ify2016: Nollywood Actor, Charles Okocha, aka Igwe 2pac, yesterday had a ghastly car accident at 3rd mainland bridge, Lagos.
He made this known on his verified Instagram handle. According to the vibrant actor, God saved him from the hands of death.
He wrote: “Thankful for life ���Was involved in a car accident on 3rd mainland bridge last night but GOD DID!!! We Asaaaaa still. Recall that in year 2019, he traveled to California with his son for vacation and ended up undergoing surgery.
According to him, he is thankful to God for safe operation even though the initial plan was a vacation trip in the United States.
In 2016, after being hit by a stray bullet, Okocha had revealed how he survived a near-death experience which left fans and admirers in total shock.
Skeke robo, sunita, lupita, nyogo! O ti fe de fo, espanyo mama gumbo, Ikotun egbe, agege wan ki pe fo igo, Oyema Igbo omo pe ORIRE O FE ERO Faya kun kun faya kun Oti le GARA JU egbon mi ni mayorkun.
hot9janews: Popular Hausa skit maker, Kamal Iliyasu, better known as Kamal Aboki has reportedly passed away on Monday, 16 January 2023 in a fatal motor accident on his way from Borno to Kano State. Speaking on his death, his elder brother, Usman, disclosed that their mother had a premonition that something terrible would happen to Kamal on Monday, BBC reported. He …
balash: TOYIN IGBIRA’S FIRST MAJOR ARREST AND HER FIERCE BATTLE FOR FREEDOM
If you are familiar with the bizarre tales of Nigerian men and women who have decided to carve a niche for themselves in the powdery world of drug trafficking, then the name Toyin Igbira will not sound surprising to you. She is the most notorious drug baroness in the history of Nigeria. Of all the female scorpions in the narcotic business, none came closer to Igbira whose daring exploits still shock many till date.
As intelligent and crafty as Toyin Igbira was 1997-2000 was one of the worst periods of her life. For much of that period, she was in jail, locked up like a common criminal after she had been nabbed after a very long pursuit by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).
The period remains one of the best in the history of the NDLEA as they went on a major spree and crackdown against drug traffickers all over the country. A big society lady known all at all the parties of Lagos, Alhaja Toyin was caged and as she looked on helplessly in detention, she tried every possible means to liquidate the murderous grip of the NDLEA on her. She was nabbed and flung into cell under the controversial miscellaneous offences tribunals, better known as the MOTs at that time. Although her case had not been decided yet at that time, the MOT system made it possible for her to be jailed indefinitely.
From December 1997 when she was arrested alongside eight others, she was left to rot in jail until 1999 when something interesting happened. By the way, after the arrest of Alhaja Toyin Igbira by NDLEA operatives, she was arraigned before the defunct Miscellaneous Offences Tribunal (MOT) in suit number MOT/L/16/98 on the 27th of May, 1998 based on her confessions and those of five of her drug business partners. It was the MOT that effectively ordered that she be remanded in custody and she would languish at the Kirikiri Maximum Prisons for over 16 months.
Thanks to Igbira, many drug carriers had their trips facilitated through the country’s airports by Toyin Igbira. Nigeria did not just acquire her horrible reputation in one day, we have people like Toyin Igbira to praise for contributing to that jar of tar now staining all Nigerians outside the country.
Months climbed upon months and hoped dimmed for her. But Toyin Igbira is a fighter with a relentless spirit. Her determination to always remain as free as the puffs from a cocaine smoker galvanized her into doing the most unthinkable thing. In her warped mind, she conjured the most devilish plot, an orchestration so manipulative that it could bring down the entire agency.
NDLEA was quite aggressive with her as they did not only cage her but impounded her property running into several millions of naira. In Lagos alone, five landed assets belonging to her were promptly snatched from her. This led to a massive legal gbonmisiomioto (tussle) between her army of lawyers and the gallant NDLEA.
Desperate to enjoy some fresh liberty, Igbira resorted to the oldest trick in the book: seduction. She made several overtures to the zonal commander of the NDLEA office in Ikeja, Mallam Samuel Bashir Gadzama. She was ready to throw her expensive Ankara fabrics away and strip herself naked then give him the most mindblowing sessions of passionate sex but unfortunately for her, the hormone-driven plan blew in her face when Gadzama rejected her Jezebelic proposals.
Igbira was more than ready to use her slim and thoroughly-bleached body to obstruct justice. Morals and ethics were useless in the vocabulary of a coke peddler. It must be highlighted that that same period was one of the bloodiest for the NDLEA as many of their operatives were mercilessly killed by drug traffickers and it would be a big blow to the morale of the agency should their boss agree to free Igbira just for a few rounds of illicit sex with the unrepentant drug empress.
Gadzama was one of the best hands in the NDLEA. A veteran in many undercover operations, he was later promoted to Director of Operations and General Investigations, effectively the number two position in the agency. In the 1990s, Gadzama had taken part in several undercover Joint Task Force operations and formerly served as the commander of NDLEA operations at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos and also as the commander of the JTF.
He also had a brilliant working relationship with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), a United States federal law enforcement agency under the United States Department of Justice, tasked with combating drug smuggling and use within the United States of America. So Igbira knew exactly what she was doing and why she chose Gadzama as her specific target.
The amazing thing is that drug barons in Nigeria have actually managed to poison the minds of even the most senior bosses of the agency. In November 2005 for example, a furious President Olusegun Obasanjo fired Alhaji Bello Lafiaji as the chairman of the NDLEA after he was found to have collected money from the same drug traffickers he was supposed to combat, in 2010 he would later be sentenced to 16 years in jail after he was found guilty of stealing the sum of 164,300 euros from the residence of a drug peddler in custody. Gadzama was the prosecution witness at the court trial. Lafiaji was replaced by Ahmadu Giade, a retired deputy commissioner of police. Toyin Igbira would languish in jail until something very dramatic happened.
The Shocking Story of How Justice Abubakar Abdulkadir Jega Assisted Nigeria’s Most Notorious Drug Baroness And Unrepentant Cocaine Peddler Alhaja Toyin Igbira Escape Justice In August 1999
One of the countries I admire most on the planet is Singapore. It has everything that my beloved country, Nigeria does not have. Although Singapore is very tiny, so tiny that Lagos, the smallest state in my nation, is five times bigger than this southeast Asian nation called Republic of Singapore.
But make no mistake, Singapore is one of the richest nations on earth. In fact, just two nations are richer than Singapore in the whole world. This is a country that has no natural resources but leads the world in education, healthcare, technology, life expectancy, housing, personal safety and quality of life. But how come Singapore that got independence from United Kingdom in 1963 is so successful while Nigeria that became independent from the same colonial power in 1960 is struggling with devastating indicators such as the second worst infant and maternal mortality rates on earth?
Well, the answer lies in the hands of Lee Kuan Yew, the first Prime Minister and the founding father of modern Singapore. Better known as LKY, it was Lee Kuan Yew who was the brain behind the incredible leap of his country from being a haven of poverty to one of the most admired corners of prosperity in the world. However, he was able to achieve such a mindblowing transformation because he ensured the judiciary was reformed. It was so thoroughly reformed that any form of indiscipline was severely dealt with. In fact, trafficking in drugs was followed by the death sentence.
For LKY, the rights of their law-abiding citizens to a life devoid of the nefarious effects of drugs trump the so-called human rights of the drug mules. Why am I comparing Singapore with Nigeria? I am doing so simply because while the judiciary is one of the pillars of success in Singapore (where African leaders like Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe now run to for medical care), the same judiciary is one of the biggest obstacles to progress and development in Nigeria and until a proper reform of the Nigerian judicial system is done, nothing is really going to shift for the betterment of the society. I will use the case of this infamous drug peddler as an illustration.
Notoriety personified, Toyin Igbira was one of the most difficult nuts for the NDLEA to crack. For years upon years, she had managed to outsmart the nets of the country’s top drug law agency. She seemed invincible, slippery and smooth; she always operated under the radar like the lethal B2 Spirit Stealth Bomber of the United States Air Force. Igbira was known but no one knew how to nab her until luck smiled on the agency one sunny day in December 1997. There was jubilation in the NDLEA camp. One of their most prized assets was finally in their trap and they were so ready to ensure that she would rot in jail. But it was not to be. Something that would never have happened in Bedok, Singapore happened in Lagos, Nigeria.
At the very top of the list of the self-confessed drug kingpins was none other than Alhaja Monsurat Oluwatoyin Oyemade Abraham aka Toyin Igbira. On that same list were seasoned drug peddlers and cocaine trafficking veterans such as Steven Akinyemi Akingba aka Akinse (who interestingly, was the United States-based ally of Toyin Igbira as mentioned earlier), Mohammed Mohammed who was an immigration service officer attached to the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja in Lagos and it was from his duty post that he facilitated all kinds of illicit drug transactions within and outside Nigeria, Peter Oriamen, Babajide Adeoye, Tokunbo Olaiya, Rachel Moronlayo Adeniran, Yetunde Akintan and another suspect who was captured with him.
To the utter shock and massive heartbreak of the NDLEA, five of these nine major drug suspects were all freed by Justice Abdulkadir Jega of the Federal High Court Eight. Those who regained their freedom in the hands of Jega included Toyin Igbira, Akingba, Oriamen, Adeoye and Olaiya. As for Mohammed, he was granted bail by Justice (Mrs.) Olomojobi while Adeniran, Akintan and his fellow in crime were released by Justice Kassim of Court Annex Two.
While asking for bail for Igbira, Kasoki Hart Olakanma of Femi Falana Chambers put up an energetic show and implored the judge to declare that the continued detention of the suspect at the Kirikiri Prisons since 26th of August 1998 was illegal and unconstitutional; that the provisions of section 2 (4) and 3(2) of the Tribunals Decree 62 of 1999 are illegal and unconstitutional as they violated her rights which were clearly guaranteed by section 35 and 36 of the Constitution and that the respondents (NDLEA) do not have the competence and authority to arraign, prosecute and try Igbira on account of the charges that were pending before the MOT.
The attorney did not stop there. The lawyer sought an order directing NDLEA to release all the property and documents seized from Igbira and those of other persons in her custody from illegal custody forthwith. Above all, the lawyer contended that Igbira was an innocent pigeon who knew:
‘….nothing whatsoever about the offences she is being charged with…’
The lawyer also promised that Igbira would not jump bail if granted. It was a lie and a thinly-disguised ruse. The legal team of the NDLEA smelt this deceit and launched a counterattack. Lawyer Nnanna Alamegie of the NDLEA argued that Toyin Igbira was facing a solid four-count charge with several other accused persons at the MOT, Lagos Zone and that trial was already in motion before the tribunal’s dissolution on the 29th of May 1999 with the coming of the democratic dispensation (it is quite interesting, this is my () own emphasis, to note that it was democracy that Igbira exploited to the fullest to regain her freedom).
Alamegie argued on with vigour saying the accused was not granted bail at the tribunal because her offence carries an imprisonment for a term of between 15 and 25 years. He dropped a bombshell:
‘…The release on bail of a person with enormous wealth may lead to a frustration of the course of trial.’
He further insisted that it is in the interest of Nigeria as a country that the suspect was allowed to conclude her case from custody because she is very likely to tamper with the overwhelming bail. He thundered:
‘At the Miscellaneous Offences Tribunal, more than seven key witnesses gave evidence and the evidence so far taken shows that the applicant is one of the big-time drug barons that bring the reputation of this great country Nigeria to disrepute in the international community.’
International drug routes
At that point, Igbira’s lawyer Olakanma disputed the assertion of the NDLEA that the stupendous amount of money that the drug baroness controlled was going to frustrate the trial. Without missing a heartbeat, Alamegie dismissed this argument when he revealed that Toyin Igbira was not only facing trial at the Zone Three of the MOT, but also another charge at the Zone One of the MOT on Kingsway Road, Ikoyi, for attempting to bribe NDLEA men with the hefty sum of N1.4 million naira to forestall investigations into the drug peddling case against her. She was desperate to be left off the hook.
After listening to both arguments, the judge made a puzzling declaration:
On the 18th of August 1999, Justice Abubakar Abdulkadir Jega threw a dagger right at the hearts of the tireless NDLEA operatives and detectives when he granted Toyin Igbira bail in the sum of N1 million with two sureties each in like sum. Small piece of cake. She promptly met up. All she had to do was to press buttons on her vast Lagos-Ijebu Ode network.
But the NDLEA operatives were so furious with the baffling judgment that they were ready to pounce on Igbira and re-arrest her immediately with fresh charges on her neck. In order to ensure this did not happen, Justice Jega personally and physically shielded Toyin Igbira from the action-ready NDLEA operatives when he drove her out of the court premises with his own car all in a bid to just make sure the NDLEA operatives do not rearrest the heroin baronness. Although the case was adjourned until the whole thing went hazy. Stylishly, she regained her freedom but the NDLEA was so pissed off that they refused to hand over the property they seized from her. Not even all the legal acrobatics from Femi Falana Chambers could convince the NDLEA to release a pin to her. The following were seized from Toyin Igbira by the NDLEA operatives:
Assorted clothes and fabrics from her 14, Nnamdi Azikiwe Street, Lagos Shop valued at N17.5 million naira. Landed property and buildings at 36, Itire Road, Mushin, 14, Bereola Street, Surulere, 12 Owodunni Street, Iwaya and an undeveloped plot of land at 212, Church Street, Onigbagbo Village at Opebi, Ikeja. NB: Justice Abubakar Abdulkadir Jega (who happens to be the brother of former INEC Chairman, Professor Attahiru Jega) would later rise to become an Appeal Court Justice. In September 2015, he was crushed to death during a Hajj stampede in Muna, near Mecca in Saudi Arabia while the pilgrims were on their way to Jamarat to perform the stoning of Satan. Jega was a member of the Kebbi State’s hajj delegation to the desert kingdom.
Justice Abubakar Jega
But as NDLEA had predicted, Igbira did not become repentant as she immediately resumed her trade in hard drugs. It seemed nothing could deter her as she had the ultimate belief that she had mastered all the intricacies of the heavily-flawed Nigerian justice system – via a vast system of patronage and ‘connections’ that often involved the very functionaries in government. However, it was not long afterwards that her paths crossed again with that of her old enemy – the NDLEA.
You can see that it has been long that the Nigerian judiciary has been a major obstacle to justice in our country. In fact, on this matter, the NDLEA was so pained that on the 24th of August, just few days after Justice Jega had freed her, the agency slammed Toyin Igbira with two new charges at the Federal High Court. The first suit FHC/L118c/99 had a two-count charge: that Toyin Igbira on or about 5 April 1995 conspired with and aided one George Olanrewaju Owumi to export 1.112 kilogramme of heroin to Zurich, Switzerland and thereby committed an offence punishable under section 10c (b) of NDLEA Decree 15 of 1992.
In the second suit, the accusation hammered on Igbira’s head had it that Toyin Igbira conspired with and aided Miss Helen Osemene Izien to export 1.35 kilogrammes of heroin to New York, United States of America, offences punishable under section 10c (b) of the NDLEA Decree 15 of 1992. The NDLEA was so certain they had bulletproof cases against Igbira and that there was no way she would escape spending the rest of her cocaine-filled life behind prison walls. They were painfully disappointed.
On Monday, 6th of September 1998 when the case came up, Toyin Igbira pleaded that she was sick all of a sudden. The drama queen was determined to frustrate the case and return to her money-spinning business by all means. The cases were then adjourned till 14th of September when the charges would then be read to enable her enter a plea.
HER SECOND ARREST AND IMPRISONMENT
After trailing her for five years since 1997, the NDLEA finally made another major breakthrough on the 15th of November, 2002. On that day, an excited Zonal Command of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency at Ikeja announced with maximum glee that they had trapped a legendary suspect alive.
It was Alhaja Toyin Abraham Igbira again and she was arrested red-handed with a hefty package – 72 wraps of substance suspected to be heroin. Her fall from narcotic grace to criminal grass that fateful day occurred at the ever-bustling Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos. Igbira had informed her contacts on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean that she was on her way already. As a veteran in the illegal trade, she made sure she closed all the loops and perfected every move. However, it was a terrible day for her as the devilish package on her was discovered shortly before she was to board her flight to the United States of America.
It was that moment that many Nigerians really heard her name and saw her face for the very first time. She was paraded before ogling journalists at the NDLEA headquarters. During the adrenalin-filled press conference, Alhaji Abdullahi A. Danburam who was the NDLEA zonal commander trumpeted it loud for everyone to hear that they had been placing traps for Alhaja Igbira since 1997 but she managed to evade almost all by remaining several steps ahead of them – until the gods got pissed off and declared her cup full again on the 15th of November.
Newsmic: Grace Makun, wife of popular Nigerian fashion stylist, Yomi Makun popularly known as Yomi Casual, has reacted to claim of her husband being gay, IGBERETV reports.
In an Instagram post she shared, Grace told those sending her "'DMs concerning the very disrespectful assumption and the indirect rumours" to stop.
Grace wrote;
More so, to those of you who love gossip, you can continue to spread your drama and lies as fans of negativity until being a victim of it would lead you into knowing how much it hurts and destroy people’s peace and joy .
Cosmatikka: Can Tinubu say same about not been involved in drugs or the killings at Lekki toll gate?
Yomi may God vindicate you
Don't u Feel same for TINUBU to be VINDICATED of unproven LIES?
I jus watch ppl post lies n imagined fact on Social media. Many don't know that it goes a long way. A vp candidate was seen shedding tears last week when his family was mentioned on live camera bt was shocked today when I read a post of what his principal said about another man who also is a candidate for another party having no background. People Insults each other, curse each hard labored efforts cos u support a particular party or candidate and have a fact u can't even prove 10% bt jus the copy and paste fact u read. Politicians are always around bt election comes and go! After election , u bring ur Cv here and expect one u once called Urchin to give u job? When ur candidate becomes an elected one, is he the one that will give you job under his Tenure? No be the URCHINS God go bless them private company to make deal n be able to pay for your service under ur preferred candidate Tenure?
Please go and see the movie called "BAD COMMEMT" and u ppl should LEARN... What exactly Aisha Buhari did recently, so troller can have their portion of pains to. MOST OF U DONT EVEN HAVE FULL DATA , some are on SOCIAL MEDIA PLANS, daily MB plan n so on. Please ! Let get it right.
We all have what who we follow [who has once followed others before he became whom we follow today], don't be a follower that won't be followed in future! Leave PEOPLE PRIVATE LIVES ALONE. BUY A CHAIR THAT HELP YOU SIT OUT PEOPLES BUSINESS, ITS PROFITABLE MINDING ONE'S BUSNIESS.
EBMedia: A man was caught stealing a bunch of plantain at Elebele community in Ogbia Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, IGBERETV reports.
The suspect, who was caught three days ago, was given strokes of cane by the newly appointed Community Development Committee (CDC) Chairman, Comrade Okala Precious Peter.
Comrade Okala Precious Peter shared the news on Facebook. He shared the photos and wrote;
Good day Nairaland people. I come in peace, I am here to beg u to please help me buy this Ride 10months used from toks. Direct Canada imported, non-accident , 1st body paint , Ac, gear, engine intact. I have 1 week left and this must go, I no wan take loan again or beg.. make someone please buy this a Good price . The car is 4.5m as toks, Buy I am selling 3.3M last last. DM FOR INFO.
ExclusiveBet: Recently engaged Nollywood actress, Nkiru Sylvanus, who is gearing up for her wedding this year, has shared pre-wedding photos while keeping her fiance’s face hidden.
WITHIN NIGERIA reported that last year the talented movie star got engaged. Nkiru shared a photo of her engagement ring, without any details about her husband-to-be.
As the couple countdown to their wedding day, Nkiru Sylvanus took to her Instagram page to share stunning pre-wedding photos. The actress who kept his face hidden only showed his back view. See photos and caption:
“It’s about to go down!”.
In December, congratulatory messages poured in as Nkiru Sylvanus announced that she was engaged. The actress ended the year on a high note as she said yes to the love of her life.
The excited bride-to-be took to her Instagram page to show off her engagement ring.
“It is what it is”.
Her comment section was flooded with congratulatory messages from her family, friends and colleagues.
Na person HUBBY? Why hiding him FACE... WE KNOW U LONG DUE.
I heard OLD NEWSPAPERS dey cost to buy after PRODUCTION dates.
moonbyte25: BBNaija Princess has slammed Phyna for revealing to the whole world that she’s had two abortions, warning her to keep things private.
Princess said Phyna is a grown woman and at this point must learn that some things are not for public consumption.
Phyna, 25, opened up while in the Big Brother Naija house that she has had abortions before.
Then, last week, she revealed on Twitter that she had two abortions, the first was when she was 19 and the second at the age of 24.
Reacting, Princess, who contested in an earlier season of Big Brother Naija, wrote: “You had abortions at 19, & 24, and you bought loud speaker to let all of us know. At what age will you learn to keep private things private.”
Celebrities › Re: Nollywood Actor Charles Okocha 2pac Survived Accident by Wealthoptulent(m): 9:23pm On Jan 17, 2023
