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The abysmal inadequacy of public primary school teachers in Ngor okpala local government area should be a source of concern to all who holds the education of their wards close to the heart. A situation whereby a single teacher is charged with the responsibility of handling three classes from Monday to Friday could be best described as tedious, energy sapping and uninspiring.

Truly, the above situation is what most public primary school teachers are going through in Ngor Okpala, particularly in Umuodagu Ntu primary school. This scenario according to sources who wouldn’t want their names mentioned in print most times make it difficult for some teachers to prepare adequate lesion notes that will take care of the multi-classes they have to teach in a day.

As a result of this, some teachers now bring the various classes together to teacher. But the question on the lips of many is: When will this development come to an end? What is the Imo State government doing to bring this ugly trend to its logical end in order to save the educational future of pupils in the public primary school
 
I recall quite vividly at the time I attended primary school, each class; say primary one, has a teacher that teaches the class the various subjects that is assigned to him or her on that day. With what is currently happening in some public primary schools in the council area, the one teacher one class that was the hallmark of teaching in early 80’s is now being greatly eroded.

The governor Rochas Okorocha government needs to expedite urgent action on this. This he can start doing by carrying out massive recruitment of qualified teachers through the appropriate body that sees to the recruitment of teachers that will fill in these obvious vacancies of shortage of teachers in public primary schools. If this is done, the great burden and pain teachers go through in preparing their lesion notes, delivering their lesion in the classroom and marking of take-home-work, test and examination answer scripts will be greatly reduced.

Furthermore, in the event of recruitment and deployment of teachers to public primary schools not only in Ngor/Okpala or Umuodagu Ntu but also in all the local government areas that makes up Imo State, concerted effort should be made or geared towards ensuring that those posted in rural areas are monitored to forestall them from effecting their posting back to the capital city (Owerri metropolis).

It is only when this is done will the underhand dealing that characterize the effecting of one’s posting from rural public primary schools back to urban schools will be nipped in the bud.

About Post Author

Anthony-Claret Ifeanyi Onwutalobi

Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.

ionyclaret@gmail.com

https://www.codewit.com

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•Monarch offers to broker peace in Rivers’ crisis

The Presidency Monday said Nigerians who continue to play politics with the issue of 2015 election were distracting President Goodluck Jonathan from his focus on the provision of dividends of democracy to the country.

The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr Reuben Abati, stated this Monday as a guest on a Raypower (radio) talk programme ‘Factfile’.

In an unrelated development, a Rivers State monarch, Her Royal Majesty Queen Akasoba Duke-Abiola, the Akasoba of Kalabari, has set machinery in motion to resolve the state’s political crisis.

According to Abati, the president is not dissipating his energy on the campaign for 2015 and has equally not stated whether or not he will seek re-election, pointing out that: “his position has been consistent and straight forward, and that the president has been saying ‘look let's focus on governance’.”

He said the belief of his principal was that if Nigerians have given him mandate “to deliver and move the country forward. That is what we want to focus on. And that was the statement about the mid-term report that was publicly presented.”

The president’s aide further said there was evidence that in two years the president had accomplished a lot. “So we must be able to make a distinction between politicking, the fact and reality. President Jonathan stands on the side of truth, fact and reality. So he wants to be engaged at the level of his performance,” Abati stressed.

The presidency, the aide said, would remain focus and continue to play his role as president and commander in chief of the armed forces and the premier political leader in the country.

Meanwhile, Akasoba, who is also the Chair of  Akasoba Centre for Peace and Conflict Resolution (ACPCR), has invited the president, Governor Rotimi Amaechi, some prominent stakeholders within the country and even global figures to a meeting at the ACPCR Centre, Kula, Ekulama, in the state (near the Atlantic ocean) on August 3.

A statement issued by the Secretary of the ACPCR, Dr. Jen Clarence, indicated that those invited to the parley are:  ex-Nigerian Head of State, Dr. Yakubu Gowon, first President of Zambia Dr. Kenneth Kaunda, and former United Nations’ Secretary General Dr. Boutrous Boutrous Ghali.

Others are the Emir of Zazzau, His Eminence Alhaji Shehu Idris, the Alaafin of Oyo, His Royal Majesty Oba Lamidi Adeyemi , Air Marshal Ernest Adeleye, former Governor of old Rivers State, Mr. Mofia Akobo, former Minister of Petroleum Resources and all traditional rulers of the state.

Clarence said the peace meeting became necessary "in view of the seemingly intractable socio-political problems presently besieging our beloved state, and taking into consideration the need for reason and moderation at these trying times of our nascent democracy."

About Post Author

Anthony-Claret Ifeanyi Onwutalobi

Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.

ionyclaret@gmail.com

https://www.codewit.com

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As part of efforts to protect its customers from cyber-crime and the activities of fraudsters, the United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA)  Monday launched its Security Operation Centre.

The bank said the security centre that was established at its head office in Lagos, would enable it monitor all electronic banking activities in Nigeria and the 18 African countries where it has subsidiaries.
The facility would also monitor the state of anti-virus of the bank’s systems in order to ensure effectiveness of their operations.

Speaking during the launch of the facility in Lagos, the Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, UBA, Mr. Philips Oduoza, said the facility gave the bank the ability to see real-time live transactions and be able to block attacks.

The UBA boss said: “When you are sleeping at night and you are thinking of open channels, you don’t sleep very well. We need to thank the Central Bank Governor for helping us migrate transactions from banking halls to electronic platforms.

“That is what had led to this because when you have electronic channels, you have a whole lot of transactions and you will find out that fraud will continue to be there and people are going to continue to make attempts. Gradually, you are going to see the fraud shifting from physical to electronic, which is where the battle is.”

Uduoza, who argued that cyber-attack would be the next wave of challenge that banks would have to face, however assured customers that the board and management of the bank takes security as a top priority item and had so much invested on that.

“Any serious organisation that does not focus on security is actually going to be a thing of regret for them. Therefore, what we did was to partner with a world class institution in order to develop this security operation centre that has capability of protecting us in Nigeria and 18 other African countries where we operate and you can see the transactions on real-time.

“In fact, if you recall, recently we put up an advert where we told people not disclose their particulars to anybody at all. Indeed, UBA will never ask you for your password and no staff of UBA can do that. If anybody is requesting for your password, just ignore the person. That was what we were trying to communicate when we put out the adverts recently,” he added.

Earlier, in his presentation, the Group Head, IT Risk Management, UBA, Mr. Sam Okenye, who said the centre would be open 24 hours every day, listed insider and outsider collaboration, cyber-crime ring infiltrate organisations, theft of intellectual property, theft of confidential information, phishing attack, identity theft, card fraud,  internet banking fraud, amongst others, as security threats in the industry.

About Post Author

Anthony-Claret Ifeanyi Onwutalobi

Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.

ionyclaret@gmail.com

https://www.codewit.com

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The Delta state Commissioner for Transport, Hon. Benson Rolland Igbakpa has reaffirmed the state government’s commitment to its policies to provide cheap and affordable transportation for Deltans, with overall infrastructure development to enhance the movement of goods and people.
 
Igbakpa, who said this during the ongoing mid-term reports by members of the Delta state executive council in Asaba also noted that the state government has also continued to increase the number of Marcopolo Buses, TATA Buses, intra-city buses, state of the art taxis for urban taxi scheme and tricycles (Keke) to boost the existing dynamic Mass Transit Programme in the state.
 
According to the Delta Transport Commissioner, the state government “In pursuance of the State Government’s Policy for the provision of cheap and affordable transportation for Deltans, the State Government in 2008 fiscal year launched the State Urban Taxi scheme with 170 Taxis and 100 Toyota Hiace Buses.”
 
Speaking further Igbakpa affirmed that “In continuation of the programme, the State Government within the 2009 – 2013 fiscal years purchased an additional 605 Units of 18 Seater Toyota Hiace Buses for the State Urban Transportation Programme. 40 Units of these Buses were allocated to the school shuttle Bus scheme to ease the transportation problems currently experienced by primary and secondary school children who leave their homes to and from their school every day.”
 
Igbakpa noted that these measures were in line with the promise of Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta state to provide 1,000 buses for the state urban and rural transport service, adding that the state government has so far provide 705 buses which amounts to 70.05 percent of his pledge to Deltans, even as he noted that the Uduaghan-led administration was on course to fulfill the remaining 20.95 percent to complete the number by the end of his administration.
 
Expanding further on his mid-term score card, Commissioner Igbakpa said “In view of the Delta State Government intention of replacing commercial motorcycles commonly known as Okada, the State Government within 2011 – 2013 awarded contracts for the procurement of a total of 3,073 Units of Tricycles. A total of 2550 units Tricycles have been delivered while the State is expecting the delivery of the balance 523 Tricycles. The provision of these Tricycles is with a view of achieving optimal performance and reduction of accidents as well as other losses.”
 
In the area of riverine transportation, the Transport Commissioner agreed that this was very central to the three-point agenda of the state government and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in the state.
 
Igbakpa said “In order to realize the vision for water transport which involves transforming Delta State to a State with developed water transport system that is safe, secure, effective, efficient, and environmentally sustainable for moving people and goods across the waterways, the State embarked on the several riverine infrastructure projects including the construction and completion of concrete landing jetties and two waiting sheds in nearly all the riverine communities in the state, to facilitate loading and off loading of freight as well as to be used as parks for passengers, while the waiting sheds will serve the purpose of shielding travelers from rain and sun.”
 
Igbakpa further affirmed that “In the bid of the State Government to fully enhance the academic and professional potentials of the riverine dwellers in line with the Human Capital Development goals of the Administration, the School of Marine Technology, Burutu (SMT) was established to train middle level manpower for the Oil and Gas Industries,” adding that “the school matriculated its first students in April, 2011 and offers courses leading to the OND/HND in Marine Technology, Engineering, Industrial Safety and Environmental Management Technology, Fisheries Technology and Business Administration.”
 
Highlighting further on the attributes of the School of Marine Technology, Igbakpa said that some of the options offered include Management Technology, Marine Engineering, Oil Administration and Gas, Ship and Boat Building, Mechanical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Computer Engineering, Seamanship, Oceanography Estate Management, Survey and Geo-Information and Marine Transport, adding that the school is presently in its third academic session and has graduated its first set of students with OND certificates.
 
According to Igbakpa, “In order to provide infrastructure to cope with the speedy expansion of the school, the State Government approved the Construction of Workshop/Lecture Block at the permanent site of the school. It is worthy of note that construction work is currently on-going on the project. This complex when completed will provide facilities for all the workshops/laboratories and lecture halls for students. Other structures to be put in place at the permanent site include Student Hostels, Staff Quarters, Administrative Block and Refectory Buildings.”
 
Igbakpa also disclosed that the Directorate has embarked on several life saving measures with the procurement of four Motorized Extricating Equipments for victims rescue operations, which were distributed to the three Senatorial Districts at Warri, Ughelli and Agbor as well as the procurement of additional 2No. Heavy Duty (90 ton) Tow trucks this year (2013) for use on heavy-quick response to accident duty vehicles on township roads and highways.  
 
Some of the other highlights of the Directorate of Transport as contained in the mid-term report include the construction of Bus Shelter and Lay-Bys across the state, provision of Traffic Control Devices in the areas of road safety measures through continuous survey of locations and surveillance/analysis of transport operations, fabrication and installation of Regulatory/Traffic Signs at intersections or along the Township roads and Highways to guide and warn motorists, lane marking and Traffic Census/ Study amongst others.
 
The Commissioner also added that the Directorate designed and completed the Fabrication and Installation of Advanced Direction Guide Signs at intersections or Highways to give motorists guided directions to neighboring Towns /Communities, as well as the installation of Led Solar Powered Traffic Light to control traffic effectively, giving rise to free flow of traffic and to avoid accidents in Warri, Delta State.
 
Another major mid-term achievement of the Directorate of Transport was the codification of commercial vehicles, necessitated by the incessant use of Commercial Vehicles of different categories for nefarious activities and the need to create a data base to aid the officials of the Directorate and the Security Agencies to bring the activities of the Commercial Vehicle operators under check.
 
Igbakpa noted that the directorate achieved tremendous success in this area as a summary of coded commercial vehicles from January, 2013 to July, 2013 revealed a total of 10,923 vehicles already coded, even as he praised delta motorists for their full compliance and warned those motorists yet to subject their vehicles for coding to do so as soon as possible.    
 
Ministry of Information
Asaba

About Post Author

Anthony-Claret Ifeanyi Onwutalobi

Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.

ionyclaret@gmail.com

https://www.codewit.com

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