General News
We’re repositioning NPA for efficiency, safety – MD
The Acting Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Mr Mohammed Bello-Koko, has pledged management’s determination to reposition the nation’s seaports for greater efficiency, safety and accountability.
Bello-Koko made the pledge in a statement signed by Mr Olaseni Alakija, General Manager Corporate and Strategic Communications, on Monday in Lagos.
The Acting MD, while speaking at the just-concluded strategic retreat organised for NPA top management, said that the organisation was currently poised to creating and sustaining competitive advantage by offering its best in port operations.
The statement said that the retreat was designed to allow management staff to strategise and come up with “smart actionable steps“.
This, according to Bello-Koko, is with the view to ensuring growth, competitiveness and future readiness of the nation’s seaport systems.
“As part of efforts to position the agency towards greater efficiency, safety and accountability, the management has outlined factors that will enhance such prospects, as well as the capacity to garner greater market share.
“This will include infrastructural renewal and expansion, the introduction of barge operations, automation of truck transit through the electronic call up system and improvement in the sources of revenue and collection.
“Others include plugging income leakages and reducing overhead costs, elimination of monopolistic conduct, formulation and implementation of policies aimed to incentivise patronage of the Eastern Ports and encouraging competition,” he said.
Bello-Koko said that management was also keeping up with the dictates of Consolidated Revenue Fund and Fiscal Responsibility Act, compliance with international best practices, elimination of red tape, boosting workers’ morale and capacity building, among others.
He disclosed that these initiatives had laid the groundwork for some milestones with great potential for more as some of the reforms continue to transform into success evidenced by improved cargo throughput and revenue growth.
“Because excellence is a moving target, we cannot afford to rest on our laurels, we must redouble our commitment to continuous improvement as an organisational culture.
“Surpassing internal and external stakeholders’ expectations, which constitute a cardinal objective of this management, will require your unalloyed support as heads of directorates, divisions, locations, departments, port sections and units.
Bello-Koko said he expected that the retreat would churn out specific, realistic, measurable, achievable and time-bound goals and objectives by which NPA would be benchmarking itself in the next five years.
He said that the last time an event of this magnitude was held to chart a new direction for NPA was over a decade ago where the organisation’s present vision, mission and core values were crafted.
“We must, therefore, go beyond rhetoric to churn out implementable strategies aimed at making us equal to the exigencies of the very competitive edge and sector that we operate in,” he said.
Bello Koko pointed out that the disruptions caused by the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic present a learning curve, especially for organisations such as NPA that operate in a sector that was global in scope to be constantly ready for dynamics in the form of increasing competition and innovation.
“Improving the turnaround time of vessels and reducing cargo dwell time is critical to attracting more vessels to our seaports.
“Optimising the business opportunities that the landlocked countries with whom we share borders presents a critical success factor in actualising our growth projections.
“The need to attract larger vessels and maximally benefit from the economies of scale that come with them show that the ongoing efforts to have deep seaports in Lekki, Badagry and Akwa Ibom, among others, are steps in the right direction,” he said.
He noted that in the meantime, NPA is constantly scaling up its responsibility of dredging the country’s channels to safely berth vessels of reasonable sizes whilst encouraging the use of flat bottom vessels (FBV) in areas of low draught.
He said that the current management would leave no stone unturned in its commitment in implementing the outcome of the retreat.
A highpoint of the event was the presentation of awards of excellence by Renner & Renner, in which the MD was honoured with the visionary leadership award.
The Executive Director Engineering, Prof. Idris Abubakar, was also honoured with the exemplary leadership award. (NAN)
General News
Clergy Urged To Put Members’ Welfare Above All Else
At a solemn ordination service in Abuja, senior church leaders have called on pastors to make the well-being of their congregations a top priority, following the example of Jesus Christ.
Speaking during the priesthood ordination and installation of a Sub Dean at the Cathedral Church of Advent, Life Camp, Abuja, the retired Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Okene, Rt. Rev. Emmanuel Ajulo, described pastors as shepherds charged with the care of their flock. He urged them to shun worldly distractions and focus on meeting the spiritual and material needs of their members.
Bishop Ajulo also encouraged the newly ordained priests to remain faithful to their calling by teaching God’s word without compromise.
In his charge, the Primate of the Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion, Most Rev. Henry Ndukuba, urged the new clergy to preach the undiluted gospel and foster religious harmony wherever they serve. He expressed confidence that their new roles would help promote peace and unity in society.
The service also featured prayers for national leaders and divine intervention in addressing the current global economic challenges.
General News
1,000 Prayer Warriors Storm Ilorin for Tinubu, Nation’s Deliverance
In a dramatic show of faith and patriotism, over 1,000 fiery prayer warriors from across Nigeria will descend on Ilorin, Kwara State, this Saturday, lifting their voices in intense intercession for President Bola Tinubu’s success and Nigeria’s survival in the face of biting economic woes and mounting insecurity.
The spiritual siege, themed “Walking in Domini”, is the maiden convention of the Organisation of African Instituted Churches (OAIC), with its Kwara State Chairman, Evangelist Thomas Adeboye, vowing that “heaven will hear and respond to Nigeria’s cry.”
Aside from marathon prayers, the gathering will roll out free medical outreach to locals across Kwara’s LGAs, a gesture aimed at touching both body and soul.
Adeboye, lamenting Nigeria’s “troubling economic and security realities”, called for a nationwide prayer uprising, insisting that Tinubu has shown the will to revive the nation but needs massive divine backing to succeed.
“Banditry, a collapsing economy, and political tension demand we seek God’s face like never before,” he declared. “We will storm heaven for wisdom for the President and governors to steer Nigeria to safety.”
The convention will also feature awards to distinguished personalities, soul-lifting worship, fiery sermons, and unity-driven lectures—all capped with thunderous prayers for Nigeria’s redemption.
Adeboye urged the President to ensure every policy has “a human face,” stressing that Nigerians must not only endure but also enjoy the fruits of governance.
With the OAIC promising to reaffirm believers’ authority in Christ and rally spiritual boldness in the face of national challenges, Ilorin is set to become the epicentre of a powerful spiritual warfare for Nigeria’s destiny.
General News
Nigerian Anglicans Condemn Lesbian Archbishop of Wales, Deepening Global Anglican Rift
…Church leaders accuse Welsh counterparts of “spiritual decadence” and “abandonment of faith”
The Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) has issued a forceful condemnation of the election of Rt. Rev. Cherry Vann, an openly lesbian cleric, as the Archbishop of Wales. The move is the latest in a series of developments that have deepened divisions within the global Anglican Communion over sexuality and doctrine.
In a statement from Primate The Most Rev’d Henry Ndukuba, the church denounced the election as a “serious departure from biblical teaching” and a sign of “spiritual decadence” and “an outright abandonment of the faith once delivered to the saints.”
Archbishop Ndukuba warned that Bishop Vann’s elevation compromises the Anglican Church’s global mission and could obstruct evangelism. He compared the situation to the controversial tenure of Most Rev. Katherine Jefferts Schori, former Presiding Bishop of the U.S. Episcopal Church, who also faced intense criticism from conservative Anglicans for her progressive views.
The Primate accused Bishop Vann of being complicit in the “ongoing crisis” around same-sex issues, stating that the election is a “clear revelation that many who claim to be members of the body of Christ cannot endure sound doctrine” (2 Timothy 4:3–4).
The Church of Nigeria called on Anglicans worldwide to reject “rebels” and “apostates” and to instead support conservative bodies like the Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON).
“The Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) condemns, unequivocally rejects, and will not recognize the election of Rt. Rev. Cherry Vann as Archbishop of Wales,” Ndukuba declared. He concluded with a solemn warning that without repentance, the Church in Wales risks losing “complete relevance” and its leaders will face judgment.
