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Promoting the right of the girl-child to reproductive health and to be heard, in spite social and cultural inhibitions, plays a prominent role in the development of the girl-child and the society. Thus, as part of activities to mark the 2023 International Day of the Girl-Child, non-governmental organization, Ese Usamali Foundation for Rural Development (EUFORDe), organised a one-day outing, tagged ‘HangOut,’ with girls of the Community Secondary School Rumuodumaya, in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State. ‘HangOut,’ which was part of the ‘EducationOutLoud’ project of the Rivers State chapter of Civil Society Action Coalition on Education for All (CSACEFA),…

Special adviser on Oil and Gas to the Bayelsa State governor, Hon. Franklin Otele, has said that the introduction of pipeline surveillance by the Federal Government as a strategy to end pipeline vandalism and oil theft has help to boost the economy of state governments in the country, especially Bayelsa. Speaking with newsmen in Port Harcourt recently, he said that with operations of pipeline surveillance contractors like Pipeline Infrastructure Nigeria Ltd, PINL, the menace of oil theft and illegal bunkering, which threatened Nigeria’s economy, have drastically reduced the incident and seen crude oil delivery through pipelines rising from the almost…

By Amos Odhe, Yenagoa Immediate past governor of Bayelsa State and senator representing Bayelsa West, Seriake Dickson, has thrown his weight behind his successor, Senator Douye Diri, saying the latter’s re-election will be a smooth sail. Senator Dickson, who had not joined Governor Diri’s second term campaigns since it started three weeks ago, and had been described as “silent,” put to rest speculations on Wednesday when he hosted his successor to a colourful and well-attended event at his Toru-Orua country home in Sagbama Local Government Area of the state. Dickson said the coast was clear for Diri to be elected…

By Amos Odhe The Stand-up Niger Delta Security and Equity Group (NDSEG) has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to appoint an Ijaw member of All Progressives Congress (APC) in Delta State as substantive coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP). In a statement issued on Thursday in Benin City, Edo State, by its national secretary, Comrade T.A. Luke, the group noted that Delta State was the anchor point and championed the Niger Delta struggle which gave birth to the Presidential Amnesty Programme. It said, “This is because, since the inception of the Presidential Amnesty Programme PAP, no person from Delta State…

By Paul Williams In spite an increasing rise in voter apathy and worry over future elections in Nigeria, leading election monitoring group, the Transition Monitoring Group (TMG), says it is committed to promoting a culture of free, fair and credible polls in the country. This, according to TMG’s South South zonal coordinator, Amb. Sylvester Okoduwa, will translate to the organization boosting its participation in the coming off-cycle elections in Edo State and others, and ensuring more observers are put in the field to monitor and report on the conduct of the polls. Okoduwa’s comments came against the backdrop of elections…

By Young E. Freeborn, Warri The governor of Delta State, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori, has been commended for hitting the ground running, and embarking on numerous projects since he assumption of office. The commendation was made by a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Alhaji Barr Mumakai Unagha, following the signing of the agreement for the construction of four bridges in the state by the governor. The party chieftain noted that the state, especially Warri and environs, would come back to life, adding that economic and social lives of the people would be revived. He described the governor as a grass-rooted…

By Amos Odhe, Yenagoa As the world commemorates this year’s International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, the Senior Special Assistant (SSA) to Bayelsa State governor on Tourism, Dr. Piriye Kiyaramo, has called on policymakers to focus attention on the tourism sector, noting that tourism development has been regarded not only as a catalyst for economic growth but also as an effective means of alleviating poverty. In a statement issued in commemoration of International Day for the Eradication of Poverty 2023, which is themed, ‘Decent Work and Social Protection: Putting Dignity in Practice for All,’ Dr. Kiyaramo maintained that an…

By Amos Odhe, Yenagoa The ex-agitators in the Niger Delta have said that the ongoing reforms by the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP) in its scholarship scheme is to ensure the well-being of the already engaged beneficiaries and the proper education of ex-agitators. Leaders of the second and third phases of the PAP scheme, while speaking with newsmen in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State capital Tuesday, said the scholarship scheme was recently suspended due to debts and other financial commitment. National chairmen of the third phase ex-agitators, Elaye Slaboh, and second phase, Olotu Wanemi, told newsmen respectively that the scholarship was not abruptly terminated…

By Amos Odhe, Yenagoa Politicians and the electorate have been advised to say no to vote buying and selling and all forms of inducement and money laundering associated with political campaigns and elections during the forthcoming November 11 governorship election in Bayelsa State. Addressing participants at a Stakeholder’s Roundtable on the November 11 Governorship Election in Bayelsa State, the executive director of Centre for Transparency Advocacy, CTA, Madam Faith Nwadishi, said citizens’ choice must never be subverted by the negative use of money to influence votes, including the criminal purchase of PVCs by politicians. Nwadishi, who was represented by MacDonald…

By Godwin Chukwumaechi Youths of the Niger Delta, under the auspices of Niger Delta Youths Coalition for Peace and Progress (NDYCPP), has urged President Bola Tinubu to immediately suspend the N1.8 trillion Lagos-Calabar coastal road project. The coalition expressed concern of potential duplication of efforts and financial waste. The Lagos-Calabar coastal road project, spanning over 750 kilometers and featuring 160 bridges connecting the entire Niger Delta with Ibeju Lekki in Lagos State, was originally conceived by the Federal Government, with the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) entrusted to oversee its development. The NDDC has been reportedly invested over N25 billion…