Bishop Ukwuoma commissions retired priests’ home, media complex – Marks 5th Episcopal ordination

The Catholic Bishop of Orlu, Most Rev. Augustine Ukwuoma has commissioned the Diocesan Retired Priests’ Home and the Archangel Gabriel Media Complex. The events were part of the activities marking the 5th anniversary of his Episcopal ordination. The occasion, which took place at the Orlu Diocesan Human Development Centre, where the two projects were situated, attracted personalities, friends and well wishers who came from far and near to witness the ceremony. Delivering a homily at the Mass Bishop Ukwuoma described the event as a thanksgiving to God for the gift of the diocese.  He recalled when the diocese was part of the old Owerri diocese before it was carved out on November 29, 1980 and…

Rochas Okorocha must hear this

One Dr. James Madubuonu, not real name has made very frantic efforts these years to see Owelle Rochas Okorocha, Governor Imo State, to help solve the most important problem facing the state but his aides have made it impossible for them to meet. The said citizen is a lawyer by profession specialized in security matters for 43 years in the U.S. but those who think that they matter so much feel that insecurity is not a problem in Imo State. This man, being a citizen of Nigeria feels that charity begins at home that is why he chose Imo State as the home of the program and he named it Imo Security System. It is…

Retired Alvan Staff groan under unpaid entitlements

- Head of Service says govt is addressing their problems Retired staff of the Alvan Ikoku Federal College of Education (AIFCE) Owerri beween 2007-2009 have carried to the media their battle for survival over their unpaid end-of-service financial benefits (July 2007-Dec. 2009). Two spokespersons of this Group Sir Alex Onyemekara, former Dean School of Sciences and Sir Alex Ukaegbu, Principal Lecturer, Department of Agriculture, who were interviewed, described their members as “The Unfortunate Group”.  They lamented that those who retired before them, (1993-2007) have fully received their gratuities and were enjoying their pensions without any outstanding arrears while those who retired after them (since Dec. 2009) have been adequately covered in the PENCOM Pension Scheme….

Justice Not Sympathy for Imo State Pensioners

Recently the democratically elected government of Imo State declared that with effect from April 2013 retired civil servants will be paid pension only at the Community Government Council offices of their home communities where the traditional rulers are to identify them as genuine pensioners. The general meaning of this directive is that government gazettes of appointments, promotions and retirements of these pensioners as well as the series of biometric capturing exercises held since 2006 are unreliable records until they are confirmed by traditional rulers who have no records to verify the claims of the pensioners. No wonder that in its editorial comments of May 2, 2006 “The Guardian” said that in advanced societies the respect…

Primary School Pensioners cry out again over 10 months arrears

… Pay us now or we die Two keenly contested words in Imo State at the moment are pension-salary and pension-arrears.  While the pension authorities and the pension office argue that retired pensioners in the state are only owed pension arrears and not pension, the retirees maintain that there is no difference between pension and pension arrears. They insist that pension arrears are nothing other than accumulated unpaid pension which eventually translate into arrears. This was the position of some primary school retirees from 1992 till date who staggered into THE LEADER office on Thursday, June 11, to register their grievances over their 10 months unpaid pension running from August 2012. It should be recalled…

War against Boko Haram begins – We’ll crush them – Defence Headquarters

With a massive deployment of troops and equipment, the army, navy, air force and other security agencies have begun operation to “rid the nation’s border territories of terrorists’ bases and operations. President Jonathan had in a nationwide broadcast admitted that the Federal Government no longer controlled the entire territory of Nigeria. Three states where the emergency action was declared share common borders with Cameroon, Chad and Niger.  These border communities have become bases for training, insurgency and other criminal activities against Nigeria. The Defence Headquarters (DHQ) gave indication that the time was up for the Boko Haram sect and other terrorists groups in the country as it announced the deployment of massive troops to take…

Jonathan imposes emergency rule on Adamawa, Borno, Yobe

President Goodluck Jonathan has declared a state of emergency in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states.  However, the governors of the affected states are to continue in their constitutional roles.  In a nationwide radio/television broadcast on Tuesday, President Jonathan ordered the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Admiral Ola Sa’ad Ibrahim, to deploy more troops to the affected states for more effective internal security operations. The soldiers had been given full orders to take necessary action, within the ambit of their rules of engagement, to end the impunity of insurgents and terrorists. Full texts of the President’s broadcast on Tuesday, May 14, 2013 reads. It has become necessary for me to address you on the recent spate…