Reason with me

WELCOME ADDRESS BY COMRADE ARINZECHUKWU NZELI, PRESIDENT-GENERAL, ATANI TOWN UNION(ATU), ON THE OCCASION OF THE HOMECOMING OF TWO OF IT'S ILLUSTRIOUS SONS

PROTOCOLS

I stand before you, my dear people of Atani Iduu na Oba, and our numerous guests, especially the SOLUTION GOVERNOR, His Excellency, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, on this occasion of the Civic Reception of two of our great sons, Rt. Hon. Somtochukwu Udeze, Speaker, Anambra State House of Assembly, and Sir Paul Nwosu, Hon. Commissioner for Information, Anambra State.

Without a doubt, some other communities have had the good fortune of having an elected Representative and/or a Commissioner at one time or another, but to have your sons occupy both exalted positions at the same time, in the same Administration - with the added portfolio of Speaker - is a rare feat which the good Lord has blessed Atani Community with.

Indeed, it is the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in our sights.

Umunne m na Umunna m, ndi Atani, beyond the feasting of today, what this event represents to me, as your humble PG, is the opportunity to remind, especially, our Youths, that there is value in hard work.

Our brothers, Nnabuenyi and Ojinnaka, did not just get to their present positions through luck. They worked very hard, through personal effort, and the strong indomitable spirit of Atani, to become the success stories that they are today.

Our Youths, male and female, must therefore seek to emulate them.

On their part, it is our expectation that they would use their positions to promote PEACE, HARMONY and DEVELOPMENT of our Community, and Ogbaru in general.

It is in this wise that we call on both of them to help with job and business opportunities for our people, as well as attract the much needed infrastructural development of Atani.

As headquarters of Ogbaru Local Government Area, there are many things that Atani lacks, such as constant electricity, pipe borne water, security, street lights, a benefitting Town Hall and internal feeder roads. It is our expectation that you will help us achieve some, if not all of these basic needs.

As we celebrate today, we remember many of our forebears, who led the way for the national and international recognition of Atani as a Community blessed with diverse talents.

For lack of time, let me pay tribute to just two of them: the late Highlife King, Stephen Osita Osadebe, and foremost Constitutional Lawyer, Prof. Benjamin Obiefuna Nwabueze, who left us only weeks ago.

The contributions of these heroes of our people shall never be in vain.

As I begin to round off, let me thank the Central Planning Committee, ably led by Casmir Izukanne, members of my executive, and the entire people of Atani for this wonderful opportunity to come together as one to celebrate.

Let the drums sound. Let the music play. And let us dance and merry to the glory of our blessed homeland, Atani Iduu na Oba!

Thank you.

Comrade Arinzechukwu Nzeli
President-General
Atani Town Union(ATU)

Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, I am honored to stand before you today as the President-General of Atani Town Union(ATU) on this special occasion of the homecoming of two of our illustrious sons, Rt. Hon. Somtochukwu Udeze, Speaker, Anambra State House of Assembly, and Sir Paul Nwosu, Hon. Commissioner for Information, Anambra State.

We are gathered here today to celebrate a rare feat - the simultaneous presence of our sons in high positions of authority, with Rt. Hon. Somtochukwu Udeze holding the esteemed position of Speaker. This is a testament to the great endowments of our community and the favor of the Almighty.

Beyond the joy of today's celebration, it is important that we recognize the value of hard work. Our honored sons did not achieve their current positions through luck alone; they worked diligently and persistently, embodying the indomitable spirit of Atani, to become the success stories they are today.

Therefore, I implore our youths to take inspiration from their achievements and strive for greatness in their own endeavors.

I also call upon our esteemed sons to utilize their influential positions to promote peace, harmony, and development in our community and Ogbaru as a whole. It is our expectation that they will facilitate job and business opportunities for our people as well as attract much-needed infrastructural development.

As the headquarters of Ogbaru Local Government Area, Atani lacks many basic amenities such as constant electricity, potable water, security, street lights, a suitable town hall, and proper internal feeder roads. We trust that our sons will work towards fulfilling some, if not all, of these pressing needs.

Today's celebration is also an opportunity for us to remember and honor our forebears who paved the way for Atani's recognition on a national and international level. I pay tribute to the late Highlife King, Stephen Osita Osadebe, and the esteemed Constitutional Lawyer, Prof. Benjamin Obiefuna Nwabueze, who recently passed away. Their contributions to our community will forever be remembered.

In conclusion, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to the Central Planning Committee, led by Casmir Izukanne, as well as my fellow executives and the entire community of Atani for organizing this wonderful event. Let us revel in the spirit of unity and joy, celebrating our blessed homeland, Atani Iduu na Oba.

Thank you all.

Comrade Arinzechukwu Nzeli
President-General
Atani Town Union(ATU)

SouthEast
Operatives arrest three drug suspects, as community
takes to fe**sh in Anambra raid
the help of the gods and ancestors of the
land to restore peace, as well as fight
against those working against the peace
-
ful coexistence and development of the
area.
The procession of the Puritans, native
doctors and traditional worshippers, who
were adorned with red, and white clothes
and symbols of the deity of the community, as well as items of sacrifice, also
marched along and around mapped areas
and locations, supervised by the Palace
Administrator of the monarch (Igwe) of
the community, His Royal Highness Augustine Ngonadi, Daniel Nwabueze.
By Cajetan Mmuta, Awka
S
ecurity operatives have arrested
three suspects, including a 37-yearold nursing mother whose trade as
an illicit drug courier has continued to
fuel terrorism and other high-level criminal activities in Atani, the headquarters
of crime-ridden Ogbaru local government area of Anambra State.
This is as native doctors and traditional
worshippers on Tuesday embarked on
a spiritual purification procession along
major routes and junctions, pouring libations and chanting incantations to seek
A
n Independent National Electoral
Commission (INEC) staff mem
-
ber, Emmanuel Damis, on Tues
-
day, appeared before the Governorship
Election Petition Tribunal in Enugu as
a subpoenaed witness and tendered
Governor Peter Mbah’s qualifications.
Damis, the petitioner’s witness three,
works at the legal drafting and clear
-
ance department at the Independent
National Electoral Commission (INEC)
headquarters, in Abuja.
The tribunal is hearing the petition
filed by Labour Party (LP)’s Chijioke
Edeoga against Mbah of the Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP).
Edeoga is praying the tribunal disqualifies Mba over an alleged forgery of the
National Youth Service Corps (NYSC)
certificate.
When the subpoenaed witness came into
the witness box to tender the documents
on the evidence, the counsels to the second and third respondents objected to
the tendering of documents and refused
the counsel to the petitioner, Eyitayo
Fatogun, to re-examine the witness.
The INEC staff then tendered Mbah’s
certificates, which he submitted along
-
side his governorship nomination form.
According to the witness, “The documents with me are Form EC9 and all
the attachments, for the PDP governor
-
ship candidate, Enugu State.”
The LP counsel applied to tender the
documents as exhibits and were admitted by the tribunal as evidence.
However, the petitioners’ counsel, Fatogun, equally cited a plethora of cases
that he said justified the evidence of the
subpoenaed witness.
Abia declares newly-built specialist hospital unusable
Enugu: INEC tenders
Mbah’s certificates as
Edeoga’s name goes
missing from register
CP talks tough, as command neutralises two criminals, seize arms in Anambra
T
he Abia State government has
declared the newly-constructed
and inaugurated Abia Multi-Specialist Hospital in Aba unfit for human
use following structural defects, poor
ventilation, and missing or old, unfitted equipment.
State Commissioner for Health, Ngozi
Okoronkwo, made this known yesterday while addressing newsmen during
an inspection of hospitals in the commercial capital, Aba.
Okoronkwo said the building, which
showed structural defects, has unfitted equipment, no proper ventilation and running water, and requires
structural assessment to ascertain its
capability to function as a hospital.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)
reports that the former Governor
Okezie Ikpeazu’s administration in
the state had demolished the old Aba
General Hospital built in 1957 and
replaced it with Abia Multi-Specialist
Hospital.
Ikpeazu inaugurated the hospital on
May 27 before he exited office.
The commissioner said “The hospital
is bad; the structure and the design
approach were poorly done.
“The equipment is scattered all over
the place and we cannot ascertain if
they are still working or not because
there is no power supply.
“It is really a challenge. The idea of
The arrest of the suspects, some of
whose gang members are currently on
the run, followed raids on their hideouts
by the security operatives working in
collaboration with members of the Atani
local vigilante group coordinated and led
by the president-general of the riverine
community, Arinze Nzelu.
During the over three-hours raid, a large
carte of illicit drugs, including Indian
H**p, were discovered at their operational bases, shrines, residences, and
farm in the area.
The arrested suspects include 32-yearold Onyema Uzoka, Emnbuel Nsofor (an
indigene of Umunankwo) and 37-year-old
mother of four, Mrs. Ngozi Alum, whose
husband, Okwudili, is currently on the
run over his deals in hard drugs and alleged illegal sand mining and extortion
of revenue.
All the suspects confessed to the crime,
which they claim was to eke out their living due to hardship and joblessness.
Recall that the entire 15 villages of Ogbaru local government area, particularly,
the six villages of Atani, have been described as the hotbed of crises which led
to the burning of Atani Divisional Police
Station, violent killings of some persons,
r**e, armed robbery, as well as disruption of social and economic activities in
the town.
coming here is to look at the place to
see if it is ready for use, but from my
assessment, it will take a while.
Okoronkwo lamented the leaking and
flooding of rooms in the hospital,
moldy walls, lack of provision for air
conditioners or fans, and complicated
access within the hospital which, she
said, is dangerous.
She said that until she sees the contract papers that resulted in the poor
job, she could not determine if the
government would sustain the contract or terminate it.
The commissioner added that the government would meet with the contractors to know if their work meets the
current government’s standard or not.
By Cajetan Mmuta, Awka
A
nambra State Commissioner of
Police (CP), Aderemi Adeoye, has
read the riot act to criminals terrorising residents of the state, warning
them to turn a new leaf or be ready to
face the consequences of their actions.
Adeoye stated this during his maiden
press conference in Awka, the state capital.
He warned that the command does not
believe in the erroneous tradition of ask
-
ing criminals and their collaborators to
relocate to other states or areas because
the command has the capacity to deal
with troublemakers.
He disclosed that operatives of the command had on Tuesday night gunned
down two kidnappers after the hoodlums
engaged policemen at a checkpoint in a
hot exchange of gun battle along UgaEzinifie road.
The latest came barely four days after
Adeoye resumed duty in the state.
Apart from neutralising the two suspect
-
ed kidnappers, one vehicle, heavy-calibre
arms and ammunition, were also recov
-
ered in the process.
Speaking while parading the neutralised
suspects and arms, Adeiye said that under his watch there shall be zero tolerance for violent crimes, harassment and
corruption by officers of the command.
Eight aid workers of the United States
of America (USA) Embassy, including
six policemen escorting the team were
recently killed by gunmen along the Oso
-
mala-Umunankwo road in the Ogbaru lo
-
cal government area.
Findings show that the activities of the
criminal elements and their collaborators have depleted the revenue fortunes
of the local council and forced prospective investors to flee the area.
It was also gathered that due to the
bloody and violent attacks by the hoodlums on their targets, the usual busy
sand excavating sites had dropped from
20 to only five pits while peace is on
flight among the res