Metro
NG-CARES: Kogi CSDA executes N150m micro projects in 9 communities
By Friday Idachaba, Lokoja.
KOGI State Community and Social Development Agency KGCSDA) has facilitated the execution of 21 micro projects worth N150 million in nine communities across the state under the Nigeria Covid-19 Action Recovery and Economic Stimulus (NG-CARES) Programme.
Chief Dauda Momoh, General Manager of the Agency disclosed this while presenting cheques of Project Retention Money to representatives of the nine communities that successfully completed their various micro projects.
Momoh while presenting the cheques at the Agency’s office in Lokoja on Thursday said that the projects were executed under the CSDA’s Community-Driven Development (CDD) initiative.
He said that the 21 intervention projects were in various sectors including Water, Education, Health and infrastructure among others.
“Like we said during the flag off of the projects, in this term, nine communities were considered with each of them having a total of N15 million in their portfolio for between two and three micro projects”, he said.
We have committed over N150 million on the community projects with part of the money expended on monitoring, training, logistics and all other things to facilitate execution of the projects.
Chief Dauda Momoh revealed that the Agency recently received the sum of N100 million from the State Government out of which N5.6 million was committed to payment of the Retention Money for all the communities that completely executed their projects to specification.
The General Manager said the Agency would soon flag-off approved micro projects for no fewer than 10 communities for intervention projects with direct bearing on the lives of the people in their various areas of need.
He commended representatives and members of the Community Projects Management Committees (CPMC) of benefiting communities receiving their Projects Retention Money for judicious application of their project funds in execution of the projects and urged them to sustain the performance.
“These projects are for the communities, they should own them, protect and preserve them as their own and with the Retention money we have given them, they should be able to keep the projects going.
“And like I told them, we will be coming to monitor them from time to time to check and if we found out that there are issues with the projects in any community, that community may not benefit further from the Agency.
“Right now we are still expecting the third Country Monitoring Team that will go around to see that all these project that we have executed in order. So, the communities need to keep the projects afloat”, he said.
Representatives of communities who spoke at the occasion commended Governor Yahaya Bello for providing CSDA the necessary impetus to function.
The communities include Abache, Adavi-eba, Angwa-Ogebe, Asanta, Bagido-Omowa, Ebogogo, Eika-ehizenyi, Ebokehi and Gboloko from the three Senatorial Districts of the State. (Ends)
Metro
Deji Adeyanju fires back at Wike over Comments, Labels Him a “Bully and a Coward”
Human rights activist and lawyer Deji Adeyanju has issued a scathing response to comments made against him by Nyesom Wike, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) minister and former Rivers State governor. Wike had recently accused Adeyanju of being jobless, noting that the activist once sought his support in a bid to become the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) national publicity secretary.
During a press briefing in Abuja on Friday, Adeyanju didn’t hold back, describing Wike as “a bully and a coward.”
He went on to criticize Wike’s character and political approach, saying, “Wike has never worked anywhere in his life. He is a serial betrayer. The only difference between Wike and Portable is that Portable does not betray people who have helped him.”
Adeyanju praised Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara for his recent actions against Wike, saying, “I commend Governor Fubara for dealing decisively with him. That’s how to deal with tyrants. Wike is nothing without politics.”
He further expressed his concerns over Wike’s influence, stating, “The reason why he is making so much noise and constituting a nuisance all over the place is because of our political patrimony that he loots. Clowns and charlatans like Nyesom Wike will open their mouths and criticize true activists.”
Adeyanju also highlighted the importance of citizens participating in politics, saying, “Wike wants everyone to leave politics to rogues like him. His idea of nation-building is where people like him control everything. All citizens of conscience should get involved in politics.”
The back-and-forth between Adeyanju and Wike highlights ongoing tensions within Nigerian political circles and has sparked discussions about the role of activists and the nature of leadership in the country.
Metro
Late COAS Lt. General Taoreed Lagbaja Laid to Rest in Abuja Amid Tears, Tributes
***Emotional Farewell as Nigeria Mourns a Dedicated Military Leader
Amid deep sorrow and heartfelt tributes, the late Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt. General Taoreed Lagbaja, was laid to rest on Friday at the National Cemetery in Abuja.
His burial concluded two days of solemn funeral rites that began in Lagos, marking the end of an impactful military career.
The casket bearing Lagbaja, draped in Nigeria’s green and white, arrived at the cemetery around 3 pm following a funeral service at the National Christian Centre in Abuja.
His body was lowered into the earth at 4:41 pm after a ceremony lasting over two hours.
The event was attended by numerous dignitaries, including President Bola Tinubu, Vice President Kashim Shettima, Acting Chief of Army Staff Lt. Gen. Olufemi Oluyede, Chief of Defence Staff General Christopher Musa, Defence Minister Abubakar Badaru, and other high-ranking officials.
President Tinubu, paying tribute, called Lagbaja’s appointment one of his most significant decisions and announced a posthumous national honor of Commander of the Federal Republic (CFR) for the late COAS. He urged the military not to lose hope: “Please, do not let death defeat us, and as Commander-in-Chief, I renew my pledge that the country will always support you and your families.”
General Musa, the Chief of Defence Staff, echoed this sentiment, calling Lagbaja’s passing a call to strengthen the military’s resolve.
“Let us ensure his sacrifice continues to guide us as we defend this nation. We are resolved to defeat all enemies of the state, whether within or outside,” he stated.
Acting COAS Oluyede expressed personal gratitude for Lagbaja’s mentorship, sharing that he had nominated him for a national honor even while facing illness.
Lagbaja’s funeral rites began with a service of songs at the Army Headquarters Garrison Parade Ground, Mogadishu Cantonment, on Thursday, following the arrival of his body at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport from Lagos.
Lt. General Lagbaja, born on February 28, 1968, served as Nigeria’s Chief of Army Staff for over a year, having been appointed by President Tinubu in June 2023. He passed away on November 5 after a brief illness, leaving a legacy of dedication and patriotism.
Metro
Group Raises Alarm Over Lagos Task Force’s Invasion of Ex-Minister’s Lekki Property
A civil society group, Good Governance Alliance – Nigeria (GGA-N), has condemned the Lagos State government following an alleged invasion of former Transportation Minister Admiral Festus Porbeni’s Lekki property by state officials on Friday morning.
They called for immediate action against alleged breach of court order on Admiral Festus Porbeni’s property.
According to the group, the invasion is in direct violation of a Federal High Court order and sets a dangerous precedent for lawlessness.
In a statement issued by GGA-N representative Nathaniel Obasi, the group reported that officials from the Lagos State Special Task Force forcefully entered Admiral Porbeni’s property at Wole Olateju Crescent around 7:30 am, accompanied by heavily-armed mobile policemen.
Obasi noted that the task force allegedly beat, arrested, and detained several individuals on the premises, placing them in a police vehicle known as ‘Black Maria.’
The statement emphasized that this raid contradicts a Federal High Court injunction prohibiting any disruption at the property and disregards a recent Supreme Court ruling granting federal control over inland waterways and adjacent lands within 100 meters.
Despite Porbeni’s possession of a Federal Certificate of Occupancy, the Lagos State Task Force allegedly threatened to bulldoze structures on the property, sparking concerns over escalating conflicts between state and federal jurisdiction.
GGA-N therefore urged the Chief Justice of Nigeria, the Inspector-General of Police, Lagos Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, and federal agencies overseeing waterways to intervene, asserting that the Lagos State government’s actions could lead to “lawlessness and chaos.”
According to him, the disputed property was previously invaded in 2021.
Obasi claimed that at about 7:30am this Friday, officials from the Lagos State Special Task Force, illegally forced their way into Admiral Porbeni’s property at Wole Olateju Crescent, Lekki, despite the Federal High Court order, which barred any agent from entering the premises or harassing any person at the premises.
It added the Lagos State Special Task Force accompanied by heavily-armed mobile policemen, beat up, arrested and threw staff and other people met on the property into a police vehicle called ‘Black Maria’, which they brought “for the illegal raid”.
“The officials who cordoned off the area are now threatening to bulldoze all structures on the property, in brazen breach of the Federal High Court order (FHC/L/CS/1384/21).
“The actions of the Task Force is also in disregard of the landmark ruling of the Supreme Court in January which affirmed the federal government’s exclusive control of the country’s inland waterways and all lands within 100 meters of all declared federal waterways in Nigeria.
“The question is despite Admiral Porbeni being in possession of a Federal Certificate of Occupancy (CofO), how is the Lagos State Government allowed to flout not only an injunction from the Federal High Court but also a ruling from the Supreme Court?
“The Lagos state government’s brazen disobedience of court orders is a recipe for lawlessness and chaos. We draw the urgent attention of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Inspector General of Police, the Governor of Lagos State and relevant federal government agencies in charge of federal waterways in the country to the illegal raid and occupation by the Lagos State Special Task Force,” Obasi stated
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