He was one of the first sixteen award winning Nigerian pilots enlisted and trained into the Nigeria Air Force where he was its first air accident and investigation chief. During the unfortunate 30 months of the Nigerian Civil war, then Squadron Leader August Okpe, a major participant was Chief Pilot of the Biafra Air Force and won the Distinguished Cross Medal for gallantry and excellent service.

DESPITE expectations of better business environment in 2016, the reverse was the case for operators in the manufacturing sector of the economy.

The kind of agricultural potentials we have in Edo state is enough to create more than 200,000 jobs. The minimum of 200,000 jobs is just an estimate and that is what is going to happen

The problem we have is that charlatans and all sorts of people have hijacked leadership

South Africa-Nigeria bi-lateral relations are very good and encouraging. There are a number of Nigerians coming to South Africa for various activities and so do South Africans come to Nigeria to engage in various businesses and both citizens are assisting in growing the two countries’ economies, because both countries are two major economies in Africa. As you may be aware there are over 120 South African companies in Nigeria and all of these brands are doing well and it is an indication of the significance and importance of our bond.

OBJ parades himself as a saint and therefore should be ignored. You will recall that at the beginning of Buhari’s tenure in 2015, when I read that OBJ was sending a Blue Print on governance to Buhari, I raised an alarm and advised Buhari to avoid OBJ like leper and I said then and still maintain that, a Bini parable says, “How can a eunuch prepare sexual medicine for a brother of his that can attain a sexual erection occasionally?”. I advise Buhari to dine with OBJ with a long spoon if there is need to dine with him at all.

When most of the models that auditioned for the 2016 Miss Nigeria beauty pageant held at the Eko Convention Centre applied for selection, many of them joined the contest for the fame and alluring pleasure they would derive from the event. But for Chioma Stephanie Obiadi, the 40th Miss Nigeria, her goal was nothing else but to end the night with the crown of the most coveted pageant in the country.

Governor Samuel Ortom, in this interview, speaks on the farmers/herdsmen crisis in Benue State, the controversy dogging the selection of new first class chiefs, construction of a new cargo airport in the state inspite of the backlog of unpaid salaries, among other issues. Excerpts:

The Naira is officially a confused currency amongst others today, because nobody knows the actual exchange rate. One thing I want to state here emphatically is that at any time you have a dual exchange rate for any currency, it is an invitation to fraud. In Nigeria today, we have minimum of treble or quadruple exchange rates. It is very corruptible and fraudulent, it is very wrong.

The right and most suitable way out of the economic recession currently ravaging the Nigerian economy is formulation and implementation of economic policies that will strengthen the manufacturing sector and attract foreign investors both as Foreign Direct Investors (FDI) and Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPI). I take this position because, the manufacturing sector is critical to every economy across the globe and Nigeria’s case is no different.