Wingsong M - House takes over Ayip Eku Oil Palm

From right, Chairman, Wingsong M-House
Investment Company, Mr. Ike Okolo, in a
handshake with the chairman, AYIP-EKU
Estate Landlord Joint Council, Mr. Ntufan
Innocent Ntuyang, on arrival for the
hand-over ceremony, while Mr. Ikenna
Oguike (left) and Mr. Kayode Fadahunsi
(right) look on.After years of poor productive exist ence, the Ayip Eku Oil Palm Company in Cross River State was last week officially handed over to its new owners, the Wingsong M-House, by the Bureau for Public Enterprises(BPE), acting on behalf of the Ayip Eku host community, the Akamkpa Local Government Area and the State Ministry of Agriculture.

The 12,400 hectares farm, which is reputed to be the largest of its kind in the country, was bought over last year by the Wingsong M-House under a privatisation deal supervised by the BPE with the expectation that its better management would significantly boost Nigeria’s quest to catch up or possibly overtake Malaysia in the area of palm oil production.

Describing the occasion as a historic and special one in the lives of people of the community, Ofem O. Ofem, the Vice Chairman of the Cross River Privatisation Council and a representative of the BPE who incidentally hails from the community, also made a case for his people to provide the new owners the enabling peaceful environment to operate successfully to their mutual benefits. According to him, “For our people to benefit from their success, we must give them peace, we must provide the enabling environment. “And we must be patient because in agriculture, you don't sow today and reap tomorrow.”

On his own part, Mr. Victor Archibong, who represented the state Commissioner for Agriculture, expressed optimism that the coming of Wingsong M-House as the owners of the farm would bring about an improvement in the well-being of the people of the area. In his words: “Today marks a turning point in the well being of our people here.We'll see brighter days. The government has never done well in the business but they provide enabling environment. That we will do and our core investors will provide additional facilities and infrastructure.

“There are so many ways the investors can help. We have brilliant children here who can be given scholarships to go to school, etc. We are very hopeful that our core investors will make the difference that our people need.” It is a sentiment shared by Ntufam Innocent Ntuyang, the Chairman of Ayip Eko Landlord Association, who decried the government’s mismanagement of the farm over the years, even as he said his people are anxiously looking forward to enjoying the benefits and dividends of the privatisation of the Ayip Eku Oil Palm Company.

Responding to the statements of goodwill and appeals for the transformation of the area, the Chairman of Wingsong M-House, Ike Okolo, pledged that his company would certainly do its best to perform up to the expectation of the people of the area and Nigerians in general, adding that although he was not promising any immediate miracle, the challenge at hand was one his company is professionally capable of handling satisfactorily so that Nigeria can take her pride of place as a major palm oil producer at the global stage.

“There will be total overhaul of this place. There will be schools,” he assured, adding that “let's work together to build a new Nigeria here. We can do it together.” Before its sale to its present owners, Ayip Eku Oil Palm Company, which came into existence in 1977, was jointly owned by the Federal Government with a shareholding of 60 per cent, the state government with 25 per cent, Akamkpa LGA with 10 per cent and Nigeria Joint Agency, accounting for five per cent.

LAWMA begins tenement billing on waste

Dachi Maduako, Lagos

Lagos State Waste Management Au thority (LAWMA) has commenced billing of tenements on waste management. The billing system earlier done by the State Ministry of the Environment then experienced some hitches as residents refused to co-operate.

But speaking to Tribune Property in her office, the Head, Press and Public Relations Unit of the organisation, Mrs. Folashade Kadiri, said that LAWMA took exclusive right of the waste management business one year ago.

On taking over, she said LAWMA promised to pay the PSP operators for three months while rendering free services to the people for the period. However, the free service lasted six months before the organisation served notices to the public that it would commence billing them by January 2008.

She confirmed that bills would now come from LAWMA as against previous experience. To ensure effectiveness, she said that her organisation held monthly meetings with Community Development Associations (CDAs) on waste disposal.

Kadiri disclosed that the activities of cart pushers were illegal and warned the public on the dangers of using them. She stated that LAWMA did not want to push them out completely due to the economic situation in the country, but promised to get them out of business from the effective service rendered by LAWMA.