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Nigerian mixed martial artist, Israel Adesanya, has knocked out Brazilian Alex Pereira to reclaim the UFC Middleweight Championship title he lost last November.
Details later.
He was reacting to a one-on-one debate challenge extended to him by Soyinka over the opinion he expressed in recent interview.
The vice-presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, has said that there is no political basis to debate with Prof. Wole Soyinka on the outcome of the February 25 presidential election.
Reacting to a one-on-one debate challenge to him by Soyinka over his views on the constitutionality of inaugurating President-elect, Bola Tinubu, Baba-Ahmed told the Nobel laureate to instead bring his preferred candidates to debate him.
In a statement by the Obi-Datti Media Office on Saturday, the LP vice-presidential candidate said his decision not to take Soyinka up on his offer was not out of cowardice but for cultural and political reasons.
He said one of the reasons he would not debate the celebrated writer is that he was not on any of the opposing ballots in the election. Datti, however, said that if Soyinka could use his influence to bring out his preferred candidates for the debate, he was willing to take them on.
Baba-Ahmed had on Wednesday, March 22, called on President Muhammadu Buhari and the Chief Justice of Nigeria not to swear in Tinubu, whom INEC declared as the President-Elect, insisting that declaring Tinubu the winner and issuing him a certificate of return was against the constitution.
The 53-year-old, who was a guest on Channels TV’s Politics Today, went on to stress that “whoever swears in Mr Tinubu” has “ended democracy” in Nigeria, a position that did not sit well with Soyinka and several other prominent Nigerians.
Reacting to Baba-Ahmed’s controversial position, the Nobel laureate described the remarks as a “kind of do-or-die attitude and provocation” that goes contrary to democratic disposition.
Soyinka said the LP vice-presidential candidate tried to “dictate to the supreme arbiter of the nation”, adding that it was unacceptable.
See full statement by the Obi-Datti Media Office below:
DATTI BABA-AHMED WILL NOT DEBATE PROF. SOYINKA. Like many Nigerians we are bewildered by the late hour intervention of our respected Nobel laureate Prof Wole Soyinka in issues around the flawed 2023 elections.
Where was he all this while? One of those who should ordinarily and rightfully be honoured as the conscience of the nation, Prof. Soyinka is now criminalising dissent and infact weighing in on the side of fraud and injustice! We state therefore that the vice-presidential candidate of Labour Party, Dr. Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed cannot take up Prof. Soyinka’s offer of a public debate, not out of cowardice, but for cultural and political reasons.
Culturally it’s just not decent, their age and accomplishment gaps taken into account, for Datti to sit opposite the 88 year-old global icon and point out his folly to his face, even if the old man called for it. And politically there is no basis for such a challenge in that Prof. is not on any of the opposite ballots.
If however he can use his influence to drag his preferred candidates, who resisted debates throughout the campaign, to the studio this second, Datti says he is more than willing to take them on. Signed: Obi-Datti Media Office.
A POS operator, simply identified as Olasunkanmi Joseph, has been shot dead by armed robbers who cart away the sum of N10million in Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State.
It was gathered that the robbers, who concealed their faces with masks, trailed the deceased from a bank and attacked him when he got stuck in traffic around the Irona area of the city on Thursday, April 6, 2023.
According to reports, the victim was chased to the area and was trying to negotiate the roundabout when he was held down by the heavy traffic and was blocked by the assailants.
Confirming the unfortunate incident, spokesperson of the State police Command, Sunday Abutu, said: “We got the information and investigation has commenced to ensure the arrest and prosecution of those that perpetrated the act.
The Commissioner of Police is enjoining anyone with useful information concerning the incident on how the perpetrators could be apprehended to approach the nearest police station.”
A student of the Adekunle Ajasin University located in Akure, the Ondo state capital was on Thursday night, April 6, stabbed to death by a suspected thug in Akungba Akoko, the headquarters of Akoko North West Local Government Area of Ondo State.
The student, Temitayo Ayodeji was said to have had a disagreement with some indigenes of the university’s host community when a suspected thug in the community stabbed him to death in his hostel.
Confirming the incident to newsmen, the State Police Public Relations Officer, Funmi Odunlami-Omisanya, said students of the institution took to the streets to protest, while the corpse has been taken to the morgue by the police .
The Police further stated that investigation into the incident has commenced.
She stated that a house belonging to the mother of one of the suspected killers of the deceased student was razed by the protesting students.
She however confirmed that peace has finally returned to the community.
Prophet Tomi Arayomi and wife Tahmar who were arrested by DSS Abuja on Good Friday morning have been finally released.
Prophet Tomi Arayomi, head of the RIG Nation movement along with his wife and assistant were arrested this morning April 7, 2023 by the DSS as they disembarked their 9am Ibom Air flight from Lagos. The orders were said to have been given by the DSS FCT Command.
The detail of their arrest has not been known to the public but feelers around Abuja said the arrest might be in connection to the last presidential general election and the recent alarm raised by DSS where it alleged that some people were plotting interim government.
The arrested Pastor and wife after their release were seen inside a vehicle conveying them back home having been subjected to thorough questioning by the DSS.
Details later.
Wasiu Alabi Pasuma ‘s mother, Hajia Khadijah has been buried today according to the Islamic injunction.
The deceased was laid to rest at her home residence amidst families, neighbours and friends.
Alhaji Wasiu Alabi Pasuma, son of the deceased seen weeping uncontrollably while mourning his late mother, Alhaja Adijat Kuburat.
The singer was captured in the company of friends and Muslim clerics who tried to console him with encouraging words about the good lifestyle of his late mother..
Pasuma announced the demise of his mother, who died on Thursday, 6th of April, 2023.
An angry mob at the Adagbada/Arola community in Apete, Ibadan, Oyo State has reportedly beaten a serial armed robber cum rapist, to death on Wednesday.
According to reports, the mob descended on the suspect after invading a residence at about 4am to forcefully cart away with phones and money from two ladies.
The armed robber, who had been on the wanted list of the police for some years, was further reported to have locked one of the ladies inside a toilet and ordered the other to lie down for him to rape.
An eye witness narrated that the lady he locked up found her way out and alerted neighbours.
This made the neighbours to come together to prevent the suspect from succeeding in his move.
It was gathered that immediately the suspect knew he had been exposed, he made an attempt to escape, but was caught by sympathisers who joined in the race after him.
A credible source, who craved anonymity said that the suspect threw the phones he forcefully took from his victims over the fence of a building, from where they were eventually recovered by the police in Apete Division.
A crowd which had gathered descended on him until he was beaten to death.
Early in the morning, many residents from adjoining communities in Apete gathered to watch the suspect’s lifeless body, while many of them who were privy to his past criminal activities started jubilations.
In an interview with some of the residents, the eye witnesses narrated to the newsmen how they lived in fear because of the activities of the slain suspect.
They disclosed that the suspect was always armed with cutlass, which made many ladies to fall victims out of fear of being killed.
They said he used to act as if he came for operation with other gang members, with him barking orders and asking them to bring his gun if the victim he wanted to rape did not give in easily.
According to the sources, sometimes, he would lock up residents in an invaded house and take his victim outside the building to rape.
The deceased, whose acts were said to have been ongoing for about five years, was said to have raped a lady who was with her fiance after locking up the man.
In the meantime, the corpse has been recovered by the police in Apete Division and taken to Adeoyo State Hospital to be deposited in the mortuary.
It was learnt that the Police has launched an investigation into the incident.
The supporters of Labour Party presidential candidate, Mr. Peter Obi in the last general elections have begun reacting to the crisis rocking the party in recent time. They have attributed the crisis to the manipulation and plot carefully orchestrated by president-elect, Bola Tinubu to take over the party affairs in order to install his stooge that would later withdraw the petition filed against him.
Recall, ODUDUWA NEWS had earlier reported how Police took over the national secretariat of the Party in Abuja as a result of crisis rocking the party.
Some members of the National Working Committee of the Labour Party (LP) led by the Deputy National Chairman of the party (South) Lamidi Apapa have taken over the affairs of the party following a court judgment restraining Julius Abure and three others from parading themselves as national officers of the party.
The development took place in Abuja on Thursday during an emergency meeting of the LP National Working Committee (NWC).
Lamidi said he is now the Acting National Chairman of the party while Saleh Lawan is the Acting National Secretary.
According to him, Abure and the three others must vacate the order of the Federal High Court retraining them before further action can be taken on the leadership of the party.
The emergence NWC meeting also reinstated Executive Council members from Ogun State, Rivers State, and Gombe State.
A Pastor, Dr. Owen Abraham have allegedly absconded with 52 Android and iphones, money, and valuables of residents of Aponrin in Agbowo, Ibadan who came for a crusade organised by him.
The crusader, according to some of his victims said he was led by God to come to Ibadan from Gambia for the crusade.
Abraham, at the last day of the three days crusade claimed Holly Spirit directed him to tell people to submit their phones and valuables, but later absconded with it.
The victims said Abraham, who lured them into three days fasting and prayer was no where to be found the last day of the crusade as all effort to reached him proved abortive.
A victim, Mrs Grace Akintola said many widows went for the crusade because the Pastor promised to give each person a bag of rice and money, adding that Abraham also promised to empowered students with scholarship.
Mrs Akintola, a widow while recounting her ordeal said, “the Pastor approached an Igbo lady in our area to assist him to gathered widows and students, he said he want to help us.”
“Someone in my area invited me for the crusade, the crusader wear Pastor regalia, he said he will buy house for one of us, he said the house is fully furnished.”
“He promised some people who attend the crusade money, even politicians can not give out such money he promised.”
“The last day of the crusade, he sold a bottle of water for us at the rate of N4,800, he said perfume is inside the bottle water, many people paid for the water.”
Another victim, a student of University of Ibadan (UI) who pleaded anonymity said the Pastor ordered them to fast for three days, adding that the evangelist collected their phones so as to keep it away from them and focus of the prayers unknowing to them that it was a trick to get rid of their belongings.
“He said no phone should ring, that was why he collected all the phones, in fact, a lady stood up and wanted to snapped him, he seized the phone from her.”
“On the last day of the crusade, he said he wanted to go and rest at the hotel where he lodged, he later said he wanted to go and eat at UI, we don’t know how he escaped with our belongings.”
“As a man of God, we respected him alot, we didn’t know that he wanted to use the name of God to duped us.”
Meanwhile, Abraham has been declared wanted by people in the area, as posters bearing his name and pictures has been circulated within the area to track him down.
On Thursday, the Oyo House of Assembly granted the governor’s request to borrow N50 billion to finance ongoing and future infrastructural projects in the state.
A commercial bank would give the N50 billion contract finance facility at an interest rate of between two and four percent spread over 48 months in order to finance a selected group of projects.
Some of the new and current road infrastructure projects around the state that will be supported from the loan were enumerated in the letter that was read during the plenary, which was presided over by the deputy speaker, Honorable Abiodun Fadeyi.
In seeking the Assembly’s approval of the loan, Majority Leader, Honourable Sanjo Adedoyin said the fund will go a long way in enabling the current government to execute contracts for infrastructure development projects.
He added that the fund will also help the state to continue to bridge its infrastructure gap.
At the plenary meeting on Thursday, the Assembly was asked to ratify the nomination of Justice Iyabo Yerima as the state’s chief judge in a different letter.
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