News & Announcements

The Nasarawa State Police Command has confirmed the alleged murder of 27 herdsmen in a “airstrike” in the state’s Doma Local Government Area.

The News Agency of Nigeria received confirmation of the development and casualty counts from DSP Ramhan Nansel, the Command’s Public Relations Officer (PPRO), on Thursday in Lafia.

According to Nansel’s preliminary investigation, the pastoralists traveled to Benue on Tuesday to pay fines for the release of animals that had been seized by the Benue Livestock Guards as part of their enforcement of the state’s anti-open grazing and ranching law.

He said, “While they were loading some of the cows into vehicles on Tuesday night in Kwatiri village, a border community between Benue and Nasarawa, something like a drone or an aircraft hovered in the air and shelled them.”

Nansel said that the state’s deputy governor, Dr. Emmanuel Akabe, the commissioner of police, Maiyaki Mohammed-Baba, had visited the location of the tragedy and also attended the funeral of the deceased.

He added that the command had sent cops to the area to prevent the collapse of law and order and that the inquiry was still ongoing to identify those responsible.

Since then, Governor Abdullahi Sule has denounced the heinous conduct and stated that he is in contact with his Benue counterpart about the incident as the security services continue their investigations.

He exhorted the populace to maintain their composure and refrain from enforcing laws without authority.

In addition to denouncing the alleged death, the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) demanded a thorough inquiry to identify those responsible.

The National Public Relations Officer for MACBAN, Muhammad Nura, provided a statement to NAN that read, “This is the third time we are experiencing such incidents.”

In addition to the casualties, he said that livestocks were also slain in the attack.

“MACBAN describes the action as not only condemnable but a war crime under the Geneva Convention that prohibits the wanton killing of livestock.

“We call on the authorities to investigate this terror, punish the culprits and be sure that incidents like this will not happen again,” the Nura said.

Following reports of attacks on Labour Party, LP, members in Lagos, the party’s governorship candidate, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, has urged security personnel to remember that it is their duty to protect all citizens, regardless of their political, religious, or ethnic affiliations.

The recent senseless attack on an LP member in the Ojo area for posting campaign posters, in which he was macheted with deep cuts on his skull and all over his body, was condemned by Rhodes-Vivour at a press conference on the issues and challenges of collecting PVC in Lagos on Wednesday. She called it unacceptable.

He said,“We will continue to relate with the security agents and we are saying it on camera today that we are not going to be intimidated. We are law-abiding members of society. So, we will reach out to the police and other security agencies and hope that they will do the needful. However, if we don’t see any attitude of doing the needful by the security agents as the election day approaches, we’ll be forced to protect ourselves by any means necessary.”

While praising the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, for taking swift action to address some of the difficulties encountered in the collection of PVCs, he advised the public to persevere since every hardship is worthwhile.

He added, “Preventing people from collecting their PVCs is suppression of votes. We want to ensure that those collecting PVCs are the true owners to avoid voter suppression. LP is concerned about every Nigerian who wants to vote. What we want is that every registered voter is allowed to vote because that’s the only way we can achieve the new Nigeria that we all desire. So, anew Nigeria is possible if we collect our PVCs and vote during the elections.”

However, the LP candidate voiced confidence in the INEC’s ability to hold a credible, fair, and free election, saying: “I was happy with the INEC officials we met yesterday (Tuesday). I respect the State REC, a former DSS officer. It is always good to have security experts get involved in elections because this election is about security. So when we have somebody that knows about security at the helm of affairs, he would want to do well. Because if people do not want Free and fair elections, there will be no BVAS.

“Even when we complained that the time to collect PVCs was too short, INEC extended it. And when we have issues submitting names of polling agents, they also extended it for us.

“However, My eyes are on the people at the ward and LGA level because that thing is not translating all the way down for us.”

On the perception that LP is an Igbo party, Rhodes-Vivour stressed that; LP is the only party that has a quality representation of people from different regions of the country, everything is balanced. PDP doesn’t have that and APC cannot claim to have that. If you look at APC, there’s no place for South-South or South-East, and there’s no place for Christians. LP is the most balanced party because you have Christians, Moslems, and all the regions of Nigeria are well represented. That’s how Nigeria is supposed to be. So nobody can say that LP is Igbo party.”

Early this morning, a four-story building in Lagos’ well-known Balogun market caught fire, destroying merchandise worth millions of naira.

The exact cause of the fire was yet to be ascertained.

According to reports, the blaze began at around 12.45 am in one of the stores of the textile and shoe building on Gbajumo.

According to reports, it took three hours for firefighters from the Federal and State Services to put out the fire.

While dampening was taking place, it was learned that the fire had re-started around 6 am, and that emergency personnel were still battling it at the time 9:40 am.

NEMA Ibrahim Farinloye, the South West Coordinator for the National Emergency Management Agency, stated that no fatalities have been reported.

His words were, ” Presently, the fire has been brought under total control. It has been contained without spreading to other buildings.

“No  injury or death has been noticed accessibility to the source of fire is still very difficult but it is confined to the source”

The World Health Organisation has called on countries to prevent, detect and respond to incidents of substandard and falsified medical products.

The WHO said over the past four months, countries have reported several incidents of over-the-counter cough syrups for children with confirmed or suspected contamination with high levels of diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol.

The contaminants are toxic chemicals used as industrial solvents and antifreeze agents that can be fatal even taken in small amounts, and should never be found in medicines, the UN body warned.

“The cases are from at least seven countries, associated with more than 300 fatalities in three of these countries. Most are young children under the age of five. These contaminants are toxic chemicals used as industrial solvents and antifreeze agents that can be fatal even taken in small amounts, and should never be found in medicines.

“Most are young children under the age of five. These contaminants are toxic chemicals used as industrial solvents and antifreeze agents that can be fatal even taken in small amounts, and should never be found in medicines,” it said in a press statement on its website.

The contaminated cough syrups have been a concern for public health officials.

The global health body issued three global medical alerts addressing these incidents.

The Medical Product Alert N°6/2022 on October 5, 2022, focused on the outbreak in the Gambia, Medical Product Alert N°7/2022 on November 6, 2022, focused on Indonesia, and Medical Product Alert No1/2023 on January 11, 2023, focused on Uzbekistan.

Since these are not isolated incidents, the WHO urged stakeholders engaged in the medical supply chain to take immediate and coordinated action.

The agency called on regulators and governments to “detect and remove from circulation in their respective markets any substandard medical product that has been identified in the WHO medical alerts referred to above as potential causes of deaths and disease,” it added.

David Okon, a 22-year-old sales representative, has been placed on remand by a Yaba Magistrates’ Court in Lagos State in connection with the alleged rape of Folake, a mentally disabled lady, in the state’s Lekki neighborhood.

According to reports, Folake, who was said to be virgin at the time of the occurrence, traveled to Lagos from Abeokuta, Ogun State, to visit her sick aunt.

But she began to follow the woman to her workplace.

The aunt’s coworker Okon is alleged to have made sexual approaches toward her ever since she first began stopping by the store, but she rejected him.

He was accused of raping the victim as she was bleeding from her intimate areas.

While Okon was detained after being caught, Folake reportedly reported to her aunt and was transported to the hospital for treatment.

On Monday, Thomas Nurudeen, the police prosecutor, informed the court that Okon committed the crime on Tunde Joda Street in Ikate, in the Lekki region of the state, on November 23, 2022, about 6 o’clock.

Nurudeen further stated that the offense was sanctioned under Section 260 of the Lagos State Criminal Law, 2015.

The charge read, “ That you, David Okon, on November 23, 2022, around 6pm on Tunde Joda Street, off White Sand, Ikate, Lekki, Lagos, in the Lagos Magisterial District, did have unlawful sexual intercourse with one Folake without her consent, thereby committing an offence punishable under Section 260 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.”

Given that the prisoner had been in custody for two months, the defense attorney begged the court to give him bail.

The Magistrate, P.E. Nwaka, denied the request and remanded Okon for 30 days in a detention facility.

Nwaka adjourned the case till February 22, 2023.

Officials reported that eight pupils in Ghana’s Bono East Region died when the boat transporting them to school crashed on the Volta Lake.

According to the National Disaster Management Organization, there were 20 students traveling to school in the town of Wayokope across the lake, including the eight—five boys and three girls, ages five to twelve.

The corpses of the deceased have been retrieved, according to Ibrahim Wudonyim, the coordinator of NADMO, with assistance from some locals and the Marine Police Unit of the Ghana Police Service.

Investigations are being conducted, to determine what caused the accident.

The reported attack on Peter Obi’s campaign bus following a rally in Katsina on Monday has been denounced by the Obi-Datti Presidential Campaign Council.

The campaign team claims that the aforementioned attack happened after Obi held a townhall meeting with women and a rally at the Muhammad Dikko Stadium.

There are reports that Obi took his campaign to Katsina, where he pledged to address issues including unemployment, instability, and starvation.

When speaking to the gathering, Obi and his campaign team—which included his running companion, Datti Baba-Ahmed—promised to serve the nation with all of their might if elected.

Insisting that voters should have faith in him and his party to continue the development of the country, he pledged to keep all of his commitments to Nigerians.

However, the campaign team said that Obi was attacked by some hoodlums while en route to the airport.

“On his (Obi) way to the airport, hoodlums attacked the car our candidate was riding in with heavy stones from his drivers side causing substantial damage to the vehicle.

“To the glory of God, Obi and other occupants of the car were unhurt.

The campaign team narrated in a statement signed by its Head of Media, Diran Onifade, on Tuesday, “Subsequently, another set of thugs also threw stones outside the stadium which damaged several vehicles including that of our official stage crew.”

“The two incidents taken together make us suspect that the attacks may have been premeditated at the behest of desperate politicians who had been deluding themselves with the false claim that they had the North-West locked up but are now shocked by the show of force of the Obidient movement in the region,” Onifade added.

The group thanked Katsina residents who came out to support Obi’s campaign on Tuesday and urged security agencies to look into the incident to prevent similar incidents in the future.

Adam Farouk, an Islamic teacher, was given a life sentence for defiling eight of his students on Tuesday by Justice Abiola Soladoye of an Ikeja Domestic Violence and Sexual Offenses Court in Lagos State.

Between November 2018 and February 2019, Farouk defiled the students, who ranged in age from six to eleven, on Balogun Street in Parkview Estate, Ikoyi, Lagos.

The Lagos State Government filed eight counts of sexual assault against the defendant, which led to the convict’s arraignment.

While delivering judgment, Justice Soladoye stated that the prosecution proved beyond reasonable doubt the ingredients of the eight counts bordering on sexual assault by penetration.

The convict, according to Soladoye, is morally depraved and a disgrace to Islam.

The judge ruled that the survivors’ testimony was reliable and truthful and added that their manner during the trial demonstrated that they were telling the truth.

She claimed that the students’ testimony had been verified since they had named the convict as their teacher who had poked their privates with his index fingers.

The 10th prosecution witness, Mrs. Oluchi Nwoke-Okoi, a midwife with the Women at Risk International Foundation, testified, according to Soladoye, that the students had vaginal injuries.

The judge further ruled that the defendant asked the students to turn around while he defiled each one of them individually.

Justice Soladoye ruled that although the convict had lied to the jury during the trial, the jury had not been duped.

She said, “The demeanour of the defendant is nothing to write home about; his stony face appears mischievous; he is extremely unkind and ruthless, fingering his students with his index fingers.

“What an Islamic teacher, who took undue advantage of poor students in Islam and messed around with their purity and dignity.

“He is meant to teach his students morals, discipline and values, but alas, the reverse is the case.

”The dignity and safety of our students must be cherished. Dirty Islamic teacher of his kind must be locked away and made to pay for his dirty sexual indiscretions.”

The judge urged the government of Lagos State to appropriately oversee educational institutions.

She also advised Muslim communities to routinely pay unannounced visits to Islamic institutions to seek direct input from students and parents on the courses taken and behavior of their instructors.

“The need for this can never be overemphasised in view of the rampant scenes of this heinous crime.

“I salute the courage of the survivors for speaking up against the defendant without any fear of intimidation.

“Abused children are to be encouraged to speak up so that their assailants will be shamed and sanctioned accordingly.

“A teacher is a role model, setting the pace and leading by example as he is expected to impact knowledge and morals, but this defendant is nothing of such as he threw caution to the wind and messed around.

“On the testimonies of each of the prosecution witnesses and that of the sole defence witness, I am convinced beyond reasonable doubt that the prosecution has proved the case beyond reasonable doubt.

“The defendant is hereby convicted of all the charges and sentenced to life imprisonment on each of the eight counts, but the sentences shall run concurrently,” Soladoye added.

The convict’s name was also ordered to be entered into Lagos State’s Sexual Offenders Register by the judge.

During the trial, the defendant was the only witness for the defense; the prosecution summoned ten witnesses.

Aides of the governor of Ebonyi State, David Umahi, are accused of brutally beating an artist there named Kelvin Ibinabo, who has since been admitted to the hospital.

The aide, who goes by the name Machiavelli Uzo, is the Coordinator of the Ohaozara Development Center in the Ebonyi State municipality of Ohaozara.

The musician said on Tuesday that the Uzo attacked him on Saturday together with his supporters and imprisoned him in a dark room.

Ibinabo described his trauma, claiming that the LGA Chairman, Mr. Consider Ajah, had hired him to sing at his mother-in-funeral law’s at the council.

He said he had ordered his staff to pack up when night fell.

“It was at that point that the Ohaozara Development Centre Coordinator, Machiaveli Uzo, emerged from nowhere and ordered me to play the campaign song of the APC governorship candidate in Ebonyi State,” he added.

Ibinabo claimed he turned down the invitation because the occasion was not political and he was finished with his performance.

He claimed that the coordinator threatened to physically harm him if he refused.

“At that point, I had no choice and for the sake of peace, I picked up the microphone and started playing the song for him.

“After about 20 minutes, I dropped the microphone; but Mr Uzo again ordered me to pick up the microphone and play until he was satisfied.

“But I refused to sing and instead ordered my crew to pack up so we could leave the scene. At this point, the coordinator and his thugs descended on me, beating me with different weapons.

“After beating me to almost a comatose state, they whisked me into a room in the compound and locked me up.

“The police in Ohaozara later arrived, rescued me from the room and took me to the Alex Ekwueme Federal University Teaching Hospital, Abakaliki, for treatment,” he added.

The victim claimed that the chairman of the Ohaozara council was absent when the assault took place.

Uzo, on the other hand, denied attacking the musician, whom he described as a friend.

He said he pleaded with the artiste to sing a song for him, which he agreed to.

“After that, we went inside the house and were making merry but after some time, he (Ibinabo) said he wanted to go outside and check something.

“The next thing I heard was a commotion with some people beating him and chasing him into the house. I was also surprised by the action of his attackers like others inside,” he added.

SP Chris Anyanwu, the police spokesperson for Ebonyi State, claimed to be unaware of the occurrence.

His words were, “I am yet to hear and receive details of this. Where did it happen? Who ordered him to sing the APC song?

“I will get across to the DPO of the area for details and give you detailed information. Please, calm down.”

An Assistant General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Prof. Folagbade Aboaba, is dead.

Aboaba died a few days before his 90th birthday.

Aboaba, who was said to be one of the closest allies of the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Pastor Enoch Adeboye, died after a brief illness.

This was disclosed in a statement on Monday by the National Chairman of the Nigeria Institute of Agricultural Engineers, Professor Folarin Alonge.

In a tribute to his memory on the institute’s website, Alonge described the late scholar as one of the founding fathers of the institute, who was always passionate about the growth of Agricultural Engineering and mechanization in the country.
He wrote: “One of our Fathers in the profession, Prof. Fola Aboaba, has gone home. He was a Professor of Professors of Professors.

“Prof Folagbade Olajide Aboaba was an Emeritus Professor of Agricultural Engineering at the University of Ibadan and the Pioneering Dean of the Faculty of Technology (1976-1982). I was privileged to be taught by him at both undergraduate and Masters class. He was a mentor to several people and professors.

“He was the Executive Secretary of Committee of Vice Chancellors of Nigerian Universities (1992-1998). He was the founding Pro-Chancellor of Redeemers University (2005-2013). He was the Chairman of Governing Council of the Federal Institute of Industrial Research Oshodi (FIIRO), Lagos (1976-1979).

“He died at the age of 90.

“I chatted with him on Sept 15, 2022, when we were preparing the NIAE conference in Asaba (Delta State). His response to my asking about him is ‘Thank you. Aging slowly but fine. Glory to God. God bless you. Baba was a lovely, cheerful and good man.

“He was one of the founding members of the NIAE. He played a significant role with other fathers in the establishment of the National Centre for Agricultural Mechanization, Ilorin. He made substantial contributions to the growth of NSAE (NIAE).

The last major public lecture he delivered for NIAE was when we were invited to the Presidential Villa, Abuja in 2004 by the then Vice President. Late Prof John Ohu was the NIAE National Chairman then. He was always interested in hearing about the progress NIAE is making.

“He was a member of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) as well as the Institution of Agricultural Engineers UK.

“May his soul find eternal rest in God.”