The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Ondo State Council, has resolved to name the biggest hall at the NUJ Press Centre, Alagbaka, Akure, after the Minister of Youth Development, Comrade Ayodele Wisdom Olawande, in recognition of his contributions to the upgrading of facilities at the secretariat.

The resolution was part of a communiqué issued at the end of the union’s monthly congress held on Thursday at the NUJ Press Centre, Alagbaka, Akure, and presided over by the State Chairman, Prince Leke Adegbite.

The Congress also applauded Governor Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa and the Ondo State House of Assembly for the timely enactment of the law incorporating Owena Press, publishers of The Hope newspaper, following sustained advocacy by the NUJ.

It, however, urged the State Commissioner for Information, Hon. Idowu Ajanaku, and the Head of Service, Chief Segun Odusanya, to ensure the immediate implementation of the law establishing the Ondo State Government Printing and Publishing Corporation to achieve its intended objectives.

On the federal media sector, the union called on the Federal Government to urgently address manpower shortages in the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN) and the Voice of Nigeria (VON), stressing that adequate staffing and funding are critical to effective public service broadcasting.

The Congress also commended the national leadership of the NUJ under Comrade Alhassan Yahya for organising a National Security Summit in collaboration with the Department of State Services (DSS), urging the authorities to implement the summit’s recommendations to tackle insecurity.

On infrastructure, the journalists praised the Aiyedatiwa administration for commencing the construction of the flyover on Oba Adesida Road, Akure, while urging the government and the contractor to ensure its completion within schedule.

The union also called for the removal of illegal parking, particularly by commercial tricycle and motorcycle operators, along Arakale Road to ease traffic congestion arising from the ongoing flyover construction.

It further appealed to the state government to expedite ongoing road projects across the state and expressed concern over the slow pace of work on the Akure-Owo-Benin dualisation project, especially along the Akure/Ogbese axis, urging the contractor to improve traffic management and complete one carriageway before commencing work on the other.

The Congress equally decried the increasing rate of road accidents caused by traffic light violations within Akure metropolis and urged the Ministry of Transport and relevant law enforcement agencies to enforce traffic regulations and sanction offenders.

The union also expressed concern over the influx of unidentified persons posing as beggars and mentally unstable individuals in Akure and other parts of the state, describing the development as a potential security threat and calling for heightened surveillance by security agencies.

On environmental sanitation, the Congress lamented the deteriorating waste management system in the state, urging the government to provide additional waste disposal equipment, operational vehicles and recruit more personnel to improve refuse collection.

The journalists also commended the peaceful conduct of the Ondo South Senatorial bye-election by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and other stakeholders, congratulating Senator (Prof.) Adedayo Faduyile on his victory and assumption of office.

The resolutions were contained in a communiqué issued at the end of the Congress.

STATE HOUSE PRESS RELEASE

Commissions massive 194-kilometre water supply network linking Karu, Orozo, Jikwoyi, Kurudu, others

A ray of hope beamed on residents of Abuja satellite towns, Monday, as President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu declared that the era of neglecting suburbs of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) is over under his administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

He said the Renewed Hope Agenda is his administration’s sacred covenant with the Nigerian people, recalling that he had promised that governance would no longer be a theoretical exercise confined to the boardrooms of city centres while residents in the periphery thirsted for basic amenities.

Speaking in Kurudu, Abuja, when he officially commissioned the massive Water Supply Network linking Karu, Orozo, Jikwoyi, Kurudu and other adjourning satellite towns, the President, who was represented by his deputy, Vice President Kashim Shettima, said he “promised a government that listens, a government that plans, and, crucially, a government that delivers.”

The Nigerian leader expressed a deep sense of fulfilment and gratitude to God, noting that the massive Water Supply Network is a fulfilment of that promise.

“We are here not just to cut a ribbon, but to breathe life into a fundamental human right that has eluded this bustling community for far too long. Today, we declare that the era of neglect for our satellite towns is officially over,” he stated.

President Tinubu recalled that just about a year ago, when his administration commissioned the Greater Abuja Water Supply Project, he stood before the nation and gave a clear directive.

“The metropolitan loops must not end in the elite districts. They must stretch. They must expand into our satellite towns, where the heartbeat of Abuja’s working-class population truly resides,” he recalled

He said when the FCT Minister, Ezenwo Nyesom Wike, brought the proposal for the Karu Water Supply Project, he did not hesitate, adding that his administration knew that water is life, and that denying people clean water amounts to denying them health, dignity, and economic progress.

To demonstrate the administration’s unwavering commitment, the President said the government did not allow the traditional shackles of bureaucratic delay to obstruct funding, as payments were approved on time and the contractor, CGC Nigeria Limited, delivered promptly.

“And today, we are commissioning over 194 kilometres of secondary and tertiary pipeline networks, bringing treated, safe, and potable water directly to the doorsteps of Karu, Orozo, Jikwoyi, Kurudu, and surrounding communities,” he stated.

President Tinubu commended the FCT Minister for delivering, stressing that leadership is not measured by the eloquence of television commentary or the bitterness of empty rhetoric, but by its tangible and verifiable impact on the lives of ordinary citizens.

“Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, what we are witnessing in the FCT today—across transport, healthcare, education, housing, roads, and now massive water infrastructure—is a testament to what happens when vision meets executive capacity. Thank you, ‘Mr Projects,’ for your leadership,” he said.

The Nigerian leader regretted that for decades, while residents of Karu watched their community grow into a thriving and teeming population, they were left to depend on unsafe boreholes and water vendors.

He added, however, that previous administrations left promises in their wake, even as he said his administration “does not trade in promises” but results.

Charging the people of Karu, Jikwoyi and other surrounding communities on infrastructure maintenance, the President said, “This infrastructure belongs to you. It was built with your commonwealth and designed for your well-being.

“I therefore urge you to safeguard these installations against vandalism and illegal connections. Do not look the other way if unscrupulous elements try to compromise what has taken years of effort and resources to deliver. Treat this water as the precious resource that it is.”

President Tinubu announced that the government was replicating the interventions in Bwari and other Area Councils, even as he assured residents that the government’s commitment to urban renewal and rural integration remains absolute.

Earlier, the FCT Minister, Wike, said the FCT Administration was immensely grateful to the President for the support he has given for the execution of people-oriented projects across the nation’s capital, including the satellite towns.

He said the completion of the water project was part of the presidential directive for the FCT administration to extend the provision of critical infrastructure to the satellite towns across the capital territory.

The Minister also reiterated the commitment of the Tinubu administration through the FCT management, in delivering projects and programmes that will uplift the lives and livelihoods of residents of the territory.

For her part, the Minister of State, FCT, Dr. Mariya Bunkure, thanked the President and the Vice President for his untiring efforts in supporting the work of transforming the infrastructure landscape in the FCT and beyond.

In an overview of the project, the Executive Secretary of FCDA, Engr Richard Yunana Dauda, said the FCT administration had the wellbeing and interest of the residents of Karu and environs at the conception of the water project, which utilised the existing reservior tank in the area, while the distribution facilities conncets over 1,000 distribution lines to service the satellite town and adjourning communities.

He thanked President Tinubu for the support in the completion of the project which, according to him, marks a significant advancement in the provision of potable water to Karu, Jikwoyi, Kurudu and adjourning communities in the area.

Stanley Nkwocha
Senior Special Assistant to The Prdent on Media & Communications
(Office of The Vice President)
22nd June, 2026