News & Announcements

In the Oshodi neighborhood of Lagos State, an unidentified soldier is accused of fatally stabbing ticket agent Ibrahim Ikudaisi, also known as Guardian, over a N100 ticket.

Ikudaisi was reportedly visiting shops to seek N100 in levy from several vendors in an Oshodi market when one of the vendors refused to pay him.

Ikudaisi’s plea for the trader to comply apparently resulted in a quarrel, and during that exchange, the soldier interfered to stop the ticket agent from taking the trader’s money.

It was discovered that when the argument grew heated, the soldier pulled a knife from his pocket and allegedly stabbed Ikudaisi in the chest.

Ikudaisi was knocked to the ground by the force of the attack, according to eyewitness Adenike Ajayi, She said that the soldier took off after realizing the ticket seller had lost consciousness.

Ajayi said, “Ikudaisi is a popular person in this part of Oshodi. Everybody knows him and his nickname is ‘Guardian’. He is the one that collects daily ticket levies from all of us that are traders here.

“He was here yesterday (Tuesday) around 11am and we had all collected our daily tickets from him when he got into an argument with a lady who refused to pay for the ticket.

Ikudaisi died as a result of the wounds he received during the attack, according to Ajayi, who also claimed that the soldier ran to the Cantonment at Charity, where other soldiers came to his assistance.

“He was buried at his family compound in Lagos Island this morning. Army officers were around this place in the morning and they told us that they have arrested the soldier but we did not believe them because nobody was there to witness the arrest,” the trader said.

Contacted, the state Police Public Relations Officer, SP Benjamin Hundeyin, said, “I am not aware of this situation; I will contact you as soon as any information concerning this matter is available to me.”

The new director-general of the National Youth Service Corps, Yushau Dogara, has been urged by the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria to take action against a group that distributes fake NYSC certificates to members of the public.

The group claimed on Thursday that it believed a syndicate was involved in the scam and that it felt the syndicate’s role in the scheme was to entice and deceive the public, especially those running for political office.

HURIWA stressed that the members of the syndicate might also be participants in the scheme when he indicated that the certificates being provided are designated as “Oluwole NYSC certifications.”

This was announced by the rights advocacy group on Thursday in Abuja.

HURIWA added that the new DG should form a committee to look into the situation and find the members of the syndicate responsible for the heinous act.

“We will be writing to the new Director General of the NYSC to task him to set up an independent panel of investigators to uncover the members of this syndicate,” the rights advocacy group said in the press conference.

Kano State Governor Abdullahi Ganduje met with bank managers, Central Bank of Nigeria representatives, security agencies, and other stakeholders on Thursday for an interactive session in an effort to find a long-term solution to the suffering that citizens are experiencing due to a shortage of new naira notes and never-ending lines in banks.

This was said in a statement given to reporters on Friday by Abba Anwar, the Governor’s chief press secretary.

Anwar claims that the meeting took place at Africa House, Government House, Kano, and that the governor declared the policy’s poor implementation to be a “sign of sabotage.”

“The policy is a good one, but the implementation is poorly executed and ill-timed. The poor implementation is either a display of incapacity and/or as a sign of sabotage,” Anwar quoted Ganduje as saying.

Ganduje went on to say that the implementation was not intended to promote economic growth but rather to undermine democracy and create chaos everywhere.

“Implementation of the policy is our major concern and problem. Not the policy itself. If you want to implement such a policy, there is a need for you to make public enlightenment and engagement with stakeholders before you arrive at the implementation stage.

“If you want to implement any policy as a leader you need to take many things into consideration. People are suffering.

“You cannot successfully implement a policy without proper planning for it. You need strong institutions if you want implement this kind of policy.”

He reaffirmed that the Kano State Government will keep fighting for the successful implementation of the new naira policy.

“Probably the people targeted by the poor implementation of this policy are not even suffering like other citizens. Something must be done to ameliorate this hardship being faced by our people.

“Since we are facing what I now called COVID-23 we are making all preparations towards distributing palliatives again.”

Additionally, he said that as long as people are struggling, the state government would provide free transportation to important locations around the state by flooding the roads with buses.

Ukraine’s leader has taken his request for fighter jets to France and Germany after meeting UK officials.

President Volodymyr Zelensky met the two countries’ leaders in Paris on Wednesday evening, where they pledged ongoing support to Ukraine, reports the BBC.

France’s Emmanuel Macron and Germany’s Olaf Scholz restated their belief that Russia must not win the war.

Zelensky will make more requests for jets when he meets European Union leaders in Brussels on Thursday.

He believes the fighter jets and long-range missiles are important in addition to the Leopard 2 tanks Western nations have recently committed to supplying.

Speaking at a joint news conference on Wednesday evening with Macron and Scholz, Zelensky said France and Germany had the potential to be “game-changers” in the battle against Russia by providing Ukraine with battle tanks, modern fighter planes, and long-range missiles.

He said the supply of the jets had been discussed and warned there was “very little time” to provide the weaponry.

Macron said Ukraine could count on France’s support and that the country was “determined to help Ukraine to victory and the re-establishment of its legitimate rights”.

Scholz also said: “The position is unchanged: Russia must not win this war.” Whether that means the two nations may commit to supplying fighter jets is unclear for now.

Both the French president and German chancellor have at times faced criticism for being too slow to support Ukraine.

Zelensky has previously expressed frustration with Macron, who continued to hold phone calls with Russian President Vladimir Putin after the invasion.

But the Ukrainian president told the French newspaper Le Figaro he believed Macron had changed. He said his commitment to support Ukraine to victory and the fact he “opened the door” to tank deliveries last month showed this.

Zelensky’s Thursday visit to Brussels comes after he addressed the UK Parliament on Wednesday.

There, he also urged London to supply fighter jets to support Ukraine’s war efforts.

“Freedom will win – we know Russia will lose,” he told a crowd of MPs and peers in Westminster Hall, adding the UK was with his country on a march to “the most important victory of our lifetime”.

Downing Street said Defence Secretary Ben Wallace was investigating what aircraft the UK could potentially offer, but emphasised this was “a long-term solution” and that training pilots could take years.

Russia has warned there would be a “response” from Moscow if anyone did provide Ukraine with aircraft.

The death toll from a massive earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria rose above 11,200 on Wednesday as rescuers raced to save survivors trapped under debris in the winter cold.

Officials and medics said 8,574 people had died in Turkey and 2,662 in Syria from Monday’s 7.8-magnitude tremor, bringing the total to 11,236, Alarabiya reports.

As the scale of the disaster became ever more apparent, the death toll looked likely to rise considerably.

One UN official said thousands of children may have died.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan declared a state of emergency in 10 provinces.

But residents in several damaged Turkish cities voiced anger and despair at what they said was a slow and inadequate response from the authorities to the deadliest earthquake to hit Turkey since 1999.

“There is not even a single person here. We are under the snow, without a home, without anything,” said Murat Alinak, whose home in Malatya had collapsed and whose relatives are missing. “What shall I do, where can I go?”

Monday’s magnitude 7.8 quake, followed hours later by a second one almost as powerful, toppled thousands of buildings including hospitals, schools, and apartment blocks, injured tens of thousands, and left countless people homeless in Turkey and northern Syria.

Rescue workers struggled to reach some of the worst-hit areas, held back by destroyed roads, poor weather, and a lack of resources and heavy equipment. Some areas were without fuel and electricity.

With little immediate help at hand, residents picked through rubble sometimes without even basic tools in a desperate hunt for survivors.

Aid officials voiced particular concern about the situation in Syria, already afflicted by a humanitarian crisis after nearly 12 years of civil war.

Erdogan declared 10 Turkish provinces a disaster zone and imposed a state of emergency for three months that will permit the government to bypass parliament in enacting new laws and to limit or suspend rights and freedoms.

The government will open up hotels in the tourism hub of Antalya to temporarily house people impacted by the quakes, said Erdogan, who faces a national election in three months’ time.

The death toll in Turkey rose to 5,894, Vice President Fuat Oktay said.

More than 34,000 were injured.

In Syria, the toll was at least 1,932, according to the government and rescue service in the insurgent-held northwest.

Dapo Abiodun, the governor of Ogun State, visited Gabriel Michael on Wednesday. Gabriel Michael was hit by a stray bullet on Tuesday during the naira and fuel scarcity demonstration in Abeokuta.

Michael is presently undergoing medical care at the Federal Medical Centre in Idi Aba, Abeokuta.

According to reports, demonstrators reportedly overran the capital of Ogun State to voice their unhappiness with the severe naira shortage that has affected both the State and the entire nation.

Speaking to journalists, Abiodun urged citizens of the State to maintain calm and peace, stating that destroying property was not the appropriate response to the current predicament.

He promised that the government will see to it that all pressing concerns were addressed in order to prevent additional unrest and violence.

“I plead with everyone in Ogun State; your governor is doing everything humanly possible at this time. We have spoken to the President and the Central Bank of Nigeria gove rnor. I have met with bankers and monarchs .

“Please, do not resort to any form of violence. This is not who we are in Ogun State. We are a peace-loving people. We are the Gateway State, the industrial capital of Nigeria. We are not violent people. We are going to get over it. Let us be peaceful and orderly,” he said.

He further added, “We cannot resort to violence. Looting banks and breaking Automated Teller Machine terminals will not solve the problem. You will only create fear in the minds of the bank staff and they won’t open their doors and attend to you.

“So, if there is a supply of cash in the banks and they are not open, we will still be just as frustrated. Please do not take it out on the bankers,” Abiodun said.

He further urged the Federal Government to keep investing in human resources and investment with much-needed equipment.

“One of the takeaways from this is that we have local capacity. If the government can continue to invest in our human resources and match them with equipment, we can save the lives of our people.

“I believe that from COVID-19 and its experiences, we have continued to build capacity; hence we have been able to intervene as we have done with this boy’s life,” he disclosed.

The woman in a popular video who was allegedly extorting money before issuing Permanent Voter Cards to its owners has been detained, according to the Police Command in Enugu State.

This was said in a statement released on Thursday in Enugu by the command’s public relations officer, DSP Daniel Ndukwe.

The statement read, “Police detectives serving in the state Criminal Investigation Department of Enugu State Command on January 31, 2023, arrested a female suspect, one Chinwendu Nnamani, 41.

“Nnamani was involved in the viral social media video clip in which she is seen and alleged to be selling INEC Permanent Voter Cards at the sum of one thousand naira, at a primary school in Emene, Enugu.

“Also arrested is one Nkiruka Patience Obinna, 38, identified as an INEC staff and alleged to have given the said PVCs to the first suspect for distribution to the actual owners.

“Investigation has been concluded, the case charged to court in line with the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022, and the suspects arraigned accordingly,” he added.

The defendants in the case of extorting money for PVCs were given bail, and the case was continued to February 15 for a new hearing, according to the police spokesman.

Samuel Omolaye, a student at the University of Lagos, died there while receiving treatment, and his family has accused the management of the Federal Medical Centre, Ebute Metta, Lagos, of carelessness.

On February 1, 2023, Samuel reportedly complained of feeling ill, and his family members hurried him to the hospital for emergency care.

Upon arrival, it was discovered that medical staff had declined to treat the 25-year-old because there were not enough available beds in the facility.

Comfort, Samuel’s mother, said that despite the medical staff noticing that Samuel was in urgent need of care, no bed space was offered so his condition could be checked until three hours after Samuel passed away at the hospital.

Comfort said, “My son complained about weakness of the body. I took him to the Federal Medical Centre since we have the hospital card. We got there around 3pm and were told that there was no bed space. I was directed to another hospital but I started begging the workers in the hospital as I could not risk taking him to another hospital because of his condition.

“After pleading for about three hours, they later told us that a bed was available and my son was admitted. When the doctor on duty checked him, he discovered that Samuel had a shortage of blood and told me to get blood and left us.

“My son kept lamenting seriously over the weakness he was experiencing in his body. I complained to a nurse but was surprised that when the nurse said the doctor did not record it in the system that my son needed blood.”

Comfort claimed that Samuel’s blood was not drawn until 8 o’clock by a different doctor who was later assigned to care for her son, and that when the results were released at 11 o’clock, it was discovered that Samuel required four pints of blood.

She added that when she inquired about where she might buy blood because Samuel’s father wasn’t there, she was informed that the blood bank had closed.

The grieving mother said that she had been seeking for blood in vain when a nurse gave her the name of a blood donor who was willing to donate blood for her son for N10,000 per pint and with an additional N10,000 fee.

“When I obliged to give him the money, the man went into the laboratory, returned and informed me that the laboratory had blood and that they claimed they wanted to use it for surgery the following morning.

“He told me to beg them and when I pleaded to get blood to save my son, they told me to pay N9,600 to the cashier which I did. I brought the receipt to them but they told me that the money did not reflect in their system, and they held on to the blood,” Comfort said.

The mother claimed that once the blood was given to a hospital employee, she waited for the payment to be confirmed. She added that when she went back to the ward, the blood transfusion had not yet started.

“I questioned the nurse and she said they needed to warm the blood. It was while they were warming the blood that my son died. It was not too long that he died that other all the workers on duty started rushing out from where they were sleeping to start pressing Samuel’s chest. I told them that they took my son’s life. We just buried him on Monday.”

When contacted, the hospital’s head of clinical services, Saheed Ogunme, expressed his condolences to the family of the dead and said that Samuel, a sickle cell patient, had been transferred from a private hospital after his condition had gotten worse.

He said, “When they arrived at our facility, our beds were filled. We had to tell a patient who was a military man to permit us to use his bed while we moved him into a wheelchair. That was how we were able to attend to him.

“We also do not allow commercial donors in the hospital; we only permit patients and patients’ relatives blood donors. Meanwhile, the pint of blood that was available as of then belonged to a woman who was in labour.

“We could not give out the blood until we were sure that the woman was stabilised. We are also going to investigate the case of a commercial donor that was mentioned and we will take action against anyone found culpable.”

Two individuals have been detained by the Kano State Police Command for allegedly scamming a rice dealer of N33,000 while posing as journalists.

The 30-year-old suspects Mujahid Kabir and Abba Imam were accused of faking a bogus bank transfer alert on February 2, 2023, for N33,000 in order to purchase a sack of rice at a plaza in Sharada Quarters, Kano Municipal Local Government Area, Kano State.

This information was released on Wednesday by the state police spokesperson, SP Abdullahi Haruna Kiyawa, who said, “On February 2, 2023, at or around 1700 hours, a report was received from the Manager of a Plaza at Sharada Quarters, Kano Municipal LGA, Kano State, that two people went to their Plaza, purchased a bag of rice for N33,000, and then generated a fake bank transfer alert to them.

“On receipt of the report, the Commissioner of Police, Kano State Command CP Mamman Dauda, psc(+) raised and instructed a team of detectives led by SP Abdulrahim Adamu, Divisional Police Officer, Sharada Division to arrest the culprits.

“The team immediately proceeded to the scene and arrested the two suspects while trying to escape, one Mujahid Kabir, “m”, 30 Years old, of Ahmadu Bello Way and Abba Imam, ‘m’, 30 years old, of Zoo Road Kano. On spot search, the suspects were found in possession of Vision FM Personnel Identity Cards.

“On preliminary investigation, the suspects confessed to having gone to Vision FM Radio station Kano, stole two personnel Identity Cards and made fake copies bearing their names and photographs. They further confessed to having gone to the said plaza at Sharada Quarters, bought a bag of rice and made a fake transaction with the cashier.

“The Commissioner of Police directed the case to be transferred to the Command’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID) for discreet investigation. Suspects will be charged to court upon completion of the investigation.”

The CP warned locals to be on the lookout for fraudsters and scammers, secure their bank information, and alert their banks to any strange transactions.

An 18-seater GUO Motors commercial bus, a MAC truck, and an SUV automobile were all involved in a deadly collision that claimed one person’s life on the Kara Bridge of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

The accident, which occurred on Thursday morning, has severely slowed down traffic on the bridge leading into Opic and has affected passage beyond Berger to Lagos.

Only one hawker has been officially confirmed dead as of the time this news was filed.