The Nation Newspaper

Category: City Beats

  • FRSC unveils alcohol device

    FRSC unveils alcohol device

    The Frderal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has reiterated its commitment to prosecute any driver found driving under the influence of alcohol and hard drugs.

    The Lagos and Ogun States Zonal Commander, Nse-Obong Akpabio, said this in Ojota while unveiling an alcohol detective device.

    He said the Corps database had shown that drunk-driving, apart from speed and overloading violations, has been one of the major factors responsible for the incessant crashes on the highways.

    Over 75 per cent of road crashes was caused by alcohol, he said.

    The device, Akpabio said, would reduce if not totally eradicate the menace.

    According to him, the device can also be used for research and keeping of biometric data of drivers such as name, address, drivers licence’s number and the result of the test for at least 12 months, adding that it would enable the corps to detect if the driver had once been arrested for such offence.

    He urged the road users to abstain from driving under influence of drugs or alcohol, saying anyone cut would be prosecuted and the vehicle impounded.

    A truck driver with Total Gas, Mr Oyedokun Bakare, appealed to drivers to shun all forms of indiscipline.

  • How to reduce gridlock by LASTMA chief

    How to reduce gridlock by LASTMA chief

    Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) has met with stakeholders to proffer solution to the perennial gridlock in Ikorodu axis.

    The Nation learnt that the traffic snarl at the roundabout is affecting socio-economic development of the town.

    Speaking at the parley, LASTMA’s General Manager, Mr Bashir Braimah, said the gridlock is surmountable.

    He blamed it on motorists’ indiscipline, street trading, illegal motor parks, driving against traffic, disobedience of traffic law and frequent breaking down of vehicles on the roads.

    Braimah urged transport unions, motorists, traditional and religious leaders at the occasion to take the message of traffic law compliance to their various domains.

    This, he said, will aid free flow of traffic.

    The general manager assured them of the agency’s readiness and capacity to achieve seamless driving.

    According to Braimah, the agency has a robust disciplinary and complaint unit where motorists and members of the public can lodge complaints against erring traffic officers.

    Sagamu Road Police Station Divisional Police Officer (DPO), Mr Chris Adeyeri, enjoined motorists to always exhibit discipline and avoid picking and dropping of passengers at unauthorised places.

     

     

     

  • Social media bill: Penalty for violators

    Social media bill: Penalty for violators

    The proposed social media bill by The Senate on Frivolous Petitions, which passed second reading, if enacted, will subject violators to between two and four years imprisonment.

    Although, many do not know the weight of the bill, there have been reactions to the bill after it was subsequently passed to the relevant committee for consideration and to report back to the Senate within three weeks.

    On Tuesday, President Muhammadu Buhari promised not to assent to any legislation that might be inconsistent with the constitution.

    The President said this through his Senior Special on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, saying that he has sworn to defend the constitution and would not lend his hand to anything that was inconsistent with the document.

    “But he is not averse to lawful regulation, so long as that is done within the ambit of the constitution, which he swore to uphold,” he said.

    Shehu added that the President said free speech was central to democratic societies anywhere in the world. Without free speech, the president explained that elected representatives won’t be able to gauge public feelings and moods about governance issues.

    ‘As a key component of democratic principles,’ the president acknowledged that people in democratic societies ‘are so emotionally attached to free speech that they would defend it with all their might’.

    “Because the Senate is a democratic Senate, the President won’t assent to any legislation that may be inconsistent with the constitution of Nigeria,” he added.

    Following the controversy over the bill, Social media lovers on Tuesday stormed the National Assembly to say no to the proposed bill.

    The protesters, who gathered at the Unity Fountain Maitama Abuja, are calling on the Upper chamber ‘to immediately discontinue with the said bill as proposed by Senator Bala Ibn Na’Allah from Kebbi State.
    The bill suggests four years imprisonment or payment of between N2m and N4m fine for intentionally propagating false information that could threaten the security of the country or that is capable of inciting the general public against the government through electronic message.

    Similarly, it suggests up to two years jail term or N2m N4m fine or both for anyone disseminating via text message, Twitter, WhatsApp, or any other form of social media an “abusive statement”.
    This also involves messages intending to “set the public against any person and group of persons, an institution of government or such other bodies established by law.”

    The Direct Conflict of this Bill with Section 39 (1) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 as Amended in 2011 which states, “Every Person shall be entitled to Freedom of Expression, including freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart ideas and information without interference.”
    It is also noteworthy that there has been a spirited effort to justify this repressive and unconstitutional action of the Senate but it does not suffice in line with the commitment seen from the senate and its senators from both parties actively arguing positively for the necessity of such a bill.
    The question that these protesters are seeking answer to is: “Who are they (the senate) afraid of?”

    Meanwhile, the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) and the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) have distanced themselves from such move, urging the Senate to unconditionally suspend proceedings on the bill.

    In a statement, GarbaDeen Muhammad, President of NGE said that the broad objective of the bill was to outlaw the freedom of expression of the citizens and freedom of speech of media organisations operating in print, electronic and on-line platforms.

    The statement reads in part: “Appallingly, the bill has also included as its target very personal and private means of communication such as SMS or text messages and WhatsApp, among others.

    “The freedom of speech and expression is guaranteed in section 22 and 39(1) of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution respectively. Therefore, to enact any kind of law under any guise that will contradict these fundamental provisions is to deliberately seek to undermine the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

    “We are, therefore, concerned that a group of persons elected by Nigerians to ensure that their rights, privileges and interests are protected, should gleefully misuse the mandate given to them to the detriment of the same people that elected them,” Mohammad observed.

    Also, National President of NUJ Waheed Odusile, speaking at a lecture in Ibadan, Oyo state, vowed that the media would not allow the bill to see the light of the day.

    Odusile said what the proponents of the controversial bill were trying to do was to bring back the Decree 4 of 1983 to satisfy their selfish interests, adding that “it is a law targeted at restricting freedom of expression”.

    Imploring NUJ state councils to submit petitions at their respective state assemblies, he said the union would mobilise its members to the National Assembly to stop the bill whenever it is presented for public hearing.

  • Police transfer suspected drug peddlers to NDLEA

    Police transfer suspected drug peddlers to NDLEA

    The Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge of Zone 2 Command, Lagos, Mr Bala Hassan has transferred two suspects found with cannabis to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).

    The suspects were arrested with 863 compressed parcels of dried weeds that tested positive for cannabis weighing 781.5 kilogrammes believed to have been smuggled from Ghana by sea at Badagry.

    They were received by the Seme command of the Agency on behalf of the NDLEA.

    NDLEA commander at Seme Border Command, Mr Udotong Essien while receiving the suspects and exhibits, pledged to carry out further investigation.

    The commander gave the names of the suspects as Ismaila Aliyu, 26, a transporter and Edwin Igbokwe, 39, a labourer at Badagry jetty.

    Items recovered from them include: one speed boat powered by Yamaha engine; three Honda motorcycles and  N480,000 believed to be proceeds from drug business.

    Aliyu said he imported the cannabis from Ghana for the end-of-year sales.

    He said: “Most dealers now prefer imported cannabis from Ghana. This consignment was targeted at the end-of-year sales. As a transporter, I make more money from cannabis importation.

    “The cannabis would have been distributed to dealers in Lagos if not that we were arrested. I have two wives and four children and I take care of them from the money I make from cannabis sales.”

    Igbokwe said his role was to carry the drugs from the boat to a vehicle that will convey them from the riverside to town.

     

  • RRS recovers 18 sacks of Indian-hemp from gang

    RRS recovers 18 sacks of Indian-hemp from gang

    A FOUR-MAN gang of narcotic specialists have been arrested in Lagos by men of the state crime-fighting outfit – the Rapid Response Squad (RRS).

    The suspects were arrested at the weekend by the RSS officials who acted on a tip-off.

    They were caught with 18  sacks of substance believed to be Indian-hemp.

    The gang had until now, been allegedly terrorising residents of Oyingbo-Otto and its environs.

    The RRS team, led by Inspector Adeniba Olorunshola, arrested the suspects after a two-week surveillance in the area.

    The operatives, during the special operation, apprehended, Quadri Jimoh, 23, Tajudeen Busari, 33, Ukowa Udomma, 34 and Yakubu Mudashiru, 30, while another suspect, identified as Olumide (aka Aroso), believed to be the  gang leader, escaped.

    Two of the suspects confessed that they were not the actual dealer but that they only smoke, identifying one Olumide, who is at large, as the dealer of the recovered substance.

    “I went there to buy Indian Hemp before I found myself inside the police net. As a fashion designer, I came to Lagos about two years ago to eke out a livelihood,” Udomma said.

    Mudashiru, whose house was reportedly razed by fire some years ago, confessed that he has been a regular patron to the house where the drugs were found.

    “I have nowhere to stay after my house was razed down by fire. Since then, I have been sleeping inside motor park at Oyingbo. Truly, I went there to smoke on the fateful day,” he said.

    Addressing reporters in his office, the RRS Commander, Olatunji Disu, an Assistant Commissioner of Police, (ACP), urged Lagos residents to always furnish the police with information.

    “With information from members of public, the work of the policemen will be easy. We cannot do it all alone as we rely much on the hints from the people”, Disu said.

    He said the manhunt for the drug kingpin would continue.

    The suspects have been transferred to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) for further interrogation.

     

  • Ojuelegba explosion: I ran out naked, says victim

    Ojuelegba explosion: I ran out naked, says victim

    Some residents of Ajoke Dosunmu Street in Ojuelegba, Lagos are still scared to return home after an explosion from a fuel tanker razed five cars and a storey building on Saturday.

    Many occupants on the streets, The Nation learnt, are squatting with friends and families.

    The wife of the owner of the burnt storey-building, Mrs Rita Jinadu, who was admitted in a hospital, said she was asleep when the incident occurred.

    She said she perceived the fuel around 2am but slept, believing that nothing was going to happen.

    Her words: “When I perceived it, I was not comfortable because I don’t use generator in my house. Around 4am, I woke up to use the toilet and immediately, my husband and I saw fire. The fire came directly to our bedroom. We woke our children and ran out of the house. I was naked. It was a neighbour that clothed me. We watched our house burn from a distance.

    ‘’I wouldn’t have thought of this happening to me because I am at the remote side of the community. It is really pathetic. As I speak, we don’t have anything. My children’s certificates, everything went with the fire. I just collected N250,000 from my thrift collecting business but everything is gone. We were told the government instructed Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) to take us to Igando but we don’t know what they have for us. Her son, Oluwashina Jinadu, pleaded with the government to assist them, adding that there is nothing they can do.

    He said:”We have been living here for 10 years. I can’t believe we lost everything in one day. My brother and I slept in a friends place while our parents slept in the hospital. We need help; we really do.”

    A resident, Matomi Lawal, said when he saw fire, he took his children to his mother’s place on the Island.

    He said: “It is still like magic. I couldn’t think straight. It was even after I took my children for safety I returned for my certificates. I thought my house would also burn. I thank the fire fighters.”

    Alhaji Fatai Aro, said he thought his life and his family members was going to end.

    “We were sleeping when a neighbour woke us. Our door was so stiff and so many things kept going through my mind. We couldn’t sleep. My wife and children went to her mother’s place while I waited behind. I have been using water to put out the remaining debris because smoke has not stopped coming out. It is really unfortunate. My mind is not at rest,” Aro said.

    David Alu, who sells printing materials said he lost about N350,000 to the fire adding: “I have nothing. I watched my shop go down. Today (Sunday), some people gave me print papers to sell. I need assistance so I can be on my feet again.”

    Another resident simply called Tawakalitu said she would no longer live in the house adding: “I can’t live here anymore because I am scared. I slept in my sister’s place.”

     

  • Yuletide: Assembly asks police to intensify surveillance

    Yuletide: Assembly asks police to intensify surveillance

    Lagos State House of Assembly yesterday urged the  Commissioner of Police, Mr Fatai Owoseni to intensify community policing during Yuletide.

    Speaker Mudashiru Obasa, however, said that everything cannot be left for the police.

    He promised that the Assembly would come up with relevant laws to checkmate incessant cases of murder, robbery and others.

    Obasa was responding to a motion by Majority Leader Sanai Agunbiade on the need to curtail the activities of hoodlums during Christmas and New Year celebration.

    Agunbiade also called for the review of the Neighbourhood Watch Law to give the officers more power on surveillance and intelligence gathering.

    Mrs Adefunmilayo Tejuosho (Mushin I), expressed concern at the rising wave of crimes in the society.

    She called for arms restriction.

    Tobun Abiodun said ritual killing is now rampant, saying that bodies of four ladies were found somewhere in Alimosho few months back.

    Rotimi Olowo also said four men were slaughtered in Shomolu recently.

    “We should use what we have to get what we want. We should strengthen our Neighbourhood Watch so that they could assist the police in combating crimes in the state,” he said.

    This was supported by Bisi Yusuf, who said that an officer of the Neighbourhood Watch in Alimosho once assisted in the arrest of 15 suspected armed robbers, but that the man was eventually killed.

  • Health expert needs N10m to live

    Health expert needs N10m to live

    A 36-year-old Safety health expert, Mr Kehinde Adesina has called for public assistance to raise N10 million for a kidney transplant to save his own life.

    His twin sister, Taiwo Iro (Nee Adesina) was at The Nation to seek assistance from the public on his behalf yesterday.

    She said her twin brother, who is married with a child, was diagnosed with kidney failure in February this year and has been receiving treatment.

    Taiwo said his ailment has since deteriorated to level five, where he is surviving entirely on dialysis, which costs more than N30 000 per session and he goes for three sessions every week.

    Doctors’ consultations have advised urgent kidney transplant, as Kehinde cannot keep up with the expenses of dialysis anymore.

    Kehinde, in a social media message asked for well-meaning Nigerians to assist him to raise the needed funds for his transplant in order to help him live a long, healthy and fulfilled life.

    “I hereby appeal to all well-meaning Nigerians to come to my aid and support me with whatever they can so that I can have a successful transplant that will help me live a fulfilling life and continue to add value to Nigeria as a whole,” he said.

    Meanwhile, Kehinde’s family and friends have started a social media campaign tagged #LetKennyLive to raise awareness and support of the public to the course.

    To donate to save Kehinde’s life, kindly contact The Nation headquarters at Mushin or contact Tijani on 08066443324

    First Bank account: Kehinde Adesina; Account number: 3069734130.

  • Agency hails Tinubu’s foresight

    Agency hails Tinubu’s foresight

    Lagos State Materials Testing Laboratory has hailed All Progressives Congress (APC) National Leader Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu for laying the ground work for the establishment of the outfit.

    Its Consultant Manager Shola Famakin said the outfit has made remarkable contributions to the safety and wellbeing of Lagosians in the last eight years of its establishment.

    Famakin urged government to consider compulsory materials testing as a pre-requisite for all building contractors in the state.

    Mandatory materials testing for new buildings as well as soil test, he said, would further reduce incidences of collapse buildings.

    No incidence of building collapse had been recorded from any of the certified buildings and materials by the agency, he said, stressing that noncompliance to building standard and negligence by contractors had been responsible for the perennial building collapses.

    He appealed to contractors, site engineers and the general public to always pay attention to the materials test results and comply with recommendation therein as applicable

    Famakin hailed the collaboration between the agency, Lagos State Safety Commission and Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA).

  • Speaker to Lagosians: be law-abiding

    Speaker to Lagosians: be law-abiding

    Lagos State House of Assembly Speaker Mudashiru Obasa has urged Lagosians to be patient with Governor Akinwunmi Ambode on various issues affecting the state.

    Obasa said the state government has already set out to address those issues.

    Represented by Hon AbdulHakeem Shokunle of Oshodi-Isolo Constituency I at the inauguration of Nasrul-li-Fatih society of Nigeria (NASFAT), Ajasa Command Branch, Ayobo, Lagos, Obasa said the assembly will not waiver in backing Governor Ambode with necessary legislation to move the state forward.

    Lagosians on their own part, he said, should be law abiding and eschew criminal activities.

    Lagos State Commissioner for Home Affairs Dr AbdulHakeem AbdulLateef said Ambode’s administration is ready to tackle criminal actions through provision of infrastructure and job creation.

    AbdulLateef, the guest speaker, said security is not all about policing, rather creating a conducive atmosphere for masses to earn a decent livelihood. Once majority of the population are gainfully employed, crimes will reduce drastically. He warned fellow office holders against short-changing the masses, reminding them of Day of Accountability.

    According to him, the gladiators for the Kogi government house have forgotten so soon that the man elected on November 21 to occupy the state’s number one seat is no more.

    “We are all going to join Abubakar Audu one day. If Audu knew the date of his death, perhaps he would not went through the stress of electioneering campaigns. Politicians must know that it is Allah only that gives position to who He wishes. They should fear Allah and be fair with the masses,” he said.

    The branch’s chairman Alhaji Nurudeen Ajala appealed to government to provide good roads and health system for the community.