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Ebonyi indigenes reject handing-over of Uburu varsity to Catholic Church

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3 years ago

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The Association of Ebonyi State Indigenes in Diaspora (AESID) has rejected the donation of King David University of Medical Sciences Uburu, which it described as “Greek offer” by the governor of the state, Dave Nweze Umahi, to the Catholic Church.

The group said if the situation is not properly managed it could lead to animosity between the Presbyterian Church of Nigeria, who had claimed ownership of the new varsity and the Catholic Church.

 

At the Episcopal Ordination and installation of Rt. Rev. Msgr. Peter Nworie Chukwu as the 3rd Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Abakaliki on Thursday, August 19, 2021, Ebonyi State Governor, Engr. David Nweze Umahi, announced the handing over of the King David University of Medical Sciences Uburu to the Catholic Bishops Conference for what he termed “optimum management and academic excellence.”

As reported via a statement made available through his Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mr Francis Nwaze, the Governor declared; “The contributions of the church to the Educational Development of Nigeria is unparalleled and for this, I, on-behalf of the State wish to give the King David University of Medical Sciences Uburu to the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria to own and run.

Reacting through a statement signed by its President, Amb. Paschal Oluchukwu, on Sunday, the Ebonyi indigenes wondered how a governor such pronouncement “which is capable of not only pitching the mother church against her sister Presbyterian Church which has been in court challenging the forceful takeover of the said property but also further negate the provisions of our extant Laws, create chaos and confusion and deepen animosity between the Christian faith even as we yet see Ebonyi as a secular State only dominated by the Christian religion.”

According to the statement, in public’s best interest, no law permits a Governor to build such a massive edifice with millions of unaccounted public funds and hand same over to a people of a particular faith in a multi-religious society like ours.

 

“Apart from the severe breaches of the law typified by the non-passage of any Law enabling the donation of the said institution which was built with public funds, unaudited and unaccounted for by the Ebonyi State’s House of Assembly- an ordinarily third arm of government that has been serially amputated and utterly neglected by the Governor, Umahi has by this pronouncement shown that he’s merely a desperate dealer trying to cover-up his suspected dirty tracks by currying the favour of the largest and most populous Catholic Church.

“No one, we repeat, no church or organisation for that matter therefore should accept any such compromised dealings from a Governor like Umahi.

For we are certain that his motives on this particular offer are as ulterior as the majority of his dealings with Ebonyi people in his past six year’s on the saddle as Ebonyi Governor.”

Stating the controversies on the said Uburu varsity, the statement said: “First, the Presbyterian Church had alerted the general public that, on Friday, the 12th of July, 2019, it received a hint that the Ebonyi State exco approved Government takeover of the Presbyterian Joint Hospital, Uburu.

Also announced on the same day on the State broadcast network, was the award of contracts for the construction of several blocks of buildings for the Ebonyi State Teaching Hospital on property the Presbyterian Church of Nigeria holds on lease and has developed over 107 years as the Presbyterian Joint Hospital, Uburu.

 

“We are aware that Umahi had sent a letter asking for approval to the State’s House of Assembly asking for the State’s takeover and acquisition of the oldest Hospital founded by a Missionary, Dr. John Hitchcock which his lackeys in the said arm of government readily granted without any due diligence or investigation, the head of Information Department and Public Affairs of the Presbyterian Church, Rt. Rev. Nnoke Ibe had in a detailed Press release accused the State Governor of forcefully taking over the hospital for which it still paid rents to the family and village donors of the land upon which it is situated.

“The release, made since July 2020 had asserted without a counter-claim from the Umahi-led government that, ‘The Church is also aware that the Government’s power of eminent domain confers a power to take land it requires for public purposes; but that power is made constitutionally subject to procedures which guarantee the rights, privileges and entitlements of occupiers and holders.

The statement said: “we haven’t also forgotten that the plan was actually to acquire and build the said institution as the new State’s University medical school.

We are also knowledgeable about the fact that the Ebonyi State government recently released an outrageous fee regime of between N1 to N3M as annual School fees for the institution following the approval of it’s courses by the NUC and even announcements for job recruitments. From where and how then can the Catholic community fund, maintain and sustain such academic institution which could become a monumental waste if not properly-funded?

“If truly Umahi loves and wants academic excellence, why has he proposed the above monumental fee regime in a poor state like ours? Why has he also totally neglected the public education sector in Ebonyi without reasonable grants to the existing state-owned Primary, Secondary and especially, tertiary institutions in the State?

” he should await his days of reckoning with the antitrust agencies for all his lawless actions, misconducts and unaccountability in governance which has made Ebonyi remain the poverty capital of the entire Southern Nigeria.”

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Breaking: Former Secretary of Federal Electoral Commission, FEDECO, Ahmadu Kurfi Passes On at 93

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5 hours ago

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November 21, 2024

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Late Alhaji Ahmadu Kurfi

 

A former secretary of the Federal Electoral Commission, Alhaji Ahmadu Kurfi, has passed away.

A family source, Jafar Yakubu, informed NIGERIAN TRACKER about the death of the pioneer secretary of the Federal Electoral Commission, who supervised the 1979 general election.

 

Jafar Yakubu said Alhaji Ahmadu Kurfi died at the age of 93 and his Janaza funeral prayers will take place by 2:30 PM at Kurfi in KATSINA state .

 

Dr. Amadu Kurfi, OFR, was born in 1931. He was a former chairman of the then Marketing Board, former Federal Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Defence, and the first person to acquire a BSc degree in the whole of Katsina State, at University College London in 1957.

 

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President Tinubu Sacks UNIZIK Vice-Chancellor, Registrar

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19 hours ago

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November 20, 2024

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The governing council of the Nnamdi Azikiwe University has been dissolved by President Bola Tinubu.

The president dissolved the council and approved the removal of the institution’s vice-chancellor Bernard Odoh and the university registrar, Rosemary Nwokike.

A statement by Bayo Onanuga, the special adviser to the president on information and strategy said the action by Tinubu follows allegations of procedural violations in the appointment of the Vice-Chancellor.

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He also said that the council led by Greg Ozumba Mbadiwe and including five other members—Hafiz Oladejo, Augustine Onyedebelu, Engr. Amioleran Osahon, and Rtd. Gen. Funsho Oyeneyin was accused of bypassing due process to appoint an unqualified candidate, prompting federal intervention.

Onanuga said, “The sacking of the governing council and officials followed reports that the council illegally appointed an unqualified vice-chancellor without following due process.

He added that following the controversial appointment, the Federal Government stepped in to address the rivalry between the university’s Senate and the governing council of the institution.

“The government expressed concern over the council’s apparent disregard for the university’s governing laws in its selection process”, Onanuga added.

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Boost for Nigeria’s Oil Production, As NNPC’s Utapate Crude Grade Hits Global Oil Market

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20 hours ago

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November 20, 2024

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Managing Director, NNPC E & P Limited (NEPL), Mr. Nicholas Foucart speaks at the official unveiling of the Utapate crude oil blend during the Utapate Crude Roadshow held on the sidelines of the 2024 Argus European Crude Conference in London, United Kingdom, on Wednesday.

 

 

In a major boost for Nigeria’s crude oil production, revenue generation and
economic growth efforts, the NNPC Ltd has officially unveiled its latest crude oil
grade, the Utapate crude oil blend, before the international crude oil market.

It would be recalled that in July, 2024, NNPC Ltd and its partner, the Sterling Oil
Exploration & Energy Production Company (SEEPCO) Ltd introduced the Utapate
crude oil blend, following the lifting of first cargo of 950,000 barrels which headed
for Spain.

During a ceremony held at the Argus European Crude Conference taking place in
London, United Kingdom, on Wednesday, the Managing Director, NNPC E & P
Limited (NEPL), Mr. Nicholas Foucart described the introduction of the Utapate
crude oil blend into the market as a significant milestone for Nigeria’s crude oil
export to the global energy market.

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“Since we started producing the Utapate Field in May 2024, we have rapidly
ramped up production to 40,000 barrels per day (bpd) with minimum downtime.
So far, we have exported five cargoes, largely to Spain and the East Coast of the
United States; while two more additional cargoes have been secured for November
and December 2024, representing a significant boost to Nigeria’s crude oil export
to the global market,” Foucart told a packed audience of European crude oil
marketers.
He added that since its introduction into the global market, the Utapate crude oil
blend has enjoyed a positive response from the international crude oil market, due
to its highly attractive qualities.
Foucart said the Oil Mining Lease (OML) 13, fully operated by NEPL and Natural
Oilfield Services Ltd (NOSL), a subsidiary of SEEPCO Ltd, boasts a huge reserves of
330million barrels of crude oil reserves, 45 million barrels of condensate and 3.5 tcf
of gas.
“We have a number of ongoing projects to increase our production from the
current 40,000bopd to 50,000bopd by January 2025 and 60,000bopd to
65,000bopd by June 2025. Essentially, we are targeting opportunities to increase
production to 80,000bopd by the end of 2025,” Foucart added.He said the Utapate crude oil terminal is sustainable, affordable and fully compliant
with the rigorous environmental regulations and sustainability principles especially
those aimed at reducing carbon emissions and other ecological effects.
Also speaking, the Managing Director of NNPC Trading Ltd (NTL), Mr. Lawal Sade
said the pricing structure of the Utapate crude oil blend is similar to that of
Amenam crude as it is a light sweet crude which is highly sought after by refiners
across the world due to its low sulphur content, efficient yield of high-value
products, API gravity and other similarities.
He said in bringing the new crude oil blend to the global market, NNPC Ltd wanted
to optimise value for both its producers and counterparties across the globe.
He added to ensure predictability and sustainability of supply, the NNPC Trading
intends to run a term contract on the Utapate crude oil blend cargoes, principally
targeting off-takers from the European and the US East Coast refineries.
Produced from the Utapate field in OML 13 in Akwa Ibom State in Nigeria, the
Utapate crude oil blend is similar to the Nembe crude oil grade. It has a low sulphur
content of 0.0655% and low carbon footprint due to flare gas elimination, fitting
perfectly into the required specification of major buyers in Europe.
The NNPC E&P Ltd and NOSL partnership is also committed to operating in a
manner that is safe, environmentally responsible, and beneficial to the local
communities.
The Utapate field development plan, executed between 2013-2019 and approved in
October, included converting wells and facilities from swamp/marine to land-
based operations.
The plan involved a multi-rig drilling campaign for 40 wells and the development
of significant infrastructure such as production facilities, storage tank, a subsea
pipeline and an offshore loading platform to facilitate crude oil evacuation and
loading.

The entry of the Utapate crude oil blend into the market is coming barely a year
after the NNPC Ltd announced the launch of Nembe crude oil, produced by the
NNPC/Aiteo operated Oil Mining Lease (OML) 29 Joint Venture (JV).

In a statement by Olufemi O Soneye Chief corporate communications officer NNPCL said the remarkable achievement signals the commitment of the NNPC Ltd to
increasing Nigeria’s crude oil production and growing its reserves through the
development of new assets.

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