HammerTimes News Online

Tag: Osogbo

  • Strike: Union shut down national grid, resulting to blackout-TCN

    The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has said that due to the ongoing strike, Labour Union has shut down the national grid, resulting in black out  nationwide.
    This is contained in a statement by Ndidi Mbah the General Manager in charge of Public Affairs at TCN on Monday in Abuja
    According Mbah, the national grid shut down occured at about 2.19am this morning, 3rd June 2024.
    “At about 1:15am this morning, the Benin Transmission Operator under the Independent System Operations unit of TCN reported that all operators were driven away from the control room and that staff that resisted were beaten while some were wounded in the course of forcing them out of the control room and without any form of control or supervision, the Benin Area Control Center was brought to zero.
    ‘Other transmission substations that were shut down, by the Labour Union include the Ganmo, Benin, Ayede, Olorunsogo, Akangba and Osogbo Transmission Substations. Some transmission lines were equally opened due to the ongoing activities of the labour union.
    “On the power generating side, power generating units from different generating stations were forced to shut down some units of their generating plants, the Jebba Generating Station was forced to shut down one of its generating units while three others in the same substation subsequently shut down on very high frequency.
    “The sudden forced load cuts led to high frequency and system instability, which eventually shut down the national grid at 2:19am.
    “At about 3.23am, however, TCN commenced grid recovery, using the Shiroro Substation to attempt to feed the transmission lines supplying bulk electricity to the Katampe Transmission Substation. The situation is such that the labour Union is still obstructing grid recovery nationwide,”Mbah said.
    Mbah, however, said TCN would continue to make effort to recover and stabilize the grid to enable the restoration of normal bulk transmission of electricity to distribution load centres nationwide.

  • NLC stages protest in Osun, blocking vehicular movement in Osogbo 

     

    The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), its affiliates  and some civil society groups in Osun on Tuesday, staged a peaceful protest in Osogbo against the rising cost of commodities in the country.

    The protesters who carried placards with various inscriptions like , Nigerians are hungry, say no to Naira devaluation and others, converged at Osogbo Freedom Park before matching to Olaiya Junction were they stopped vehicular movements.

    Speaking with journalists at the sideline of the protest,  Mr Christopher Arapasopo,  Osun State NLC Chairman,  said the protest was in conformation with the directive of the nation body of the union.

    Arapasopo said there is need for the Federal Government to come to the aid of Nigerians as a lot of people are dying from hunger.

    He said during the election campaign,  the president promised a better life and better Nigeria, but the people are not experiencing it.

    “Nigerians are dying, Nigerians are suffering. We can’t afford to buy a carton of Indomie noodles in the market.

    “Inflation is affecting virtually everything in the market.

    “Government should come to our aid and also honour the agreement signed with organised labour.” he said

    Also speaking, Mr Kehinde Ogungangbe, President, Osun National Union of Local Government Employee (NULGE) also send plea to the president to come to the aid of Nigerians.

    Ogungbangbe said workers and Nigerians are hungry and that the hardship is terrible in the country.

    He said the protest is to let the world know that things are not going well with Nigerians.

    According to reports, security agents including the police and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) were on ground to ensure the was no breakdown of law and order.

    Businesses, shops, banks and markets were equally in operation as the protest did not disrupt business activities in the state capital.

  • WAEC identifies 56 rogue website operators for prosecution

    The West African Examination Council (WAEC) has identified 56 rogue website operators that leaked its West African Senior Secondary Certificate Examinations (WASSCE).
    The Head of National Office, Nigeria (HNO) Mr Patrick Areghan, made this known on Thursday in Abuja while monitoring of the examination in some Government Secondary Schools.
    Areghan said that the identified rogue website operators would be prosecuted by the police in due course.
    According to him, some dubious supervisors are responsible for some of these malpractices during examinations.
    ”We have a regulation to release papers to supervisors one hour before commencement time to enable them go from collection point to the administrative point because of distance in some schools.
    ”But what they do is to snap the question papers and send to their syndicate groups. You now begin to as questions what they are trying to achieve with it.
    ”Candidates are already in the exam hall and you are posting the questions. Sometimes, they change the front of the questions and add 2023 for exam questions of 2020.
    ” Some gullible parents and students will go for it and destroy themselves because there is no way they can get our questions,” he said.
    The WAEC head said that the council had put in place technology to detect any form of maleficence from any location.
    ” I am happy to announce that so far in this exam, we have made a lot of arrest. We made arrests in Ibadan, Maiduguri, Abeokuta, Osogbo, Umuahia and many other states.
    ” In all, we have made arrest of no fewer than 15 persons comprising candidates, supervisors, school proprietor and other connected with the malpractices.
    ”Supervisor are our problems, they make a lot of money from this. The exam is taking place in over 21,000 secondary schools in Nigeria with only 2,000 staff strength, how many centres are we going to man?
    ”These supervisors are teachers given to us by state ministries of education and when they come, they make it a business.
    ”We are not in control of social media, small boys post questions for advertisement and ask candidates to subscribe on their websites and then they give them fake questions,” he added.
    He, therefore appealed to candidates, teachers and parents to maintain the ethics of examination to have a good and sound educational system saying that all hands must be on deck to fight the monsters called examination malpractices.
    Also, the WAEC Board Chair, Hajiya Binta Abdulkadri, expressed worry with the involvement of school principals in the exam malpractices.
    Abdulkadri, who is also the Director, Senior Secondary Education, Federal Ministry of Education, commended the council for the deployment of technology to nap perpetrators of examination malpractice.
    Meanwhile, the principal, Government Secondary School, Kubwa, Mr Musa Zuru commended the progress made by WAEC saying that schools in FCT operate zero tolerance for examination malpractice and urged other schools to key in.
    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that 1,621,895 candidates are sitting for the examinations across the country in over 21,000 secondary schools. (NAN)

  • Ooni of Ife celebrates Valentine with 20 new-born babies in Osun, Oyo

    The Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, Ojaja II, has feted no fewer than 20 new-born babies, delivered on valentine day 2023 at Osun and Oyo states.

    Queen Temitope Ogunwusi, who represented Ooni, made the presentation of gifts to Valentine Children at Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital Complex (OAUTHC), Ile-Ife.

    Other hospitals visited are Ladoke Akintola University Teaching Hospital (LAUTECH), Osogbo, and University College Hospital, in Ibadan.

    According to Oba Ogunwusi, children are the heritage of God which needs to be celebrated, train them, as well, in the way of the Lord, for they are the future leaders.

    He maintained that “God is love and we should relate that love to children, by giving gifts to them”.

    The Ile-Ife traditional ruler charged Nigerians to show love to one another by helping neighbours, relatives and other people around.

    The Ooni, who doubles as the Director of Hopes Alive Initiatives (HAI), charged mothers to ensure that they always speak the word of God to the life of their children.

    The OAUTCH Acting Chief Medical Director, Prof. Afolabi Owojuyigbe, appreciated Ooni for remembering the children for good, especially on valentine day which symbolises love day.

    Owojuyigbe noted that Oba Ogunwusi has been playing pivotal roles to the hospital and humanity at large, emphasising that his efforts over the progress of the hospital cannot be over-emphasised.

    Also, at Ladoke Akintola Teaching Hospital (LAUTECH), the Chief Medical Director, Prof Peter Olaitan, acknowledged the good gesture of Ooni and his Queen for celebrating the new born babies.

    Olaitan said he was so amazed to see the Royal Father playing his fatherly role in the lives of the little ones by giving them gifts and showering royal blessings on the children.

    The CMD admonished all and sundry to emulate the good gesture of Ooni, saying many patients in the hospital need help from philanthropists.

    In the same vein, the Chief Medical Director, UCH Ibadan, Prof. Jesse Otegbayo, on behalf of the college management, lauded Ooni of Ife for the prayer and gifts for the children.

    Otegbayo, who was represented by the Chairman, Medical Advisory Committee, Dr Abiodun Adeoye, called on individuals, NGOs, groups, stakeholders and philanthropists to emulate the good gesture of Ooni.

    According to him, God is love and for anyone that shows love does the commandment of God and would be surely blessed.

    Mrs Moboluwaduro Barakat, who gave birth to twins at UCH, Ibadan, thanked Ooni for the gifts.