₦airaland Forum

Dare Art Alade's car catches fire on 3rd mainland bridge, burns to the ground...

Yesterday, around 4pm, our car caught fire on the 3rd Mainland Bridge and burnt to the ground. It was a shocking and painful experience, but we’re incredibly grateful that the driver made it out safely. No lives were lost, and that’s what truly matters.

We give thanks in all things. THANK YOU JESUS!!! Thank you to everyone that stopped to help.

- Dare Art Alade

Larryfest:
In a tinted vehicle i wonder how the content creator knew exactly when the pastor would be driving by
Probably they are both creating the content together because that doesn't look like a real gun... Everything is content this days

Content creator who films exotic cars in Lagos captures the moment pastor Adefarasin allegedly flashed him a gvn for filming his car.

Content creator who films exotic cars in Lagos captures the moment pastor Adefarasin allegedly flashed him a gvn for filming his car. pic.twitter.com/DFYlTY4i1N

— CHUKS 🍥 (@ChuksEricE) June 6, 2025

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ connection to a famous gangster is part of his family lore

As the federal criminal trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs continues, many parts of his past are being revisited.

That includes his father’s friendship with the late gangster, Frank Lucas.

Melvin Combs was a drug dealer who was fatally shot in 1972, when his son Sean Combs was three years old.

“That’s not something I glorify, but he was in Harlem and he was doing his thing, selling narcotics,” Combs told journalist Toure in an interview 13 years ago. “And we all know what that gets you. That’s only going to have you end up in jail or dead. It is the reason why I didn’t follow in those footsteps.”

In that interview, Combs was clear that his father did not work for either Lucas or another famed Harlem gangster, Nicky Barnes, but rather was “as big as them” in the hustling game.

The younger Combs didn’t shy away from his father’s history.

“I’m definitely like him,” Combs said. “But I’m just doing it in a legal way.”

Combs has pleaded not guilty to charges that include racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution in an ongoing federal criminal trial in Manhattan.

His mother, Janice Combs, had initially told her son his father had died in a car crash. He told Toure he found out what his father had been involved with on his own.

“This was before the internet and I had looked up my father’s name and I saw an article about my mother wearing a full length chinchilla [a fur coat] to a funeral and taking me and I was in a mink,” Combs recalled. “And that was like the story of just the glamour and like the decadence of our family and just like he was the kingpin, you know, of Harlem and how he had got assassinated.”

He said he understood why his mother hadn’t initially been honest with him about his dad. Due to where they were living when he was growing up, Combs said he believes he would have become “one of the biggest drug dealers out there because…the type of person I would have wanted to follow in my father’s footsteps.”

Melvin Combs had a connection to Frank Lucas, a famous drug lord in Harlem during his heyday in the 1960s and 1970s.

Lucas was famously portrayed by Denzel Washington in the 2007 film “American Gangster.”

He was sentenced to 70 years in prison after being convicted of federal drug charges in New York and state charges in New Jersey, but only served seven before turning informant and going into the Witness Protection Program, according to the New York Times.

Lucas emerged in later years to share his story and during an interview with Vlad TV said he and Melvin Combs were “good friends.”

“We did a lot of business together,” Lucas said. “Of course it was not legal business, but we did a lot of business together.”

Lucas expressed sadness regarding the elder Combs’ murder and said he met Sean Combs when he was a little boy.

“His daddy used to bring him over my house,” Lucas said. “He used to come see me on various business and he would bring him over my house.”

Lucas added that about a year prior to the Vlad TV interview, he had connected with Combs, who was seeking information about his late father.

“I told him something about his father, but I didn’t give him the whole story because he didn’t press me,” Lucas said. “He just asked me casually and I told him casually. But if he had pressed me, I would have told him the whole story.”

Combs told Toure that the world didn’t know the whole story about him.

“People don’t really know me,” the Bad Boy Record founder said at the time. “And that’s by design.”

“Who is this person, the Sean Combs that we don’t know,” Toure pressed.

“We have yet to find out,” Combs responded. “You have to come along for the ride.”.

Ebonyi airport’s leaking terminal building re-roofing to gulp N2bn after N20bn runway rehabilitation

The Wilberforce Chuba Okadigbo airport, located in Ezza North and Ezza South local government areas of Ebonyi State, which was constructed during the administration of former Governor David Umahi, an engineer, remains a subject of controversy, gulping billions of naira without serving the purpose for which it was built.

The facility was inaugurated a few weeks to the end of the Umahi administration. But since it was constructed, the airport has continued to have one issue or the other arising from the construction pattern, preventing smooth flight operations at the airport.

Umahi’s successor, Francis Nwifuru, had told the people of the state after taking the mantle of leadership that the runway was constructed with concrete, which made it impossible for flights to land at the runway and immediately commenced its rehabilitation.

The rehabilitation of the runway cost over N20 billion. It was inaugurated by wife of the President, Sen. Oluremi Tinubu.

After the inauguration of the runway, full flight operations couldn’t commence at the airport. Another issue has been discovered at the airport by the governor, who said the terminal building at the airport was leaking and must be re-roofed for flight operations to go on in the airport without hitches.

He disclosed this to journalists at Abakaliki, the state capital, while answering questions on the airport after the second anniversary celebrations. He said the re-roofing of the leaking terminal building would cost about N2 billion and that the bill has been brought to him by the contractor that will handle the project.

Nwifuru said: “People are just taking the Ebonyi airport issue to the stage that I don’t know. We don’t really have issues in Ebonyi airport. The other day, I saw a post on Facebook where water took over some sections of the airport and I went to the airport myself and saw what happened.

“Originally, some places were designed to be flat roof and it was roofed with concrete. Some places were also designed to be roofed with corrugated aluminum, while very much oven-baked aluminum was used to roof those places and those places that were used with aluminum are not leaking.

“Now, we found out that where we have water collectors and the drainage inside the roof and we started having some leakages there for which you can’t blame anybody. Before, we were blaming some contractors but now we have realized that its not the contractors’ fault.

“So, what we are doing now is to re-roof everywhere. They have brought their bill and it is about N2bn to re-roof it but it’s not an issue. We didn’t give anybody job and the person didn’t do it. If we had given the person job and the person didn’t do it, we would have been saying that the person did a shoddy job. But we hope this is a flat roof and we did a decking. That the decking is leaking is not anybody’s fault.”

Nwifuru took time to explain why commercial operations were yet to begin in the airport. He explained: “Flight operation is ongoing in the airport, depending on the side you want to talk about. If you talk about commercial operations in the airport, it is not of our own making.

“For us, it is politics and you must struggle as a leader to navigate all the troubles and sort it out. Once aircraft is landing in the airport, what it shows is that the airport is ready for operation.

“In commercial operation of the airport, there is what they called design plan of the airport, which we have not done and they are giving us about three to four months to do it. But they have given us what they called temporal approval for landing and it must be a booked flight landing.

“So, for the commercial operation to take off completely, we must do our own part as a state. Now, they are already investigating our staff and that is the last stage of it, to find out if we have qualified and professional staff that can handle so many departments, and once they certify that, then commercial operation will take off.”

The governor had told the people of the state that a lot of projects were still ongoing at the airport. He made the revelation in Izhamgbo, Ohaukwu LGAof the state when he flagged off construction of the industrial city in the area with many stakeholders of the state in attendance.

“In that airport, we have a lot of projects ongoing but you know an elder doesn’t say everything he sees, but we have a lot of projects ongoing in that airport. Our tower is a temporal tower we brought from NIMET and they are threatening to take their tower and our own is ongoing.

“Our airport lighting is also ongoing and ours is one of the most sophisticated and one of the most modern monitors. So, you can be in London and look at the airport and when you are landing, you can land at a zero degree.

“So, it is going to be one of the best if we are able to complete it but I was promised by the contractor few days ago that the light at the runway will be on before the end of next week.

“Now, we have so many other issues at the airport. The whole of the terminal building, we need to pull it down because it is leaking all round and we have sunk a lot of money there and it is Alo Aluminum. It’s high time we call names.

“It is the problem of Alo Aluminum because at a point of giving contract for the roofing of that building, Engineer Dave Umahi said I will not give this thing to any contractor. I will give it to the manufacturer so that if there is any problem, we will hold him responsible and he paid Alo Aluminum handsomely for that job.

“But we will get it done, don’t worry. Nobody can bring my morale down. So, that is what is going on there. They said we should do what is called plang which we are almost through. Some of our people are also the trouble because about last five months, the commissioner for aviation applied for the money and we approved it in Exco and I released the money and I was never told or discussed with that this project has not been completed because it’s a paper work, it’s not a physical thing that I can say, it is done or not done and once you are done, you will present it to the NCAA or FAAN.

“So, it is when this crisis came that I found out that this project has not been completed. So, there is no formula, there is no details for them to know what is happening in that airport, what is functioning and what is not functioning.

“So, before they bring commercial aircraft there, everything has to be on ground and to be working and that’s another issue but that one is from our people and you don’t need to blame anybody. It’s another issue but by the grace of God, we must combat all the issues that are there to challenge us and it is also to educate us. Sometimes, when you face difficulties, you learn a lot. I am happy that, by the special grace of God, we will get it right. Before the end of next month, we will get it right,” he said.

The state commissioner for aviation and transport technology, Mrs. Ngozi Obichukwu, said the airport remains one of the best in the country despite the issues therein. She dismissed the claims of flood in the airport, describing those peddling the rumour that the airport was facing flood as peddlers of falsehood.

She said: “There is nothing like flooding in this airport. This is a clean project that we are already putting in use. Aircraft have been landing and taking off in this airport, we just received two flights this morning.

“You saw one that was parked there. Another one is coming before 5pm today. Like I’ve been saying, we have rules and regulations from the regulatory bodies of aviation.

“The airport is not an ordinary keke park, or bus park, or ordinary motorcycle park. It is something that is scientific. And it is something that is technical.

“The airport is where we want to ensure the safety of lives. Let there be safety. And for you to get it right, you must do according to these laid down regulations. Right now, we are just ending with chartered flight regulation.

“We are entering another regulation of passenger lifting. And that is why if you go to some of our platforms, you see where I posted our flight operation in June.

“Those of our passengers that are air-friendly, the world’s air travellers, can board United Nigeria Airlines to Ebonyi from Abuja. They can board Abuja, or rather Ebonyi to Abuja. And then they can board Lagos to Ebonyi, and Ebonyi to Lagos.

“Again, further information about where you board, how you are going to pay, how you are going to land and all that will be posted very soon. So, we are good to go. We are taking it one at a time.

“We cannot run faster than our shadows and we cannot do something that will close the airport. Any slightest mistake will close this airport from the federal regulators. That is why the governor, a determined man, a successful man, a seasoned administrator, is taking his time to make sure that whatever they require, whatever they ask him, he does it.

“So, we are not in a hurry. We don’t want to make mistakes. The edifice is serving its purpose already. Very soon, the passengers will outnumber even the people that are not aware that Ebonyi is existing, will be aware that Ebonyi Airport is on. But let us take it one at a time.

“Those who are saying that the Chuba Okadigbo Airport is not working are liars.They are born liars. Some of them have never even crossed this gate. Some have never even entered the door of a flight. And some will be telling you there is nothing. How will you know that the airport is working when you have not even been here?

“And so my governor is not moved by negative criticism. He is determined to succeed. And he is succeeding and nobody will stop him from getting to the goal. We are already there.”

But a chieftain of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in the state, Moses Idika, described the airport as a fraud. He argued that the airport was never planned neither was consultation made before its construction.

“Like I have stated in other fora, the Chuba Okadigbo Airport is a fraud orchestrated to swindle Ebonyi State. The airport was never planned, proper consultations were never made and that is why the airport cannot work.

“I spoke with a very senior official of one of the regulatory agencies of the federal government and the person said that Umahi finished building his airport before looking for certifications and accreditation.

“So, from the runway, the terminal building to the access roads, all are substandard. You can see that the terminal building may have to be brought down completely and rebuilt, same for the tower and other facilities.

“Imagine that Gov. Nwifuru spent over N20 billion to repair an unused airport runway, yet no plane is landing there, not even chattered flights. So, I urge Ebonyi people to call for an immediate probe of the scam called Chuba Okadigbo Airport,” Idika said.

About N42 billion was expended on the project by the Umahi administration that initiated it. Residents of its host communities alleged that their properties were destroyed without compensation as they were forcefully evicted from their homes before the airport was constructed. Bulldozers were used to demolish buildings.

Stakeholders of the communities, including traditional rulers and government officials, supported the siting of the airport in the communities, while common residents rejected it and vowed that they would never leave the communities as, according to them, the location was their ancestral homes.

The residents refused to leave the communities and held a series of protests to insist on their decision not to vacate the land. The state government had to employ force against them and their properties were destroyed with armed security men stationed in different parts of the communities to ensure that the residents did not obstruct any activity on the land for the construction of the airport.

The then government succeeded in taking over the land and constructed the airport, which generated criticism from many members of the public. Critics of the multibillion-naira airport argued that it was not needed in a state where poverty was its biggest challenge, coupled with high internal and external debts and its closeness to Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu. They said that the Ebonyi airport was less than 45 minutes’ drive to the Enugu airport.

The critics said, according to data from from National Bureau of Statistics, Ebonyi has the highest poverty rate in Southern Nigeria, with a staggering 80% of its esimated four million population classified as living in poverty.

They further argued that the state was one most indebted states in the country and owing external debt of $92,655,060.01, or N157 billion, while its cumulative internal debt stands at over N70 billion, aside from various commitments to some other domestic financial institutions.

The data, according to the airport critics, was released in June this year but the state government, represented by the commissioner for information and state orientation, said it has never borrowed a dime to run the state and was not ready to do so, saying the debt was inherited. It described the data as unverifiable.

NBM takes Edo State Government to court over demolition of secretariat

NBM takes the Edo State Government to court pic.twitter.com/ccnQWQYAjE

— The Benin Blogger (@TheBeninBlogger) June 5, 2025

Mongolia PM resigns after son's luxury holiday stirs public fury



Mongolia's prime minister has resigned after social media photos of his son's lavish lifestyle sparked an anti-corruption investigation and weeks of mass protests.

Luvsannamsrain Oyun-Erdene, who has denied wrongdoing, lost a confidence vote in parliament on Tuesday.

The viral photos purport to show Oyun-Erdene's son and the son's girlfriend flaunting a black Dior shoulder bag and several shopping bags while on their engagement holiday.

Protesters questioned how Oyun-Erdene's family could afford such luxurious living. Local media reported that the country's anti-corruption body had been looking into their finances.

The photo of the Dior bag, reportedly posted by the girlfriend, had the caption: "Happy birthday to me". Another photo purportedly showed the couple kissing in a swimming pool.

The images have been shared on social media and published by local media.

During Tuesday's confidence vote, 44 of the 88 lawmakers who took part in the secret ballot voted for Oyun-Erdene, while 38 others voted against him. He needed the support of at least 64 of parliament's 126 members.

"It was an honour to serve my country and people in times of difficulties, including pandemics, wars, and tariffs," he said after the vote.

Hundreds of protesters, many of them young people, had been taking to the streets for two weeks before the vote, demanding Oyun-Erdene's resignation.

Oyun-Erdene has rejected allegations of corruption, accusing critics of launching a smear campaign against him.

According to Transparency International, Mongolia has seen worsening corruption since Oyun-Erdene came into power. Last year, it was ranked 114th out of 180 countries in terms of government transparency.

A former communist state sandwiched between Russia and China, Mongolia has been transitioning to democracy since the fall of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s.

Corruption is a persistent problem. Last year, US prosecutors sought to forfeit former Mongolian PM Sukhbaatar Batbold's two New York apartments that he allegedly bought using stolen mining funds.

Batbold, who served from 2012 to 2015, denied wrongdoing.

In recent years, Mongolia has sought to build closer ties with the West, counting the United States and European countries as part of its "third neighbour" foreign policy.

The Official Languages Found in the Most Countries of the World, Mapped
English came out on top by a large margin.

It might be where the language itself originated, but oddly enough, English isn’t the official language of the United Kingdom.

In fact, the UK has no official language at all. Instead, English only has de facto official status: Its position as the national language of UK law, government, business, and education has never been enshrined in law. (The same used to be true of the United States until, after a centuries-long status identical to that of the UK, it adopted English as the legal, or de jure, official language in 2025.)

Around the world, though, the UK is something of an international outlier in not nominating an official national language, as the vast majority of countries have. And what’s more—as a new survey by language website WordTips has revealed—more countries have adopted English as an official language than any other language.

WordTips examined both the de facto and de jure official languages of every country and overseas territory in the world, and totaled up the number of times each one was listed. English came out on top with 59 of the world’s countries naming it as its official (or one of its official) languages by a large margin.

In Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom, English is the de facto language, while the remaining 56* official anglophone countries include clusters in the Caribbean (Barbados, the Bahamas, Jamaica, etc.), the Pacific (Fiji, Nauru, Palau), and Africa (including Ghana, Kenya, and Tanzania). Canada (minus Québec) and the U.S. find themselves in the English total too, as well others like Singapore and the Philippines.

French comes in a respectable second place in the study, as the official language of a total of 29 countries. France sits alongside Monaco, Switzerland, Belgium, and Luxembourg as using French as its official language in Europe. Just as with English, there’s a further cluster of francophone countries in Africa (Benin, Guinea, Madagascar, and Rwanda among them). Canada makes the French list too, thanks to Québec, alongside the only other North American francophone nation, Haiti.

The rest of the top five is rounded out by Arabic in third place (with 22 countries), Spanish in fourth (15 countries), and Portuguese in fifth, whose list of 10 countries spans the entire globe: Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, East Timor, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Macau, Mozambique, Portugal, and São Tomé and Príncipe.

Single-figure languages filling out the remainder of the list include German and Swahili, which tie with six countries each; and both Russian (Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia) and Italian (Italy, San Marino, Switzerland, Vatican City) are used as official languages in four neighboring nations each.

Neighboring nations make up much of the rest of the study, thanks to groups such as Quechua (the official language of Bolivia, Ecuador, and Peru), Berber (in Algeria and Morocco), and Swedish (Finland and Sweden). Hindustani is an official language in both India and Pakistan, and has the same status 7000 miles away in Fiji (which was historically used as a destination for indentured laborers during the British Raj). Likewise, Dutch is an official language in both Belgium and the Netherlands, but also in the former Dutch colony of Suriname, some 4500 miles away from Europe.

NCC cracks down on DJs over copyright violations, issues 5-year jail threat

The Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC), has warned Disc Jockeys (DJs) to stop performing other people’s music publicly without a license or the owner’s authorisation, threatening to prosecute defaulters in a case that could lead to a N1 million fine or a 5-year jail term upon conviction by a court.

Dr John Asein, Director-General of NCC, disclosed this in an advisory issued on Wednesday in Abuja, according to a NAN report.

The NCC stressed that its attention has been drawn to the practice of some DJs, who publicly perform music without obtaining the requisite copyright licences from rights holders or their approved Collective Management Organisations (CMOs).

NCC Reacts
Asein explained that based on sections 9 and 12 of the Copyright Act, 2022, it is only the owner of copyright in a musical work or sound recording who has the exclusive right to reproduce, perform, or communicate it to the public.

“Engaging in any of these acts without the owner’s authorisation constitutes an infringement under the Act.

“Such infringement may constitute a civil wrong or a criminal offence under section 44 (7), punishable upon conviction by a fine of not less than N1 million or imprisonment for a term of not less than five years or both.

“The public performance of music by a DJ, whether at hotels, event centres, clubs, gardens, or recreational facilities, constitutes both a public performance and a communication to the public of the musical work and sound recording, as provided for under the Act,” he stressed.

The D-G highlighted that the commission would “not hesitate to investigate, arrest, and prosecute any DJ found to be in contravention of the law.”
He advised DJs to obtain appropriate licences and pay royalties to the approved Collective Management Organisation (CMO) before engaging in such performances.
“For the avoidance of doubt, the approved CMO for musical works and sound recordings in Nigeria is the Musical Copyright Society, Nigeria (MCSN).

“The Commission is aware that the Disc Jockey’s Association of Nigeria (DJAN), as the umbrella body representing DJs in Nigeria, has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with MCSN.

“Under the arrangement, DJAN is authorised to work with MCSN to facilitate the payment of royalties by DJs nationwide, based on the tariff that DJAN had negotiated with MCSN,” he added.

He stated that henceforth, the commission would be collaborating with other relevant authorities to support the initiative of DJAN, to ensure that DJs carry out their trade in compliance with the Copyright Act.

This is the first Aboki wey sabi book be this 😂

This is the first aboki wey sabi book be this 😂 pic.twitter.com/RnfevbCUfy

— 𝐀𝐬𝐚𝐤𝐲𝐆𝐑𝐍 (@AsakyGRN) June 3, 2025

Enugu Police Command Summons Council Chairman For Setting Up Vigilante Group To Go After Killer Herdsmen

According to security sources, Ezugwu was invited twice with his vigilante group to the state police command headquarters through the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Police, Operations.

The police in Enugu State have summoned the Chairman of the Uzo-Uwani Local Government Area, Mr Chijioke Ezugwu, over allegations that he and his vigilante group have been combing forests and going after killer herdsmen, SaharaReporters has learnt.

According to security sources, Ezugwu was invited twice with his vigilante group to the state police command headquarters through the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Police, Operations.


The DCP, a northerner, reportedly interrogated the council chairman "on the allegations of killing herdsmen."

"The aim was to stop the council chairman from flushing out the criminals and kidnappers who have been masquerading as herders to unleash terror on the people," the source disclosed.

The police reportedly wanted him to make a statement under caution, but the chairman refused, citing his legal background and duty to protect his people.

Ezugwu, according to the source, explained that the actions of his vigilante group were necessary to protect his people from attacks and kidnappings, stating, "You know the dire situation in my area and we have to be armed to go into the forest to protect our people."

The matter is said to have been taken up by Governor Peter Mbah, who intervened to prevent Ezugwu from being taken to the Force Headquarters Abuja, where the DCP felt his associaties would be able to bring up trumped-up charges against the council chairman.

The circumstances surrounding the governor's intervention have also raised suspicions, given the alleged connections between the governor and northern interests.

"In the past months, several people in the council area have been killed and farmlands destroyed. So many have also been kidnapped and millions of naira paid in ransom. Some are still under their captors," lamented another source.

"Of most recent is the killing of a 90-year-old man and wife in Nimbo. It should also be noted that marauding herdsmen not only operate from the forest but they come into people's homes.

"Now the chairman took the bold step to protect his people and started going into the forest, remember that the police didn't respond to all these problems and killings but now, he is being harassed by the police," said another source.

SaharaReporters reported on June 2, how a 90-year-old man, Elder Otiakugwu, and his wife were allegedly killed in their home at Ekwuru village of Nimbo, Uzo-Uwani LGA by assailants suspected to be marauding herdsmen who had made life miserable for local communities.

The unfortunate incident, which was latest in the series of carnage going on for months in the Council Area occurred on last Wednesday.

The witnesses had told SaharaReporters that the victims' grandchild had visited them earlier and returned to school, unaware of the danger that awaited them.

"The assailants entered Ekwuru village of Nimbo unnoticed, met the nonagenarian and his wife eating. They killed them and dropped their blood soaked machete on their body and fled under the cover of the night. It was in the following morning being Thursday that they were seen lying dead in the pool of blood," said the witnesses.

The community is still reeling from the shock of the brutal killing, with many questioning the motive behind the attack. "What may have been the offence of the oldest man of the community and his wife to be gruesomely killed?" residents lamented.

This incident has reignited fears in the community, which has been plagued by attacks from Fulani herdsmen in the past. In 2016, about 12 indigenes were killed in a similar attack. Since then, the community has been under siege, with reports of killings, rapes, and destruction of farmlands.

On May 18, SaharaReporters reported the killing of seven farmers in Daba and Nimbo communities in Uzo-Uwani LGA and the kidnap of six others by marauding herdsmen.

Those killed were from Aku community in Igbo-Etiti Local Government Area of Enugu but who were farming at Daba community in Uzo-Uwani council area.

It was reported that the assailants equally abducted three farmers from the community.

An indigene of Nimbo community identified as Simon Odenigbo was equally killed in a separate attack at Ekulu village. After the killing, the suspected kidnapers proceeded to Abbi community, and abducted three people.

No fewer than 36 people had been confirmed killed in various attacks across Uzo-Uwani local government with little police efforts to arrest the killers who regularly infiltrated the communities from neighbouring Kogi and Benue States.

Meanwhile, SaharaReporters' efforts to speak with the Command's spokesperson SP Daniel Ndukwe over the development were unsuccessful as he did not take his calls as at the time of filing this report.

Also, Mr Ezugwu did not take his calls when SaharaReporters reached out to him or respond to a text message seeking his comment on the incident.

Griffon:
Okezie is a monumental failure.

He is busy jostling for political offices because he can’t get enough of public funds. A man who failed to leave a lasting legacy deserves no recognition from any body.

In the next six years, Otti for his good works in less than three years will be remembered by every Abian and international bodies.

Real recognizes real.

Florida family went fishing and caught 56 pounds of cocaine

Living in Lekki and the fallacy of premium

Lekki gets a lot of rap from mainlanders. Poor people like it when rich people cry. It is sour grapes. They blend it with ice and simple syrup to make a cold glass of schadenfreude. Delighting in your enemy’s travails is sweet.


I moved to Lekki in late 2023 and wrote a viral blog post about the transition. The reception to the post took me by surprise. All I did was contrast my life on the mainland with my new life on the island. People laughed their socks off. Shame on you lot for treating my pain with levity! To date, the post has been the most viewed on the blog.

The comments on the post revealed the disdain for the island among mainland folks. But we can all agree that Lekki people are the architects of their mockery. They think their fart smells like Chanel No 5 and there are more BBLs on this island to shame Brazilians.

A few folks felt my commentary at the time was premature, given that I had only lived in Lekki for three months. They asked me to wait at least a year to do a fair evaluation.

It was a fair ask. A lot can happen in a year. So, I promised to write a sequel after one year. I have now lived in Lekki for 17 months. Which is better, the mainland or the island?

It is a difficult question to answer. There can be no objective answer; only individual biases. Let me share mine.

Lekki is very underrated.

For example, no house on the mainland has coffee flowing straight from the tap.

In Lekki, when you open any tap in your house, brown brew flows. You only need to add cream or sugar.

On the mainland, taps only yield potable water.

We have Burna Boy, you have Portable.

And nowhere else in Nigeria can you get up close to big celebrities as in Lekki.

I’ll give you an instance.

The first and only time I saw Beyoncé in person was in 2010 at Times Square. The missus and I had stopped to watch some buskers doing a Michael Jackson routine. A small crowd had gathered. This is Times Square, home of cheesy attractions.

Then, out of nowhere, Queen Bey showed up, flanked by three bodyguards. She stopped to watch the buskers too. I was no more than six metres from her. It was surreal.

I brought out my point-and-shoot and started filming her. Phone cameras were rudimentary in those days. I had the iPhone 3GS, a 3-megapixel phone. No selfie camera. Only 8GB of storage. Now, phones have 50-megapixel cameras and shoot video in 4K @120fps. The 12-megapixel point-and-shoot was therefore a no-brainer.

One of the hawk-eyed bodyguards spotted me filming and signalled to one of his mates. The second bodyguard looked in my direction, saw me filming Beyonce, and headed for me. He was thickset and bald. I could see his strapping biceps through his overcoat.

Myself, I was no slouch either. I could take the guy with a jab-cross-hook-low kick combination. But I was with the wife. I didn’t want drama. The last time I was in a fight, body parts were lost. I lost two teeth and an ear.

I stopped filming.

Anyway, the point of the story is that I had to travel 8,600 kilometres to New York to see a proper celebrity.


Here in Lekki, we are celebrity-jaded. They are a dime a dozen. We walk past Jay Jay without saying hi.

The first time I saw Jason Momoa was at Ikate, on Kusenla Road. It had rained.

A pod of killer whales was after a seal. The orcas cornered the seal on an iceberg at the end of the street. As they gave thanks and brought out their napkins, guess who showed up to rescue the poor seal? Jason Momoa! Aquaman, with his Trident of Neptune!

Yeah, that’s how we roll in Lekki – Atlantis.

Flooding
By the way, never buy or rent a house on Kusenla Road during the dry season. In fact, never buy or rent a house in Lekki during the dry season. Go house hunting in the rainy season. That way, you’ll know if the area is for Captain Jack Sparrow or a landlubber. There are many nice-looking neighbourhoods in Lekki during the dry season. But once the rains start, well, Jason Momoa.

I am not raining on the parade of developers in Lekki. But it is my duty as your friend to let you know that you are about to stop paying for fish if you move into that house. Seeing you sitting on your balcony with a fishing rod will break my heart. But you might like fish more than you like land. In which case, feel free to do you. I’ll bring the chips and ketchup.

Now that the rains are here, there will be angst and gnashing of teeth. I am one of the lucky ones. My area does not flood. I went house hunting during the rainy season. But we still have some water. Nothing big. Only one mammy water can swim in it at a time.

I only encounter significant bodies of water if the traffic is insufferable and I take shortcuts. That is why there are many SUVs in Lekki. The vehicles are not a sign of affluence. They are a practical means of getting around if you don’t want to do the breaststroke. I don’t know what you know about Lekki people, but most can’t swim.

Still on vehicles, there must be a hidden Mercedes-Benz assembly plant in Lekki. There are more Mercedes here than in Germany. I look around and see that I am the only one who does not have a Benz. I am doing something wrong.

Traffic
One of the attractions for moving to the island was the promise of less traffic.

It was fool’s gold.

The traffic in Lekki can be horrendous. One morning, I left home as a 30-year-old. When I came back in the evening, I had four grandchildren. I’d spent years in traffic.

And don’t get me started on Detty December. It is more like Bedlam December. My plan is not to be here in December.

There are way too many people and way too many vehicles in Lekki. The place is becoming a posh Alimosho. Residents who have lived here since 2010 lament about the people and traffic. Unbeknownst to them, Lekki is where the “Nigerian Dream” lives.

The junctions on the Lekki-Epe Expressway can be absolute murders. LASTMA and LNSC officers shout themselves hoarse trying to untangle the mess. It’s an impossible job. When the officers go home, common sense goes home too. Agberos and urchins step in as traffic officers.

But the government knows what to do. Junctions, or ‘oríta,’ are important amongst Yoruba animist beliefs. It is where you offer the appeasement sacrifice or ‘ebó’ against your bedevilment.

But this is Lekki. We’ve been feeding the devils presiding over the junctions the wrong ebó. We’ve been giving them Sautéed Calamari and Nasi Goreng when they want ekuru and yam with palm oil. I have even spotted bottles of Glenfiddich and Don Julio at junctions. For sprites that love sungbalaja and sokudaye. And we wonder why the junctions are a mess. The etutu is too bougie.

But can anyone explain why there are no cameras on the Lekki-Epe Expressway? It is why everyone drives like a jackass on the road. On the mainland, there is a surfeit of cameras. You borrow yourself brain. But on the island, no cameras. Zilch, zip, zippo. Why is that?

Governor Sanwo-Olu, we have money to give to Lagos State here! Come and help us spend this schmoney!

Koropes
Now, to the koropes.

When I lived on the mainland, I thought koropes were the spiritual affliction of poor people. That by living on the mainland, we entered into a blood covenant with misery, manifested by koropes.

These chaps. They curse your father and mother if they are behind you and you stop to obey the traffic light. Half of the road is their park, and they stop in the middle of it to pick up passengers. If you rail at them, they curse your father and mother again. They’d drive one-way and disregard LASTMA and the police. They are a law unto themselves.

Thus, I expected to be rid of this thorn when I moved to the island. A premium elitist suburbia surely can’t have lawlessness hold sway.

Some delusion now and then does not hurt.

For on this elite and posh wetland, koropes abound. And they are as intractable and ineradicable as their mainland counterparts.

Delusional Real Estate Pricing
There is this bloke on Instagram who rails against overpriced houses on the island. He is my influencer of the year.

There is nothing fantastic about Lekki to justify the ridiculous price tags on many houses.

By what metric or valuation is a 5-bedroom house in Osapa N1.6bn? Or a 4-bedroom house on Orchid Road N300m? There are houses in Ajah that are quoted at N350m. I mean, Ajah is next to the Benin Republic! Ajah is where you go if you want to hide from a generational curse.

By the way, Orchid Road should be renamed Hemlock Road. Just saying.

Some developers may tell you that the real price of an item is how much a buyer is willing to pay for it, especially in a society like ours where loot abounds. So developers look to capitalise. Na who EFCC catch be thief.

But what also ticks me off is how houses that don’t pass muster are labelled as ‘luxury.

Let me tell you what luxury is and what it is not.

I like how Coco Chanel defined luxury.

“Luxury is a necessity that begins where necessity ends.”

Luxury is excellence. It is craftsmanship. It is exclusivity and exceptional taste.

Luxury is a Birkin. It is a Rolls-Royce or the Ritz-Carlton.

It is not a house with lights from Alaba or SweetHome washbasins, a ‘fully fitted kitchen’ or an ‘ultra-modern’ house amid shanties. Luxury is an exquisite three-bedroom villa on 70 acres of green. It is why people get on a six-year waitlist to own a Rolex Daytona. Please put some respect on the word!

Diasporan Influence
The target group for these overpriced properties also appears to be Nigerians in the diaspora. I am beginning to dislike that lot. They abet inflation in Nigeria. Everything is now ‘abroad price.’ Because of them, we can no longer eat snails.

Not long ago, 20 jumbo snails cost around N45K. But these economic migrants show up with pounds or dollars and the price jumps to N110K! They don’t haggle over price. 50 snails for $150 looks like a steal to them.

You people should keep your blood money to yourselves and let us be poor in peace!

The other day, the missus and I went to Oyingbo Market and priced lgy6ocust beans. It was more expensive than expected. One seller explained that she had cleaned and prepared hers for travel.

“Shebi una wan take am go abroad?” she enquired.

I almost lied that I live in Makoko.

Even a tailor who sews agbada for N55K now wants N100K. All because some Yoruba demon from Dallas wants to drip.

If you wan drip, go General Hospital na!

My adorable sister-in-law, too, is not guiltless. She wants my wife to bring her two whole goats when she comes for Christmas.

Odindi ewure meji. Una wan host Sango ni?

Anyway, Lekki is its own vibe. The place grows on you. I enjoy the bars and restaurants. The nightlife enchants. After a while, the prices no longer seem high. Not if you always drive to The Lagos Country Club to eat N1,500-ofada. God bless The Lagos Country Club! Afam’s isi-ewu is still N4,000! The cheapest I’ve seen in Lekki is N16,000.

And Lekki is fun. There is no shortage of surprises. Yakoyo and Wagyu burger, masquerades and Cybertrucks, churches and Brazilian Butt-Lifts.

And oh, there are now tokunbo Cybertrucks in town.

That’s how we roll in Lekki.


Two Cybertrucks for sale at a car lot in Lekki, Lagos

Court jails ex-PDP chairperson’s son, co-defendant 14 years for petrol subsidy fraud

The trial judge held that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) proved the fraud charges against the defendants beyond reasonable doubt.

The Lagos State Special Offences Court in Ikeja has sentenced two oil marketers to 14 years in prison for a N2.2 billion fuel subsidy fraud, part of a major oil sector scandal that caused public outrage in 2012.

Mamman Ali, a son of former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) national chairperson Ahmadu Ali, and his co-defendant, Christian Taylor, were jailed on Tuesday, after 13 years of trial.

Trial judge Mojisola Dada held that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) proved the fraud charges against the defendants beyond reasonable doubt.

The convicts faced amended 57 counts of fraud, with the EFCC accusing them of fraudulently obtaining money from the federal government in 2011 purportedly for importing various volumes of petrol into Nigeria under the subsidy scheme.

The judge, who ordered the forfeiture of bank accounts and other assets linked with the fraud, held that the actions of the defendants not only defrauded the government but also undermined the integrity of Nigeria’s oil subsidy programme.

Fuel subsidy saga
In January 2012, then-President Goodluck Jonathan attempted to end the fuel subsidy regime, citing the unsustainability of the ballooning costs.

The administration said the surging costs of subsidy was draining resources meant for development.

But the government faced stiff resistance, with the popular nationwide #OccupyNigeria protests breaking out across Nigerian cities.

Outraged protesters called for the restoration of the subsidy scheme and asked the government to, instead, go after corrupt oil marketers and government officials whose unchecked fraudulent activities were responsible for the astronomical leap in the subsidy costs.

Partially bowing to pressure, the President Jonathan administration restored part of the subsidy which reduced the hike in petrol pump price that had shot up about 90 per cent when the subsidy removal was first announced.

The government brought charges against several oil marketers, who were implicated by EFCC investigations, for defrauding the petrol subsidy system.

Some of them, who faced prosecution, have been freed and others jailed in the last 13 years, since the anti-graft agency started multiple prosecutions.

Mr Ali and his co-defendants’ trial is one of the longest running among the cases.

Fraud
EFCC alleged that, on 11 April 2011 in Lagos, Mr Ali and his co-defendant fraudulently obtained N1.48 billion from the federal government as payments for 20,492,982.50 litres of petrol which Mr Ali’s firm, Nasaman Oil Services Ltd, claimed to have imported into Nigeria under the Petroleum Support Fund.

The anti-graft agency alleged that Nasaman Oil Services Ltd fraudulently claimed the money from the government under the pretext of purchasing the petrol from SEATAC Petroleum Ltd of British Virgin Islands and imported it into Nigeria through MT Liquid Fortune Ex Mt. Hellenic Blue and Ex MT. Milleura.

Similarly, the EFCC alleged that on 9 November 2011 in Lagos, the defendants fraudulently obtained about N750 million from the Nigerian government by claiming that it was the accrued payments for 10,031,986 litres of petrol that Nasaman Oil Services Ltd purportedly imported into Nigeria under the fuel subsidy scheme.

EFCC said the defendants falsely claimed to have purchased the petrol from SEATAC Petroleum Ltd of British Virgin Islands and imported it into Nigeria through MT Liquid Fortune Ltd Ex MT Overseas Lima, which representation they knew to be false.

The prosecution alleged that the defendants scammed the government by submitting forged loan facility documents and fake shipping documents to claim the money.

At the time of the alleged fraud, Mr Ali’s father, Ahmadu Ali, a former chairman of the then-ruling PDP, was the chair of the board of the defunct Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Authority (PPPRA) overseeing the petrol subsidy regime.

The House of Representatives, after investigations prompted by the #OccupyNigeria protests, recommended that Ahmadu Ali be prosecuted for his roles in the monumental corruption that characterised the Petroleum Support Fund (PSF) management between 2009 and 2011.

The recommendation for Ahmadu Ali’s prosecution was contained in the report of the House of Representatives’ Ad Hoc House Committee on Fuel Subsidy led by Farouk Lawan.

Mr Lawan himself would later be convicted of receiving a $500,000 bribe during the legislative probe into the fuel subsidy regime. He completed his five-year jail time in October last year.

Alleged conspirators on the run
EFCC said Mr Ali and his co-convict Mr Taylor perpetrated the N2.2 billion fuel subsidy fraud alongside two other persons – Olabisi Abdul-Afeez and Oluwaseun Ogunbambo – who are said to still be on the run.

In her judgement convicting the two men on Tuesday, the judge issued a warrant for the arrest of the two alleged fugitives.

Protracted trial
Mr Ali and Mr Taylor had pleaded not guilty to the amended 57 counts of fraud.

They initially faced 47 counts which the EFCC subsequently ramped up to 57 in the course of the trial.

The trial suffered incessant setbacks, including reassignment of the case to another judge, stalling its progress which ensured it lingered in court for 13 years.

The defendants were initially standing trial before Adeniyi Onigbanjo of the Lagos State High Court sitting in Ikeja.

However, Mr Onigbanjo withdrew from the case, prompting the re-assignment of the case to Mrs Dada.

During the trial, the prosecution led by Seiduh Atteh presented witnesses and tendered documents, which were admitted by the court, to prove its case against the defendants.

Delivering her judgment on Tuesday, Mrs Dada found the evidence presented by the prosecution compelling.

She sentenced each of the two men to 13 years in prison.

BeginsAtHome:
Bola Ahmed Ebitinu GCRF, Owe Owe One.

Julius Berger withdraws from Rivers’ project sites

Leading construction company, Julius Berger Nigeria PLC, has begun withdrawing its services from some project sites in Rivers State, following shortfalls in the periodical project cost payments by the state government.

This was according to an online report, which quoted an insider at Julius Berger Nigeria as saying that the company has “reportedly withdrawn from several major project sites across Rivers State.”

He linked the development to the failure of the state’s Sole Administrator to continue funding ongoing projects despite receiving regular federal allocations and substantial Internally Generated Revenue (IGR).

The report further disclosed that many of the company’s workers have been placed on standby, with operations stalled across multiple locations pending further directives.

Another source disclosed that for some time, the monthly payments for the contracts were due, but efforts to collect payments have continued to fail, as the key aides to the Sole Administrator would not make any useful commitment.

They confirmed the reduction of site workers by the construction company for the same reason.

“Let me tell you my findings; there is a particular project site on the ongoing Port Harcourt Ring Road project where they had 800 workers on site, only a few; less than 300 people were seen working last week, Thursday.

“Some of the company’s project sites visited over the weekend further confirmed the foregoing development.

“At the Ring Road project site, only a handful of workers were seen compared to the hitherto nonstop activities, while at the Emohua axis of the state, where the Buguma-Degema Road project had peaked, no work is going on there.

“A worker, who was a victim of the staff downsizing by the company, disclosed that in Emohua, with all the landmark projects going on, we have already completed about 30 per cent while we have completed over 60 per cent of the work on the long Ring Road project. But now, we are told to return home and stand by until they get payment from the government.

A 46000 year Old Worm was Revived by Scientists and it Started having Babies after being frozen for Tens of thousands of Years..

“Body Positivity” Shouldn’t Ignore the Medical Reality

This is a real X-ray showing the stark contrast between the human skeleton and excess body mass in severe obesity.

The bones are the same as anyone else's, but they are under immense strain.

This isn't just about appearance
• The spine is crushed under pressure
• The hips and knees deform over time
• The heart is pushed beyond its limits
• Organs like the liver and pancreas become overwhelmed
• The risk for cancer, stroke, and diabetes climbs rapidly

Fat isn't just 'extra'... It is dangerous.
It isn't beautiful. It is deadly.

Obesity is a chronic and complex disease, not a body type. And while it is serious, it is also treatable and preventable.

Topic Discussed On
The Joe Rogan Experience

Moment Nigerians Witness Test Launch of Newly Developed 'Made in Nigeria' M!ssiles.

Moment Nigerians Witness Test Launch of Newly Developed 'Made in Nigeria' M!ssiles. pic.twitter.com/NXd3LExqy0

— CHUKS 🍥 (@ChuksEricE) May 27, 2025