ABIMBOLA EMANUELLA FASHOLA
First Lady of Lagos State, Nigeria
First Lady of Lagos State, Nigeria
A woman of quiet dignity. She is a model of calm composure. She is a symbol of genuine humility. She has an uncommon capacity for hard work and a burning passion to motivate youths to actualize their potentials. Her unassuming carriage and disarming simplicity belie her status as the first Lady of Lagos State, Nigeria’s most populous and economically viable state. In her characteristically simple and unobtrusive style, Her Excellency, Mrs. Abimbola Fashola, has been working assiduously behind the scenes to complement the efforts of the Governor, Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN), and add value to governance in Lagos State.In pursuit of her commitment to “grooming tomorrow’s leaders to be confident, self-sufficient and socially responsive through education, vocational skills acquisition and recreation”, Her Excellency has established a unique Non-Governmental Organization, the Lagos Empowerment And Resource Network (L.E.A.R.N). As Chairman of the NGO, she has been diligently overseeing the systematic implementation of its strategic vision of establishing resource centers in the five Administrative Divisions of Lagos State as a basis for thereafter exporting the L.E.A.R.N. model to other jurisdictions.
Within its very short period of existence, L.E.A.R.N. has begun to impact positively on the lives of tomorrow’s leaders through various creative programs targeted at students. Between August and September, 2007, for instance, L.E.A.R.N. successfully organized a 6-week free Summer Skills and Training Camp on basic leadership principles and vocational skills for 485 students from both public and private schools.
In a similar vein, L.E.A.R.N. is currently organizing After School Revision Classes for 3,850 senior WAEC students spread across 19 educational zones in Lagos State. This program will provide a scientific basis for ascertaining the impact of after school revision classes on student performance in WAEC examinations.
With the emergence of China as a global economic power, L.E.A.R.N, through the pro-active leadership of Her Excellency, has initiated the L.E.A.R.N./Sino-Culture Exchange Programme to prepare Nigeria’s future leaders for productive interaction with Chinese society and culture. Under this programme, 25 students from five public primary schools in the Eti-Osa Local Government Area are participating in Chinese language coaching and the best student will have the opportunity of watching the Olympics in Beijing.
Apart from her work among students and youths, Her Excellency is passionate about environmental cleanliness. She has been at the forefront of the campaign for Lagosians, particularly women, to embrace environmental cleanliness and keep the surroundings of their homes and markets clean. She religiously participates actively in the monthly sanitation and weekly market sanitation days showing by personal example the pivotal role of women in maintaining a hygienic environment.
Her Excellency’s accomplished and cultured style is no doubt a reflection of her roots as a daughter of the illustrious Ojo’Badan family of Ibadan. Her grand father, who died in 1952, was the Ekerin Olubadan of Ibadan. He fought in the First World War and as the first African Seargent Major in the Army, he won several Medals for bravery in battle. Her great Uncle, Mr. J. Ade Ojo was among the first students of Kings College, Lagos, when it was established in 1952; he was Science Tutor and Games Master at the school for 33 years.
Another Great Uncle of Her Excellency, Chief S. Ade Ojo, was the first Nigerian Clerk of the Legislative Council established in 1941, the first Clerk of the Nigerian House of Representatives in Lagos, the first President of the Western House of Assembly and first Chairman of the Western Nigerian Public Service Commission. He died as the Maye Olubadan of Ibadanland.
Her Great Aunty, Chief Mrs. Adepeju Wuraola Esan, was the First Educated Iyalode of Ibadan land and the first Female Senator in Nigeria. Another of her Uncles, Professor O. Adewole Ojo, was the First Nigerian Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University College Hospital, Ibadan. And Her Excellency’s father, Chief Emmanuel Adewinsi Ojo, was a distinguished lawyer who served as the First African Director of Texaco PLC and died as the Ekarun Olubadan of Ibadan land.
It was into this eminent family of many “Firsts” that the First Lady of Lagos State, Her Excellency, Mrs. Abimbola Emmanuela Fashola was born on 6th April, 1965. She began her formal education at K Kotun Memorial Nursery and Primary School in Surulere and obtained her secondary school education from Marywood Girls Grammar School, Ebutte-Metta and Yejide Girls High School, Ibadan. She received her professional training at the Lagoon Secretarial College, Adisa Bashua, Surulere, where she obtained a Diploma in Secretarial studies and followed this up with an Advanced Computer Certificate from the Computer Department of the University of Lagos.
Mrs. Fashola had a brief stint as a trainee Journalist with the Daily Sketch before joining the British Council in 1987. Whilst in the employment of the British Council, she served in various capacities from Front-of-House Operations, Technical Cooperation & Training, Projects & Overseas Development Support, Arts & Gender Relations and Examinations Officer/IELTS Administrator responsible for managing various examinations on behalf of several UK institutions and boards for over 10,000 candidates yearly before resigning her appointment in 2006.
She has attended various training programmes and courses both locally and overseas on Customer Relations, IT Skills, Managing people and Effectiveness in the work place.
As the First Lady of Lagos State, Mrs. Fashola is the Chairman of the Committee of Wives of Lagos State Officials (COWLSO), a community based gender organization established by the wife of the First Military Governor of Lagos State to complement the efforts of the State Government in improving the socio-economic conditions of the people.
Mrs. Fashola is married to His Excellency, Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN), the Governor of Lagos State, and the marriage is blessed with children.Igodomigodo’s Bombast: Why Nigerians must constantly challenge their leaders, by Obahiagbon
He is a lawyer and holds two master’s degrees. A former member of the House of Representatives; House Leader, Edo State House of Assembly; Supervisory Councillor, Oredo LGA; and former chairman, Edo State Lawn Tennis Association, Partick Obahiagbon speaks with a lot of bombast; and he is widely known for that, even on facebook and twitter. This interview was a deliberate engagement to draw him out. He was indeed drawn out. The aspects of this interview which contain high-sounding words are explained below in italics. It is an interview for all seasons.
Excerpts:
What is the meaning of Igodomigodo? So many people would want to know?
Igodomigodo is a political sobriquet I have habilimented or if you like togarise my identity for a period of aeon to emblematize my culturico-spiritual fons et origo. It was an advertent stratagem to cosmopolitanize my genealogical matrix and arcane trajectory since it was not by accident that I originated from the land of Igodomigodo. The interesting thing is that IGODOMIGODO, being the pristine nomenclature of the Bini man, evokes in me the alacritous presence of the invisible “gods” of my progenitors which, by itself, invokes a luxuriation in an ancestral egregore of pristine resurgimento.
(All that he has said here means that he adopted the name Igodomigo to give meaning and pleasure to his belief in his Bini culture. Fons et origo means source or origin)
How did you actually come about the bombast with which you speak?
Well, this question can be answered from a bifurcated fons et origo.
One, I had a singular privilege of having a martinet for a father. My father was, and remains a very strict disciplinarian of puritanical and quixotic predilection. What that meant, my brother, in practical terms was that I never saw the streets of Benin outside my father’s compound after 7p.m., until I became a practising lawyer. I didn’t know how Benin looked like after 7p.m., except of course when I had to go to school.
If you grew up under that type of ambience, you cannot but put your nose to the grindstone. And more germane was the fact that when my father traveled abroad, he brought with him a flyer to the effect that good speakers have ruled the world, and if you want to rule the world, you cannot but be a good speaker. I was very impressionable when he gave me this flyer which he had bought from London and for me who have always had the primus mobile and gravitating force to want to be part and parcel of the political higgi haggar of my milieu, I said to myself that if being a good speaker was the condition sine qua non for ruling the world, then I was going to do everything possible to be a good speaker and that was how I acclimatized myself very voraciously to the Students’ Companion and read all there was to read that came my way. It was indeed a period of mental lucubration and intellectual gymkhana but more fundamentally is the fact that – and I’ve always said this – for most people, the dictionary is a reference point; but, for me, for over 25years now, the dictionary is a vade mecum – constant companion that is.
(Because his father bought him a flyer which says to rule the world you must be a good speaker, he started reading all there was to read with a view to becoming a good speaker because he wanted to influence the politics of his area – that’s all)
How?
I have spent nothing less than an hour on a daily basis on my dictionary for the past twenty five years and this could go from the pedestrian dictionary to the Encyclopedia and even to the Encarta dictionaries.
Democracy is government of the people for the people and by the people. No matter your feelings about Governor Oshiomhole, you cannot but give it to him that he has brought about the transformation and transmutation and, if you like, the acatalectic transmogrification of the socio-political topography of Edo State; he has brought the dividends of democracy to the people of Edo State; he has been quixotically committed to making the people get the dividends of democracy. There was a fundamental shift, a very radical shift in political loyalties and alliances.
(That Oshiomhole had brought never-before-seen development to the state).
Several members of my constituents moved on a daily basis from the PDP to the ACN at that time. In fact, 80% of those who gave me their imprimatur to represent them had already egressed from the PDP to the ACN; and every time I interacted and interfaced with them, I was daily bombarded by my people that though they gave me their mandate to represent them, they had moved to a different political tangent. I had to be on the same democratic page with my people.
But you appear to be on your own now; no PDP; no House membership?
If the governor of your state gives you his words, how could I have doubted those words my brother? Such promises are supposed to have the hallowed importance of…
(He muttered some words that appeared to be a mix of his Edo dialect and Latin, to which he was bluntly told ‘when we finish, you will have to write those words yourself’ and laughter followed)
Some people have said you ought to be a tourist attraction for your state but here you are, out of the House of Representatives, in limbo sort of?
I feel flattered and humbled by what you have said and by what people say.
Sincerely speaking, daily, I find myself in a state of lachrymoseism when at the airports and at various public places people receive me even up till now with reverence and most times with eyeballs soaked in tears.
There was a day I was going to Calabar for my mystical activities and a whole family rushed towards me and a woman started crying like a baby and said ‘you mean in spite of all your contributions and your ability to call a spade a spade, your people didn’t bring you back to the House of Representatives? It must be a shame; what kind of country are we in?’ To the glory of GOD, I still get that kind of reception on a daily basis even though I never knew my little contributions affected people so emotionally, but you know a prophet is always without honour in his home town. We continue to give thanks to Omneity and appreciate Nigerians that have shown me so much love.
(That he feels flattered when people praise him)
Deep inside you, when you look at the potentials of Nigeria as a nation and where we are today, with the insecurity and challenges we have, what would you say, especially with what the woman at the airport said, about Nigeria being where it is because of our approach to governance issues?
It just shows that we have not gotten it right.
With all the scenarios you have painted, I want to add another scenario in terms of the bellicose and belligerent reaction of Nigerians when, on January 1, 2012, they were awakened by the rude increase in the price of petrol.
When government took that decision, it was from the point of view of Roma Locausta Est, Causa Finista Est, which means when Rome has spoken, there is nothing more to be said.
Did government not buckle at the end of the day?
That brings me to what I have always said, that the political class would not by itself commit class suicide, that the movement out of our political phantasmagoria, economic quagmire and social stupour does not rest on the shoulders of the political class but the people who would have to rise against the malodorous excesses of the political class.
The marginal reforms we have made in our polity have come as a result of the fact that the progressive intelligentsia, the progressive media and students’ unions have forced the hands of the political class to change. The lesson is that Nigerians must constantly be at the barricades and constantly engage the political class. Eternal vigilance is the price for democracy.
What about the insecurity in the land as occasioned by the Boko Haram insurgency?
Let me first of all say that we must draw a difference between religious Boko Haram and political Boko Haram. Just as in the days of Obasanjo, there was religious Sharia and political Sharia. Political Sharia came into play when the Hausa Fulani oligarchy thought that Obasanjo had become as refractory as a mule to be controlled and they thought they needed to put him in check. So they introduced political Sharia.
I have said it for a period of aeon that the Boko Haram that has manifested into a murderous and malodorous saga cum gargantuan gaga, has come as a political contrivance, a Machiavellian and Mephistophelean contrivance to reject the way and manner they rightly or erroneously thought they were short-changed.
*Obahiagbon
And beyond that, political Boko Haram is aimed at doing for the North, what the Niger delta militants did for the south-south.If Niger Delta militancy could bring to the front burner the marginalisation being suffered in that region and forced a shift in political power to an Ijaw minority, the northerners were not sleeping and they were watching and interpreting those events and they are now moving in a way as to put them ahead of other regions preparatory to 2015.
That is why no matter what solutions are adopted to curtail it, I don’t see its containment until after the next presidential election. If power gets back to the northern hemisphere, you can quote me verbatim, Boko Haram, like political Sharia, would fizzle out by itself.
What is your relationship with President Jonathan today, Chief Anenih and Governor Adams Oshiomole?
I enjoy a cordial relationship with Chief Anenih. My relationship with my governor remains very warm and he enjoys my absolute loyalty and of course you knew the activism and robust role I played when I was in the House of Representatives to support Mr. President and he still enjoys my support.
Boko Haram: We won’t accept any more excuses, FG tells Police
The Federal Government yesterday warned that it would no longer accept any excuse by the police over its inability to deal decisively with the Boko Haram Islamic’s incessant bombings which have led to the killing of about 2,000 innocent citizens in the country.
Vice President Namadi Sambo made this known while inaugurating the Presidential Committee on Police Re-Organisation in Abuja.
“Government will no longer tolerate indolence and lack of capacity as excuses for non performance,” Sambo warned, lamenting the current state of the Nigeria Police Force and the loss of confidence by the Nigerian public on the Force.
He then asked the police high command to rise up to the challenges by familiarising itself with the new tactics of Boko Haram, as government would ensure that the problems of terrorism was a thing of the past in the country.
According to Sambo, the police must brace up to the “ever increasing tactics and antics of criminals in our society,” as “a time has come when the whole Force should be re-examined and re-organised for efficiency and effectiveness.”
On the re-organisation committee, Sambo said it was set up to “primarily address the rot in the police and reposition it to face the challenges of democratic society through the timely prevention and detection of crimes in all its ramifications.”
He also asked the members of the committee to bring their experiences to bear as they set out to discharge their onerous assignment for the nation.
Responding the Chairman of the Committee, Mr. Parry Osayande, lamented that there was no time in the nation’s history that the Nigeria Police Force had suffered the kind of indignity as was currently being witnessed.
Osayande, who is also the chairman, Police Service Commission, maintained that recent events in the country had shown that the police had failed woefully in discharging its duties. He however, pledged that the members would discharge their responsibilities diligently with a view to restoring the lost glory of the Nigeria Police.
He also promised that they would re-position the police to become an efficient, polite and a civil outfit that would sustain and meet the challenges of a democratic society.
Other members of the committee include two retired Assistant Inspector Generals of Police, Casmir Akagbosu and Bashir Albasu respectively, Maj. Gen. S N. Chikwe rtd, Prof. S. D. Mukoro, Dr. Fabian Ajogwu, SAN, Hajiya Aisha Larai Tukur, Alhaji Abdullahi Yola and Esther G. Garba who would serve as secretary to the committe
Terror attacks ‘ll end soon – Sultan, Borno Gov
Abuja— Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar 111 and Governor Kashim Shettima of Borno State, yesterday, declared that the era of insecurity caused by the spate of bombings and shootings by the Boko Haram sect in Borno State is over.
Both spoke just as the army authorities have stopped the pension of an ex-soldier, Habibu Bama, who was declared wanted by the State Security Service, SSS, over the Christmas day bombing of St. Theresa’s Catholic Church, Madalla, Niger State that claimed more than 40 lives.
Sultan assures of end of security challenges
The Sultan, who spoke when the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Onyeabo Azubike Ihejirika paid him courtesy visit in his palace assured that the current security challenges facing the country will soon be over with the concerted efforts by all stakeholders to tame insecurity.According to the News Agency of Nigeria, the Sultan said: “We will not rest until all security challenges in this country are put behind us. These challenges will soon be a thing of the past and Nigeria will be the better country it used to be.”
Assuring the support of the Sultanate, he added that Nigerians have to put their heads together in order to face the prevalent challenges in the country. “We have to put heads together in order to face the challenges we have. On our part, we assure you of our continued support for peace and stability in Nigeria,” the Sultan said.
He expressed the need for all Military formations to be secured in view of their porous nature.
Earlier, the Chief of Army Staff said that he was in Sokoto to inspect formations and units as well as have interactive sessions with officers and men of the Nigerian Army. Ihejirika also reiterated Army’s continued loyalty to the Constitution of Nigeria.
On his part, Governor Shettima who acknowledged the security challenges in the state, however boasted that the worst was over as operatives of the State Security Service (SSS) were clamping down on the sect.
Speaking when he visited the Minister of Youth Development, Bolaji Abdulahi, in his office, to discuss NYSC’s directive stopping the posting of corps members to states considered volatile Governor Shettima said. “We are passing through some security challenges in the North-East of the country, due to the insurgency that is currently going on – I am talking about the Boko haram. I want to assure the minister that the worst is over; it was a temporary eclipse; we will start rising again.
“We survived the criminal occupation of Borno for seven years, seven months and seven days in the late 1890s; I believe this time around the worst is over.
“Not a single corps member was hit in Borno throughout the crisis, but as for parents I understand their affection about posting their ward to the north east and Borno, Yobe in particular.
“But I want to assure the minister that we are on top of the situation. The government is equal to the task, we are all Nigerians and we will leave no stone unturned to safeguard the lives and properties of all of them.”
Shettima, who said that Boko Haram was borne out of endemic poverty and hunger, called on government to engage the sect in dialogue to understand their grievances.
He allayed the fears of most parents whose wards have been posted to his state, promising that the government would safeguard their lives and property.
Responding, Abdullahi expressed the hope that the state government would provide adequate and sustained security for the corps members that would be posted to the state.
The minister said that the recent breakthrough made by SSS operatives in relations to Boko Haram, might encourage NYSC to review its decision for corps members to steer clear of troubled states.
“We are glad to note that the situation is getting better by the day; we know the progress that the security agencies have made in the last couple of days and weeks to bring this situation under control.
“And as you know government is very dynamic, government policies and decisions will continue to respond to situations as they progress.
“It is in this light that I can assure your excellency that we will continue to revise our positions, in light of the most current challenges and the most current situations that we have.
“The National Youth Service Corps is principally created to promote national integration; it’s a vehicle for national integration after the civil war as a way of healing the wounds of the war.
“Thirty eight years after, the NYSC is still very valid; it’s still one of the most potent vehicles for national integration.”
Abdullahi said the objective of the insurgents was to create fear and disunity among Nigerians.
Army authorities stop wanted soldier’s pension
Meanwhile, indications emerged yesterday that following the SSS declaration of an ex-soldier, Habibu Bama, wanted in connection with the Christmas Day Bombing of a Church last year, authorities of the Nigeria Army may have ordered that further payment of his pension benefits be put on hold pending investigation.Vanguard was informed that the wanted ex-soldier, Habibu Bama, who is also known as Shuaibu Bama collects his pension benefits through a bank which is the procedure for pensioners but that since he has been declared wanted in connection with Boko Haram, he would have to face investigation before any such benefit can be extended to him.
Security source told Vanguard that “the fact that an ex-soldier was declared wanted in connection with the dastardly act of bombing a church and killing about 47 people is of great embarrassment to the military authorities but we have to wait and see the outcome of the investigation if he is arrested by the SSS hence the immediate action the army can take was to order the stoppage of his pensions”.
It was also gathered that the Army authorities on their own, have commenced investigations to ascertain how Bama who allegedly bears three names including Habib Mamman, left the Army; and whether he retired voluntarily or was compulsory retired.
In addition, the authorities will investigate and verify the actual name he bore while he was in the Army and the year he retired and how many years he served.
The Army authorities are also worried about the consequences of such a military personnel who knows much about the system, could be involved in the nefarious activities of the Boko Haram sect.
It will be recalled that Department of State Security (SSS), on Wednesday declared Habibu Bama wanted as he was believed to be the prime suspect in the Christmas Day bombing of a church in Madalla , Niger State, in which 47 worshippers at St. Theresa’s Catholic Church were killed.
SSS said that Bama was deeply linked to the bombing, following the confession of the re-arrested Boko Haram suspect, Kabiru Dikko Umar alias Kabiru Sokoto, who is being interrogated by the State Security Service (SSS).
Tanker drivers protest alleged killing of colleague by Naval personnel
By Victor Ahiuma-Young Evelyn Usman & Bose AdelajaLAGOS—Pandemonium broke out, yesterday, along the Apapa/Oshodi expressway, Lagos, following protest by tanker drivers over the alleged killing of one of their own by a Naval personnel.
It could however not be ascertained at press time whether the victim alleged to have been shot, was dead, as the protesting drivers blocked the entire expressway depriving motorists from plying the route.
Report said the tanker drivers had blocked the ever busy expressway for over three days, thereby increasing the already tensed gridlock on the expressway. For a very long time, the situation has been managed by naval personnel who controlled traffic, thereby allowing flow of traffic in a snail pace.
Eye witnesses told Vanguard that trouble started after several warnings by the personnel to the tanker drivers to evacuate their trucks from the expressway before dusk or station them appropriately to allow free flow of traffic was not heeded to.
Nobody could however tell what led to the brawl that necessitated the shooting of one of the tanker drivers who was left in the pool of his blood till 6.30pm.
Contacted, spokesman for the Western Naval Command, Lieutenant Commander Jerry Omodara said the information was just reaching him, adding that he was making attempt to get details of what actually happened.
He posited however that if the claim was true, then it could have been an accidental discharge. But he was quick to add that such accidental discharge was not acceptable by the Navy as it had trained its men on how to handle firearms. He also, stated that Navy would not shield any of its ratings who committed crime.
He therefore, appealed to members of the public not to take laws into their hands, in order not to rob the Navy of the effort to ensure sanity in the area.
Also contacted, secretary of Petroleum Tankers Driver, PTD, branch of Nigerian Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, Lagos State chapter, Comrade A.Adebayo said the union was aware and was making attempt to control the situation. He however blamed naval personnel over what he described as their over-zealousness and for also taking laws into their hands.
He explained that the tanker drivers blocked the expressway to ascertain whether the victim, a marketer was dead.
15 die as rainstorm wreaks havoc in Lagos
BY OUR REPORTERSLAGOS — AN early morning rainstorm, which began at about 7.10 am, yesterday, wreaked havoc in several parts of Lagos, killing 15 persons, destroying many houses, cars, electric poles and uprooting many trees.
Among the dead were 10 children, who drowned at Shibiri Ekunpa area of Ojo when a passenger ferry conveying them to school capsized due to a gust of wind that assailed it. Also, two students of Goodness Comprehensive High School in the area were killed when the storm destroyed their school building.
A teacher at St Gregory College, Obalende was reportedly killed by a mast that collapsed on him while four others were injured. Also, around Radio Nigeria, Ikoyi office, several trees were uprooted by the storm, which caused severe damage to some cars parked in the area.
At Jakande Estate, Oke-Afa in Isolo Local Council, two persons were killed by a tree felled by the rainstorm.
At Ejigbo Local Council Development Area, LCDA, over 100 buildings including Jakande Low Cost Housing Estate Primary School, Oke Afa Junior and Senior Colleges and the Area office of Ejigbo LCDA in Jakande Estate had their roofs blown away by the rainstorm, which lasted for about 15 minutes.
The Third Mainland Bridge was also blocked for most of the morning as street light poles felled by the storm lay on the road, obstructing free flow of traffic. It took the intervention of men of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, LASTMA, to prevent motorists from running into the poles.
At press time, a combined team of the police and LASTMA operatives was seen making efforts to clear the bridge of the debris caused by the storm to make way for free traffic flow.
Reminiscence of the July 10, 2011 rainfall that killed scores of people and destroyed property worth millions of Naira, other local government areas equally hit by yesterday’s downpour include Ejigbo, Onipanu, Obalende and Lekki.
The Lagos State Office of Public Defender (OPD) in Surulere billed to be inaugurated by Governor Babatunde Fashola today was not spared by the rainstorm as a section of its roof was ripped open.
Also some Mega BRT bus stops on the ever busy road were destroyed while three Multi-media bill boards pulled down by the storm lay on the road. The situation led to traffic gridlock as traffic officials worked frantically to ease traffic.
Wind travelled at 120 km/hr
The winds from the storm reached about 74 miles (120 kilometers) an hour, the threshold for hurricane wind speeds, said Mary Iso, the Meteorological Manager of Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos. Further inland, winds reached up to 40 miles (about 65 kilometers) an hour, she said. About two-thirds of an inch (about 1.7 centimeters) of water fell during the storm, which lasted about 15 minutes, Iso said.
The Nigerian Meteorological Agency had previously issued warnings about the possibility of a storm coming through as the seasons begin to change in the nation, Iso said. Nigeria remains gripped by Harmattan winds, which carry sand from the Sahara Desert over Africa’s most populous nation. The country’s rainy season typically begins in several weeks. “Within a transitional period like this, we normally have erratic weather,” Iso said.
The cause of the rain
Another metorologist, Mr. Abayomi Oyegoke, with Nigeria Meterorogical Agency (NIMET), Oshodi, said the rain was not unusual in terms of scale and attributed the destruction to the wind. “The rain was not massive. When measured, it was 18.6 mm. It is not a massive rainfall. It is the wind that caused the destruction.”
He said the rain came as a result of a micro scale system that developed over the Delta area, grew and propagated into the West towards Lagos. “In the process of that movement, another cold system developed around the inland of the South West. Because of the one coming from the Delta area, it invigorates and merges and became a massive system. This massive system now caused a downdraft. The downdraft was associated with the strong velocity of wind that led to the maximum wind gust that caused the destruction we witnessed today.”
Lagos opens relief camp
As of press time, the identity and total number of the victims were still being sought by the state government officials saddled with rescue operations.
The General Manager of Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, LASEMA, Mr Femi Oke-Osanyintolu, who confirmed the incident said the state government was on top of the situation as rescue operation was ongoing.
He added that in the interim, the state government has declared open the Agbowa Relief Camp, in Ikorodu suburb for all willing Internally Displaced People, IDP, for accommodation as part of measures to mitigate their loss pending permanent solution to their plight.
Osanyintolu, added that the state government was working out a form of compensation for all the enumerated victims of the latest disaster.
He explained: “As soon as we got the information in the early hours of the day, my men (LASEMA) rushed to the scene to save the situation from getting out of hands. Our early arrival saved the situation from recording higher casualties.
“My men are also on ground at the other locations across the state where the ugly incident also occurred. It is quite unfortunate that Lagosians have to pass through this kind of natural disaster again after the July 10th, 2011 tragedy as a result of heavy rainfall.
“I therefore, wish to assure Lagosians that government has put everything in place to ensure prompt response to any disaster in the state.”
According to him, yet to be identified corpses had been deposited at the mortuary.
The Shibiri mishap
Unaware of what lay ahead of them, 14 school children had boarded the ferry which took them to school as usual. But tragedy struck at about 8 a.m when the ferry, which could not withstand the gust of wind capsized. The rescue team that raced to the scene was able to recover 10 dead bodies while four were brought out alive and they are currently receiving intensive medication in various hospitals.
Disaster at Oke Afa
About 200 families were rendered homeless as their roof tops and ceilings were completely pulled off by the wind which blew for close to an hour in some areas. Several buildings were partly damaged with some fences collapsed. Some vehicles’ windscreens were shattered by hard objects which fell on them.
Residents of the area were greeted by a dark cloud which enveloped the atmosphere, followed by the raging wind which blew off their roofs, a situation that caused panic, as some of the residents rushed out of their apartments, for fear of collapse of their buildings.
Commercial motorcyclists were not left out, as some of them took cover under a tree at Oja Bus-stop. But the unexpected happened as a roof which pulled off landed on one of them. He was rushed to the hospital in an unconscious state. Some students who were also running to safety were reportedly hit by a tree, which fell around the Low Cost Housing Estate public school, killing one of them in the process.
Chairman of the Ejigbo Local Council Development Area, Mr Kehinde Bamigbetan, who visited the estate to assess the level of damage, said that work on the affected buildings would begin before the day ran out.
Said Bamigbetan: “We are here to assess the damage and respond to the damage by restoring as much as we can within the shortest time. Our carpenters are already on ground and we are going to assess the situation, based on which we will look at the cost and try to respond to it”.
A total of 100 blocks, he said were affected.
Adding that work would first begin on buildings which had their roofs completely pulled off. But for those whose roofs were partially affected, vanguard gathered that they were asked to fix them themselves but would be compensated by the state government.
Most of the affected occupants appreciated what they described as the state government’s quick response but expressed doubt on whether those partially affected would get compensated at the end of the day.
A register for those affected was opened at the Landlord Association Civic Centre at about 1 pm and over 100 persons had registered as of press time.
Bamigbetan, however, advised the victims to evacuate their properties to a safe place in the interim.
As part of arrangement to assist victims, the chairman has directed the victims to register their complaints at a special centre opened by the LCDA within the estate with photographic evidence of their claims
Also, Hon Omowunmi Olatunji Edet, member Lagos State House of Assembly, Representing Oshodi-Isolo Constituency II joined the council boss at the meeting and also expressed her sympathy assuring the victims of the state government’s support even as she commended the swift response of Bamigbetan to the situation.
Some residents in Onipanu, Palmgrove, Fadeyi and other communities along Ikorodu, whose buildings were affected were seen salvaging some of their properties while others lamented the damage done to their belongings by the rainstorm.
The beautification projects of the Lagos State Government were affected at the Iganmu garden as some of the storm uprooted some newly planted trees.
Mrs Risikat Adeyanju, a resident of Okokomaiko in Ojo Local Government Area of the state also said no fewer than nine houses in the area were damaged by the rainstorm.
Boko Haram: Massive shake-up in the Army
BY KINGSLEY OMONOBIABUJA—Apparently miffed over the ease, with which Boko Haram sect attacked some military formations in the country recently, the Army high command, yesterday did a major stock taking and redeployed 72 Generals including three General Officers Commanding. GOCs, 26 other Major Generals and 43 Brigadiers- General.
The GOCs include those of the First Mechanized Division, Major General Joseph Shoboiki, the GOC Enugu, Major General Sunday Idoko and the Third Armoured Division, Jos, Major General O.O Oshinowo, while the GOC 81 Division, Lagos, Kenneth Minimah retained his position just like his counterpart in Ibadan, Major General MD Mohammed.
The jurisdiction of the GOC of the First Division covers Kaduna, Kebbi, Zamfara Katsina, Kano, Sokoto, all in the north West. While the jurisdiction of the commanding officer of the of the 82 Div covers , the South East and South-South except Edo and Delta states.
In a statement signed by the Chief of Staff, Army Public Relations, Col. OU Abdul, the movements were meant to reinvigorate the fight against terrorism in the country.
Col. Abdul quoted the Chief of Army Staff, COAS, Lt. General Azubuike Ihejirika as having approved the redeployments.
Also affected in the massive movements were Major General Garba Ayodele Wahab, formerly Director of Operations, DOPs, Army Headquarters, who is the new GOC, First Mechanized Division, Kaduna; Major General Jack Nwaogbo, formerly Commander of the Joint Task Force, JTF, Maiduguri, the headquarters of Boko Haram, is the new GOC, Third Armoured Division, Jos just as the former Commander, JTF, Jos, Plateau State is the new GOC, 82 Division, Enugu.
Others affected are Major General Raphael Isa, formerly the Director, Army Public Relations, who is now the Provost Marshal, Nigeria Army, Major General Etim Bassey; formerly Commander, Corps of Artillery is the Chief of Administration, Army Headquarters; Major General MB Ibrahim is the Commander, Special Task Force, Jos. In the same vein, Maj Gen AT Jibrin and Maj Gen U Buzugbe have been confirmed as Director of Military Intelligence, DMI, and Military Secretary, Army, respectively.
The new Commander of the Nigerian Army, Peace Keeping Centre, NAPKC, Jaji, is Maj Gen JS Zaruwa; Maj. Gen AS Agha-Okoro who until now was at the Department of Army Training and Operations, DATOPS, Army Headquarters is now the Director Legal Services, DLS.
Maj Gen Joseph Shoboiki, formerly GOC, Kaduna has been moved to Defence Headquarters as Director of Policy while Maj Gen Sunday Idoko is leaving the 82 Division to become the Chief of Logistics, COLOG, at the Army Headquarters.
Other new appointments include the Commander
Three Brigade, Brig Gen Ishiaku I Abbah; Commander 31 Brigade, Brig Gen Ilouga; Commander 21 Brigade, Brig Gen RO Bamigboye while the Chief of Staff at the 81 Division, Brig Gen C.O Okoro, is now Sector Commander, Nigerian Contingent of the United Nations Mission in Liberia, UNMIL, just as Brig Gen MA Koleoso was appointed the Sector Commander/Nigerian Contingent for the United Nations Mission in Dafur, UNAMID.
Police arraign man for possession of 100 wraps of marijuana
Lagos – A 30-year-old man, Femi Olaolu, was charged before a Yaba Magistrates’ Court, Lagos, for allegedly being in possession of 100 wraps of marijuana, otherwise known as Indian hemp.The accused is facing a one-count charge of possessing a dangerous drug.
The prosecutor, Insp. Philip Ugbodu, told the court that the accused resided at Iganmu, Lagos.
Ugbodu said that on Feb 3, the accused and others at large were seen at the railway line by Nigerian Breweries, Iganmu, smoking Indian hemp.
He said upon sighting the police, his accomplices ran away, leaving behind the accused who was subsequently arrested.
He said when the accused was searched, 100 wraps of Indian hemp were found on him.
Ugbodu told the court that the alleged offence contravened Section 327 of the Criminal Code laws of Lagos State.
The accused pleaded not guilty to the charge.
Magistrate M.O. Tanimola granted him bail in the sum of N10,000, with one surety in like sum, and adjourned the matter to March 7 for mention. (NAN)
Abdulmutallab, ‘underwear bomber’ faces sentence in US
DETROIT (AFP) – The young Nigerian dubbed the “underwear bomber” after he tried to blow up a packed US-bound airliner on Christmas Day in 2009 will be sentenced at a hearing here Thursday.Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, 25, faces a mandatory life sentence after pleading guilty in October to eight charges, including the attempted murder of 289 people on board Detroit-bound Northwest Airlines Flight 253.
In what court documents say was a plot hatched by slain Al-Qaeda preacher Anwar al-Awlaqi, the incident sparked global alarm and caused the United States to tighten up both its no-fly list screening system and airport screenings.
Despite stringent security measures at airports in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks, he managed to smuggle 76 grams of the explosive Pentaerythritol tetranitrate on board the flight from Amsterdam.
Luckily, the bomb hidden in his underwear failed to properly detonate and instead simply caused a fire as the plane began its descent.
Passengers and crew members were able to restrain Abdulmutallab and extinguish the blaze, allowing pilots to safely land the plane.
Abdulmutallab’s court-appointed standby counsel filed a motion Monday seeking a lesser sentence with the argument that life in prison is unwarranted because nobody else was actually injured.
But prosecutors have argued that the judge must send a strong message to an unrepentant “terrorist” and give him the maximum allowable sentence on all eight counts.
Back in October, Abdulmutallab, who fired his lawyers and chose to represent himself, used his opening statements to plead guilty to the charges while insisting his actions were righteous and that the true crime was US foreign policy.
“I am guilty of this count in US law but not in the Koran,” he said in a six-minute speech on the second day of his trial.
Thursday’s sentencing hearing will give prosecutors and several of his intended victims the opportunity to weigh in.
Prosecutors have asked for permission to show a video demonstrating what would have happened had the bomb operated as planned.
They also sought to call a martyrdom expert who concluded that Abdulmutallab is unrepentant and would try to act as a suicide bomber again if given the opportunity.
“There also exists the likelihood that he will become a role model and proxy of fundamentalist Islamic jihadists, assisting them in the recruitment of new martyrs,” Simon Perry, a criminologist at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, wrote in a pre-trial memo.
The extent of Awlaqi’s involvement emerged in a prosecution memo filed Friday arguing for a stiff sentence.
Abdulmutallab told investigators that he had been following Awlaqi online for years and traveled to Yemen in August 2009 to seek out the radical US-born cleric.
He was driven through the desert to Awlaqi’s home after tracking down his cell phone number through visits to mosques and then writing to him about his desire to “become involved in jihad,” the memo said.
Abdulmutallab stayed with Awlaqi for three days and was then taken to a bomb-maker after he was accepted for the mission.
He then spent two weeks at a training camp where he “received instruction in weapons and indoctrination in jihad” and then Awlaqi hired a “professional film crew” to shoot Abdulmutallab’s five-minute martyrdom video.
“Although Awlaqi gave defendant operational flexibility, Awlaqi instructed defendant that the only requirements were that the attack be on a US airliner, and that the attack take place over US soil,” the memo said.
Abdulmutallab’s guilty plea came before a new law took effect requiring Al-Qaeda suspects, arrested like him on American soil, to be held in military custody and possibly face a military tribunal.
President Barack Obama made it clear in signing the bill, though, that he did so under duress and indicated that he would be prepared to use a waiver to keep proceedings in the civilian arena if he deemed it appropriate.
CLO condemns alleged harmful traditional practice in Enugu
The South-East Zone of the Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO) has condemned the use of force by a traditional ruler in Enugu State to make a man to drink water used in washing a corpse.In a statement in Enugu on Wednesday, the organisation called on the state government to investigate the issue, which it said, happened in Imufu, Enugu Ezike, in Igbo-Eze North local government.
The statement, issued by Mr Olu Omotayo, the Zonal Director of CLO, said one Matthew Ossai was forced to drink the water to prove his innocence over the death of a clansman.
Omotayo claimed that the traditional ruler of the community, Eze Remigius Attah, accused Ossai of using supernatural powers to cause the death of his younger brother, Fidelis Attah, and wanted him to prove his innocence.
Reacting to the allegation, the traditional ruler told NAN on Wednesday that he was not aware of any such treatment in his community.
Attah said he was hearing of the case for the first time from the NAN correspondent.
Omotayo had said that the deceased, who died in an unnamed hospital, was diagnosed with liver complications, leading to a protracted illness.
According to him, it was when sympathizers, including Ossai, went to the family of the deceased that the traditional ruler mobilized the youths of the area to seize him and forced him to drink the water to prove his innocence.
Omotayo said the significance of the water was that if Ossai was guilty as charged, he would die within seven native weeks (28 days) and that he would be proclaimed innocent if he survived the period.
Describing the action as barbaric, the zonal director called on the state and the local government council to investigate the matter as a mark of its social responsibility to the citizenry.
“It is now very well over seven native weeks that Ossai was subjected to this inhuman and degrading treatment and he is still living but the stigma still follows him everywhere he goes in the community.
“It is high time the government started looking into the welfare of people in our rural communities as the atrocities committed by a few opportuned people in these communities are gradually increasing thereby encroaching on peoples rights and subjecting them to great humiliation and torture’’, Omotayo said. (NAN)
Sanusi predicts increase in Nigeria’s poverty level
By MICHAEL EBOHLAGOS — The Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Governor, Mallam Lamido Sanusi, yesterday, said the level of poverty in Nigeria will continue to rise unless there is a deliberate effort to create other sources of revenue.
Speaking at the Murtala Mohammed annual memorial lecture in Lagos, in a paper entitled: “Banking Sector, Financial Reforms, Impact on the Nigerian Economy and Economic Development,” Sanusi cautioned against excessive borrowing from developed countries by Nigeria and its counterparts in the African continent.
He said African countries should be able to put in place measures to develop their resources to be able to compete favourably in the international arena.
Sanusi said the country, presently, has a dysfunctional economy, emphasizing that there is an urgent need for a clear understanding of economic direction and structural adjustment that would create other avenues for further revenue.
According to him, it is an abnormal situation for the economy to grow without impact on the average Nigerian, especially when viewed in the light of the recent report of the Nigeria Bureau of Statistic, NBS, where over 100 million Nigerians are said to be living below poverty level.
He stated that the current leadership of the CBN, as parts of its contribution to the development of the economy, was building a new financial system that would play a catalyst role in the productive sector of the economy apart from monetary policies.
He said: “We are building a new banking model, the type that will contribute meaningfully to the economy, other than monetary policies.”
Capital market recovery
He expressed optimism that the Nigerian capital market would recover fully in the next three years, noting that the current slow recovery has nothing to do with monetary policies of the apex bank.
He regretted that the agriculture sector that contributes 42 per cent to the Gross Domestic, GDP, is being neglected, adding that the CBN and banks are doing all it takes to revive the sector.
Women empowerment
The CBN Governor further disclosed that the apex bank, in conjunction with the Bankers’ Committee, is working on women empowerment.
He said: “Between 2012 and 2014, 40 per cent top management positions in banks are to be held by women. By December 2014, 30 per cent board seats in banks will be held by women. Also, we decided that women-owned businesses are to be supported by credit facilities at a single digit interest.”
The banking watchdog boss affirmed that Nigeria was a poor oil producing country, stating that statistics have shown that in Nigeria, it is one barrel of oil to 80 Nigerians, whereas in Saudi Arabia it is one barrel to three persons.
On cashless Lagos, he said it was on course, noting that in the next three years, the policy would reduce banks’ operating costs by 30 per cent.
Thursday, 16 February 2012
REVISED 2012 BUDGET: FG provides N888bn for subsidy
By Omoh Gabriel, Business Editor & Emma Ujah
LAGOS—The Federal Government has revised the provisions of the 2012 budget and set aside N656.3 billion as subsidy for petroleum products for the year. This was disclosed by the Minister of Finance and Coordinator of the economy Dr Okonjo-Iweala, while briefing the media on key developments around the revised 2012 budget.
The minister explained the process through which the estimated amount of subsidy for 2012 was arrived at. She stated that after “extensive consultations with NNPC and PPPRA, the amount required for 2012 was estimated using 2008 as baseline year.
Year 2008 was used as a baseline since subsidy payments and other associated factors were fairly stable. Based on several assumptions and parameters, the amount of subsidy to be provided in 2012 is N656.30billion while the revised amount to be provided for 2011 carried over is N231.8billion.
“This means that the total projected expenditure on subsidy is N888.1billion, of which N155bn is already provided in the 2012 Budget. This has resulted in a net addition of N733.1bn. The FGN share of the projected subsidy expenditure is N374.73bn, while states and local governments will share the balance. Dr Okonjo-Iweala stated that despite many challenges, government is determined to be prudent while pursuing the best interests of Nigerians.
Explaining the decision to revise the budget she said: “In its determination to ensure a smaller and more effective budget, the Federal Government has achieved significant reductions in the 2012 revised budget which has been transmitted to the National Assembly. The revision became necessary as a result of the need to make provision for subsidy arising from the partial deregulation under which the price of PMS was reduced from N141 per litre to N97 per litre.
“The reductions, which amount to about N100 billion, were taken from a host of areas in the budget including administrative, training, transport and other costs. Also the campaign against waste and leakages has also notched up significant success as N74 billion has been saved through biometric verification of workers and pensioners which has simultaneously led to a reduction in the pension budget while improving the processes for paying genuine pensioners. The minister explained that the 2012 Fiscal Framework earlier submitted to NASS assumed 100 per cent subsidy removal and only N155billion was provided for carryover of 2011 subsidy payments. The estimated figure for 2012 is now N888 billion inclusive of some carry-over from 2011.
Progress in spite of reduced revenue
“Following the controversy over the deregulation and government’s decision to implement partial subsidy removal with PMS pump price of N97/litre and kerosene still fully subsidised, the government has faced the challenge of achieving the objectives of the budget within the context of reduced revenues. The savings made and the cuts achieved underscore the seriousness with which the Federal Government views its mandate to make a difference in the lives of the people against all odds”, says the minister.
Reducing the deficit
According to her: “At the directive of Mr. President and in line with his commitment to minimize the fiscal deficit and domestic borrowing several steps were taken to bring the deficit to a more manageable level. These include; steps taken to squeeze further resources from revenue generating agencies. IGR was increased by N53.3bn from N393.46bn to N446.78bn as a result of an ongoing engagement with these agencies. The Pension Task Force made a recovery of about N151bn of which N74bn has already been reflected in the budget. She further said: “Cuts to aggregate expenditure were made as follows: Transfers were reduced by N25.34bn; Service Wide votes were reduced by N24.39bn from N337.08bn to N312.69bn; Overhead vote was reduced by N17.75bn made up of
This comes as a result of: Capital vote reduced by N35.53bn from N1.319 trillion to N1.284 trillion, as a result of the removal of administrative capital items such as procurement of fridges, fans, vehicles, etc.; construction of office building (except on-going projects); purchase of land and office furniture; Purchase of computers” Continuing she said “These efforts resulted in savings of about N100billion, with aggregate expenditure coming down from N4.749trillion to N4.649trilliion.
“The fiscal deficit increases slightly from 2.77% of GDP as in the original Budget proposal to 2.97% of GDP under the revised budget. This deficit will be financed through the traditional sources such as Privatisation proceeds and Signature bonus. In line with the focus on prudence, domestic borrowing requirement is kept constant at N794.4bn. Also, the additional amount required to finance the deficit will come from the Excess Crude Account”.
LAGOS—The Federal Government has revised the provisions of the 2012 budget and set aside N656.3 billion as subsidy for petroleum products for the year. This was disclosed by the Minister of Finance and Coordinator of the economy Dr Okonjo-Iweala, while briefing the media on key developments around the revised 2012 budget.
The minister explained the process through which the estimated amount of subsidy for 2012 was arrived at. She stated that after “extensive consultations with NNPC and PPPRA, the amount required for 2012 was estimated using 2008 as baseline year.
“This means that the total projected expenditure on subsidy is N888.1billion, of which N155bn is already provided in the 2012 Budget. This has resulted in a net addition of N733.1bn. The FGN share of the projected subsidy expenditure is N374.73bn, while states and local governments will share the balance. Dr Okonjo-Iweala stated that despite many challenges, government is determined to be prudent while pursuing the best interests of Nigerians.
Explaining the decision to revise the budget she said: “In its determination to ensure a smaller and more effective budget, the Federal Government has achieved significant reductions in the 2012 revised budget which has been transmitted to the National Assembly. The revision became necessary as a result of the need to make provision for subsidy arising from the partial deregulation under which the price of PMS was reduced from N141 per litre to N97 per litre.
“The reductions, which amount to about N100 billion, were taken from a host of areas in the budget including administrative, training, transport and other costs. Also the campaign against waste and leakages has also notched up significant success as N74 billion has been saved through biometric verification of workers and pensioners which has simultaneously led to a reduction in the pension budget while improving the processes for paying genuine pensioners. The minister explained that the 2012 Fiscal Framework earlier submitted to NASS assumed 100 per cent subsidy removal and only N155billion was provided for carryover of 2011 subsidy payments. The estimated figure for 2012 is now N888 billion inclusive of some carry-over from 2011.
Progress in spite of reduced revenue
“Following the controversy over the deregulation and government’s decision to implement partial subsidy removal with PMS pump price of N97/litre and kerosene still fully subsidised, the government has faced the challenge of achieving the objectives of the budget within the context of reduced revenues. The savings made and the cuts achieved underscore the seriousness with which the Federal Government views its mandate to make a difference in the lives of the people against all odds”, says the minister.
Reducing the deficit
According to her: “At the directive of Mr. President and in line with his commitment to minimize the fiscal deficit and domestic borrowing several steps were taken to bring the deficit to a more manageable level. These include; steps taken to squeeze further resources from revenue generating agencies. IGR was increased by N53.3bn from N393.46bn to N446.78bn as a result of an ongoing engagement with these agencies. The Pension Task Force made a recovery of about N151bn of which N74bn has already been reflected in the budget. She further said: “Cuts to aggregate expenditure were made as follows: Transfers were reduced by N25.34bn; Service Wide votes were reduced by N24.39bn from N337.08bn to N312.69bn; Overhead vote was reduced by N17.75bn made up of
This comes as a result of: Capital vote reduced by N35.53bn from N1.319 trillion to N1.284 trillion, as a result of the removal of administrative capital items such as procurement of fridges, fans, vehicles, etc.; construction of office building (except on-going projects); purchase of land and office furniture; Purchase of computers” Continuing she said “These efforts resulted in savings of about N100billion, with aggregate expenditure coming down from N4.749trillion to N4.649trilliion.
“The fiscal deficit increases slightly from 2.77% of GDP as in the original Budget proposal to 2.97% of GDP under the revised budget. This deficit will be financed through the traditional sources such as Privatisation proceeds and Signature bonus. In line with the focus on prudence, domestic borrowing requirement is kept constant at N794.4bn. Also, the additional amount required to finance the deficit will come from the Excess Crude Account”.
Wednesday, 15 February 2012
Man, 32, remanded in prison for raping girl, 14
A magistrate court in Gombe on Tuesday ordered Tasiu Ahmed, a resident of Fikayel village in Bayo Local Government Area of Borno State, to be remanded in prison custody.
According to NAN, the presiding magistrate, Haruna Inuwa gave the order against Ahmed for allegedly raping a 14-year-old girl in the bush.
The Police Prosecutor, Inspector Gayos Lapai, told the court that the accused person allegedly committed the offence on January 21 at 5 p.m in Zambuk village, in Yamatu/Deba Local Government Area of Gombe State.
Lapai said the accused gave palm fruit to the girl in the bush and thereafter raped her while he knew that he was HIV positive.
The prosecutor said the offence is contrary to Section 282 of the Penal Code.
The accused person pleaded not guilty when the charge was read to him, and magistrate Inuwa thus adjourned the case till March 8 for further hearing. NAN
According to NAN, the presiding magistrate, Haruna Inuwa gave the order against Ahmed for allegedly raping a 14-year-old girl in the bush.
The Police Prosecutor, Inspector Gayos Lapai, told the court that the accused person allegedly committed the offence on January 21 at 5 p.m in Zambuk village, in Yamatu/Deba Local Government Area of Gombe State.
Lapai said the accused gave palm fruit to the girl in the bush and thereafter raped her while he knew that he was HIV positive.
The prosecutor said the offence is contrary to Section 282 of the Penal Code.
The accused person pleaded not guilty when the charge was read to him, and magistrate Inuwa thus adjourned the case till March 8 for further hearing. NAN
Court remands 64-year-old farmer for possessing human skull
An Akure Chief Magistrates’ Court has ordered a 64-year-old farmer, Obajulaye Adegbuyi, to be remanded in prison custody for allegedly possessing human skull.
The Chief Magistrate, Mr Sola Akintoye, who gave the order on Tuesday while ruling in an application for bail of the accused, said the bail application would be considered on Friday.
The accused was apprehended on January 4, at about 8 a.m. at No.1, Isalu Street, Idanre, in Akure Magisterial District.
He was accused of unlawful possession of human skull which he intended to use “as trophy or charm contrary to and punishable under Section 329 (A) (1) of the Criminal Code Cap 37 Vol. I Laws of Ondo State, 2006.’’
The accused who pleaded not guilty to the one-count charge, said he understood the charge when it was interpreted to him in Yoruba language and elected for summary trial at the court.
Police Prosecutor, Sargent Martins Olowofeso, informed the court that he had three witnesses to call to prove the case against the accused, but that only the investigating police officer was in court.
He, therefore, urged the court to grant a short adjournment to enable him assemble his witnesses and study the case file.
Counsel to the accused, Mr Kingsley Atimah, holding brief for Mr Adelanke Akinrata, did not oppose the application of the prosecutor, but prayed the court to grant his client bail on liberal terms.
He said the accused had pleaded not guilty to the charge, adding that his client was presumed innocent until the contrary was proved. NAN
The Chief Magistrate, Mr Sola Akintoye, who gave the order on Tuesday while ruling in an application for bail of the accused, said the bail application would be considered on Friday.
The accused was apprehended on January 4, at about 8 a.m. at No.1, Isalu Street, Idanre, in Akure Magisterial District.
He was accused of unlawful possession of human skull which he intended to use “as trophy or charm contrary to and punishable under Section 329 (A) (1) of the Criminal Code Cap 37 Vol. I Laws of Ondo State, 2006.’’
The accused who pleaded not guilty to the one-count charge, said he understood the charge when it was interpreted to him in Yoruba language and elected for summary trial at the court.
Police Prosecutor, Sargent Martins Olowofeso, informed the court that he had three witnesses to call to prove the case against the accused, but that only the investigating police officer was in court.
He, therefore, urged the court to grant a short adjournment to enable him assemble his witnesses and study the case file.
Counsel to the accused, Mr Kingsley Atimah, holding brief for Mr Adelanke Akinrata, did not oppose the application of the prosecutor, but prayed the court to grant his client bail on liberal terms.
He said the accused had pleaded not guilty to the charge, adding that his client was presumed innocent until the contrary was proved. NAN
Appointments @ Uniben
THE University of Benin is unique in several ways. From its setting in the cultural milieu that borrows extensively from the ancient Benin Kingdom to its location that makes it a melting point for the various ethnic nationalities that surround the city, it has famed itself as a centre of academic endeavours with strong alumni to show for its efforts.
Another distinction of the university is that it is affected by the bumptiousness of its environment; after all, it is the University of Benin. Similar comparisons about how location of universities affects their operations can be made with other universities possibly with the same results.
The uniqueness of the University of Benin is that its matters are decided in the media, more than any other higher institution in Nigeria. Petition writers have a field day meddling in strictly administrative matters of the university.
Whether it is the appointment of a vice chancellor or a bursar, some people around the university diminish it with the campaigns that they run. Hardly are there questions about the academic and professional qualifications of the candidates. The foremost issues appear to be gender and genre. The sex of the candidate and his origins are placed above competence and professional integrity.
Candidates are promoted as ethnic champions rather than professionals who will add value to the services the university provides. Other universities are in this practice. The major difference is that their affairs do not get the media campaigns that Uniben contenders unleash on the public. Apparently, the campaign is to facilitate the job of lobbyists in getting the attention of the appointing authorities. It is simply bizarre.
Elsewhere, universities pride themselves with the quality and diversity of their faculties. They go extra mile to attract international scholars and professionals. In Nigeria the gate is narrowing against competence and professionalism on several fronts and the University of Benin is only an example.
While most people see the location of a federal or state institution in their area as giving them a right to occupy all the choice places, the Federal Character Commission, drawing from its powers in the Constitution, 42. (1) A citizen of Nigeria of a particular community, ethnic group, place of origin, sex, religion or political opinion shall not, by reason only that he is such a person:-
(a) be subjected either expressly by, or in the practical application of, any law in force in Nigeria or any executive or administrative action of the government, to disabilities or restrictions to which citizens of Nigeria of other communities, ethnic groups, places of origin, sex, religions or political opinions are not made subject; or
(b) be accorded either expressly by, or in the practical application of, any law in force in Nigeria or any such executive or administrative action, any privilege or advantage that is not accorded to citizens of Nigeria of other communities, ethnic groups, places of origin, sex, religions or political opinions.
(2) No citizen of Nigeria shall be subjected to any disability or deprivation merely by reason of the circumstances of his birth.
Another distinction of the university is that it is affected by the bumptiousness of its environment; after all, it is the University of Benin. Similar comparisons about how location of universities affects their operations can be made with other universities possibly with the same results.
The uniqueness of the University of Benin is that its matters are decided in the media, more than any other higher institution in Nigeria. Petition writers have a field day meddling in strictly administrative matters of the university.
Whether it is the appointment of a vice chancellor or a bursar, some people around the university diminish it with the campaigns that they run. Hardly are there questions about the academic and professional qualifications of the candidates. The foremost issues appear to be gender and genre. The sex of the candidate and his origins are placed above competence and professional integrity.
Candidates are promoted as ethnic champions rather than professionals who will add value to the services the university provides. Other universities are in this practice. The major difference is that their affairs do not get the media campaigns that Uniben contenders unleash on the public. Apparently, the campaign is to facilitate the job of lobbyists in getting the attention of the appointing authorities. It is simply bizarre.
Elsewhere, universities pride themselves with the quality and diversity of their faculties. They go extra mile to attract international scholars and professionals. In Nigeria the gate is narrowing against competence and professionalism on several fronts and the University of Benin is only an example.
While most people see the location of a federal or state institution in their area as giving them a right to occupy all the choice places, the Federal Character Commission, drawing from its powers in the Constitution, 42. (1) A citizen of Nigeria of a particular community, ethnic group, place of origin, sex, religion or political opinion shall not, by reason only that he is such a person:-
(a) be subjected either expressly by, or in the practical application of, any law in force in Nigeria or any executive or administrative action of the government, to disabilities or restrictions to which citizens of Nigeria of other communities, ethnic groups, places of origin, sex, religions or political opinions are not made subject; or
(b) be accorded either expressly by, or in the practical application of, any law in force in Nigeria or any such executive or administrative action, any privilege or advantage that is not accorded to citizens of Nigeria of other communities, ethnic groups, places of origin, sex, religions or political opinions.
(2) No citizen of Nigeria shall be subjected to any disability or deprivation merely by reason of the circumstances of his birth.
Senate confirms Lamorde as EFCC chairman
By Nnamdi Ojiego
The Senate has on Wednesday, confirmed the appointment of Ibrahim Lamorde as the chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
It will be recalled that President Goodluck Jonathan on Wednesday, November 23, 2011 appointed Lamorde to head the anti-graft commission. He has been under acting capacity since then.
However, Lamorde’s appointment followed the sacking of Mrs Farida Waziri as the chairman of the commission by President Jonathan over undisclosed reasons.
The Senate has on Wednesday, confirmed the appointment of Ibrahim Lamorde as the chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
It will be recalled that President Goodluck Jonathan on Wednesday, November 23, 2011 appointed Lamorde to head the anti-graft commission. He has been under acting capacity since then.
However, Lamorde’s appointment followed the sacking of Mrs Farida Waziri as the chairman of the commission by President Jonathan over undisclosed reasons.
We’ve just started, Ogunbote informs other clubs
By Ime Bassey
Following his team’s 1-1 draw against Shooting Stars of Ibadan at the Obafemi Awolowo Stadium in Ibadan on Saturday, Coach of Sunshine Stars, Gbenga Ogunbote has stated that his boys will get their strides back in the league season.
Ogunbote, who expressed his joy to Inside Out Premier League over the performance of his lads, hoped that they will consolidate on the draw in their midweek game at home to Sharks of Port Harcourt.
“It is a gradual process for us to get back to our winning ways of last season. We had a poor preparation having lost a good number of our key players to other clubs. But be that as it may, we came to Ibadan to pick the three points; notwithstanding, we are elated going home with one point.
“We will not be carried away with this performance anywhere. We want to consolidate on the victory by maximizing the spirit it will give the team in the next game against Sharks at home on Wednesday,” Ogunbote said.
Following his team’s 1-1 draw against Shooting Stars of Ibadan at the Obafemi Awolowo Stadium in Ibadan on Saturday, Coach of Sunshine Stars, Gbenga Ogunbote has stated that his boys will get their strides back in the league season.
Ogunbote, who expressed his joy to Inside Out Premier League over the performance of his lads, hoped that they will consolidate on the draw in their midweek game at home to Sharks of Port Harcourt.
“It is a gradual process for us to get back to our winning ways of last season. We had a poor preparation having lost a good number of our key players to other clubs. But be that as it may, we came to Ibadan to pick the three points; notwithstanding, we are elated going home with one point.
“We will not be carried away with this performance anywhere. We want to consolidate on the victory by maximizing the spirit it will give the team in the next game against Sharks at home on Wednesday,” Ogunbote said.
Boko Haram: SSS declares ex-soldier wanted
By Chris Ochayi
ABUJA: Following intensive interrogation of the captured spokesperson of the Boko Haram sect, Abul Qaqa, the State Security Services, SSS, has declared another member of the sect, an ex-soldier, Habibu Bama wanted.
The suspect who is said to be known with several pseudo names including Habib Bama, Shuabu Bama and Habib Mamman is Kanuri by tribe and hails from Borno State.
Deputy Director Public Relations in the Department of State Services, DSS, Marilyn Ogar while declaring the suspect wanted in a statement in Abuja, pleaded with members of the public to offer useful information that will lead to his arrest.
According to her, “ HABIBU BAMA is hereby declared wanted by the Federal Government in connection with crimes against the State.
“HABIBU BAMA is an ex-soldier, Kanuri by tribe and hails from Bama, Borno State. He is also known by the following names; i. Habib BAMA; ii. Shuaibu BAMA; and iii. Habib MAMMAN.
She added “members of the public with any information that could lead to his arrest are hereby implored to immediately contact the nearest Police Station, Military formation or any other security agency, please.”
