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Author Topic: Jonathan, wife to host Ijaw students in Abuja  (Read 2241 times)

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Jonathan, wife to host Ijaw students in Abuja
« on: November 24, 2009, 06:22:17 AM »
By Azu Akanwa
Vice President Goodluck Jonathan and his wife Dame Patience Jonathan, will between December 4 and 6 play host to the National Association of Ijaw Female Students (NAIFS) whose bi-annual convention is billed for Abuja within the period.
The Vice President and his wife, who are billed to be Special Guest of Honour and Mother of the Day, respec-tively, will have the opportu-nity to interact with female undergraduates from Ijaw-land who have chosen as this year’s theme, From Policy to Action: Physical Development and Empowerment Will Stop Violence.

In a statement signed by Comrade Joseph Evah, Coordinator of Ijaw Monitoring Group (IMG) and founder of NAIFS, the students insisted that the convention be moved to Abuja to enable the future Niger Delta leaders learn more “about the Federal Government’s search for peace in the Niger Delta through dialogue.”

The Ijaw leader who recently sponsored the first Niger Delta Unity Cup Competition among the Niger Delta people living in the South West of Nigeria explained that the choice of Abuja is part of the NAIFS vision of exposing the Niger Delta youths to the outside world through intellectual discuss, adding that humanitarian programmes of the association such as the de-worming of children in yearly in the creeks of Niger Delta would be maintained.

NAIFS, like other pet projects of IMG such as Niger Delta Blind Students Association, Niger Delta Professionals, Ijaw Women Leadership Forum, Tuku Educational Foundation, Ijaw Youths Development Association (IYDA) the new Unity Cup sports project are aimed at mobilising the Niger Delta people to tackle challenges confronting the region.

“NAIFS Biannual Convention is the single biggest gathering of intellectuals from Niger Delta and the Abuja Convention will be the biggest”, Evah said.

He said “our children felt that since this is the first time an Ijaw man will be the number two citizen of Nigeria, there is need for them to visit him and know more about government efforts to end poverty in his homeland, the Niger Delta.”

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2009/11/24/jonathan-wife-to-host-ijaw-students-in-abuja/