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THE JIMOH IJEGBAI, I KNOW, AND THE TRUTH HE TOLD US

Published

1 year ago

August 23, 2023

By Osakwe Aibuedefe Akugbe

Ordinarily, Hon. Jimoh Ijegbai would have passed for an honest and stable man, but his recent utterances and actions, claiming to be one of the Edo North Leaders, have left so much to be desired in a man who, on his own, had accused the Governor of Edo state of corruption and today is seen as one of the hailers of the same man.

Jimoh Ijegbai, before he worked with the Governor, was the chairman of Owan East Local Government before he was appointed to serve as commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy affairs in the first tenure of Governor Godwin Obaseki’s administration, and later, he became the Commissioner for Education in the same administration.

Hon Jimoh Ijegbai was suddenly relieved from the Edo state EXCO as a commissioner in what was made to appear as a minor cabinet reshuffle. This action by the Governor did not go well with Mr. Ijegbai, who vehemently relayed his unpalatable experience with Gov. Godwin Obaseki. According to Ijegbai, the Governor of being unfair to him with his removal as a commissioner of education after he had coughed out the sum of Three Hundred and Fifty Million Naira (N350million) from the Ministry of Education as a donation to Governor Godwin Obaseki’s second term election in 2020.

Ijegbai had lamented that despite his benevolence, the most arrogant, wicked, and ungrateful thing Governor Obaseki could reward him with was his removal from office and the subsequent deployment of Dr. Joan Oviawe, a close ally of the Governor to oversee the Ministry because the Governor needed someone else to help him monitor the diversion of the donor funds coming into the Ministry.

Jimoh Ijegbai further alleged that Dr. Joan, whom he suspected to be having romantic affairs with Obaseki, prevented him as commissioner from nominating the SUBEB secretary from the Ministry, which has always been the norm, and boastfully stated that he would petition the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to investigate Governor Obaseki and Dr. Joan’s fraudulent activities at SUBEB after his tenure as the Governor of the State.

So far, investigation reveals that the worst and most appalling issue is the fact that the Edo State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), which was previously managed by Dr. Joan Oviawe, still deliberately owe a lot of her contractors to date and vowed never to pay the contractors for reasons best known to the Governor and Dr. Oviawe.

SUBEB, which operates under a counterpart fund jointly financed by the Universal Basic Education Board and the different state governments, is supposed to have the funds readily available in an account before jobs are awarded, but in the case of Edo State, the funds cannot be accounted for hence the delay in the payment of the contractors.

While we have been able to track the details of all transactions and the personal conversations, we await the response of Jimoh Ijegbai, the former commissioner, as we dig further into the Seventy-Five Million Dollar ($75m) scandal currently rocking the Ministry of Education and how the funds are currently being diverted.

After a forensic audit, we shall invite the EFCC to check the records of the Ministry and SUBEB to see the financial mess perpetrated by Ijegbai during his tenure as a commissioner of education and those who conspired with him.

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RMRDC: Making Giant Strides Under Prof. Nnanyelugo Martins Ike-Muonso

Published

6 hours ago

September 19, 2024

The Gleamer

By Joel Ajayi

As we embark on a journey, we always pray for an able, experienced, and courageous driver, pilot, or sailor depending on the means of transportation.

This is because the captain will have enough experience and boldness to navigate out of turbulence and to bring all the passengers and crew to the intended destination.

Interestingly, these fine qualities of ability, experience, boldness, and many more, abound in the man, Prof. Nnanyelugo Martins Ike-Muonso, who we all are pleased was appointed the Raw Materials Research and Development Council, RMRDC, the Director General/CEO by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu a few months ago. This is because he has brought his knowledge, ability, experience, and doggedness to bear in carrying out his assignment in charge of the Council.

The RMRDC, operating under the Federal Ministry of Innovation, Science, and Technology, is pivotal in driving Nigeria’s industrial growth by optimizing local raw materials exploitation, development, and utilization. RMRDC, ab initio, was conceived as a child of necessity when Nigeria was reeling from the throes of global recession and plummeting crude oil prices.

Without an iota of doubt, today, the council is experiencing a transformation with massive innovation in raw material exploitation, development, and utilization, supporting business and industrial growth, and contributing to Nigeria’s economic prosperity.

Speaking during a press briefing on Tuesday, in Abuja to commemorate his 100 days in office, he said the council is laying a solid foundation through numerous innovations that will further enhance growth in the country.

According to him, “In the past 100 days, my strategic pursuits have been to lay solid foundations for enduring success in these goals.

“Upon assuming this position, I set five crucial deliverables which include, refocusing the Council as a premier research institution; Strengthening the Council’s productivity and operational efficiency; and Significantly improving the staff welfare to be the best in the class of similar organizations.

“Others include, Boosting the Council’s visibility and instituting remarkable culture change that encourages ownership and productivity as well as Strengthening and deepening the Council’s place in the international arena.”While speaking on his Achievements so far, the DG revealed further: “My first task, therefore, was to implement a strategic goal-setting for the Council’s staff to define and set out clear objectives and targets to be achieved by the Council within a specified period towards refocusing on this historical mandate. We unleashed five significant initiatives in that regard.

“The nationwide raw material data collection exercise that focused on technical and investment information to drive our mission forward.

“The restructuring and renaming of the former Technology Innovation Complex (TIC), at the Obasanjo Space Center at Airport Road, Abuja, to a Research and Demonstration Plants Complex (RDPC). This complex will be Africa’s first center of excellence in raw material research, featuring state-of-the-art laboratories, technology development workshops, and proof of concept demonstrations.

“We have reactivated the Council’s Journal and repositioned it internationally. The repositioned Journal of Raw Material Research (JORMAR) will host RMRDC’s researchers’ publications, which are crucial in promoting awareness, facilitating knowledge sharing, and informing stakeholders about the opportunities and challenges in Nigeria’s raw materials sector. “The collaboration with universities and academies will strengthen our capacity for conducting market-guided research, ensuring sustained workforce training while deepening our orientation in science.

“The council has reformulated a new template for all our research proposals to ensure and sustain a clear departure from the old culture of blue-sky and deliberately endless research.”Speaking further, Prof Nwanyelugo Martins Ike-Muonso stated that Staff welfare remains a top priority as an issue of unpaid salaries is settled as well as set up a comprehensive welfare program. “Similarly, we established the RMRDC Training School to sustainably build our staff and stakeholders’ capacity to further the staff welfare improvement goal.

“We are committed to openness, inclusiveness, and performance management and have initiated steps to continuously improve staff ownership, orchestrate transformative culture change, boost our corporate visibility, and enhance.

“To further strengthen our visibility and communication strategies, we are upgrading our media infrastructure, which includes the launch of the RMRDC online media platform, The RMRDC TV Online.

“Additionally, we are working hard to effectively enhance the intellectual property and patent portfolio of RMRDC from its current 40 to approximately 200 new patents within the next 24 months. This proactive approach secures valuable IP assets and positions the Council as a leader in innovation within the raw materials sector, contributing to Nigeria’s overall economic growth.“As well as launching an e-registration and certification portal to enhance transparency in the raw materials sector,” DG revealed.

He however reaffirmed his commitment to reshape the future of research, technology, and innovation, driving Nigeria towards an industrially vibrant and technologically resilient economy.

“As I mark 100 days in office, I boldly say that the Council is on the verge of rewriting its history.

“I believe that in no distant future, RMRDC will play a leading role in enhancing raw materials’ development to boost raw materials’ industrial trial processing and attain sustainable industrial growth in Nigeria.

The DG, however, applauded the Minister of Innovation, Science, and Technology, Chief Uche Geoffrey Nnaji, for his unwavering support and mentorship, saying the Minister’s leadership has been instrumental in the progress made so far.

In his opening remarks, the Directorate of Corporate Affairs, Mr Chucks Ngaha commended the hard-working DG who has weathered the storm further to put the Council on the ladder of more prosperity.

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