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Tag: Delta

  • Peter Obi Receives Hero’s Welcome On His “Thank You Tour” In Delta, Edo

    Peter Obi Receives Hero’s Welcome On His “Thank You Tour” In Delta, Edo

    The presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi, in the recently concluded presidential election, was given a rousing reception in Delta and Edo State on Saturday.

    In Delta State, the crowd went frenzy and kept shouting “Obi, Obi, Obi” as the Labour Party candidate waved with a huge smile on his face.

    Obi, who came third in the February 25 election, stopped over in Delta and Edo States to thank his supporters.

    The Labour Party Presidential Candidate secured the highest votes in Delta and Edo, controlled by the PDP.

    On Saturday, Obi was in Edo and Delta states where he received a hero’s welcome and also hailed his supporters better known as Obidients for their backing.

    “I passed through Edo state today. I stopped by briefly to express my profound gratitude to the OBIdients for their support and asked them to extend same to the Governorship and House of Assembly candidates,” he tweeted about his visit to Edo.

    “People who voted for me across the nation voted for hope. I have never rigged elections and have never paid anybody to do the same. I have never bought votes and I have never paid anybody to vote for me and I will never do so,” he said after a town hall meeting in the State.

  • Violent Protest Rocks Oyo, Delta, Edo Over Naira Scarcity

    Violent Protest Rocks Oyo, Delta, Edo Over Naira Scarcity

    Protests have broken out in several states across the country, including Oyo, Delta, and Edo, over the scarcity of the new N200, N500, N1,000 notes and rejection of the old naira bills.

    This comes less than two weeks after residents of Ibadan, Oyo State took to the streets in protest against the hardship triggered by the naira notes swap and fuel price hike.

    Violent demonstrations were held on Wednesday in Ibadan and Udu, near Warri, the commercial hub of Delta State.

    The protests were in reaction to banks nationwide refusing the old currency in line with a position taken by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), although the Supreme Court had ruled that the apex bank’s February 10 deadline be suspended temporarily.

    The position has since led to a standoff between the CBN and the governors of various states, including Kano, Ogun and Ondo, who challenged the apex bank and/or the banks in their respective states that continue to reject the old currency.

    There were demonstrations in different parts of Ibadan, such as Mokola, resulting in a gridlock along Eleyele/Eruwa road.

    Cars were turned back at some point while some schoolchildren were forced to return home as a result of the protest.

    Commercial activities were grounded as the Mokola Road was turned into a football field.

    Most major roads were deserted as many residents resorted to trekking long distances.

  • Gunmen Attack Mosque, Kidnap Imam, Injure 11 Worshippers In Delta

    Gunmen Attack Mosque, Kidnap Imam, Injure 11 Worshippers In Delta

    Gunmen in the early hours of yesterday attacked a mosque in Ughelli, Delta State, leaving about 11 worshippers injured.

    It was learnt that a deputy Imam, simply identified as Mallam Muhammadu Sani, was abducted by the armed men who stormed the mosque at around 6a.m.

    The development which is currently stirring tension in Ughelli happened at Otovwievwiere Street in Okorodafe axis of the Ughelli metropolis.

    The armed men were said to have released a volley of gun shots into the air before abducting their victim.

    It was gathered that the gunmen, five in numbers in an unidentified Toyota Sienna, stormed the Mosque just when the worshippers were about to commence the morning prayers.

    Secretary of Arewa Community, Ughelli North, Darlington Ahmed Garma, told journalists that “At about 6:15a.m. unknown persons came with an ash colour Toyota Sienna, they parked opposite the mosque.

    “Two men entered the mosque, as they were taking the Imam, Mallam Muhammadu Sani away, they told the remaining members that were performing their morning prayer to go outside.

    “Before they got outside the mosque, 11 worshippers were shut and they are currently on admission at Ughelli Central Hospital,” he said.

    One of the injured victims that spoke from the hospital bed, Muhammed Bagudu disclosed that the gunmen with their faces masked entered the mosque and began to shoot people.

    “They shot me, my brother, one of the Imams and went away with another Imam, Muhammadu Sani from Katsina State.

    When journalists got to Ughelli Central Hospital, some of the 11 victims were seen at the Accident and Emergency unit receiving treatment.

    Delta State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Bright Edafe, confirmed the incident but said that only 11 worshippers were injured in the attack.

    He, however, did not confirm the abduction of three worshippers.

    “I just called the DPO at Ughelli and he confirmed to me that 11 persons were injured in the attack at the mosque.

    “However, the police have commenced investigation into the incident and we will update you as we work to unravel the culprits.

    “For now, no arrest has been made but I can assure you that we will get those involved,” Edafe said.

  • 2023: Court Restores Oborevwori As Delta PDP Governorship Candidate

    2023: Court Restores Oborevwori As Delta PDP Governorship Candidate

    The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja has restored the Speaker of Delta State House of Assembly Oborevwori Sheriff as the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the state in the 2023 general elections.

    The appellate court voided and set aside the judgment of Justice Taiwo Taiwo of the Federal High Court which had on July 7 nullified his nomination on grounds of certificate forgery and perjury.

    Justice Peter Ige, who delivered the judgment, held that claims against the Speaker are criminal in nature and must be proved beyond a reasonable doubt.

    He also held that Mister David Edevbie, who instituted the Federal High Court suit, ought to have approached the court through a Writ of Summons to enable the resolution of disputes and not by originating summons where only affidavit evidence is required.

    The judge further held that issue of certificate forgery and faking of documents allegations against the Speaker are such that required witnesses from those who issued the certificates and the alleged fake documents.

    Justice Ige, therefore, affirmed the victory of the Speaker in the May 25 primary election where he polled 590 votes to defeat Edevbie who scored only 113 votes to come second.

    Details later…

  • CBN enlightens Delta residents on eNaira usage

    CBN enlightens Delta residents on eNaira usage

    By Isaac Kertyo

    The Central Bank of Nigeria, on Friday, enlightened and encouraged Nigerians to embrace the use of eNaira and other programmes to grow Nigeria economy.

    The CBN Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele, who stated this at the end of two days CBN Fair on Friday in Asaba, said that the Apex Bank played an additional complementary role of credit re-direction to the preferred sector of the economy.

    Emefiele represented by the Director Cooperate Communication Department of the CBN, Mr Osita Nwanisobi, urged Nigerians, especially the young graduates to key into CBN programmes.

    He said some of these programmes include Real Sector Financing and Interventions, Payment Systems Initiative, Consumer Protection, Clean Naira Note Policy among others.

    He said, “The Central Bank of Nigeria Fair is an enlightenment campaign to sensitize the public in Asaba, Delta State on its various initiatives and policy.

    “CBN is playing an additional and complementary role to create employment opportunities, enhance output and therefore, we have good programmes for every Nigerians, to ensure economic growth.

    “These programmes are to stimulate economic growth by helping to diversify economy and stimulate exchange rate”

  • Man nabbed over policeman’s beheading in Delta

    Man nabbed over policeman’s beheading in Delta

    By Becky Adi

    The police in Delta State said it has arrested one Chukwudi Emerenin, 27, for alleged complicity in the beheading of a retired police officer, Chris Kpatuma.

    The suspect, an escapee from an Owerri correctional centre, was rearrested on 12/2/2022, according to the police.

    Emerenin is suspected to be part of the syndicate that killed the late police officer, Chris Kpatuma, in Agwa clan, Oguta LGA Imo State.

    Delta Police Commissioner, Ari Mohammed, who spoke to reporters, yesterday, in Asaba, said the suspect was arrested following a tip-off.

    Mohammed said the suspect and his gang were hibernating somewhere in Aboh in Ndokwa East Local Government Area.
    According to Mohammed, the suspect claimed to be related to the late police officer and identified the leader of their gang as “Mega Bush”.

    He said the late officer was killed because he was a titled man in the community and as a retired police officer, they saw him as a threat to their Biafra struggle.

    The police boss said the suspect is alleged to be part of the syndicate that beheaded a vigilante member in Owerri and used his head to play football

  • Teacher flogged 19-month-old baby to death in Delta

    Teacher flogged 19-month-old baby to death in Delta

    By Becky Adi

    Proorietress and a Teacher of Arise Nursery and Primary School, Asaba, Delta State, have been arrested by the Police for reportedly flogging a 19-months-old child to death.

    The deceased pupil who was identified as Obinna was allegedly given 31 strokes of cane by the suspect for playing with water and getting wet.

    The pupil was said to have fallen into a coma after receiving 31 strokes of the cane from the teacher.

    Police Public Relations Officer in the State, DSP Bright Edafe who confirmed the incident, however, said only the teacher was arrested, adding that the matter was being investigated.

    Disclosing that the victim died on Saturday, Edafe said the suspect was the school proprietor’s son.

    He said: “We have the suspect who is the son of the owner of the school in our custody. He is a teacher in the school.

    “But I wonder how a teacher would flog a pupil 31 strokes of the cane. I am only hearing it from the media that it was 31 strokes of the cane.

    “The question is was anybody there to count the strokes while the flogging was on?”.

    It was alleged in some quarters that the flogging was perpetrated by the school proprietress herself.

    Meanwhile, the Delta State Government has sealed up Arise Nursery and Primary School where the pupil was allegedly flogged to death, (names withheld), adding that the school was operating without approval.

    The State Commissioner for Primary Education, Mr Chika Ossai, who spoke while sealing up the school, said the state government would not relent in its efforts in ensuring that all illegal schools across the state are closed down.

    The commissioner who spoke through the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Mr Austin Oghoro, said the school was not registered and not recognised by the Delta state government.

    While sympathizing with the family of the deceased, the Commissioner said the state government would investigate the circumstances surrounding the death of the child.

    He disclosed that police has arrested the proprietress of the school and her son who were involved in the alleged crime.

    Advocates for Children and Vulnerable People Network alleged that little Obinna’s hands and legs were tied before the flogging started.

    Chief Operating Officer of the network, Ebenezer Omejalile who blew it open, said the suspect and the proprietor were initially arrested but released due to agreement with the victim’s family.

    Omejalile said the suspects were re-arrested on Saturday after the baby died.

  • Residents panic as suspected ritualist machetes octogenarian to death in Delta

    Residents panic as suspected ritualist machetes octogenarian to death in Delta

    OLOMORO community in Isoko South Local Government Area, Delta State, was yesterday thrown into confusion as an elderly woman was reportedly macheted to death by a suspected ritualist.

    It was gathered that the deceased, whose identity could not be ascertained at press time, was sleeping in her house in the Ukoli quarters of the community when she was killed.

    Sources said the woman, in her eighties, was found in the pool of her blood in the early hours of the day with some parts of her body missing.

    The development caused panic in the area as women thronged the streets of the community protesting the gruesome murder of the octagenarian.

    A source, who craved anonymity, said: “The woman was killed this morning (Monday) and the community is accusing a boy of killing her because they found the woman’s handbag in his possession.

    “On seeing the bag with him, they beat the boy to stupor. In the process, the police came in and put the situation under control.”

    Another source said: “It is painful that these days, people can no longer sleep with their two eyes closed because of killings here and there majorly for ritual purposes. The government can no longer guarantee the security of people’s lives and property.”

    None of her body parts missing—Police

    Confirming the incident, the Police Public Relations Officer of the state command, Mr Bright Edafe, said: “A woman was killed but none of her body parts was missing.”

    Edafe said the police had deposited the body of the woman in the mortuary, noting: “From what we discovered, the suspect that killed the woman is mentally deranged.”

  • Church building collapses in Delta, kills 10

    Church building collapses in Delta, kills 10

    The building housing Salvation Ministry, Okpanam, Oshimili North Local Government Area, Delta State, South-South Nigeria, has collapsed, trapping unspecified number of worshippers.

    Our Correspondent understands through multiple sources that over 10 people have died.

    The building which is being used for the first time, reportedly collapsed at about 5:55pm during Tuesday evening service.
    Eight persons have been rescued unhurt, while four persons have been rushed to the Asaba Specialist Hospital for medical attention.

    As of the time of filing this report, Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Chief Patrick Ukah, the State Commissioner for Health, Dr Ononye Mordi, team of Red Cross officers, and fire fighters were on ground on a rescue mission.

  • Substance abuse can fuel new wave of Militancy in Niger Delta, says Dikio

    Substance abuse can fuel new wave of Militancy in Niger Delta, says Dikio

    NDLEA partners PAP to curb drug abuse

    Amgbare Ekaunkumo,Yenagoa

    The Interim Administrator, Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP), Col. Milland Dixon Dikio (retd) has said that substance abuse among youths in the Niger Delta is capable of fueling a new wave of militancy in the region.

    Dikio, who spoke when he paid a visit to the Chairman of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Brig.-Gen. Muhammad Buba Marwa (rtd), in Abuja said urgent steps should be taken to curb such abuse.

    Dikio in a statement signed on Monday by his Special Adviser on Media, Mr. Nneotaobase Egbe, said that the partnership between NDLEA and PAP would drastically reduce cases of drug abuse and reposition the minds of the youths for more productive ventures to sustain the peace and development in the region.

    He said: “We have a unique challenge in the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP) that of managing ex-militants; we call them ex-agitators. We want to take active measures to not only manage the present ex-agitators, but to pre-empt and stop the pipeline that leads to deviant behaviour and militancy.

    “It goes without saying that some of these people get their motivation by using or abusing substances, so we want to key into what you are doing on the arrest side and learn what we can do on the prevention side”.

    In his remarks, Marwa promised that the NDLEA would partner with PAP to curb the intake of hard drugs and other banned substances by youths in the Niger Delta.

    He decried the wave of drug-induced crime in the country, especially among youths noting that the collaboration between PAP and his agency would focus on sensitisation and counselling programmes as a major preventive measure to curb the menace.

    While identifying poverty as the main cause of drug abuse in Nigeria, the NDLEA boss explained that criminals used drugs to embolden themselves before embarking on any criminal activity.

    Marwa (rtd), who used the opportunity to reel out some alarming drug statistics in the country also lauded the willingness and commitment of Dikio to make the Niger Delta a drug-free zone.

    He said 80 per cent of drug users in the country only required counselling, adding that records corroborated by a United Nation’s study showed that in Nigeria, one in seven persons between age 23 to 64 abused drugs.

    He said: ” We have also found that the students, bandits, kidnappers, rapists, down the line youths, militants, use drugs and we will be very happy to collaborate with the Amnesty Programme.

    “We don’t need to wait for people to become drug addicts first; the majority have not used drugs, others have tasted but are not addicted to it. The ex-agitators are also normal human beings that will like to marry and raise families.

    “The advice we give that will deal with the drug problem is to find some source of income for them through skills acquisition and if it is affordable, some kind of wage structure”.