Fire has gutted the Okeb Filling Station, located along the Enugu–Onitsha Expressway by the Amawbia Flyover, near Awka, Anambra State.
The cause of the fire could not be immediately ascertained, but it was gathered that the incident occurred late on Friday.
The fire destroyed some parts of the station’s administrative block and some machines.
No fewer than three vehicles and other items were also destroyed by the fire.
Although firefighters arrived at the scene promptly and battled to control and extinguish the fire after several hours, they also prevented it from escalating further, with no fatalities reported.
When our correspondent visited the scene, he observed that residents and shop owners around the petrol station were trying to salvage their belongings to avoid any damage from the fire.
The incident caused a gridlock on the busy road, while a rescue team of some security personnel had a tough time controlling traffic.
An eyewitness, who identified himself as Chidi, said, “The fire suddenly started around 6.35pm from a corner of the station, before escalating into other areas. It burnt for several hours before the intervention of the firefighters.
“The incident created panic around the vicinity, especially for residents and shop owners nearby as everybody was on red alert and also assisting the firefighters to ensure the situation was under control.”
The Media and Publicity Unit of the Anambra State Fire Service, led by the state fire chief, Chukwudi Chiketa, confirmed the development in a statement.
Chiketa said two crews of firefighters and two firefighting trucks were deployed to the scene after a distress call was received by the fire service.
“The Anambra State Fire Service on Friday, September 5, 2025 successfully extinguished a fire outbreak at Okeb Filling Station, Amawbia, located along the Enugu–Onitsha Expressway by the Amawbia Flyover.
“Upon receiving a distress call, the Fire Service immediately deployed two firefighting trucks and other essential equipment to the scene.
“The gallant firefighters arrived swiftly and, after several coordinated efforts, contained the blaze and prevented it from spreading to nearby structures,” the state fire service added.
Earlier on Friday, fire gutted A1 Petroleum Filling Station on Isawo Road, off Agric Bus Stop, Ikorodu, Lagos State.
The fire was reportedly triggered by a diesel-laden truck parked within the premises.
Eyewitnesses said the blaze sent customers and residents scampering for safety amid fears of a possible explosion.
Videos shared on social media captured officials of the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, alongside other emergency responders, battling to contain the inferno.
A businesswoman, Victoria Mba, whose 22-year-old son, Moses Mba, was allegedly shot by police officers at the former residence of the Cross River State Governor, tells GRACE EDEMA about her struggle for justice, the attempt to label her son as mentally ill, and her demand for an autopsy
Where are you from, and how are you related to the young man who was said to have been shot by the police?
I am from Abia State, precisely Isuikwuato Local Government Area. I am in my 40s. The boy we are talking about is Mba Moses Onyekachi, my first son. My son should have turned 23 by November this year. Sadly, he died at the age of 22.
What circumstance led to your son’s death?
The incident happened in Cross River State on the 1st of August. We had travelled to my village for a burial, and while returning on Friday (August 1) that morning, we received a call around 7 am to rush to the Navy Clinic, Calabar, where a relative was admitted.
My husband hurried there first while I stayed back to put things in order. When he got there, he met security men and asked questions. Then he looked and discovered it was our son. He was asked to come inside. My husband kept asking, ‘What happened?’
They said Moses went to preach the gospel at the former governor’s residence. That location is known as the State House in Calabar.
When Moses arrived, about five policemen denied him entry, asking if he had an appointment. He explained that God gave him a vision and directed him to deliver His words. He left, returned a second time, still requesting to see the governor, but his request was not granted.
According to what we gathered, he was treated as a threat. He was beaten and shot. He was left lying in a pool of blood from about 11 am until late afternoon.
Around 5 or 6 pm, Red Cross officials nearby heard gunshots and rushed to investigate. They found Moses in a critical condition and moved him to the Navy Hospital. Shockingly, the authorities seemed more concerned about covering up than saving his life.
Policemen were stationed around him as though he were a criminal. We kept asking why there was secrecy and why the governor himself appeared indifferent in the matter. We were told he wanted to know how Moses dared to approach his residence.
The hospital delayed the surgery that was to be carried out on him, saying he was unstable. They demanded over N400,000 for an operation. It was eventually scheduled for Sunday, August 3rd, but postponed to Monday, August 4.
The surgery lasted six hours, and though unconscious, he survived. But by Tuesday, complications arose. He fell into a coma and was placed on oxygen. From then until Friday, he remained unconscious.
Doctors said he needed blood urgently — five pints of a rare type, costing N100,000 each. We struggled to provide it. Each transfusion caused him terrible pain. Unknown to us, he had severe internal injuries from the brutal assault.
How did he die?
On Saturday night, nurses requested forms and photocopies before administering drugs. Later, my husband and I went home briefly, leaving my elder sister with him. Suddenly, she called, crying that Moses was gone. He had screamed in pain, saying he was tired, before giving up. We rushed back, only to confirm he had died.
Was any government official there?
We called Emmanuel Dickson, who identified himself as a chief of staff or special adviser to the governor. When we informed him, we discovered some security officers disguised as patients, and they all started leaving when it was confirmed that he had died.
Red Cross officials came around 11 pm that night. Finally, on Sunday, August 10, at 4 pm, we deposited Moses’ body in the morgue, paying N54,000. Dickson promised to assist, but only sent part of the money. So, we completed it ourselves.
What happened thereafter?
The following day, Monday, August 11, officials, including Dickson and some policemen, went to the Commissioner of Police, then to the morgue, without our consent, to view my son’s body.
The morgue staff called us to say security personnel insisted on seeing him, though it was against procedure. Since we were not the ones, we were not going to give them the go-ahead to see the body. We refused.
This was because they had already started claiming that my son was mentally unstable. So, I knew something was wrong. We told them no. After that, Emmanuel Dickson called my husband and I on the phone and said we should start coming to State CID Calabar, and that the Commissioner of Police wanted to see us.
I said, ‘No, no, no. You killed my son; you did not sympathise with me. You are now ordering me to come and see the Commissioner of Police?’ We told them were not coming, and suggested that if they wanted to see us, they should come and meet us in our lawyer’s chamber.
Before then, my husband and I had already begun receiving threats through calls from many of them. So, we understood the implications of what they wanted to do.
Did you inform the police about the development?
We wrote a petition to Zone 6 in Calabar. Then, the AIG in Calabar sent a signal that those men who were on duty the day my son was shot should come to Zone 6 to write their statement. The men, who were at the hospital where my son was admitted, were also asked to come to Zone 6 to write their statements. It’s now close to three weeks, and nobody has given us any feedback.
Each time we went there, they kept sending the same signal over and over. We couldn’t even understand what was happening. It was only inside the police station that someone explained to us that nothing was being done about the matter.
They advised us to run to social media or reach out to anybody who could help, saying that was the only way the matter could be handled. As a broken mother, that was when I turned to social media in search of a solution. I was advised not to bury my son immediately.
But this case is a murder case. But I said I wanted to bury my son. For all my sweat and struggles to get to this level, I deserve to bury my son in peace — and to have peace myself. Yet they are depriving me of that.
I even received a memo, which indicated that the state government is satisfied with us, and I appreciate that. But in reality, the government has no regard for us. Nobody has cared enough to look our way. Instead, their people are calling and threatening me.
But was your son having any mental issue?
They said my son was mad. I knew they were wrong. This was the boy who wrote JAMB exam for the first time and scored 196, and they’re saying he had a mental problem.
I will send you those proofs. Yes, this boy was supposed to gain admission in Nsukka. He already processed his aptitude test form. I paid for the post-UTME form. We will send you that form. His JAMB score was 196.
What did he want to study?
I think Business Administration or one of those courses.
Why was he just sitting UTMB at 22?
He was sitting UTMB at 22 because we had a financial crisis some years ago. I was sick. I had a serious injury on my left leg. I needed surgery and treatment in India. There were many complications around me.
My boy was my helper. He made sure I took my medicine and did everything. During that period, we couldn’t put him in any school. I was sick for about three to four years.
How many children do you have?
I have four children. He was the first child. The next one is 14 years old.
Has he always been preaching and doing evangelism?
Right from when he was 10 years old, he was that kind of child who always asked about God. All his life, he wanted to serve God. He even wanted to go to Bible school. We kept encouraging him to just finish his education first.
He was always told that after completing his education, he could go to Bible school. With the knowledge from education, any invitation he received from churches or schools would help him build up his ministry.
He had always carried a strong passion for evangelism. He was a kind of person who, even while eating the simplest meal, would always play Christian music. That was his motivation, his joy.
He never drank alcohol. He believed firmly that God healed him.
The only way to know he was ill is if you touched his body and felt his temperature. If you gave him earplugs at the same time, he would listen to gospel music with them. That was the kind of person he was. He didn’t smoke.
Is it true that one apostle asked him to go and preach at the governor’s former residence?
The apostle was more of a spiritual mentor or somebody he looked up to. The apostle is not my pastor. His church is not my church. It was a church he saw and felt like attending their fellowship once in a while after church service or when there was no service.
The apostle was the one constantly urging my son to go into Bible school. He kept telling him to leave university for Bible school since he had a calling from God. But we told the apostle, ‘This is not what we want as parents.’
Did that apostle visit your son while he was in the hospital?
Yes, he did, and the pastor was in the hospital with my son until he died. He was helping us in the hospital until the end.
Was your son accompanied to the governor’s gate by any person?
No, my son went there alone.
How would you describe your son?
I would describe my son as a loving, peaceful boy. He’s a peacemaker. He would even wish I put an end to this interview I’m doing as a mother. That was the kind of person. He never liked problems.
He was a person who could give everything he had and stay hungry the whole day. He was a simple boy who loved giving to a fault. He gave without considering the consequences, without even knowing if we had anything in the house to eat.
My neighbours are here; he would collect their clothes and use the washing machine to wash them, and return them to the owners. He was the kind of person who would pump water for the whole compound. Currently, everybody is feeling his absence.
What do you want from the government?
I don’t need their dollar bills. We are poor. I just want to know the people involved in his death and how this boy can be buried. Am I demanding much? I’m not demanding anything.
I’m not even asking for compensation of millions. But I think I have a right to see the people. Let them give me their reasons by telling me what he did. I only want them to say, ‘I am sorry. How can he be buried?’
Why didn’t the police allow you to bury the boy?
The AIG said we had written a petition and that it was a murder case. So, the boy won’t be buried until an autopsy is done. So, I realised we had to reach the stage of an autopsy. I said, ‘Okay, if you withdraw the autopsy, the truth will never come out.’
It will stop the process, and they can take away the corpse of the boy, especially if they only see it as an opportunity to make money, because they have no human feelings. Nobody from Cross River or anywhere called me or any member of the family.
Also, the state Commissioner for Information never called me. Nobody picked up the phone to call. Nobody came to my house to say, ‘We heard what happened.’ Not a single word. So, are they saying I don’t have the right to ask what killed my son, who killed my son?
How are you and the siblings coping?
He was shot on August 1st and died on August 9th, around 11 am. It was horrible. I couldn’t sleep at night. Each time, I feel like he’s even around us. I can’t even stay in my kitchen. I take sleeping pills to sleep at night. My pain is just rising like hell. I’ve been trying to get help for my kids.
A tragic incident unfolded on Wednesday afternoon under the Mabushi Bridge in Abuja, where a family of three a man, his wife, and their son lost their lives following a violent encounter with touts, popularly known as ‘Agberos’.
According to eyewitness accounts, the family was driving in a Toyota Highlander after purchasing a brand new refrigerator when they were chased from the Berger axis by three touts. The touts reportedly forced their way into the vehicle and began dragging the steering wheel with the driver.
“In the process of struggling for control, the car rammed into the pillar under the bridge before plunging into the drainage,” one eyewitness told our correspondent, who visited the scene of the incident. The impact killed all three occupants of the vehicle instantly.
A green-colour Abuja taxi parked nearby was also hit and severely damaged.
The chaos that followed sparked outrage among passersby, who lynched one of the touts.
However, police operatives from the Mabushi Division arrived to rescue two of the touts as one of the suspects was killed by the mob, while the remaining two sustained critical injuries and were rushed to the National Hospital.
The bodies of the deceased family of three have since been deposited at the mortuary.
There were conflicting reports as to whether a child was among the casualties, but multiple witnesses confirmed the presence of a boy in the car.
Expressing his anger, one resident identified as Moses said, “Abuja citizens are tired of ‘Agberos’ and they should be flushed from the society. Now, a family of three is gone. Are you saying I should have a car and still pay for a commercial vehicle to transport my things?”
As of the time of filing this report, there was no official statement from the Police regarding the incident, which occurred a few minutes to 1:00 pm on Wednesday.
The Edo State Command of the Federal Road Safety Corps, FRSC, has disclosed that two persons lost their lives in a ghastly motor accident where the State Governor, Monday Okpebholo rescued victims.
The governor who arrived at the scene of the accident and met several victims in critical condition, ordered two of his security Hilux vehicles to be deployed for emergency transport services.
DAILY POST reports that the accident happened on Saturday, August 30, 2025 on the Benin-Auchi road after the Egba community in the Uhuwonde local government of the Edo State.
It was gathered that the accident happened when an SUV heading towards Auchi dangerously overtook another vehicle and rammed into an oncoming commercial minibus.
Giving an update of the accident to newsmen on Monday in Benin City, the Edo State Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety, FRSC, Cyril Mathew said two persons lost their lives while five others sustained various degrees of injuries.
Mathew who attributed the accident to wrongful overtaking added that four adult males and a female sustained injuries.
He said the injured are receiving treatment at the hospital while the deceased were taken to the mortuary.
A rights group, Edo State Civil Society Coalition on Human Rights, has condemned the State Ministry of Education for allegedly compelling teachers in the public schools to cut grasses and engage in menial labour.
DAILY POST reports condemned the development in a statement made available to newsmen on Monday, September 1, 2025 in Benin City.
The statement was signed by Marxist Kola Edokpayi and Comrade Aghatise Raphael, Coordinator General and Secretary General of the group, respectively.
The group noted that the teachers were not employed as gardeners, cleaners and janitors.
Stressing that teachers must never be forced into degrading labour, the group threatened to embark on protests and take legal action if the state government fails to stop the development.
The group insisted that the action of the government is not only an insult to the teaching profession, but also a blatant violation of human rights and labour ethics.
The group suggested that the government should employ support staff, gardeners, cleaners and janitors that must be paid adequately to handle school maintenance.
“The Edo State Civil Society Coalition For Human Rights is outraged by the disgraceful and demeaning practice of compelling teachers in Edo public schools to cut grass and perform menial labour at the directive of the Ministry of Education.
“This is not only an insult to the teaching profession but also a blatant violation of human rights and labour ethics.
“Teachers are the backbone of society and nation-builders entrusted with shaping the minds of our children. Reducing them to gardeners and cleaners is a shameful act of abuse and a slap in the face of every hardworking educator in Edo State.
“We state clearly that teachers are not slaves, and schools are not forced labour camps. This backward practice belongs to the dark past and must never be tolerated in a state that claims to value education.
“Any nation that treats its teachers with contempt is preparing its own burial ground. Forcing teachers into menial labour is not education reform, it is educational slavery.
“It is worth stressing that this practice violates Section 34 (1)(c) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended), which guarantees that “no person shall be required to perform forced or compulsory labour.
“By compelling teachers to engage in work outside their professional mandate under duress, the Edo State Ministry of Education stands in direct breach of this constitutional safeguard.
“Adding weight to our demands, we extract these quotes from the State Governor, Monday Okpebholo, where, he said, “we will place teachers on top priority, and we’ll reverse the shortage of teachers through continuous recruitment of qualified teachers.
“To work is to pray, but we insisted that the sacred work of a teacher is to teach, not to clear bushes. Forcing them otherwise is against the law and will not be tolerated.
“An injury to one teacher is an injury to all. Edo State must respect its teachers or face the resistance of its people,” the statement said.
The group also urged the state government to be accountable by ensuring that funds allocated for school maintenance are used transparently and not shifted as a burden onto teachers.
Reacting, the State Commissioner for Education, Dr Paddy Iyamu, said information at the ministry’s disposal suggested that the menial jobs was a voluntary Corporate Social Responsibility, CSR, from some teachers.
The commissioner’s reaction was contained in a statement titled, ‘To Stakeholders in the Education Ecosystem: RE: Edo Civil Society raises concern over teachers in some schools being asked to do menial maintenance jobs’.
Iyamu disclosed that a full scale investigation into the issue has been ordered, assuring that the government would get to the root of the matter and correct any abnormality in whatever form.
“The attention of the Edo State Ministry of Education has been drawn to a publication by a civil society group alleging that teachers are being told to cut grass and engage in menial jobs to maintain their respective schools on the directive of the Ministry.
“While stating that the Edo State Government remains resolute in upholding the rights and privileges of all, we also encourage our teachers to remain strong and focused on academic excellence as the future of our country depends on them.
“Teachers’ priority is transfer of learning, so we want to discourage in very strong terms teachers forcibly engaging in or being used to engage in tasks that do not directly correlate with strengthening knowledge gap and learning outcomes.
“We also want to implore the public to be conscious of those who may be trying to smear the name of the ministry due to the current reforms aimed at putting a stop to unwholesome benefits to a few to protect the common man and the children from humble beginning.
“The Senator Monday Okpebholo administration is fully committed to ensuring that every Edo child gets the best in education and every Edo teacher becomes proud of being an Edo Teacher as seen in the increment of their minimum wage, regularisation of casual teachers to be full staff after three years, building of teachers quarters in some schools, training and retraining of teachers and lots more,” the commissioner added.
The Enugu Electricity Distribution Company has announced a two-day planned power outage in Anambra and Enugu states on Sunday and Monday.
This was disclosed in a press statement issued by the Group Head, Corporate Communications at EEDC, Emeka Ezeh, on Saturday.
According to it, the outage is to allow the Transmission Company of Nigeria maintenance crew to replace a faulty overhead porcelain insulators at the 330kV switchyard at the Awada transmission plant, Anambra State.
In the press statement titled, ‘Notice of planned outage in Anambra State and parts of Enugu State’, the company informed its customers in Anambra State, as well as those in Oji River and surrounding communities in Enugu State, about the planned outage.
Ezeh added that the ooutage is scheduled to take place from Sunday, August 31, 2025, to Monday, September 1, 2025, between the hours of 9:00am and 6:00pm daily.
The statement read in part, “The outage is necessary to allow the Transmission Company of Nigeria maintenance crew to replace faulty overhead porcelain insulators at the 330kV switchyard in Awada.
“As a result of this maintenance, electricity supply will be interrupted in the affected areas during the specified times.
“We regret the inconvenience this may cause and kindly ask for our customers’ understanding,” “The exercise is aimed at improving and enhancing the quality of service.”
questioner: I did a business about 2 years ago outside of my 9 -5 and got reimbursed a pretty sum.
I had a plan that I started working on late last year, hoping it will materialize by mid this year but it fell through. This week I just decided I wasn't going that line again.
I need to chart a new course by max early 2026
What's been running through my head now is 1. Japa - Leave thru the Acad route and when done, see what's next 2. Land - Buy in a good location and possibly 2 (or multiple) plots 3. House - Buy a small piece in a modest location and build 2 units of small apartment, one for rent, one for personal usage
Just decided to put this out there anonymously - If you were in my shoes which option will you choose, which will you definitely avoid and importantly why ?
Business › Re: Fire Razes Okeb Filling Station In Anambra, Vehicles Destroyed by NaijaCover(op): 9:04am On Sep 06, 2025
