Welcome to Ehis Agugu's Blog

A sister is like a different flower from the same garden – that’s why the sun was shining so tenderly on your side. People believe that the heroes are one in many thousands, but I want to say that a sister like you is always one in a lifetime. I hope your birthday brings as much happiness to you as you are bringing to others! To have a sister like you is like to find a treasure in life. Celebrate your Birthday, you deserve all the best my little super star "Faith Agugu"! Happy Birthday!

The Office of the Governor of Edo State has in the past few days been inundated with various public comments, criticisms and (in some cases) opportunistic posturing by the political opposition party regarding a “Grazing Bill” currently said to be under consideration by the Honourable Members of the Edo State House of Assembly. The Government would wish to make the following facts clear to concerned members of the public:           (i)      The Government has absolutely no knowledge of or participation in the said bill particularly as same is certainly not an Executive Bill and did not emanate from Government House;           (ii)     Preliminary enquiries indicate that the said “Grazing Bill” is a private member bill currently undergoing consideration by the Legislature in furtherance of its power and responsibility in that  regard. Whilst the Execu...

*As Court Sentence Mother of Four to 15yrs Imprisonment By: Patrick Ochoga, Benin City A notorious human trafficker, Vivian Ehioze, her brother, Pastor Endurance Ehioze, of Heavenly Ambassadors Ministries Inc, both specialises in trafficking of young girls from Benin City to Russia for Prostitution have been arrested by men of the Nigeria Police Force, Edo State Command. Endurance who is based in Benin is said to use the Church as a fertile ground to lure young girls in search of greener pastures into prostitution with the collaboration of the sister in Russia. Their arrest was made possible based on a tip-off by an Edo based Non-Governmental Organization, Initiative for Youths Awareness on Migration, Immigration, Development &Re-integration, IYAMIDR, which deals with issues of illegal trafficking. One of the trafficked victim, Miss Florence Abu, (24) who was recently reunited with her family is currently seeking urgent assistant from spirited individual and government said after...

Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo state has denied having a hand in the Anti-Grazing Bill, which has passed its second reading, at the Edo House of Assembly, noting that the government’s position on the bill would be made known at the public hearing. This was according to a statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Mr John Mayaki, who also explained that comments from the opposition party, People’s Democratic Party (PDP), were severely misguided and stemmed from lack of proper investigation. Mr Mayaki said, “What PDP, in its characteristic manner, has failed to realise is that the Anti-Grazing Bill in the House of Assembly, which they have declaimed so much on, did not emanate from the executive, and could even be a Private Member’s bill. “The government is well-aware of the terror concern in the state, but we are also making swift security moves to address the situation. The governor has called security meetings and even attended one in Abuja recently, to ensure that lastin...

"URGENT LETTER TO MY BROTHER NIGERIA..... Morning Bro, My name is RWANDA..Your small bro...This letter is a bit long...anyway, how are You? Hope you are good...Just like Me. Bro, It's long since we talked but this letter is urgent ! You have to do what I say! Bro, in April 1994, the worst happened to Me. After the death of My President, Juvenal Habyarimana, who was a TUTSI, my people went totally crazy! You see, The TUTSI and HUTU were the major tribes that I had...Now, the HUTU were smaller than the TUTSI and the TUTSI had held on to power for so long! And in April, madness began! After a fierce campaign propaganda by the angry HUTUs, who wanted power too, I watched as the HUTU bought 581,000 machetes (pangas) from China. I sadly watched as the HUTU also bought rocket launchers, mortar bombs, grenades and ammunition worth £18M from Egypt. My heart was beating. My soul was scared. I watched, with sadness and fear, the media spreading false propaganda, lies and innuendo to the ...

By Abdulwahab Abdulah Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike a.k.a. Evans, the suspected billionaire kidnapper, has dragged the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris and three others before the Federal High Court in Lagos over alleged illegal detention. Joined as respondents in the motion he filed by his lawyers are the Nigeria Police Force, Commissioner of Police, Lagos State and the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, Lagos State Police Command. In a fundamental rights enforcement suit filed on his behalf by a Lagos-based lawyer, Olukoya Ogungbeje, the suspected kidnapper is praying for the order of court to direct the respondents to immediately charge him to court if there is any case against him in accordance with Sections 35 (1) (c) (3) (4) (5) (a) (b) and 36 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. In the alternative, he prayed the court for an order compelling the respondents to immediately release him unconditionally in the absence of any offence that will warrant his ...

Concerned about the welfare of the family of a late Oredo Local Government Area pensioner, whose body, it was reported, had been left in the mortuary for over 454 days, Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State has promised to offset the bills and empower the Oboite family to enable them bury their late father and start a business. This was according to a statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Mr. John Mayaki, who also clarified that the Governor did not order the employment of 4,200 people into the state Civil Service but public works program. On the issue of the late pensioner’s family, he revealed that the Governor was made aware that a certain Mr Sunday Oboite passed away while waiting to be verified during a verification exercise at Oredo Local Government and that his family needed financial assistance to bury him since he was still being kept in the mortuary for over 454 days. He said, “The governor sympathises with the family of the late Oboite, especially his son, O...

Our 2017 STEM Summer Camp for Teenage Girls will take place on August 7 – 14 at Aduvie International School. The theme for this year’s residential camp is, “ Renewable Energy for a Brighter Future .” We have designed the program to expose 60 students to the diverse renewable energy (RE) sources available in Nigeria and Africa, while helping them harness this potential for economic growth and development. They will be taught the science behind RE and will be given the opportunity to build demo projects to generate electricity using solar, wind, and hydro sources. Participants will also be given daily challenges to solve simulated problems that affect people in their communities. They will develop innovative ideas to combat drought, floods, food insecurity, electricity shortages, and so on. They will additionally build individual and group projects using the concepts they will learn in robotics, electronics, mechanics, and computer programming. They will learn to work in team, speak con...

By Comrade Tony Erha The ongoing national and global  advocacy /protest/mass actions are supportive of over 28 local forested communities cutting across the four local government areas of Owan West, Uhunmwode, Ovia North East and Ovia South West, respectively in Edo State, Nigeria, and intended to stop the impunities by the Okomu PLC, and to get justice for the poor communities and bring Okomu PLC to book. The mass action, fired on by a global movement/stakeholders, has commenced in full jars with a massive protest actions which crippled commercial activities in the city centre of Benin, the Edo State capital, as been prominently reported on television, radio, social media and by newspapers across the globe. During the massive protests, the various forested communities supported by Civil Society include Orhua,Oke-Irhue, Umokpe, Ekpan, Agudezi, Ozalla, Uhonmora, Eme-Ora, Sabongida-Ora, Oke-Ora, Avbiosi, Uzebba, Ugbebezi, Atoruru, Ogbetu, Sobe, Agbanikaka, Owan, Uhiere. Odigu...

Chief Imam commends Obaseki on governance The Chief Imam of Benin, Sheikh Abdulfatah Enabulele, has commended Governor Godwin Obaseki for his giant strides and people-friendly decisions since assuming office as Governor of Edo State more than seven months ago. This was as the Imam led the Muslim communities in Edo state to the Government House in Benin City to celebrate the Eid-el-Fitri with the governor, who was represented by his deputy, Rt. Hon Philip Shaibu and Chief of staff, Comrade Taiwo Akerele. In his speech, Sheikh Enabulele said, “Your excellency, so far so good, all the decisions your administration have taken so far to redirect the affairs of governance are very popular decisions in which the majority of Edo people are pleased and happy about.” He also re-echoed the thoughts of the public, affirming that the governor was a ‘silent worker’, given his austere nature and love for hard work. “From what we have seen so far, His Excellency is a silent opera...

As we bid the holy month goodbye, may it's lessons and blessings remain with us. Let us strive in unison to bring progress to our state and Nigeria. Eid-el Fitr symbolizes the end of the Holy month of Ramadan and commemorates the beginning of the month of Shawwal. Barka Da Sallah! Eid Mubarak!!! #Project Edo

Court grants Marxist Kola Edokpaiyi stringent bail conditions ...But the activists say they will not be dampened An Edo High Court has granted bail to a frontline Human Rights Activist in Edo State, Marxist Edokpaiyi detained at Oko Prisons over treasonable charges. Marxist Kola Edokpaiyi was arrested by the police and arraigned at Magistrate Court on May 16 and consequently remanded at Oko Prison. The bail granted followed an application by his counsel, Abraham Oviawe which were supported by thirty two paragraphs affidavit and supported by two exhibits marked as exhibits A and B. They are records of the magistrate court and letter written to the Commissioner of Police prior to the protest he and others were charged for. Abraham Oviawe vehemently argued that his client is not a criminal that the basis of his arrest was his quest to advocate for the commoner and drum mightily for the people of Edo State. The prosecution counsel told the court that she was not opposing ...

A lecturer in the Department of History and International Studies, University of Benin, UNIBEN, Professor Eddy Eragbe, has expressed fear that the war against corruption might be lost if those who were earlier convicted by the courts are exonerated by the same courts. He spoke yesterday in Benin, the Edo State capital, at a lecture entitled Anti-Corruption War: The More You Look the Less You See, delivered by Mr. Austin Osakue, organised by the 2007/2008 students of International Studies and Diplomacy, UNIBEN, noting that the recent happenings in the fight against corruption do not show that the country was ready to get rid of scourge. He said: “We strongly believed that we should follow due process in the fight, but the way we have been going, we seemed not have got it right.” On the part of Mr. Osakue, a human rights activist, he insisted that cases of corruption rose when Nigerians started amassing wealth for themselves and families rather than think about the collective well being ...

By John Mayaki “How was my presentation?” Gov Obaseki asked his Press Crew. "Hope you followed through?" It is said that a picture is worth ten thousand words. However, a cursory look at the picture accompanying this article will not reveal the entire story herein portrayed. The setting was the boardroom of Edo State Government House where His Excellency, Governor Godwin Obaseki had just finished a mind-blowing PowerPoint presentation to the management team of Bank of Industry, BOI, led by MD/CEO, Olukayode Pitan, on Wednesday, June 21, 2017, convincing them on why Edo was an investment destination of choice. As is customary, visitors are accompanied downstairs by His Excellency for a group photograph. However, on this rare occasion, the governor “abandoned”, as it were, an entourage of top bankers with money to plough into industrialization of the state. He walked up to his Press Corps to have a brief chat with them. Then he asked: “How was my presentat...

Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo has disclosed that the state would establish a Ministry of Mining to fast-track the development of mining activities in the state, explaining that the state was yet to take full advantage of the investment potentials in the mining sector due to lack of a structure to coordinate its activities. The governor announced this while reacting to elucidations made by Minister of Mines and Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, at a two-day workshop on Solid Mineral Development organised by the state government in Benin, on Friday. Governor Obaseki said, “Mining has been a federal affair with states having little roles to play; but we have seen the clarifications that have been made by the minister of solid minerals. It used to be a portfolio restricted to the federal government. We want to restructure mining in Edo, and in the portfolio we have created, a commissioner will oversee the ministry of Mining.” He continued that the ministry woul...

Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State has advised against placing advertisements across the various media platforms to celebrate his 58th birthday on July 1st this year, urging friends and well-wishers, who may want to do so to donate the expenses to WeCare Trust. In a statement endorsed by Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Mr. John Mayaki, it was revealed that Governor Obaseki was unhappy with the rate of helpless children in the state and he had been making moves to curb the spread and rectify the social damage. The statement read, “Governor Obaseki has been worried and taking steps to end the societal stigma of helpless children living of the streets and witnessing the worst parts of life before they have even had a chance to live. He will not rest until he has addressed this satisfactorily. “He has met with religious leaders and has tried to upswing education in the state, he has also decided that funds that should have been directed to advertising felicitations f...

Edo State and BoI: A Partnership for Progress By John Mayaki Edo State is more than ever before becoming a cynosure of not only all who have eyes for enduring development, but also for organisations and institutions which are concerned with the business of human and infrastructural development anywhere it is genuinely taking place. The reality of this was evident in the recent visit of the officials of the Bank of Industry (BOI) to the helmsman in Edo State, Governor Godwin Obaseki. In his remarks during the visit, the Managing Director of the bank, Mr. Kayode Pitan, cut to the chase and said that their bank sees in the State Government of Edo a dependable partner and as such remains committed to working with it to complement its development efforts. The MD noted specifically that the bank was ready to support the medium and small-scale enterprises in the state and other major companies. “We are putting together a package to raise substantial funding from 500 billion to one trillion ...

Edo traffic management training takes off The Final training for prospective officers of the Edo State Traffic Control and Management Agency has commenced in Benin City, the Edo State capital, with facilitators drawn from various states and fields of practice. The one-week long training exercise which started from Wednesday 21 June to climax Wednesday 28 June, is expected to engage prospective officers of the agency in a series of thorough teachings to include traffic control and enforcement, public enlightenment and education, road research and statistics, drivers’ training and recertification, traffic safety and accident management, pedestrians’ safety as well as safeguarding children in control zones. It would be recalled that Edo state Government had in the past weeks kick-started the recruitment process into the agency with the screening and verification of documents, biological and physical fitness test as well as conducted aptitude test for about 500 persons from which 350 p...

Obaseki swears in seven Special Advisers Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo state, on Friday, swore in seven newly appointed Special Advisers at the Exco Chambers of the Edo State Government House, charging them to play their constitutional roles of advising him and ensure his administration succeeds. Governor Obaseki added that his administration would run a transparent government with integrity and that he needed people, who could demonstrate leadership, particularly in the future, to achieve that, stressing that they would assist and advise him through difficult terrains of government and governance.   He said: “I am appointing you because I believe that all of you have the experience, integrity and commitment to make me succeed. You are to advise me, and it is for my interest to take your advice. As a state, God has given us the resources, in terms of people, the means and materials to overcome these challenges. What is required is leadership. I am happy today that I have quality...

Edo to register Northern Settlers Edo State Government says it plans to have a database of Northern settlers in the state as a way to tackle cases of suspected  Fulani herdsmen attack on farmers. This is contained in a statement issued by the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Mr. John Mayaki and made available to Newsmen in Benin on Friday. The governor said the initiative was to allow for identification of strange characters within the domain. According to the statement, Obaseki made this known to members of Arewa Community in the state led by its President General, Alhaji Sahabi Umar after sharing with them at Government House, Benin on Thursday night. The governor urged Arewa Community in the state to embrace the diversity which exists in Nigeria and forge a united bond. He asserted that no true Fulani herdsman would abandon his cattle and take to killing of innocent farmers; rather the recent cases of rape and murder were perpetrated by foreign elements be...