The Police Command in Akwa Ibom has commenced sensitisation campaign to ensure public compliance with the directive on vehicle owners to obtain third party insurance.

The Commissioner of Police in Akwa Ibom, Baba Azare, said in Uyo on Tuesday that the campaign would deepen public understanding and acceptance of the policy.

“The policy is in line with Section 68 of the Insurance Act, and Section 312 of the 1945 Motor Vehicle Third Party Insurance Act.

“It is a lawful thing to do, let us take the message to our people to obtain a third party insurance in order to avoid being caught by the law,” he said.

He said that the police in Akwa Ibom was fully ready to enforce the directive of the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun.

The police official said that the third party insurance was a compulsory legal requirement for all vehicle owners to operate their vehicles on public roads.

Azare said that the enforcement which would commence on Feb. 1, would protect road users, and promote compliance with traffic laws.

He said that any vehicle found without valid third-party insurance certificate, would be seized and taken to the nearest police station.

“Such vehicle will only be released upon the presentation of valid insurance documents,” he said.

Azare warned officers that would participate in the enforcement to avoid unprofessional conducts, particularly extortion.

Also speaking, Mr Edward Odiete, the Sector Commander, Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) in Akwa Ibom, urged vehicle owners to update their vehicle papers, especially third party insurance certificates.

“Third party insurance has been in existence for a long time. It is a necessary document that vehicle owners should have.

“We are going to collaborate with the police to enforce compliance effective Feb 1. Vehicle owners are urged to obtain the document only from genuine insurance companies,” he said.

Yobe Government and the Biomedical Research and Training Centre (BioRTC), Damaturu, will soon embark on a community-based research project to tackle the increasing cases of kidney disease in the state.

The Senior Special Assistant to Gov. Mai Mala Buni on Media and Public Engagement, Alhaji Ibrahim Baba-Saleh, disclosed this in a statement made available to newsmen in Damaturu on Tuesday.

Baba-Saleh explained that the study, led by researchers from diverse backgrounds in the centre, was intended to tackle the prevalence of the disease in the state, particularly in communities around Yobe River.

“The research brings together a diverse team of experts, including nephrologists, cardiologists, and environmental specialists, to investigate the genetic, environmental, and lifestyle associations of kidney disease.

“The project has garnered support from international partners in the UK, USA, and Ghana as well as numerous collaborators from within Nigeria,” the governor’s aide said.

He recalled that the governor had, earlier in an interaction with the centre’s visiting scholars, urged them to deepen the research on the causes of the disease in Gashua, which is worse-hit, to enable the government to find a lasting solution to the challenge.

He further stated that the Commissioner of Health, Dr Muhammad Gana, who was at a virtual meeting with the team on Monday, said that the global cooperation the research attracted underscored its significance, and potential for positive outcome.

Baba-Saleh added that BioRTC Director, Dr Mahmood Bukar, who was also at the meeting, announced that field work would commence in Gashua in the first week of February.

He further explained that Bukar, who is also the Special Adviser to Buni on Science, Technology and Innovation, argued that the team would collect samples to gain valuable insights into the causes of kidney disease in the area.

“According to previous studies, kidney disease in Yobe is linked to various factors, including hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and environmental factors, such as limited access to clean water and sanitation,” Baba-Saleh quoted the director to have said.

MAP Media Africa, a Non-Governmental Organisation, has begun training of youths in the South-West on the need for their involvement in active political participation and electoral reform in the country.

The team leader of the NGO, Mayowa Adeniran, said during that the one day training in Osogbo, it was aimed at increasing youth’s active participation in political processes and electoral reform in the country.

Adeniran, who noted that the training would cut across the six states in the South-West geopolitical zone, said that the project was to mobilise, empower and engage young people for sustainable electoral participation.

He said that the NGO was training the youth by focusing on the top five “youth election reform priorities” in the country.

According to him, the reform includes; establishment of an electoral offences commission, timely transmission of election results, interpretation and amendment of continuous registration laws, pre-election petition resolutions and INEC leadership selection process reform.

“At the end of all these, we want to see how we can increase youths participation as the 2027 general elections approaching.

“The training is to stimulate conversation around electoral reform, the use of digital media to engage and the reason for the shift in voter apathy.

“The training is also to let the youth see how their participation can reduce political violence and how they can engage their fellow youths to participate in politics,” he said.

Adeniran, who noted that the training was a regional project, said it was supported by Canada Funds for Local Initiatives (CFLI).

He also said that the youth were expected to train other youths at their various senatorial districts.

Also speaking, Mrs Bunmi Eyelade, South-West Director of programmes, Kimpact Development Initiative (KDI), an NGO, said that the training was to encourage the youth to continue to participate in electoral processes and its reform.

“We know that at this point, the young people are disillusioned about elections in country, considering what happened in 2023 general elections and thereafter.

“This training, however, is expected to encourage the young ones to see reasons why they need to take active participation in electoral processes for a positive change,” she said.

Some of the participants commended the NGO for the initiative, describing it as an eye opener.

A participant, Adetunji Ajala, Chairman of National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN) in Osun, said that the training had deepened his understanding on how things should be done in electoral processes in the country.

Ajala, who commended the NGO for identifying with the relevant youth stakeholders in the state, said that they would stepdown the training at their various senatorial districts.

Mr Aghanti Smith, the General-Secretary of Joint National Association of Persons with Disabilities in Osun, said the youth must be ready to take active participation in politics to ensure a better Nigeria.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the participants drawn from the three senatorial districts in the state were taught on importance of electoral reform advocacy, role of youth-led movements and organisations in promoting political participation, among others.