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What I will Do With Bayelsa Money if Elected Governor-Agbedi

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Hon. Fred AGBEDI is a third time member in the House of Representatives. He was  former state chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) in Bayelsa State. He also served as Special Adviser to Governor Dickson on Political Matters.

Agbeti who represents Sagbama/ Ekeremor Federal constituency in the House of Representatives is one of Governorship Aspirants  in the forth coming governorship election in Bayelsa state.

   In this interaction with the members of the Federated Correspondents the Aspirant bares his mind on the development of the state and his plans if elected.

Excerpt:

Can you speak briefly about yourself?

I am Fred Agbedi from Agoro community in Ekeremor Local Government Area  of Bayelsa State, I am the member of the House of Representatives, representing Sagbama/Ekeremor Federal Constituency, of course the third time member in the House of Representatives.

I was first in the House in third Republic which was 1992 under the National Republican Convention (NRC), today as a member of PDP, am serving my second term in the ninth Assembly at the House of Representatives. In Bayelsa state, I have held series of offices. I was the pioneer Secretary of NRC in Ekeremor LGA which office I contested and won to the House of Representatives. I have been chairman of PDP in Bayelsa state since 2005 to 2008. I have also  been  Special Adviser, Political Matters to Gov. Dickson and of course two times Director General  of Dickson Campaign Organisation, the Restoration Campaign 2011-12 and also 2015
to 2016, I have led three campaigns across the length and breath of
Bayelsa State and that makes me an household name and a committed loyal member  of the PDP.
I attended COE  where I read English and History, I attended
Uniport where I read English, I attended University of Abuja where I read Master in Public Administration am currently defending my seminar
on my thesis at Uniport. I pride myself as a professional politician, I have
been in politics for about four decades, I believe that am the only
professional politician that is running for the governorship position in Bayelsa state. I am also a professional in many respects, as teacher, character moulder, trainer, a Counsellor. As somebody who studied English, I can expressly express the desire of
my people and as graduate of Public Administration, am an
administration expert and for you to be a governor, you must have that
competence which I have as a development study student, a development expert of course

  Why do want to be Governor of Bayelsa State?

why I want to be a governor is to develop Bayelsa and I believe that if you want to be a governor, then you must understand the essence of a governor, the essence  number one is to realize that you are to be a servant and you must be able to render service, you should not see yourself as boss or rather you should see yourself as the servant of the people that is what I know very well and that is what I have come to do, to be the servant of the people. I also know that the position of a governor is a supervisor, yours is to supervise others, you understand the essence of supervision and you
too must have the capacity to supervise, because the governor does not do everything by himself, the governor identifies competent and capable hands who represent him in implementing policies and actions of Government and until you understand that a governor is a supervisor and that as a
supervisor, your first responsibility is to identify the right people
who have competency and capacity to implement policies of Government is what makes you stand out as a man who  knows your job from day one and so I realize that as a governor your duty is to supervise and understand how to check, monitor and applaud your lieutenants when they have done well, the ability to call your lieutenants to order when you believe that they are straying out of the radar and of course treat where it’s important and necessary to treat policies and their implementation and if you see that they are not achieving the desired goals and because I know and understand this, and I feel that the only way to express this is to serve at a greater height, which is the geographical expression that we refer to as Bayelsa.

  Can you talk about your contributions to  develop your constituency?

I am  serving at my Federal constituency, I have rendered projects to my federal constituency as a member of House of Representatives. I have attracted empowerment to atleast 16 to 20 communities  in my constituency, I think that I have gone to the level that I have come to seek the same role at the center and that is why I have come and have been mandated to fly the flag of Peoples Democratic Party in the November 16, governorship election in the state.

 What is your plan to develop Byelsa?

One of my plans is to render services, to serve my people. I feel that Bayelsa should be empowered. First and most important is the empowerment of Bayelsans.
  Bayelsans don’t have financial
empowerment, if they don’t have skill empowerment, then of course
there is nothing you can bring to Bayelsans that will be worth more
than empowerment.

Ques. What is empowerment?

What is empowerment, it is to make sure that  Bayelsans have access to funds, how do they get access to funds, we have Bayelsans that have core competencies in business that as a governor, you must identify the
core competencies of Bayelsans and patronize them, you don’t only
patronize them, you ensure that the service they rendere is paid for
that is the only way to grow your people, as a contractor, business
men, the state patronises you, we should be able to pay you so that
you can make profit, revenue with which you move forward. Once you
empower Bayelsans very well, they will turn the state’s economy around, they will make the economy robust and they will move to compete at the national level and our government will not only empower them and leave them to go and compete at the national level, we will also assist
them where the governor needs to intervene where they are in a
competition and how they are going to have such ventures.  Bayelsa government will
follow up and ensure that we support them to have  ventures at the end of the day. Not only that, we want to grow Bayelsa, not only
to the national level but also to the international level because if we want to be a
national and world player, we must have financial muscle. No matter how competent you are, no matter how effective you are in delivery of
projects, if you don’t have the financial muscle, you will not be able to compete at the national and global level and so that is what our
target is that at the end of the day, Bayelsans, whatever, it will cost
them  to be in competition at the national level and globally, we would ensure that they have that basis to be able to compete wherever they find themselves in Nigeria and across the globe.

  What  do intend to do about encouraging   investors?

If we are talking about investors, the people that can invest  locally are the Bayelsans and if Bayelsans have access to funds that enable then   build factories, industries, it’s the business men that are going to enter into partnership with other business men to  come and grow industries, to come and build factories and so we want to empower Bayelsans in such a situation whereby Bayelsan business men can pull N2 – N5bn  together to say this is the factory we want  to built and they will use the financial muscle and strength they have to
attract partnership to build that factory, to build that industry.

  What does government need to do actualize this?

What Government needs to do is to create enabling environment, a conducive climate, build infrastructure, social amenities and security that will bring a driving economy base, that is what our Government is going to do. Anything about factory, industries and funding of public projects  that are industry oriented will be the responsibility
of businessmen to partner with other businessmen to bring them. Take for example, we are talking about Aggae Deep Sea Port, where the state government has done so much and has done a lot of works and are still looking for investors to come and invest, if we have Bayelsans who can
pull together 3 to 5 Billion Naira, am sure that we would have achieved
a lot or long mileage as it is today because government funds are not
sufficient to develop Bayelsa as it ought to be.  So, once Bayelsans
have good money, once they have financial muscle and financial
capabilities they can attract partners that can put-in so much
billions to bring such projects into fruition, you will see that
Bayelsan money will be domiciled in Bayelsa and they would be financially empowered to strength Bayelsa economy and to attract other investors to come and partner with our business men to invest in factories and industries and to grow Bayelsa, employment will come. Its by so doing we will have robust economy in Bayelsa,   and as a
government we will also attract revenue to boost our internally Generated Revenue.

 Do you have any  plan to establish a   refinery?

Yes, our government when we come onboard will  also bring to the table the issues of oil production. Bayelsa state has oil wells, we have the attala farm, the marginal oil field and what do we need, do we need to sell crude, which is between 40 to 60 dollars per barrel and failed like the way Nigeria fail in selling raw materials?  For me, the right way to go is to tell our partners with the Bayelsa oil company to build refinery. We don’t need to sell the raw crude, we need to refine. If people who don’t have access to crude oil want to built refinery, what about us that  already have access to crude oil. What we need is a refinery to process the crude and this will bring down the cost of this finished products.  Because in Nigeria, Bayelsa is paying more than any other state and other part of this country because Bayelsa has deep riverine areas and anything you are buying at deep riverine, you can never determine what the cost is, so for me, Bayelsa oil company will encourage our partners
to built refinery, process the crude to     what ever finished products that is going to  come out of the crude
oil.  If we have a refinery,
people will be employed, the petrol, diesel that we are going to
process in Bayelsa will reduce the cost of the finished products in
the state, it will create employment opportunities and of course the
government will also draw revenue from it. I am also saying that as a
chairman House Committee on oil and gas resources in the eight
Assembly in the House of representatives, I went into a number of discussions with the major players in the oil industry. You all
know that the Bonny NLNG is a success story and it’s one of the
highest finance contributors to the Federal Government   
and if the Bonny NLNG will bring two more NLNGs will certainly solve the financial  problems of the country,  whatever amount you want to fund your budget with three NLNGs in  Nigeria can solve that problem and they are desirous of getting it done. In the course of our discussion with SHELL, we have agreed that the bony NLNG should invest in Brass NLNG and shell has also volunteer to invest in that project and so, that dream is ongoing, as chairman of that resources in the House of
Representative, we have taken discussion largely to implementation level such that it’s only when some of us come on board, having realise it to this point,  as a governor I can drive it to completion. And what do you
expect, an NLNG in Brass will open up the brass axis, it will bring
employment opportunity for our teeming youths and will also promote businesses and then as a state we are going to drew revenue from it. That is the way to go.

What will your administration do about  the brass fertilizer company?

The Brass fertilizer company that has been on the dream line, I have discussions to the extent that the former Managing Director of NNPC has said what will need to do to make it come on stream and by that discussion their expectation is not much 
beyond Bayelsa state government’s power and having understood that
this is what they want to have Brass fertilizer company to come on
stream because it will also generate employment again, which will generate business, which will generate income, I think that, that is
the way to go because if don’t address the issue that will create
employment, issues that will,   bring about robust business environment, issues that will create more
revenue base for the government, then of course, we will still be
relying on feeding bottle democracy.  

  How do you mean?

We say we are  a federal government, but we are practicing unitary system of government, at the end of the month, we all go to Abuja to collect whatever they appropriate to us, we do don’t know what they are given to us, they just say this is what belongs to you and you pick it and come back, which is not enough to sponsor our budgets and as for some of us, the first and most important thing to do is to look inward and generate an economy that will be self serving and we talk about this because if investors are coming to Nigeria and they land in Lagos, the moments they talk to Lagos audience and they know that it is  a business that is going to succeed, Lagosians will tell you am buying it half  a billion naira, or one billion or two billion and of course
they don’t have any reason to come to Bayelsa when there is already
money, when there is local content that is going  to boost their
investment of course they have to talk to that audience and then move
away from there, that is the sentiment we are coming to government to solve. Bayelsans will have the capacity to put money on the table in negotiating and creating business partnership that will develop our state.

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Aliko Dangote Steps Down as Chair of Dangote Sugar

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Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote has stepped down as Chairman of the Board of Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc, marking the end of a two-decade leadership that transformed the company into a dominant force in Nigeria’s sugar industry.According to a corporate disclosure on Wednesday by the company’s Secretary, Temitope Hassan, Dangote’s retirement from the sugar company’s board takes effect from June 16, 2025Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote has stepped down as Chairman of the Board of Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc, marking the end of a two-decade leadership that transformed the company into a dominant force in Nigeria’s sugar industry.

Dangote has chaired the board since 2005, overseeing its significant growth and transformation, including major expansion projects and implementing best practices in corporate governance.
“In line with the principles of good corporate governance and succession planning, Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc hereby announces the retirement of our esteemed Chairman of the Board of Directors, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, effective June 16, 2025,” the statement said.Under his leadership, the company launched key Backward Integration Projects (BIP) in Adamawa, Taraba, and Nasarawa States to boost local sugar production and reduce Nigeria’s reliance on imports.Following a “rigorous selection and transition process,” the Board has appointed Mr. Arnold Ekpe, an Independent Non-Executive Director and former Group CEO of Ecobank, as the new chairman.We are pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Arnold Ekpe as the new Chairman of Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc, effective June 16, 2025,” the statement added.Ekpe brings decades of experience in banking and corporate governance, with a strong track record in leading multinational institutions across Africa.The Board thanked Dangote for his exemplary leadership and unwavering commitment to the company’s vision.“We welcome Mr. Ekpe to his new role and look forward to the next chapter in our company’s journey under his leadership. We also express our deep appreciation to Alhaji Aliko Dangote for his years of outstanding service,” the statement stated. (NAN)

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Police Arrests 42 Armed Bandits, Remands 10 Herders over Benue Killings

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From Attah Ede, Makurdi

The Benue State Police Command said it has arrested 42 local armed bandits and herders across some communities in the state.The Commissioner of Police in the State, Ifeanyi Emenari, who disclosed this during his maiden media briefing held at the police officer mess Makurdi explained that those arrested were suspected to have been involved in the incessant killings going on in the state.

He pointed out that the armed Fulani herdsmen and bandits will face full trial.
According to Police Commissioner Emenari, most of the suspects were arrested upon his assumption of duty in the last one month.He maintained that the command had taken the fight to those responsible for the attacks and killings in Benue communities, stressing that tactical teams have already been drafted to flashpoints across communities in the state.
”I was posted to Benue State on the 24/04/2025 and assumed duty on the 26 April 2025. Upon assumption of duty, I step up strategic plans to tackle insecurity in the state.”I visited crisis areas such as Ankpali in Apa, Naka in Gwer West, Ayilamo in Logo, Amafu in Katsina-Ala, Ukum, Agatu, Udei, Yogbo in Guma Local Government Areas, and many others. I had discovered that farmlands have no farmers. Therefore, we have deployed our tactical teams to the areas and are now combing the communities in search of the killers.”We have a mandate to ensure that these communities are safe for the people to go back to their homes and engage in farming activities.”And in the last one month we have arrested 42 armed herdsmen and local bandits from these communities. Most of them have been charged to court.”We also have about 10 herdsmen who have been remanded by the courts in the course of their trial.”Apart from those already charged to court, there are others who are still being investigated and they would be charged to court at the end of investigations.””The command also recovered two AK47 rifles and 21 locally made firearms from the suspects. We had taken the fight to cult gangs in the state “that is why we have not witnessed or recorded cult related attacks in the state in the last one month since I assumed office.The kidnap incidents that happen regularly along Makurdi – Lafia federal highway have reduced drastically as we have arrested those perpetrating the acts and are currently in jail.”We have designed a plan to respond to any distress call within 30mns depending on the locations within the state”, Emenari added.The CP assured that the command would ensure that peace and security is restored to every nook and cranny of the state.He appealed to Benue people particularly in the rural communities and urban centres to cooperate with the police in its task of ensuring the security of lives and property in the state.He commended Governor Hyacinth Alia for his support to the Command, maintaining that his desire to ensure peace and security in the state would be achieved.”The entire governor wanted to make sure farmers go back to their farms and people are provided with adequate security to enable them to go on with their lawful business. We are ready to achieve that with the governor support”, he saidSimilarly, the Benue State Governor, Fr. Hyacinth Alia has reiterated that some politicians and “Religious bandits” are responsible for the needless crisis and aiding the killings of innocent people in the State.The Governor stated this while addressing the Pro-Tinibu group who staged a rally at the Government House Roundabout Makurdi, the state capital as part of the activities marking this year’s June 12 Democracy Day celebration.According to the Governor, “The Religious Bandits are the ones fuelling the insecurity situation being experiencing in the state.”They are doing this through their consistent rhetoric of unverified comments and distortion of facts.”There are some religious leaders I call ‘religious bandits’ who are fueling the bad situation we are experiencing here. And how do they support that, by their rhetoric. If you do not have the facts about Benue and Nigeria, shut up. Don’t just say something because you have the holy altar and oil to speak. Speak what you know and what can be verified.”There are some leaders who are fanning the embers of discord that peace should not return to the State.”We are still faced with insecurity as our people are killed unprovoked. We will take out this total menace and carnage of killings. We will not rest on our oars to ensure that total peace returns to Benue especially in the 6 LGAs that are in the frontline of insecurity.”Am confident that with the support of the President, we are going to get rid of insecurity completely in the State. Some traditional and religious leaders are also marching and fighting with us for peace to return to the State. Our people are suffering a lot and for some of us we have taken an oath to defend them and bring back peace”.”The day calls for sober reflection of how far the state and nation has journeyed in 26 years of uninterrupted democratic government, adding “We must pay tribute to the heroes who fought for democracy and sacrificed their lives for the unity of the country”Those heroes some are with us, others have gone to be with the Lord. They went through a lot including imprisonment, sacrificing for the unity of our country. It is not yet over for us. As we celebrate this day, people of conscience should note that what unites us is greater than what divides us. So, we must think positively for the State and the nation. We should have faith and hope for the nation.”Let us have a change of attitude and a different way of thinking. Let us sacrifice for the state and nation some more. Bring solutions to us and stop putting kerosene on fire. Let us know that Nigeria is our country and we can’t have another one.”Let us be our brother’s keeper. To the youths, a new Benue is possible and you are the new Benue. Let us do our best to ensure that Benue State is for prosperity and is secured. I am with the masses because they are with the people”, he stated.

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CBEX Remains Banned in Nigeria, SEC Warns Investors

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By Tony Obiechina, Abuja

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is insisting that CBEX (Crypto Bridge Exchange), operating under the corporate identity of ST Technologies International Ltd, also known as Smart Treasure/Super Technology, remains banned in Nigeria as it has not been registered by the Commission.

SEC in a statement yesterday advised the public to refrain from patronising or transacting any investment related business with the CBEX.
The notice read: “The attention of the Securities and Exchange Commission has been drawn to media reports indicating that CBEX (Crypto Bridge Exchange), operating under the corporate identity of ST Technologies International Ltd, also known as Smart Treasure/Super Technology, has resumed operations across Nigeria.
“According to the reports, CBEX promoters are demanding $200 from their subscribers with balances above $1,000, and $100 from those with less than $1000 balances before withdrawals can be processed”.The Commission stated “unequivocally that neither CBEX nor ST Technologies International Ltd (or Smart Treasure/Super Technology) is registered with the Commission or authorized to offer investment related services to the Nigerian public.“As a matter of fact, enforcement action has already been initiated against CBEX and its promoters following its previous unauthorized investment activities and the Commission is collaborating with relevant Law Enforcement Agencies to properly investigate CBEX/ST Technologies International Ltd and will take appropriate actions in line with the provisions of the Investments and Securities Act 2025.“The Nigerian public is accordingly advised to refrain from patronising or transacting with CBEX /ST Technologies International Ltd (Smart Treasure or Super Technology) as they risk losing their funds”.The SEC advised investors to verify the registration status of Investment platforms via the Commission’s dedicated portal: www.sec.gov.ng/cmos before transacting, adding that it remains committed to protecting investors and maintaining market integrity.

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