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The Bayelsa State police command yesterday announced the killing of a 200- level student of petro-chemical engineering of Niger Delta University, Amasoma, Mr. Tariebi Tyger, during a forceful initiation exercise by some unidentified cult group…
According to the police, the 21 years old undergraduate was wooed by the cultists but he turned them down. He was later forcefully taken from his hostel and an initiation exercise done. The police public relations officer, Mr. Fidelis Odunna, told Edification sources that though the police had arrested persons suspected to have taken part in the murder, it gathered that the victim passed out during the heavy beating meted out during the initiation and died.
“They forcefully took the boy from his hostel to initiate him into a cult and in the process, the boy passed out. They threw his corpse into the river. We are going to arrest them very soon”, he said. Edification info gathered that the deceased was the son of a police officer in the state. The grandfather of the deceased, Mr. Lucky Daniel, told our correspondent in Yenagoa that Tyger was abducted from his hostel at Amasoma in Southern Ijaw local government area by some suspected cultists.
He said Tyger was bundled to a house in Otuan where he was murdered by the cultists who later threw his corpse into the river. “The cult group gruesomely murdered him, tied his legs with block sinkers and threw it into the river”, he said. Tyger's parents suspected a foul play few days after he left them in Yenagoa on December 10 to resume his studies in the university.
All effort made by his parents to reach the 21 years old undergraduate on his telephone proved abortive forcing them to begin a search operation. His parents became worried and swung into action to locate him in his hostel accommodation.
To their chagrin and utmost disappointment, they observed that the door of his room was broken but he was nowhere to be found. In their frantic efforts to locate their missing son, the parents contacted his erstwhile room mate who was his closest associate at the time.
He joined the parents as a sympathizer in the search, he said. Daniel who identified himself as the maternal grandfather of the deceased said the matter was later reported to the police.
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.
Terra Synergy Limited, Information Communication and Technology, ICT, company has entered into a strategic partnership with a French firm, Somfy International to develop the Nigeria’s building automation industry.
Somfy is a global manufacturer of specialised motors and control systems for retractable awnings, rolling shutters, interior shades, blinds, projection screens and other lift-up applications for the home.
Speaking at a one-day interactive seminar for stakeholders in the building industry in Lagos, Mr. Olanrewaju Gboney, Director/Chief Executive Officer, Terra Synergy Limited, said the company is striving to ensure that Somfy brings its expertise to the country, with the setting up of a manufacturing base in Nigeria.
He said, “Our long term goal is to see Somfy increase its presence in Nigeria, by setting up a manufacturing plant in Nigeria.
“Our goal is also not just to deliver home and office automation products, but also the delivery of high quality service to professionals.”
He said the partnership is borne out of the high quality products and services delivered by Somfy in the area of home and building automation.
He maintained that Terra Synergy was selected by Somfy due to its knowledge of the Nigerian market and based on similar values shared by both companies.
He said, “Terra Synergy has been in the market of automation of controls of electrical and mechanical systems. We know the market; we have a thing for perfection.
“Somfy, coming to Nigeria, looked for a company that will work with them based on their values and to actually deliver these values to the customers and end users of their products. We believe this partnership is a sign of better things to come.”
Continuing, he said, “We have been with Somfy for like three years now. We have used windows automation products from other manufacturers over the years, but Somfy stands out. We normally have challenges with others, but Somfy have given our clients rest of mind. They have five years warranty and they have products which are far higher in quality.”
Also speaking, Mr. Nadim Eid, Regional Business developer, Emerging Countries, Somfy, said the company has a tradition of quality craftsmanship and a clear vision of the future.
He stated that Somfy has developed into the world leader in motors and control systems for the automatic movement of products around the home and workplace.
He said, “From a distribution perspective, Somfy Systems has earned a reputation for being the most professional, responsive and service-oriented company in the industry. It’s no surprise that Somfy Systems has a broad base of highly qualified customers throughout North America who integrate Somfy motors and controls into their product lines to provide the consumer with the best possible solution for shading, security, comfort and convenience.
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.
In a bid to save the Ijaw language from extinction, Bayelsa State Government has awarded scholarships to 110 teachers to study Ijaw at the state Niger Delta University, NDU.
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, UNESCO, had listed the Ijaw language as one of the endangered languages in the country.
Speaking during the presentation, which was part of Federal Government’s programme of activities to mark the International Mother Language Day in Yenagoa, Governor Seriake Dickson, said the scholarships were to develope the Ijaw language for sustainable cultural development.
Represented by Secretary to the State Government, Prof Edmund Allison-Oguru, the governor urged the Federal Ministry of Education to “include the teaching of Ijaw language in its national curriculum just as it had been done for other languages.”
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.
THE Enugu State University of Science and Technology, Friday, announced the expulsion of 107 students who are at various stages of their study in the University for alleged certificate forgery.
The 107 students who gained Direct Entry admission were found to have forged the OND certificates they presented to the University during their admission.
The Vice Chancellor of ESUT, Prof. Cyprian Onyeji, who disclosed this during the 32nd Matriculation Ceremony of the University held at Agbani, stated that the Senate of the University approved the expulsion of the affected students at its 238thRegular meeting held recently.
Warning the fresh students to steer clear of any form of examination malpractice, Professor Onyeji also recalled that in the last one year, the University Senate had applied varied degrees of sanctions to up to 150 students for their involvements in examination malpractice.
The Vice Chancellor disclosed that ESUT is currently capturing biometric data of all her students to stem the incidence of impersonation during examinations, stressing that beginning from the new academic session, every student would be required to undergo biometric identification in the examination halls.
Onyeji also announced that the University scholarships await students who make Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of 4.50 and said the measure was to encourage academic excellence among the students.
A total of 4, 200 fresh students were admitted into various programmes of the university in the current session.
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.
President Goodluck Jonathan has reversed the change of name of the University of Lagos which he renamed Moshood Abiola University in a broadcast to mark the 2012 Democracy Day.
Chairman, Governing Council of University of Lagos, Professor Jerry Gana disclosed this yesterday in Abuja during his inauguration alongside three others by the Minister of Education, Professor Ruqayyatu Rufai. The name change had been the subject of litigation and protests from students and alumni of the institution while a court recently ruled that the change was illegal.
Gana who hailed President Jonathan for retaining the name of the institution. said the president had upheld the Constitution by reversing the change of name of the university.
“This is a pointer to the fact that the current administration is committed to entrenching democracy and justice in the country.’’
Gana, who was responding on behalf of the four councils, said they would ensure that the universities’ communities settled down in peace.
“I assure you that we will do our best to be fair, just and honourable in the discharge of our duties.” He also promised effective leadership with integrity, honour and justice.
Gana said members would work according to the rules governing the institutions.
He thanked Jonathan for the appointments and said they would put in their best as Nigerians deserved nothing less.
The other governing councils inaugurated by the Minister of Education, Prof. Ruqayyatu Rufa’I, were for the University of Benin, ObafemiAwolowoUniversity, Ile-Ife and Michael Opara University of Agriculture, Umudike.
Their Chairmen are Sen. Bob Dickson, Prof. Rowland Ndoma-Egba and Prof. Anya O.Anya respectively.
The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Education, Sen. Uche Chukwumerijie said the lawmakers’ job had been made easier by the appointments.
Chukwumerijie said the committee’s oversight visits to the institutions had identified lack of leadership by the absence of governing councils and the quality of members of the boards as challenges facing the institutions.
He said the Federal Government had by the appointments taken care of the issues.
“There are councils for those that did not have and the members who have been appointed are men and women of proven integrity and experience in academics.’’
The lawmaker described the appointees as round pegs in round holes and the right captains in the ship.
Chukwumerijie charged the councils to immediately tackle falling standards of education, corruption, cultism and many ills that had continued to affect the development of education.
The Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission, Prof. Julius Okojie, said no university could function effectively without a governing council.
Okojie urged government to consider training and retreat for members to enable them to keep abreast of global best practices in university administration.
He also advocated financial autonomy for universities in the country.
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.
Ten schools participating in nine zonal centres have qualified for the quarter finals of the 2013 All Nigeria Secondary Schools Football Championship tagged NNPC/Shell Cup which comes up March 1 and 2, 2013.
National Coordinator of the championship, SholaAkinwale who disclosed this in Lagos, said that all the zonal centres produced one qualifier except Katsina which produced two because five teams were group in the centre.
Interestingly too, no former champion qualified for the quarter final with Oyo, Edo, Anambra, Ekiti, Enugu, Bauchi, Borno, Kano, Sokoto and the Federal Capital Territory, FCT producing teams for the knock out stage.
The qualifying schools are Government College, Ibadan, Hensen Demonstration School, Benin City, Akunne Oniah Memorial Secondary School, Onitsha, Purple Krown College, Enugu and Government Secondary School, Bauchi.
Others are Government College, Maiduguri, Government Secondary School, Wuse in the FCT, Government Arabic College, Gwale, Kano State and Sani Dingyadi Secondary School, Sokoto.
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.
With rising rate of youth unemployment in Nigeria, a group, Afterschool Graduate Development Centre (AGDC), has joined forces to tackle the scourge of unemployment in the country by advocating entrepreneurial skills and hard work among undergraduates.
The group organised a one day awareness programme at the Akin Deko Main Auditorium, University of Benin, (UNIBEN) last week, where experts gathered to train undergraduates and fresh graduates on how to secure and sustain jobs.
They identified the lack of synergy between course contents taught in schools and what is obtainable in the labour market in Nigeria, and advocated for a new template for Nigeria’s educational system which would meet the requirements in the labour market.
Attended by hundreds of students and graduates across Edo State, the participants were taught ésumé packaging and skills in tackling job interviews.
Earlier, the Internship Officer, AGDC, Mr. Godbless Otubure said the programme was to enable them bring to Edo State, solution to challenges associated with unemployment in the country through what they have researched over time.
“AGDC is trying to solve that problem of youth unemployment and human capital development by increasing the human competitive index of the average Nigerian graduate to get the kind of job he or she wants.
“People can’t just come out of the varsity and they are looking for job, when they come out of school, they should also think of creating jobs.”
In his keynote address, Mr. Olakunle Soriyan, a public analyst and a trainer, urged participants to update and develop themselves personally especially in entrepreneurial skills so as to fit into the current world demand or prepare them for their future jobs.
“What determines your future in life are people you meet, event, place and God, your creator. How you channel your behaviour around these things determine how you grow and become successful.”
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.
Some intending National Youth Service Corps members for batch ‘A’ 2013, have accused officials of Joint Admission and Matriculation Board, JAMB, of extortion before the they could be issued admission letter.
The alleged extortion is said to be rampant in Enugu and Owerri offices of JAMB. The admission letter is requested by various school managements as evidence to prove to NYSC that the intending corps members wrote the exam.
This came as the board’s office in Lagos said it did not have the technical capacity to attend to the prospective corps members.
It would be recalled that the NYSC in collaboration with JAMB issued a new directive that graduates preparing for NYSC must provide their Unified Matriculation Tertiary Examination registration numbers before they are mobilized.
The officials were accused of demanding between N3,000 and N5,000 per person before attending to them.
A graduate of Federal University of Technology, FUTO, who was among several intending corps members who besieged Lagos office, told Vanguard on condition of anonymity that since Lagos office said it had no capacity to issue the letter, his last option would be to go to Owerri where officials of JAMB were demanding N5,000 for the letter.
Another graduate of Institute of Management and Technology, IMT, Enugu, claimed he had to come to Lagos office after a relation that volunteered to get the letter from JAMB’s office, Enugu, called to inform him that they were demanding between N3,000 to N4,000 before the letter could be released.
Attempts to reach JAMB Registrar, Prof Dibu Ojerinde proved abortive as there was no response to several calls and text messages.
Vanguard gathered that the 2013 batch ‘A’ list was released in various schools across the country last Friday with many of the graduates falling under NYSC error list which was attributed to the inability of JAMB to rectify the candidates’ registration numbers. For instance, at the University of Lagos, UNILAG, about 100 persons fell into the error list.
At IMT, Enugu, only 45 persons were mobilised while 1,290 persons fell under the error list. Similarly, at FUTO, less than 20 per cent of those shortlisted were mobilized while about 80 per cent fell in the error list.
A check by Vanguard in the Lagos office of JAMB revealed that the many prospective corps members besieged the premises yesterday to get their JAMB admission letter only to be told that the Lagos office was not in a position to handle such.
One of the receptionists, (names withheld), said the Lagos office could not handle such inquiry as it had no facility equipped with students’ data.
She directed all prospective corps members to a directive pasted on the receptionist’s office which read that all those who wrote UMTE exam before 2008 should go to Abuja for their admission.
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.
Microsoft, the global software giant has announced plans to commit about N12 billion to the African market as part of its initiative to help improve the continent’s global competitiveness.
The plan was announced at the launch of the Microsoft 4Africa initiative Tuesday in Lagos. The event also follows the introduction of Huawei low-cost Windows Phone 8 device in seven African markets including Nigeria .
The phone will initially be available in Angola, Egypt, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria and South Africa later this month.
The low-cost Windows Phone 8 device powered by Microsoft is expected to drive smartphone penetration on the continent.
The launch forms part of Microsoft’s wider 4Afrika initiative, a new effort through which the company will actively engage in Africa’s economic development to improve its global competitiveness.
As a first critical step toward increasing the adoption of smart devices, Microsoft and Huawei introduced the Huawei 4Afrika , a full functionality Windows Phone 8 which will come pre-loaded with select applications designed for Africa.
The Huawei 4Afrika phone, which is the first in what will be a series of smart devices designed “4Afrika,” will be targeted toward university students, developers and first-time smart phone users to ensure they have affordable access to best-in-class technology to enable them to connect, collaborate, and access markets and opportunities online.
By 2016, the Microsoft 4Afrika Initiative plans to help place tens of millions of smart devices in the hands of African youth, bring 1 million African small and medium enterprises (SMEs) online, up-skill 100,000 members of Africa’s existing workforce, and help an additional 100,000 recent graduates develop skills for employability, 75 percent of which Microsoft will help place in jobs.
Speaking to IT Journalists during the introduction of the initiative, Onyeje, General Manager, Microsoft Nigeria said with optimism that the capacity building project would help youths to be globally competitive.
“It is a model for job creation. It is all about making Africa globally competitive. We want to create skills. We want to create innovation.
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.
Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB has warned students who are applying for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, UTME, slated for April 27, 2013 to register only at cybercafes accredited by the board.
JAMB Executive Registrar, Professor Dibu Ojerinde who gave this warning at a media briefing in Lagos disclosed that between November last year and January 2013, one million and one hundred students have registered for the examination.
He said out of this number, only 4,000 candidates have registered for the Computer-Based Test, CBT, thereby dismissing insinuations that students could not register online because of conjectures.
According to him, “students should only register at cybercafes that are accredited by JAMB. We did this because of the cheating tendency of some of these cybercafe operators who collect money from students and never register them appropriately, especially those who drop their data with them and go home to collect confirmation slips the next day. If you go to any cybercafe for registration, please ask if the cybercafe is accredited by JAMB. If they say yes, ask them their code. Students who have problems with their registration may be because the cybercafes they patronised are not accredited by JAMB because if they do not have our code, they can’t access our website.
“Secondly, it depends on the band the cybercafes are using. If a cybercafe is using a band with other people, it may experience difficulty in accessing some websites. That is why such cybercafe’s speed increases at night when their narrow band is decongested. Cybercafes are part of our problems as they have in time past given female name to male and also misspelled people’s names. However, JAMB band width expands on demand as we have catered for this.”
The registrar disclosed that while those who registered for paper-pencil test will sit for their examinations on 27th April, those who registered for computer-based test will have theirs on 23rd, 24th and 25th adding “If any student does not sit for the examination in any of these days, he will have himself to blame.”
He hinted that some students who do not register on time might be forced to take their examinations through CBT when all centres for PPT are occupied, noting, “Among the one million and one hundred candidates that have registered so far, about 999,000 have registered for PPT, while the rest registered for CBT.”
He said, the provision JAMB made for CBT this year is 150,000 stressing that by the time those spaces are exhausted, other candidates will be forced to go for PPT and by time we exhaust the spaces in PPT, others will be forced to go for CBT.
Ojerinde who pointed out that a total of 77 centres have been secured for the examinations, disclosed that these are higher institutions that have the facilities for the UTME Computer-Based Test.
For the PPT, he said; “It is dual. We will give you the question on the screen and you answer it on the paper and the paper-pencil test which is the traditional one
that in the developed world, some students snap questions on the screen, but a device has been employed to counter this. We are using the principle of Item Response Theory (IRT). The IRT guards against guessing tendencies. When two students sit for chemistry, question one of candidate ‘A’ is not the same question one for candidate ‘B’. In a centre where we have 350 candidates, we shall not have less than five invigilators mostly from our office.”
In case of electricity failure, Ojerinde maintained that Uninterrupted Power Supply, generators and back-ups have been put in place saying that within three and half hours of the examinations, it is not likely that all of the plan ‘ B’ will fail.
The professor who said that the quest to bring back the reading culture of our youths, spurred him to introduce two compulsory novels to be read by UTME candidates, insisting that the two novels (Successor and the Potters Wheel) introduced last year, is a must for every candidate this April examination irrespective of their disciplines, reiterating that 20 questions will be drawn from the novels.
Asked why questions were not set from the novels last JAMB, he explained that there was a mix up somewhere along the line that made JAMB postpone it to the April examinations.
His words; “Some people argued that the people in the village will not be able to do CBT saying that they have not used a computer before. But I said to myself that if they can use the handset, they can also do the computer-based test. If they can send text messages via handset, they can use the CBT. The earlier they start getting used to it as they cannot escape it in their post-UTME, the better.
“During the examinations, we give ten minutes to each student to read through the piece of information before attempting the questions. Whether we like it or not, the world is changing, and technology is the answer. Students are advised to visit JAMBwebsite;www.jamb.org.ng to practise past questions free of charge.”
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.
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