29092020 - Anger as labour leaders abort strike, mass protest

12—Vanguard, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2020
:Vanguard News :@vanguardnews :@vanguardnews NEWS HOTLINES: 08052867023, 08052867058
Uduaghan returns to PDP, says he's
back to make PDP stronger
•His return homecoming —Party
By Festus Ahon,
Akpokona
Omafuire, Perez
Brisibe & Paul
Olayemi
A SABA—IMMEDIATE
past governor of Delta
State, Dr Emmanuel
Uduaghan, yesterday,
returned to Peoples
Democratic Party, PDP, after
about two years in All
Progressives Congress,
APC.
Uduaghan formally
rejoined the PDP after he was
officially handed the party
membership card by his Unit
1, Ward 6 chairman, Kingsley
Ogio, at his Abigborodo
community in Warri North
Local Government Area of the
state at 12:33 p.m.
Uduaghan in his facebook
post, entitled: “I am back
home,” said, “I am back to
join forces with other party
leaders to strengthen our
party, the largest party in
Africa, PDP.
“Having tasted the other
side, it feels refreshing to be
back home. Thank you all for
receiving me back. It feels like
I never left. God bless you.”
Addressing the party
faithful, Uduaghan, after
receiving his PDP
membership card, said he
was back at the party to make
it stronger, saying: “I just
stepped out for a few days to
find out what is happening
outside there and I had come
back to strengthen our party,
the PDP.
“Today (yesterday), I have
come to reactivate my
membership of the party, I
came to pick up the card that
I left behind while I was gone.
I have been hearing that we
have a few challenges,
politics is always about
challenges, whatever
challenges we have, we shall
all sit down, put our heads
together and deal with
them.”
Assuring his ward PDP
members, supporters, party
leaders in the state, he said:
“We have the manpower, we
have the experience, we can
be in the forefront in Delta
State, that we shall do.
“We are going to get what
belongs to us and that we
shall do,” saying as a former
commissioner, Secretary to the
State Government, and a
governor in the state, “there
is very little I don’t know in
the state.”
Earlier, ward Chairman,
Ogio, said Uduaghan was
never away, adding that
though he is the party ward
chairman, he had always
looked forward to the former
governor’s return.
His return
homecoming
—Party
Meanwhile, the state
chapter of the PDP has
applauded the decision of
Uduaghan to return to the
PDP.
The party in a statement by
its Publicity Secretary, Dr
Ifeanyi Osuoza, described
the move as timely and a sort
of homecoming, adding that:
“We are excited that our
Why APC lost Edo gov election
— Oyegun
By Ozioruva Aliu
BENIN
CITY—
FORMER National
Chairman of All Progressives
Congress, APC, Chief John
Odigie-Oyegun, yesterday,
broke his silence on the justconcluded
September 19
governorship election in Edo
State, saying his party lost
because of impunity reigning
in political parties in Nigeria
and the imposition of
candidates.
Speaking to journalists in
his Benin City residence, Edo
State, Odigie-Oyegun said
he did not campaign for the
party because his conscience
was against the way the party
was being run without
following due processes.
He commended the roles
played by the Oba of Benin,
Oba Ewuare II; National
Peace Committee, NPC,
headed by former Head of
State, General Abdulsalami
Abubakar (retd) and some
Western countries that
threatened sanctions against
election riggers.
He said: “The greatest
problem we have in this
country has been lack of due
process, impunity, lack of
respect for our constitution,
whether within the various
parties or outside them.
"To my mind, we have
regressed as far as party
politics is concerned because
we have departed from due
process, allowing free and
fair selection processes within
parties and if parties don’t
practice democracy, I don’t
see how they can preach
democracy to the people of
this nation.
“Fortunately, Edo State is
the heartbeat of the Nigerian
nation, so this election has
proved one more time that we
are truly the heartbeat of the
Nigerian nation and we hope
it is something that will be
copied for future elections in
this nation. You will find that
when that happens, court
cases will be less because
there will be much fewer
grounds for such."
“What happened is
democracy within the parties
and impunity within the
parties, attempts at imposition
within the parties; these are
the issues, just let things flow."
We disconnected C-River water
board over N177m debt
—PHED
By Ike
Uchechukwu
CALABAR
—THE
management of Port
Harcourt Electricity
Distribution Company,
PHED, yesterday, denied
allegations by Cross River
Water Board, CRSWB, that it
was supplying epileptic
power in Calabar occasioning
the water corporation to spend
N150 million on diesel
monthly.
PHED said the
disconnection of CRSWB
power supply was because it
has an outstanding debt of
N177 million till date as well
as involved in an illicit
practice of “meter bypass.”
It would be recalled that
former governor is back home.
Politics is about the people;
recent political developments
in Nigeria have also shown
that power and relevance
come from the people.
“The Uduaghan we know
is not unmindful of this fact,
this is in addition to the fastchanging
political
atmosphere in the country. As
a political party, we fully
appreciate the fact that his
return journey back home
may also not be unconnected
with the desire to be reunited
with his friends, political
soulmates and supporters."
CROWNED: High Chief William Atete, the most senior Unugbrogodo
of Idjerhe Kingdom (right) crowning HRM (King) Monday Obukowho
Whiskey Udurhie I, as the Ovie of Idjerhe kingdom at the Oguedion Hall
in Idjerhe as other Inugbrogodos look on.
the management of CRSWB
had earlier disclosed that it
spends N150 million
monthly on diesel due to
arratic power supply by
PHED.
A statement by Manager,
Corporate Communications,
PHED, Mr John Onyi,
yesterday, said CRWB has an
outstanding debt of N177,
730,978.52 as at date. On
January 24, 2020, the agency
was disconnected for nonadherence
to payment plan
as agreed in a series of
meetings held with its
management.
“The above action attracted
media outrage orchestrated
by the agency aimed at
incurring public sympathy,
hence a meeting was held
arising from its outcry and a
temporary reconnection was
effected thereafter."
NDDC: Group slams Gbaja,
Lawan over alleged inaction
against corrupt officials
By Tordue
Salem
ABUJA —A civil society
organisation, Act for
Positive Transformation
Initiative, has lambasted the
leadership of the National
Assembly over alleged
indifference to allegations of
graft against the Interim
Management Committee,
IMC, of Niger Delta
Development Commission,
NDDC.
The group in separate
letters, addressed to the
Senate President and the
House of Representatives
Speaker, yesterday, called on
the legislature to, as a matter
of urgent public importance,
take necessary steps to save
Niger Delta from going into
developmental oblivion,
occasioned by alleged
u n m i t i g a t e d
mismanagement of funds
meant to develop the Niger
Delta region.
The letters dated
September 28, 2020, by the
Head, Directorate of
Research, Strategy and
Planning, Mr Kolawole
Johnson, noted that several
billions of naira have been
siphoned from the coffers of
the commission despite efforts
by the National Assembly to
investigate pending
allegations against the IMC.
The letter read, “Your
Excellency, barely one month
after the alarm was raised,
new records show that over
N27 billion was looted
between June 29 and July 29,
2020. This fact can be
confirmed officially from
relevant agencies of
government.
“After the commission's
many diatribes against the
institution you lead and an
open walk-out on your
investigative committee, Mr
Speaker, came out openly to
tactically shield the acting
MD of the commission, Prof
Pondei, from interrogation
after a poorly orchestrated
fainting drama.
"While the hearing was
going on, the management of
the commission has the
effrontery to continue the
looting of the peoples’
resources through extrabudgetary
expenditures. Yet
the National Assembly has
looked away as though it is
acting in connivance with the
looters.
NBA president urges lawyers
to resist temptation to cut
corners
By Francis Efe
WARRI
—National
President of Nigerian
Bar Association, NBA, Mr
Olukunle Akpata, has urged
lawyers in the country to
resist the temptation to cut
corners in their quest to
become successful
practitioners.
Akpata, who made this call
in Warri, Delta State when he
paid an unscheduled visit to
the NBA Effurun Branch
monthly meeting, said
cutting corners would only
lead to disaster.
It was a stop-over visit on
his way from Port Harcourt,
where he attended the burial
ceremony of renowned jurist,
Justice Karibi-Whyte (retd).
He said: “Whatever you do
in this life, do not despise your
humble beginning. You
should also listen to your
moral compass wherever you
are. Some of my friends who
started this journey together
with me are no longer in the
journey.
“Whatever you do in life,
don’t follow short cut because
it will lead you back to where
you started. Resist any
temptation to cut corners.”
He also thanked members
of the NBA Effurun Branch
for the support they gave him
during his election, saying,:“I
am so grateful for the support
and I promise you that I will
not disappoint you, people.”
Abandoned projects: A’Ibom
communities send SoS to
NDDC
By Harris
Emanuel
UYO—Oil producing
communities in Akwa
Ibom State have called on
Niger Delta Development
Commission, NDDC, to
expedite actions in
completing its projects
abandoned in the state,
describing as alarming, the
spate of abandoned projects
in the state.
The communities in their
separate calls, sent Save our
Soul, SoS, to the commission
as some of the abandoned
roads projects were
becoming death traps, while
the coastal communities were
exposed to the danger of
coastal erosion due to
abandoned shoreline
protection projects.
They noted that some of the
projects have been abandoned
for as long as 15 years.
For instance, a
comprehensive water project
in Nduo Ndu Okon Eket
village in Eket LGA of the
state awarded in 2017 by
NDDC to Mangrove Swamp
Limited to provide portable
drinking water for the people
is far from coming true due to
the none completion of the
water project, exposing
community members to water
borne diseases and other
health implications.
In Ikot itak in Ibeno LGA of
the state, the hopes and
aspirations of commuting for
a good motorable road has
been dashed as the Inua
Eyet Ikot-Itak Ukpa Okposo
road and a bridge awarded
to Movanni Global Services
Limited and Cadlink
Associates Consultant are still
uncompleted after four years.