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Political stability gradually returning to Rivers — Ibas
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The Rivers State Administrator, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (retd.), says political stability is steadily returning to the state through inclusive dialogue and non-partisan consultations with key stakeholders.
Ibas stated this on Thursday when he received the House of Representatives Ad-Hoc Committee on Emergency Rule Implementation, led by Prof. Julius Ihonvbere, at the Government House in Port Harcourt.
President Bola Tinubu had on March 18 declared a state of emergency in Rivers State, suspending Governor Siminalayi Fubara and the members of the state House of Assembly for six months.
He appointed Ibas as sole administrator to run the state.
In a statement on Thursday by his Senior Special Adviser on Media, Hector Igbikiowubo, the administrator said reconciliation efforts and the willingness of political actors to collaborate had laid the groundwork for lasting peace.
“I am pleased that, God willing, we have put major differences behind us,” he said, crediting President Tinubu with playing a pivotal role in facilitating the peace process.
Ibas outlined ongoing reforms in the state, including leadership training and adjustments to the civil service salary structure, as well as a historic biometric verification of staff and pensioners to enhance transparency.
He said his administration had cleared long-standing arrears owed to health workers, streamlined pension payments—now made directly to beneficiaries—and introduced free health insurance for all state pensioners under the revitalized RIVCHIPP scheme, with mandatory enrolment for civil servants.
The administrator commended the improved cooperation between communities and security agencies, which he said had helped reduce cultism, kidnapping, and vandalism of infrastructure.
He also announced plans to deploy a critical infrastructure surveillance system to boost security and enable early threat detection across the state.
On the Port Harcourt Ring Road Project, Ibas expressed dissatisfaction with the contractor’s performance, describing it as “regrettable.” Despite receiving 77 per cent mobilisation—amounting to N150bn out of the N195bn contract sum—he said the project remains largely unexecuted.
Worse still, he revealed, the contractor has requested an 87 per cent variation, which could inflate the total cost to N367bn.
“A team of professionals has completed a comprehensive review, and it is clear Rivers State has received the short end of the stick,” Ibas said. “Engagements with the contractor will begin in the coming days, and based on the outcome, we will determine the next steps. Our resources must be judiciously used. Contractors must honour lawful agreements and terms. There will be consequences.”
In his remarks, Ihonvbere said the committee’s visit was aimed at assessing ongoing projects, understanding governance challenges, and engaging stakeholders.
“We will be here for the next two days to engage with relevant stakeholders,” he stated. “You, your administration, and those of us here share the same purpose—to ensure good governance, enduring peace, and value for every kobo spent in Rivers State.”
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, ICPC, has arraigned former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, at the Federal High Court in Kaduna over an alleged N8.68 billion fraud linked to a CCTV surveillance contract.
Arraigned alongside the ex-governor were his former Senior Special Adviser and Counsellor, Jimi Adebisi Lawal, and five companies over allegations bordering on corruption, money laundering, and financial misconduct.
The case, filed under charge number FHC/KD/93C/2026, was brought before Justice Hauwa’u Buhari of the Federal High Court, Kaduna.
Other defendants listed in the amended 11-count charge include Singularity Network Security Limited, Solar Life Nigeria Limited, Knowledge Investment Nigeria Limited, Intercellular Nigeria Limited, and Noble Coast Resources Limited.
The anti-graft agency equally mentioned Bashir El-Rufai, identified as an elder brother of the former governor, in one of the counts. He is currently said to be at large.
The ICPC stated that the charges stem from the award of a contract for the procurement, survey planning, final design, and installation of a Closed-Circuit Television, CCTV, surveillance system across the Kaduna metropolis.
The anti-graft agency alleged that El-Rufai, while serving as governor, approved the contract worth over eight billion naira, N8,682,574,054.94, in favour of Singularity Network Security Limited, despite the company allegedly lacking the required technical capacity and experience to execute such a project.
The Federal Government of Nigeria has evacuated the second batch of its citizens, numbering 66 people from South Africa over xenophobic attacks.
The evacuees landed at the Lagos international airport on Wednesday night as part of the Federal Government’s ongoing evacuation exercise approved by President Bola Tinubu, following the latest xenophobic violence in South Africa.
Recall that on June 11, the first batch of 258 evacuees arrived in the country aboard a chartered Air Peace flight.
Head of Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, NiDCOM, in Lagos, Dipo Onabowale, said the latest evacuation was facilitated by Kunle Soname, chairman and chief executive officer of ValueJet, with officials of the Nigerian High Commission in South Africa accompanying the returnees.
Onabowale, who spoke on behalf of Abike Dabiri-Erewa, NiDCOM chairman, commended Tinubu for approving the evacuation.
“There are 66 people in the second batch. Logistical challenges encountered during the first evacuation exercise are being addressed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“The Foreign Affairs Minister Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, has assured that all registered Nigerians in South Africa would be evacuated,” Onabowale said.
The Ondo State Government has sanctioned a group of students involved in a viral “sign-out” video, ordering the withholding of their West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) results and placing their names in a newly established school misconduct register, popularly referred to as the “black book.”
The disciplinary action was announced by the Ondo State Ministry of Education, Science and Technology following an emergency meeting held at the ministry’s headquarters in Akure to address the incident, which sparked widespread reactions on social media.
According to a statement issued by the ministry, the affected students are from Oyemekun Grammar School, Aquinas Secondary School and CAC Grammar School. The viral video, recorded after the completion of the 2026 WASSCE, allegedly showed graduating students engaging in unruly behaviour, including tearing their school uniforms and chanting inappropriate slogans.
As part of the sanctions, the ministry said the official school testimonials and WASSCE results of the 17 identified students would be withheld indefinitely, while their names would be entered into the misconduct register of their respective schools.
The government also directed all school principals in the state to establish a “black book” for documenting cases of student misconduct. In addition, senior officers at the affected schools have been issued official queries for what the ministry described as inadequate supervision that allowed the celebrations to degenerate into disorder.
The ministry further ordered the immediate expulsion of any student featured in the video who is not in a terminal class.
Speaking after the disciplinary hearing, the Commissioner for Education, Prof. Igbekele Ajibefun, said the government supports the celebration of academic milestones but would not tolerate actions capable of tarnishing the image of the state’s education sector.
“The growing sign-out culture among secondary school students must be guided by decency. We will not fold our arms and watch the discipline we have painstakingly instilled in our schools be eroded for the sake of social media clout,” he said.
Ajibefun added that the government remained committed to protecting the integrity of the educational system and would not allow acts of indiscipline to disrupt learning in schools.
The Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Dr. Akindele Ige, urged school principals to promptly report signs of unrest to the Zonal Education Office and the ministry to prevent situations from escalating.
The ministry also disclosed that the affected students and their parents had been summoned to receive official letters detailing the sanctions imposed on them.
Officials said the measures were intended to serve as a deterrent to other students and reinforce discipline across secondary schools in Ondo State.
ICPC arraigns El-Rufai, six others over alleged N8.68bn CCTV contract fraud
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