Witness disowns exhibit at Ekiti Election Tribunal
News & Trends •
the petitioners the peoples democratic party pdp and its candidate in the ekiti july 14 governorship election prof. olusola kolapo had approached the tribunal to challenge the outcome of the election2 also a former councillor in ikere lga adeniyi ibidunmoye stated under cross examination that he was a polling agent for the petitioners during the election1 the respondents in the suit are the all progressives congress apc governor kayode fayemi and the independent national electoral commission inec1 the witness aborisade abolarin who served as a polling unit agent for the peoples democratic party pdp in the july 14 election stated this while being cross examined by the counsel for the independent national electoral commission inec chief charles uwensuyi-edosomwan san1 asked if his signature was the one on the form for polling unit 005 ward 9 moba local government area of the state the witness stated that it was not his signature1 it is not my signature that is here on the document. i disown this document said the witness listed as pw261 a witness to the petitioners at the ekiti election tribunal holding in abuja on wednesday disowned an exhibit tendered and urged the tribunal not to use it1 according to ibidunmoye who said he served as a councillor between 2008 and 2010 after counting of votes pdp scored 219 votes as against the apcs 115 adding that some ballot papers cast for pdp were voided1 he stated that an argument ensued following the voiding of his partys votes adding that he only signed the result sheet after the argument1 asked why he has different signatures on his witness statement on oath and the one on the polling unit results sheet form the witness informed that he had two different signatures which he uses1 another witness adeyemi idowu from moba lga informed the tribunal under cross examination that a total of 21 votes were voided at the polling unit 14 ward 10 where he was a pdp agent1 meanwhile all the witnesses called by the petitioners complained in their written witness statements on oath of alleged deliberate voiding of valid votes meant for the petitioners during the election1 the tribunal chaired by justice suleiman belgore will continue the hearing of the petition today1

Majority of Americans in financial woes under Trump
News & Trends •
respondents perceptions of their financial situations were split along party lines1 a majority of americans say that their financial situation has not improved since the 2016 election according to a bankrate survey released wednesday1 despite low unemployment numbers and rising job numbers senior bankrate analyst mark hamrick noted that economic improvements are not being felt by everyone1 ultimately a rising economic tide lifts many boats. it does not lift all of them he said1 the economy is paying dividends for many americans but there are still many people and pockets of the u.s. economy that are hoping for those dividends to appear1 of those surveyed 17 percent said they were worse off now than two years ago and 45 percent said their situation has not changed. thirty-eight percent of respondents said their finances have improved1 of those that identified as democrats 48 percent found their financial situation to be the same and 23 percent found it to be worse while only 32 percent of republicans felt stagnant and 9 percent said they were worse off1 democrats who did notice improvement also did not give the credit to republicans in office with only 7 percent attributing the positive change to trump republicans in congress or both1 of the respondents who identified as republicans 71 percent who noted improvement attributed it to the president or republicans in congress1 the poll surveyed 1001 respondents between sep. 25 and 30. the margin of error for the sample is 3.72 percentage points1 originally reported by1

How doctors removed 122 nails from mans stomach
News & Trends •
ethiopian doctors have extracted over one hundred iron nails and other sharp objects from the stomach of a patient in the capital addis ababa1 dawit teare a surgeon at st. peters specialised hospital said the 33-year-old patient suffers from mental illness and had apparently consumed the items including 10-centimetre nails1 reports say the patient had also swallowed four pins a toothpick and pieces of broken glass1 the patient has been suffering from mental illness for the last 10 years and had stopped taking his medication two years ago one probable reason he started consuming inanimate objects1 i guess he consumed the objects with the help of water however he is a lucky person that those sharp objects didnt cut his stomach1 that could have led to serious infections and even deathdawit told afp after a two-and-a-half hour operation1 the surgeon said that while he had dealt with other cases in which people with mental illness had swallowed multiple sharp objects he had never encountered a case like the present one1 dawit added that the patient was recovering well1

General Alkali: Police declare district head, 7 others wanted
News & Trends •
he was said to have gone missing on his way to bauchi from abuja1 the nigerian police force plateau state command has declared eight persons wanted in connection with the abduction and disappearance of major general idris alkali1 others are moses gyang a.k.a boss timothy chuan pam gyang dung mathew wrang also known as amesco da chuwang samuel a 28 year-old with the nickname of morinho and nyam samuel 25 also known as soft touch1 all the suspects belong to the berom ethnic group1 on 13 october the nigeria army presented to newsmen in jos 13 suspects arrested in connection with the missing alkali1 brig.-gen. umar muhammed garrison commander 3 division nigeria army rukuba near jos thereafter handed the suspects to the police for full investigation1 muhammed said that the people were arrested in the area where the generals missing car was found1 alkali the immediate past chief of administration army headquarters abuja was declared missing on sept. 31 among the eight persons wanted in a statement on wednesday is 52 year-old yakubu rap said to be the district head of dura where the vehicle of alkali was recovered in a pond1 consequently the chief of army staff coas lt.-gen. tukur buratai set up a search operation1 the army authorities said that after a thorough investigation they narrowed the search to a mining pond in dura-du in jos south local government of plateau1 after two weeks of draining water from pond alkalis car and two others were recovered from the pond1 muhammed stated that a cordon and search operation was conducted in the community and some people were apprehended1 he said they were moved to the barracks where they were screened profiled and interrogated1 the persons to be handed over to police include those who were in possession of fire arms without licence1 those who heard and saw the criminals that stopped the retired senior officer and those that pushed his vehicle into the pond but failed to report these criminal acts to the security agencies will also be handed over1

UK bride wants dead mothers hair on wedding dress
News & Trends •
a bride-to-be in england is having a difficult time finding a dressmaker willing to create her dream wedding dress that shed like to be festooned with locks of her dead mothers hair reports said1 the woman made a sketch of the floor-length ball gown and requested that the bodice around the midsection of the dress to have a lacy floral design made with the hair1 according to bbc the anonymous 61-year-old wrote on a fashion manufacturing website that she wants to recreate the dress that her mother wore when her parents married in 19531 she admitted that the request is quite weird but posted that she started to collect the hair before her mother died and now has a full box of hair1 at the time i wasnt sure why i was collecting she posted. however now i think i do1 the bbcs report said that in the 19th century it was not uncommon to mourn a loved one through locks of their hair and reported that those living in the u.s. would make wreaths filled with locks of hair1 the founder of sewport the website where the woman made the request said it is unusual for requests to go this long without a response1 alix bizet a designer who has made clothing with human hair told the independent that hair is not easy to work with1 using human hair is often perceived as gross and unethical due to the past history in europe the nazis but also because it has been associated with cannibalism she said1 hair is a highly emotional subject that for some people is closely linked to the identity of a person like an extension of their existence. it can be almost spiritual1

Just In: Sahle-Work Zewde Ethiopias first female president
News & Trends •
in a patriarchal society such as ours the appointment of a female head of state not only sets the standard for the future but also normalises women as decision-makers in public life1 ethiopias parliament today approved sahle-work zewde as the countrys new president the first woman to hold the post1 she replaces mulatu teshome wirtu who tendered his resignation to parliament earlier on wednesday. wirtu had been president since 20131 fitsum arega chief of staff to prime minister abiy ahmed described the appointment of sahle-work as historic1 in a tweet today arega said in a historic move the two houses have elected ambassador sahle-work zewde as the next president of ethiopia1 she is the first female head of state in modern ethiopia. a career diplomat1 sahle-work who was born 21 february 1950 in addis ababa is at present u.n. under secretary general and special representative of the secretary general to the african union1 woyzero sahle-work zewde studied natural science at the university of montpellier france. she is fluent in amharic french and english1 she is a veteran ethiopian diplomat. she was once ambassador to senegal with accreditation to mali cape verde guinea-bissau gambia and guinea from 1989 to 19931 from 1993 to 2002 she was ambassador to djibouti and permanent representative to the intergovernmental authority on development igad1 she later served as ambassador to france permanent representative to the united nations educational scientific and cultural organization unesco and accredited to tunisia and morocco from 2002 to 20061 zewde served as special representative and head of the united nations integrated peace building office in the central african republic binuca. previously she also held a number of other high level positions including as permanent representative of ethiopia to the african union and the united nations economic commission for africa eca and as director-general for african affairs in the ministry of foreign affairs of ethiopia1 in 2011 zewde was appointed to the position of director-general of the united nations office at nairobi unon by the united nations secretary-general ban ki-moon. she was the first person to hold the post at the level of under-secretary-general1

Ambode shames anxious detractors
News & Trends •
i have just accompanied mr president to the nigerian-benin border post. so what we have commissioned today is a joint border patrol post between nigeria and the republic of benin and it is called semo-krake border post3 lagos state governor akinwunmi ambode has disappointed those who wish he dumps his all progressives congress apc like others who failed to win their parties ticket for 2019 elections3 he also pledged his support for the governorship candidate of the all progressives congress apc in the state mr babajide sanwo-olu3 the governor made the remarks on tuesday at the presidential wing of the muritala mohammed international airport in lagos3 he spoke to reporters shortly after he accompanied president buhari to perform the official commissioning of the new economic community of west african states ecowas border post at seme-krake in badagry3 just to also use this opportunity to let lagosians lagos residents know that we are heavily committed to the re-election of mr president and you can see that his continuous visit to lagos reiterates the fact that he is actually a lover of lagos state and i am committed to ensuring his re-election said governor ambode3 he sent a clear message on tuesday that he would lead a strong campaign to ensure victory for president muhammadu buhari3 according to a statement by his chief press secretary mr habib aruna the governor stated the importance for the apc to retain its leadership positions both at the federal and the state levels3 we are going to campaign heavily for him buhari he reiterated. i am also committed to ensuring that the apc wins the governorship election come 20193 ambode added we support the candidacy of babajide sanwo-olu and we would make sure that apc retains lagos state and the centre3 earlier the governor received the president at the airport before they proceeded to seme where president buhari joined his republic of benin counterpart patrice talon to inaugurate the border post3 the seme-krake joint border one of the busiest boundary lines not only in west africa but the whole continent records a huge movement of persons goods and services daily3 with the inauguration the border post is expected to enhance the free movement of persons and goods in the region and foster integration between the people of nigeria and benin3

Senate passes new Electoral Act Amendment Bill
News & Trends •
speaking on the development the president of the senate bukola saraki said he hoped the president would now assent to the proposed law3 the senate on tuesday passed a new and fourth version of the electoral act 2010 amendment bill 20183 during the just-ended annual recess of the national assembly its joint committee on inec met to work on the document based on the issues raised by the president3 tuesdays passage of the bill followed the adoption of the report of the committee presented by its chairman sen. suleiman nazif3 nazif had said that the committee addressed all the issues raised by the president in withdrawing assent to the bill3 president muhammadu buhari had declined assent to the bill three times citing some constitutional and drafting issues3 let me congratulate all of us particularly the committee on electoral matters for the hard work they put in3 we were able to achieve this that looked almost impossible at a time and i want to commend everybody for making this happen3 this will go a long way in improving our electoral process and further strengthen our governance3 i am sure with this now mr president will of course give his assent and we can now finally have an electoral act that we would all be proud of saraki said3 the news agency of nigeria nan reports that the amendment seeks to provide the use of card readers and any other similar technological devices for the election among others according to nazif3

Money laundering: Capital One Bank fined $100 million in U.S.
News & Trends •
reutersnan a leading bank regulator on tuesday fined capital one bank 100 million dollars for failing to enforce anti-money laundering controls that have been in place for years3 capital one failed to satisfy a 2015 consent order that demanded the bank improve its anti-money laundering policies the office of the comptroller of the currency occ said in a statement3 the bank failed to timely achieve compliance with the 2015 consent order the occ said in a new consent order that outlined the fine3 capital one said it disclosed the issue to the occ in july 20153 the consent order emanates primarily from prior banking relationships with certain cheque cashing service providers a business we made the decision to exit in 2014 the bank said3 since that time we have worked diligently with our bank regulators to strengthen our processes and internal controls to ensure we address any concerns regarding our compliance processes3

Shonekan not dead Ogun Govt. dispels rumour
News & Trends •
ogun state government has described as a lie from the pit of hell the reports thaternest shonekan former head of interim national government is dead3 taiwo adeoluwa secretary to the state government dispelled the rumour on tuesday3 he said ibikunle amosun governor of the state has spoken with shonekan who reportedly told the governor that he is hale and hearty3 tributes have been pouring in for shonekan on social media based on the reports3 born onmay 9 1936 shonekan is a british-trained lawyer and an industrialist3 he was appointed interim head of the country after ex-military president ibrahim babangida stepped down on august 26 19933 babangida had refused to hand over power to mko abiola acclaimed winner of the june 12 1993 election but relinquished power after intense pressure3 shonekans administration only lasted three months as sani abacha forcefully took power through a coup3 the elder statesman hails from abeokuta ogun state. he attended c.m.s grammar school and igbobi college lagos and was obtained a law degree from the university of london3

Fayoses trial starts November, gets bail
News & Trends •
mr rotimi jacobs san prosecuting for efcc countered on the ground that the day fayose appeared in efcc abuja he came with a lot of hoodlums that nearly attacked the efcc operatives before they were repelled1 former ekiti governor ayodele fayose was granted bail this morning over the n30.8 billion fraud charge slammed on him by the economic and financial crimes commission1 fayose was docked at the federal high court in lagos on monday alongside his company spotless investment ltd on an 11-count charge of n30.8 billion fraud1 he pleaded not guilty to the charge1 his lawyer kanu agabi san moved a motion for his bail after which the judge ordered fayoses remand in efcc custody and adjourned hearing till today1 justice olatoregun heard the arguments by agabi and efcc counsel rotimi jacobs today1 agabi a former federal attorney-general urged the court to grant fayose bail on the ground that he voluntarily submitted himself to efcc a day after leaving office as governor of ekiti state1 in addition he said fayose has no criminal record1 his trial will start on 19 november justice mojisola olatoregun ruled1 he was probably to the crowd that included governor nyesom wike and former aviation minister femi fani-kayode1 rotimi also told the court that investigation is still ongoing to trace some of the properties bought by fayose with the stolen money and if granted bail he will scuttle investigation1 justice mojisola olatoregun said since the offence alleged to have been committed is a bailable offence she was inclind to grant fayose bail1 she thus granted fayose bail in the sum of n50million with one surety who must own a landed property in lagos1 the surety must possess three years tax clearance and must also secure a bond of n50million from a reputable bank which will be forfeited if fayose jumps bail1 fayose was also ordered to swear to an affidavit not to tamper with the witnesses and should deposit his international passport with the chief registrar of the court1 thereafter she adjourned the trial till 19th of novenber 20181

Meghan Markle rushed out of Fiji market
News & Trends •
meghan markles only solo engagement during her royal tour of oceania with prince harry was cut short this morning when she was hurried out of a crowded market in fiji1 kensington palace initially said the pregnant royals sudden departure was down to uncomfortable conditions but later added that there had been crowd management issues reports1 the duchess was atthe marketin the capital suvato meet female stallholders involved in a un women project called markets for changewhich seeks to promote a safe inclusive environment for women vendors in a number of south pacific nations1 according to the meghan was spotted whispering to one of her royal aides before leaving the market with her security team just eight minutes into the scheduled 15-minute visit1 onlookers say the duchess looked concerned as she greeted large crowds and did not seem like her usual self the newspaper adds1 meghan and prince harry are currently on their first overseas tour together since getting married in may. their 16-day trip started in australia and will continue on to tonga and new zealand says the1 prior to the market incident the duchess delivered her first speech of the tour during a visit with her husband to the university of the south pacific1 calling for greater educational opportunities for women in developing countries she told the audienceeveryone should be afforded the opportunity to receive the education they want but more importantly the education they have the right to receive1 the duke thentravelled alone to colo-i-suva forest park where he planted a tree and unveil a plaque to mark its dedication1

Pollution: EU lawmakers to ban throw-away plastics
News & Trends •
european union lawmakers moved on wednesday to ban widely-used throw-away plastics such as straws bags and cotton buds putting the burden on manufacturers to recycle more in an effort to clear up ocean pollution1 under the proposal overwhelmingly backed by the european parliament some single-used plastic products with readily available alternatives would be banned by 20211 eu states would be obliged to recycle 90 per cent of plastic bottles by 2025 while producers would help to cover costs of waste management1 eu lawmakers added very light-weight plastic bags polystyrene fast-food containers1 the soldiers added products made of oxo-degradable plastics which critics say do not fully break down to the list proposed by the eu executive earlier this year1 the eus final rules still need to be approved in talks with member states. reutersnan1

University Professor commits suicide in Makurdi
News & Trends •
prof. frank onyezili a senior lecturer with the biological sciences department of the federal university of agriculture makurdi has committed suicide1 sources close to the professor told the news agency of nigeria nan on wednesday in makurdi that the deceased was found dead on tuesday oct. 231 mrs. roseline waku the director of protocol and information of the university who confirmed the incident however told nan that she was not aware of why onyezili killed himself1 the only thing i can confirm is that the professor killed himself i dont know why he did it she said1 waku hinted of reports that the deceased left a suicide note but said that she was not privy to its contents1 a top official of the university told nan that the the professor drank some substance suspected to be poison after leaving a suicide note1 the source which craved anonymity said that the university dons action might not be unconnected with depression and loneliness that had been his lot since his wife and children relocated to a foreign country1 i am not sure why he killed himself but he was always complaining of loneliness his wife and children live abroad and have not been in touch with him. he might have opted to end his frustration by killing himself the source said1 contacted mr moses yamu spokesman of the police command in benue told nan that he had not been briefed on the matter1 i am yet to get details of the incident. that is all i can say for now he said1

FGs NSIP: 2 nabbed for extorting N40,000 each from Nigerians
News & Trends •
by muhammad auwal2 sali then urged the state government to show interest in the programmes saying it was designed to assist the common people1 its focal person mr usman sali told the news agency of nigeria nan on wednesday in yola that the suspects were arrested for allegedly extorting money from unsuspecting members of the public1 the national social investments programmes nsip was established by the federal government in 2016 to tackle poverty and hunger in the country1 components of the programme include n-power conditional cash transfer home grown school feeding programme hgsf and government enterprise and empowerment programme geep1 the national social investment programme says two fraudsters have been arrested and handed over to the department of state security service dss in yola in adamawa1 two of such criminals were apprehended and handed over to the dss for interrogation1 also in hong local government area of the state some suspected criminals who paraded themselves as agents of the programme were arrested for collectingn40 000 from each of their victims1 they were arrested and handed over to the police for beingin possession of fake forms and selling the forms to people in the area1 among the major challenges facing the smooth implementation of the programmes components in the state is the activities of fraudsters and lack of proper supervision he said1 according to sali some undesirable elements in the state are going round impersonating as supervision officers of the programme and extorting money from people to recruit them into the programme1

Nigerian troops kill 76 Boko Haram terrorists, Chad kills 48
News & Trends •
the chief of army staff lt. general buratai has commiserated with the families of the deceased and directed that the wounded be given adequate medical attention1 seventy-six boko haram terrorists among others trying to overrun nigerias military formation in metele near kangarwa in borno have been killed1 according to the nigerian army twitter posts the gallant troops of the 157 battalion overwhelmed the terrorists with superior firepower as they attempted to attack nigerian positions on 8 october1 the sustained superior firepower of the troops led to the neutralisation of 76 bhts the army said in an update today1 unfortunately the nigerian army lost seven soldiers while 16 were wounded in action1 in what was a double blow to the terrorists chadian troops also killed another 48 today1 in chad eight soldiers and 48 boko haram militants were killed in clashes on wednesday officials said1 the early morning attack took place in kaiga kindji in the lake chad region army spokesman azem agouna said adding that 11 other soldiers were wounded1 the boko haram terrorists also regularly launch offensives in niger and cameroon1 since 2009 tens of thousands of people in the region have died at the hands of the sunni fundamentalists and an estimated 2.5 million people fled their homes1 the groups goal is to enforce a strict interpretation of islamic law or sharia1

Fayose: EFCC digs deeper, releases photos of houses
News & Trends •
the efcc released the pictures a day after the former governor arrived at its head office in abuja in company with rivers state governor nyesom wike and a former minister mr femi fani-kayode among other well-wishers2 as the economic and financial crimes commission efcc digs deeper into the graft accusation against ex-governor ayodele fayose of ekiti it has released photos of his properties2 according to him the properties were uncovered while the anti-graft agency was investigating the allegations of corruption against the former governor2 he alleged that mr fayose purchased the property with the money he purportedly received from the office of the former national security adviser retired colonel sambo dasuki2 in the course of investigating corruption allegations against ex-governor ayodele fayose especially the n1.3billion which he collected from the office of the national security adviser col sambo dasuki the commission unearthed evidence that he laundered the funds into the acquisition of properties in choice locations in abuja and lagos mr wilson alleged2 the spokesman for the commission mr wilson uwujaren released copies of the pictures on wednesday2 fayose had in september promised to report at the anti-corruption agencys office after handing over government to his successor governor kayode fayemi2 mr. lere olayinka the media aide to fayose says his boss has since denied the allegations and insisted that he should be charged to court2 today is his second day in efcc custody and i can say that his spirit is high and his will remains very strong he said on wednesday2 olayinka the commission has started its usual lies by claiming that it discovered houses bought by fayose with public fund2 nigerians should recall that in 2016 operatives of this same efcc attempted to seal up a guest house located at gana street maitama abuja claiming that it belonged to fayose. whereas the building belonged to a retired army general2

No APC candidate has been issued certificate of return
News & Trends •
by cecilia ijuo2 so taking apc to court automatically disqualifies him from contesting the election. so the election he partook in is a nullity1 the acting national publicity secretary of the party yekini nabena made this known in an interview with the news agency of nigerianan in abuja on thursday1 he was reacting to reports that mr uba sani from kaduna central had been issued a certificate of return1 the spokesperson said no candidate has been given the certificate of return1 since you have been following the primaries has anybody been given the certificate of return1 on the pending motion filed in court by uba sani in a kaduna high court for omission of his name nabena said we are going to take a look at all these cases and their merits1 that is why we have a legal adviser. in the areas of the court the legal adviser is going to look at all the situations and advise the working committee appropriately1 we will take a look at everything and those that their names will be sent to inec will know that they are the candidate of the party he said1 meanwhile mr james kanyip lawyer assigned by apc to represent all defendants in the motion filed by uba sani said to the best of his knowledge the case had not been withdrawn from court1 he explained that in spite of that the claimant proceeded to participate in the primary election conducted in kaduna state1 he filed an action before the kaduna high court on oct. 31 the all progressives congress apc has said that none of its candidates for the 2019 general election has been issued a certificate of return1 the contention was that his name was initially cleared but the headquarters sent the list of those who were to contest the election but his name was not included because it was alleged he was not cleared1 the only candidate they sent for the primary election was sen. shehu sani1 he got an interim injunction on the matter. so the court gave an order that the status quo in the matter be maintained1 that is everything that transpired as at oct. 2 should be maintained1 so to the best of my knowledge that case has not been withdrawn because on oct. 5 we filed our response to his action on behalf of the defendants1 the first defendant is apc the second is the national chairman the third is inec and the fourth is sen. shehu sani1 so the national headquarter of apc instructed us to represent the whole defendants1 kanyip further said we filed our processes and while the case was still pending and the order given by the court was still subsisting we heard that primary election was conducted in kaduna and that he was a participant in that election1 now the problem is by article 21 of the apc constitution it is an offence for a member to take the party to court1 the punishment for taking the party to court without exhausting all avenues for settlement is outright expulsion1 the party will not tolerate any issue affecting that member until the case is withdrawn from court1 he filed an exparte motion for injunction restraining the defendants from taking certain steps in the primary election1

NAFEST: 18 states light up Port Harcourt
News & Trends •
wike dressed in beautiful rivers traditional attire with a walking stick to match said the festival would serve as a unifying force for nigeria2 he noted that nefest provided a platform for the states to make the most of the nations culture adding that culture empowers humanity by improving inter-personal relationships2 he said that in addition to celebrating nigerias rich cultural tapestry nafest also provided the opportunity for cultural activism1 no fewer than 18 states are participating in the 2018 national festival of arts and culture nafest which was flagged-off by rivers governor nyesom wike amid pomp and ceremony at the sharks stadium port harcourt1 whether we agree or not our diversity is what defines and binds us as a nation under the glorious sun1 although our tribes and tongues may differ we are a nation bound by a common destiny and firmly glued together by the spirit of brotherhood cultural harmony and inter-ethnic solidarity instead of discord tribalism nepotism and sectionalism1 what is imperative therefore is for us to take full advantage of the innate strength in our diversity together with our incredible human and natural resource endowments to build a just united and prosperous country for the present and future generations1 wike also restated that the essence of the festival was to promote national peace unity and cohesion1 over the years nafest has become the veritable platform for the 36 states and the federal capital territory to meet showcase and make the most of our cultures and diversity1 the news agency of nigeria nan reports that the theme of the 31st edition of the festival which attracted the states has as theme nigeria our festivals our heritage1 according to him the festival provides creative images and expressions to engage our leaders on the politics of nation-building human rights regional integration inter-ethnic harmony national peace and development1 in his remarks otunba olusegun runsewe the director-general national council for arts and culture commended rivers government for making history for the people of the state1 almighty god will repay governor wike for his contributions to the peace that he is promoting1 runsewe said that because rivers was peaceful it had hosted several international and national events adding that outside lagos and abuja port harcourt enjoyed the highest air traffic and hotel patronage1 also mrs tonye briggs oniyide the state commissioner of culture and tourism said that rivers had fully prepared to host what she called the very best nafest since its inception1 the chairman of the event chief ferdinand alabrabra said that rivers remained the choice of all major national events because of its strategic peaceful nature1 the news agency of nigeria reports that states participating in the event displayed splendid cultures and dances at while the 23 local government areas of rivers also displayed their rich culture and tradition1 some youths spiced up the event with breath-taking calisthenic displays that thrilled spectators. nan1

Port Harcourt agog as NAFEST peaks (photo)
News & Trends •
wike dressed in beautiful rivers traditional attire with a walking stick to match said the festival would serve as a unifying force for nigeria2 he noted that nefest provided a platform for the states to make the most of the nations culture adding that culture empowers humanity by improving inter-personal relationships2 the road show today was a banger1 plan to attend nafest 2018 on the 22nd october sharks stadium port harcourt1 our culture our heritage1 rivmct @rivmct1 plan to attend nafest 2018 on the 22nd october sharks stadium port harcourt1 it has been all pomp in port harcourt since tuesday when the 2018 national festival of arts and culture nafest which was flagged-off by rivers governor nyesom wike1 reports say that 18 states are participating festival which kicked off at the sharks stadium port harcourt1 the theme of the 31st edition of the festival is nigeria our festivals our heritage1