AKHA Speaker Charges Commonwealth Parliamentarians To Be Innovative In Legislative Business

The Speaker of the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Aniekan Bassey, has lauded House of Representatives member, Mrs. Zainab Gimba, on her emergence as Vice-Chairperson of the Commonwealth Women in Parliament (CWP) International and tasked parliamentarians to be innovative and evolve with the global trend of legislative business.

Rt. Hon. Bassey, who made this in Munyonyo, Kampala, Uganda, where he led a delegation of the State House of Assembly to the 64th Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) conference, said Gimba’s feat has further shown that the association has kept to its vision of connecting, developing, promoting and supporting Parliamentarians and their staff to identify benchmarks of good governance and the implementation of enduring values of the Commonwealth.

He tasked parliamentarians at all levels in Nigerian to take advantage of the ongoing CPA conference and take the centre stage in the comity of nations.

While commending the organizer of the event and the aptness of the theme of the conference, ‘Adaption, engagement, and evolution of parliaments in a rapidly changing Commonwealth,’ the Speaker, in a statement by his Special Assistant on Media and Communications, Mr. Darlington Udobong, described Mrs. Gimba’s emergence as key in Africa’s quest for the enhancement of the powers of the parliament.

“I am glad Nigeria is represented through Mrs. Zainab Gimba, a former University Don and member representing Bama/Ngala/Kala-Balge Federal Constituency of Borno State, who was elected Chairperson of the African Regional of the CWP few weeks ago in Zanzibar, Tanzania. Today, she is the Chairperson of the Commonwealth Women in Parliament and this position qualifies her to represent the continent at the CWP International meetings.

"we can achieve more as a nation, we can walk the miles as a nation and occupy the centre stage. I urge all parliamentarians in Nigerian to take up the challenge and embrace the global trend in lawmaking. The world is talking about adaptation, evolution, innovation and commitment to the task of legislation, we should not be bystanders, we should strive to take the lead".

The statement also hinted that members of the Akwa Ibom delegation would have the benefit of taking part in so many workshops and roundtable discussions including “Climate Change: Achievements, Challenges and Efficacy of Parliamentary Interventions; Innovation in Parliament: the impact of science and technology on how Parliament works today; The role of Parliament in facilitating persons with disabilities as electors, candidates and legislators; The Role of Parliament in the doctrine of Separation of Powers; Enhancing Transparency and Accountability; Maintaining Stability, Evolution, Dynamics and Challenges of Terrorism in Eastern Africa, among others,” among others.

A'Ibom To Host Six States As Ibom Chronicles Boxing Championship kicks Off In Uyo

All is now set for the maiden edition of Ibom Chronicle Boxing Championship in Akwa Ibom state where six States and two boxing clubs are to battle for medals and cash prizes.

This was made known yesterday, Wednesday 25September2019, in Uyo during a Media parley ahead of the boxing event slated for 1st October 2019 at the Uyo Township Stadium.

The Chairman, organising Committee of Ibom Chronicle Boxing Championships Evang. Theophilus Udo, hinted that the reason for the boxing championship is to discover and groom world champions even as they prepare athletes for the Junior African Championships and the National Sports Festival, Edo 2020.

"In the years past we have seen many persons invest a lot in football, Ibom Chronicle saw the need to revive boxing in Nigeria starting with Akwa Ibom State playing host to these carefully selected States in the South/South and South East of our dear Nation".

It will be recalled that Miracle Eshiet Joe and Emmanuel Akpan both won Gold for Akwa Ibom state at the just concluded Fifth National Youth Games in Ilorin, Kwara State hence the need for this event to discover more talents.

Mr Udo hinted that Five states and two clubs including Akwa Ibom will participate in this tournament so as to put the Athletes in shape ahead of next year Championship.

" Five states have confirmed their participation in the championship which includes Cross River, Rivers, Bayelsa, Abia and Host Akwa Ibom.

We want a better competition that is why we have invited these states, so as to ensure that we reduce the rate of crime and anti social activities in these states and as well know the level of preparedness of Akwa Ibom Boxers for national trials will know and put them feet for the Junior Championship and the Sports festival".

Six categories will be competed for, three in the Junior level which include 46 Kg, 54 Kg, 54kg male and female while the senior category includes 56 Kg, Male, 75 Kg Male and 81Kg Female.

The Boxers will be competing for medals and cash prizes.

Athletes are expected in the state on the 30th of September as competition will begin on the 1st of October.

A'Ibom Police Declare War Against Motorcycle Operations in Uyo, Eket

The Akwa Ibom State Police Command wishes to inform members of the public that it has commenced a massive crackdown on users of motorcycles within Uyo metropolis in compliance with the law prohibiting same

Law abiding members of the public should avoid using motorcycles within Uyo metropolis as those found violating this Law will be apprehended and prosecuted.

Furthermore, as a proactive measure to checkmate criminality within Eket and its environs, the Command will enforce the directive of the State Government prohibiting the use of motorcycles in Eket and Ikot Ekpene Local Government Areas between 6pm and 6am daily.

According to the state police public relations officer, SP Odiko Maccdon, users of motorcycles within Eket are therefore enjoined to avoid doing so within the said period as offenders will be arrested and prosecuted accordingly.

He maintained that the state Commissioner of Police, CP ZAKI AHMED reiterates his commitment to the protection of lives and property and maintenance of law and order in every parts of Akwa Ibom State and therefore calls on law abiding citizens to cooperate with the Police in this regard.

Senator Akpabio Urges NDDC To Complete Ongoing Projects

The Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswll Akpabio has directed the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to complete on-going projects including the on-going headquarters building project before awarding contracts for new ones. 

Senator Akpabio gave the charge when in the company of the Minister of State for Niger Delta Affairs, Mr Festus Keyamo they paid a working visit to the headquarters of the Commission in Port Harcourt on Friday.

During a meeting with the management and staff of the Commission, Senator Akpabio disclosed that the NDDC had more than 12,000 on-going projects across the nine states of the Niger Delta region which experienced funding challenges.

The Minister said it was not a coincidence that two Niger Delta sons were selected by President Muhammadu Buhari to superintend over the affairs of the Niger Delta but a conscious effort at ensuring effective development of the region especially in the areas of infrastructural and human capital development.

According to Senator Akpabio, “The creation of the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs was a direct response to the series of agitations by people of the region flowing from the deep sense of exclusion, environmental degradation, lack of development, poverty and unemployment facing the region,” he said.

On its part he said the NDDC was a child of necessity which was established “with a mission of facilitating the rapid, even and sustainable development of the Niger Delta into a region that is economically prosperous, socially stable, ecologically regenerative and politically peaceful” and said the Commission has to adopt a new template to achieve this mission.

According to Senator Akpabio, “The Niger Delta Development Commission must adopt a well structured funds development regime whereby all funds that accrue to the Commission must be properly utilized in this new era of probity which President Muhammadu Buhari demands,” he said.

In her welcome address, the acting Managing Director, Dr Akwagaga Enyia said the Commission under her watch had embarked upon fiscal responsibility as required by the anti-corruption drive of the Buhari administration. She promised to expeditiously complete the on-going headquarters building project.


Senator Akpabio and Mr Keyamo who later inspected the on-going construction of the headquarters building of the Commission, charged the management to channel more funds into completing the building. They also visited a failed portion of the East-West road and promised an intervention to alleviate the suffering of commuters.

Amapakabo Invites Nya, Udoh, Effiong, Akpan, Others For CHAN

Coach Imama Amapakabo has invited some NPFL stars ahead of the match against the Togolese this weekend.

Invited are, the joint highest goal scorer of the Nigerian Professional Football League mfon Udoh of Akwa United, Theophilus Afelokhai of Enyimba International FC, and Samuel Matthias also of Akwa United.

Others are, Ogene Elijah of Plateau United, Sikiru Alimi of Lobi Stars Football Club of Makurdi and Super Eagles goalkeeper Ikechukwu Ezenwa who plays for Heartland Football Club of Owerri. 

The aforementioned players will join the Under-23 stars like Ebube Duru, John Lazarus, Seth Maye, Olisa Nda,  Fatai Gbadamosi and Williams Ukeme.

These were the players who prosecuted the match against the Sudanese Under-23 side. Ndifreke Effiong the scorer of the two goals out of the five goals scored against Sudanese will be major boost to the quest of CHAN Eagles to win away from home.

The CHAN Eagles will take on the Togolese  in their country come Sunday, the 22nd September 2019.

Pump As Barr. Aniefiok Dennis Sponsor Bill To Upgrade School Of Health Technology To A College

A bill for a law to upgrade the Akwa Ibom state School of health Technology to a college of Health Technology for training of various health professionals in the state and for other matter connected there with has passed second reading at the Akwa Ibom state house of Assembly.

The bill is  sponsored by the member representing Etinan state constituency, Barr .Aniefiok Dennis, and nine others as cosponsors.

Dennis While speaking on the need to change the name of the school to "College of Health Technology", hinted that the change is in order to help the students of the school to be able to meet  the standard with those outsider the state and to also gain recognition from the National Board for Technical Education (NABTE).

Also, " the bill when is passed into law and assented to by the Governor, it will enable the Institution to assess grants from the Tertiary Education Trust Fund( TETF), for improved infrastructure in the collage".

Barr. Dennis,who is the chairman, house committee on information used the opportunity to commend Governor, Mr.Udom Emmanuel for putting his best in terms of infrastructural development in the school and pleaded with his colleagues to support the bill to see the light of the day.

Our House correspondent, Theophilus Udo, reports that earlier at the floor of the House during debate on the bill ,Members of the house unanimously spoke in support of the Bill and advocate that health personnel should be trained to handle students and also man the various health facilities built by Governor Udom Emmanuel in the state.

They also expressed optimism that the passage of the bill into law will stop quackery and will also encourage our people to go to school.

On his part,the speaker of the house Rt.Hon.Aniekan Bassey, explained the merit of the bill and what the students stand to benefit if the bill is passed into law.

The bill was later committed to the House committee on Health for further legislative actions and to report back to the house.

After plenary, the sponsor of the bill, explained to journalists that before now, once a students graduated from the school ,their certificate were not well recognized outside the state as such limits those graduates from gaining jobs outside the state, but Once the school is upgraded they will go for Youth service.

Is it true that the super Eagles now are a first half team?

NDDC Owes Over Two Trillion Niara - Senator Akpabio

The Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio has said that the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) has not performed well since it was established.

This is just as the Minister decried the huge indebtedness of the Commission to the tune of over N2 trillion to some real contracts and imagined contracts.

Senator Akpabio who disclosed this while meeting with the Management team of the NDDC said there would be a forensic audit of the funds received and spent by the Commission since 2000.

“The impact of NDDC on the entire Niger Delta region would have been more if not for those thing militating against development, personal interest, political interest, interferences here and there.

“The NDDC was strategic, it was a child of necessity, I believe that the NDDC has not performed well, I don’t want to say that you have failed the region, I am saying that you have not performed well.

“The real youths of the Niger Delta who undertook clearance of water hyacinths have not been paid, those that were paid are political youths, people that you owe just N500,000 to N1 million are over 400 and they have been going to NDDC for over 10 years, and the money has not been given to them.

“I know as for now in terms of debt, NDDC is owing over N2 trillion, some of them are real, some are imagined, but the problem we are having is that you won’t know the ones that are real when they are mixed with the ones that are political, and the result is that someone who took a loan to do a real job for NDDC probably may have died, leaving the family in penury.

“We will do forensic analysis and audit, we will try to go backwards even from the year 2000 up till now to know what came in and what went out and why we have not seen much on ground,” Senator Akpabio said.

Stating the need to refocus the Commission, the Minister noted the Commission would cease from paying over N200 million as rent for their headquarters.

“We will stop you from doing politically motivated roads, we will stop you from keeping your headquarters for over 20 years without commissioning, we will stop you from paying N200 million to N300 million yearly as rent for the headquarters you are occupying,” he added.

Earlier in his address, the Minister of State for Niger Delta Affairs, Mr Festus Keyamo said the NDDC has failed the Niger Deltans.

He said the funds spent by the Commission was not commensurate with the infrastructure on ground.

“The purpose of this meeting is to meet with you for the first time as the supervisory Ministry, get to know you and discuss some issues that are at the front burner, redefine the vision of the Commission that has since been lost over time.

“I recall that a few weeks ago, the Vice President of this country did say publicly that this commission has failed, that is the truth.

“In terms of commensurability of the project viz-a-viz the income that is accruable to the commission, we have failed.

“Let us be clear that it will not business as usual, it will be business unusual from now on,” Keyamo noted.

The NDDC Management team was led by the Director Overseeing the Commission, Dr Akwagaga Enyia.

Commonwealth Conference Will Aid 7th Assembly Achieve Her Agenda - Speaker

The Speaker of the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Aniekan Bassey, said the ongoing 50th Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA), Africa Regional Conference, “has offered members of the state legislature ample opportunity in parliamentary and diplomatic relations as well as enhancing our legislative capacity "

CPA exists to develop, promote and support parliamentarians and their staff to identify benchmarks of good governance and to implement the enduring values of the commonwealth

Speaking from Zanzibar, Tanzania, on Tuesday, Rt. Hon. Bassey, who led Honourable Members and staff of the State Assembly to the Conference, themed “E-Parliament: Seamless Platform for Facilitating Democracy,” said the event, and many others, will aid the 7th Assembly achieve its legislative agenda, work to support good governance, democracy and human rights.

The Speaker, through a statement by his Special Assistant on Media and Communications, Mr. Darlington Udobong, further said “Honourable Members and staff of the State Assembly are turbocharged to maximize every opportunity that CPA will offer towards enhancing and strengthening the existing robust legislature-executive relationship in Akwa Ibom.”

Rt. Hon. Bassey, according to the statement, expressed optimism that members of the State Assembly will take advantage of all the sessions including discussions at plenary on “Parliamentary Affairs: The Use of ICT in Strengthening Public Involvement in the Legislative Process; Social Affairs: The Use of Social Media in Enhancing Parliamentarians’ Constituency Engagement, Gender Affairs: Empowerment of Women: Strategies to Enable Women’s Participation in Decision Making; Youth Affairs: Implementation of Youth Policies as a Tool to Combat Migration.”

The statement also informed that the Akwa Ibom delegation will take active part in other discussions including “Economic Affairs: Enhancing Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Use in Providing Life-Changing Solutions in Rural Communities, and Political Affairs: The Role of Technology in Developing Democratic Practices.”

The Akwa Ibom delegation included the Deputy Speaker, Princess Felicia Bassey (Okobo); House Leader, Sir Udo Kierian Akpan (Oruk Anam); Chief Whip, Rt. Hon. Emmanuel Bassey (INI); Deputy House Leader, Barrister Aniefiok Dennis (Etinan), and Deputy Chief Whip, Rt. Hon. Nse Essien (ONNA).

Others are Rt. Hon. Effiong Bassey (Oron/Udung Uko); Rt. Hon. David Lawrence (Eket); Rt. Hon. Uduak Ududoh (Ikot Abas/Eastern Obolo); Rt. Hon. Asuquo Archibong (Urue Offong Oruko); Hon. Ifiok Udoh (Nsit Ibom); Hon. Mfon Idung (Abak); Hon. Udeme Otong (Etim Ekpo); Deputy Clerk, Barrister Anietie Eka, and the Protocol Officer, Mr, Ndiuwem Okuku.

Unemployment In Niger Delta: FG To Partner Greece On Ship Building, Employment Generation

The Federal government is to partner with the Republic of Greece on the training of Niger Delta youths and others in ship building, fishing, food sufficiency and employment generation.

The Minister of Niger Delta Affairs Senator Godswill Akpabio disclosed this when the representative of the Greece government in Nigeria, Concept Amadeus Limited paid a working visit to the Ministry on September 3, 2019 in Abuja.

Senator Akpabio said that the Ministry is poise to improving the standard of living of the people of Niger Delta and Nigeria in general. He commended the initiative which according to him, will reduce militancy and crises of unemployment in the country,

The Minister noted that the partnership, will empower the youths in the Niger Delta Region, stop the illegal fishing on Nigerian shore and also give Nigerians the opportunity to explore the value chain in the fishing industry.

Senator Akpabio said that the host communities will be involved in the whole process to enable them own the project and provide the enabling environment for successful hosting of the dockyard.

He lamented that most areas in the Niger Delta may not be good for fishing because of oil exploration adding that the Maritime University in Okerenkoko , Delta state and the Maritime Academy in Oron, Akwa Ibom State can be used as the training ground for the ship building progarmme.

To ensure that the whole process is domesticated, Senator Akpabio and the Minister of state, Festus Keyamo set up a 5-man committee to work out detailed modalities of the training programme adding that any nation that cannot feed itself is yet to start.

Earlier, the Chairman and Chief Executive of Concept Amadeus Limited, Prince Patrick Osabase, the organization representing the Greece government said that the partnership programme  will create employment for the youths in the Niger Delta region and enhance their potentials in the fishing industry adding that Nigeria lost about $10 billion yearly to untapped resources in the  fishing industry .

A'Ibom Government Begins Closure Of Illegal Schools In Oron

To enhance qualitative education drive of governor Udom Emmanuel, the Akwa Ibom State Government has embarked on a compliance exercise in view of Closing down illegal and unauthorised Schools (Primary/Secondary) in the State, so as to sanitize the educational sector.

The 3-day exercise, flagged off Monday, September 2, 2019  by the State Commissioner of Education - Prof. Nse Essien, is Led by the Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Education Monitoring, Mrs Idongesit Etiebet.

Speaking during the outing Mrs. Etiebiet, who led a team to Oron LGA,  frowned at the spate of illegal Schools in the area, describing the situation as unfortunate. Mrs. Etiebiet added that no child in such learning atmosphere can ever attain a qualitative education to measure up with the demands of the contemporary 21st Century society.

The schools were lacking in basic facilities and conducive atmosphere for qualitative learning. Some of the schools operate in churches, while others operate in living houses and shanties.

Reacting to the situation, the Director, Ministry of Education (PRS), Mrs G. Eniang, described the situation as an eyesore which cannot and should  not be condoned.

"With what I have seen on ground, I believe the government has taken the right step. Most of the things in the schools (the so-called schools) that they operate in, are an eyesore.

Mrs. Eniang added that taking our Children into such places to learn from, spells doom for their health conditions and future.

"And besides that, like the ones we entered and saw teachers having lessons with pupils, we realized the teacher's highest qualifications were just the West African School Certificate... and one would wonder what a teacher with such degraded grade can teach a child", Mrs. Eniang decried.

If we may ask, what are they imparting on this  pupils? The best step there is closing down this illegal Schools, she added.