₦airaland Forum

My generator has gone silent.

The grating and the jarring hypertension-inducing noise ceased about two months ago. I do not know how it happened. It was not something I had paid attention to. But I only just realised that recently. It all started when I noticed that my frequent dash to the generator house, every time the electricity company seizes power, had minimised. Then, I realised that I had stopped to carry rubber cans inside the boot of my car to find fuel wherever I went in Lagos. Then, I soon discovered that the frequent calls I often made to Idongesit, my generator mechanic, whose number I had saved in my phone as “Generator Guy” had reduced.

Gradually, I had also realised that my neigbhours, whose generators used to explode in sporadic noise whenever the Eko Electricity Distribution Company takes electricity, have also gone quiet. The neighbourhood is now peaceful. Then, one day, my neighbour, who had also noticed the new development called my attention to it. We both inspected our generators. They had become dusty and are still dusty. The cans of petrol remained where they were. They had also gathered dust.

Is this a new dawn? For the past two months in my part of town in Lagos, electricity has improved tremendously. For several days in the month of July, we experienced uninterrupted 24 hours of power supply in the Ajah-Lekki area of Lagos. In fact, at time, I had thought something had gone wrong with the EKDEC, one of the successor companies of the defunct Power Holding Company of Nigeria. It was strange to have uninterrupted power supply for weeks on end.

Then, my excitement soon turned to apprehension. Is this for real? In the time past, when there was a sudden boost in power supply, it served as a hint that then PHCN was up to some sinister motives. But this time round, the supply never blinked. Even the bills appear to have reduced drastically. What has changed so remarkably between the twilight of the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan up till the time President Muhammadu Buhari was sworn in and now? What magic had transformed the PHCN? Is this not the same company that the former Minister of Power, Prof. Chinedu Nebo, told Nigerians had been jinxed by “witches and wizards?”

Anyone in the country in the dying days of the Jonathan administration will remember how the nation was thrown into darkness. In Lagos, it was a throw back into the Stone Age. To make matters worse, there was fuel shortage. At the time, it was a case of “double wahala for dead body” as the Afro beat legend, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, had sung. There was no electricity. Petrol was scarce. Even when you had alternative power source, you had no petrol to power it. It is still a miracle how Nigerians survived the months of April and May which will go down as the worst months of 2015.

But why the sudden change? What has transformed the electricity company from giving darkness to lighting up the whole of the country in just a few weeks of change of government? Are there new people in charge now? Or is it because there is a new government in place?


I wanted answers.

So, I put up a post on my Facebook wall to ask from friends and Nigerians why my generator had gone silent. I had put up the post on August 3. That was after about a month of uninterrupted power supply. The post read, “Dear friends, I don’t know about you but electricity has been regular these days. My generator has gone silent. I no longer complain of generator noise from my neighbours. Life is just so good. But wait o! Who and what are responsible for this sudden change? Some have called it the Buhari effect. How true?”

I had wanted information about who and what were responsible for the regular power supply at least in my part of Nigeria. Then, the reactions began to come in. The responses I got were interesting and provided what Nigerians had proffered as the reason for the improved supply we are now witnessing in the country today. The responses I got fell into three categories.

The first respondents had claimed that the electricity has become regular because it is the rainy season. They argued that Nigeria’s major source of power, Kainji Dam is over flowing which now gives it enough water to power light to Nigerians. The second response I got was from the die-hard loyalists of the last regime. They had argued that the electricity we are enjoying today is made possible by the Jonathan administration.

They had posited that Jonathan had invested heavily in power through his power sector reform which was one of the transformation agenda of his government. They believed his investment had started to bear dividends. But the argument did not end there. Those who opposed this line of thought had accused the supporters of the last government of insincerity.

They argued that if the power sector reform had worked as being claimed, why was the power situation that bad under Jonathan? The last respondent to my post had reasoned that power had improved because there was a signal that Buhari brooked no nonsense which had prompted the various levels of the electricity power chain to sit up. They said there is a new way of thinking that it will not be business as usual.

They argued that essentially, there was nothing wrong with power generation and distribution except for the attitude of those saddled with the task of providing the critical infrastructure to Nigerians. The Buharists further boasted that the improvement Nigerians were witnessing in power would rub off on other sectors.

I found all the positions interesting. But I was sceptical to accept those lines of argument especially since they are not coming from experts in the power industry. Then I read somewhere that our power generation capacity had peaked to new levels since the coming of the new administration. Is the new development in line with those who had reasoned that Kainji Dam is over-flowing with water? Will the electricity company cease to give us electricity as soon as the water level drops to new low during dry season? I hope this does not happen. For years, Nigerians had been sold this crude argument about Kainji Dam and how our lives must depend on the levels of its waters. That is why I also find the argument about how the last administration had invested in power but did not live to see it bear fruit in its lifetime as ridiculous. I find it hard to believe that the Jonathan administration invested billions of funds in its power sector reform and yet and there was no power throughout his six years in government.

We were sold the same ridiculous tale under Obasanjo. I do not know what magic has transformed the PHCN. Let’s just hope the honeymoon lasts. But not so for Idongesit, my generator mechanic, I ran into him the other day and he looked unhappy. He said the steady power supply is bad for business.

lalasticlala

freecocoa:
Just why do women stick with such men and even help cover up their crimes? Are these women well at all?

The source said earlier in the year, he defiled a six-year-old girl, but with persistent plea by the suspect and his wife as well as payment of N30,000 for his victim’s treatment, the matter was swept under the carpet.

By Clifford Ndujihe
LAGOS— IN support of the move to reduce the high cost of governance and to boost the war against corruption, the House of Representatives has declared its readiness to take salary cut and back President Muhammadu Buhari’s anti-graft measures.

Making these disclosures, yesterday, in Lagos, Chairman, Ad-hoc Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Hon. Mohammed Sani Zorro, said all members of the House of Representatives irrespective of party affiliations are on the same page with the President on the change agenda and ready to give him the necessary legislative backing to actualize the agenda.
Zorro, who represents Gumel/Gagarawa/Mai Gatari/Sule Tankarkar Federal Constituency of Jigawa State on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), said the need to streamline the funding of the House’s activities in line with best practices across the world and Nigeria’s economic fortunes was the reason the Reps set up the Dr Clement Nwankwo Committee.
Promising Nigerians a new wave of transparency in the conduct of affairs in the House, Zorro, a former national chairman of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), said the lawmakers will abide by whatever recommendations the Nwankwo committee makes as regards oversight function allowance, sitting allowance, constituency allowance and all aspects of funding of the House of Representatives.

We’ll lead by  example
On whether the lawmakers can take salary cut, Zorro, who commended President Buhari, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and some governors, who have elected to have their salaries cut by 50 per cent, said they are willing to toe the same path because “we are conscious of our integrity. We want to live by example.”
He said that the decision of the House to review the funding of its activities was in submission to the wishes of Nigerians.
He said: “I am here to reveal to you that as a result of the consistent outcry by Nigerians, who have been taking critical exception to the funding of the National Assembly, the House has decided to review the holistic funding of its activities.
“This review will also result in right sizing the funding of the various aspects of our activities. We have already put a mechanism in motion to achieve that. It may also result in the drastic cut of our finances be they salaries, allowances and running cost. We are conscious of our integrity; we will lead by example.
“What I can assure you is that we are submitting to the will of the people as a responsive and responsible legislative institution. We can no longer ignore the popular wishes of the Nigerian people who elected us in the first place. Even if the measures that we will consider will inconvenience us, we will rather make that sacrifice and respect the views of the Nigerian people once and for all.”

Declare support  for anti-graft war
On the anti-graft war, he said: “We are ready to support unconditionally the war being waged against corruption as spearheaded by the executive arm of government under President Muhammadu Buhari.
“I can tell you this on behalf of the House. Whoever is averse to the war against corruption in Nigeria is not a patriot. All patriotic people, whether in the National Assembly or outside of it, must support this war because of the implication of the degenerative level of our own corruption, which has compromised everything that Nigeria used to be. We are ready to assist in the building of a strong and strategic Nigeria. This cannot come about with all these reports in the newspapers of pervasive corruption. So, unconditionally, the House will support the war against corruption.”
On call that the scope of the anti-corruption probe should be widened and extended to 1999, Zorro said it is the prerogative of the executive arm of government, which has control over the security and intelligence agencies, to decide “but what the parliament does is to check the excesses, if any, of whatever process that the executive implements.
“Once the National Assembly discovers that this anti-corruption pursuit is tilted unfairly, may be against a person or group of persons, they will query it. But as of now, we are not entertaining any fear. We will support it, even if that corruption probe will involve the National Assembly. We just have to clean up this country because corruption actually reduces our humanity to the barest level.”

lalasticlala

Nwabu, who allegedly committed the act in the deceased house in the night, was said to have been having constant affair with the widow with a threat to kill her if she dared disclose it to anyone

A middle-aged lady, Miss Faith Idehen, has been rushed to the Central Hospital Benin City, Edo State after sustaining a deep ear bite during a fight with the daughter of her landlord in the state.
Idehen, aged 23 years and a hairdresser at the Oba Market located in the heart of Benin City, had a raw deal with her landlord’s daughter simply identified as Vivian, who is a single mother of two, over delayed payment of N1, 500 electricity bill.
Investigation revealed Friday that the victim along with her mother and other siblings had occupied the two bedroom apartment belonging to the landlord at No: 2 Jesus Powerlane Off Ojo Street Ugbiyoko, when Vivian engaged her in a war of words over the matter.
Idehen was said to have left the compound in a commercial bus for her place of work at the Oba Market but was trailed behind by Vivian who swooped on her at the popular Yanga Market within the area, an action that resulted in a fierce fight that drew a large crowd of traders and passersby.
It was gathered that the landlord’s daughter demanded for the monthly electricity bill of N1, 00 from the tenant who pleaded with her for understanding after the later had paid N1,000 deposit with a promise to pay the balance of N500 when she returns back from work later in the day but the landlord’s daughter refused to listen.
The angered Vivian engaged her unsuspecting tenant in a fight and bit off Faith’s left ear which made her to faint in the process.
It took the intervention of sympathisers for the younger hairdresser to gain consciousness even as she bled profusely and was rushed to the hospital for treatment.
However, policemen attached to Oba Market Police Station were quickly invited who also arrested the landlord’s daughter.
Narrating her ordeal, Idehen said: “I didn’t know that I was being trailed even after I pleaded with her that I will pay the balance of N500 when I return from work. The moment I alighted from the bus I heard someone calling Faith, Faith and immediately I turned, behold it was Vivian. She grabbed my hair and started beating me and before I knew what happened I saw my ear dangling with blood gushing out. I was later rescued and rushed to the Central hospital where it was later stitched.”
Sources close to the police station said the suspect would soon be charged to court for assault and attempted murder.
The state Police Public Relation Officer (PPRO), Mr. Steven Onwochei, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), when contacted said the command was yet to be informed about the incident.

The 23-year-old further explained that after being beaten for a long time, Jinga and Ogbonna allegedly bundled him and his friend in the boots of a Toyota 4Runner SUV and a Lexus SUV and took them to Akpugo Police Station, but they were rejected by policemen, who insisted that they should be taken to a hospital for treatment

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has arrested two artisans at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos for cocaine trafficking.

The suspects, Emeka Emehelu (39) and Aduaka Christopher (38),were apprehended while returning from Brazil.

The agency said Emehelu is an automobile technician, while Christopher is a baker.

The NDLEA Commander at the Lagos Airport, Mr. Hamzar Umar, explained that the suspects were caught with some white powdery substance which tested positive for cocaine.

He said, “King Emeka Emehelu was caught with two parcels of cocaine weighing 1.595kg hidden in his luggage, while Aduaka Chuka Christopher was found to have ingested five wraps of cocaine weighing 80g. The cocaine had a combined weight of 2.395kg. They are being investigated and will be charged to court soon.”

Emehelu, who hails from Enugu, revealed that his one-year break in Brazil was a setback to his career as an automobile technician.

He said, “I am married with four children. I left Nigeria a year ago for Brazil. As a result of my poor living condition in Brazil, I spent one year without seeing my family in Nigeria.

“I accepted to smuggle cocaine for a N1.2m fee. I wanted to use the money to establish a business for my wife, who has been struggling to take care of my family since I left Nigeria.”

Christopher also explained he smuggled cocaine because he needed money.

According to him, he worked as a baker in Brazil for one year but the income was not enough to sustain him.

He said, “I would have made N2m from this trip. I was supposed to smuggle the drugs to Nigeria and share the proceeds with my sponsor.

“Unfortunately, I could only swallow five wraps because I was vomiting the drugs. They were disappointed in me for swallowing only five wraps. I regret getting involved in drug trafficking.”

Two friends, Rashidat Iyabo, 20, and Jumoke Olawe, 34, were on Thursday arraigned at the Ebute Meta Chief Magistrates' Court in Lagos State for allegedly beating Iyabo’s ex-lover, one Sunday Dauda.

The accused, both traders, were docked on a two-count charge bordering on serious assault and conspiracy.

They, however, denied the charges and pleaded not guilty.
The prosecutor, Inspector Emmanuel Silas, had earlier told court that the offences were committed on August 19 at Sawmill area in Ebute Meta.


"Iyabo solicited the help of her friend, Olawe, to help to beat up Dauda for breaking up with her.

"They accosted the complainant on his way home where they beat him and stabbed him on his body and head thereby causing Dauda serious bodily harm.

"Iyabo didn't like the idea that Dauda broke up with her and therefore, set out to teach him a lesson," Silas said.
He said the offences contravened sections 172 and 409 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State, 2011.

The Magistrate, Mrs O. Fowowe-Erusiafe, admitted the accused to bail in the sum of N50,000 each with two sureties each in like sum.
She adjourned to October 9 for trial.

The integrity of President Muhammadu Buhari has led to the seeming stability in power generation and has also ensured an increase in its supply, the All Progressives Congress has said.

It also stated that without adequate improvement in power supply, the President may not be able to fulfil most of his campaign promises.

Before the new government came on board, power generation in Nigeria was between 3,000MW and 3,500MW. But in the past two months, electricity generation has continued to stay above 4,500MW.

The spokesperson for the APC, Mr. Lai Mohammed, stated that the stability in power generation was attributable to the integrity that was brought into governance by Buhari.

Speaking at 2015 Electricity Market Summit in Abuja on Thursday, Mohammed, who represented his party at the event, stated that the cases of pipelines vandalism had decreased significantly since the new administration took over from the Peoples Democratic Party.

He said, “I say it anywhere I go that even though we have not added one single megawatt to power, there has been improvement. My colleagues in the PDP will say no; that’s not true. But I maintain that this improvement is as a result of the kind of integrity that President Buhari has brought to leadership.

“Also, there has been a reduction in the cases of gas pipelines vandalism. Furthermore, the TCN (Transmission Company of Nigeria), which used to have about 22 systemic power failures often times, now records about six or seven of such cases. So, what we have today is that we have a leadership that is inspiring Nigerians and making them to believe again in their country. We have a leadership that is promising to reward merit.”

Mohammed observed that the country’s power generation was by far too low, when compared to its population. He said it was time to think outside the box with respect to increasing electricity generation and supply.

He said, “Meanwhile, I will like to state here that a nation with a population of over 170 million people cannot make do with a power generation of under 10,000MW. Even if we achieve 10,000MW, it will not help us in our drive for industrialisation. I have been informed that even if all our power generating plants generate (power) today, we don’t have enough capacity to transmit all that is being generated.

“We need to start thinking out of the box. We can’t afford to think conventionally, because in year 2030, our population will be about the third largest in the world and we cannot just rely on 6,000 to 10,000 megawatts. In the transition committee of President Buhari, we invited many professionals to come and address us on the power sector. The kind of time they gave us to build 20,000MW plant should be between five to seven years. But I don’t think this country can afford that luxury.”

He further noted that the APC promised to create millions of jobs annually, but explained that this would not be possible unless there was improvement in power supply.

The APC spokesperson said, “We must look for radical solutions to this problem, because there is no way a population of 170 million can share 6,000MW and you expect us to be among the top 20 economies in the world. There is very little we can achieve out of our pledges, if the power sector remains the way it is today. We did promise that we are going to create three million jobs a year. This promise is possible and do-able, but it will be much easier for us if the power sector also improves.”

DICKtator:
Wonder how the husband would feel

Feel about his innocent children!!!

A 40-year-old trader, Salau Kehinde, has admitted beating up his wife, Mrs. Salau Shakirat Olaide, over sex, but denied planning to pour hot water on her.

Kehinde, of 9, Fatai Oloko Street, Haruna, Ikorodu, was dragged by his wife to a customary court sitting in Ikorodu, Thursday, for dissolution of their marriage.

He agreed that he used to beat Olaide up whenever she denied him of sex and if she came home late from her trading business, but that he “merely boiled the water so he could threaten her with it.”

“I had no intention of bathing her in the water,” he told the court.

Kehinde continued, “She refused to cook for me when she was pregnant. She also said I should look for another wife.”

Speaking earlier, his 32-year-old wife, Olaide, of 1, Azeez Aremu Close, Ibeshe, Ikorodu, told the court that they got married 10 years ago and had two children together, but had been living separately for over two years now.

“He always refused to give me money and this made us quarrel and fight a lot,” she said. “I had to leave him when he kept threatening to pour hot water on me.”

“His friend advised him to beat me up and he became fond of beating me. He would beat me whenever I returned from work, he would beat me when I told him I was too tired to have sex, or for any flimsy excuse.”

She added that Kehinde also lacked respect for her family.

When the court’s president, Olu Adebiyi, asked her what she wanted, Olaide replied: “I want this court to dissolve our marriage and grant me custody of our children.”

Kehinde, however, promised to stop beating or threatening her and said he was willing to take her back if she wants to stay with him.

The court adjourned the matter to September 13, for possible reconciliation.

lalasticlala

Senate Leader, Ali Ndume, on Wednesday, said the upper chamber had no time to consider the Petroleum Industry Bill now because the PIB was not the priority of the current administration.

Ndume said rather than dissipate time and resources on the PIB, stalled in the 7th National Assembly, senators had been preoccupied with how to first block leakages in the oil sector.

Ndume, in an interview with our correspondent in Abuja, said the Senate had been looking at the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Act to determine the financial inflow and outflow of the corporation.

He said, “We are not talking about the PIB for now. The PIB got stuck somehow in the 7th Senate and this is a new government that definitely comes up with an idea of how it intends to run the oil and gas industry.

“This 8th National Assembly is determined to pass the PIB but coming to say when is a question very difficult to answer because right now, we have seven versions of the PIB. Maybe the final one will be presented by the 8th National Assembly.”

He said the Senate could not concentrate on the passage of the PIB now because there were so many unresolved issues about the content of the proposed legislation. He listed these issues to include “the community aspect, joint venture contracts and the partnership issues.”

Meanwhile the Senator representing Ogun Central Senatorial District, Lanre Tejuosho, on Wednesday asked Nigerians to place less emphasis on passage of bills but to insist on effective oversight activities by lawmakers.

Tejuosho, in an interview with journalists in Abuja, said the rot in virtually all the sectors of the nation’s economy could have been avoided if lawmakers had taken the issue of oversight seriously.
The senator said, “We keep on talking about sponsoring bills but looking back at all the Assemblies that we have had , this is the eight one, I realised that so many bills have been passed and I ask what the problem is.

“For me the problem is not introducing bills but the oversight function of the senate. There are so many wrongs today that could have been put right if the senators had done their oversight function properly.

“So I believe, rather than passing new bills, we should concentrate on how to perfect the oversight functions.

“If a bill should be uppermost on my mind today, it is a bill that will ensure that any agency or parastatal that will prescribe punishment for agencies that fail in their responsibilities of implementing their budget or projects.

“In fact, any of the senators that is in charge of oversight of an agency and who did not point it out at the right time, that senator must lose his ranking right. Such a senator that fails in his oversight function should be penalised.”

He said that Nigerians would not be complaining about the poor power situation in the country if the senators in charge of the power sector had been performing their oversight dutie

lalasticlala

Three former police officers were on Tuesday arraigned before a Magistrate Court in Akure, Ondo State, for allegedly torturing and murdering a 20-year-old secondary school leaver, Oluwatobi Badmus.

The accused persons, Awodeyi Adesola, 30; Adedeji Adekunle, 32; and Adepetu Olamilekan, 27, who had been dismissed by the police authorities over the offence, however pleaded not guilty to the charges brought against them.

The prosecuting counsel and a Police Principal Legal Officer, Dele Ogunyemi, told the court that the three accused persons unlawfully killed Badmus who gave up the ghost few minutes after leaving the police station where he was being tortured over the theft of a blackberry phone.
Mr. Ogunyemi told the court that the three officers, charged with manslaughter, committed the offence on July 21, 2014, at ‘B’ Division Police Station in Akure while they were still in the service of Nigeria Police Force.

According to him, the offence is contrary to section 317 and punishable under section 325 of the criminal code cap 37 Vol. 1 Laws of Ondo State of Nigeria, 2006.

He explained that Badmus was arrested by the police for allegedly stealing a BlackBerry mobile phone belonging to Bisi Adejuyigbagbe.
He said the young man was tortured and was teargased before he was released, but died on his way home.

Counsel to the accused persons, Steve Adebowale, prayed the court to grant bail to the three ex- police officers saying the accused were still innocent until the court determines the case.

The Chief Magistrate, Charity Adeyanju, granted the accused persons bail in the sum of N500,000, with two sureties each in like sum.
Mr. Adeyanju added that the sureties must submit a three – year tax clearance obtained from the state internal revenue service and one of the sureties must be a Grade Level 10 civil servant.

She also said that the sureties must reside within the court’s jurisdiction and also fill an affidavit of means with two recent passport photographs.

SECURITY operatives attached to the Delta State Police Command killed two suspected armed robbery kingpins in gun battle.

It was gathered that the hoodlums were moving in a convoy apparently in an attempt to carry out armed robbery attack on residents of Warri at different locations before nemesis caught up with them.

The State Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Mrs. Celestina Kalu, who confirmed the death of the suspects, disclosed that police detectives attached to the area commander’s office in Warri while on patrol sighted a black Toyota Land Cruiser, Toyota Avalon and others moving in convoy along Erejuwa road.

Kalu said the police suspected the movement of the hoodlums and chased them to Cemetery Road in Warri where the suspects engaged them in a gun battle.

“Two of the suspected robbers were killed on the spot while two members of the gang were arrested. Others escaped with serious bullet wounds while the injured suspects are being treated in an undisclosed hospital to enable the police get more information and possible arrest other members of the gang,” she said.

Kalu listed items recovered from the hoodlums as two vehicles, three handsets, two identity cards, two cut-to-size guns, 10 live bullets and five expended ones.

The state PPRO said investigation was ongoing while the police were working towards arresting the fleeing suspects.

Meanwhile, the Ozoro Progressive Union, Isoko North Local Government Area of the state has adopted strategies to tackle bandits terrorizing the community

The President of the union, Mr. Clifford Anakpoha, had enjoined the people of the community to be watchful, saying protection of lives and property was imperative considering the spate of robbery in the community.

Investigation revealed that Ozoro community and its environs had been under siege of hoodlums, including suspected cultists.

The letter read in part: “It is a pity I did not meet up to your expectations, but I had to go this way so I can have rest. Please forgive me mum.”

Jungle justice was meted out to two suspected motorcycle snatchers by a mob at Mararaba near Abuja recently.

City News learnt that one of the suspected thieves was set ablaze around Sharp Corner, near the Abuja - Keffi expressway, while the other was beaten to death with dangerous objects in Kabayi area.
The two men believed to be in their 30s, were said to be members of a notorious gang that specialised in snatching commercial motorcycles popularly called okada.

Witnesses said scenes of the incidents were deserted for fear of police arrest.

The witness said thieves operating in groups, have since been terrorising okada riders and causing panic in the neighbourhood.

A witness, who simply identified himself as Mr. Dan, told City News: “I can’t tell you how many okada riders have since fallen victim. These thieves have snatched many okada and they are ever ready to snatch more.”

The witness alleged that the suspects killed some of the riders in the process, “Many of the bikes were bought on hire purchase for as much as N180,000. How do you think the riders or owners can pay this money when the okadas are snatched from them?”

He said luck ran out on the suspects when they tried to escape with a snatched motorcycle. They were tracked by mobs at different locations, he said.

Another witness, Mama Paul, said she didn’t support jungle justice, but the criminal activities of the suspects have become incessant and disturbing to push the mob to that extent.

An okada rider, who pleaded anonymity, said people were tired of seeing the suspects back in the streets few days after their arrest by security operatives. He said that must have led to the mob action instead of reporting to law enforcement agencies.

Reacting to the development, a police source who would not want to be named, said that the police were working within the ambits of the law, and did not release suspects anyhow, but charged them to court after gathering substantial evidence.
At the ‘A’ Division Police Station Mararaba, an officer who does not want his name in print, confirmed the incident and said no arrest was made as both scenes were deserted and nobody came for the dead suspects, adding that the bodies were evacuated and deposited in the mortuary.

Cyriacus izuekwe
It was a sad end between a couple simply identified as Ogene and Rita (surnames withheld) after Rita confessed to Ogene that she could not bear him any child because her womb was damaged during abortion when she was in secondary school in Onitsha town in Anambra State, southeast Nigeria.

P.M.NEWS gathered that the confession was made five years after they contracted traditional marriage and wedded in an Anglican Church in Umuchu, Aguata in Anambra State.

The husband subsequently sent her away for hiding such information from him after their traditional and church marriage.
P.M.NEWS findings revealed that Ogene is a trader at Head Bridge market in Onitsha and resides in Iyiowa Odekpe in Atani Local Government, a few kilometres to Onitsha urban where he plies his trade.

Their relationship started when Ogene met Rita in the area and proposed to marry her. She accepted and there was formal introduction between the families.

They did their traditional wedding in Rita’s village in Imo State and proceeded to Ogene’s village in Umuchu where they did their church wedding.

According to P.M.NEWS sources, throughout the period the relationship started and ended in marriage, Rita did not tell Ogene that she lost her womb due to abortion.

When Rita did not get pregnant after years of their marriage, they started looking for medical solution to no avail. This cost Ogene huge sums of money.

After the failed medical solution, they decided to embark on spiritual solution which led Rita to meet a pastor to whom she revealed her predicament on why she was unable to get pregnant, P.M.NEWS was told.

The pastor advised her to embark on fasting and prayers and ask God for forgiveness.

The pastor told her that after the prayers she should go to her husband and confess and ask for forgiveness.
The pastor assured her that with the prayers, her husband would forgive her and would still take her as his wife.
Based on the assurance of the pastor, after the fasting and prayers, Rita went to Ogene and narrated her sad story.

P.M.NEWS gathered that Rita confessed to Ogene that she got pregnant when she was in secondary school and to cover the shame, she secretly went for abortion.

She narrated that during the abortion, there was complication which affected her womb and damaged it.
She told him that after the abortion, she had not been able to conceive and she was afraid to tell him before they got married because she did not want to lose him.

She pleaded for forgiveness and asked him to think and decide her fate in the marriage.
The embittered husband told her that there was nothing to think concerning their marriage since she concealed such serious information from him and subjected him to wasting huge sums of money on medical treatment.

He told her that there was no marriage in the first instance between them because she lied to him.
He asked her to pack her things and leave his house.

She left dejected because the advice by the pastor was counter-productive.

Ogene subsequently went to the Anglican Church marriage counsel in Awka and sought for the dissolution of the marriage.
And the church granted his request.

A 45-year-old tailor, identified only as Fasasi, has allegedly seized the underwear and clothes of a 16-year-old girl after raping her in the Agege area of Lagos.

PUNCH Metro learnt that the teenager, Comfort (pseudonym), who was a Secondary School Class 1 pupil, was allegedly raped by Fasasi when she ran an errand for her mother.

Our correspondents gathered that Fasasi, who had been arrested by the police, reportedly called the girl and asked her to also buy food for him while she ran the errand for her mother.

Fasasi was said to have led the teenager to his room, when she requested his plate, and allegedly asked her to remove her clothes and underwear.

It was gathered that the tailor allegedly packed the underwear and the clothes away and raped Comfort.

When Fasasi reportedly refused to return her underwear and clothes after the rape, the girl was said to have fled the room. It was learnt that one of the suspect’s neighbours noticed the girl and came to her rescue.

The matter was said to have been reported at the Isokoko Police Division, and Fasasi was arrested.

Speaking with PUNCH Metro, Comfort said Fasasi threatened to stab her to death with a knife if she raised the alarm.
She added that when the suspect refused to return her clothes after the rape, she fled the room with one of his wrappers.

She said, “It was on April 19, 2015, at about 5pm. My mother and I live on Shaiba Street in the Agege area. I had never gone to the tailor’s house before. I did not know he was a rapist.

“On the fateful day, he asked me to follow him inside his room to get the plates that I would use to buy food for him. Once I entered the room, he immediately locked the door behind him. He then brought out a knife and threatened to kill me if I did not UnCloth.

“I begged him, but he did not listen. I was scared that he would kill me, so I obeyed. But after removing my clothes and underwear, he collected them from me, and went out with them. I asked him where he was taking them to; he said he was taking them to his shop.

“Seconds later, he returned and he raped me. I was shouting inside the room, but no one seemed to hear me. When he was done, I asked for my clothes, but he said he would not release them unless he had one more round. As soon as I saw an opportunity, I took one of his wrappers, and forced my way out of his room.”

Comfort added that it was when she ran out of the room that one of Fasasi’s neighbours noticed and came to her rescue.

“When I got outside, I met a woman who was one of Fasasi’s neighbours. When she saw me, she understood what had happened and confronted him.”

A resident, who identified herself simply as Abiola, told our correspondents that one Singede usually bailed the suspect whenever he was arrested by the police.

She said, “A week after Fasasi was arrested, we saw him returning to his shop. They said he was arraigned in court, but he had been granted bail. Singede must have secured his bail as usual.”

Our correspondents gathered that the suspect, however, had yet to return Comfort’s clothes and underwear to her.

It was learnt from a source in Fasasi’s house that the suspect might have thrown the clothes away.

Speaking with PUNCH Metro, Comfort’s mother urged the police to ensure that the suspect returned her daughter’s clothes.

She said, “I am afraid of what he might do with my daughter’s underwear. What does he want to do with her clothes? I have been worried since the day this incident happened.”

Our correspondents gathered that the rape incident was also reported to the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Response Team.

The DSVRT Coordinator, Mrs. Lola Vivour-Adeniyi, told PUNCH Metro that a request had been sent for the transfer of the case file to the Directorate of Public Prosecutions.

She said, “It was a non-governmental organisation that brought the matter to our attention. What we then did was to refer the victim to Mirabel Centre for proper treatment. We also made a report to the police to ensure that the suspect was arrested and charged to court.

“As we speak, the DPP has requested the case file to be forwarded to it. This is a case of alleged defilement, it will be prosecuted by the DPP.”

The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Patricia Amadin, had yet to reply to a text message sent to her phone.

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WIZGUY69:
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person

The petitioner told the court that his wife was too lazy and had left everything in the house to maids to do.

By Bartholomew Madukwe
An Igando Customary Court in Lagos will today continue further hearing on a petition filed by a 57-year-old man, Joe Ubigho, seeking dissolution of his marriage of 19 years over alleged laziness of his wife, Rita, aged 45.

The petitioner told the court that his wife was too lazy and had left everything in the house to maids to do.
He said: “It was owing to such laziness that I was forced to take our children to a boarding school for proper care.”
The petitioner begged the court to dissolve the union, saying he was tired of the marriage and was no more in love with his wife.
Reacting to the allegation, Rita, a mother of three, said it was her husband who chased her out of the house, threatening to pour acid on her if she refused to leave.
She promised to take good care of her husband and children and urged the court not to dissolve the marriage, saying she was still in love.

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