'Happy Anniversary to my pillar of strength.❤ Through thick and thin we still continue to wax on strong. May God continue to guide and protect us and may love and laughter continue to reside here. I love you! @peterpsquare no long story!'

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has cautioned to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) over the alleged “fictitious 112,000 votes being bandied from Okene Local Government to favour the All Progressives Congress (APC),” describing it as a recipe for a crisis of unprecedented proportion.

In a statement issued by Kola Ologbondiyan, National Publicity Secretary in Abuja on Sunday, the party maintained nobody can accept the provocative allocation of 112, 000 votes to APC in Okene where the number total accredited voters stands at about 40,00O and which also recorded very low turn out of voters.

The PDP cautioned INEC not to ever declare such an offensive and unsupported result as such would be a huge embarrassment on the INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu and the management of the commission.

“Our party hopes that this apparent moves to allocate fictitious result to the APC in Okene is not a reflection of the allegations in the public space that Governor Yahaya Bello and the APC had offered INEC a bribe of N3.5 billion to alter result and apportion conjured figures to the APC,” the PDP declared.

It further cautioned INEC to note that any attempt to declare the figures being bandied for the APC will point to nothing but the validation of the bribery allegation.

“The only way out is for INEC to declare only the results from votes cast and declared at the polling units,” the party stated.

A 45-year-old policewoman (name withheld) on Thursday narrated to an Ikeja Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Court how a fellow police personnel, Mohammed Alidu, allegedly defiled her nine-year-old daughter in a police barracks.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the policewoman was the second Prosecution Witness (PW2) in the of trial of Alidu, a police sergeant, for defilement.

The PW2 was led in evidence by Mr Akin George, Deputy-Director, Lagos State Directorate of Public Prosecutions.

She said that the defendant accosted her daughter (name withheld) on her way home from school, dragged her into his house and defiled her.

“We live at Makinde Barracks, Mafoluku, Oshodi, Lagos.

“On June 29, 2018, I was at work when my husband, who was out of Lagos, called me to inform me that Sgt. Mohammed defiled our daughter.

“I went to the police station which is within the same compound of the barracks, and my daughter was in the police station.

“My daughter told me that when she was coming back from school, Mohammed called her but she did not respond.

“She said he forcefully took her to his apartment, put her on a bed, tore her underwear and defiled her,” she said.

According to her, Mohammed was also at the police station, begging and telling the divisional police officer that it was the work of the devil.

The policewoman said that her daughter was taken to the Mirabel Center (a sexual assault referral centre) for medical examination, and doctors confirmed that she was defiled.

During cross-examination by defence counsel, Mr Sunday Odise, the policewoman told the court that the defendant lived near her residence.

“He did not have a house within the barracks. He was sleeping in a shop opposite our home,” she said.

Earlier, the PW1 and the investigative police officer of the case, Sgt. Juweratu Ashiru, told the court that shortly the alleged defilement, the victim reported the incident at the police station.

“She told me that when Mohammed dragged her into the wooden house he lived, to defile her, she screamed during her ordeal and that no one rescued her.

“Mohammed was arrested at the wooden house where the crime occurred, and when we took his confessional statement, he said that it was the devil’s work.

“He said we should forgive him and drop the case, but we refused and said that he must face the full wrath of the law.

“The victim’s underwear was torn. I recovered the underwear and it was kept as an exhibit in the Gender Unit of the Police Force,” Ashiru said.

NAN reports that Justice Abiola Soladoye ordered members of the public to leave the courtroom when the alleged victim, now 10-year-old, was to give evidence.

After she testified, the judge adjourned the case until Jan. 15, 2020, for continuation of of trial.

The federal government is about to secure a $250 million World Bank facility to fund intervention programmes to check malaria disease in 13 states of the federation, which are not currently covered by the existing government intervention programmes.

The affected states include, Borno, Kogi, Edo, Enugu, Imo, Anambra, Ekiti and Bayelsa, as well as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The National Coordinator, of the National Malaria Elimination Programme, Dr. Audu Bala Mohammed, stated this yesterday at the third annual summit of legislative network for universal health coverage held in Abuja.

He said the National Assembly had approved the proposal to secure the $250 million World Bank loan to tackle malaria.

He added that presently, the federal government’s malaria intervention covers 24 states out of the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.

“Before now, we were required to cover the whole country but because of this donor fatigue, the amount of money they are giving is not enough to go round the states; so, we have to restrict it to 13 states for the global funds, which are a major donor and 11 states benefiting from presidential malaria initiative. So, we have 13 states where currently we don’t do anything with them and we have to find a way to fill the gap. “ So, at the moment, we are in the process of securing $250 million from the World Bank to tackle the malaria scourge in the remaining 13 states so that the disease can be addressed in a more holistic manner.”

According to Mohammed, 25 per cent of world malaria cases are found in Nigeria, while 19 per cent of deaths recorded from malaria disease worldwide are also in the country.

He said Nigeria had recorded some progress in reversing malaria cases from 42 per cent to 37 per cent within five years when the whole country was aggressively covered before the present relapse.

Mohammed said in order to eradicate malaria scourge, there has to be aggressive intervention on sustainable basis and not small measures or the present partial coverage in some states.

He explained that the federal government has made a proposal of $1.5 billion in its 2014-2020 strategic action plan to address malaria scourge.

Mohammed, however, lamented that this estimate is far from being met, adding that instead, sources of funds are shrinking due donor apathy.

Also while making his presentation at the summit, the Director General of the National Centre for Disease Control in Nigeria (NCDC), Chikwe Ihekweazu, said almost all the 36 states of the federation and the FCT were faced with one form of disease epidemic or the other.

He said beyond the few states where disease epidemic has been reported, other states in the country were threatened by other endemic diseases.

While declaring the summit open, the Senate President, Dr. Ahmad Lawan, who was represented by Senator Robert Ajayi Borrofice, assured the gathering that the National Assembly will always treat health issues with priority it deserves.

He expressed the hope that the one per cent intervention fund set aside from the country’s consolidated revenue account for basic healthcare will be appropriately utilised to deepen health coverage.

He also said the newly signed law on oil production sharing contract would provide government additional $1.6 billion to be channelled towards development of the country.

Similarly, the representative of the World Health Organisation (WHO), Ibrahim Mamodu, urged governments at the federal and state levels to ensure that budgetary allocations to the health sector are not only released in full, but promptly too.

HAPPY FIVE YEARS OLD TO MY FIRST SON......JASON OBUMNEME ODONWODO.......... From the first time the doctor placed you in my arms
I knew I would meet death before I would let you meet harm...........
From the hospital that first night, I don't think one wink I slept
Touched your head gently, felt my heart melt......Cause I know I love you more than life itself
Then to my knees, and I begged the Lord please
Let me be a good daddy, all he needs
Love, knowledge, discipline too
I pledge my life to you...........God Bless All That Concerns You Son

Happy Birthday big sis @remifagbohun
Love you

A man identified as Best Uduophori, who allegedly stabbed President Muhammadu Buhari’s supporter over celebrating his Election Tribunal victory has been arrested.

According to a source, Uduophori, a People’s Democratic Party (PDP) supporter, was apprehended about 2am on Tuesday, by operatives of the Ekpan Police Division, led by DSP Lawrence Ikechukwu, in Effurun, Uvwie council area of the state.

Recall that one Elvis Omoiri was reportedly hospitalized after being attacked for celebrating President Buhari’s win on September 11.

It was gathered that the attack had sprung up from a political argument between the duo.

Following the incident, the Deputy Senate President, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, while condemning the incident, vowed to ensure that the culprit is brought to book.

In a similar reaction, the Minister of State for Labour, Mr. Festus Keyamo (SAN), promised to handle the medical bills of the victim.

Keyamo is a native of Effurun, the town where the incident occurred.

However, two months after the attack, the suspect has reportedly landed in police net.

A source also disclosed that the victim, Elvis Omoiri, has been discharged from the hospital.

Confirming the arrest, the Delta State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Onome Onowakpoyeya, explained that the attack was not spurred by the political disagreement as earlier speculated.

She said, “Let me correct one thing, the person that was stabbed went to the man’s bar and was misbehaving, taking off his shirts and all that. That was what caused the attack, not because he was celebrating President Buhari’s victory.”