₦airaland Forum

These are actually behind the scene pics from their new video for 'Tonight' but all I could think of when I saw the pics was which of the two stars. One weekend of passionate passion, who would you take? Faze (left) or Patoranking (right)? See more photos after the cut...

This Is For The Guys.
Who Would You Hit? Maheeda, Chidinma, Mocheddah Or Yemi Alade?
Drop Your Comment.

Am sowi I posted it in Politics thread @u all..Etz was a mistake! How can I divert it

Source: www.punchng.com/news/ebola-no-school-resumption-today-in-lagos-14-other-states/

Pupils in at least 15 states in the country will not return to their classrooms today as directed by the Federal Government.
This is because in most of the states, teachers are insisting that safety measures must be put in place to protect them and their pupils from contracting the deadly Ebola Virus Disease.
In some of the states like Lagos and Ogun, the governments opted not to comply with the September 22 date until necessary Ebola safety kits were put in place in their schools.
Also, the gates of the 104 Unity Schools in the country will be shut from today as their teachers commence an industrial action.
The other states where normal academic activities will not resume are Rivers, Oyo, Ekiti, Osun, Benue, Niger, Zamfara, Adamawa, Kano, Kwara, Kogi, Akwa Ibom and Ebonyi states.
Teachers in Lagos will be on duty today but pupils will remain at home until October 8.
There had been controversy over the directive by the Federal Government that schools should resume on September 22 since the spread of the Ebola Virus Disease had been contained in the country.
The Nigeria Union of Teachers however ordered its members to shun academic activities until the government provided gadgets in schools to ensure not only their safety but that of their pupils.
Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola, after meeting on Sunday with public school headteachers, said the decision was to ensure that schools in the state were safe for both the teachers and their pupils.
He said, “On this issue of resumption, we are on the same side. We are all concerned about safety in the schools.
“Some states that would be commencing their academic session tomorrow(today) did not have Ebola outbreak. The index case (Mr. Patrick Sawyer) landed in Lagos and not in these states. And I know that the teachers are afraid just like myself. My biggest fear is that nothing must happen to any resident of Lagos. I am not shy to say I am afraid.
“I understand the fear of the teachers. We are on the same side. We are all concerned about safety in the schools. Whether there is Ebola or not, we have to make the schools safe for the teachers and the pupils.
“My proposal is that the teachers, headmasters and principals should go to their various school tomorrow (today) and sort out whatever is missing in the prescribed Ebola preventive facilities. So, we have to use from tomorrow (today) and the rest of the week to get the schools ready for the students.
“And because of the Eid-il-Kabir festival that also falls within this time, rather than open and close the schools again for the festival. Immediately after the festival, the schools will commence academic session on October 8.”
He said that the state government had “awarded the contract to connect water to at least 800 schools in the state.”
The state NUT Chairman, Mr. Segun Raheem, confirmed the development to one of our correspondents.
Raheem, who argued that teachers in the state had always been in schools even during holidays, however, urged the government to ensure that it provided the necessary facilities before the return of pupils on October 8.
The Secretary to the Ogun State Government, Mr. Taiwo Adeoluwa, had last Friday announced October 8, as the new resumption date for both public and private primary and secondary schools in the state.
Adeoluwa said stakeholders in the state arrived at the new date after a series of meetings.
The state chapters of the NUT, the Academic Staff of Secondary Schools, the Association of Primary School Head Teachers of Nigeria, the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools and the All Nigeria Conference of Principals of Secondary Schools, he added participated in the meetings.
In Akwa Ibom State, the NUT Secretary, Mr. Mike Ike-Ene, said that schools would resume on Monday but that teachers would not be there to teach the pupils.
According to him, the state government had yet to provide the needed EVD safety kits ,like infrared thermometers, sanitisers and hand gloves in schools for the use of pupils and their teachers.
Ike-Ene said, “There will be no school on Monday. They will open their schools but teachers will not be there.
“We are asking them to provide thermometers; water; hand sanitisers and hand gloves. The Akwa Ibom State Government has not met any of these conditions rather they are calling for the resumption of schools tomorrow(today).”
The Kwara State NUT Chairman, Mr. Musa Abubakar, also confirmed that teachers in the state would not resume today.
He told one of our correspondents on Sunday that the state government had not made enough provisions to prevent teachers and pupils from contracting the EVD on resumption of schools.
The state Commissioner for Education, Alhaji Saka Onimago, had directed all schools in the state to resume today.
He had also ordered schools in the state to provide basic hygiene materials, including washing bowls, soap and towels.
The Osun State Government, in a statement by Deputy Governor Titi Laoye-Tomori, said it deferred resumption of schools to October 6 to enable teachers to undergo training on how to prevent the spread of Ebola.
It explained that the new resumption date would allow schools to prepare very well to prevent the disease.
The statement read, “Governor Rauf Aregbesola has directed all public and private schools to reopen for the 2014/2015 academic session on October 6.
“This will enable principals and teachers to receive adequate training to prevent Ebola epidemic in schools and in the state in general.
“Bearing in mind that children will be coming from different homes, it becomes important that teachers are given the basic knowledge on how to prevent the outbreak of the disease.”
The Benue State NUT Chairman, Mr. Godwin Anya, also confirmed that members of the union would not return for the new academic session until the government provided the necessary EVD safety kits in schools.
According to him, the government has not shown enough commitment to guaranteeing the safety of pupils and their teachers.
Anya said, “The unpreparedness of the state government in providing training for us (teachers) coupled with the lack of the necessary preventive and proactive gadgets to combat the EVD in any eventuality has continued to stall reopening of schools on Monday(today).
The NUT in Edo State said it had issued a seven-day ultimatum to the state government to provide the necessary EVD materials in schools or risk a sit-at-home action by its members.
Its Chairman, Mr. Mike Uhunmwangho, who made this known in a telephone interview with one of our correspondents, said teachers and pupils in the state would not want to risk their lives returning to schools without adequate safety nets.
He said, “The state government has agreed to provide sanitisers and the equipment for checking body temperature in schools within one week. Most of the teachers are going to be involved class by class.
“We are giving them between Monday(today) and Friday to put everything in place. If they are not in place after seven days, we will make sure that nobody goes back to school.”
Teachers in the nation’s Federal Government colleges, under the aegis of Federal Government College Teachers Association, have already commenced an industrial action over the non-implementation of promotion arrears and other allowances.
The teachers have therefore advised parents and guardians not to bring their children and wards to any of the 104 schools on Monday (today) for the commencement of the new academic session.
They alleged that the government had failed to pay them their promotion arrears from 2007 to 2010 as well as provide their training allowance amounting to N1.8bn.
A statement by the President, FGCTA, Mr. Tahir Mahmood, and the General Secretary, Mr. Deedar Baloch, obtained by one of our correspondents in Jos, Plateau State on Sunday, specifically accused the Ministry of Education of misappropriating funds for the payment of the promotion arrears from 2007 to 2011 released by the Ministry of Finance.
The teachers also accused the Education ministry of misappropriating N1.8bn, which was released for the payment their outstanding liabilities.
Story by: Charles Abah, Jude Owuamanam, Sam Awoyinfa, Femi Makinde, Success Nwogu, Simon Utebor, Etim Ekpimah, Alexander Okere and Daniel Gbabo.

There is beauty in diversity, all shades and colours..I think I'm a natural 4...

More photos

President Jonathan visited the site of the Synagogue Church of All Nations collapse building yesterday where he commiserated with T.B Joshua and families of victims. Speaking to newsmen after the inspection, the president said there will be an investigation into the circumstances that led to the collapse of the building which has killed at least 86 people and injured 131 so far, most of them South Africans. He said measures will be put in place to check the illegal erection of high rise buildings in the country. See more photos below:…

More photos

A speeding car veered off the road in the early hours of this morning and crashed into a pole and stall on a street on College Road in Ogba, Ikeja. Fortunately, the guy suspected to be drunk, survived the crash but his car was totaled. See photos after the cut...

This is shocking and strange. A source sent the picture to Us and we couldn’t believe our eyes when we first saw what’s on this little girl’s chest.
Could this be some powerful spiritual manipulation or what do you think?

Source: www.punchng.com/news/scores-killed-as-boko-haram-attacks-kano-college/
Update:
The Police in Kano on Wednesday confirmed the death of 15 persons, including two suicide bombers, at the Federal College of Education, Kano.
The Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr. Aderinle Shinaba, disclosed this shortly after visiting the scene of the incident.
Shinaba said 34 others, mostly students and lecturers, sustained various degrees of injury during the attack.
He said the suicide bombers had before their arrival to the institution, exchanged gunfire with some security operatives along Kafar Famfo-BUK road.
“After the exchange of gunfire, they emerged at the college lecture theatre and detonated two explosives.
“There was another insurgent, who was carrying AK 47 rifle and explosives.”
He said that one of security operatives was able to shoot him and the explosive went off and killed him.
“We have been able to recover some of the AK47 rifles and magazines used by the insurgents.
“So far, 15 people were confirmed dead, while 34 others that sustained injuries are currently receiving medical attention in the hospital,” the commissioner said.
He said security had been beefed up in the area, adding that “we are going to keep our men on ground to enhance security in the school.”
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The violent Islamic sect, Boko Haram, has attacked the Federal College of Education in Kano.
The attackers hit the school with explosives and followed this up with gun attacks on Wednesday afternoon as the students fled in different directions to escape from the explosions.
It could not be ascertained how many had been killed in the school, which is not far away from Bayero University in the same city.
Early report from Kano says the insurgents attacked the college of education around 3.20pm.
JTF Spokesman Ikechukwu Eze confirms that there was a bomb explosion and sporadic shooting at Federal College, Kano.
More details later…

More photo

Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Olayiwola Adeyemi, and some of his wives pictured at the airport as headed out in a private jet to Bauchi state on the invitation of the state governor, Isa Yuguda. See more photos after the cut...

More pics

Tiwa Savage and Davido headlined the African Unplugged concert which held yesterday Sunday September 14th at the O2 Brixton Academy in London. So Tiwa was in Lagos on Saturday night for Mo Abudu's show where she performed and flew out same time to make it in time for this show in London on Sunday night. What a busy life! I hear Tiwa and Davido gave an incredible show. See more photos from the concert after the cut...

Here are pictures of an alleged army brutality on a young man. This happened in Barkin Ladi local government in Plateau State where some men of the Special Task Force accused the young man of stealing a rifle. The people fighting for the victim said it was later found to be untrue. The young man was supposedly tortured for over 3 weeks. See more photos after the cut...

Musician turned politician, 9ice has welcomed his 4th child with his event planner /live-in-lover,Olasunkanmi Ajala.Their baby girl named Michelle was born in Houston/Texas last week.
9ice is also the proud father of twin girls with Victoria Gordis and a son with ex wife, Toni Payne.
Pic of their daughter below
Source: www.tatafonaija.com/2014/09/9ice-welcomes-3rd-child-with-lover-photo.html?m=1

Source: www.punchng.com/news/boko-haram-attacked-our-building--t-b-joshua/
The founder and General overseer of the Synagogue Church of All Nations, Prophet T. B. Joshua has said Boko Haram may be responsible for the collapse of a six-storey building in the church premises.
Joshua, who told members of his church on Sunday not to be afraid, said the attack was targeted at him and not at them.
The prophet made it clear that the collapse of the six-storey building at around 11.45am on Friday which led to the death of no fewer than 16 persons was a Boko Haram attack.
Joshua buttressed his claim by showing to his congregation on the Emmanuel TV the chronology of events shortly before and after the accident as captured by the church’s CCTV.
He said, “I received a phone call immediately I got here, just 10 minutes later when I was in the church, that there was a jet hovering over the mountain where I had just left. They said it was hovering at a close range. Before I knew it, I received another phone call that the same jet was now at the church hovering over the building, passing it four times at a very close range before the building collapsed.”
Joshua read to the church a letter which he said was addressed to him by a Boko Haram member, confessing how he had attempted to plant a bomb inside the church.
Joshua said his church was being attacked to scare away members.
“This environment at Ikotun Egbe, we have never witnessed an accident of a building collapse. This is a very stable terrain. I have been here for the past 30 years. I am pregnant with words, but we have left the security agencies to do their job. Let us believe and educate our people and be alive.”
Assuring his congregation that God would bring the perpetrators of the attack to book, Joshua said that the decision of the insurgents to focus on his church might be the end of the Boko Haram’s activities in the country.
He said,“I know you will ask why the church? It is because of the spiritual blessings that God has bestowed upon us. A big head wears a large hat.
“Don’t forget about the Ebola issue too, it was God that rescued the church. Probably they would have dropped an Ebola patient inside the church, so that they would said, ‘there is an Ebola patient in the church, don’t go there.’
“They are trying to scare you from coming to church. Don’t be scared, you are not the target, I’m the target. I know my time has not yet come. I have not yet finished my job.
“I want to assure you that our God will get back at them and you will know when he gets back to them. May be this would be the end of the whole thing.”
Meanwhile, the death toll had officially risen to 44, while 130 people were said to have been rescued alive.
The National Emergency Management Agency on Sunday said that 44 dead bodies had been recovered, while 130 people trapped in the collapsed Synagogue building had so far been rescued.
The Public Relations Officer of NEMA, Mr. Ibrahim Farinloye, confirmed this via a text message to our correspondents.
Farinloye, however, told theNews Agency of Nigeriathat 80 per cent of people rescued from the collapse building were women.
He said that two female children, aged four and eight years, were among those rescued from the building.

cos i'm jovial, intelligent, fun, caring, versatile, etc[/quote]Says Who??

unyours: If sex is your priority, you can't be just friends with a lady. I have millions of female friends and we just roll like that.
By the way op, why did you say you are just as confused as everyone else in your post? What makes you think everyone else is as confused as you are. Or why do you think we share same mystery?

Easy Na......U ave Millions of Female friends...?Are u a celebrity, if I may ask

nanazeez: A peg needs to fit into a hole just as a dik needs to fit into a pu-c. Emotions are bound to arise, Its not possible to be JUST FRIENDS with an opposite sex

Guy E be lyk say u don HIGH!

Almeria: Are you serious buddy?

u jes said my mind...His he for real?

Guys and girls can’t be just friends, since someone always wants more. This is something we have heard our whole lives, but I believe that guys and girls can just be friends.
There are plenty of guys in my life with whom I’m just friends, at least. We would never court each other because that would be gross — and I know the feeling is mutual.
I do feel like we all have that friend, however, with whom we missed the opportunity. The one with whom, if the time were ever right, maybe you two could be together.
If you’re reading this article because you want to know if you and your best friend of the opposite s*x can be more, the truth is that I have no idea. I don’t have any answers. I am just as confused as everyone else. Everyone’s situation is different, and I can only speak from personal experience.
It can get confusing: How can you not fall for someone you see almost every day? Someone with whom you have a close, comfortable, platonic relationship?
I have felt this way many times. Sometimes, these friends lead you on without necessarily intending to do so. You’re likely filling a void for them, as well.
I had a friend named Chris when I was 19 years old. He was older, handsome and a complete weirdo; he was perfect. Everyone knew I had a crush on him, and I’m pretty sure he did, too.
It took me a long time to confront him, and it wasn’t until I made a snap decision to take a step back from the friendship. Once I wasn’t spending all of my time with him, I was able to move forward.
I pushed the feelings and temptations to the back of my mind. “I don’t want to ruin the friendship,” I told myself. But, maybe the friendship would self-destruct faster and stronger if I didn’t share my feelings. It can start to feel like a fake, one-sided relationship.
I felt like I didn’t need to seek a deeper connection with someone else because my fake relationship filled the void. Then, I would get mad when my fake relationship didn’t fulfill my needs, despite how ridiculous the notion of this gripe may be.
In my fake relationships, it was only my fake boyfriend’s job to be there for me as my friend. It’s totally healthy to have friends from the opposite s*x. I think everyone should have them, in fact, as they can make for amazing friendships.
However, I think there should be boundaries. Having s*x, for example, is probably something good friends shouldn’t do with each other.
Don’t get me wrong; you can totally have s*x with your friends, but a friend with whom you spend all of your time? Maybe not.
Oftentimes, you won’t need to have s*x with a friend to fall for him or her, however. Then what do you do? Hope that one day, he miraculously realizes what a wonderful life you two could have together?
Well, you stick around anyway, as you would rather have this person in your life than not at all.
Don’t hide your feelings if you find yourself in love with someone who’s supposed to just be your friend because falling for your friend will ruin the friendship, even if you ignore it. You must be honest with your friend and with yourself.
If you’re the friend with whom the other party is in love, don’t lead him on. Give space; set boundaries, don’t kiss or try to take naps together. You’re the reason why he’s confused in the first place. Understand that he may need space from you. Don’t use people as emotional canes.
Be honest and forthright, always.
– Kristin Manna/EliteDaily

Sources: www.punchng.com/news/soyinka-bombs-jonathan/
Hobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, on Saturday lambasted President Goodluck Jonathan for embracing corrupt politicians and failing to prosecute the sponsors and members of Boko Haram.
Soyinka stated that he had no doubt about the Boko Haram sponsorship allegation against a former Governor of Borno State, Ali Modu Sheriff, by an Australian negotiator, Stephen Davis.
He expressed his resolve to back a human rights lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN), to seek Sheriff’s prosecution, saying security agencies had enough evidence to prosecute the ex-governor.
The Nobel Laureate said if Sheriff was prosecuted, “it is certain he will also take many others down with him.”
In a statement entitled, ‘The wages of inpunity’ made available to the media on Saturday, Soyinka challenged Jonathan to investigate the claims that Davis made about Boko Haram and its sponsors.
He said, “I am, therefore, compelled to warn that anything that Stephen Davis claims to have uncovered cannot be dismissed. It cannot be wished away by foul-mouthed abuse and cheap attempts to impugn his integrity — that is an absolute waste of time and effort.
“Of the complicity of ex-Governor Sheriff in the parturition of Boko Haram, I have no doubt whatsoever, and I believe that the evidence is overwhelming. Femi Falana can safely assume that he has my full backing — and that of a number of civic organisations — if he is compelled to go ahead and invoke the legal recourses available to him to force Sheriff’s prosecution.
“The evidence in possession of security agencies — plus a number of diplomats in Nigeria — is overwhelming, and all that is left is to let the man face criminal persecution. It is certain he will also take many others down with him.”
The literary icon also alleged that the name of a top Central Bank of Nigeria official who has major links with the sect had been forwarded to President Jonathan.
He said, “In the process of our enquiries, we solicited the help of a foreign embassy whose government, we learnt, was actually on the same trail; thanks to its independent investigation into some money laundering that involved the Central Bank.
“That name, we confidently learnt, has also been passed on to President Jonathan. When he is ready to abandon his accommodating policy towards the implicated, even the criminalised, an attitude that owes so much to re-election desperation, when he moves from a passive ‘letting the law to take its course’ to galvanising the law to take its course, we shall gladly supply that name.”
Concerning Davis’ allegation that a former Chief of Army Staff, Gen. Azubuike Ihejirika, is a sponsor of the sect, Soyinka proposed that an international panel be set up to examine “all allegations, irrespective of status or office of any accused.”
The professor also condemned the #BringBackJonathan2015 electoral campaign, a clone of the campaign of the #BringBackOurGirls global campaign for the release of the schoolgirls
Soyinka said, “Goodluck Jonathan has brought back into limelight more political reprobates — thus attested in criminal courts of law and/or police investigations — than any other Head of State since the nation’s independence.”
He berated the Presidency for turning the case of the over 200 abducted Chibok girls into a stand-up comic material.
“Spurred by electoral desperation, a bunch of self-seeking morons and sycophants chose to plumb the abyss of self-degradation and drag the nation down to their level.
“It took us to a hitherto unprecedented low in ethical degeneration,” Soyinka stated.
The famous author stated that while Jonathan had since disowned all knowledge or complicity in the political campaign, “the damage has been done, the rot in a nation’s collective soul bared to the world.”
Soyinka proposed that Davis should be invited to a roundtable for further talks.
The professor, who backed the Australian’s investigations, claimed to have worked with him when the late President Shehu Yar’Adua was making efforts to resolve the insurrection in the Niger Delta.
Soyinka said, “While awaiting the Chibok girls, and in that very connection, there is at least an individual whom the nation needs to bring back, and urgently. His name is Stephen Davis, the erstwhile negotiator in the oft aborted efforts to actually bring back the girls.
“Nigeria needs him back — no, not back to the physical nation space itself, but to a Nigerian induced forum, convoked anywhere that will guarantee his safety and can bring others to join him.”
The Nobel Laureate lamented that several alarms previously raised on the activities of Boko Haram had been ignored, while stating that stiffer actions should have been taken against the sect.
He further criticised Jonathan for attending a meeting with the Chadian President, Idris Deby, in company with Sheriff.
He faulted the Presidency’s defence that Sheriff, as friend of the host President, had travelled ahead to Chad to receive Jonathan as part of Deby’s welcome entourage.
In his reaction on Saturday, Sheriff challenged Soyinka to make public whatever evidence he had linking him to the sect.
The ex-Borno governor also challenged the Nobel Laureate and those he claimed were privy to other shreds of evidence to go to court.
Speaking through the Commissioner of Information and Home Affairs under his administration, Mr. Inuwa Bwala, in a telephone interview withSUNDAY PUNCH, Sheriff said Soyinka was only entertaining Nigerians with his mastery of the English language.
He stated that Soyinka’s statement lacked any form of merit.
Sheriff said, “As the ‘cultist’ we know him (Soyinka) to be, being the founder of a confraternity for which the world is still waiting for answers from him, he is the least morally qualified to speak on the alleged involvement of any Nigerian in whatever crime.
“We challenge him to name this person he says he knows as a sponsor of Boko Haram in the Central Bank, if he is as patriotic as he claims to be. We also challenge him to prove to Nigerians that he is not the cultist we have always known him to be.
“No security agency anywhere or an individual who claims to have investigated this matter independently can dictate to Nigerians or our security personnel what to do about this Boko Haram menace. Therefore, this needless diversion is unwelcome.”
The Presidency was not available for comments on Saturday. Efforts to get the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, were not successful. He did not pick calls made to his telephone or reply the text message and electronic mail sent to him.

Isiterere: God forbid , I will rather hang out with DON JAZZY (he is an enigma;full of Ideas) instead of Iphone 6(material thing,liability).
In addition, I will take the op(LilNetty) along as well

ALL IZZ WELL

iffa hear

UPDATES:
16:50PM
LASEMA reports that 120 victims have been rescued so far.
15:18PM
T.B Joshua’s address: “This is the video, watch and think over it. What you are seeing here, you can choose to believe it or you can choose not to believe it, but all I know is that when I said Boko Haram was arrested here, they said no. But if you choose not to believe it, let us see what would happen later. If people don’t believe it, no problem.
“Come out with whatever you believe after watching it. Take this video wherever you want to take it. Give it to experts, if you cannot analyse it.”
Meanwhile, journalists have been asked to provide their email addresses for a copy of the said video.
Details to follow.
12:56PM
Credits: Ramon Oladimeji
There is still a large crowd at the church entrance with heavy security presence. Today journalists have access to the scene of the collapsed building.
Credits: Ramon Oladimeji
Currently the rescue operations are still on-going. Officials of NEMA, LASEMA, Red Cross are still very much around.
Our correspondent reported that no fewer than 12 victims have been pulled out of the rubles alive as of the time of filing this report(12pm). NEMA has put the death toll at 17.
—————————————————————————————————————–
A six-storey building belonging to the Synagogue Church of All Nations, Ikotun, Lagos, collapsed on Friday with no fewer than 50 persons feared dead.
The building, which was under construction, was initially a two-storey building before the addition of four new floors which were under construction.
Saturday PUNCHgathered that the building, which housed guests and members of the church, already had so many people lodged in it before the incident.
The six-storey building, which collapsed around 1pm, was under construction.
The Synagogue Church of All Nations was founded by Prophet Temitope Joshua.
As at 3pm when our correspondent got to the scene, hundreds of people were seen, crying and wailing.
A 10-year-old child was among the dead and some foreigners were among the victims said to have been rescued alive. As of the time of going to press, several persons were still trapped in the collapsed building.
However, the exact number of casualties could not be confirmed as of the time of filing this report as there were conflicting reports from emergency agencies and eyewitnesses.
For instance, the Public Relations Officer, National Emergency Management Agency, Mr. Ibrahim Farinloye, in a phone conversation with our correspondent on Friday evening, confirmed the recovery of three dead bodies and 15 persons rescued alive.
He said, “We have recovered three dead bodies and a child of about 10 years was among them. The others were adults and one of them had his leg chopped off. Before we arrived at the scene, 15 persons had been rescued alive and taken to the hospital. But there are people still trapped in the building and rescue efforts are still ongoing.”
The General Manager, Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, Dr. Femi Oke-Osanyintolu, who could not confirm the figure of the dead victims, said 15 bodies and 20 survivors were recovered from the debris.
He said, “We have cordoned off the area and we have been able to recover 15 bodies and 20 casualties and they have been taken to the hospitals, including the General Hospital, Alimosho, but I can’t tell you the number of the dead right now. There were foreigners among the dead and those that were rescued but I didn’t count how many they were.”
a victim
Eyewitnesses who spoke withSaturday PUNCH,however, put the number of the dead in the incident at about 50.
An eyewitness, who insisted that up to 50 persons died in the incident, said he saw almost 10 ambulances loaded with bodies going to and fro, taking victims to nearby hospitals.
He said, “I’m very sure that nothing less than 50 people were killed in the incident as ambulances loaded with bodies were going to and fro. The collapse was massive and the casualty figure was high.”
The collapsed building was said to have served as a guest house for church members, particularly foreigners attending the church.
Our correspondent observed that only two floors were visible at the scene of the incident as the other three had sunk into the ground.
Farinloye, who confirmed that the building was under construction, said the building collapse might have been caused by the addition of three more storeys to the structure.
He said, “The building was under construction; it was initially a two-storey building but they were adding three floors to it and I think that was what led to the collapse. I think it was the construction that caused the problem.”
Journalists were barred from covering the incident by church members, who were trying to play down the incident. They also hampered rescue efforts as they attacked officials of the emergency services who were there to rescue victims.
Farinloye, who also confirmed this, said, “The church members have been very aggressive and hostile to us; they attacked us and we had to withdraw our services. I was attacked, the officials of the Lagos State Building Control Agency and the General Manager of LASEMA were also attacked. We were not hurt and our equipment was not damaged. This was, however, because we quickly left when they attacked us. We are still waiting to settle before we resume our job.”
However, about an hour after, Oke-Osanyintola, who also confirmed the hostilities, said the emergency officials had been able to calm the aggressors down and that normal rescue services had resumed.
Consequently, the incident attracted many onlookers to the scene and there was heavy vehicular traffic in and around Ikotun area, where the church is located.
In the evening, the pandemonium in the area was compounded by security officials who besieged the entrance of the church, shooting into the air to disperse the crowd.
The security officers prevented onlookers from gaining entrance into the church, but their presence and shootings led to a stampede.
In the confusion, many of the onlookers running helter-skelter, rushed into moving vehicles, while trying to avoid being hit by stray bullets.
Beside security operatives, young men suspected to be members of the church, also barricaded the entrance of the church. They also prevented motorists from gaining access to the premises.
However, ambulances, police vehicles and forklifts were allowed to gain entrance.
No fewer than 20 ambulances had entered the site, coming out with injured victims as of 7pm.
At 7.30pm, a trailer with registration number MUS 891XK, hauling a bulldozer and belonging to the Lagos State Works Corporation, entered the premises, ostensibly to help in the rescue exercise.
According to an eye witness account, the impact of the collapsed building shook his house.
A resident of Olusesi Street adjacent to the church, who identified himself as Ade, told one of our correspondents that he never suspected it was a collapsed building.
“It was around 1pm. I was in my sitting room and my house just vibrated. I didn’t know what happened. I was scared, but few minutes later, I just heard that a building had collapsed. I was shocked,” he said.
A recharge card seller, who claimed she saw when the building collapsed, said she counted nothing less than 20 dead people.
“It was so gory. Most of them were construction workers. I saw so many bodies being evacuated. I am sure not less than 20 people have died so far,” she claimed.
Another resident said he wasn’t surprised that such a building collapsed especially as high rise buildings keep springing up in the area intermittently.
The resident, who didn’t want his name in print said, “I know the building so well. I wasn’t surprised it collapsed as it was already bent. Landlords became greedy and started building more storeys on top of the already completed ones.”
Meanwhile, suspected members of the church who spoke to one of our correspondents claimed nothing major happened. It was obvious they wanted to protect their church.
One of them said, “It was just a small thing. I attend this church. Nobody died. You know Ikotun has a huge population, that is why you see many people here.”
One of our correspondents learnt that the church was planning to hold a special programme on Saturday (today) and that many members, including foreigners were meant to attend the event. It was also observed that many visiting members of the church, who arrived later in the evening, met the confusion.
Saturday PUNCHspoke to one of them who was reluctant to talk.
“I don’t know what to do. I am confused. I am coming from Gabon. Nobody has really told me what is happening,” he said.
In a related development, young men suspected to be members of the church, mobbed and assaulted a photojournalist working forNTA, smashing his camera. They also molested other reporters and individuals who tried to take pictures of the scene.
One of our correspondents, who was among the journalists who later gained access to the scene of the incident at about 9pm, confirmed that only two of the building floors were visible as the remaining had been buried.
Rescue operations were still ongoing as of the time of filing this report and an official of the church whose name was not made available to our correspondent, said a statement would be issued by the leadership of the church on Saturday (today).
At about 9.40pm when our correspondents visited Igando General Hospital, there were six survivors of the incident on beds in a ward while nine others were under a canopy outside, presumably due to inadequate bed space. A nurse was observed attending to the victims outside with some of their relatives present.
However, some members of the church who were at the hospital, told the nurse and the victims not to entertain any questions from our correspondents.
The nurse said she was not authorised to speak on the issue but asked our correspondents to return on Monday, next week when her superiors would be around for information.
The hospital’s Medical Director, Deputy Medical Director and Administrative officer were not at the facility at that time and efforts to reach them on their mobile phones were also not successful as their numbers were switched off.
Meanwhile, This is an official communication from The Synagogue, Church Of All Nations concerning a news story currently being reported by the media regarding an incident that happened today:
“A building, not the church auditorium as was reported. The few people that were there are being rescued. What you wish to others, God wishes to you. Nothing makes us love a person as much as praying for him. The more I love you, the more I will pray for you.”
Source: www.punchng.com/news/10-year-old-foreigners-others-die-in-synagogue-building-collapse/

Confusion reigned in Minna Niger State on Saturday as several dignitaries, including the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator Pius Anyim, governors and ministers escaped death as a part of the podium, hosting the top government officials, collapsed.
The podium, hurriedly constructed at the Trade Fair ground for the North Central rally of the controversial group, Transformation Ambassadors of Nigeria, rooting for President Goodluck Jonathan re-election in 2015, gave way while the ceremony was underway.
The podium caved in at about 11.53am, with a few minutes left for goodwill messages.
The top government functionaries at the event however escaped unhurt as they were all protected by their orderlies and escorted to the main podium to continue the event.
Our correspondent gathered that the event managers were still under the podium, at the time of the incident, fixing some of the scaffolds having arrived in Minna late on Friday to mount the stage.
Some of the victims, who sustained injuries, were rushed to the IBB Specialist Hospital, General Hospital, Minna, Bay Clinic and Top Medical centre.
Among the injured included the wife of the Niger State Governor, Hajia Jumai Aliyu, and Director General, Public Affairs, Mallam Tanko Dada, who had a deep cut in his head.
Our correspondent learnt that also injured were Mallam Suleiman, Special Assistant to Governor Aliyu, who tried to rescue the Governor while an operative of the State Security Service allegedly broke his leg.
Several telephone sets were scattered on the floor after those who had close shave with death, fled the scene.As of the time of filing this report, the number of casualties was not known as security men barred people and journalists from getting to some of the hospitals and the scene.
One of the victims, Ismail Gambo, said, “I thought it was a bomb blast; so I had to jump as much as I could but I realised I was trapped in the stand as so many people were scrambling for safety.”
However, Niger State Governor, Dr Babangida Aliyu, asked TAN not to be discouraged by the incident.“This thing that happened should not deter you from doing what you came to do,” Aliyu said.
Another victim, a journalist attached to TAN, said, “I was interviewing one of the top officials when the scaffold started giving way. I quickly headed for the stairs, but before I got there, the stand collapsed. I only sustained this minor injury.
Sources: www.punchng.com/news/anyim-govs-escape-death-as-pro-jonathan-group-stage-collapses/