Survey

NBC restates determination to actualise demarcation of 90km stretch between Enugu, Kogi

Published

2 years ago

September 20, 2022

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The National Boundary Commission (NBC) has indicated its determination to actualise the demarcation of the 90 kilometer stretch of boundary between Enugu and Kogi states.
The Director-General of the commission Surv. Adam Adaji stated this in his address at the joint meeting of officials on the Enugu/Kogi interstate boundary on Monday in Abuja.

The NBC boss expressed gratitude to the governments of Enugu State and Kogi for the peaceful boundary regime they maintained in spite of the differences on the boundary alignment in some sectors.

However, he reiterated the importance of concluding works on the long-standing boundary.
“The Enugu/Kogi interstate boundary is about 90 kilometers in length and it is defined in the Legal Notice of No. 126 of 1954.

“Findings showed that the most contentious sector of the boundary is around the Ette Community that both Igbo-Eze North and Olamaboro Local Government Areas of Enugu and Kogi States respectively claim.

“The dispute over the location attracted attentions of the Federal Government in the past. The Commission had undertaken series of actions towards resolving the dispute, including several meeting and field exercise.

“I therefore call on the affected border communities in the two states to continue to maintain peaceful coexistence as the Commission is committed to demarcate the boundary as quickly as possible,” Adaji said.

Adaji also appealed to the border communities to see boundaries as bridges for the promotion of cordial relationship and peaceful coexistence.

“I urge the border communities to cooperate with the Joint Field Team and continue in its efforts to define the internal boundaries of our country”.

Speaking, the Deputy Governor of Enugu State, Mrs Cecilia Ezeilo commended members of the delegation of the two states for responding to the invitation to attend the meeting.

Ezeilo narrated the journey of the boundary resolution efforts initiated by NBC from 2007 to 2013 when the field exercise was inaugurated.

“However, the exercise could not be concluded due to logistic problems. We hope that this time around, the exercise will revitalise the efforts of bringing to an end this boundary issue.

“I want to commend the brotherly attitude of residents of border communities at the boundary between Enugu and Kogi States.

“The cordiality being exhibited is worthy of emulation by residents of other border communities elsewhere who are constantly at one another’s neck and up in the arms.

“I encourage the two communities to nurture this friendly disposition at the borders and be ready at all times to mend fences whenever the need may arise,” Ezeilo said.
Ezeilo was represented by the Surveyor General of the Enugu State, Surv. Augustus Digwe.

In the same vein, the Deputy Governor of Kogi, Mr Edward Onoja said his state initiated action against Enugu State on the issue of the boundary, particularly with regards to the location of Ette Community.

“This is because, no aspect of the existing boundary has ever been amended or adjusted regarding Ette Community.

“If the community has been part of the Igala Kingdom, and existed in the old Kabba Province, at what stage did it mysteriously become part of the southern province.

“However, the Supreme Court has directed for an amicable settlement and we cannot stand here to circumvent that decision. I believe that the amicability of the settlement is a straight forward matter.

“The Governor of Kogi, Alhaji Yahaya Bello is desirous of an amicable settlement that is in consonance with the judicial findings applicable to the matter so that his people in Ette Community can live with their kith and kin in Kogi state,” Onoja said.

In attendance were traditional rulers, Commissioners, other state government officials and some local government chairmen from Enugu and Kogi states respectively.

Survey

Survey shows, Women lose jobs after being sexually harassed in FCT

Published

3 years ago

February 24, 2022

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***Lament non inclusion of workers for design of protective measures

Bosses and superiors in the public and private sector, have been indicted in a new survey that exposed them as major perpetrators of sexually based violence in the work place, in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.

Female workers in the Territory, maintained that their bosses and superiors indulge in sexual harassment in the workplace.
This they said has constituted some kind of barrier to their career development.
In a survey, funded by the Ford Foundation, in its drive to promote a healthy workplace experience for the womenfolk in Abuja, 91.5% of the respondents said their bosses and superiors are the top culprits and perpetrators of sexual harrasements in the work place.
According to the survey, respondents further said that 54.5% of perpetrators of sexually based harrasement are subordinates, while another 13 percent of their peers harrassed them in the work place.
The investigative survey executed by Heir Women Development was part of its activities under the Project: Carrier Barrier and Workplace Sexual Harrasement against young women in FCT.

Founder, HEIR Women Development, Mrs. Anuli Aniebo Olaniyi said the outcome of the research as an evidential research work should propel progressive application into curbing the identified outcomes that were presented.
She thanked the Ford Foundation for the support to provide empirical data, that would be used to make the workplace more assuring and safer for the FCT worker.

Anuli said that “If young women are empowered with adequate tools to recognize and report sexual harassment at work and the organisations encourage and develop tools to ensure compliance with sexual harassment policies, then young women will have better protection and chances to excel in their carrier aspiration.”

The survey got responses from 1,060 young women between the ages of 18 and 35 years, who were respondents of 1000 off line and 60 online target audience.
According to the survey, “Information from the online survey indicates that the highest proportion of sexual harassment was reported by women within the age range of 31 to 35 years.

It said that the incidence of sexual harassment at the work place seems to be positively correlated with age and could be plausibly explained to be due to more years of experience/ employment.”

The commissioned researcher, Dr. Obianuju O. Nnadozie, from the University of Benin said a respondent in an explanatory note stated that: “Sometimes because of the nature of the work some persons will be getting ideas in their head and trying nonsense but I always stand my ground.

“I had an experience where a guy tried rubbish, sometime It cost me my job eventually because I didn’t take it lightly with him. But he called after a while and apologized. I have forgiven him though,” the researcher pointed out at a zoom meeting organized to share the findings of the survey.

Findings from the survey revealed that there is a low organisational support for women returning to work after childbirth as 41% of the women have said in the survey.
More disturbing finding from the report is the revelation analysed from respondents that, members of staff from their various organisation are not concerned about developing measure to protect women from SGBV

It reads: “Majority of the respondents report that members of staff, at all levels, are never involved in the design of preventive and protective measures Casual/contract staff (75%) Low level staff (76%) Mid level staff (73%) Top management staff (73%) Famale workers (76%) a F’

Olufunke Baruwa, Program Officer, at the Ford foundation maintained that the report would be of effect where actions are taken by the relevant authorities in relation to the identified outcomes.

About 15 women led organisations and stakeholders attended the validation session of the public presentation of the research outcomes.

They were unanimous in their condemnation of the findings and called on the government and non-governmental organisations to step up the campaign against sexually based violence SGBV against women to educate the population and work out instrument to tackle the challenge.

Some participant at the meeting on Carrier Barriers and Workplace Sexual Harrasmeent Against Young Women in Nigeria, a reseach extract of the Federal Capital Territory are: Special Assistant on Gender to Speaker House of Representatives, Fatima Kakuri, and Head, Gender at African Union, Adaora Onyechere among others.