Helicopter crash, pro-Wike lawmaker’s suit against Fubara, other top stories from South-south

Eno’s N208 billion on roads, other projects

In less than two years in office, Governor Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom State said his administration has spent over N208 billion on road construction and other related projects in the state.

This was revealed on Sunday by the Commissioner for Works and Fire Service, Eno Ibanga, who said the money covered projects initiated by the current administration and those inherited from past administrations.

Mr Ibanga, a professor, said the state government has so far spent N156.20 billion on 61 projects initiated by the current administration.

We reported that Governor Eno became the third Nigerian governor to announce a new minimum wage higher than the N70,000 national wage on Wednesday.

Lagos and Rivers—the country’s richest states—had earlier announced N85,000 as the new minimum wage for workers in their states.

Mr Eno, whose Akwa Ibom State is the third richest in the country in terms of GDP, approved N80,000 as the new minimum wage, an amount which is N10,000 higher than the national wage and N5,000 less than that of Lagos and Rivers States.

We also reported that Mr Eno disclosed plans on Friday to commence an independent emergency Medical Services and Ambulance System to complement the Primary Health Care services and the recently launched State Health Insurance Scheme.

The governor stated this while receiving in Uyo six of the 10 fully equipped ambulances acquired by the Akwa Ibom State Government. He said the ambulances will run a stand-alone system, run by qualified medical personnel but complementary to the state’s Health Insurance Scheme.

Sealing of filling stations in Akwa Ibom

We reported on Wednesday the sealing of two filling stations in Akwa Ibom by a federal agency, the Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Resources Authority, over alleged diversion of petroleum products between August and December.

Also, in Akwa Ibom, on Thursday, we reported the recovery of a six-year-old girl who was stolen from her parents in 2018.

Fatal Helicopter crash

On a sad note, we reported on Thursday the death of three passengers in a helicopter crash in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

Still in Rivers State, a Federal High Court in Abuja on Friday dismissed all objections raised by the Rivers State Government against the hearing of a suit seeking to prevent Governor Siminalayi Fubara’s administration from spending the state funds.

The case was instituted by the pro-Wike lawmakers.

Meanwhile, the Rivers State Government has ordered hoteliers in the state to begin documenting their guests. The move is part of efforts to curb insecurity, particularly during the forthcoming Yuletide season.

The Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Israel Ngbuelo gave the warning on Thursday during a meeting with hotel operators and emphasised that criminals sometimes used hotels as hideouts to commit crimes.

The police in the state on Thursday arrested four people in connection with the disappearance of a National Youth Service Corps member.

The corps member, Yahaya Faruq, serving in Ikuru Town, Andoni Local Government Area of Rivers, miraculously disappeared after reporting for his part-time job at a Chinese Mining Company in the area.

Grace Iringe-Koko, the police spokesperson in Rivers said the arrested suspects have been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department for discrete investigation.

In neighbouring Akwa Ibom, the police on Tuesday distributed over N88 million to the families of deceased officers.

Timfon John, the police spokesperson in the state, said the cheques worth the said amount were handed over to the next of kin of the deceased officers by Joseph Eribo, the commissioner of police in the state.

On a sad note, Ms John on Friday confirmed the death of a former staff member of Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited and a police operative at two different hotels in Eket.

Ms John said the former Mobil worker died as a result of slipping from a bathroom and hitting his head on the tiles in his hotel room, while the police operative who came from Lagos to Eket on a special assignment died of heart failure.