“IPOB and ESN will not enforce the sit-at-home but Biafrans must not endanger their lives. For your safety, please sit at home on Thursday, May 30, 2024, and honour Biafran heroes and heroines. Do not endanger your lives,” the statement added.
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75% of passenger boats plying Lagos waterways not seaworthy — NIWA
…To scrap unseaworthy boats
The National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) is set to scrap many unseaworthy boats following the agency’s investigation which revealed that 75 percent of passenger boats being used in Lagos are unseaworthy.
Speaking to maritime journalists on Wednesday, the Lagos Area Manager of NIWA, Engineer SaratBraimah revealed that NIWA has put in some conditions for boat operators to meet or forget about the ferry business.
According to Braimah, “What NIWA wants to do now is to sanitise those boat operators. We cannot wait until accidents happen again and from these two major accidents that happened this year, we have been able to analyse our investigations and we discovered that it was due to human errors.
“What I mean by human error is down to the maintenance of these boats. Most times, boat engines will go off mid-stream because of the speed the boat captains need, they won’t get it on the channel. So they will now move out of the channel to go to the shallow area so that they can maintain speed.
“As I speak to you, our Marine Unit is now in Ikorodu. I have embargoed boat movements in Ikorodu except for those certified. Yesterday, we certified 10 boats, and only those 10 boats will be the ones to operate for now.
“For other boats, we have instructed them to bring them down to our office here in Marina. We are not even going to Ikorodu to do the inspection.
“Most of the boats have a single hull and these single hull boats cannot withstand stress. Any single hit on the waterways and they will tumble. This is why some of them will hit a little pipe like this on the Waterways and will tumble. I have been inside a boat where we hit a wreck, the boat did not capsize because it had a double hull.
“Majorly, we have to scrap these boats. 75 percent of them are not seaworthy. The time they bought it, registered them, maintained them, even the maintenance has dropped and their life span too has dropped. So we want to know if there are 20 boats that are fit to operate from Ikorodu, Ibeshe jetty, let it be so. If it is 20 in Ebute, let it be so.
“The owners of the jetty are also part of the problem because they know that the fewer the number of boats, the less money they make. But we don’t care about how much a jetty makes. If it’s just 10 boats that are certified fit, let them pay for jetty use. I’m not targeting anybody, we are just after safety.
“So going forward, they have made some things mandatory for boat operators. Firstly, every boat must have a speedometer, it will allow passengers inside the boat to know whether the pilot is overspeeding or not.
“Secondly, every passenger boat must have life buoys on the boat. If there is an incident mid-stream, they will throw life buoys around for people to hold for safety. Four people can hold one. If you have three on a boat, that will save 12 people. Passengers have life jackets, but they usually take off immediately after they get inside the boat. At least, if that life buoy is there and they throw it out, they will hold on to it to stay afloat. So it is the best way to save people on water.
“And finally, every passenger boat will also have a Lifeguard who can swim in case of an accident. Lifeguards are divers, they can quickly jump into the water and save people. It will be the first response before the boats get there.
“NIWA is about to procure a technology called ‘Blue Me.’ Each driver on board will be given one. If they press it, it will give a signal about their location to everybody. It operates anywhere and it doesn’t have network issues and it will give us the location of the boats in times of emergencies. We have gotten the sample and we have tested it at Badagry. These are precautions we are putting in place for water transportation safety.”
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IPOB declares May 30 sit-at-home in South-East to honour Biafran soldiers
The Indigenous People of Biafra has declared May 30, 2024, as a sit-at-home day across the South-East to celebrate Biafran soldiers.
The pro-Biafran group said that day is set aside annually to celebrate the men and women who died in the Biafran war between 1967 and 1970 and beyond and even until now.
This was made known in a press statement by the group’s spokesman, Emma Powerful, on Thursday, adding that every Biafran in the South-East is expected to sit at home and reflect on the war.
Powerful cautioned South-East residents to avoid loitering about on this day, adding that those who intend to travel to and fro Biafra land must do so before the evening of May 29.
The statement read, “We the global family of IPOB declare Thursday, May 30, 2024, a sit-at-home day in Biafra land for all Biafrans, friends of Biafra, lovers of freedom, and all residents in Biafra Land.
“Annually, we celebrate May 30 as our heroes and heroines day when we remember the men and women who died that we may live, before, during, and after the war against Biafrans between 1967 and 1970 and beyond and even until now.
“To honour our heroes and heroines. Biafrans are asked to observe this one-day sit-at-home in reverence to the spirits of our departed heroes who fought for us to be alive today. Every Biafran in Biafra territory is expected to sit at home on this day and reflect on the danger of the forced unity called Nigeria that has taken millions of lives of Biafrans.
“Other Biafrans outside Biafra territory are also encouraged to honour our heroes by observing the sit-at-home if possible or by limiting their activities on this day.”
According to the group, all schools, government offices, private offices, banks, transport unions, market unions and private individuals should shut down all operations in honour of our it’s heroes and heroines.
They added that exceptions to these directives are institutions and individuals on special duties such as nurses, doctors, ambulance services, hospitals, and medical workers who are allowed to operate on that day.
“We call on Christians and traditional worshipers to use this day to pray to Chukwu Okike Abiama for the fallen heroes and also pray for Biafra Independence from this murderous contraption called Nigeria.
“Heroes Remembrance Day is a call to duty for Biafrans to remember and honour our fallen heroes who were brutally murdered between 1967 to 1970 during the genocidal war against Ndigbo before and beyond. Biafrans living in the Northern and Western parts of the zoo called, Nigeria will join and stay indoors for this commemoration and remembrance of our heroes and heroines who died so that we may live.
“At this special event, IPOB members must light candles in remembrance of our fallen heroes. Heroes like our eternal leader Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, Retired General Phillip Efiong, Col. Achuzie (Air Raid), Frank Opigo, Okonkon Dem, Sam Mbakwe, Akanu Ibiam, and many others who contributed immensely to the survival of Biafrans from the extermination war led by Nigeria military.
IPOB in the statement directed that all the residents of “Biafra Land” are to stay indoors from 6 am to 6 pm on May 30, 2024.
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Lagos disburses N1.3bn to 11,386 households – Commissioner
Lagos State government has disbursed over N1,346,030,000.00 to 11,386 households through its bi-monthly Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) programme.
The Lagos State Commissioner for Wealth Creation and Employment, Mr Akinyemi Ajigbotafe, said this at the 2024 Ministerial Briefing on Thursday at Bagauda Kaltho Press Centre, Alausa, Ikeja.
“We have 12 local governments that have benefitted from this programme and they are Apapa, Amuwo Odofin, Ajeromi-Ifelodun, Agege, Badagry, Epe, Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos Island, Shomolu, Ifako-Ijaye and Alimosho.
“The implementation of the CCT programme has contributed to the improved livelihood of beneficiaries through savings group mobilisation activities.
“Also the unit implemented the NG cares programme where transfer of N343,200,000 million was made to 2,145 beneficiaries in Eti-Osa, Kosofe, Mainland, Iru, Victoria Island, Agboyi -Ketu, Ikosi Isheri and Yaba,” he said.
Ajigbotafe reiterated the commitment of the Babajide Sanwo-Olu administration to wealth creation and employment for residents of the state.
“Under the visionary leadership of Gov. Sanwo-Olu, no stone is left unturned. Come July we’ll inaugurate our leather hub at Matori Mushin, a N4 billion leather industry in Lagos.
“We got our machine and equipment from Italy. This will create more employment for the good people of our dear state,” he said.
He also said Lagos State was particular about the growth and development of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), with the initiative to assist start-ups, artisans and entrepreneurs in the state.
“The MSME loan programme in 2023 disbursed N859 million to 1,271 MSMEs in the state.
“Also Lagos Care supported 1,425 MSMEs with grants worth N358 million across the three disbursement linked indicators, which are credit, operation and IT enhancement,” he said.
Lagos Care is a World Bank sponsored intervention designed to cushion the effect of COVID-19 pandemic.
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