INEC showed that the number of accredited voters for the April 11 governorship election in Delta state was lower than the results announced by electoral officials after the polls.

Two INEC officials – Assistant Director, ICT Department from Abuja headquarters and Chief Planning Officer, Delta State office – were directed to give testimony on the conduct of the April 11 election, following the request by the All Progressives Congress and its candidate, Emerhor Otega.

The Delta election, won by Ifeanyi Okowa of the Peoples Democratic Party, is being challenged by the APC and Mr. Otega.

Apart from the accreditation report, other documents tendered by the INEC officials at the commencement of hearing Wednesday, included, manual for election officials 2015; INEC’s April 2, 2015 press statement making accreditation through use of card readers only mandatory for the governorship elections; and guidelines and regulations for the conduct of 2015 general elections.

In their testimony, the INEC officials said that “all documents tendered were duly certified by INEC, that the card reader has three (3) functions to with; identification of voters, verification of PVC holder and voter’s authentication on Election Day.”

Further, the tribunal was told that “the card readers recorded no sustained failure during the governorship election in delta state and accredited numbers of voters as at April 29th was 709,000 and at the expiration of the shutting down of data upload, the final tally was 715,393.”

But on April 13, Delta State INEC had put the figure of accredited voters at 1,017,796, exceeding actual accreditation number revealed by the admitted report obtained from INEC central server.

In Nigeria’s technology driven 2015 elections, INEC central server generated data real time from card readers across polling units. This was to detect malpractices, especially inflation of numbers.

Announcing Mr. Okowa as the winner of the election on April 13, the Returning Officer, Bio Nyananyo, said the PDP candidate polled 724,680 votes, which translated to 14,980 votes higher than actual number of accredited voters.

Admissibility of the documents and ordering of INEC staff to give testimony on the conduct of the election had been strongly objected by Mr. Okowa, but was dismissed by the tribunal.

Premium Times

Drama As ‘Dead’ Man Gives Witness At Delta State Tribunal

Posted on August 13, 2015 by Staff Reporter

There was drama on Wednesday at the Delta State National Assembly Election Petition Tribunal when a witness presumed to be dead showed up in court.

Christopher Anirah was subpoenaed by the tribunal to give evidence an election petition matter between Hon. Gibson Ighofose Akporehe of the All Progressive Congress (APC) and Hon. Evelyn Omavowan Oboro of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).

Counsel to the APC candidate, Mr. Charles Umweni, had told the tribunal that the witness it intends to call, (Anirah) cannot come to the tribunal to testify because he was dead.

He told the tribunal that Anirah died of cardiac attack and cannot be subpoenaed to give evidence in
the ongoing case.

But at the resumed hearing of the matter, a middle aged man who claimed to be Anirah stormed the tribunal and stepped into the witness box to give evidence when the chairman of the three-man panel, Justice Adebukole Banjoko called out the name.

Anirah’s appearance caused a stir in the audience, prompting Justice Banjoko to call for calm.

Akporehe of APC is challenging the election victory of Oboro in the National Assembly election held in the state.

Joined in the suit are – the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Resident Electoral Commission (REC), PDP and eight others.

Anirah is Oboro’s star witness in the matter.

Anirah , during a cross- examination, by respondents counsel , Mr. Onome Egbon, told the tribunal that he was the rightful candidate of APC for the Okpe, Sapele and Uvwie Federal Constituency in Delta State in the 2015 National Assembly election until his name was ‘fraudulently substituted” with that of Akporehe on account that he (Anirah) was dead.

He told the tribunal that Akporehe allegedly forged a death certificate from a General Hospital that he (Anirah) died of cardiac failure and hypertension, with which he deceived INEC to remove his name from the list of contestants for the election.

He also told the tribunal that somebody who posed as his family member was made to testify before INEC that the death rumour was true.

JTF Destroys 32 Illegal Refineries In Delta

Posted on June 18, 2015 by Staff Reporter

The Joint Task Force (JTF), Operation Pulo Shied, on Wednesday said it had destroyed 32 illegal refineries in Delta.

Isa Ado, the Coordinator of the Joint Media Campaign Centre, disclosed this to media personnel at the headquarters of the 3 Infantry Battalion, Effurun in Delta.

Ado, who spoke on behalf of the Commander of JTF, Operation Pulo Shield, Maj-Gen Emmanuel, said the operations were carried out in seven days by the Sub-sector 1 of the JTF in Effurun.

He said the actions were carried out in Odimodi, Yokri, Forcados, Oteghele, Opumani and Beneath Island communities in Burutu and Warri South-West Local Government areas of the state.

Ado also said the operation saw the destruction of 86 drums and 25 surface tanks filled with stolen crude oil, adding that 27 dugout pits were discovered in the raid.

Over 10 tents belonging to the criminals were reportedly also set ablaze.

“Other illegal oil bunkering equipment discovered during the operation includes 29 cooking oven and 10 pumping machines.

“The sites and the products were destroyed in line with the JTF operation in Niger Delta.

“The operation is a continuous one based on intelligent information aimed at eradicating illegal oil bunkering in the region,” he said.

Ado said JTF would not relent in its efforts at stemming illegal bunkering in the creeks and territorial waterways.

“We have been highly motivated with the procurement of 30 fighting gun boats and 30 operational patrol vans to combat crime in the region.

“I assure you of the command’s determination in the war against oil theft, pipeline vandalism and other criminal activities affecting the socio-economic development in the region,” he said.

Ado, however, called on the people of Delta and indeed the entire Niger Delta region to assist the task force with useful information to enable it track miscreants in the region.

Credit: NAN

It’s Not Time For Defection – Great Ogboru

Posted on May 16, 2015 by Staff Reporter

The candidate of the Labour Party in the 2015 governorship election in Delta State, Great Ogboru, has denied plans to dump his party for the All Progressives Congress.

?Ogboru stated this on Friday at the wedding reception of the Edo State Governor, Adams Oshiomhole, and his wife, Iara, at Iyamho, Estako West Local Government Area of the state.

?He described media reports about his alleged plan to dump his party for the APC as a rumour as he was yet to decide whether to defect from the LP to the APC or any other political party.

The industrialist, who lost the April 11 poll to Senator Ifeanyi Okowa of the Peoples Democratic Party, said the time to consider a change of party had not come.

Why We Blew Up Oil Facilities In Delta, Urhobo Militant Group Explains

Posted on May 13, 2015 by Staff Reporter

Aggrieved Urhobo militants, under the aegis of Urhobo Gbagbako, have said that their decision to blow up oil facilities in Ihwrenen and Ejophe communities in Ughelli North and Ughelli South Local Government Areas, Delta State, was informed by what they described as marginalization and neglect of Urhobo nation by the outgoing administration of President Goodluck Jonathan.

The group, in a statement by its National Chairman, Otega Obire, said: “The Urhobo nation, as the fifth largest ethnic group in the country, has long been marginalized in the presidential amnesty programme and pipeline surveillance jobs and contracts. Even the Delta Steel Company, DSC, Aladja, that is supposed to be the only federal project in Urhoboland, has been grounded for years.”

Warning that the Urhobo hospitality, simplicity and maturity exhibited to ensure the smooth functioning of government at all levels, should not be mistaken for cowardice, the group in the statement, told the incoming government to create a level playing ground for bidding and allocation of contracts in the oil pipeline surveillance with particular reference to the “Urhobos who are the major host communities of oil facilities and gas plants in line with the Local Content Act.”

Calling for the speedy resuscitation of DSC to reduce unemployment and restiveness in their domain, and by extension promote the economic fortunes of the people, the militants, said: “We accepted change before the elections because we strongly believed in the capacity of the president-elect, General Muhamadu Buhari, to correct the wrongs done to us by the outgoing administration.

“We have resolved to prevail and calm all aggrieved Urhobo youths for a ceasefire after due consultation and meetings with our channels of communication with the incoming government, but it has to be quick in order to avoid a return to the dark days of militancy.”

Credit: vanguardngr

James Ibori’s Daughter Wins House Of Assembly Seat in Delta State

Posted on April 13, 2015 by Staff Reporter

The Independent National Electoral Commission has declared Erhiatake Ibori, daughter of former governor of Delta State, Chief James Ibori, winner of the Ethiope West Constituency seat in Delta State. Erhiatake, who contested for the seat under the platform of the PDP was declared winner by INEC after she polled a total of 32,700 votes, compared to the 1,429 recorded by her closest rival- Edirin Ajueshi Ejidiran of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Governor Uduaghan Bemoans Killing Of Oneya’s Daughter

Posted on October 14, 2014 by Staff Reporter

Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta State has bemoaned the killing of Ms Frances Oneya, daughter of former military administrator of Kano and Benue States, General Dominic Oneya.

The late Ms. Oneya was shot dead on Friday in Effurun by suspected armed robbers who accosted her shortly after she left a bank.
Governor Uduaghan, who paid a condolence visit to the home of the Oneyas, said the killing of the 35-year-old mother of four was unfortunate.

The governor regretted that the incident came at a time the security situation in the state was thought to have improved.
Uduaghan promised to assist the police in ensuring that the killers are arrested and brought to book.
Dr. Uduaghan assured Deltans of his administration’s commitment to the protection of lives and property.

Rich Kids, Poor Kids: States And The Pot Called Federal Allocation – Ogunyemi Bukola

Posted on June 4, 2014 by Staff Reporter

Yesterday budget and public data analysis platform BudgIT shared how much in total each state in Nigeria received as Federal Allocation in 2013. The list was divided into two. The top ten earner states:

And the bottom ten:

So this morning I decided to dance around the data a bit and see if numbers could talk. Here’s what numbers said:

My analysis is centred on the Top Four, and Top Six, states (the rich kids), and the Bottom Four, and Bottom Six, states (the poor kids). Figures are approximates.

The Top Four states (Akwa Ibom, Rivers, Delta, and Bayelsa) received a total of N928.2 billion in Federation Allocations in 2013. This is 5 times the total allocation of the Bottom Four (Nassarawa, Osun, Ekiti and Ebonyi) who received N176.6 billion.

The Top Six states (Akwa Ibom, Rivers, Delta, Bayelsa, Lagos and Kano) received a total of N1.1 trillion in Federal Allocations in 2013. This is 4 times the total allocation of the Bottom Six (Kwara, Gombe, Nassarawa, Osun, Ekiti and Ebonyi) who received N272.4 billion.

Bayelsa’s N182.5 billion is more than the combined allocation of Nassarawa, Osun, Ekiti and Ebonyi (bottom four) – N176.6 billion. The N237.8 billion Rivers got is more than the combined allocation of Gombe, Nassarawa, Osun, Ekiti and Ebonyi (bottom five) – N223.1 billion. While top earner Akwa Ibom got N293.5 billion in 2013, the bottom six of Kwara, Gombe, Nassarawa, Osun, Ekiti and Ebonyi got N272.4 billion combined.

It gets even better.

Akwa Ibom got 7 times the total allocation of Ebonyi. This means Akwa Ibom got in one year what Ebonyi will get in 7 years if rates are fixed. Rich Kid Bayelsa got 4 times the allocation of Poor Kid Osun.

Numbers wouldnt stop talking so I went online to get the population data of the Rick Kids, and the Poor Kids. Here’s what I found:

What did numbers say?

The Top Four earner states have a combined population of 17.5 million (2011 projection figures), add Lagos and Kano to that and the population more than doubles, to 39.3 million. Divide the total allocation received by population and you realize the Top Four got about N53,ooo per citizen. This figure comes down to N28,000 per citizen when Lagos and Kano are considered.

Let’s see what the poor folks are up to:

Bottom Four total population is about 11.5 million, this goes up to 17 million when Gombe and Kwara states enter the fray. N15,000 per citizen is what you get when total allocation of bottom four states is divided by the total population, this goes up to N16,000 per citizen when all six states are considered.

For individual states, Akwa Ibom: N64,000 per citizen is what Akwa Ibom got, Bayelsa is N93,000 per citizen, more than 5 times the N17,000 per citizen for Ebonyi.

A quick look at the map of Nigeria shows that Top Four states are from the oil-rich South-South region. That is not surprising. What is surprising is that only one state from the North, Nassawara (North-Central), is in the Bottom Four, with two from South-West (Osun and Ekiti) and one from South-East.

Numbers started speaking French when I compared the data with primary school enrollment figures, state GDP, WAEC pass rates, health reports etc.

Instead of having all 36 come to him every month, one wearing Louboutins, the other rubber slippers, to give one money for private jet back home and the other just enough to board a train, why cant Big Daddy just let the mothers of these kids take care of them?

Ogunyemi Bukola (@zebbook) writes from Lagos. www.zebbook.com