No fewer than 3,000 members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) at the weekend, dumped the party for the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA).
anambra state
Bianca Ojukwu’s senatorial ambition distorts political equation in Anambra South
Nigeria’s debt profile rising under Buhari – Ex Buhari’s Minister
FG orders investigation into coal burning incident in Anambra
The Minister of State Mines and Steel Development, Abubakar Bawa Bwari, has dispatched a team of ministry officials to visit Umuozu community in Otolo, Nnewi North Local Government Area of Anambra State where a gas emission exposed coal seam killed 15 people.
A statement said the team carried out a preliminary inspection and discussed with the affected community, where they were told that there was intermittent fire flares from the exposed coal seams which commenced around December 2017.
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Coal deposits are known to contain several gases that are highly toxic and injurious to human health and the environment. In this case, the deaths could be as a result of the coal releasing carbon dioxide and other gases that if inhaled could cause harm to human beings. It was observed that there was no mining activity in the vicinity; therefore, the disaster was not related to mining operations.
The trial of alleged kidnap kingpin, Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike, popularly known as Evans, resumed on Tuesday at the Lagos State High Court as he (Evans) hired a new counsel.
While the counsel, Chino Obiagwu, requested for a short adjournment to enable him study the case file, Justice Hakeem Oshodi refused the request, stating that there would be no further delays.
The fifth and sixth defendants counsel, Mr Agwulanna Uzoukwu and Mr Emmanuel Ochai, opposed Mr Obiagwu’s prayer, pointing out that the several adjournments were affecting the liberty of their clients.
On his part, the state counsel, Mr Haaron Adebayo, also opposed the adjourment request, saying the state was ready for trial.
The trial had been put on hold, with the last hearing on June 26 because of changes in defence counsels.
After the various parties had made their cases at the hearing on Tuesday it was then adjourned till October 26 for further hearing.
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VOTERS REGISTRATION: WE HAVE BEEN SHORTCHANGED – NNEWI RESIDENTS
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Still on the recently concluded voters registration exercise, some residents of Nnewi have called for a revisit of the process, alleging that the bottlenecks encountered were as a result of a deliberate effort by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to disenfranchise them.
However, in a street interview by one of our reporters, some citizens also berated the people who are yet to register for not taking the exercise seriously, stating that the call for extension is coming from the people who ignored the persistent call for initial voter registration.
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Responding to questions some expressed displeasure at the present leadership, stating that the lack of good governance makes the stress of getting registered of no effect.
Anambra APC announces consensus primary, as Ngige moves to pick Senatorial nomination form
The Anambra State chapter of All Progressives Congress (APC) has announced that it would use consensus method of primary election for all elective positions in the state.
Barr Emeka Ibe, state chairman of the party who briefed journalists on the outcome of a stakeholders’ meeting held on Saturday night said the party favoured the consensus method as a way of avoiding rancour in the party.
Though he did not explain how the method would be deployed in the primary elections of the party, he said its leaders and aspirants all agreed to use the method for the forthcoming primary election.
He said, “We have adopted consensus mode of primary election, we will use it in all our elections in the state, except presidential election, which would be direct primary.
“The party has already set up a seven-man committee that will go and conduct further meetings with diverse stakeholders and come up with recommendations as to how we can use this consensus method.
“The committee is led by Engr Ifeanyi Osegbo, and Barr Cyprian Udenwa is the secretary. By Wednesday, it is expected that the committee should have done the job.”
Ibe addded that the method was a democratic mode of primary election, and was also covered by the party’s guideline.
He said that because of the diversity in states of the federation, the National executive committee of the party met and resolved that each state was free to choose what method of primary election to adopt, in other to beat post primary election complaints.
Meanwhile, Ibe said labour minister, Senator Chris Ngige has resolved to join the senatorial race. He would be vying to represent Anambra Central zone in the Senate.
Ibe told journalists that, “So far, Ngige has not picked his nomination form, but he still has time.
“The sale of forms would close by Tuesday, and he will pick his form before close of deadline. What I can tell you is that he would contest the election.”
POLITICS2019: MASSOB leader Uwazuruike declares support for Bianca Ojukwu
Chief Ralph Uwazuruike, Leader of the Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB), has endorsed Mrs Bianca Ojukwu’s bid to contest the Anambra South Senatorial election in 2019.
NAN reports that Uwazuruike endorsed Bianca’s aspiration when Bianca, wife of late Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, visited Ojukwu Memorial Library Owerri on Sunday.
He said that he supports Bianca because her late husband meant everything to the identity of the Igbo people and was his bosom friend and mentor, who struggled for the emancipation of Ndigbo.
Uwazuruike, who also doubles as the leader of Biafra Independence Movement, said that though he was not from Anambra Senatorial District, he would deplore tools available to him to ensure Bianca emerged victorious.
“Bianca already has the backing of more than 15 Igbo billionaires for her 2019 senatorial project, and I make bold to say that she has my full support and we call on Anambra people to look back on our history and support her,” Uwazuruike appealed.
Reacting, Ojukuwu commended Uwazuruike’s zeal and interest in engraving the name of her husband and Ndigbo in the sands of time.
“When Uwazuruike started this Ojukwu Memorial Library project after the death of my husband, it was like a bourgeois dream, but the project today is almost completed,” she said.
16-year-old student invents bitter leaf processing machine in Anambra
A Sixteen year old SS3 student of Community Secondary School, Okpuno, Awka South LGA of Anambra State, Dikanna Onuigbo, has invented the machine that processes bitter leaves (Onugbu).
Onuigbo of Uru-Orji village, Ogidi, Idemili North LGA of Anambra State demonstrated his invention for the Deputy Governor of Anambra State, Dr Nkem Okeke, on Wednesday, September 5, 2018.
Accompanied by his father, Peter Onuigbo, Dikanna said his dream is to patent the invention and secure funding to commercialise it. He also said that the machine will relieve people from using the time-wasting hand processing method they have traditionally used over the years.
The Deputy Governor, Dr Okeke praised Dikanna for his resourcefulness and said that Anambra State is blessed with rich talented people. He assured him that the state government will sponsor him to study Mechanical Engineering at the university and will also help him to patent his invention.
Present at the demonstration are the State Commissioner for Agriculture, Hon Afam Mbanefo, Commissioner for Lands, Hon Nnamdi Onukwuba, Managing Director of Awka Capital Territory Development Authority, Rev Amaechi Okwuosa, the Executive Director of Anambra State Investment Promotion and Protection Agency (ANSIPPA), Dr Amobi Ifediora, Emenike Ezinando, Permanent Secretary Anambra State Ministry of Agriculture.
Others are Chuma Aduba, Chinedu Okoye-Oyibo and Captain John Okakpu of ABX World, the company that exports vegetables from Anambra State to Europe and other parts of the world.