NEWS
Bayelsa Declares Emergency in Housing Sector
From Mike Tayese, Yenagoa
The Bayelsa State Government has reaffirmed its determination to aggressively pursue its housing scheme programme by providing low cost residential homes for her civil servants.Deputy Governor, Sen Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo made this known at the weekend while granting audience to the Bayelsa Chapter of the National Association of Government General Medical and Dental Practitioners (NAGGMDP) in Government House, Yenagoa.
Ewhrudjakpo clarified that the low cost housing scheme which would be run on “Owner-occupier basis” is targeted at enhancing the welfare of workers in the employ of the government.According to the deputy governor, the Senator Douye Diri-led administration has silently declared an emergency on the housing sector to address the shortage of residential and office accommodation confronting civil servants in the state.Ewhrudjakpo assured that the ongoing construction of the 9-storey iconic new secretariat building would be completed in record time not only to tackle the issue of office accommodation but also boost the productivity of the state workforce.He said the government had already mandated the state Housing Authority to directly handle the programme to avoid unnecessary bottlenecks and delays after flagging off the project.The Deputy Governor, however, decried the poor maintenance culture of many civil servants occupying already existing government staff residential quarters in the state and urged them to turn a new leaf.Responding to the issue of funding of residency training for medical doctors, he pointed out that Bayelsa was the only state in the country which had the Residency Law already enacted, and assured the NAGGMDP delegation that the Government would continue to keep faith with the training programme.While assuring the Association of government’s support for its programme to help the physically challenged in the state, Ewhrudjakpo advised them to extend their work of charity to the rural communities to impact the needy there.His words: ‘”This administration is making the issue of housing a major part of our agenda. We want to put it on the front burner as a priority to develop a housing scheme for civil servants. You are also civil servants; so you will also benefit from it.”The Governor has declared a state of emergency on housing. That is why you see that for the first time, we don’t have a ministry of housing. We have decided to put all our energy into the state Housing Authority so that they can actually push that agenda very far.”We are also looking at the issue of rural housing because we don’t want to concentrate on Yenagoa alone. The immediate past administration started it, so we have some pockets of rural houses. But we are going to expand it.”But there is also the need for workers occupying government quarters to keep them neat. If you go to some quarters or barracks, they are the dirtiest places because they don’t take care of the quarters they occupy.”The same thing applies to the civil servant quarters. It is only a few civil servants who have a sense of taste that renovate where they are staying and make it fit to live in.”The leader of the NAGGMDP delegation, Dr. Akpesiri Pearl said the visit was to solicit government’s buy-in and support for the association’s programme to give support for persons living with disabilities.While thanking the Deputy Governor for facilitating the Governor’s approval of the 25 and 35 percent review of CONMESS, Dr. Akpesiri called on the government for the payment of medical residency training for their members, as well as addressing the challenges of staff accommodation, infrastructure decay and lack of facilities at the public hospitals.NEWS
Police Detain Woman for Alleged Killing of Co-wife in Bauchi
The police command in Bauchi State, said it has apprehended a housewife over alleged killing of her co-wife following a domestic violence incident in Bauchi metropolis.
This was contained in a statement by the spokesman of the command, SP Nafiu Habib, on Monday in Bauchi.
He said that the command detained the suspect (name withheld) on Sept.
27 for alleged culpable homicide following a domestic incident at Tafawa Balewa Housing Estate in Bauchi.Habib said that on Sept. 27, at about 4:05 p.m., the Police C-Division, Bauchi, received credible information that there was a domestic incident between two wives residing in the same household belonging to their husband.
He said that preliminary investigation revealed that the 33-year-old suspect, who is the second wife, allegedly acting under hallucinations, struck the first wife with pestle on the forehead, and the victim fell unconscious.
“Upon receipt of the report, detectives attached to C-Division immediately mobilised to the scene.
“The scene was documented, and the victim was rushed to the Specialist Hospital, Bauchi, where she was certified dead by a medical doctor. The corpse has been deposited at the hospital mortuary for autopsy,” he said.
Habib said that the police recovered the pestle used in committing the offence.
He quoted the Commissioner of Police, Sani-Omolori Aliyu, as directing the transfer of the case to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) for discreet investigation and prosecution.
Aliyu condoled with the bereaved family and cautioned against domestic violence.
The CP also advised husbands to seek timely medical and psycho-social support for members of their families exhibiting mental health challenges. (NAN)
NEWS
FRSC Deploys 170 Ambulances Nationwide for Emergency Rescue
The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has deployed more than 170 ambulances across the country as part of efforts to strengthen emergency response and rescue operations on Nigerian roads.
The Corps Public Education Officer (CPEO), Osondu Ohaeri, disclosed this on Monday in Abuja, while responding to questions on the operational capacity of the corps emergency ambulance network and its response to Road Traffic Crashes (RTCs).
Ohaeri said the FRSC had the largest number of ambulances among emergency response agencies in Nigeria, with more than 170 ambulances and 60 Zebra points across the country.
He said the figure should however not be interpreted as the number of ambulances currently operational or serviceable as of September 2026.
According to him, an accurate current figure of serviceable ambulances will require the latest fleet-status report from the corps medical and rescue office.
He explained that the figures demonstrated the scale of the corps emergency response network, while the availability of individual ambulances was managed operationally based on their location, condition and assignment.
On the adequacy of the ambulances for emergency rescue, he said the corps continued to maintain and deploy its assets as part of its emergency response responsibilities, stressing that the status of individual vehicles could vary depending on their operational condition and assignment.
The CPEO said the corps was also focused on improving its emergency response capacity, particularly by strengthening rescue deployment and collaboration with other relevant agencies.
He also said that the corps had historically recorded an average response time of about 15 minutes under its documented emergency-response programme.
He cautioned against presenting the figure as the current nationwide average without updated operational data.
According to him, response time varies depending on several factors including the location of a crash, traffic congestion, distance from the nearest ambulance point and accessibility of the crash scene.
He added that the accuracy and timeliness of information provided by callers could also affect the speed with which rescue teams reached crash scenes.
Other factors he said include the possibility of emergency teams responding to other incidents simultaneously.
Ohaeri stressed that the corps had identified faster response to road traffic crashes and other emergencies as one of its management priorities in 2026.
He said efforts were therefore ongoing to strengthen rescue deployment and inter-agency collaboration to improve emergency response to road crashes.
He added that the FRSC remained committed to improving emergency rescue operations, strengthening the deployment of its resources and working with relevant stakeholders to ensure better outcomes for road crash victims.
He reiterated that complaints concerning emergency response, evacuation, treatment of victims or other forms of alleged misconduct should be channeled through the appropriate authorities for investigation and necessary action.
The CPEO further assured that the corps would continue to strengthen its emergency response mechanisms as part of broader efforts to reduce the consequences of road traffic crashes and improve the safety of road users nationwide.(NAN)
NEWS
NBA Decries Rising Insecurity in Plateau, Urges Urgent Action
The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has decried the spate of security challenges currently confronting Plateau and other parts of Nigeria.
The Chairman of Jos Branch of the association, Morgan Dung, said this during a joint news conference on Monday in Jos.
Dung spoke on behalf of the Jos, Bukuru and Pankshin branches of the association.
The chairman particularly decried the recent attacks and killings in Mangu, Barkin-Ladi, Riyom, Bokkos, Bassa, Wase and Kanam Local Government Areas (LGAs) of the state.
Dung, who described the continuous killings of innocent residents as “unfortunate and unacceptable”, called on the Federal Government and the security agencies to tackle the menace.
“The protection of lives and property remain the most fundamental responsibility of government as contained in section 33 of the 1999 Constitution as amended.
“NBA frowns at the inability of the government to prevent the continuous loss of lives and property in Plateau and beyond.
“We particularly condemn the recent killing of members of community vigilantes at their duty posts in Mangu, Barkin-Ladi, Riyom, Bokkos and Bassa LGAs
“We call on the government and security agencies to bring the perpetrators to book. This menace must also stop,”he said.
Dung, however, commended president Bola Tinubu over his recent visit to Plateau and the move to establish State Police in the country.
He further called on the government to sponsor an executive bill to fully domicile security issues under the concurrent legislative list.
Dung urged the government to properly and adequately equip security agencies, strengthen border surveillance and secure all forests serving as hideouts for bandits and other criminal elements.
The chairman also commended Gov. Caleb Mutfwang for revamping Operation Rainbow, a state-owned security outfit and training of 2,000 personnel of the neighbourhoods watch.
He, however, called for the licensing of Operation Rainbow to operate with kinetic facilities, implement the anti-land grabbing law and provide structures for police division and forward operation bases in the state.
Dung advised security agencies to deploy more personnel and equipment to flashpoints in the state, insisting that such a move would ensure prompt response to threats.
The chairman, who called on the judiciary to ensure timely dispensation of terrorism cases, advised governors to sign death warrants of convicted terrorists to serve as a deterrent to others.
He pledged NBA’s readiness to promote access to justice, document evidence of atrocities and pursue public interest litigation to ensure accountability (NAN)


