The Ebonyi State Government has intensified its enforcement against unsafe and dilapidated buildings across Abakaliki, the state capital, as part of efforts to prevent building collapses and protect lives and property.

The enforcement exercise was led by the Commissioner for Capital City Development and Urban Planning, Richard Ugo Idike, alongside the ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Mrs Martina Obya; Head of Town Planning, Mrs Esther Nwite; and members of the state task force.

The inspection followed an earlier exercise conducted on July 7, during which owners and occupants of distressed buildings were served notices to vacate or demolish structures considered unsafe.

During the latest operation, officials inspected a one-storey building in Abakaliki identified as posing a significant safety risk.

Idike said the initial 21-day eviction notice issued to the occupants had expired, adding that, following an agreement with the property owner, demolition of the building would commence within the week.

The task force also served a fresh 21-day eviction and removal notice on the owner of a deteriorating building on Liberty Street after determining that the structure was in critical condition.

Officials expressed concern that despite visible structural defects in some of the affected buildings, several families, including children, were still living in the premises.

Idike condemned the development and reiterated the state government’s commitment to preventing avoidable disasters arising from structural neglect.

He urged property owners to conduct regular structural integrity assessments on their buildings and strictly comply with the state’s town planning regulations.

A female TikTok content creator at the centre of controversy surrounding the annual Oloolu Masquerade Festival in Ibadan, Oyo State, has denied filming the sacred Oloolu masquerade and dismissed reports that she died following the incident.

The woman, identified as Wasilat, made the clarification during a telephone interview on Lagelu FM’s Ibi Aye N Lo programme, hosted by Adesoye Omotosho, on Monday.

Wasilat said she only recorded and uploaded a video of people passing through the Oremeji area, insisting that the Oloolu masquerade was not involved.

“I am not dead. I did not capture the Oloolu masquerade. May I not be implicated; I did not record Oloolu,” she said.

According to her, she went to her shop after seeing people passing by the area and noticed an Amotekun vehicle.

“Oloolu did not even pass through that route. So I filmed it and posted it on social media. Everyone in the TikTok comment section asked me to delete it,” she explained.

She said people later came to her shop over the video, adding that she did not understand why she had been accused of recording the sacred masquerade.

“I don’t know who came up with that agenda, but I know God will judge,” she said.

The controversy began after videos surfaced online showing Wasilat undergoing traditional cleansing rites at the Oloolu compound. Social media reports had claimed that she narrowly escaped death after allegedly filming the masquerade.

However, the spokesperson to the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Chief Adeola Oloko, said Wasilat did not actually record Oloolu but mistakenly captured Alawo Oloolu, a figure associated with the tradition.

“She did not capture Oloolu; she mistook it for Alawo. We contacted the Mogaji of the Oloolu compound, and he confirmed that a woman who mistook Alawo of Oloolu for the real Oloolu masquerade captured it on the street,” Oloko said.

Oloko further claimed that the woman later developed health problems after uploading the footage, prompting her family to seek the intervention of traditional custodians.

He also said he could not confirm reports that Wasilat disguised herself as a man to secretly film the procession.

“I cannot confirm she disguised herself as a man. Those are accounts on social media. But she took the footage or photo on the street,” he added.

Videos from the reported cleansing ceremony showed Wasilat with her head shaved, dressed in red attire and surrounded by traditional worshippers. Giant African snails and a ram were reportedly presented during the rites, while another video appeared to show a goat being slaughtered.

Ibadan-based content creator Ayo Adams, who visited the Oloolu compound, also reported that officials confirmed Wasilat was alive and recovering.

Adams said the woman had reportedly approached security operatives after experiencing health problems and was subsequently taken with her family to the Oloolu compound for traditional rites.

However, the Oyo State Police Command said it had no official record of the incident.

The command’s spokesperson, CSP Ayanlade Olayinka, said, “I have no information about the incident because it was not reported at any nearby police station.”

The annual Oloolu Festival is a major traditional event in Ibadan, attracting traditional rulers, worshippers, cultural enthusiasts and visitors from across Yorubaland.

The festival features prayers, rituals, sacrifices, drumming, dancing and processions as part of traditional practices associated with honouring ancestors and seeking peace, protection, prosperity and communal wellbeing.

Former Speaker of the Abia State House of Assembly and APC House of Representatives candidate for Ikwuano/Umuahia, Rt. Hon. Chinedum Enyinnaya Orji, has said President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s fiscal reforms are deliberately moving Nigeria away from oil dependence toward a tax-driven revenue economy.

In an opinion article titled “From Crude to Cash: How Tinubu’s Fiscal Reset Is Redefining Nigeria’s Revenue Economy”, Orji argued that the administration inherited a budget structure tied to crude oil prices and has begun rebuilding public finance through subsidy removal, digital tax collection and an expanded non-oil base.

> “Rather than wait for another oil boom to bail out the treasury, his administration chose to rebuild the plumbing of public finance: tax administration, digital collection, and a non-oil base wide enough to stand on even when barrels wobble,” Orji wrote.

He described the removal of petrol subsidy in May 2023 as the first step of the reset, stating that it increased Federation revenue from ₦16.8 trillion in 2023 to ₦31.9 trillion in 2024, according to data cited in the article.

Orji said allocations to states and local governments also rose sharply, from ₦6.16 trillion in 2023 to ₦15.26 trillion in 2024, giving subnationals more capacity to fund roads, schools and hospitals.

The former Speaker said government complemented the subsidy savings with reforms to modernise tax administration through digital systems, data matching and compliance drives.

He noted that the reforms now target telecommunications, financial services, manufacturing, trade and the digital economy, including fintech companies, e-commerce platforms and content creators.

> “No economy grows sustainably when only oil companies and big banks pay taxes while millions of profitable businesses stay off the books,” he stated.

Orji cited improvements in fiscal indicators, including a narrowing deficit, stronger external reserves, and clearance of a $7 billion foreign exchange backlog, which he said reflected growing investor confidence.

He, however, acknowledged the immediate burden on households from higher transport, food and energy costs.

> “The social contract of these reforms is still being negotiated. Households felt the pain first — higher transport, higher food, higher power bills. The promise is that the gains will be recycled into infrastructure, education, and health,” Orji wrote.

He said the success of the fiscal reset will depend on implementation and public trust, stressing that citizens must see tangible improvements in services.

> “Nigeria is still an oil country. But for the first time in a long time, it is budgeting like it might not always be,” he concluded.

The Ebonyi State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has urged Governor Francis Nwifuru to heed President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s recent warning to state governors against embarking on unnecessary flyover projects.

The party also called on the Ebonyi State Government to disclose details of the governor’s recent nine-day investment trip to China, including the cost of the trip, members of the delegation and outcomes of the engagements.

In a statement issued on Monday in Abakaliki and signed by the PDP Publicity Secretary and spokesperson, Prince Darlington Peter Onwe, the party said the President’s comments had reinforced its concerns over what it described as misplaced priorities in the state.

Tinubu, while meeting traditional rulers from Oyo State, had advised governors to focus on infrastructure that directly addresses the needs of their people rather than constructing flyovers in areas where traffic does not warrant them.

Reacting to the remarks, the PDP alleged that the Nwifuru administration had committed significant public funds to projects including the VANCO Junction tunnel and flyover and the Nwezenyi tunnel and flyover, despite what it described as pressing infrastructure challenges across the state.

The party cited poor road networks, inadequate healthcare facilities, limited access to potable water and deteriorating educational infrastructure among the challenges it said residents were still facing.

The PDP also questioned the state government’s spending priorities in light of increased allocations to states following the removal of the fuel subsidy.

It asked why, despite the reported increase in federal allocations, the Ebonyi Government had allegedly not delivered broader development projects across key sectors.

The opposition party further questioned whether adequate consultations were conducted with residents before the flyover projects were initiated and whether the projects represented the most urgent needs of the people.

On the governor’s China trip, the PDP demanded that the state government publish the names of all officials who participated in the delegation, the total cost of the visit, the investment engagements held and details of any agreements reached with prospective foreign investors.

It also requested information on the implementation timelines of any agreements and any financial obligations arising from commitments made on behalf of the state.

According to the party, taxpayers have a right to know how public funds are being spent and should be provided with documentary evidence of the outcomes of government-sponsored foreign trips.

The PDP further called on the state government to disclose the financial details of the ongoing tunnel and flyover projects and publish a comprehensive development roadmap outlining how its policies and projects would address the needs of Ebonyi residents.

The party said that with the 2027 elections approaching, rural communities would ultimately judge the administration by completed projects and the quality of public services delivered, particularly in road infrastructure and other basic amenities.

The Ebonyi State Government had not publicly responded to the PDP’s latest allegations as of the time of filing this report.

The administration has previously maintained that its infrastructure projects are intended to stimulate economic growth, improve transportation and modernise Abakaliki, the state capital.

The Managing Director of MainPower Electricity Distribution Limited (MEDL), Dr Ernest Mupwaya, has reiterated the company’s commitment to its employees as its most valuable asset.

MainPower, which is a subsidiary company of Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC), is in-charge of electricity distribution in Enugu State.

Mupwaya stated this when he received the team from the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria (CIPM) on a courtesy visit to the company’s head office at Power House, Enugu, on Monday.

He stressed the importance of investing in human capital (employees) to achieve strategic goals in the highly regulated electricity distribution sector.

Mupwaya highlighted the critical role of professional human resource management in building resilient and high-performing organisations, noting that people remained the most valuable asset of any institution.

The MainPower boss identified effective leadership, workforce quality, organisational culture and talent development as key drivers of success in today’s dynamic business environment.

He also reaffirmed MainPower’s commitment to professionalism, integrity, innovation and customer focus as a young and evolving electricity distribution company.

According to him, having competent, motivated, and adaptable employees, supported by effective human resource leadership and professional institutions such as CIPM, is critical to driving organisational transformation and contributing to national development.

Mupwaya, on behalf of the management of MainPower, commended CIPM for its longstanding contributions to promoting excellence and ethical standards in human resource management across Nigeria.

He expressed the company’s interest in strengthening its collaboration with the Institute in areas including leadership development, workforce capacity building, succession planning and employee engagement.

Earlier, Chairman, CIPM, Enugu State Branch, Mr Francis Uka, who was accompanied by a member of CIPM’s Governing Council, Mr Christian Onwumeremadu, said the visit was part of the branch’s efforts to strengthen institutional relationships.

Uka said that visit was meant to promote professional interaction, and deepen the exchange of knowledge and experience in people management and contemporary workplace practices.

During the visit, the delegation also had the opportunity to interact with some MainPower employees, particularly those in administration and operations-related roroles.

The CIPM team also shared insights on the importance of professional human resource management and encouraged eligible employees to join the Institute and take advantage of its professional development opportunities.

Present at the event were MainPower’s Head of Human Resources, Nkiru Chukwuma; Head of Health, Safety and Environment, Dr. Francis Iwu and Head of Customer Service, Ijeoma Ogudebe.

Others are Head of Communications, Mr Emeka Ezeh; Managing Director, EastLand Electricity Distribution Limited, Engr. Nnamdi Chuka-Nwosu; and Chief Technical Officer, Engr. Obinna Nwachukwu among others.