Month: November 2023

By Flowerbudnews

Enugu:  The South Saharan Social Development Organization (SSDO) and ActionAid Nigeria, on Saturday, donated 30 combined seats and desks to three rural community primary schools in Enugu State.

The donation was made to three communities in three Local Government Area (LGAs), where the Non-Governmental Organisations had been working for years, which included: Ihenyi community in Isi-Uzo LGA; Ameke community in Aninri LGA and Igga community in Uzo-Uwani LGA.

Making the donation to Central Primary School, Igga in Uzo-Uwani, the Programme Manager of SSDO’s Local Rights Programme (LRP), Miss Priye West, said that the donation was necessitated by discovery of inadequate seats/desks for the children during recent visits.

West said that the NGOs donated 10 combined seats and desks, which have capacity for six pupils, to each of the three communities.

According to her, some of the pupils were literally sitting on the floor and some hanging on the window of their classrooms during class time.

“When we saw the need to intervene, we had a stakeholder meeting with the community leaders and education leaders.

“At the stakeholders meeting conducted with community members, there they suggested a local carpenter to construct these combined seats and desks to promote local or community economic status through the intervention.

“This cycle of engagement with stakeholders and engaging local carpenters was repeated for all the other communities where we carried out this special intervention,” she explained.

Responding, the Head Teacher of Central Primary School, Igga, Mr Christian Okafor, thanked the NGOs for the donation, adding that the donation would go a long way to sort out the inadequate seats/desks in the school.

“We are highly grateful for your selfless intervention and the need to see that our children learn in a conducive environment,” Okafor said.

Prince Charles Chijioke, representative from the Education Department of the council area, noted that seats and desks remained vital in making a conducive learning environment; adding: “we appreciate SSDO and ActionAid for this support”.

The Catchist of the community, Mr Lawrence Igwebueze, thanked the NGOs for the intervention as well as their previous intervention of giving each primary school pupil in the community a water bottle.

“The water bottle you gave to our children earlier this year has helped to stop truancy and our children leaving the school to drink water at home while the school hour is still on.

“We are also grateful for providing our children with seats and desks. But as Oliver Twist; we are still asking for more and you still assist us in any area you can to bring our school to the best standard,” Igwebueze said.

One of the pupils of the school, Master Chinedu Ogar, thanked SSDO and Actionaid for the seats and desks as well as other interventions in his school so far.

The Local Rights Programme (LRP) is meant to improve education in marginalised communities especially those found in rural communities. (Flowerbudnews)

By Biola Lawal

Abuja” (Flowerbudnews):  Nigeria’s Minister for Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Dr. Betta Edu has urged all humanitarian agencies operating in Nigeria to urgently deploy their services to Benue State, to combat the debilitating humanitarian situation 

Agencies charged by the Minister include the  United Nation, European Unions, and other development partners.

Dr. Betta Edu, made the call when she visited the Ichiwa Internally Displaced Persons, IDPs camp situated within the North Bank axis of Makurdi in company of the state governor, Reverend Father Hyacinth Alia,

Rasheed Olanrewaju Zubair, Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the Honourable Minister, disclosed this in a statement made available to newsmen.

The Minister said it would be impossible for the burden of the 14,000 IDPs in Ichiwa and millions of others in several other IDP camps located across the three senatorial districts of the state to be shouldered alone by both state and the federal government.

She described the situation she met on ground as unacceptable and requiring an immediate concerted effort to redeem.

Dr. Edu assured the IDPs of President Tinubu’s unwavering determination to find lasting solutions to their plight, noting that if urgent and immediate actions were not taken, the situation could degenerate into unmitigated humanitarian crises.

“I feel so heavy in my heart, and I will have sleepless nights about what I have seen here until we find solutions. A household of 6 living in a small shanty that can’t even accommodate the width of my arm, made of light trampoline, when it rains mothers and children are out there in the rain, etc.

“We are here to build low-cost houses (two sites at the same time) for the displaced persons. It should be a matter of emergency for all agencies and all stakeholders in humanitarian responses to urgently deploy to Benue to help remedy the situation because the condition I see here is unacceptable, “she said.

Speaking further, the Minister said: “The federal government of Nigeria, requests, as a matter of urgency, for all international partners, donors agencies including the UN and indeed everyone in the humanitarian space to deploy to Benue State; the situation is an emergency ”

“Let me re-emphasize that the humanitarian situation in Benue is devastating, their people must be resettled properly in their ancestral homes, the government cannot do it alone, all hands must be on deck, Benue needs humanitarian support and must be treated so urgently.

“On our part, the government is providing shelters for them and several other interventions including water, sanitation, and hygiene programs as well as educational learning programs. We can not allow this number of children to be unschooled.

“In this spot where I stand alone, we have over 14000 women children, the aged, their families, and households sleeping in their unbearable tiny space,”

Dr. Edu announced that the federal government in partnership with the state government would intervene to ameliorate the people’s suffering but maintained that ” we can’t do it alone because what we have here is a monumental humanitarian crisis hence we need all our development partners to put their foot on the ground in Benue”

The Minister expressed the fear that Gender Based violence and other forms of violence against women could be rife at the camp. “With young girls everywhere in the camps who know the level of all sorts of violence they are facing? This is why there is an urgent need for intervention, “she stressed.

She urged parents in the IDP camps to ensure that their children are protected and go to school assuring that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu would do all in his power to resettle them in their ancestral homes.

Also speaking, Governor Alia commended the President for fulfilling the promise he made to the people of Benue by committing to the resettlement of the IDPs in their ancestral homes.

Alia said the interventions of the Minister during her two-day visit were heartwarming, pointing out that “this is was what the people of Benue have been yearning for”

The Governor described Dr. Edu as a perfect match for her ministry and a great asset to Tinubu’s government.

He expressed delight that the people were beginning to receive the democratic dividends promised them by the President during his electioneering campaign.

The governor was optimistic that the next visit of the Minister to Benue State would be to commission some of the humanitarian projects of the federal government in the state.

High points of the Minister’s visit include the donation of relief materials comprising of food and non-food items to the IDPs. (Flowerbudnews)

Four NSCDC personnel on pipeline surveillance patrol were a week ago attacked and killed by suspected sea pirates on the Bakana River in the Degema Local Government Area of the oil-rich state.

The Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, has issued a marching order for the arrest of sea pirates who killed four personnel of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Rivers State a week ago.

Tunji-Ojo said the suspected sea pirates must be tracked and made to face the wrath of the law for killing officers of the Corps who were on national assignment to protect the country’s asset.

Four NSCDC personnel on pipeline surveillance patrol were a week ago attacked and killed by suspected sea pirates on the Bakana River in the Degema Local Government Area of the oil-rich state.

NSCDC Commandant General, Ahmed Abubakar Audu, while addressing personnel of the Corps in Port Harcourt when he visited the Rivers State Command on Saturday, said the Minister of Interior also directed that compensation be paid to the families of the slain personnel.

He urged the personnel to be focused and courageous in the fight against crude oil theft and the protection of key national assets despite the latest attack.

“Let me first of all condole with you as a Command and the families of our gallant men who lost their lives some few days ago while on official duty. This is part of the hazards of the job, and we pray that God would grant the families the fortitude to hear the loss,” he said.

“I bring to you the message of the Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo who has asked me to tell you that the blood of these gallant men will not be a waste. All hands are on deck as the Corps would contact their next of kin to process necessary benefits in order to serve as a succour to the families.

“I will not reveal to the public our operational strategies in order to bring the perpetrators to book but definitely, we are in collaboration with sister security agencies and I assure you that Justice will be served.

Audi also lauded President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for his unflinching support in enhancing the capacity and operational efficiency of the NSCDC through the provision of gunboats and different welfare packages.

He noted that the appointment of the present Minister of Interior is a tremendous blessing to the Corps as according to him, Tunji-Ojo is a man with great passion for the four agencies under his watch, most especially as he has come to deliver and impact positively in consonance with the Renewed Hope agenda of Mr President.

The NSCDC CG further charged all Personnel to continue to put in their best with utmost loyalty, dedication, and discipline even as they serve the nation.