SECURITY CHALLENGES, LAW ENFORCEMENT AND UNEMPLOYMENT IN ORLU 2

SUGGESTED SOLUTIONS The challenges of security, law enforcement and unemployment cannot be wished away but a careful consideration and reevaluations will ensure a remarkable improvement of the security services and infrastructures of law enforcement that ensures a sustainable social justice system. The best way to improve the security system is to build a military cantonment in Orlu town centre preferably, now, besides NEPA to ensure proper engagement of violent crimes. The state government can build and hand over to the army such a compact cantonment   with an existing prototype by St Dominic’s, yaba Lagos. This will be complimented by the rules of convergence of police units from all over the state to give sustainable backups…

ENDING FG ASUU FACE OFF

Stakeholders in Nigeria’s Education System, particularly at the tertiary level have continued to express disgust at the lingering strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), which has now entered its fifth month. Opinion analysts think that rather than help matters, the threat by the Federal Government to sack every university lecturer who fails to return to the classroom by Wednesday, December 4, 2013 (later extended to Monday, Dec. 9) and the counter directive by ASUU to its members to ignore the threat, has worsened rather than helped matters.  While the Supervising Minister of Education, Chief Ezenwo Nyesom Wike, who announced plans for the mass sack, says that new lecturers will be hired, the…

Pope: Bribery Is Extremely Sinful Habit, Dignity Comes From Dignified, Honest Work, Holy Father Says

Parents who feed their children on “unclean bread”, earned through bribes and corruption, are starving their children of dignity, because dishonest work robs us of our dignity. These were the words of Pope Francis during his homily at Mass on Friday morning in the Vatican’s Casa Santa Marta. Pope Francis focused his homily on the parable of the dishonest steward, in order to talk about the dangers “of worldliness, of mundane affairs”. Jesus “prayed to the Father that his disciples might not fall into the trap of worldliness”, which is “the enemy”. “When we think of our enemies, we really think of the devil first, because it’s the devil that harms us. The devil enjoys…

Making Money for Government and Smiling

Politics is not for Lilian Asuzu until she hangs her hat as a civil servant. Then, you can check her out on any political platform – the lucky party isn’t known yet. It may be DPP, PCA, PUGA or any other.  But until then, you cannot draw the soft-spoken, conscientious permanent secretary into any public political banter or debate. She’s keeping it close to her chest for now. Like most top civil servants, hers is to support the Government of the day until she hangs her boots. Former Head of Service Mrs. Nkechi Onumajulu made that clear in her interview with Face2Face in April.  Asuzu’s position is no different and her able PRO, Mr. Ben…

Code of Conduct For Public Officers

There are rules and professional ethics governing the employment of public officers under the employment of local councils, state and federal Government’s public services to prevent abuse of office and check corruption. It is in this regard that section 153 of the 1999 constitution as amended provided for the establishment of the code of conduct Bureau which enforces the strictures of public service employment ethics or rules. These rules are made to be followed like a code of conduct and when there is a breach, it is strictly sanctioned. The 5th schedule, part 1 of the 1999 constitution provides answers to the code of conduct of public officer which enshrines legal ethics for the conduct…

Abortion in any form is murder: It is anti-Christ

That Imo people have been betrayed by their own government following the signing into law of the bill which for all intent and purposes legalizes Abortion is no longer news.  Today, Imolites keep wondering what better reason is on the table of the present administration justifying its signing of the bill into law which previous administrations hadn’t the privileged of accessing. For once, one wonders whether both the sponsors of the bill on the floor of Imo State House of Assembly, the members of Imo State House of Assembly and the Governor (the apostle of rescue mission who cannot rescue helpless babies in the womb) are truly, Igbos, Africans or Christians. As an Igbo man,…

ASUU: ONE STRIKE TOO MANY

As the current strike by Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) enters its sixth week, concerned citizens of all walks of life have continued to appeal to both the Federal Government and the striking Lecturers to yield grounds, in a spirit of give and take, to end the ugly impasse. Many people have described this indefinite strike which has paralysed Nigerian’s tertiary education as ”one strike too many”. This is particularly so when one recalls the havoc a similar strike in 2009 wrecked not only on the education sub sector but on our entire socio-economic system. Nigerians still remember how students and lecturers spent the second half of 2009 outside their lecture halls and research…

How corruption is “killing” Nigeria – US Consul General

Corruption is a scourge that undermines virtually everything that could move Nigeria towards a brighter economic future as it hinders economic growth and investment This was the statement of Mr. Jeffrey Hawkins, United States Consul General to Nigeria.  According to the diplomat who bared his mind Wednesday, during an interactive session with the civil society at the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA), corruption diverts financial resources, as well as from building roads and bridges, curtailing the development of infrastructure that is needed to make the country more competitive. The Consul General said that corruption drains the federal treasury of funds that could do wonders in expanding and improving the education provided to millions of…

Governor’s Overseas Trip paralyses Imo

Imo State appears to have grounded to a halt and nothing seems to be moving since Governor Rochas Okorocha travelled to the United States of America, last month. Our investigations revealed that government activities were paralysed as most of his aides were neither empowered nor have any authority to transact serious business. Last week, the Deputy Governor ordered the contractor handling the Nekede-Ihiagwa Road to return to site immediately. The order was ignored as the contractor is yet to return to site more than a week the order was issued. Observers say the contractors feel the deputy governor doesn’t have a biting power to sanction. The Leader also gathered that a World Bank Project team…

Njiko Igbo Condemns deportation of Igbo

Njiko Igbo, a socio-political group, has described the recent alleged deportation of 67 people by the Lagos State Government to Onitsha in Anambra State, as unlawful. In a statement signed by the National Publicity Secretary, Brady Chijioke Nwosu, the group stated that it was unlawful for a government to detain citizens of the country without proper trial. Recall that 67 people were recently deported from Lagos and brought to Onitsha. Some of them who spoke to newsmen said they were arrested and detained for crimes they knew nothing about and subsequently, deported. Nwosu, in his statement said: “It is prejudicial for the Lagos State Government to make indiscriminate arrests of Ndigbo, dump them in detention…

Sub-standard Nigeria

Although the civil war (July 1967 – January 1970), challenged the ingenuity of our local manufacturers to produce alternatives to imported goods, our industrialists and importers for a long time, continued to maintain the high standards inherited from our British colonial masters.  Such was the case till the early 1990s.  Until then, one could go into the market and find quality materials to buy, such as textiles, electronics, hard wares, building materials and car spare parts. Due to the availability of quality products the consumer had the choice of what to spend his money on.  But today, the story has changed as our markets are now flooded with all kinds of fake, counterfeit and substandard…

Imo govt abandons Nsu tiles and ceramic industry -Equipment looted

The question agitating the minds of Agbahara Nsu indigenes in Ehime Mbano LGA is whether the Owelle Rochas Okorocha led administration in Imo State has abandoned the Nsu Tiles and Ceramic Industry. It will be recalled that the Governor informed natives of the community during a visit in 2012 that his administration is poised in establishing the Nsu Tiles Industry under a joint partnership with Italian investors who will provide machinery and technical expertise, while the government will provide the logistics, financial backing and enabling environment as the raw material is readily available in commercial quantity. A high powered government delegation led by  Chief Benjamin Uwajumogu, Speaker Imo State House of Assembly, accompanied by Hon….

NULGE strike paralyses LGAs in Imo State

The 3-day warning strike by members of National Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) in the 774 Local Governments in Nigeria has crippled activities in all the councils in the federation. According to the Ehime Mbano NULGE Chairman, Comrade Ebirim Chinedu, the strike is precipitated on the decision of the Senate of the Federal Republic not to grant autonomy to the local government Councils. It is noteworthy that the Federal House of Representatives granted autonomy to the Local Governments in the ongoing constitutional amendments. While the senate is opposed to it. But the staffs of the Local Government councils insist on autonomy for the local governments. Chief A.l Onuoha, Imo State Chairman of National Union…

National Outrage on the Pro Child Senate

“Nigeria is what it is because its leaders are not what they should be.” Chinua Achebe Nigeria was recently ranked as one of the foremost countries were children are killed for going to school following the Yobe message of 29 school children. More recently, the senate has made a downward review of the age of consent for girls from 18 years to advance religious sentiments. It is clear that under Islamic practices amongst fundamentalist Muslim countries, it is a stricture of law to validate the marriage of children often, between the ages of 8 to 13 years. A child is termed a woman when she experiences her first menstrual flow, a development that has become…

Nigerian Democracy: The Amaechi Case

When Nigerian’s military dictators handed back power to the political class on May 29, 1999, the expectations worldwide were that our country was ready to practice civil democracy the way it should, having learnt the hard way.  It was a legitimate expectation considering the fact that Nigeria was just emerging from a long period of military rule and suppression of democratic institutions. Ironically and sadly too, our politicians seem to have learnt nothing from Nigeria’s chequered past despite the price paid by patriots especially pro-democracy groups in lives and property in an effort to entrench the rule of law.  They preferred their own brand of democracy, characterized by indiscipline, corruption, high handedness and lack of…

Structure without Sanity in Owerri

Please permit me a space in your widely read newspaper to register my feelings with regard to the pressing issue of sanity in Owerri metropolis, the capital city of Imo State. I must first appreciate the obvious efforts of our indefatigable governor, Owelle Rochas Okorocha to transform Imo state far beyond what it was before his inception in May, 2011. The problem of traffic in Owerri has been remarkably dealt with as he has opened up alternative routs to fast track movements in the city. Our governor has created numerous roads within the city as by-pass from the crazy traffic jam that held Imolites to ransom a few months back. He has also given the…

Why Gov. Okorocha sacked Commissioners

Governor Rochas Okorocha last Wednesday dissolved the Imo State enlarged Executive Council comprising Commissioners, Special Advisers and Senior Special Assistants. Observers say his interests in the emerging All Progressives Congress (APC) is a factor in the method and timing of this action. Again, a reliable source in Government House said that the Governor was aware of the people’s complaints over issues of slow pace of policy implementation by his political appointees and hence need to inject new blood. Critics have also claimed the Governors aids have been opportunists who have continued to corner whatever funds that got into their hands. Their sack, our source further revealed is in line with the agreement of APC leaders…

Fixing the Owerri Metropolis

One of the enduring legacies bequeathed to successive administrations in Imo State by the pioneer Governor, Rear Admiral Godwin Ndubuisi Kanu (February 1976 – August 1977) is a comprehensive Master Plan for the development of the Owerri Capital City. Referring to that plan in a lecture he delivered at the Inaugural Owerri Club Heartland Lecture Series in July 2010, the Admiral himself disclosed that it was conceived beyond 2010.  Kanu’s vision for Owerri Metropolis comprised a twin-city concept (Old and New Owerri developing simultaneously at their own paces).  A 15-kilometre radius from the Owerri Post Office was consequently declared Government-owned land. The Master Plan was a masterpiece, designed by a Swiss Firm, Finger Huth and…

Ezinihitte SOLAD seeks partnership with journalists

Journalists in the country have been reminded of their role as partners with government in the socio-political and economic development of the society. This reminder came recently from the sole Administrator of Ezinihitte Local Government Area, Hon. (Dr.) Kelechi Osuagwu, during an interactive session with journalists of Ezinihitte origin in his office at Itu, the Local Government Headquarters. According to Dr. Osuagwu, there is need for a synergy between the Ezinihitte Local Government and journalists, particularly those who hail from the area in encouraging and assuring the younger generation that there is a future for them. Journalists, the SOLAD said, have what it takes to call anyone or any government to order no matter how…

Strike no going back on demands – Poly Lecturers

Two months into its nationwide strike, the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics, ASUP, said that there was no going back on its demands, insisting that unless all issues that caused the strike were addressed, the action would continue. This came as the union rejected the discriminatory cut-off points for candidates seeking admission into Nigerian universities, polytechnics and colleges of education and called for harmonization of the cut-off points into tertiary institutions in the country. ASUP had called out its members on a nationwide strike in protest against government’s refusal to implement agreement on bothering on welfare and other sundry issues. The union, after its 74th National Executive Council, NEC, meeting at Federal Polytechnic, Oko, Anambra…