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Tag: Nigeria

  • Amid CEO’s sudden resignation, First Bank halts plan to raise N300bn fresh capital

    Amid the sudden resignation of the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of First Bank Nigeria Limited, Adesola Adeduntan, FBN Holdings Plc has announced the cancellation of its proposed Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM).

    The EGM was scheduled to be held virtually on Tuesday, April 30, 2024 where plans for the consideration and authorisation of the company to undertake a capital raise of up to N300 billion and other ancillary matters were to be discussed.

    Adeduntan’s tenure was expected to expire on 31 December 2024, but, in a sudden and shocking development, he announced his resignation from the first-tier bank on April 20, 2024.

    Though no reason was given for the cancellation of the EGM, it might not be unconnected with Adeduntan’s resignation.

    The acting Company Secretary, FBN Holdings, Mr. Adewale Arogundade, in a signed statement released to the investing public on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX), stated that the EGM scheduled for the consideration and authorisation of the company to undertake a capital raise of up to N300 billion and other ancillary matters has been cancelled.

    “Further information will be provided in due course, as appropriate,” the statement added.

    The N300 billion capital raising exercise is coming on the backdrop of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)’s new capital requirement for banks operating in Nigeria.

    According to the earlier notice for the meeting, the capital raise transaction would be by shares issuance via public offer, private placement, or rights issue in the Nigerian or international capital markets at a price to be determined by way of a book-building process or any other valuation method or combination of methods.

    The notice said the issuance of shares will be in such tranches, series, or proportions and at such periods dates, coupon or interest rates within such maturity periods and upon such other terms and conditions as may be determined by the board of directors, subject to obtaining the approvals of the relevant regular authorities.

    It would be recalled that Adeduntan, who was appointed CEO of the bank on January 1, 2016, had stated in his resignation letter that he was leaving to pursue other interests.

    The boards of FBN Holdings, the parent company of First Bank, and that of the bank accepted the resignation and thanked the outgoing CEO for his service to the financial institution.

    The letter read: “As you are aware, my contract would be expiring on 31 December 2024, after which I would no longer be eligible for employment within the bank having served as the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of FirstBank for a record time of nine years.

    “I have however decided to proceed on retirement with effect from 20 April 2024, to pursue other interests”.

    The bank chief who retired in 2021, from the then-board of the financial institution, was reinstated a few days after by the CBN.

    By Babajide Okeowo

    Source

  • ‘Failed Attempt By Impostors’ – ‘Factional’ APC Committee Denounces Another Ganduje Suspension

    Umar-Ganduje

    Some members who called themselves as the authentic members of the Ward Executive Committee of the All Progressives Congress APC in Ganduje Ward of Dawakin Tofa local government area of Kano state have said another suspension slammed on Abdullahi Ganduje, who had been suspended by another ward executive is a failed attempt by impostors.

    Ganduje had, before the latest suspension, been suspended by another group that described itself as the authentic executive committee of the ward in Ganduje ward.

    Both the local government and state executive committees had denounced the first suspension which was announced a few days ago.

    The national working committee of the party also denounced the suspension which was validated by a court order obtained in the state high court to confirm the action of the ward executive.

    Ganduje however obtained a counter order from the Federal High Court Kano praying the court to set aside the decision that warned him against parading himself as the National Chairman of the APC.

    But earlier on Sunday, another group announced Ganduje’s suspension “for anti-party activities.”

    It declared itself as the authentic committee of the party in the ward.

    But a counter group on Sunday afternoon described the latest action as a grand scheme by the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) which governs Kano state to oust Ganduje by all means.

    In a statement made available to THE WHISTLER jointly signed Ahmed Muhammed Ganduje and Usaini Jibrin, claiming to be authentic chairman and secretary of Ganduje ward in Dawakin, they noted that as authentic executive members, no new election was conducted by the state or national body of the APC to herald a fresh leadership.

    “To the best of our knowledge, as executive members of Ganduje ward of the APC, there was no new election of new leadership of our party. We remain the same executive of the ward,” the statement added.

    The statement further said the sponsored group couldn’t do their homework properly by using a fake or uncertified headed paper on which they drew a list of non-existing party executives.

    “To worsen their situation, the leader of the group who announced the purported suspension is an NNPP member who contested but lost the councilorship election in Ganduje ward”, the statement said.

    The executive members therefore called on the national leadership of the party and security agencies to facilitate the arrest and prosecution of the group for impersonation.

    They also called on party members to disregard such propaganda aimed at disrupting the peace of the party.

    ‘Failed Attempt By Impostors’ – ‘Factional’ APC Committee Denounces Another Ganduje Suspension is first published on The Whistler Newspaper

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  • Electrical Technician – Abuja at Alpha Mead Group

    We are a Total Real Estate Solutions Company with operations in more than 10 African Countries and certified to international standards (ISO 9001:2015) by UKAS.Slot: 2

    Responsibilities

    Repair and replace defective components in motors, generators, controllers, storage batteries, switchboards, conductors, switches, and varied electrical fixtures.
    Familiar with processes of testing and inspecting electrical equipment, control systems, and installations.
    Install, wire, and connect electrical equipment and control system.
    Install, maintain, and repair electrical, electromechanical, and electronic parts of machinery and equipment.
    Read and interpret blueprints, schematics, and wiring diagrams.
    Proffer effective solutions to identified or reported problems.
    Compliance with HSE principles
    Identify correct PPE to use for different tasks, wear prescribed PPE at all times required, and keep these in good condition.
    Know and follow processes for preventive maintenance of assigned equipment and carry this out with minimal supervision.
    Provides accurate time material and labor estimates and measurements for tasks arising.
    Able to identify and use the right tools appropriately. No record of missing or destroyed tools due to staff negligence.
    Follow all rules, regulations, and policies of AM Facilities and follow all directives from superiors
    Perform other functions as may be assigned by the Administration and/or supervisor

    Requirements

    Academic Qualification: Minimum of SSCE, NABTEB or OND
    Other Qualification: Trade-test I, II & III or any other relevant qualification
    Work Experience: Minimum of 3 years post-certification experience in a serviced environment providing electrical installation and maintenance practices
    Knowledge of industrial Air Conditioners is a must-have
    Good hands-on practical experience dealing with electrical issues
    Good communication and interpersonal skills
    Ability to prepare reports
    Good troubleshooting (defect identification) and rectification skills
    Good knowledge of HSE (Toolbox-talk, JHA, Risk assessment) and customer service orientation

    Click Here To Apply

  • Lovely video of actor Nobert Young with his wife, Gloria Young

    Lovely video of actor Nobert Young with his wife, Gloria Young

    A video of veteran actors and couple, Gloria and Nobert Young vibing to an oldskool song at a party has made the rounds on social media. 

     

    Gloria shared the video on her Instagram page this afternoon.

     

    Watch the video below

     

     

     

     

     

    View this post on Instagram

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    A post shared by Lindaikejiblog (@lindaikejiblogofficial)

     



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  • Former Nigerian Customs Sole Administrator, Omlago Ango, Suspected Thugs Invade Abuja Home Of Estranged Wife To Forcibly Take Over Property, Damage Building

    Samuel Omlago Ango, a retired major general and suspected thugs have invaded the home of Juliet Ango, his estranged wife in the Maitama district of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

     

    Ango was the Sole Administrator of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) from 1994 to 1998.

     

    SaharaReporters gathered that several suspected thugs on Saturday stormed the property, which is a subject of litigation in courts in the FCT and Kaduna State.

     

    SaharaReporters learnt that despite the ongoing court cases, Ango had repeatedly served his estranged wife notices to leave the property.

     

    Sources said on Saturday, Ango and the suspected thugs stormed the property to forcibly eject his estranged wife, causing damage to her belongings in the process.

     

    “In the early hours of the morning (Saturday), two trucks filled with thugs arrived at the residence and jumped into the compound even though the gate was locked,” an eyewitness close to the family said.

     

    “And they immediately went to work in different parts of the house, destroying the windows, roof, and shattering the walls. While they were doing this, some others were taking out the properties in the house.

     

    “This type of illegality should not be allowed, especially when there is an ongoing court case.”

     

    The source said it was not the first time the former customs boss would do something like that, accusing him of doing a similar thing in 2018.

     

    “It took the intervention of female lawyers led by FIDA for Mrs Ango to have respite. Even though the FCT Police Command have been contacted, their intervention is less than salutary,” the source added.

    However, Ango who confirmed the incident to SaharaReporters on Sunday, said there was no court order restraining him from disposing his property.

     

    “There’s no court order whatsoever restraining me from disposing my property. You may wish to find out from the High Court in Abuja where whatever suit she’s referring to was thrown out since June/July 2023.

     

    “For the records, l have tried all means possible to reach her and all efforts were abortive. I have had to come personally to Abuja last weekend to have a one on one chat with her after much back and forth, only to come and she claimed she wasn’t in town.”

     

    “I even sent an SMS; still no response from her,” he added.

     

    Ango could not provide the document which supposedly threw out the suit filed by her estranged wife.

     

    Meanwhile, Juliet Ango told SaharaReporters that the planned meeting with Ango was rescheduled because she travelled out of Abuja to look after her sick father. She said Ango was aware of the development.

     

    She insisted that an Abuja High Court had struck out the case pending the determination of the case in Kaduna. According to her, the court in Abuja said it was an abuse of the court process to have the same matter in different courts.

     

    She, however, could not provide the necessary court document.

     

    “In 2013 he left us, but before then he had given me the house. He said because of his brothers and sisters’ behaviour towards me, that he wanted me to have the house in case anything happened to him.

     

    “Since that 2013, we have been on and off court. He wrote to me that he wanted to sell the house, and I said how can you sell the house you have given me. We went to court and I filed for judiciary separation in Abuja. Later he went to Kaduna court to file for divorce. The case has been going on.

     

    “In 2018, he came here and demolished my fence, he said the case was taking so long. We later went back to Kaduna court.

     

    “Sometime last week he called me that he wanted to come around for us to discuss, which I told my lawyer and we fixed a date to meet and talk alongside witnesses to see how we can resolve things.

     

    “The planned meeting was rescheduled because I travelled home to look after my 91-year-old father who was sick. I called him and told him that I would call him when I was back in Abuja. I thought that was it.

     

    “I was asleep on Saturday morning around 6 am, the next thing I heard was as if my house was a battlefield. Over 50 men stormed my house; it was like commando warfare. Some were on the roof, some by the windows, some by the doors and some by the boy’s quarters.”

     

    “They started destroying my house, and even when the police arrived, these people refused to stop, until police threatened to you live ammunition on them. They said the house had been sold, that they wanted to transfer it to the new owner,” she added.

     

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  • SERAP threatens to sue 36 governors, Wike over FAAC allocations since 1999

    Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged Nigeria’s 36 state governors and the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, Mr Nyesom Wike to “provide our organization with documents on the spending of trillions of FAAC allocations received by your state and the FCT since 1999, and to widely publish any such documents.”

    SERAP also urged them “to invite Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to jointly track and monitor the spending of FAAC allocations by your state and the FCT and to probe any allegations of corruption linked the allocations.”

    SERAP’s requests followed reports that the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) disbursed N1.123 trillion to the federal, state, and local governments for March 2024 alone. States collected N398.689 billion.

    In the Freedom of Information (FoI) requests dated 20 April 2024 and signed by SERAP deputy director Kolawole Oluwadare, the organisation said: “Nigerians ought to know in what manner public funds including FAAC allocations, are spent.”

    SERAP said, “Without this information, Nigerians cannot follow the actions of their states and the FCT and they cannot properly fulfill their responsibilities as citizens.”

    According to SERAP, “trillions of FAAC allocations received by Nigeria’s 36 states and the FCT have allegedly gone down the drain. The resulting human costs directly threaten the human rights of socially and economically vulnerable Nigerians.”

    The FoI requests, read in part: “ensuring that the FAAC allocations received by your state and the FCT are spent to achieve the security and welfare of Nigerians are serious and legitimate public interests.

    “Secrecy in the spending of FAAC allocations received by your state and the FCT is entirely inconsistent and incompatible with the Nigerian Constitution 1999 [as amended] and the country’s international anti-corruption obligations.

    “Secrecy in the spending of FAAC allocations received by your state and the FCT also denies Nigerians the right to know how public funds are spent. Transparency in the spending would allow them to retain control over their government.

    “The documents should include the evidence and list of specific projects completed with the FAAC allocations collected, the locations of any such projects and completion reports of the projects.

    “The documents should also include details of the salaries and pensions paid from the FAAC allocations collected, as well as the details of projects executed on hospitals and schools with the FAAC allocations.

    READ ALSO:SERAP tasks Tinubu to publish loan agreements by Obasanjo, Yar’Adua, Jonathan, Buhari

    “Despite the increased FAAC allocations to states and FCT, millions of residents in your state and the FCT continue to face extreme poverty and lack access to basic public goods and services.

    “The reported removal of petrol subsidy and the floating of the exchange rate by the Federal Government has translated into increased FAAC allocations to states and the FCT. However, there is no corresponding improvement in the security and welfare of millions of Nigerians.

    “FAAC allocations received by your state and the FCT are reportedly characterised by mismanagement, diversion of funds, and abandoned projects. FAAC allocations have also been allegedly spent for other purposes such as election campaigns and political patronage.

    “Publishing the documents on the spending of FAAC allocations by your state and the FCT would promote transparency, accountability, and reduce the risks of corruption in the spending of the funds.

    “Publishing the documents would enable Nigerians to meaningfully engage in the implementation of projects executed with the FAAC allocations collected.

    “The report that some 140 million Nigerians are poor suggests corruption and mismanagement in the spending of trillions of naira in FAAC allocations collected by your state and the FCT.

    “We would be grateful if the recommended measures are taken within 7 days of the receipt and/or publication of this letter. If we have not heard from you by then, SERAP shall consider appropriate legal actions to compel you and your state and the FCT to comply with our requests in the public interest.

    “According to our information, the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) last week disbursed N1.123 trillion to the federal, state and local governments for March 2024.

    “State governments got N398.689 billion while local government councils got N288.688 billion. The mineral-producing states received an additional N90.124 billion (13% of mineral revenue). In February, states collected N336 billion.

    “According to the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), the federal, states and local governments shared N10.143 trillion from the Federation Account as statutory revenue allocations in 2023, with states collecting N3.585 trillion.

    “SERAP also urges you to provide details of the transparency and accountability mechanisms that have been put in place to ensure that the trillions of naira of FAAC allocations that have been received by your state and the FCT are not embezzled, misappropriated or diverted into private pockets.

    “SERAP is concerned about the persistent lack of transparency and accountability in the spending of FAAC allocations by your state and the FCT.”

    Source

  • Ganduje Was Warned Not To Appoint Me Kano Anti-Corruption Boss, Says Lawyer Who Wants To Send APC Nat’l Chairman To Jail

    Muhyi Magaji Rimingado had long established his reputation as fearless and incorruptible before he was appointed chairman of Kano State Public Complaints and Anti-corruption Commission (PCACC) in 2015.

    The poor living conditions of the people of his town, Rimingado, drove him to become critical of government and elected public officials, and eventually turned him into an anti-corruption crusader.

    “I’m passionate about fighting corruption because I come from a place whereby we are disadvantage,’ he told THE WHISTLER in an interview in Abuja.

    “When I was growing up, Rimingado lacked basic facilities of modern societies and i saw chairmen and councillors living lavish lifestyles. So, I felt something had to change. “

    After graduating as a lawyer, he began his activism and soon won the admiration and respect of his people, especially the youths who saw him as a trustworthy leader.

    Thus, either as reward for his activism or plot to compromise him, he was appointed Vice Chairman of Rmingado Local Government in 2006 by the former Governor Ibrahim Shekarau administration. But barely six months into office, he displayed his uncompromising side when he clashed with the local government chairman and other personnel over the dilapidated condition of the only hospital in Rimingado, which was serving over 100,000 residents at the time, according to the 2006 census.

    The hospital had no functional toilets, among other basic facilities that were lacking, and patients were walking into the surrounding bushes to relieve themselves. He insisted money must be appropriated for the hospital from whatever came into the council as revenue.

    Among his colleagues, he was not seen as the regular politician, and seen more as a radical activist who is more likely than not to expose any plot to defraud the people. If he entered any office in the LG, they would hush discussions so he doesn’t hear it! They didn’t trust him to keep his mouth shut over the slightest appearance of government malfeasance.

    While serving as vice chairman, he established the Grassroot Anticorruption Awareness Initiative which helped him to promote transparency, accountability and integrity at all levels of government in the state.

    “When I became the vice chairman of my local government, that was when I realised the level of corruption in government was too high, and if something was not done, it would a disaster,” he said while explaining what motivated him to join the anti-corruption fight.

    As expected, his activism brought him into collision with top politicians and public officials in the state, including then Gov Shekarau when he sued his administration over local government policy.

    Thus, in 2015 when then Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje wanted to appoint him as the chairman of the PCACC, there were opposition from the governor’s associates and supporters who knew his uncompromising attitude and his campaign against corruption in government.

    “A lot of people warned him not to appoint me, and I was aware of it,” said the fearless lawyer when he spoke to THE WHISTLER in Abuja.

    “They sent 15 petitions against me to the governor that he should be very careful and should not give me the appointment. But he didn’t heed the advice and he appointed me.”

    The governor’s refusal to succumb to the warning against appointing him impressed him, and he thought it was strong evidence of Ganduje’s incorruptibility. But he was shocked to find out that he had a totally wrong impression of the ex-governor.

    His first real encounter with the sleaze in ex-governor Ganduje’s government was during the Coronavirus pandemic when his commission found that some local government chairmen were diverting government’s palliatives for the people.

    So, immediately after the pandemic, the commission, as part of its mandate, initiated a probe of non-performing contracts across the 44 LGAs of the state. What they found was shocking.

    “I can swear to Allah that I never knew the magnitude of corruption in the government was up to the level we found.

    “We found that many of the contracts were linked to the former governor. Some of it were for the disposal of government properties which did not go down well with the commission. There was secrecy surrounding the exercise.

    “We were writing letters to the companies involved. But the former governor was not pleased with it. He called me when i was in Abuja in 2021 and complained about the investigation we were conducting in the area of revenue, contracts and disposal of assets.

    I never knew those companies belonged to his family; I was just doing my job. But he was not happy and directed me to stop the investigation, which I did,” Rimingado revealed.

    But since then, the anti-corruption momentum slowed down, and Rimingado found himself fighting for survival. The ex-governor and his loyalists came after him, leading to his suspension from office to allow investigation of the commission.

    But after Ganduje’s exit from the Kano Government House in May last year, the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) administration of Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf reinstated him to his position. Gov Yusuf was said to have investigated the allegations against and found they were ill-motivated.

    He has become an asset to the administration, and the patriarch of the party in Kano, Rabiu Kwankwaso, against Ganduje and his associates who they consider as political foes.

    Asked if he was doing a hatchet job for Kwankwaso and the NNPP in the state, he said no one could use him against another person.

    “If Governor Yusuf has the mind to steal public funds he would not have reinstated me; I don’t want to live a pretentious life, when we say this and do that!

    “I run the commission like an NGO because I go after those that are found wanting. I receive complaints, and even if its against government I do my best to make sure that people get remedies and redress. So, how would Kwankwaso use me against Ganduje? Did Ganduje use me against Emir Sanusi, Ado Bayero?”

    Rimingado has created a high level of anti-corruption awareness in the state since his first appointment in 2015, and turned the PCACC into a household name in Kano. He has been involved in several high profile corruption cases, including against former Emir of Kano, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, when he was on the throne.

    Sanusi was investigated over alleged illegal sales of landed property and mismanagement of N3.4bn by the Emirate Council in 2020.

    Rimingado later submitted a report to the Kano State Government recommending the suspension of Sanusi as emir.

    He also probed a former Accountant General of Kano State, Aisha Mohammed Bello, for allegedly diverting the sum of N100 million. Rimingado publicly called out a judge he accused of trying to impede investigation and prosecution of the case.

    He is now in court against ex-governor Ganduje who is facing criminal charges over alleged $413,000 and N1.38bn bribery. The former governor, now the All Progressive Congress National Chairman, his wife Hafsat Umar, and son Umar Abdullahi Umar, are expected to be arraign soon.

    Rimingado has lined up 15 witnesses including a Department of State Services officer and some personal aides of the ex-governor to prove his case.

    He said he was not afraid to investigate and prosecute anyone that runs foul of the law, stressing that he got his inspiration from the legacy of Nuhu Ribadu, the first chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

    “When you go to the anti-corruption institute I established for the commission, you will see Nuhu Ribadu Auditorium. Whether we like it or not, the current anti-corruption momentum was instigated and initiated by Nuhu Ribadu. He stuck out his neck and did his best for the country.

    He is the one that motivated people like me. Because without Nuhu Ribadu, I will not appreciate the fact that some people are not as powerful and above the law as we think. I am motivated and inspired by what he did as EFCC chairman. He did great to this nation,” he said.

    Rimingado has a Bachelor of Common and Islamic laws (LLB) and obtained a master’s degree in Anticorruption. He has attended various courses at different institutions locally and outside the country.

    Ganduje Was Warned Not To Appoint Me Kano Anti-Corruption Boss, Says Lawyer Who Wants To Send APC Nat’l Chairman To Jail is first published on The Whistler Newspaper

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  • Structured Finance Analyst at ECLAT HR Consulting April, 2024

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  • Lady vents after a vendor she paid N450lk failed to deliver a cake at her sister’s wedding

    Lady vents after a vendor she paid N450lk failed to deliver a cake at her sister?s wedding

    A Nigerian woman has shared the story of how a baker failed to deliver a cake to her cousin’s wedding on Saturday, April 20. 

     

    According to the lady, the cake baker failed to show up at the reception with the cake and when he was called, he claimed he was sick and couldn’t complete baking a cake he collected N450, 000 for.

     

    Lady vents after a vendor she paid N450lk failed to deliver a cake at her sister?s wedding

     

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  • Lagos Communities Protest Against Rerouting 700km Coastal Road Into Their Land, Demand Immediate Reversal To Old Plan

    The residents of Iwerekun, Solu-Orumija, Awofin and Odusina villages in Lagos State have tackled President Bola Tinubu’s government over the proposed coastal road which will pass through their land.

     

    The Nigerian Government has started a 700km Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway which will pass through several communities, leading to demolitions.

     

    The Lagos State Government had disclosed its intention to start removing illegal building extensions and attachments across the state.

     

    In a joint statement signed and issued by Baales (traditional leader) of Iwerekun, Solu Orumija, Awofin and Odusina villages on Sunday, urged the government to construct the road project by implementing the old plan which will not encroach into their land.

     

    Residents of the communities including their traditional leaders protested against the planned encroachment at the weekend, chanting slogans and displaying placards.

     

    The statement reads: “We cry out today as people under an emergency situation. We the inhabitants of the following coastal villages; Iwerekun, Awofin, Odusina and Solu Orumija are currently facing extinction of our approved village excisions by the whimsical realignment of the proposed coastal road site.

     

    “We are overjoyed that, at last, we are witnessing the commencement of the coastal road construction which was long anticipated. However, we are saddened by the sudden realignment of the Right of Way (RoW) upon the commencement of the road construction.

     

    “We have maintained the old site lying in the swamp behind our villages untouched for over two decades since it was marked, but we are shocked at the sudden change of the road path which is now directly on the village.

     

    “While we do not have a problem if the road would expand either way to claim some added portion to the old site as known in order to accommodate rail track or other transportation facilities, it is however not the case as a new 100 meters site is suddenly marked out in the villages differently from the old site as known.

     

    “Please note that after observing the required setback from the shoreline, the village is only about 150 meters left in entire width. Within the 150 meters, there is another setback from both the community road at the front and the setback for the coastal road behind, which makes the useful land in the village to be about only 100 meters. Therefore, the 100 meters RoW marked out in the village will consequently wipe out these four villages.

     

    “Aside fro the new 100 meters marking into the village, there is also about 72 meters gap skipped before marking out the new site, which makes the entire land claimed from the village run into about 270 meters if you combine the old and new landmass marked in respect of coastal road.”

     

    The residents posed a few questions, asking: “What purpose will the old site now serve as it is no longer the site to be used for the Coastal Road? Are villagers now allowed to move back into the old site since the Government is taking a new one for the Coastal Road?”

     

    The communities noted that the government had been silent on “this particular question and it makes the sudden realignment move entirely suspicious”.

     

    The villagers also asked: “Why was there no consultation with the people ahead of the new road design to allow for their inputs to accommodate the new redesign without wiping out our villages?

     

    “We call on the Federal Government of Nigeria led by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the Honorable Minister for Works, Mr. Dave Umahi as well as all well-meaning Nigerians to rise to our plight as we are facing an emergency situation. Simply yield to our cry and take the simplest solution of reverting to the old design of land still preserved in the swamp undisturbed.”

     

    The announcement of the commencement of the 700km coastal road from Lagos to Calabar has been surrounded by controversy.

     

    Many Nigerians face the risk of being homeless following the threat of an imminent demolition of properties for the sake of the project.

     

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