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Gov Mbah inaugurates Enugu State Security Trust Fund, projects N20bn for security

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Gov Mbah inaugurates Enugu State Security Trust Fund, projects N20bn for security
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• Appoints Ike Chioke BOT Chairman

Governor of Enugu State, Dr. Peter Mbah, Tuesday, inaugurated the Enugu State Security Trust Fund, saying it was in line with the administration’s campaign promise and efforts to build on the successes achieved in the security of lives and property in the state.

Although the enabling Law was enacted in 2020, it was not activated, hence the Mbah administration initiated vital amendments to the Law in 2023 and also executed a Deed of Trust to pave the way for the appointment and inauguration of a Board of Trustees (BOT) to bring the Trust Fund into full force.

The 11-member Board of Trustees (BOT) of the Trust Fundsis chaired by Mr. Ike Chioke, an Investment Banker and Group Managing Director of Afrinvest Trustees Limited, while Mr. Chinedu Anih was appointed the Executive Secretary.

Other members of the BOT are Mr. Nathaniel Udeh and Mr. Chris Ekemezie representing the private sector; Commissioner for Human Capital and Poverty Eradication, Dr. Malachy Agbo, and Commissioner for Culture and Toursim, Dame Ugochi Madueke, representing the state; and the State Director, Department of State Security, Mrs. Theresa Egbunu and the Garrison Commander, 82 Division, Nigerian Army, Enugu, Brig. Gen. Murtala Abu, representing the security organisations.

Others are ACP (Rtd.) Ifeanyi Nwafor; Igwe Lawrence Agubuzu representing the Chairman of Enugu State Council of Traditional Rulers as well as the Anglican Bishop of Nike Diocese, Bishop Onyeka Onyia and the Vice Chancellor of the Godfrey Okoye University, Rev. Fr. Prof. Christian Aneke, representing the religious institutions.

Gov Mbah inaugurates Enugu State Security Trust Fund, projects N20bn for security

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Mbah, who commended them for accepting to serve the state with their wealth of experience and contacts, put the state’s projected security expenditure for 2024 at N20bn, emphasising, however, that the government was counting on private sector support in regard.

He said: “The Security Trust Fund is in line with what we have expressed in our manifesto when we were seeking the mandate of our people to serve them. We promised them that Enugu will be one of the top three states in terms of GDP and of course we said it is going to happen from private sector investment; and attracting private sector investment requires that you have the enabling environment.

“This was why we immediately made certain consequential pronouncements and took emphatic steps in addressing our insecurity challenges. We set up the Distress Response Squad. We are deploying CCTV across our city, and making sure that we have a central Command and Control Centre where we can monitor all that is going on and to prevent crimes.

“We work to prevent crimes, but have also put in place adequate measures and facilities to be able to identify, track, capture and defeat the criminals involved if there is any breach of security of any kind.

“So, the inauguration of this Security Tust Fund today is going to redouble our efforts in the fight against insecurity in the state.”

On his part, the BOT Chairman, Ike Chioke, commended the Mbah administration for containing insecurity in the state, and for activating the Security Trust Fund four years after it was signed into law.

“We are witnessing something that should have happened, perhaps four years ago, when the law establishing the Enugu State Security Trust Fund was actually passed. But without the BOT, it was not possible to action it.

“However, under your leadership, we have seen the amazing work you have done in calming down issues of insecurity in our state. We are witnessing the fact that we can now move around freely on Mondays. But taking further steps of setting up the BOT of the Enugu State Security Trust Fund gives additional impetus to your commitment to make sure Enugu is safe for business and our citizens here”, he stated.

He assured that the appointees would deliver on their mandate, given the calibre of people the government had assembled.

“The objective is first and foremost fundraising. I have my background in financing, financial markets, and capital markets. I have been doing investment banking since 1991. That makes it 33 years of capital raising and with all due modesty with everything I have done in that period, probably over a trillion-naira capital and people with strong credentials we have, I have no doubt that we will meet our people’s expectation.”

Meanwhile, by the provisions of the Enugu State Security Trust Fund Law (as amended in 2023), the Trust Fund has the mandate to source for fund for the acquisition and deployment of security equipment and to carry out other activities of the Fund; act as an intervention agency to all security agencies operating within the State; provide money for the acquisition and deployment of security equipment and such human, material, and financial resources as shall be necessary to prevent crime and preserve public security in the State; promote the efficiency of all security organisations in the State; hold for the benefit of all residents of the State gifts, property, and money; acquire and deploy security equipment and such other resources as shall be necessary for achieving the objectives of the fund; and ensure that every stakeholder joins hand with the government in funding security operations within the State.

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Enugu Lawyer rejects paternity claim after DNA Test results

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A legal practitioner, Barrister Chinedu Ifeanyi Iloeje, has publicly declared that a man previously believed to be his son is not biologically related to him, following the outcome of a DNA test.

In a public notice published in a newspaper, Iloeje stated that he was allegedly misled by the man’s mother into believing that the individual, identified as Chinedu Francis Iloeje, was his biological son.

According to the notice, DNA testing conducted on the matter established “beyond any doubt” that the man is not his son.

The lawyer further clarified that he never legally adopted the individual, despite the latter bearing the name Chinedu Francis Iloeje.

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Barrister Iloeje explained that the man’s original name is Chinedu Francis Onwualu and stressed that he has no legal or biological relationship with him.

The notice also informed members of the public, the Greater Iloeje Family, the Umuodu Village Union, Uwani Amokwe Town Union, St. Theresa’s Catholic Church Amokwe, Udi Local Government Council, and other stakeholders of his declaration.

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He stated that the disclaimer was made in good faith and while of sound mind, urging the public to take note of the clarification.

The publication has sparked discussions on paternity disputes and the increasing reliance on DNA testing to resolve questions of biological parentage.

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Obi donates N10 million to burnt hospital in Enugu

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Mr Peter Obi presenting a cheque of 10 Million Naira to assist in the renovation of the burnt Mother of Christ Specialist Hospital, Enugu State.
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Presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) in the forthcoming 2027 general election, Mr. Peter Obi, has donated N10 million to assist in the renovation of the burnt Mother of Christ Specialist Hospital, Enugu State.

The former Anambra State governor handed over the cheque for the donation to the hospital management team when he visited the hospital yesterday.

The hospital belongs to the Reverend Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of the Catholic Church.

Mr Peter Obi inspecting the burnt hospital

Addressing the hospital management team after inspecting parts of the burnt hospital, the NDC presidential candidate commended them for their efforts in contributing to healthcare delivery services.

Telling them that even though they might feel that they were not being appreciated for what they were doing, Obi, however, described healthcare delivery services and education as among the “most critical needs of society” and urged them not to relent in what they were doing.

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Accompanied during the visit by his Chief of Staff, Commissioner for Housing, as well as Special Adviser on Media when he was Anambra State governor, Prof. Stella Okunna, Prof. Patrick Obi, and Dr. Valentine Obienyem respectively, Obi assured the hospital management team that he would continue to support them.

Part of the hospital gutted by the inferno and inspected by Obi was the Children’s Ward.

Expressing gratitude on behalf of the hospital management, the Chief Medical Director of Immaculate Heart Hospital, Nkpor, Anambra State, Rev. Sister Dr. Maria Nkiruka Okafor, eulogised Obi for his sacrifices and selfless contributions to humanity.

Disclosing that Obi had already credited the hospital’s accountant with the N10 million donation and that he was even the person who called her to inform her that he had received the sad news of the inferno and promised to donate towards the renovation, Rev. Sister Okafor described him as a rare politician.

She prayed that God would grant him his ambition to become President of the country and enable him to achieve his desire to transform it.

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FG, Enugu State target direct China-Enugu Cargo flights by December – Keyamo

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Aviation Minister, Festus Keyamo
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The Federal Government and Enugu State Government are in talks to ensure the commencement of direct cargo flight operations between Enugu and Guangzhou, China, before the end of the year.

The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Barr Festus Keyamo, disclosed this in Lagos during the launch of the United Air’s newly acquired airplanes on Thursday.

The Minister added said the FG had affected a structural management overhaul at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, also bringing the airport under a privately run operational framework.

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“One of our prides in the South is the Enugu International Airport. The Enugu governor approached Mr. President, noting that the airport was not maximising its economic potential under standard bureaucratic structures, and requested to bring in private investors to run it. Mr. President gave the green light.

“As I speak with you, Enugu is now fully privately owned and fully supported by state government, with the clear objective of also turning it into a dedicated cargo hub for the entire Southeast.”

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To this effect, therefore, Keyamo said that a high-level bilateral trade negotiations were ongoing with a view to securing direct logistics flights between China and the Southeast by the end of 2026.

“Just two days ago, the Enugu governor and I were actively negotiating the first direct cargo flight from Guangzhou, China, straight into Enugu.

“We are targeting December for the maiden flight. This will allow our Southeast merchants and traders in China to consolidate their goods into unified cargo accounts twice a week, flying straight into Enugu for seamless delivery to hubs like Onitsha and Aba,” he concluded.

It is recalled that Governor Mbah had in July 2025 launched Enugu Air, a state-owned airline, as part of the administration’s integrated blueprint for a modern, multimodal transport ecosystem and the vision to make Enugu a major aviation and logistics hub.

Since then, Enugu Air has grown its fleet from three at inception to six planes with plans to further increase it as it prepares to commence operations to regional destinations like Accra, Libreville, Abidjan in next few months and long haul flight operations to various destinations around the world by the end of the year.

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