Category: News

The Ogun State Commissioner of Police, Abiodun Alamutu, revealed that the murder of the Director of Finance, Mr. Taiwo Oyekanmi, was likely orchestrated by insiders within the government.

According to Punch, Oyekanmi was fatally shot while returning from a bank where he had withdrawn funds for the state using a bullion van.

Alamutu stated in a telephone interview that the robbery seemed premeditated, with the armed robbers having inside information, such as the need for a sledgehammer to break into the bullion van.

According to him, “the gunmen must have been well-informed by an insider that the deceased was heading for the bank to make withdrawals.

“From the information we have, it is obvious that it was premeditated. It was an in-house (thing). We have this feeling because, how did they know that they would need a hammer to break the receptacle?

“And they must have been lurking around the bank area, waiting for the man or he must have been trailed to that area and they must have had information that he was going to take a large amount of money from the bank. So, we are working on it.

“They (the armed robbers) came in a Toyota Corolla with a registration number yet unknown. They are about five, putting on hoods to conceal their identity. By God’s grace, we will do everything possible to ensure we get at them,” Alamutu disclosed.

Oyekanmi visited Fidelity Bank and Sterling Bank to withdraw N97.335 million and N15 million, respectively. The bullion van carrying N112.335 million was ambushed on the Kuto flyover by armed robbers in a Toyota Corolla.

Oyekanmi was identified and shot dead with an AK-47 rifle, while the driver and another occupant were unharmed. Notably, the bullion van lacked police escort during the incident, as the assigned mobile police officer had traveled without permission.

Inspector Rasheed Adegbite, the absent police escort, has been arrested for investigation.

The Oyo State House of Assembly at its Plenary Sitting on Wednesday admonished the State Government to come up with a policy framework for the adoption and implementation of the National Action Plan on Women ,Peace and Security in the Pace Setter State inorder to pave way for the accessibility of grants and other programs for the development of Women empowerment and Gender equality.

The urge was made following a motion moved by the lawmaker representing Ibadan North 1, State Contituency, Hon. Comforter Olajide, and Co- sponsored by the Rt. Hon. Speaker, Adebo Ogundoyin ( Ibarapa North) , Hons. Olabisi Michael ( Ogbomosho North) , Akintunde Olajide ( Lagelu) and Rilwan Saminu ( Saki East / Atisbo ) State constituencies.

Presenting the motion on the need for urgent adoption of United Nations Security Council Resolution ( UNSCR) 1325 and National Action Plans ( NAPs ) by Oyo State to develop the State Action Plan ( SAP ) on Women, Peace and Security (WAP ) , Hon. Comforter explained that all hands must be on deck in ensuring total adoption of the Plan for the benefits of the State women on right, well – being, and Gender equality.

She explained further that the excessiveness of violence against women were among the reasons that made the United Nations Security Council to adopt the Resolution in the year 2000, and outlined a comprehensive profile and strategic mechanism for the protection, promotion and participation of women in peace processes.

Hon. Comforter declared that the first National Action Plan ( NAP ) on UNSCR was deployed in August, 2013 with sixteen States of the Federation, equally domesticated the NAP by developing their State Action Plans ( SAPs).

” The Federal Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development developed Nigeria’s first National Action Plan ( NAP ) on UNSCR 1325. Since then, and in pursuit of the same objectives, 16 States of the federation such as Bayelsa, Borough, Delta, Kaduna, Kano, plateau, Rivers, Yobe, Adamawa,Gombe, Bauchi, Benue, Kogi, Nassarawa , Kwara , and Ekiti have equally domesticated the NAP by developing their State Action Plan.”

“State Action Plans are State – specific versions of the National Action Plan, tailored to address the particular needs and challenges of each State for Women, Peace and Security ( WPS ).”

She however called on the State Government to follow suit and bring Oyo State to the limelight of benefiting from United Nations, Development Patners, and other stakeholders commitment to support women’s participation in peace and security and other provisions of the United Nations Security Council Resolution.

” there is a dire need to ensure that Oyo State benefit from numerous grants and programs associated with the Women, Peace and Security Agenda” She added .

In his remarks, the Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon. Adebo Ogundoyin who presided over the plenary, commended the effort of Hon. Comforter for bringing such a sensitive and Gender based motion to the floor of the House, described the moves as a laudable one as the State Government will have nothing to lose in adopting the plan.

A former Minister of State for Defence, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, on Wednesday, November 29, 2023, told Justice Nnamdi Dimgba of the Federal High Court, Abuja, how the sum of N1.219 billion cash was airlifted to former Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose for the governorship election in the state.

Fayose is facing trial by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, alongside his firm, Spotless Investment Limited, following their alleged involvement in N6.9 billion money laundering.

When prosecution counsel, Wahab Shittu, SAN, asked him to shed light on the source of the said N1.219billion, Obanikoro replied that the former National Security Adviser, NSA, Col Sambo Dasuki (retd), was the one who contacted him that the said money had been paid into the account of Sylvan Mcnamara Ltd.

According to EFCC, he said: “I was a minister under Jonathan administration in 2014. Sometime in 2014, we were going to have an election in Ekiti State. I was saddled with the responsibility of coordinating the activities in the election.

Some days before the election, I got a call from Governor Fayose asking me if I received any message for him from ONSA, I can recall that prior to that, we had some activities among which was fund raising for the purpose of that election.

I had a phone conversation with the NSA, he told me that N2.2billion was paid into the account of Sylvan Mcnamara Ltd. The money came from the NSA. I can’t vouch for the source of the funds. Only the NSA can explain the source of the fund.

I handed over the N1.219million cash to Agbele for onward delivery to Fayose. I did not take any money or N19million, contrary to a publication by a Lagos-based online platform.

The account was created to deal with the issue of Boko Haram in Lagos, the account was created by Taiwo Kareem and was used for the purpose of disbursing funds for election.

Diamond Bank had said it did not have the capacity to make the funds available, so we opted to airlift the funds. The funds were airlifted from Lagos in two tranches, the volume was much.”

In a move to alleviate the impact of petroleum subsidy removal, Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, has greenlit a monthly disbursement of N15,000 for active civil servants and N10,000 for pensioners over the next six months.

The approval was conveyed in an official statement released on Wednesday by Sunday Olugbenga Fadele, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Human Resources and Capacity Building.

The circular, with reference number BHR&CB/08/LIR/23 and titled “Implementation of Palliatives for Active Workers and Pensioners in Osun State,” was addressed to key officials, including the Secretary to the State Government, Chief of Staff to the Governor, Head of Service, and Commissioners.

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It reads, “Sequel to the negotiation meetings and interactions with the labour movement in Osun State, including the representatives of Nigerian Union of Pensioners, the Governor of Osun State, His Excellency, Senator Ademola Jackson Nurudeen Adeleke, has graciously approved the monthly payment of N15,000.00 to each active worker and N10,000.00 to each pensioner in sun State as palliatives to assuage the pains being experienced as a result of removal of petroleum subsidy by the Federal Government of Nigeria.

“The payment, as approved, is to commence from the month of December 2023 for a period of six (6) months.

“While acknowledging and appreciating the understanding of Osun State workers and pensioners for their show of understanding regarding the efforts of the State Government in the last year to improve tremendously on their welfare, being the first on the 5-Point Action Plan, the present administration will continue to ensure that its commitment to the welfare of workers is met at all times.”

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has said that his fiscal intervention as President to end the fuel subsidy regime was unsuccessful.

According to the president, the intervention proved to be harmful to the overall health of the nation’s economy.

Tinubu said this during his 2024 budget presentation to the joint session of the National Assembly.

He said, “It is, by now, a matter of recorded history that my very first fiscal intervention as President of this great nation was to end the fuel subsidy regime which had proven to be so harmful to the overall health of our national economy.”

The Nigerian Leader added that defence and internal security are accorded top priority in the budget, saying, “the internal security architecture will be overhauled to enhance law enforcement capabilities and safeguard lives, property and investments across the country.”

The Oyo State House of Assembly has directed its Standing Committee on Security and Strategy to investigate the Banditry attacks on Kujifi, Kosobo, Ajirowo villages and some hamlets near Old Oyo National Park Area of Sepeteri in Oyo State.

The House gave the directive while reacting to the Matter of Urgent Public Importance moved by Hon. Rilwan Saminu and Hon. Lukman Jimoh representing Atisbo/ Saki East and Oorelope State constituencies respectively.

Presenting the matter at the floor of the House, Hon. Saminu revealed that banditry and harder attacks have become a worrisome Security threat in many parts of the State which has led to the death of innocent persons while many are left with various degrees of injuries.

Narrating the recent attacks on some villages by some unknown gunmen, he described the act as evil , callous and disheartening which calls for urgent attention of all stakeholders, especially the security agencies across the State.

He said “Some days ago, there was a sudden invasion of Kujifi, Kosobo, Ajirowo by some unknown gunmen. These evil men did not only terrorise people in the area, they killed innocent man in Kujifi Village, murdered one of the vigilantes in cold blood on the 6th November 2023, and kidnapped two of the local farmers on 11th November, 2023.”

” The occupants of the affected villages and hamlets had since then abandoned their homes in attempt to save themselves from being kidnapped or killed by these callous men of the underworld. It is also gathered that the gunmen were advancing day by day towards Sepeteri town as they were seen by some farmers and hunters along the road to Sepeteri town from the Old Oyo National Park some days ago” He added.

The House has however urged the Executive Arm of Government, through the Oyo State Security Network “Amotekun ” to mobilize security agents to Sepeteri and its environs inorder to provide adequate security for the people and allay their fear.

The resolves stated further that the State Commissioner of Police should collaborate with the Oyo State security outfits Amotekun, and the local Hunters inorder to comb all the hideouts of gunmen terrorising the communities and make possible arrests and Prosecution.

The Ministry of Justice in Ekiti State, through the Directorate of Citizens Rights (DCR), has initiated legal proceedings on behalf of Ekiti-born Chef Damilola Adeparusi, also known as Chef Dammy. The lawsuit is against Pastor Jeremiah Adegoke and the Ekiti State Police Command, alleging violations of Chef Dammy’s rights.

The DCR is also seeking a compensation of N10 million for damages suffered by Chef Dammy, who gained popularity after her unsuccessful attempt to break the Guinness World Record for a cook-a-thon challenge in June of this year.

Pastor Adegoke, the head pastor of Spirit Word Global Mission, a church based in Ekiti, reportedly supported Chef Dammy’s endeavor to break the cook-a-thon record previously held by Hilda Baci. However, a controversy arose between the chef and her pastor in October, when the 24-year-old raised concerns about threats and intimidation from individuals she referred to as “people of God” and her pastor. As a result, the police invited Chef Dammy for questioning following a petition filed against her by Adegoke. The specific cause of the dispute between the chef and her once-supportive pastor is still unclear, but it appears to be related to the failed cook-a-thon.

In response to Chef Dammy’s public outcry, Adegoke, through his lawyers at Bisayo Sule & Co legal practitioners, issued a letter on October 23, 2023, demanding a retraction of the alleged defamatory statement on social media, an apology published in two national newspapers, and a payment of N22 million as compensation for damages. He gave Chef Dammy seven days to comply with these demands or face legal action.

However, on November 24, a lawsuit was filed by the DCR, naming Chef Dammy as the applicant and Adegoke, Ajewole Samuel (the Ekiti State Commissioner of Police), and the Assistant Inspector General of Police, Zone 17 Akure, as respondents.

The lawsuit aims to obtain a declaration that the persistent harassment, molestation, threats of arrest, and intimidation by both the pastor and the Nigerian police are violations of Chef Dammy’s fundamental human rights.

A popular Nigerian US-based Fuji musician, Saheed Osupa, has disclosed how he almost abandoned his political science programme at the University of Ibadan (UI), Oyo State.

Osupa, who was part of the last graduates of the institution, disclosed this in a Facebook post while commenting on his decision to pursue a degree in political science.

He wrote: “I went to school to pursue my degrees because I wanted to upgrade my intellectual capacity and don’t want to be segregated.

“Initially, I was not having any problems from my 100-level. But when I got to 300-level, I almost quit because it was now more about writing. But I adjusted and adapted.

“However, it was not easy at all and I had to employ two lecturers for a course before my graduation and put in more effort.”

“My plan is to achieve my masters and a PhD in five years in America where I reside now to validate my PhD title.”

He, therefore, advised that, “People should not be mentally lazy or believe that once they can feed, clothe and provide shelter for themselves and families; that is the peak of achievement or success.” A

The 2023 Labour Party Gubernatorial Candidate for Lagos State, Rhodes-Vivour, has accused the Babajide Sanwoolu administration of spreading falsehoods and misleading the citizens.

It has come to light that the Lagos procurement agency’s list revealed that a staggering amount of 200 million Naira from the state’s funds was allocated for the governor’s legal cases.

However, Gbenga Omotoso, Commissioner of Information, Lagos State, has debunked the report as false and misleading.

Gbedebo alleged that the governor’s appointed commissioners, who made an effort to communicate with the public through the media regarding this issue, were essentially attempting to conceal the truth and mislead the people of Lagos.

A student of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State, Subair Enitan, on Friday started a handwashing marathon to break the Guinness World Records for longest hour of handwashing by an individual.

She started her marathon on Friday at the Sub car park, OAU, Ile-Ife, Osun State.

Enitan aims at breaking the record by washing her hands for 50 hours.

As of the time of this report, Enitan has washed her hands for over six hours.