By Michael Jegede
….. Ndoma-Egba calls for collaborative efforts of Cross Riverians
The newly inaugurated Governor of Cross River State, Governor Bassey Edet Otu has said that there won’t be any form of discrimination against anyone or group as he takes over the running of the affairs of the state from the immediate past governor, Prof. Ben Ayade.
Otu, popularly known as ‘Sweet Prince’, made the remark on Monday in his inaugural speech after taking the oath of office as the new governor of Cross River State.
The oath of office was administered by the Chief Judge (CJ) of the state, Hon Justice Akon Bassey Ikpeme at the UJ Esuene stadium, Calabar where the inauguration/swearing-in ceremony was held.
According to the new Cross River helmsman, “This is the Government of Cross Riverians by Cross Riverians for all Cross Riverians and non-Cross Riverians in our land. This government will bear no insignia of discrimination in belief, origin or gender. Women and men, young and old, educated and non-educated would be carried along and treated as equal before the law. I reiterate that I joined politics to provide service to humanity and nothing more.
“I have spent my gifting opportunities in the legislature and my creative convictions in advancing the course of humanity and I intend to leverage on those templates in providing the best governance to the people of Cross River State.”
Noting that he was not oblivious of the high expectations of the people, he said: “Fellow Cross Riverians, it is not lost on us the enormous work that must be done and the weight of built-up expectations. Therefore, we shall manage time effectively to rewriting the trajectory of our corporate aspirations in line with our collective dreams in divine destiny.
“We are ready to hit the ground running from today. Already we have designed and reviewed our strategic road map to guide our actions as we kick off.
“However, owing to the premium we attach to planning and fiscal discipline we have collaborated with credible international development institutions in formulating a medium term sustainable development plan in line with Cross River State 30-year development strategy in order to set the path for desired outcomes for our state.”
The new governor who is determined to work tirelessly for the progress of Cross River declared that there would be no room for criminals in the state, disclosing that “Within our People-First agenda, safety, peaceful co-existence and security of lives and properties are major pillars for my administration. For the few who take pride in criminality, there shall be no hiding place and only two options are on the table: turn a new leaf within our upcoming amnesty window or vacate Cross River State without delay. Our administration shall have zero tolerance for criminality in whatever form or shade.”
In his welcome address at the swearing-in ceremony, the inauguration committee chairman, Distinguished Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba, SAN, said: “Allow me to express my heartfelt congratulations to our newly elected governor. Your journey to this position has been a testament to your dedication, hard work, and the trust that the people have placed in you. Your election is a reflection of the aspirations and hopes of our citizens for a better and more prosperous state.
“As we gather here today, we acknowledge the tremendous responsibility that rests upon the shoulders of our new governor. Your tenure will be marked by challenges and opportunities, and the decisions you make will shape the lives of millions of people. However, I have every confidence that you possess the qualities of leadership, wisdom, and integrity necessary to navigate these waters and lead our state towards progress.”
Ndoma-Egba, a former Senate Leader and ex-Chairman of Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) added that “As we (Cross Riverians) embark on this new journey together, let us remember that progress is not achieved in isolation. It requires the collaborative efforts of government, private sectors, civil society, and every citizen. Let us foster an environment of cooperation, where partnerships are forged, and ideas are exchanged for the betterment of our state.”
The immediate past governor, Ayade, in his farewell speech, thanked the people of Cross River for the opportunity given him to govern the state for eight years, maintaining that he did his best to transform the state.
It has been celebration galore in Cross River since Governor Otu was inaugurated as the people believe that the ex-parliamentarian would offer them good governance and deliver the dividends of democracy to their doorsteps.
PRESS RELEASE
JUBILATION IN ALAUSA AS WORKERS RECEIVE SANWO-OLU, HAMZAT BACK TO WORK
- Governor, Deputy tour Govt ministries, interact with staff on policy direction
Day after their inauguration, Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu and his deputy, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat, resumed work on Tuesday, rededicating themselves to serving Lagosians as they launched into their second term.
Their first duty call was a joint visit to the State secretariat in Alausa, where they were received by an ecstatic crowd of government workers. The Governor and his deputy had unrestricted interactions with staff across cadres in the State’s workforce with the aim to elevate their morale and incorporate them into the new policy implementation framework.
Head of Service, Mr. Hakeem Muri-Okunola, and Body of Permanent Secretaries led the way, as the Governor and his deputy toured key ministries relevant to implementation of the administration’s development agenda.
The ministries are currently being administered by Permanent Secretaries and senior civil servants, pending the constitution of the State Executive Council by the Governor in the coming weeks.
Sanwo-Olu’s first port of call was the Civil Service Commission, which is statutorily responsible for resource mobilisation and management in the State’s civil service. During his interaction with the management staff, the Governor said the Commission was an important office that must continue to run because of its strategic importance to the implementation of his Government’s policies and vision.
Engaging management staff of the Ministry of Economic Planning and Budget, Sanwo-Olu said economic planning was one of the “strong tools” used to measure how well the State Government had been performing and delivering on its development agenda.
He said: “After the inauguration ceremony, it behoves on us to go back to work immediately to show Lagosians that we are ready for the job they have mandated us to do on their behalf. We resumed work today (Tuesday) and we have gone round several ministries in the civil service led by the Head of Service and the body of Permanent Secretaries.
“This objective is to encourage the staff, have an on-the-spot assessment of the working environment and have conversation around how to ensure every staff is on board as we hit the ground running again. We are happy to have resumed work and we are excited that the entire public service is ready to continue to serve the people.”
Sanwo-Olu also had a tour of the Ministry of Youth and Social Development, and Ministry of Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, which are relevant offices that will be responsible for the implementation of additional development pillars in the Government’s “THEMES Plus”programme.
The Governor, during his inauguration address on Monday, announced Social Inclusion, Youth and Gender Equality as additional priorities in his governing agenda.
Sanwo-Olu said the new priorities would deepen his administration’s resolve to leave no one behind in key activities of the State. He added that the additional pillars were deliberately not subjugated under existing programmes because of the need to have definitive strategic planning for each of them.
He said: “As we now have additional pillars in our governing agenda, we have to fully integrate the staff into the new policy direction and see how well we have to drive these new pillars. It is not out of place that we visited the Ministry of Youth and Social Development, Ministry of Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Ministry of Economic Planning and Budget and other strategic ministries, because it fits into our game plan for the next four years.”
The Governor expressed satisfaction on what he described as “articulate feedback” from the civil servants, just as he was elated about a conducive work environment in most of the offices visited.
On what civil servants should expect in his second term, the Governor said: “It is additional reforms and citizen-driven policies that will touch the lives of the people. They should know where they need to work with us on each of those policies. They must ensure that each time members of the public walk into the secretariat for services, they leave in assurance that we have served them in the best way.”
After the secretariat tour, Sanwo-Olu and his deputy went into a closed door meeting with the Head of Service and Permanent Secretaries.
Gboyega Akosile
Media Adviser to the Governor
30th May, 2023
PRESS STATEMENT
SPN BLAMES TINUBU’S RECKLESS PRONOUNCEMENT ON SUBSIDY REMOVAL FOR THE SUDDEN RETURN OF HIKE IN PETROL PRICE AND LONG QUEUE
NO TO HIKE IN PETROL PRICE AND NO TO DEVALUATION OF THE NAIRA!
NLC, TUC AND PRO-MASSES ORGANIZATIONS SHOULD BEGIN MASS MOBILISATION TO RESIST ALL ANTI-PEOPLE POLICIES
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on May 29, 2023 used his inaugural speech to leave nobody in doubt of his resolve to unleash anti-poor capitalist attacks on working people and the poor in the name of economic reforms. Just like during the campaign, President Bola Tinubu used his inaugural speech to reiterate his readiness to remove fuel subsidy and further devalue Naira under the guise of a unified foreign exchange rate. These two anti-people policies (petrol price increase and devaluation of the Naira) will have further devastating consequences for already poor living standards of working people. Besides, the cost of production and service will go up astronomically while many small and medium businesses will be affected by its attendant consequence of higher inflation and job losses.
A few hours after the inaugural speech, long queues returned to petrol stations and the price of petrol went up from N200 to between N300 to N600 per litre. Many working people were stranded at bus stops this morning (May 30, 2023) because there were not enough buses and cabs on the road to convey people and the transport cost suddenly went up. If this suffering can be unleashed within 24 hours of Tinubu’s regime, one would better imagine what is to be expected in the next 4 years.
Firstly, the whole subsidy arrangement is shrouded in corruption and secrecy and as such Nigerians (workers and the poor) cannot independently verify the actual subsidy. Secondly, allowing the oil marketers the free will to determine petrol prices will automatically increase the price of petrol similar to the price of diesel and kerosene that is currently selling for N670 and N870 per litre respectively. Already, inflation is so high and 40 percent of Nigerians live in extreme poverty.
Tinubu-led regime stated that the savings from subsidy removal or increment in the price of petrol will be invested in infrastructure, healthcare, education and to mitigate the hardship created. This is a lie. The ordinary people will not derive any meaningful benefit from the removal of petrol subsidy. The savings from the removal of subsidies on diesel and kerosene were never invested to mitigate the hardship created nor was there any benefit from that accrued to working people. The desperation to increase petrol price is linked to the desire to guarantee huge profits for Dangote and the oil marketers.
Tinubu also said that his administration will unify the exchange rate of Naira, which means allowing the market force (demand and supply) to determine the exchange rate, another term for devaluation of currency. Again, allowing the private speculators to determine the exchange rate will most likely spiral higher exchange rate than the black market rate which is currently at about N770 to a dollar. As a neo-colonial backward economy that lacks the productive capacity to compete on a global stage and largely depends on imported items and consumables, the landing cost of most products will go up and will further drive up inflation and cost of living.
The Socialist Party of Nigeria (SPN) is opposed to a hike in petrol price as a consequence of subsidy removal and devaluation of Naira. We reiterate our age-long opposition to these policies because they will further impoverish the working people, worsen the cost of living crisis and adversely affect small and medium scale businesses including triggering job losses etc. Therefore, SPN rejects an economy that is run mainly to meet the voracious profit interest of the big private sector players at the expense of the vast majority of working masses. Neo-liberal policies (privatization, deregulation, liberalization etc.,) alongside other capitalist policies are responsible for the growing poverty, rising cost of living, mass joblessness, poor living and working conditions, and continuation of these anti-people policies will spell more doom for the working masses. We advocate resuscitation of all 4 public refineries and also build new ones. The only way out is to struggle for a socialist society and implementation of socialist programme that plans production and services to meet the needs of the working masses and poor. This includes nationalization programme that puts the major companies under the democratic control of the workers and community people.
We call on the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), the Trade Union Congress (TUC) and pro-masses organisations to begin mobilization as a means to resist these anti-people policies. The trade union leadership and pro-masses organizations should be prepared to mobilize for general strikes and mass protests as a way to defeat these anti-poor policies.
SIGNED:
Abiodun Bamigboye Chinedu Bosah
Acting National Chairperson National Secretary
PDP BOARD OF TRUSTEES EULOGIES HIGH CHIEF RAYMOND ANTHONY ALEOGHO DOKPESI
“Those we love never truly leave us, there are things that death cannot touch.”
These words from Jack Thorne describe the current feeling of the entire Board of Trustees of the PDP as we remember our dear friend and brother. “High Chief” as he was fondly referred to was passionate about Nigeria. He was an advocate of good governance, which was reflected by his constant appraisal of policies which favoured citizens and open criticism of those that adversely affected the masses.
Regardless of his social status, High Chief was the leader of the South-south People Assembly (SSPA) as a result of his deep-rooted interest for the people of his geopolitical zone.
An avid businessman, media mogul, maritime engineer, and philanthropist, High Chief was a lot of things to a lot of people.
Whereas our brother and friend has hearkened to nature’s call to the great beyond, he has left lasting legacies that death cannot touch. Forever and always in our hearts we reflect on these legacies while we mourn your passing.
We pray God grant High Chief’s immediate family, the good people of Edo state, Nigerians and his friends all over the world the fortitude to bear this irreplaceable loss.
May his death bring peace, love, harmony and unity to our great Nation.
H.E. Sen Adolphus Wabara, (Ph.D)
Acting Chairman
Peoples Democratic Party
Board of Trustees
