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Government Unveils Anthem, Symbols To Promote Benue’s Culture, Heritage

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Government Unveils Anthem, Symbols To Promote Benue’s Culture, Heritage

Government unveils anthem, symbols to promote Benue’s culture, heritage. Mr Alia commended the committee that undertook the project, saying it did an excellent job.

Benue State Governor, Hyacinth Alia, has unveiled the state’s official anthem and symbols to promote culture, identity, and heritage.

Performing the grand finale of the ceremony on Saturday in Makurdi, Mr Alia said he would send an Executive Bill to the House of Assembly for its implementation.

The governor noted that the symbols represented the essence of Benue people’s identity as reflected in their values, culture, and history.
According to him, the symbols are important tools for the promotion of the state to attract tourists and investors.

The governor said henceforth, the state would uniquely stand out and be recognised through its anthem and symbols.
He noted that the symbols were not only important for their aesthetic value or their promotional potential, but were also a reminder of the citizens’ responsibility to state and county.

He stated, “They are a reminder of our struggles and our triumphs, and they inspire us to strive for greatness. They are a symbol of our unity and our diversity, and they remind us that we are stronger together than we are apart. I therefore urge you all to embrace the state symbols with pride and enthusiasm.

Let us use them to promote our state’s identity and culture and to inspire others to do the same. Let us wear them on our sleeves, literally and figuratively, and let us show the world what it means to be a true Benue citizen. The symbols are a gift to our state and to our people.”
Mr Alia commended the committee that undertook the project, saying it did an excellent job.

“Your dedication, expertise, and commitment to this project are truly commendable. As your governor, I am honoured to accept the outcome of this process and to express my deepest gratitude to the committee that worked tirelessly to ensure that the symbols truly represent the spirit of Benue State.

I would also like to appreciate everyone who made entries for the state symbols. Your creativity, imagination, and enthusiasm are what made this project a success.

“Whether your entry was selected or not, please know that your contribution is valued and appreciated. You have helped to shape the identity of our state, and for that, we are eternally grateful,” he said.

The governor further assured the people that his administration was determined to face its responsibility of ensuring that the state was taken out of the woods of underdevelopment.

He said his administration was building strong health and educational systems as a matter of urgency beginning with the engagement of 9,700 new teachers.

The governor noted that the government was tackling security challenges head-on, adding that the Internally Displaced Persons would soon be returned to their ancestral homes
Earlier, Chairman of the State Symbols Screening Committee, Justice Augustine Utsaha (retd), thanked the governor for finding them worthy to be part of the history making.

Mr Utsaha said the search for common identity and heritage for the state was long overdue, adding that the concept was a noble idea that must be taken seriously.
He said the governor’s commitment to infrastructure development was legendary and his concern for human capital, second to none.

Benue

Benue

 

He noted that the committee had worked tirelessly to select the best symbols for the state through a transparent process.
The chairman expressed hope that the symbols would be a beacon of pride for Benue citizens and reaffirm their commitment to the state’s unity and progress.

“I see the symbol being used to promote culture and education. It will play a big role in promoting peace and unity,” Mr Utsaha said
The Secretary of the committee, Chief Solomon Iorpev, said the committee received a total of 119 entries, which were screened to get the top five.
Mr Iorpev explained that the anthem was birthed from the submissions of the five finalists.

Economy

Adewale Adeniyi Transforming Nigeria Customs Service For Greater Efficiency

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Adewale Adeniyi

Adewale Adeniyi Transforming Nigeria Customs Service For Greater Efficiency

Adewale Adeniyi Transforming Nigeria customs service for Greater Efficiency. The appointment of Adewale Adeniyi as the 31st Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has ushered in a wave of transformative reforms, enhancing efficiency and service delivery within the agency.

Modernizing the Customs Service

Under Adeniyi’s leadership, the NCS has implemented innovative strategies that have not only streamlined trade facilitation but also significantly boosted revenue generation.

These reforms have reinforced the service’s role as a critical player in economic growth, international trade, and border security.

Legislative Overhaul: A New Legal Framework

One of the major milestones achieved during Adeniyi’s tenure is the Nigeria Customs Act 2023, signed into law on April 20, 2023. This law replaces outdated customs regulations, ensuring a modernized, autonomous, and internationally compliant customs administration under the supervision of the Minister of Finance.

Strategic Reforms for Efficiency

Adeniyi introduced several key reforms aimed at improving trade processes and customs operations:

Time Release Study (TRS): This tool, developed by the World Customs Organization (WCO), helps identify delays in the clearance of goods, allowing for more efficient trade processing.

Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) Program: Recognizing compliant businesses in international trade, this initiative strengthens the supply chain and improves security.

Adewale Adeniyi

Adewale Adeniyi

Customs Trade Modernization Project (TMP): Launched in 2022, this project is expected to generate $250 billion in revenue and create employment opportunities as the NCS expands its workforce.

Boosting Revenue and Trade Facilitation

Adeniyi’s reforms have led to record-breaking revenue collection, with the NCS generating over N5 trillion in 2024 and setting an ambitious target of N6 trillion for 2025.

Through strategic stakeholder engagement, legal modernization, and cutting-edge trade facilitation measures, the Nigeria Customs Service is now better positioned to drive economic growth, enhance security, and improve global trade efficiency.

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Economy

Oil Prices Hits $70/b As Nigeria’s Output Surpasses OPEC+ Quota For February

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Oil Prices

Oil Prices Hits $70/b As Nigeria’s Output Surpasses OPEC+ Quota For February

Oil Prices Hits $70/b as Nigeria’s output surpasses OPEC+ quota for February. Oil price steadied after the Organization of the Production Export Countries released its monthly report, with Brent crude maintaining its earlier gains, trading above $70 a barrel on Thursday.

OPEC said on Wednesday that Kazakhstan led a sizeable jump in February crude output by the wider OPEC+, highlighting a challenge for the producer group in enforcing adherence to agreed output targets.

In its monthly report for March 2025, OPEC+, which includes OPEC plus Russia and other allies, in February raised output by 363,000 barrels per day to 41.01 million bpd, led by Kazakhstan.

The hike is more than twice as much as a scheduled 138,000 bpd rise in OPEC+ output starting in April as the group phases out its most recent layer of output cuts.

The plan for higher output, as well as concern about trade tariffs, have put downward pressure on oil prices. Kazakhstan, the world’s largest landlocked country, has been producing at a record high, and well above its OPEC+ quota, as U.S. oil major Chevron.

Oil Prices

Oil Prices

According to the OPEC data, which it compiles from secondary sources, Kazakhstan produced 1.767 million bpd of crude in February, up from 1.570 million bpd in January. Kazakhstan’s OPEC+ quota is 1.468 million bpd.

The OPEC data also showed some other OPEC+ nations such as the United Arab Emirates, Nigeria and Gabon pumping above their quotas, but by far smaller amounts.

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Akwa Ibom

Umo Eno Commissions Model school In Oron, Charges Shool Heads On Maintwnance Culture

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Umo Eno Commissions

Umo Eno Commissions Model school In Oron, Charges Shool Heads On Maintwnance Culture

Umo Eno commissions model school in Oron, charges shool heads on maintwnance culture and directs head teachers to live in school

Akwa Ibom State Governor, Pastor Umo Eno, has charged heads of schools and other institutions to ensure preservation of government infrastructures within their custody and to ensure that the intended benefits of government investments in the sector are delivered to the targeted beneficiaries.

He also tasked headmasters and headmistresses of model primary schools built across the State to utilize the live-in facilities to enhance their care for the pupils, and protection of the facilities in line with the aspirations of his administration’s ARISE Agenda.

Speaking at the commissioning ceremony of the Model Primary School, Uko-Oyukim in Oron Local Government Area, Governor Eno said a special education monitoring team was about to be activated to monitor the model schools, warning that any headteacher found not living on campus or whose school facilities are not well managed would be replaced.

He, therefore, tasked the Akwa Ibom State Infrastructure & Assets Management and Maintenance Agency to step up their vigilance over the educational facilities, adding that he was willing to bring to bear his private business experience as a hotelier, where he would work round the clock to ensure every guest enjoys utmost comfort, to make Akwa Ibom children receive the best from government investment in the education sector.

“Very soon, we are setting up education monitoring teams, and the team will help us ensure that all of these facilities are intact. They will monitor all these schools we are opening, from the washroom to the classrooms, all the facilities, the curriculum and of the work they are doing.

“The Headmasters or Headmistresses will also ensure that non of these facilities are destroyed. We must continue to maintain the standard. I am setting up a Governor’s Monitoring team, but they will work with the Honourable Commissioners to ensure that they give us the right information.

“If we come to your school, particularly our schools that are remodelled, and we find out that the standards are dropping, we will change the head Master or Mistress immediately.

If we come to the school and discover that you are not living on the school compound, we will send you back somewhere else.

“We can not use your money to put this edifice in place, only for it to go down in few months,” the Governor stated.

Speaking on behalf of Oron stakeholders, the Deputy Governor, Senator Akon Eyakenyi, described the emergence of Governor Umo Eno as God’s blessing to Akwa Ibom State and particularly thanked the Governor for accepting to be used to extend God’s love to Oron people.

According to Senator Eyakenyi, Governor Umo Eno’s value for education which fueled his drive to pursue and obtain a PhD has been demonstrated in his identification of primary education as being fundamentally imperative and therefore investing in giving Akwa Ibom children a good start up.

Umo Eno Commissions

Umo Eno Commissions

 

The Commissioner for Education, Professor Ubong Umoh, presenting an overview of the project, commended Governor Umo Eno’s model primary school initiative, maintaining that such underscores his administration’s dedication to transforming the educational landscape thereby fostering academic excellence and social development.

He said the Uko-Oyukim Model Primary School, designed to accommodate 495 pupils in 19 fully furnished classrooms on a 25:1 pupils to teacher ratio, was fully equipped with library, early childcare development facilities, solar-powered ICT laboratory, modern sick bay, spacious auditorium, dedicated staff quarters, seperate gender-specific sanitary facilities, with comprehensive human kinetic facilities that enhances education and sports development.

Pupils of the school, little Miss Happiness Antai and Master Godwin Asuquo, conveyed the feelings of the school community through a special address and a ballad which expressed the gratitude of the pupils, teachers and their parents to the Governor for the kind gesture he has extended to them through the state-of-the-art facilities.

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