Our Reporter 

Delta State Governor, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori, has charged judges in the state to dispense justice without fear or favour, assuring them of his administration’s commitment to judicial independence, improved welfare and efficient justice delivery.

Oborevwori gave the charge on Tuesday when he received judges of the state judiciary led by the Chief Judge, Justice Theresa Diai, at Government House, Asaba, as part of activities marking the 2026/2027 legal year.

He urged the judges to remain impartial, stressing that; “nobody is above the law, and we will not allow anybody to take the law into his or her  hands. I encourage you to do your work without fear or favour. Do the right thing; it is not about the government or any individual,” he said.

The governor urged the judges to handle cases involving kidnapping, armed robbery and murder with the seriousness they deserved, noting that effective justice delivery was critical to sustaining peace and security in the state.

On judicial welfare, Oborevwori said his administration was constructing five judges’ quarters in Warri and another five in Asaba, assuring that the projects would be completed by the end of the first quarter of 2027.

He also pledged continued support for the training of judges and the provision of modern court equipment, including stenographic machines for the verbatim recording of court proceedings.

The governor further approved requests for improved security and additional solar power installations in courts across the state to protect judicial facilities and ensure the effective operation of digital court equipment.

Earlier, Justice Diai commended the governor for improvements in judicial training, information and communications technology, and court infrastructure, including the renovation of High Courts, magistrate courts and customary courts.

She disclosed that 20 judges had been sponsored for overseas training, while equipment for electronic filing and virtual hearings had been deployed to the High Courts.

However, the Chief Judge appealed for adequate security at court facilities and additional solar power installations in judicial divisions where existing units were insufficient. 

Justice Diai expressed appreciation for the administration’s support and called for sustained collaboration to strengthen the judiciary and improve justice delivery in Delta State.

Fidelis Olufemi 

Oyo State government has put a lie to an alleged claim by the Senator Sharafadeen Alli Campaign Organisation (SSACO) that the state government failed to invest in the health sector, leading to outbreak of diphtheria in the state.

Special Adviser (Media) to the Governor of Oyo State, Dr Sulaimon Olanrewaju, in a statement on Tuesday, said there was no case of the disease in the state.

“The Oyo State government wishes to make it unequivocally clear that there is currently no confirmed case of diphtheria in Oyo State. This fact stands in stark contrast to the dangerous misinformation being circulated by the Senator Sharafadeen Alli Campaign Organisation (SSACO), whose latest statement attempts to manufacture a public health crisis where none exists. 

“By peddling exaggerated outbreak claims and distorting immunisation data, SSACO has, once again, demonstrated a troubling willingness to spin falsehoods for political advantage, even at the expense of public safety.

“According to surveillance information provided by the Honourable Commissioner for Health, Dr. Oluwaserimi Ajetunmobi, SSACO’s claim that diphtheria is affecting ‘several local government areas’ across Oyo State is entirely false. 

“SSACO listed 16 LGAs as affected, including Atisbo, Ibadan North West, Oyo West, Akinyele, Saki, Egbeda, Oriire, Ibadan North, Ibadan South West, Iwajowa, Ona Ara, Atiba, Lagelu, Ogbomosho North, Surulere and Oluyole. 

“However, official figures from the Ministry of Health’s Diphtheria Outbreak Surveillance Update (Epidemiological Week 40, 2026) show suspected cases in only 10 LGAs, and none has been confirmed. 

“SSACO’s inflated geography is a fabrication capable of causing needless public anxiety. The government notes, with concern, SSACO’s growing propensity for deploying lies and misinformation in pursuit of political traction. Its latest claims follow a familiar pattern in which public health matters are distorted, data are cherry picked, and fear is manufactured to score political points. 

“This behaviour is reckless, unbecoming of any organisation that claims to serve the public, and wholly unacceptable in matters as sensitive as disease surveillance and childhood immunisation.

“Dr. Ajetunmobi further explained that, despite the absence of confirmed cases, the ministry has taken all necessary preparedness and response measures. The Public Health Emergency Operations Centre has procured antibiotic supplies and requested buffer stock of diphtheria antitoxin (DAT). 

“Rapid response teams have been activated promptly for suspected cases in line with the 7 1 7 framework, and suspected cases have been isolated and treated at the Infectious Disease Centre, Olodo, using DAT and appropriate antibiotics. These steps reflect a government that takes public health seriously and acts proactively to protect its people.

“Equally misleading is SSACO’s claim that Oyo State ranks at the bottom of South-West childhood immunisation coverage. SSACO asserted that Oyo moved from 51.3 per cent in the 2024 NDHS to 55.0 per cent in the 2025–26 survey and, therefore, ranks last in the region. 

“This claim is false. Verified NmDHS 2025–26 data show that Oyo State’s basic antigen coverage is at the South-West average, while its national schedule coverage exceeds the zonal average. For children aged 24–35 months, Oyo’s full national schedule coverage is above the South-West average. 

“SSACO’s figures are invented, and the official data completely dismantle the ‘bottom of the region’ narrative.

“The government also notes SSACO’s attempt to portray Oyo State’s participation in the Immunisation Plus component of the IMPACT Project as evidence of failure. This is misleading. Participation in IMPACT is a fact, not an indictment. 

“SSACO’s own text describes a multi component project, yet it sets cumulative receipts against a single immunisation indicator in a manner that is analytically unsound. The funds received under IMPACT are not free money, and the government has used them strictly for their intended purposes. 

“If SSACO alleges mismanagement, it must specify what, where, and how, and present evidence, rather than juxtapose unrelated figures with unverified outbreak claims. Regarding SSACO’s demand for publication of IMPACT reports, the government reiterates that IMPACT financial and implementation reporting follows the project’s established audit and disclosure framework. 

“The Ministry of Health welcomes scrutiny through appropriate channels, including the audit process. Scrutiny is legitimate; using an unverified outbreak as a stage for political messaging is not.

“In the end, the facts speak for themselves: There is no confirmed diphtheria case in Oyo State, the LGAs listed by SSACO are not supported by surveillance data, and the immunisation figures it circulated collapse under the weight of verified national statistics. “What SSACO has chosen to do; turning an unverified outbreak into a political tool, inflate geography, and manufacture rankings, is reckless and deeply irresponsible. Oyo State will continue to respond to every suspected case with urgency, protect every child through vaccination, and publish only accurate, evidence based information. 

“What the government will not do is allow public health matters to be twisted into instruments of political fear. The people of Oyo State deserve clarity, not concoctions; facts, not fabrications. The truth is clear, the response is active, and the falsehoods have been exposed,” Olanrewaju said.

**”Unions demand full implementation

By Nkem Okereh 

Determined to end the series of strike embarked by the different Labour unions in the nation’s tertiary Institutions, the federal government, on Tuesday, unveiled renegotiated and agreed on an improved staff welfare and industrial harmony

Unveiling the fresh agreement at  a ceremony which brought together government officials, institutional managers and representatives of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU), Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU), Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP) and Colleges of Education Academic Staff Union (COEASU), the Chairman of the Federal Government Tertiary Institutions Expanded Negotiation Committee, Alhaji Yayale Ahmed, attributed the progress made to dialogue, mutual respect, empathy and compromise, saying he deliberately avoided treating negotiations as a contest between government and unions.

“I decided that I should not see myself, nor should our team see itself, as we versus the unions,” Ahmed said, explaining that he sought to understand the concerns of workers while helping union leaders appreciate government’s constraints.

He commended the union representatives for defending their members’ interests while recognising the government’s position, adding that the agreements marked the beginning, rather than the end, of the process.

This is even as the tertiary education unions leaders have emphasised on the need to fully implement the agreement  as well as outstanding provisions and payment of arrears.

Yayale Ahmed, a former Secretary of the Government of the Federation (SGF), Ahmed stressed that implementation must follow the provisions agreed upon, warning that the gains of negotiation could be undermined if commitments were not honoured.

In his remarks, the Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, said the administration of President Bola Tinubu was committed to improving staff welfare and ensuring more dependable academic calendars.

He disclosed that the government planned to expand the existing Implementation and Monitoring Committee for ASUU into a single committee responsible for monitoring agreements with academic and non-academic unions across tertiary institutions.

The Minister, who urged union leaders to use the agreed channels to address grievances instead of rushing to the media with threats of industrial action, further disclosed that the agreement provided for a review every three years, thus allowing both parties to revisit emerging issues through dialogue.

However, representative of the unions jointly stressed that the success of the exercise would depend on the government’s willingness to implement the agreements fully.

They also raised concerns over outstanding obligations, including unpaid 35 per cent wage award arrears and two months’ withheld salaries for members of the two unions. The representative said the unions were also awaiting full implementation of their 2026 agreement.

While acknowledging progress on payments and arrears, the representative said some non-financial provisions remained outstanding and urged the government to complete implementation before the end of 2026.