How Newspapers/TV Made Many People Popular_By Ekpegha T.

How Newspapers/TV Made Many People Popular_By Ekpegha T.

It is important to remember that bad news sells better than good news. It may be a sad reflection on humanity but that is the fact. 

Those who seek publicity are often insecure. They need to be recognised and to feel important. 

They love to be photographed and written about. They crave attention, and can’t get enough of it. 

Newspapers and television have made many people better known in some instances ‘famous,’ and even ‘heroes’. 

The media have no problem in turning on the same people, when things go wrong. 

You often see this in the case of footballers or politicians or show business people when there are difficulties in their private lives. 

Media has always played a great role in the society, government and other fields of life. The importance of mass media cannot be denied as in today’s world every one is interested in knowing about the happenings in the world. Just for having the information about the happenings in the world and also getting the information about the famous personalities, celebrities and political leaders. Just for having such information people used to listen radio, watch television and read newspapers. Due to the interest of people in the lives of famous personalities every type of media gives a lot of attention and time in covering the lives of famous celebrities. But apart from all these facts there should be some limits in covering the lives of the famous personalities. Different personalities should be covered in different details. There are some personalities that are the ideals of many people so there lifestyle should be presented in front of the people and there are many that should be covered just up to their professional life.

Newspapers have not always been popular among common people. They became more widespread and popular in this century due to several factors, including improvements in printing technology, increased literacy rates, and the rise of urbanization. As societies modernized, people sought information about local and global events, leading to a growing demand for newspapers as a source of news and entertainment. This popularity continued to rise in the 20th century, with newspapers becoming a significant medium for disseminating information to the masses. However, with the advent of digital media and the internet, their popularity has declined in recent years as people turn to online platforms for news consumption.

Delta Commissioner Angele Lauds IPF, Calls for Professionalism

Delta Commissioner Angele Lauds IPF, Calls for Professionalism

Asaba_____ The Commissioner for Housing, Delta State, Rt. Hon. Godknows Angele has lauded the Ijaw Publishers Forum, IPF for the initiative to form a unified body for the propagation of the true Ijaw story. 

The Commissioner said this when he played host to the IPF during a courtesy call in his office at the State Secretariat, Asaba, on Thursday.

IPF President, Comrade Ozobo Austin, said the visit was to intimate the Commissioner of the group's aims and objectives and to seek result-oriented collaboration with the Delta State Government. 

Ozobo further said the group was in need of support from key stakeholders across Ijaw nation to achieve it's objectives.

Responding, Angele, who is the immediate past two-time Chairman of Burutu Local Government Area, also pledged his unalloyed support to the success of the group's activities. 

According to him, the essence IPF's of existence cannot be over-emphasized, saying the group was formed at the right time for the right purpose. 

The Commissioner further posited that the IPF's mandate is in tandem with the MORE AGENDA of the Governor Sheriff Oborevwori's administration, and as such, will enjoy the necessary support to thrive. 

"I've keenly followed the activities of the IPF and I can say that your intentions for Ijaw nation are of good. Like the INC and IYC, we have another forceful group in the IPF. I urge you to maintain professionalism and neutrality at all times and don't allow people with bad intentions to use you for selfish gains," Angele charged.

Other members of the IPF delegation include, Oyinbi Onduku - Vice President, Tare Magbei - Secretary, Perez Bibaikefie - Assistant Secretary, Mike Ugedi - Financial Secretary, Francis Abai - Researcher, and Tamaraupreye Ekpegha.

Okuama Massacre: Ycom tells Gov Sheriff to Resolve all Land Disputes Across Delta

Okuama Massacre: Ycom tells Gov Sheriff to Resolve all Land Disputes Across Delta

Francis Tayor

Warri______ Following the barbaric, unwanted and gruesome murder of over sixteen (16) gallant officers and soldiers of the Nigerian Army by wild blood tasty youths of Okuama Community in Ughelli South LGA, Hon. Company Yerinbowei Felix, aka Ycom and the Endless Ocean of the Niger Delta Region, has called on the governor of Delta State, His Excellency, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori to as a matter of urgency to act fast and resolve all pending land/boundary adjustment crisis across the state.

Hon. Company Felix is the National Coordinator of the lndependent Grassroot Liberators (IGL) who also doubles as the immediate past Councillor of ljansa ljelejele Ward 13 Ogbe-ljoh Warri kingdom in Warri South-West Local Government Area of the State, noted that Governor Sheriff Oborevwori should not be a Posthumous Governor whereby he would be wailing and sharing tears after damages had been done when ordinarily he has the power to take drastic decision and action to amicably settle any land dispute across the state, without resulting to senseless killing and destruction of properties.

The Ogbe-ljoh born young fearless and vibrant peoples advocate cum politician also draws Governor Oborevwori's attention to quickly put to an end the annual Aladja/Ogbe-ljoh land dispute that had been lingering over the years, stressing that he should not make money neither play politics with the precious innocent lives of Deltans in the name of communal crisis just like the past governors of the state did.

He lamented that Aladja and Ogbe-ljoh in Udu and Warri South-West LGAs had been suffering from lack of infrastructural development over the years as a result of insincerity and lack of political will by past governors of the state to resolve the land dispute, thereby sending our promising youths to untimely grave.

He advised His Excellency, Gov. Sheriff Oborevwori to be more proactive and value every single life and properties of Deltans, stressing that was the major and number one reason the people voted him into power as governor of the state.

Hon. Company further called on the two senators representing Delta Central and Delta South Senatorial Districts, the honourable Speaker of Delta State House of Assembly who is from Warri South West Local Government Area, critical stakeholders like the traditional rulers, human rights advocates and other government functionaries from Ughelli South, Udu and Warri South West Local Government Areas to put heads together with the governor in order to put an end to the Crisis between Okuama/Okoloba, Aladjia/ Ogbe-ijoh among others across the state.

Mulade Condemns soldiers killing in Delta, calls for peace among the two Communities

Mulade Condemns soldiers killing in Delta, calls for peace among the two Communities 

Warri_____ A Delta State-born peace and development advocate, Comrade Mulade Sheriff, has condenmned in its entirety the heinous and  barbaric killing of soldiers who were reportedly on a peace mission to restore  law and order in Okuama, a Delta community, over  dispute with its neighbour, Okoloba.

The renowned peace and environmental rights activist condoled with the Nigerian Army over these needless killing and appealed to the feuding Okuama and Okoloba communities to sheath their sword, while calling on the Military high command and Delta state government to institute an enquiry and bring to book perpetrators of this dastardly act.

Speaking further, he urged the warring groups to embrace peace for the sake of development and growth of Okuama/Okoloba, who, as the same descendants as original root. He further advised and appealed to them not to fall into the hands of war mongers/instigators, whose primary occupation and means of survival relied on communal/ethnic crisis, thereby positioning themselves as negotiators/leaders.

The Ijaw leader, once again, appeals strongly to Okuama and Okoloba communities who are brothers and sisters, with long history of inter-marriages, to sheath their sword and allow peace to reign.

 It is worthy of note that Rt Hon Sheriff Oborevwori, the executive governor of Delta State, needs peace to attract investors to grow the economy of Delta State, and create employment opportunities for our teeming youths.

Burutu LGA Polls: Hon. Sunny Consult Pullah, Yingi Ahead Election

Burutu LGA Polls: Hon. Sunny Consult Pullah, Yingi Ahead Election

Francis Tayor

Warri _______ ln his bid to serve the good people of Burutu Local Government Area, the immediate past Secretary of the Council, Hon. Prince Sunny Ebiboloukaemi Perekeme, has move his consultation visit to two distinguished former members of Delta State House of Assembly Burutu South and North Constituencies, Hon. Ebipade Pullah Ekpotuayerin and Hon. Chief Dan Yingi in order to seek for their advice and support ahead of the forthcoming Council polls.

Speaking at the visit on Tuesday in Warri, the former Council Secretary with humility passionately appeal for the support of the two influential Burutu PDP leaders, noting that he is coming to instill open door policy and transparency when given the mandate to serve.

He stated that Burutu is blessed and it needs a pragmatic, intelligent, discipline and principled fellow with working experience and foresight to transform the council infrastructurally and otherwise.

Hon. Sunny Perekeme however assured the people of Burutu that he is coming to operate all inclusive government, youth and human capital empowerment, adequate health care provision and education tops his agenda when he emerge as the next council Chairman.

Meanwhile, in their various responses, Hon. Pullah Ekpotuayerin described the visit of Sunny Perekeme as a rare privilege and honour to him, stressing that Sunny has the capacity and well qualified with amazing working experience to serve Burutu Local Government Council as Chairman.

He reiterated that Hon. Sunny Perekeme has a clean track record as former two times councillor as well as Secretary to the Local Government, noting that his candidature is a good one. He urged him to reach out to many leaders across Burutu, adding that he has his prayers and blessings to actualize his ambition.

While Hon. Dan Yingi eulogizes and admires Sunny humility, integrity and sincerity character in public service over the years, noting that he has what it takes to serve Burutu people as council Chairman.

Chief Yingi further charged Sunny to go about his peaceful consultation tour and not to be afraid of anybody that is vying for thesame position with him, adding that it is God that giveth power, hence he should be focused and commit his ambition to God Almighty alone and not human being.

Climax of the visit was offer of prayers to the incoming Chairman Burutu Local Government Council, Hon. Prince Sunny Perekeme by the two powerful leaders of PDP in Burutu.

However, among the entourage of the Sunny Perekeme campaign organization include the Director General (DG), Mr. Funpere Numupeide, Hon. Asiayei Eregu, woman leader Maureen Bolo etc.

Okoloba Community writes FG SOS, Condoles with Nigerian Army over murder of soldiers by Okuama

Okoloba Community writes FG SOS, Condoles with Nigerian Army over murder of soldiers by Okuama-Urhbo 

"WHO KILLED ARMY COMMANDER AND SOLDIERS IN DELTA COMMUNITY GUN DUEL? VANGUARD NEWSPAPER'S FALSE NARRATIVE AND OUR SOS APPEAL TO DELTA STATE AND THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT"

The attention of Okoloba Federated Community (OFC) has been drawn to a delibrate and maliciously misleading report in the Vanguard publication of 16 March, 2024 to the effect that irate Ijaw youths, in a gun duel, killed army officers and soldiers on a peace mission to Okuama, an Urhobo community falsely reported as Ijaw community in Bomadi LGA of Delta State.

First, we commiserate with the Nigeria Army and the families of the slain gallant officers who died in the line of duty. May God Almighty grant their souls eternal rest,  Amen. 

Following from the above and against the background of the Military High Command reported desire to unearth truth to guide their actions, it is pertinent to offer corrections of the deliberate distortion of facts in the report. Indeed we believe the Vanguard story is a delibrate attempt by  perpetrators of this heinous crime and cold-blooded murder of  personnel of the Nigeria Army and the Nigerian State. It is aimed to pass the blame on the rustic, peace- loving and law-abiding neighbouring Okoloba community in Bomadi LGA of Delta State, who have been at the receiving end of the extreme aggression, violence and the terror of the Okuama - Urhobo community for so long. 

Let it be made clear that, the crisis in which the JTF intervened to sue for peace is not between two Ijaw Communities in Bomadi LGA as falsely reported in Vanguard news media to give the wrong impression that Ijaw youths supposedly fighting on both sides, were the ones that killed the military personnel. Okoloba is an Ijaw community in Bomadi LGA while Okuama is a neighbouring Urhobo community in Ughelli South LGA of Delta State. The gun duel took place in Okuama Community in Ughelli South LGA, Delta State, between the soldiers  and Okuama Community youths resulting in the killing of the army personnel. 

The dispute between the two neighboring Ijaw and Urhobo communities had drawn the attention of the Delta State Government wherein the Executive Governor had intervened via the office of the Special Adviser  on Peace Building and Conflict Resolution, beckoning on all parties to maintain peace. The chronicle of the dastardly acts of Okuama-Urhobo aggression over the crisis is known to the Delta State Government and security agencies in the area. 

Despite the State Government intervention, the Urhobo-Okuama community, recently defied the peace deal by kidnapping one Anthony Aboh in his mother's farm in Okoloba community and much later killed him with the corpse thrown into River Forcados.

The kidnap-cum-murder incident was promptly reported to the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of Nigeria Police Bomadi, Military Joint Task Force (JTF), Bomadi Division, the Department of State Services (DSS) and The Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps, Bomadi. Before the latest development, Okuama-Urhobo community had killed an Okoloba Ijaw community youth, Pigha Zipamone, in similar circumstances. We as peace- loving and law- abiding citizens, reported and handed over to the police, the corpse of Pigha Zipamone abducted from our farms by the Okuama people and mercilessly killed on March 8, 2024 with his lifeless body thrown into River Forcados on March 9, 2024. The Urhobo Okuama community had severally threatened mass murder and annihilation of Okoloba Community, boasting of stockpile of arms and ammunition and recruited mercenaries from sister Ewu-Urhobo communities in Ughelli South LGA. It is also known to the already informed law enforcement agencies that the Urhobo Okuama community attacked Okoloba community on January 27, 2024. And this was also promptly reported by the Okoloba Community to the law enforcement authorities and to the state government respectively. It is against the backdrop of these constant threats and aggression against the peace-loving and law - abiding people of Okoloba-Ijaw community and the string of attacks which we had earlier reported to the constituted authorities and the state government respectively and the recent kidnapping and gruesome murder of Okoloba sons by the heartless Okuama community that compelled us to send an SOS to the security agencies to intervene, as we are a peaceful and law-abiding Community.

The JTF in Bomadi knows the difference between Okoloba, an Ijaw community in Bomadi LGA of Delta State and the neighbouring Urhobo- Okuama community in Ughelli South LGA of Delta State. It is therefore unfortunate that Vanguard newspaper, a supposedly respected media outfit, resorted to obvious and deliberate misrepresentation and falsehood in its reportage of this dastardly and evil act against the personnel of the Nigeria Army. 

We are using this medium to call on the Vanguard news media and other media organizations respectively, peddling this delibrate falsehood to immediately retract and apologize to Okoloba Community in Bomadi LGA, Delta State and the ijaw nation at large and, please stay on the path of truth. We note that the Ewu  Kingdom Monarch to which Okuama is an integral part, HRM Emmanuel Okolo, has publicly acknowledged that the killing of the army personnel happened in Okuama, a community in his Kingdom. 

We use this medium to commend the sincerity of the Governor of Delta State, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborovweri, in properly stating in his public reaction to the condemnable killing of the military personnel that occurred in Okuama, an Urhobo community in Ughelli South LGA, Delta State. We also like to thank the Delta State Governor for his untiring efforts in the recent past to make sure peace reigns in the state. 

We once again condole with the families of the courageous officers who laid down their lives for the peace of Nigeria. We however appeal to the Federal Government of Nigeria, the Delta State Government and the armed forces and other law enforcement agencies not to rest on their oars despite the horrific carnage carried out by the Urhobo people of Okuama. The aggression and carnage displayed by the Okuama people in the unprovoked attack on the peace-seeking army personnel reveals an eerie and frightening  fate that awaits the defenceless and peace-loving Okoloba Ijaw people! We beseech government to save our souls! 

Longlive Okoloba Federated Community(OFC)! 

Longlive Bomadi LGA! 

Longlive Delta State! 

Longlive the Federal Republic of Nigeria!

Mr Clement Koki,

Chairman,

Okoloba Federated Community

Cc:

1. The President & Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces,  Federal Republic of Nigeria

2.  The Executive Governor of Delta

3. The National Security Adviser(NSA)

4. The Chief of Defense Staff(CDS) 

5. The Chief  of Army Staff(COAS) 

6. The Inspector General of Police (IGP) 

5. The Department of State Security Services(DSSS)

Mulade Congratulates Otuaro on PAP Appointment, Hails President Tinubu

Mulade Congratulates Otuaro on PAP Appointment, Hails President Tinubu

The National Coordinator of the Center for Peace and Environmental Justice (CEPEJ), Chief (Comr.) Mulade Sheriff, the Ibe - Serimowei of Gbaramatu Kingdom, heartily join ranks with other Niger Deltans to congratulate Chief Dr. Dennis Burutu Otuaro on his recent appointment as the Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP) by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

It is believed that your appointment will see to the overhaul of the Amnesty programme whose operations have been ruined by embezzlement and misplaced priorities over the years. Having had the requisite knowledge and experience in the Niger Delta agitation. I believe there is no doubt that your expertise and wherewithal will pay off, especially in correcting the abnormalities of the presidential project for the benefits of the teeming youths in the region.

I use this opportunity to also call on all stakeholders in the region to support the Administrator of PAP and objectively propose viable solutions and initiatives that will help to boost and strengthen the programme, while I commend President Tinubu for selecting Chief Dr. Dennis Burutu Otuaro for the job.

Lastly, while I wish Chief Dr. Dennis Burutu Otuaro, a successful tenure in office, I also implore that the name "Amnesty" should be looked into. I believe it is time to transit from the Amnesty platform to a more subtle identity with the core aim of empowering and educating the teeming Niger Delta youths.

Signed:

Chief (Comr.) Mulade Sheriff, (The Ibe-Serimowei of Gbaramatu Kingdom)

National Coordinator, CEPEJ.

Senator Onowakpo is God Sent to Delta South, says Hon. Company

Senator Onowakpo is God Sent to Delta South, says Hon. Company

...... Calls on Delta South Constituents to support him to attract more development to the district 

Warri ______ The National Coordinator of lndependent Grassroot Liberators (IGL), a political and grassroot development odvocate pressure group in Warri South West Local Government Area of Delta State, Hon. Company Yerinbowei Felix, popularly known as Ycom and the endless ocean of Niger Delta has given credence to the senator representing Delta South Senatorial District, distinguished Sen. Joel Onowakpo Thomas (JOT) for his people oriented representation as well as attracting meaning development to the district barely a year in office.

Hon. Ycom stated this at Ogbe-ljoh Warri kingdom over the weekend during a press briefing with journalists, expressed satisfaction and confidence in senator Joel Onowakpo effective representation, especially by fulfilling his earlier promise to the people of of Ogbe-ljoh during his campaign by restoring power (electricity) to the kingdom.

He described senator Onowakpo as a detribilized servant leader following his equitable distribution of appointments as legislative aides across the major three ethnic groups he represents in Delta South.

Hon. Felix Company, who is the immediate past Councilor that represented ljelejele/Ijansan Ward in Warri South West legislative chambers further appealed to the good people of Delta South Senatorial District to exercise patience and support senator Onowakpo Joel, stressing that real dividends of democracy is yet to come as the peoples mandate is working out modalities to influence physical infrastructural developments across the various wards in the Senatorial District.

He noted that senator Onowakpo is a "Talk Na Do" servant leader who matches his words with action without compromise and fear or favour.