Soldiers fighting Boko Haram collect N49k monthly salary

According to Kayode Ogundamisi, Nigerian soldiers fighting Boko Haram collect N49, 000 as monthly salary. Their daily feeding allowance is said to be N500.

Nigerian man beats mother to death in Texas

Mother of four, Hauwa Esther Kadima, 61, who was an accomplished professor of languages, and a published author, was bludgeoned to death at her home in Longview, Texas, on July 28th.

Her last child, 31 year old Daniel Kadima has been arrested in connection with her death.

Police was called to her home on July 28th and found her beaten to death - a bloody chair was lying next to her body. Police believe it was the murder weapon. She had fractures to her skull with laceration of the brain because of blunt impact to the head, according to autopsy findings. Daniel, who had called police to report a person lying dead in the apartment, was arrested the next day.

Daniel's ex-wife later told police about the years she suffered abuse in his hands and also detailed his history of mental illness. Daniel is in police custody while they investigate the murder.

The motive for the killing is not yet known

Dr. Kadima was a long-time professor of languages and mass communications at the University of Jos, Nigeria, where for many years she also served as a Head of Department. She was born in 1953 in the village of Bakin Kogi in the southern part of the State of Kaduna.

Elites used Boko Haram for selfish interest, Former Chief of Army Staff, Minimah, claims

Few days after his sacked colleague, Alex Badeh, revealed that the military under their leadership lacked equipment, immediate past Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Kenneth Minimah is also talking about their inability to conquer Boko Haram.

While giving his valedictory address at the Pulling-Out ceremony held in commemoration of his retirement from service in Abuja yesterday August 5th, Minimah said the elites used the insurgency to further their sectional, political and religious interest.

According to him, “The insurgency snowballed into a graver dimension because these people exploited the security challenge to further sectional, religious and political interests.

In the last decade, we have seen the extent to which people who harbour evil against their fellow co-patriots can go to inflict pain and death on innocent people. This is the time for us to rise in unison not only to condemn but to take actions against the activities of the Boko Haram terrorists and other criminal elements in order to foster peace and security in our society.

Perhaps, if we had all stood against the terrorists at the outset through condemnation of their activities and active collaboration with the military to confront them, rather than use it as a tool to advance section, tribal, religious and political interests, we would not have been where we find ourselves today.

We must therefore all unite and support our government and security forces to tackle the current security challenges,” he said.

Mass failure reported as the Nigerian Law School releases results

The Nigerian Law School results was released in the early hours of today and according to a reliable source, a lot of students failed.

About 60% of the students have been reported to have failed the exam, while 25% of students have General Pass and only 15% make First Class, Second Class Upper and Second Class Lower.

This is the second time the Law School will be turning out a large number of students with woeful results.

Woman accuses NEMA of stealing relief materials meant for IDPs

An angry Internally Displaced woman at the National Youth Service Camp in Damare, Adamawa state, has openly accused NEMA officials of stealing and selling relief materials meant for Internally Displaced Persons in the state.

The Coordinator for NEMA, Sa’ad Bello, was briefing deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, who was in the State to assess the conditions of the IDP camps when the woman interrupted their discussion and accused the agency of theft.

“It is a lie. We are not well taken care of. We only eat twice daily and it is always rice. They sell the material brought to us. They also buy cows with money meant for our upkeep, please we want to go home,” she said.

The obviously angry NEMA coordinator rebuked the woman and described her as being mad.

Photos: 2face, Faze re-unite for Star Music Trek

Former Plantashun Boiz members 2face and Faze re-united on August 1st at the IBB Square in Makurdi, Benue State, for Star Music Trek 2015.

Woman gives birth to a faceless baby in Abia

A woman who resides in Aba in Abia state gave birth to a faceless baby yesterday, August 5th.

Eyewitnesses say the woman went into labor at a hospital located at Ogbor Hill in Aba, Abia State where she delivered the wonder baby.

Rites of passage for Oba Sijuade ongoing – Source

The remains of Ooni of Ife, Oba Okunade Sijuade, were Wednesday said to be in Ile’gbo, the place where his coronation took place.

According to an informed palace source, Ile ‘gbo, is located within Ile Oodua, as Ooni’s palace  is called.
An Ife traditional title holder, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said: “the body arrived the place and was received by members of Isoro Cult early this week.

His words; ”His journey to the throne started from that place called Ile’gbo. That is where he was installed Ooni. That is also the place anyone that will succeed him will  be installed.

“The body is being preserved through traditional means. All the rites will be done while the body is kept there. But don’t expect formal announcement of his death in next two weeks.

“It may take months depending on how fast the Isoro members are able to conclude the necessary rites. The body is there as I speak to you but non-Isoro member cannot see it. Even his family members can no longer see him,” he concluded.

Meanwhile, family of Oba Sijuade were said to have parked their personal effects out of the palace.

2 beheaded, 4 injured in renewed Anambra/Kogi oil wells crisis

Two persons were beheaded at Eziagulu Otu, near the embattled Orient Petroleum Resources Ltd in Anambra East Local Government Area yesterday by armed men suspected to be from Ibaji in Kogi State, who allegedly attacked the people in their farms.

Four others, who sustained injuries have been admitted at a private hospital in Onitsha.

The attack came barely 24 hours after members of Board of Directors of Orient Petroleum informed Governor Willie Obiano of Anambra State, during a visit, that the company had acquired two new wells in Aguleri and would increase its crude oil production to 3,000 barrels per day in September.

Vanguard gathered that the attackers, who were armed to the teeth, took the farmers unawares and as many of them ran into the river, the attackers caught six of them, killing two and injuring four.

As the news of the attack reached the people of Aguleri in the upland, all those whose relations went to farm became worried. Shortly after, the victims were brought him.
At press time, it could not be ascertained if some people in the area were still missing.

SOS

One of the distress messages sent to Vanguard during the attack read: “Information reaching our town indicates that Kogi people are attacking Eziagulu Otu and Enugu Otu in several groups and are about to overrun the area and the oil field facilities there.”

Another message from the President General of Aguleri read: “Eziagulu Otu is currently under siege by our Kogi neighbours.

“I am informed that serious fighting is going on and casualties have been recorded. We are at a disadvantage under their superior fire power. The situation is bad.”

Anambra State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Hosea Karma, confirmed the incident, saying his men and the Kogi State Police Command had stepped in to stop further clash.

Vanguard

Tanker conductor disappears in Ijora-Apapa gridlock

The driver of a tanker owned by an oil company, Adekunle Deyboy, has denied complicity in the missing of the vehicle conductor, 24-year-old Sunday Dirisu.

Deyboy said he neither harmed nor killed the missing youth, claiming that there was no quarrel between them prior to the incident.

PUNCH Metro learnt that Dirisu, who hailed from Ogute in the Etsako East Local Government Area of Edo State, had been missing for about two months shortly after he disembarked from the vehicle in the Ijora area of Lagos State.

It was learnt that he and Deyboy were coming from the Sagamu area of Ogun State around 10pm on June 9 to load fuel at a depot in Apapa when the vehicle broke down on the Ijora Bridge.

PUNCH Metro gathered that Dirisu and the driver eventually fixed the vehicle. While Deyboy went back into the vehicle, his conductor was said to have started controlling the traffic to pave the way for the tanker.

Our correspondent learnt that the driver only realised that his partner was missing when he reached the depot at about 2am the following day.

It was learnt that Deyboy, an employee of Gulf Treasures Oil and Gas Limited, had engaged the service of the missing youth without notifying the company.

The case was reported at the Apapa Police Division on June 11 and was later transferred to the State Department of Criminal Investigation, Yaba.

Our correspondent was told that efforts made to locate Dirisu had yet to yield result as calls made to his two lines indicated that they were switched off.

A police source told PUNCH Metro that a signal had been sent to the network providers of the victim’s two lines to assist in unraveling his whereabouts.

“The driver was arrested and he has been quizzed on the incident. He has been released on bail and is helping us in our investigation,” the source added.

In his statement, 30-year-old Deyboy said he had no idea of where the conductor went.

He said, “I engaged Sunday (Dirisu) to work with me as a conductor. We had been working together since 2014. As we were going to load fuel that day, we experienced a traffic jam on the Ijora Bridge and the truck developed fault. Both of us came down to fix it. That was around 10pm.

“I went back into the vehicle while he cleared the traffic for me. I got to the depot at 2am, but did not see him. I did not know where he went to. I did not do him harm or kill him. There was no quarrel between us.”

Dirisu’s brother, Andrew, said he had searched for him in vain, adding that he (Dirisu) had no record of running from home.

He said, “I have been to several areas in Lagos, trying to look for him. I am really baffled because my brother is a well-mannered person. He does not keep bad companies, which would have made us thought that he intentionally absconded.”

The Managing Director of the company, Mr. Sunday Dekeri, told the police that though he was aware of Deyboy’s trip, he did not have the knowledge of Dirisu’s partnership with the driver.

“Deboy is a worker of Gulf Treasures Oil and Gas Limited and he was assigned the truck with number plate, APP 392 XT, to drive. The missing person is not an employee of the company and the company does not employ assistant drivers or conductors. But I am ready to assist in ensuring that the victim is found.”

The Lagos Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Patricia Amadin said investigation was ongoing to unearth the circumstances that led to Dirisu’s missing.

She said, “The police are making efforts to find the victim and reunite him with his family. The suspect is helping us. We also urge the public to avail us any information that can assist in finding him.”

PUNCH

UNILAG Lecturer rapes 18- year-old admission seeker

The Police in Lagos State have arrested a part-time lecturer, Afeez Baruwa, for allegedly raping an 18-year-old girl, identified as Caroline (pseudonym) in the Yaba area.

PUNCH Metro learnt that the victim, who was reportedly raped inside a study room, was seeking admission into the University of Lagos, Akoka.

It was gathered that Baruwa was arrested by the Surulere Police Division on Monday, August 3.

Our correspondent gathered that the lecturer, however, told the police in his statement that the sexual intercourse was by mutual consent, insisting that he did not rape the victim.

PUNCH Metro learnt that the lecturer and Caroline’s father belonged to the same landlords’ association in the Abesan, Ipaja area.

It was gathered that the victim’s father had allowed her daughter to follow the lecturer on July 23, to UNILAG for an admission process.

It was learnt that Baruwa allegedly took the girl inside one of the study halls, bolted the door, and raped her.

It was learnt that after the incident, Caroline, who told her parents about the rape, was taken to a non-governmental organisation, Mirabel Centre, where she was tested.

The medical result reportedly confirmed that the teenager was violated.

Our correspondent gathered that Caroline was thereafter taken to the Lagos State Office of the Public Defender, and the matter was also reported at the police station. Baruwa was subsequently arrested.

A police source in Surulere said, “The suspect is actually a friend of the father of the girl. The girl had written the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, and she needed assistance with the post-UTME.

“So, the father sent her to meet and discuss with the lecturer.

“But, it turned out that on July 23 when the girl visited the suspect, he raped the girl in the study room.

“The suspect confessed to the act, but his claim is that the sex was by mutual consent.”

The Director of the Office of the Public Defender, Mrs. Omotola Rotimi, said the OPD would write a letter to the UNILAG Vice-Chancellor on the incident, so as to ensure that such did not reoccur.

She said, “The victim’s father wanted the lecturer to assist with his daughter’s admission. On the fateful day, the girl left with the lecturer as early as 5.30am, and they got to the school at about 7am.

“No one had arrived at the hall except a woman. While the exams had yet to start, he raped her. She went home, and the father found out that her daughter had been raped. He took her to the Mirabel Centre, which then informed the OPD.

“The Centre also contacted the Police at the Surulere and Isokoko divisions, and the suspect was arrested.

“We are going to defend the girl, and we are writing the VC. The suspect is said to be in the Department of Accounting. He claimed the sex was consensual, but that is not a defence.”

Our correspondent gathered that Baruwa, who was in custody, would be charged to court on Thursday (today).

The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Patricia Amadin, confirmed the arrest.

She said, “The suspect claims to be a part-time lecturer, but not an employee of the University of Lagos.

“He has confessed to the crime and the medical result proved same.”

PUNCH

Unpaid Salary: Enugu workers to begin strike

Workers in Enugu State have threatened to embark on an indefinite strike over the state government’s failure to pay their monthly entitlements.

The President of the Trade Union Congress, Enugu State chapter, and Chairman of the Joint Public Service Negotiating Council, Mr. Chukwuma Igbokwe, disclosed this in Enugu on Wednesday.

The salary scale of the worker was reviewed during the administration of former governor Sullivan Chime after the workers demanded an increase.

The workers, however, noted that that the recent review only showed an increase in their basic salary, without an increase in the percentage of other allowances.

They said that even though the salary scale was reviewed, the Chime government did not implement it on the grounds that there were no provisions for the new pay formula in the 2014 budget.

Although the reviewed salary scale was eventually given space in the 2015 budget, Enugu workers are still being paid according to the old scale, which they claimed makes them the least paid workforce in the country.

The workers are now demanding the immediate implementation of the reviewed salary scale.

They maintained that they have been cheated for over five years as a result of the discrepancies in the old scale.

Our correspondent gathered that the implementation of the reviewed salary scale was part of a list of outstanding demands the workers presented to the state governor, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, at a meeting on July 28.

The workers insisted that Ugwuanyi must implement the new salary scale, more especially as he had repeatedly stated that his administration was going to consolidate on the achievement of the previous government.

Our correspondent gathered that a meeting held between the workers and the governor did not reach a truce as the governor was said to have asked the workers to give him some time.

However, the workers believe they have waited for too long, and are threatening an indefinite strike.

In an exclusive chat with our correspondent, the TUC president, Igbokwe, said the adjusted salary scale should be implemented since it was captured in the 2015 budget.

Igbokwe said, “If we wait and they still refuse to implement it, we will go on an indefinite strike. It is not as if we are asking for salary increment. We met with the present governor and we said government is a continuum and you are talking of total continuity so give us our entitlements

“We are saying that people have been denied their allowances for over five years, when the minimum wage scale was prepared the adjustment did not recognise the increase in some allowances.

“You don’t increase basic salary without increasing the percentage of the allowances. That is why we are saying the adjusted scale was not really an increase. It was even the government that corrected it and brought it to us and we agreed that it should implement it. The government agreed to pay and said it was the right thing. The government, however, said it was not in the budget then. Now that it is captured in the budget of 2015, the governor is saying that we should give him time.”

Igbokwe did not give any indication of how long the workers were prepared to wait before embarking on the strike.

The workers are also demanding the recall of 12 employees of the Enugu State Housing Corporation, who were disengaged by the former managing director of the corporation, Chief Ikeje Asogwa.

PUNCH

Body of Benchers appoints Tambuwal as member

Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tambuwal, has been admitted into the Body of Benchers. This was contained in a statement issued on Wednesday by the Special Adviser on Media and Public Affairs to the governor, Imam Imam.

The Body of Benchers is the highest judicial body in the country statutorily responsible for the regulation of the legal profession. It admits any person who wants to become a legal practitioner as well as disciplines lawyers.

In a letter with reference number BOB/NIG/ALB/7A/70 addressed to the governor, the body wrote that the appointment was ratified by the Body at its meeting held on Thursday, June 25, 2015.

Tambuwal will serve in the body for life and this means that he is a legal practitioner of the highest distinction. Tambuwal was called to the Bar in 1992.

Punch

Probe your election sponsors first, Fayose tells Buhari

The Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, has asked President Muhammadu Buhari to start his anti-corruption fight by probing those that sponsored his election to reveal their sources of income.

Fayose said, “Some of those who sponsored the President’s election have not done any other jobs apart from holding public offices. Yet, they provided private jets and funds with which the President campaigned across the length and breadth of Nigeria. He should let Nigerians know where they got money to buy private jets and the several billions of naira spent on his election.

“No one sits with corruption to fight corruption because as it is today, President Buhari is sitting among corrupt people and he must first extricate himself from the comity of corruption”.

Fayose, who spoke through his Special Assistant on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka, on Wednesday took a swipe at the Federal Government anti-corruption drive, describing it as mere noise-making, witch-hunt and diversionary tactic to hoodwink the public into overlooking the seeming failure of the government to deliver on its electoral promises.

The governor said, “If President Mohammadu Buhari knows exactly where the stolen funds are kept and who looted the funds, he does not need all these public announcements. Rather, he should make public names of the looters and bring back the purported stolen funds, location of which he has identified. It is when he is able to bring back the money that he should make announcements of recovered funds.

“You don’t announce a process to the public; rather, you announce the results because that is what is of interest to the people. It is like you are announcing that you know where armed robbers reside, won’t they change their location?

“What the All Progressives Congress spin-doctors and their collaborators in the Presidency are doing is simple. It is such that when there is nothing to tell the people as per the rising Boko Haram attacks, dollar and other foreign currencies exchange rates, petrol pump price and other seeming failed promises of the APC Federal Government, they will accuse former President Goodluck Jonathan and his men of corruption, insult Peoples Democratic Party and make noise about fighting corruption.”

He said President Buhari and his men should know that Nigeria of today is different from that of 1983 and that unlike 1983, nothing could prevent them from asking questions.

“Mr. President and his men should know that these planned efforts to brand PDP as a party of corrupt people and suppress the giant strides of the Jonathan administration won’t work because Nigerians know that APC is peopled with more corrupt people and the President must treat the issue of corruption without looking at political parties.”

PUNCH