Baby shot by robbers dies after seven months

Lawal

After seven months of battling with complications from a gunshot wound on the head, Taiwo Lawal, the one-year-old baby who was shot during a series of robberies in Lagos on September 9, 2012, has died.

 

Reports stated that Taiwo was shot at his parents’ home in Gbagada during the robberies which occurred simultaneously in various parts of the state, an incident now remembered as Black Sunday.

Following the injury and its publication in the press, telecommunications firm, MTN Nigeria, donated N500,000 for the baby’s treatment at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Idi Araba.

The story also drew public interest as concerned members of the public also donated undisclosed sums of money.

 

Sadly, Taiwo gave up the ghost on March 7, 2013 at Ward E of the hospital.

 

The deceased’s distraught father, Wasiu, said the death was more painful because of the amount of money the family had spent.

 

He said, “We spent all that we had but unfortunately my son did not survive. After MTN donated N500,000 and few concerned members of the public gave us money, more expenses kept coming up. The money was not enough as we had to keep spending on drugs and other things.

 

“After the MTN donation, Taiwo was operated on and he showed signs of improvement at the Intensive Care Unit of the hospital. A couple of weeks later, after the bullet had been extracted, he was transferred to the main ward but in late December, his health started to deteriorate, he lost weight and we had to take turns to watch over him.”

 

Wasiu said although doctors at the hospital initially assured him that Taiwo’s brain was not affected by the bullet, he was later told that the bullet had affected the baby’s brain.

 

Wasiu alleged that after sometime, the nurses at the hospital were no longer as caring as before and even advised him to take the baby home.

 

He said, “Initially we were told that Taiwo would require another surgery but later we were told that he was too young to have another surgery and that he should have the surgery in a few years’ time. The hospital wanted to discharge him but I objected to it because he obviously was not alright.

 

“In late January, his health deteriorated and he could not breathe on his own and was placed on Oxygen. At that point, the doctor advised that we flew him abroad for treatment as it was now beyond their capability. However, last week he showed signs of improvement and was even eating.

“We were already happy but unfortunately on Thursday afternoon, Taiwo passed on, leaving behind his twin, Kehinde and two other siblings.”

Calls made to the spokesperson for the hospital, Hope Nwokolo rang out. A text message to her telephone was not replied to.

Survey opposes use of hijab in public schools

Majority of online voters have said ‘No’ to the question on whether pupils should be allowed to wear hijab in public schools or not.

 

The question was posted on website following a series of protests over the punishment reportedly meted on a pupil for wearing hijab, a head scarf worn by female Muslims.

 

Muslim students, under the aegis of Muslim Students’ Society of Nigeria, Lagos State Area Unit, had on Thursday protested the punishment of two pupils in Lagos by their principals.

 

The Principal of Kadara Junior Grammar School, Ebute Meta, Mrs. E.C Ukpaka, had allegedly flogged Aisha Alabi because she wore hijab on the school premises.

 

Also, the Principal of Mafoluku Senior Grammar School, Elizabeth Omidele, was accused of harassing Barira by telling her to pull off her hijab outside the school premises.

 

The protesters, who reportedly turned the office of the Lagos State Governor into a praying centre, insisted on seeing Governor Babatunde Fashola before they would end the protest

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A total of 518 online users responded to the question-Should pupils be allowed to wear hijab to public schools? Out of this figure, 274 votes out of the total 518, representing 53 per cent of online voters, said ‘No’ to the question, while 235 voters, representing 43 per cent of the voters, said ‘Yes.’ However, nine voters, representing two per cent of the total votes cast, were undecided.

 

Meanwhile, MSSN, Lagos State Area Unit, under the aegis of its Council of Higher Institutions, has asked the state government not to renege on its promise of investigating the hijab crisis.

 

Addressing a press conference in Lagos on Tuesday, Assistant General, COHI, Mallam Sulaiman Dhikrillah, said the group’s demands were the sacking of the principal of a school that suspended a Muslim pupil putting on hijab; the reinstatement of the pupil; and that victimisation and maltreatment of members should be stopped.

Oyo to rehabilitate 43 roads with N1.3bn

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The Oyo State Government has approved the rehabilitation of 43 roads at the cost of N1.3bn and the supply of 50,000 tables and chairs for its secondary schools.

 

The decisions were taken at the State Executive Council meeting held at the Governor’s Office, Ibadan, on Monday.

 

According to a statement, government will commence the rehabilitation of 43 roads across the state.

It said, “The procurement of 50,000 pieces of furniture for public secondary schools in the state,- the second phase of about five phases of procurement of furniture to schools, is also to commence with immediate effect.

 

“Some roads will be rehabilitated through direct labour; others will be executed through contract awards.”

 

The statement explained that indigenous road construction companies resident in the state would benefit from the road rehabilitation projects and that the state government had decided to share the supply of the furniture among 46 artisan associations in the state, in line with the implementation of the local content policy of the present administration.

 

It added that the state government approved the construction of eight Physics, Chemistry and Biology laboratories in selected public secondary schools in all the zones in the state.

 

According to the statement, the state government has approved the employment of 110 education officers and 3,000 teachers to fill the vacant positions.

 

The state government also approved the construction of neighbourhood markets at NITEL, Old Ife Road, Bode, Eleiyele, Sango, Temidire and the Ibadan end of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

Court dismisses Newswatch founders’ objection to Ibrahim

Dr. Jimoh Ibrahim
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A suit instituted by Jimoh Ibrahim as Chairman, Newswatch Communications Limited, publisher of Newswatch magazine, to restrain the four pioneer directors of the company, has survived the preliminary objection filed against it.

 

Justice Okon Abang of a Federal High Court, Lagos, on Wednesday dismissed the objection filed by the four pioneer directors and fixed March 21 for the hearing of the substantive suit.

 

He upheld the argument of the plaintiffs’ counsel, Mr. Adenrele Adegorioye, dismissing all the grounds of objection and the entire application for “lacking in merit”.

 

Messrs Ray Ekpu, Dan Agbese, Yakubu Mohammed and Soji Akinrinade, who are the four defendants in the suit, had filed the objection, contending, among other reasons, that the suit disclosed no “reasonable cause of action” against them.

 

Ibrahim, his firm, Global Mirror Media Limited; and Newswatch Communications Limited had instituted the suit seeking the court to declare that the defendants had lost their positions as directors in NCL by virtue of their resignation.

 

Ibrahim claimed that Global Mirror Media Limited had, under the new shares structure, acquired the required shares in NCL and was subsequently appointed the chairman of NCL on that basis.

 

The plaintiffs therefore, want the court to declare that they (the pioneer directors) lacked competence to declare a trade dispute under the Share Purchase Agreement between them and the NCL.

 

The court also affirmed that the suit was competently instituted by Ibrahim, holding that he (Ibrahim) had sufficient interest to protect by instituting the suit.

ACN, ANPP, CPC submit certificates to INEC April

The three political parties that merged to form the All Progressive Congress are to submit their certificates of registration to the Independent National Electoral Commission in April.

 

This is after they must have held special conventions to ratify their merger.

 

The three parties are the Action Congress of Nigeria, Congress for Progressive Change and the All Nigeria Peoples Party.

 

Investigations by our correspondent in Abuja, after the meeting of the merger committees of the three parties, confirmed this.

 

The merger committee for the three parties, headed by Chief Tom Ikimi on Wednesday morning, received the logo, motto and slogan of the yet-to-be registered party.

 

Also submitted were the drafts of manifesto, constitution and INEC/legal compliance from the three committees, which were given two weeks deadline to submit their reports when they were inaugurated a few days ago.

 

The National Publicity Secretary of the ACN, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, who is also a member of the merger committee, told journalists in Abuja that the new party’s logo, slogan and motto were unanimously adopted after the meeting of the larger committee and the opposition alliance governors which ended late on Tuesday night.

 

He said contrary to the rumours in some quarters the logo, slogan and motto were not imposed on the new party by the governors.

 

He said the committee worked in harmony with the alliance governors and that there was no member of the committee that objected to the logo, slogan or motto when they were presented for adoption at the meeting.

 

Mohammed said, “Only the merger committee has the final authority on any issue about the proposed merger.

 

“The governors explained that all their decisions arrived at in their own meeting was presented to the larger committee for approval and we all deliberated on them and arrived at a consensus on the grounds that there must be give and take by all the intending merger political parties.

 

“Amazingly, at Tuesday”s meeting, there was no descent from any group after the meeting of the governors with the merger committee.”

CP warns security agents against flouting traffic law

Lagos CP, Umar Manko.
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Lagos State Police Commissioner Umar Manko has warned security agents against flouting the state’s traffic laws restricting the operations of commercial motorcyclists (okada riders).

 

The CP’s warning came after the meeting of the state Security Council chaired by Governor Babatunde Fashola.

 

Manko, who spoke to journalists after the meeting held at the Lagos House, Marina, said the law was a general one, meaning that every one, including security agents, must comply with it.

 

He said, “We have seen the extent of the enforcement of this law on commercial motorcycles on restricted areas and we have discovered that the non-compliance aspect of it is involving more of our men in uniform. We want to restate that this law is not respecting any uniform. It is a general law and everybody is duty-bound to comply with it.

 

“Officers and men still indulging in flouting the law should desist in their own interests and obey the laws as they are. Anybody who decides to take the law into his hands will face the consequences.”

Manko also assured the students of Lagos State University, Ojo, that security agencies were on top of the situation on their campus.

 

He also said the police would soon arrest all the miscreants in their midst to enable them to go about their academic work without fear of molestation or threat to their lives.

 

He said, “For the LASU students, they should go to their classes and read; the miscreants among them are going to be fished out and dealt with according to the law. That should not be a problem at all. They should be rest assured that they are part of Lagos State and the security in Lagos State is intact. They are going to benefit from that.”

 

On the explosive device that went off at Mile 2 recently, the police boss said the incident did not depict a threat to the state, stressing that the various security agencies were on the alert.

He urged Lagosians to go about their normal businesses.

 

The commissioner said, “We want to reassure Lagosians that security in Lagos is still intact. People should go about their normal businesses. There is no threat from any quarters.”

 

Manko was accompanied during the briefing by Chief of Staff, Mr. Lanre Babalola; Commander NNS Beecroft, Apapa, Commodore Odogwu Ezekose; Commander 435 Base Services Group, Ikeja, Air Commodore Jan Wukangha, among others.

Army uncovers bomb-making factory in Kaduna, arrests nine

Recovered ammunition

The Nigerian Army said it had uncovered a bomb-making factory at Sabon-Birni, Kawo in Kaduna State.

 

Curiously, the factory is just a few meters away from the Kaduna Army headquarters, which was bombed last year by suspected Boko Haram members.

 

The Army said it arrested nine persons, including five children in connection with the bomb-making factory.

 

Addressing reporters at the Headquarters of the One Division, Nigerian Army, Kaduna, on Wednesday, its Internal Security Commander, Brig.-Gen Tagbo Ude, said the building housing the factory belonged to a former All Nigerian Peoples Party Chairmanship aspirant in the Federal Capital Territory, Husseni Dei Dei.

 

Ude, who said officers of the division uncovered the factory following a tip-off, also confirmed that the house, where the factory is located, was just some few meters away from the Division headquarters.

 

According to him, soldiers on Tuesday at about 5.30pm, found several Impoverised Explosive Devices, arms and ammunition in the premises following a cordon and search operation.

 

Ude said, “Following an intelligence report, a raid was carried out at the residence of Husseini Dei Dei. The residence is on Sabob Birni Road, Kawo New Extension, just behind Dalet Barracks Kaduna by 1 Division Internal Security Force on Tuesday, March 9, 2013 at about 5.30pm.

 

“During the operation, the following items were recovered-six AK 47 rifles, one light machine gun, 27 loaded and 17 empty AK 47 magazines and 58 rounds of 9mm ammunition. Also, found were 275 rounds of 7.62mm NATO ammunition, one loaded light machine gun, nine prepared cans of Impoverished Explosive Devices, one reel of firing cord and 125 pieces of detonators.

 

“We would like to seize this opportunity to solicit more information about these terrorists and to assure you that any information received will be treated with absolute confidentiality.

 

“Once more, let me assure the good people of Kaduna State, in particular and Nigerians that the Nigerian Army in collaboration with other security agencies, will not relent in ensuring the safety of lives and properties of the good citizens of our dear nation.”

 

He added that the recovered weapons were in soak away pits and in the ground within the building.

He said in line with Army’s resolve to deter terrorists from their activities, the building would be demolished.

 

The commander, while commending efforts of well-meaning citizens, who alerted the authorities on the matter, reiterated the Army determination to fight terrorism in the country.