The Minister of Youth Development, Ayodele Olawande, has received the Ufuk Dialogue and Institute of Peace and Conflict Resolution (IPCR) award in recognition of his contributions to youth empowerment and national development.

The Director General of the Committee of Youth on Mobilization and Sensitization (CYMS), Chief Obinna Nwaka, presented the award on behalf of the organizations to the Minister at his office in Abuja on Friday.

In his response, the Minister expressed his appreciation to his team for their collective efforts in advancing the Ministry’s objectives.

He also urged the Ministry’s staff and stakeholders to continue their support in ensuring that efforts to enhance youth opportunities and foster sustainable development in Nigeria are sustained.

Earlier, the CYMS Director General commended the Minister for his impactful initiatives that have significantly advanced youth development across the nation.

He also highlighted the Minister’s synergy with President Bola Tinubu, which has revitalized opportunities for Nigerian youth. “Your dedication to fostering a supportive environment for young people is commendable,” Nwaka stated.

Chief Nwaka further praised Olawande for acknowledging President Tinubu’s initiative in granting automatic employment to 774 young Nigerians through the National Health Fellows Program.

According to Nwaka, “This award is not just a recognition of your hard work but a testament to the ongoing commitment of the Ministry of Youth Development to building a brighter future for Nigeria’s next generation.”

After 22 months crisis rocking Rivers State House of Assembly, five pro-Nyesom Wike lawmakers have reportedly defected to the camp of Governor Siminalayi Fubara. The five lawmakers who shifted political tents are said to be die hard Wike loyalists who have fought and showed loyalty to their political master all these while.

This development was in the aftermath of Supreme court judgement, even as the report has left people of Rivers State wondering what might have precipitated their defection to the Governor’s camp.

Though their names were yet to be disclosed, their defection would weaken the former governor’s strong hold in Rivers politics as Governor Siminalayi Fubara vowed to fight on and leaving no stone unturned to ensure that a deadly blow is done to the camp of Wike who is now the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory.

In barely two years, the pro-Wike lawmakers have been dislodged from the Rivers State House of Assembly after they defected from the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP to the All Progressives Congress, APC on the directive of Wike.

Political analysts believe that the defections could further weaken the Wike influence in the state, giving Governor Fubara the upper hand in advancing his agenda. However, some critics have raised concerns about whether the move could spark a larger exodus of lawmakers, potentially altering the dynamics within the Rivers State House of Assembly.

For now, Governor Fubara, who assumed office in May 2023, is likely to take the defections to his camp in stride, using the shift in political power to consolidate his position. While celebrations of the governor’s tenure remain speculative, there is no doubt that these recent events could mark a new chapter in Rivers State politics.

In an ironic twist, social media has exploded with memes and jokes about the defections, with many joking that the “thunder” of the lawmakers’ exit will reverberate for years to come. “Thunder fire ultimatum,” one commentator quipped, referencing the earlier political tensions within the state. Whether the defections will indeed lead to a smoother reign for Fubara remains to be seen, but the political waters are undoubtedly more turbulent than ever.

As the state watches these developments unfold, it remains to be seen whether Governor Fubara’s tenure will be marked by the kind of stability he hopes for, or if these defections are only the beginning of larger political shifts in the coming years.

The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio has strongly advised individuals who are not well grounded in the rules of the Senate, but chose to run uninformed commentaries should desist forthwith.

Akpabio made the remarks against the backdrop of the recent decision of the Senate to suspend the Kogi Senator, Natasha Akpoti-Oduaghan for flouting the Senate rules.

The Senate President spoke on Friday while receiving a delegation of the Niger Delta Ethnic Nationalities Youth Leaders Forum which paid him a solidarity visit in Abuja.

The Senate President wondered why people who had no idea of the rules of procedure in parliament were always the ones to run uninformed commentaries on Television on matters they knew nothing about.

Akpabio said the Senate action on Senator Natasha Akpoti-Oduaghan was a unanimous decision and wondered why people were not bothered to know why there was not any desenting voice in the Senate on the matter.

“You should try to go and know the fact before you start running commentaries on television. So we will advise members of the public to desist from running commentaries on things that they do not know, misquoting the rules of the senate,” Akpabio said.

Responding to an earlier comment by the leader of the delegation, Jonathan Lokpobiri Snr, that the first time Niger Delta was made a Senate President was 46 years ago, Akpabio said the people of Niger Delta would not toy with this position of Senate President no matter the mischief others within the opposition rank and file attempted to do.

Akpabio said “the Senate President of today is not representing himself alone. He is representing a people who are very crucial to the economic life wire of this country.

“So when people gang up and conspire, I hear voices from Adamawa shouting, I hear voices from Kwara State shouting, I hear some young people from the southwest being used for something they don’t know, they don’t know the rules of the Senate, you cant be a herbalist and start quoting the Bible, you won’t know what to quote.

“If you have not studied the Bible or you have nothing to do with Christianity, you cannot claim to know the bible more than the Pope. In the same vein, if you are not an Imam, you cannot begin to quote the Quoran.

“But you see people who are not well informed, sitting down just like they do, like football commentators and then they will say Ronaldo should have come from the left to score and that if you were Messi, you would have kicked from the centre. Then you do commentaries on the Television.

“But things that have to do with the hallowed chamber of the National Assembly, you cannot begin to quote what you have never seen. It is only when you are elected to be a senator or a member of the House of Representatives, after your inauguration, the first thing that will be given to you is the Red Book.

“That Red Book contains the Standing Orders that will maintain discipline and decorum and also show you step by step approach to lawmaking which you must study and follow. In the House of Representatives, they will give you a Green Book to signify the Green Chamber.

“But when people are not well informed about the procedures and begin to debate about the provisions they don’t know, sometimes it worries me.

“So your concern about the current situation is well understood. We have our internal mechanism of settling issues and this issue, we have settled and we will continue to settle.”

Jonathan Lokpobiri, President of Ijaw Youth Council, who led the delegation had earlier expressed concern about the development at the Senate and assured Akpabio that the people of the Niger Delta are fully behind him.

Lokpobiri also sought the intervention of the Senate President on the looming crisis in Rivers State warning that it could snowball into the entire Niger Delta if not nipped in the bud.

Lokpobiri raised their concerns over the Coastal road project, Maritime University in Oron which is yet to take off and the possibility of extending the Warri – Itakpe rail line to Abuja.

On the Rivers State crisis, Akpabio told the delegation that, he and other senators from the Niger Delta would take up their request and see how they could bring peace to Rivers State particularly, and any other sub national needing similar intervention.

Akpabio said their concerns regarding the Coastal Road project had already been addressed by the President but further assured them that all other concerns which they have raised would be addressed.