The Nation Newspaper

Category: City Beats

  • Artistes intensify anti-piracy war

    Musicians and actors under the umbrella of Film and Video Producers Association of Nigeria (FVPMAN) have taken their war against piracy to the streets.

    The group held a peace walk in Lagos against piracy last Saturday.

    The walk began at Planet One Hotel at Maryland through Opebi Link Bridge and ended at the Lagos Television (LTV) in Ikeja.

    Many actors, actresses, musicians and dancers frowned at piracy, which according to them, has deprived them of the fruits of their labour.

    Some organisations and corporate bodies also came together to support the group. One of the groups, Oceanic Health Management Limited (OHML), a health care insurance company; screened participants for hypertension, diabetes and eye problem.

    Head, Medical Operations, Dr. Emegha Emohare said his company is supporting the anti-piracy war because artistes are being denied their due.

    Performing Musicians Association of Nigeria (PMAN) President Pretty Okafor said his organisation is committed to fighting piracy, adding: “We don’t get value for our money. We put in so much time, energy and money just to get little or no profit in return.”

    Nigeria Inter–Bank Settlement System  (NIBSS) Managing Director Adebisi Shonubi said: “This marks the beginning of change for the media industry. This walk is to sensitise people that piracy is real and that they should not encourage the entertainers. Piracy kills artists and so it should be discouraged.”

    Nollywood star Emeka Ike, who is also the President of Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), said the industry needs to fight this rot. “The time is up for piracy,” he added.

    A representative of the National Association of Nigerian Deejays (NAND), DJ Mix, said: “I beg Nigerians to condemn piracy and say no to it.”

    A member of Marketers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Mr Emeka Samuel Aduah said: “We are here to tell the world about piracy and tell them that it is real and we all must kick against it.”

     

  • ‘Let professionals direct government policies’

    A former Chairman of Ikeja Local Government Wale Odunlami, has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to ensure that his administration’s policies are initiated, directed and monitored by professionals.

    Odunlami made the observation while speaking to reporters at a stakeholders’ meeting to advocate tax compliance, recently in Ikeja,.

    Odunlami, who is a also Past Chairman of Ikeja District Society of the Institute of Chartered Accountants (ICAN) and former Council Member of Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (CITN), stressed: “Professionals should be the bedrock of the policies of this government and the major push factor for its success.”

    He added: “It is our hope that our present crop of leaders will not toe the negative path of past governments, which had maintained the culture of putting square pegs in round holes.

    “Political appointments this time around, should be made based on capability of delivery and more importantly, should mirror the yearnings of the people. This will go a long way to give confidence to the people with regards to the ‘change’ factor in the system, which the people voted for.“

     

  • Lagos ‘ll enforce traffic laws, says Ambode

    Lagos ‘ll enforce traffic laws, says Ambode

    Lagos State Governor Akinwunmi Ambode has restated his administration’s commitment to ensuring total compliance with traffic laws by motorists and other road users.

    The laws, he explained, were enacted  to ensure easy movement.

    The governor, represented by his deputy, Dr Idiat Adebule, spoke at thecommissioning of a multi-storey car park complex at Ikoyi Club 1938 in Lagos yesterday.

    When there is strict compliance with relevant laws, especially the laws on traffic management, the economic prosperity and infrastructural development, the governor said.

    Commissioning the multi-storey car park, Ambode praised Ikoyi Club 1938 for its construction, describing it as a laudable project that would ease traffic in the area.

    He enjoined other social and corporate organisations to emulate the club.

    The club’s Chairman, Major-Gen Mufutau Balogun (rtd) said the park’s construction was in fulfilment of a 13-year dream, noting it would make its members and visitors more comfortable.

    He said the usual traffic snarl around the club and environs would now be reduced, adding that the park can accommodate about 295 cars on four floors and nine parking areas.

    He said it is fitted with modern features including Closed Circuit Television Cameras (CCTV), elevators, a restaurant and a lounge for drivers, among other amenities.

     

  • ‘My father had sex with me to confirm my virginity’

    ‘My father had sex with me to confirm my virginity’

    • It’s devil’s work, says dad

     

    A 14-year-old girl has told the police how her father, Waheed Adeboye, 49, defiled her in their Ikorodu, Lagos home.

    She alleged that her father, who is now being detained at the Zonal Special Anti-Robbery Squad (ZSARS) Onikan, Lagos,  first had carnal knowledge of her in November 2014. “He had carnal knowledge of me again on March 5, this year,” she added.

    The victim, a Senior Secondary 1 pupil at Aro Isiode Grammar School in Ikorodu, Lagos, said: “We live in a face-me-I-face-you house in the Adamuo area of Ikorodu. My mother is late. We are four – my brother, two sisters and I. My father was formerly working at the National Open University (NOUN) but now works at a sawmill at Ikorodu. He left our family when I was three years old and he returned when my mother died.

    “In 2014, he used to check my private parts to find out if I had started menstruating. His second wife had already left him. One Saturday, I was sleeping alone on the floor in our one-room apartment; he removed my wrapper and lay with me on the ground while touching my private part with his finger.

    “Later, he asked me whether anybody had tested it and I said no. He said he would use his manhood to confirm. He removed my under-wear and wore a condom. He forced his manhood into me. I wanted to scream, but he held my mouth. After having fun with me, I bled profusely and felt weak.

    “I was angry with him because he is my father, but he warned me not to tell anybody. Sometimes he would ask me why I was browsing with my phone and when, attempted to explain to him, he would hold me and have fun with me. I felt humiliated and went to a church where I narrated my problem. The church brought me here for police attention.

    “He drinks a lot and womanises with prostitutes and other women outside marriage.”

    Adeboye, who sells planks in Ikorodu, said the victim’s mother died in 2007, adding: “I was arrested by the Oodua People’s Congress (OPC) for raping my daughter. They beat me silly and carried me to a church. The church then brought me to Zone II SARS.

    “It is devil work. I did not drink. Please my daughter, if I have offended you, forgive me. I am your father,” he pleaded.

    Zone II Acting Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) Shem Olorunfemi, an Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), said the matter was reported to the police on May 20.

    The case, he said, was transferred to ZSARS following a petition by a church. This, he said, led to the suspect’s arrest on May 21.

    Olorunfemi said a medical report and police investigations showed that the suspect defiled his daughter, adding that he would be charged to court after investigations.

  • ‘We have been left homeless’

    ‘We have been left homeless’

    •Demolition victims relive ordeal

    Residents of ‘K’ Close, 34 Road Gowon Estate in Egbeda, Lagos yesterday painted a grim picture of Friday’s demolition of their homes by Federal Task Force officials and riot policemen.

    They described their experience as terrible and horrifying.

    “I was sleeping when a neighbour said policemen from the state’s secretariat had stormed our close. As I stepped out to ask what their mission was, I was rough-handled by three policemen who stripped me naked and pushed me into a Black Maria like a criminal.

    “I cried bitterly like a baby to the extent of defecating on my body. I had never been humiliated in that manner in my life. I was abused. I kept asking myself if I committed an offence contradicting the laws of the state,” said 56-year-old victim Darlington Ajitemisan.

    Ajitemisan, whose house and church were demolished, said if not for the intervention of an officer who ordered his release, he would have been dumped in prison.

    “When he saw that I had defecated on my body, he ordered some of his men to bathe me after which they gave me one of the prisoners’ clothes to wear. When I returned home, everything I worked for all my life had gone – my church, furniture, everything! I couldn’t recognise my site anymore. We have been left homeless,” he said.

    It was gathered that many residents had left for work, while others, who are traders, had opened their shops when the task force and policemen arrived around 10am.

    A source said some town planners earlier visited the area and marked a wall erected by a businessman who claimed to be the owner of the land. But when the officials came that morning, the source added, instead of demolishing the wall which was said to be illegal, they descended on people’s houses.

    Vivian, whose mother owns a shop, amid tears, said that without questioning anyone, the officials began to demolish buildings.

    “They were almost 40 in number, armed. They threatened to shoot anyone who came close to them. It took them three hours to destroy all we built in years. Even when we tried to save our belongings, we were chased. They said they were going to destroy us with our properties. I couldn’t rescue anything. Everything is gone. I was even thinking of searching thoroughly on (Saturday) but it rained heavily. I can’t find my University Matriculation Examination (UME) slip and my post-UME examination is holding next month. I don’t understand. We have been living here for over six years and this land issue has been going on. I slept outside with my family under the rain. It is unfair. All our means of livelihood have been destroyed,” she said.

    A pastor with the Sanctified Deliverance Zion Church, Apostle Uche Ikechukwu, said he had been on the land for over 27 years, adding that he had documents to back up his ownership.

    Ikechukwu said: “This incident is pathetic. No one gave us quit notice and they claimed that there were orders from the government. They didn’t allow us to take anything. I haven’t had my bath or eaten since the incident. I have a land survey and I don’t know where they have been all these years. My family and I slept in someone’s balcony because it rained heavily. We need the government to intervene since they said order came from him. Justice must prevail.”

    Another affected resident, Gift, a teacher, said she was in class when she received a call that their houses were being demolished.

    She said when she tried to bring something out of her apartment; a block fell on her head.

    Gift said: “Blood was all over my body. I thought I wasn’t going to survive the injury. We are homeless. I have been in this environment since last year. This is brutal.”

    Majesty Argogho, who has been in the estate for over six years, said they have been rendered homeless and prayed for government’s intervention so that justice can be done. “I have a wife and three kids. Everything is destroyed. I really believed in this regime but now I am shocked because it is almost a month after the new government was sworn in and all this is happening. Over six churches were destroyed. They are being unfair to us,” he said.

  • Repair Daleko Market road, traders urge govt

    Repair Daleko Market road, traders urge govt

    Traders and other users of the road leading to the popular Daleko Market at Isolo, Mushin, Lagos State, have urged government to fix it.

    They are claiming that the road deteriorates on a daily basis and is badly affecting their business among other activities.

    The repair of the road was said to have been abandoned last November, thereby worsening its condition.

    The pains occasioned by the condition of the road, the users claimed, have bred incessant traffic jam, flooding and accidents on a daily basis.

    Hoodlums, The Nation learnt, have capitalised on the situation of the road to extort money from vehicle owners while filling some of the potholes with sand.

    A trader, Femi Adebayo, said the bad state of the road is negatively affecting traders as customers have stopped coming towards this area.

    “Most of the time, traffic jam hinders customers from coming our way; they get stuck on the road and later go elsewhere to buy what they need, leaving us to stare at our goods all day,’ he said.’

    He added that the repair which began last year was abandoned, adding: “As you can see the road got worse than it was. We hope things gets better very soon so that our customers can come to us with ease to patronise us.”

    A resident, MrsAngela Chukwuma said: “Fuel tanker drivers know this road is bad and they still pass through it. Whenever they pass, they stagger all along and this poses fear in our hearts. A tanker fell across the road recently but we were lucky it had already emptied its contents before getting here. We might not be so lucky next time and we hope something could be done to help.’’

    Mr Diya Akin, another resident, blamed the poor state of the road on trucks and petrol tankers, saying: “They are the major cause to the bad state of this road and the traffic. We want the government to stop them from going through the road by creating another route for them and maybe the traffic and accident would reduce a bit.”

    A motorcyclist, Mr Jacob Oluwafunmilayo, said: “I am very sad about how much this road has affected my business. Normally, I carry rice and flour from this market with my motorcycle to various destinations, but since the condition of this road has worsened, we fall while riding and sometimes throw everything we carry inside the dirty water.

    “This worrisome situation has made our customers to neglect us and go with buses and other means. At the end of the day, I do nothing and take no penny home to my family.”

    Mr Chuks Anko, a commuter said: “I have several cars but coming here with any is impossible because the road has done so much damage to each of them. It took me thousands of naira to repair them. So, I had to buy my goods elsewhere instead of going through this bad road.”

    In a related development, a trailer lost control while struggling to avoid potholes at the bad portion of the Daleko Junction.

  • ‘My husband abandoned me for no reason’

    •Man: our union is bad omen

    A middle-age woman, Sophia Arapogun, has prayed an Agege Customary Court in Lagos to dissolve her 11-year-old marriage because her husband, Patrick, abandoned her for two years.

    Mrs Arapogun, who lives with her husband and his six children from his previous marriage, said he never asked her how she fed.

    “My husband buys foodstuff for his children and asks them to keep it in their room. He never asked what I needed at a particular moment and we lived together,” she said.

    The petitioner said her husband came home at a time to sprinkle something that looked like blood all over the house, adding that she worked as a clerical officer in her husband’s hospital.

    She said: “I used to package melon to sell in neighbouring markets but since my husband didn’t like the idea, he employed me in his hospital. There was a day I took N300 to take passport photograph, he shouted at me in the presence of his children and I felt humiliated. I was more shocked when he made sure I refunded the money.”

    She is seeking an accommodation from him as compensation if her petiton is granted.

    Patrick said he married her because he heard a pathetic story about her, adding: “I asked if she had any evil spirit or medical problems which didn’t make her conceive during her two previous marriages but she said no; then I married her.”

    The respondent, a doctor, said after their marriage, he discovered that three minutes after making love to her, he got a knock or slap on his head.

    “Not only did I get a knock, whenever I had the intention of sleeping with her, I had rashes on my manhood or my manhood twisted. At times, I did not get erection or my sperm seized. Since then, I became afraid of everything,” Arapogun said.

    He said his hospital crumbled after his wife began to work with him, adding that she stole money on several occasions.

    “When we lived together, there were times my wife left the bedroom and returned in the morning without any explanation. Our union is bad omen. I have suffered from swollen legs, slight stroke and it was when I realised my wife defecates in the bucket I used to bathe that I decided to leave with my children because I was not ready to die young and I don’t know what was going to happen next,” he said. The couple have no issue.

    The court’s President, Pa Adekunle Williams, ordered the petitioner to maintain peace and adjourned the matter till July 13 for further hearing.

  • Youths walk for peace in Lagos

    Youths walk for peace in Lagos

    Trumpets blared amid loud drums and songs along Ikorodu Road when The African Lads Brigade, under the Universal Communion of the Anglican Church, walked for peace in Lagos.

    The walk, it was gathered, was part of the activities to mark the movement’s 90th anniversary.

    Before 7 am, many of the youths were at St Paul African Church in Ilupeju, Lagos, where the walk began. They were in branded white T-shirts; some carried the banner of the brigade and flags to create more awareness for the walk.

    The walk, which started around 8am ended around 11.20 am. Both the old and the young participated.

    The hot sun of that day meant nothing to the participants who trooped out in hundreds. They danced, played the brigade drums, trumpet and clapped in the fun-filled exercise.

    The huge crowd moved through the Association Avenue in Ilupeju, down to Obanikoro Bus Stop and finally to African Church Cathedral Selem on Freeman Street in Ebute Meta on Lagos Mainland.

    Security officials were on hand to control vehicular movement and the crowd. They caused a stir for all residents and road users along the routes they plied.

    When the crowd got to African Church Cathedral Selem, around 11 am amid jubilation, little Tonade Okiki, 8, Oreofe Shoda, 11, were full of life after the walk. The crowd were later served refreshments.

    According to the Brigadia General/Chief Executive Officer of the joint movement, Folarin Olusanya, an engineer, the walk was to encourage children to do exercises to remain healthy.

    He added that the walk was also part of the 90th anniversary of the Brigade. “It is our way of thanking God for his preservation and growth of the movement which has spread to virtually all the states of the federation. The walk is also our way to thank God for the successful and peaceful transition in the country, especially in Lagos State, during the last elections. We thank God that the elections did not result in any form of problem or warfare that could cause commotion in the country.”

    He added; “The walk is our way of using our strength, as youths to praise God and walk for the progress of the country. We want people to rejoice with us and Nigerians should be happy,” he said.

    Secretary of the 90th anniversary committee, Oluwaseyilayo Otegbada noted that the walk was to proclaim Christ, bring back the glory of the movement for them to unite again and have something in common to do together.

    Chairman of the 90th anniversary committee, Yemi Martins said the walk was to keep them fit and to let the world know what the Brigade is doing.

  • Honour for council chief, 24 others

    Honour for council chief, 24 others

    Lagos Chief Judge, Justice  Funmilayo Atilade has sworn in the Executive Secretary, Ejigbo Local Council Development Area, Jaiye Alabi and 24 others as Notaries Public of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

    Administering the oath of office on the legal practitioners at a brief ceremony, inside court one of Ikeja high court, Justice Atilade congratulated them for attaining their new status in the law profession.

    She urged them to use the position to serve as good ambassadors of their profession and Nigeria as a whole.

    With their new status as notaries public, Alabi and his colleagues have been constituted by law to serve the public in non-contentious matters usually concerned with estates, deeds and powers of attorney.

  • Wife: he enjoys beating me

    A trader, Funmilayo Amadi, has taken her husband, Uchenna, to an Agege Customary Court in Lagos, seeking a dissolution of their one-year marriage.

    She is alleging that her husband gets angry over trivial issues.

    “I wish I foresaw this because our marriage is too young to start having troubles. Since we got married, I haven’t had rest of mind. He is very troublesome and enjoys beating me,” Mrs Amadi said.

    The Ekiti-State-born woman said she left home two months ago after her husband beat her up.

    She said: “He dealt with me mercilessly and sent me out of the house as if I never mattered to him. Since then, I have been forced to live with my parents. I doubt if I can return to him because I wasn’t born to suffer.”

    The respondent, Uchenna, said a month after their wedding, his wife insisted on returning to her parents house and left two months ago.

    Uchenna denied beating her, alleging that she packed out of her own volition.

    “We were not forced to marry each other; it was consensual. This is happening because I advised her to act like a married woman to which she objected. I still love her and am not ready for dissolution,” he said.

    The court’s President, Pa Adekunle Williams, fixed meeting with the couple and asked them to bring along two relatives each for July 13.