President Tinubu Congratulates Governors Hope Uzodinma, Douye Diri, And Governor-Elect Usman Ododo On Election Victory.

President Tinubu Congratulates Governors Hope Uzodinma, Douye Diri, And Governor-Elect Usman Ododo On Election Victory.

President Bola Tinubu congratulates Governor Hope Uzodinma of Imo State, Governor Douye Diri of Bayelsa State, and Governor-elect Usman Ododo of Kogi State, on their victory in the November 11 governorship elections.

The President commends the electorate in Imo, Kogi, and Bayelsa for their participation in the electoral process, affirming the resilience of democratic institutions and the power of the people in shaping the nation's political landscape.

President Tinubu says the outcome of the elections reflects the wishes of the people, emphasizing that democracy thrives when voters reward competence, transparency, and good governance.

While expressing gratitude to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for working assiduously to create a level playing field for all contestants and the nation's security agencies for maintaining law and order during the highly-anticipated elections, the President affirms the need for a sustained commitment to all efforts aimed at further sanitizing the electoral system and enhancing the credibility of future elections.

With the election processes concluded, President Tinubu anticipates a renewed sense of hope for the people of Imo, Kogi and Bayelsa States, as well as consolidation on progress that will position the states as hubs of peace, commerce, entrepreneurship, and prosperity in Nigeria.

In the spirit of fostering a harmonious and inclusive political landscape in the aforementioned states, President Tinubu asks the victors to prioritize the common good of the people over partisan interests.

"May your tenure in office be defined by close collaboration with all of your counterparts across party lines in the attainment of pan-Nigerian developmental achievements that benefit everyone, and may you lead at all times with compassion and a deepened commitment to our nation's unity," President Tinubu concluded.

Gov. Oyebanji Congratulates Uzodinma On Re-Election.

Gov. Oyebanji Congratulates Uzodinma On Re-Election.

Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Biodun Oyebanji, has congratulated his Imo State counterpart, Senator Hope Uzodimma, on his re-election for a second term of office in Saturday’s governorship poll in the Southeast state.

Oyebanji in a congratulatory message on Sunday, signed by his Special Adviser on Media, Yinka Oyebode, said the landslide victory recorded by Uzodimma has confirmed the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the most acceptable party in the state and in Nigeria.

The Ekiti State helmsman noted that the overwhelming victory of Uzodimma at the poll represents the verdict of the people that the incumbent Governor performed well in office and thus deserves a second term.

Oyebanji said it is heart warming to see that the electorate in the country have mastered the art of rewarding a performing public servant with second term mandate.

He added that the Imo governorship victory is also a vote of confidence in the government of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and that the All Progressives Congress (APC) still remains the preferred choice of the electorate.

Oyebanji urged Uzodimma to see his re-election as a motivation to serve the Imo people better, scale up the gear of good governance and quality leadership to consolidate the good works recorded in his first term.

The Ekiti Governor urged Governor Uzodimma to extend a hand of fellowship to other candidates who contested with him for the governorship seat, with a view to getting them to contribute to the development of the state in his soon- to- be- inaugurated second term.

He commended the people of Imo State for their peaceful conduct before, during and after the governorship poll which contributed to the overall success of the exercise.

Oyebanji also hailed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for fulfilling its promise to deliver a credible, transparent, free and fair exercise in the interest of the Imo electorate.

He further lauded security agencies, local and foreign election observers, the media for their contribution to the success of the election.

“ On behalf of the Government and good people of Ekiti State, I congratulate my brother Governor of Imo State, Hope Uzodinma on his victory. This is victory for Imo people, our dear party and democracy in general”, the Governor added.

Oyebanji To Attend African Sub-Sovereign Governments Network Conference In Egypt.

Oyebanji To Attend African Sub-Sovereign Governments Network Conference In Egypt.

Ekiti State Governor, Mr Biodun Oyebanji will, on Monday, leave for Egypt to attend this year’s Conference of the African Sub-Sovereign Governments Network, scheduled for Tuesday, November 14th, in Al Manara, Cairo. 

The conference is organized by Afreximbank and the United Cities and Local Governments of Africa (UCLG Africa) with the theme: “Accelerating AfCFTA Implementation: Unlocking Trade & Investment Opportunities for African Sub-Sovereign Governments”.

According to a statement signed by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media, Mr Yinka Oyebode, the conference which is aimed at increasing collaboration to promote trade, development and investment initiatives within the context of AfCFTA would be of immense benefit to Ekiti State which recently got a free trade zone status for its Knowledge Zone.

Governor Oyebanji’s attendance will facilitate more investment opportunities for Ekiti State as the programme offers networking and deal making opportunities among participating states, regions and nations. 

The Governor will be accompanied on the trip by the Commissioner for Investment, Trade and Industry, Mrs Tayo Adeola; Commissioner for Finance, Mr Akintunde Oyebode; and Director- General, Ekiti State Development and Investment Promotion Agency ( EKDIPA), Lolade Oke- Olutola.

Gov Oyebanji Celebrates Ekiti Speaker On 47th Birthday.

Gov Oyebanji Celebrates Ekiti Speaker On 47th Birthday.

Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Biodun Oyebanji, has celebrated the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Adeoye Aribasoye on his 47th birthday.

The Governor in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media, Yinka Oyebode, said the occasion of the Speaker's birthday offers him a fresh opportunity to rededicate himself to the service of the state and humanity.

Oyebanji noted that the Speaker has been a wonderful and dependable partner in the journey of of translating the Shared Prosperity agenda of the administration into reality for the people of the state. 

He described Aribasoye as an embodiment of God's grace, mercy and loving kindness in his life's trajectory as a student activist, an auditor in the state civil service, a lawyer and politician.

The Governor commended Aribasoye for presiding over a peaceful, altruistic, responsible and responsive state legislature since his emergence as the Speaker of the Seventh Assembly in June this year.

Oyebanji further eulogized the Speaker for his humility, loyalty to his party and the state, courage, consistency, connection with the grassroots and for being a team player in every step he takes for the good of the people.

The Governor wished the Speaker long life, good health and resounding success in all his endeavours noting that prayed that God would spare his life for greater service to the state in particular and the country at large.

“On behalf of the Government good people of Ekiti, the Land of Honour, I felicitate our amiable Speaker and wish him a happy birthday and a life of bliss.”, the statement added.

Nigeria To Sign A Direct Flight Agreement With Algeria.

Nigeria To Sign A Direct Flight Agreement With Algeria.                                                                              …..As Keyamo receives charted fellowship.

In an exciting development for global connectivity, the Federal Government is set to finalize arrangements to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Algeria for a direct flight route between the two countries in a few months to come. Hon Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo stated this when he received a delegation from Algeria led by the Algeria Ambassador to Nigeria in his office recently.

 

Keyamo said “Although Nigeria has always had a Bilateral Air Service Agreement with Algeria (BASA) for decades. However, we haven’t been taken advantage of the agreement. That agreement actually specifies the routes between Algiers and Lagos. Luckily, for both country is a symbiotic relationship.”

 

He explained that the Algeria delegation in the past weeks has reached out to Nigeria for the reopening of the route between Algiers and Lagos to revive the BASA that haven’t been taken advantage of over the years.

 

“Today they are here with a memorandum of understanding specifying, although in the spirit of opening up the sky in Africa, they want to add Abuja to their route and also give us the second largest city in Algeria in place of reciprocity for us to fly with our Local airline and that city is Oran”.

 

He further stated “We have insisted that for those who come to us for such an agreement, as one of the focal points of this administration is to protect our Local airline operators; protect their business, and to promote their business. We raised the case of reciprocity for our local operators which they have gladly acceded to”

 

“As a government, we are going to quickly look at this MoU from the face of it we have no serious objection to it but we have a normal bureaucratic process that has to pass through as quickly as possible.”

 

He said “We are going to fix a day either here in Nigeria or international forum for the signing. We are very happy to have Air Algeria back on the soil of Nigeria. We want competition, we want the price of air tickets to go down for the benefit of Nigeria. This is a symbiotic relationship; it is beneficial to Algeria and beneficial to Nigeria.”

 

Ambassador of Algeria, His Excellency, Mr.  Hocine Latli, who led the delegation said “you can’t have a tied partnership if you do not have a direct flight between the two countries, saying today we are trying to solve this problem of direct flight and restart the dynamic partnership and cooperation between the two countries, especially in the next few months”

 

“So, it is important today that we have reached a common point that the Hon Minister of aviation and Aerospace has accepted the opening of direct flight from Algiers to Nigeria” he stated.

 

In another development, the Hon Minister of Aviation and Aerospace, Festus Keyamo has been conferred with a charted fellow of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT) by the President of the institute Barrister Mrs Mfon Ekong Usoro who led member of the institution to his office. The Minister was equally invited to the institute’s conference sometime in November this year.

 

In acceptance, the Minister said that CILT was one institute that he had been admiring from a distance and the Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development is willing to partner with the institute for safety and infrastructure development.

Ekiti Government To Give Notorious Atikankan Slum A Face-lift.

Ekiti Government To Give Notorious Atikankan Slum A Face-lift.

Ekiti State Government has commenced process of acquiring an expanse of swampy fetid shanty slum around the notorious Atikankan area of Ado Ekiti, the State capital as part of efforts at giving the Central Business District a facelift and addressing the inherent challenges bedeviling the area.

The State Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Rt. Hon. Oladapo Karounwi and his counterpart in charge of Information, Rt. Hon. Taiwo Olatunbosun made this known during a stakeholders’ engagement and advocacy tour. 

They described the area as currently constituted as unfit for human habitation.

Karounwi said that the high-crime rate area is a source of concern for the State Government, adding that the new development would address the issues of safety of lives and property, congestion and environmental pollution in the area as well as improve the aesthetic value of the district and the State capital in general.

The Commissioner noted that previous administrations had acquired the said land verbally but did not follow-up, adding that formal acquisition was not carried out.

He said that the present administration had however held several stakeholders’ engagements, identified historic and cultural sites that are to be preserved, met with the Ewi-in-Council and the owners’ of the properties in the area, adding that approval had been obtained in principle for government to clean up the slum, upgrade the land so that the area could be used to boost business activities of the people.

He added that Government officials would soon commence marking of the affected structures for proper enumeration and valuation to ensure appropriate compensation to the owners before starting demolition.

He said “We will not move to site without completing the payment of adequate compensation to the land owners. This Government is a sensitive one, a government of the people that cares about the happiness and welfare of our people. We will ensure that their compensations are paid and everybody is happy before we begin demolition”.

“Environment and Social impact assessment would also be conducted in line with global best practices to guarantee achieving the desired result”. 

In his remarks, the Commissioner for Information, Rt. Hon. Taiwo Olatunbosun said that the proposed demolition of the slum and upgrade of the area would boost socio-economic activities, Internally Generated Revenue of the State, and environmental health in the area.

Olatunbosun however appealed to the concerned to cooperate with the state government as the project which is being embarked upon by the state government is for the benefit of all and sundry.

Ekiti to host 64th National Council on Health Meeting.

Ekiti to host 64th National Council on Health Meeting.

......health Minister leads over 800 participants to Ado-Ekiti.

All is now set for the hosting of the 64th National Council on Health scheduled to be hosted by Ekiti state from 13th -17th November, in Ado Ekiti as no fewer than 800 are expected at the five – day event.

The Minister of Health and Minister of State for Health will lead all state commissioners for Health, permanent secretaries, heads of institutions, international development agencies, drug manufacturing companies, researchers and health workers to the NCH which will take place at the AB Event Centre, Ado Ekiti.

The NHC, which is the highest national policy making and advisory body in the health sector will deliberate on programmes and policies around the health sector and come up with new policies and programmed in the bid to advance health care in the country.

Briefing journalists in his office in Ado-Ekiti, the Commissioner for Health, Dr Oyebanji Filani said the theme of the 64th council session will be “Building a Resilient and Inclusive Healthcare System for Healthy Nigeria”, adding that the Council will serve as a platform for collaboration and decision-making among stakeholders in the health Sector, bringing together key players from the federal and state levels of government.

Dr Oyebanjj added that the council will discuss and address critical health issues, review progress and decision that influence the direction of healthcare in the country which will also represent a significant milestone in Nigeria shared commitment to advancing healthcare and improving the wellbeing of communities, as well as foster the development of healthcare professionals and the improvement of healthcare infrastructure across the country.

He revealed that the council meeting will provide a veritable platform to exchange ideas, share expertise, and chart a course for a healthier and more equitable future as the meeting will also help stimulate local economy through tourism, increased revenue to business concerns and engendering meaningful cooperation and collaboration amongst participants.

While expressing appreciation to Governor Oyebanji for providing necessary logistics regarding security, accommodation, transportation among others to ensure a seamless and smooth National Council in the state, Filani also highlighted the achievements of this administration in the health sector to include free treatment of over 90,000 vulnerable people under Ulerawa Health Insurance programme in the last three months as well as renovation of most of the health facilities from Primary to tertiary health facilities with state of the art medical equipment.

He used the opportunity to call on all Ekiti residents to remain the good and hospitable hosts they are known for and let the guests enjoy the traditional Ekiti hospitality during the 5-day summit.