Six students of Government Secondary School, Fadan Chawai, Kauru Local Government in Kaduna State, drowned on their way home after writing the Junior Secondary School Certificate Examination (JSSE), on Wednesday.

The students, all from Ribang community, were on their way back home after writing the ongoing JSSC examination when the tragedy occurred.

Mr Ishaya Chingali, community leader in Chawai and  Vice President of the Southern Kaduna Peoples Union (SOKAPU), said that 11 students entered the river linking Ribang community and Fadan Chawai.

“Six of them drowned, five survived,” Chingali told the News Agency of Nigeria(NAN).

He said that four bodies had been recovered while the search for the remaining two was still ongoing.

“They tried to cross the river to the other side like they have done severally.

“Unfortunately, six of them drowned in the process,” he said.

Mr Yohanna Gwall, President of the Ribang Development Association, gave the names of the deceased to include Manasseh Monday, Musa John, Pius David, David Danlami, Yahuza Audu and Monday Ayuba.

“It is really sad; a tragedy has befallen our community. Their parents won’t see them again. Their siblings and friends won’t play with them again.

“They just left with their dreams and aspirations at their prime,” he fumed.

When contacted, Mr Bashir Dawaki, Chairman of Kauru Local Government, said that he had directed security agencies to get a detailed report of what happened.

“I’m on my way to the place, but I have directed the security agencies to carry out a thorough investigation and get back to me.

“So, I cannot say much right now until I am properly briefed,” he said.

In a statement, Mr Tabara Kato, SOKAPU President, condoled families of the deceased school children and Ribang community over the unfortunate incident.

Kato called on government and all relevant security agencies to come to the aid of rural communities by fixing roads and bridges that link up other communities to avert a recurrence.

Kauru Local Government is a generally rural setting with its inhabitants trekking long distances to schools, markets and even farms.

Worst hit are those in Chawai Chiefdom, a very rich agrarian community hugely disadvantaged by the acute dearth of roads and other basic facilities.

Findings reveal that school children miss classes for weeks when the rivers and streams get filled up during the rainy season.

The deceased school children opted to dare the river so as not to miss their examination and the unexpected happened. (NAN)

From Dan Amasingha, Minna 

The Commissioner of Police, Niger State Command CP Shawulu Ebenezer Danmamman, on behalf of the Inspector General of Police presents cheques amounting to ninety-seven million, five hundred and fifty-six thousand, three hundred and fifty-three naira, six kobo (#97,556,353.

06k) to next of kins and families of deceased personnel under Group Life Assurance Scheme of the Force.

During the presentation, the CP asserted that the families were invited to collect the cheques in respect of the scheme to assist the families, ameliorate their suffering and reduce the situation they might be passing through.

He encouraged them to use the token as a muster seed for growth and development of the families.

In a Statement signed by SP Wasiu Abiodun,  the Command Public Relations Officer  said the the money may not solve all their challenges, but a gesture  of care.

“It ‘s just a kind gesture from the IGP to help the families among other benefits for them after due processing of the claims” 

He urged them to manage it for their welfare and offered prayers for the families and the departed souls.

By Tony Obiechina, Abuja 

The Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP) has been described as an appropriate and very effective means of realising food sufficiency and security across the country.

The National Coordinator of RAAMP, Engr Aminu Bodinga Mohammed who made the assertion  during the 7th Joint World Bank and French Development Agency Implementation Support Mission of RAAMP at the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Centre, Abuja, pointing out that most urban centers derive their supply of food from farms, which are located at the rural communities.

His words: “the primary objective of RAAMP is to improve rural roads and trading infrastructure through to boost food production.

Therefore the successful implementation of this project could go a long way towards guaranteeing food sufficiency and security across the country”.

He solicited for concerted efforts by all stakeholders to ensure an all-round success of the project.

Aminu noted that the mission was to evaluate the current implementation status, milestones as well as challenges faced by the 19  states participating in the project and announced that arrangements had reached an advanced stage for the commencement of civil works on agro-logistics centers (ALCs) latest by September, 2024 with 23 major contracts that would be awarded across the states.

ALCs refer to market hubs that have been prioritised for transformation to ultra-modern standards at various locations across the country , notably in rural communities to empower and enhance the livelihoods of the people.

Also speaking, the Task Team Leader of the World Bank,  Mr. Rakeesh Tripathi hinted that a scale-up was being mooted for the project but emphasized that only states which must have  established and operationalised the Rural Access Road Agency (RARA) and State Road Fund (SRF), backed up with the required standing on counterpart funds would be eligible to access the scale-up funds. 

He therefore advised all states to take advantage of the mission and get the needed support to tackle every challenge facing their State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU), adding that all the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory would be encouraged to embrace the scale-up project.

Highpoints of the exercise were presentations by the State Project Coordinators of the respective participating states, question and answer sessions, comments and observations, among other inputs by the stakeholders.

The Task Team Leader of the French Development Agency, AFD; Consultants from the World Bank; the Federal Project Management Unit, FPMU as well as State Project Implementation Units, SPIUs of RAAMP also attended the mission.