Category: City Beats

Since Monday, children with cleft lips and palate defects have been enjoying free corrective surgery jointly sponsored by the Rotary International District 9110, the Alliance for Smile, a United States-based non-governmental organisation, and the Lagos State Government. It will end on June 26.

“Cleft is said to be a defect of the lip or upper part of the mouth that occurs before birth. Palate occurs around the roof of the teeth, causing speech defects. It is believed to be caused by folic acid deficiency in particular between seven to 14 weeks into pregnancy.

The Head, Burns and Plastic Surgery of the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), Prof Idowu Fadeyibi, said excessive exposure to radiation, intake of unprescribed drugs, infections, lifestyle habits and environmental contaminations are some of the known causes of the diseases.

Fadeyibi, who said such deformities could be picked from the womb of the mother through ultrasound scan, urged mothers to go to proper places for antennal care, eat nutritious foods and avoid natural (herbal) drugs during pregnancy to avoid the risk.

During the programme yesterday at the Critical Care Unit of LASUTH, children and adults were screened. The corrective surgery, which normally costs between N250, 000 and N300,000, depending on the severity of the ailment and the hospital involved, is being conducted free of charge.

Esther Babalola, 18, who came from Ikotun, a Lagos suburb, underwent the tests, but the Mission Director of Alliance for Smile, Barbara Fisher, said she could not undergo the surgery because of a threat to her speech and breathing by her age. The surgery, The Nation was told, is better done during infancy to facilitate healing and rehabilitation.

Mr Shuaib Abdulazeez, father of 41-day-old Akeem was turned back after the tests because his son “is yet to be three months old,” being the stipulated age for the surgery.

The District Governor of Rotary, Mr Olugbemiga Olowu, said the aim of the surgery is to reach out to the community and bring relief to patients as part of the areas of focus of the club, which include maternal and child health and disease prevention.

The Rotary, he said, was also involved in a similar collaborative exercise in Ogun State last year, where 75 people had the corrective surgery.

Former Health Minister Professor Eyitayo Lambo will lead other dignitaries from across the country to this year’s Ogidi Day holding in Ogidi, Ijumu Local Government Area of Kogi State, on Saturday.

Lambo, who will chair the occasion, will be joined by the Ooni of Ife, Oba Okunade Sijuade as royal father of the day and Kogi State Deputy Governor, Yomi Awoniyi, an architect, as Chief Guest of Honour.

Ogidi Day which commemorates the community’s new yam festival holds every June and it features a colourful parade of cultural groups including the famous Olaga (maidens) dance.

Chairman, Ogidi Day Central Planning Committee, Mr. Ibrahim Allah, in a statement, said an appeal fund would be launched at this year’s event to finance the re-development of the community’s markets and to procure equipment for the newly completed Ogidi Cottage Hospital.

Renowned batik artist and the community’s prominent daughter, Chief (Mrs.) Nike Okundaye of Nike Art Gallery, Lagos, will be the mother of the day at the show which will also be graced by cultural troupes from Niger, Lagos, Anambra and Osun States.

Prominent son of Igbominaland and Executive Director (Marketing), News Agency of Nigeria, Otunba Jide Adebayo and his wife, will be installed as the Maiyegun and Yeye Maiyegun of Ogidi, while Chief Alfred Ibikunle, treasurer, Okehi Local Government in the state and his wife will be made the Tadese and Yeye Tadese of Ogidi.

National President, Okun Development Association, Ambassador Babatunde Fadumiyo is the Father of the Day while the Ciroman Nupe, Usman Manko Babayitso, frontline Abuja entrepreneur and Amowomoni of Ogidi, Chief Emeka Okonkwo; Honourable Tajudeen Yusuf, Member representing Bunu/Ijumu/Kabba Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives; his predecessor, Otunba Dino Melaye and former Kogi State Commissioner for Solid Minerals, Chief Bamidele Suru, will serve as special guests of honour.

The police in Lagos have arrested a riot police man for allegedly stealing 15 motorbikes.

Corporal Sherif Sanni was said to have been demobbed about eight months ago from Mopol 14 in Yola, the Adamawa State capital, but never reported to his new station in Lagos.

It was gathered that he retained his uniform and allegedly started using it to rob commercial motorbike operators.

Those who suspected that he was doing an illegal job reported him last week at the Ojota Police Station.

When operatives heard about his activities, he was placed under surveillance and monitored for days until he was apprehended.

A police source said: “When he was demobbed at Yola, he failed to report to his new post – in Lagos Command. He went to stay with his friend in Agbara area of Ogun State. It was there he used to seize motorbikes from commercial bike riders. He would come to Ojota to hand the motorbikes to a man, who assists him in selling them.”

The man, who used to assist Sanni in selling the motorbikes, said he had sold about 15 for him, but the policeman insisted that he had only sold seven. Investigators have recovered three of the stolen bikes.

Sanni reportedly told his interrogators: “I don’t use gun to collect the motorbikes. I only seized them from their owners because of the ban on motorbikes in Lagos State. I operate alone.”

He said he refused to report to his new post because he wanted to “work” his transfer to a new squadron.

After being demobbed, Sanni was expected to revert to regular policeman, but he said he enjoyed being a riot policeman.

•Bank urges court to dismiss suit

A widow, Mrs Ebunoluwa Awosika, has initiated contempt proceedings against the Managing Director of Zenith Bank Nigeria Plc at the Lagos High Court, over the N500million awarded her as damages against the police.

But, the bank has filed an application, praying the court to dismiss the plaintiff’s case, because it is an abuse of process.

The judgment-creditor is the wife and next-of-kin of  Mr. Modebayo Awosika (39), a Relationship Manager at First Bank of Nigeria Plc, who was shot dead by a police officer on October 1, 2008 at Lekki Phase I Roundabout.

Mrs Awosika filed a fundamental rights suit against the Inspector-General of Police and the Commissioner of Police Lagos State.

In his judgment, Justice Ebenezer Adebajo awarded N500million damages against the police for the unlawful killing of Awosika.

The plaintiff, represented by a former Lagos State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice Mr Olasupo Shasore (SAN), instituted garnishee proceedings against seven commercial banks, including Zenith, to enforce the judgment.

On March 10, the judge made a garnishee order nisi, directing the banks to file affidavits showing available balances in the police accounts with them. Zenith Bank allegedly informed the court that only N97,658 was in its custody, following which the court made an order nisi absolute against it.

But Mrs Awosika said she discovered that there was more money in Zenith Bank’s custody belonging to the police, and therefore, started fresh garnishee proceedings to recover the balance of the judgment-sum.

On May 20, the court made a new order nisi attaching money in a specifically named account in the custody of Zenith Bank Plc. The court also ordered, among others, that the bank, through its Executive Director Finance, should depose to an affidavit exhibiting the Statement of Account within three working days from when the bank was served with the order.

Following alleged disobedience of the order, the judgment-creditor began contempt proceedings against the bank’s Group Managing Director, Mr. Peter Amangbo, praying the court to commit him to prison for allegedly disobeying the order.

But, the bank, through its lawyer, Chief Felix Fagbohungbe (SAN), brought a motion praying for the dismisal of the garnishee proceedings for being an abuse of court process.

The bank said the fund in its custody does not belong to the Nigerian Police Force, but to the Police Academy, a corporate body with perpetual succession and a common seal.

Zenith, in a motion on notice, also asked the court for an order setting aside the issuance and service of the Notice of Consequence of Disobedience of a court order on it.

It said the court lacked the jurisdiction to make the garnishee order nisi of May 20. Besides, Zenith said no proceedings can be validly initiated based on the garnishee order until the issue of jurisdiction is determined.

Yesterday, Fagbohungbe told the court of his pending application by which he is seeking an order of court setting aside the garnishee order nisi for lack of jurisdiction and to restrain the judgment-creditor from taking further steps in the contempt proceedings already began.

He argued that the common law rule to the effect that an alleged contemnor cannot seek the discretion of the court does not apply where the order alleged to be disobeyed is being challenged.

Replying, Shasore contended that the authority relied on by Fagbohungbe was inapplicable. According to him, the portion of the judicial authority relied on by Fagbohungbe is obiter and not binding on the court.

Shasore urged the court to summon Amangbo to come and show why he should not be jailed for disobeying its order.

He submitted that where there are two motions, such as these, the contempt proceedings should take precedence. Fagbohungbe canvassed the opposite.

Police counsel Mr Chukwu Agwu also told the court of his pending application, also to set aside the garnishee order made on May 20. The police are also seeking leave to participate in the garnishee proceedings.

Justice Adebajo, in a short ruling, said the judgment-creditor should respond to the bank’s applications, which he said would be heard first.

He adjourned the hearing till June 23.

 

Fire yesterday razed some warehouses in Ilasamaja, a Lagos suburb.

Some structures, electrical appliances, kitchen utensils and building materials worth millions of naira were destroyed in the inferno.

The fire, which was said to have started at Ranbaxy Nigeria Limited, a pharmaceutical outfit at 24, Abimbola Street, Ilasamaja, Isolo, also affected a warehouse belonging to Edo State, which serves different companies.

Other affected warehouses are Karina Nigeria Limited and Pandan Investment Limited.

Men of the Lagos State Fire Service were still busy trying to put out the fire when The Nation visited the scene about 1pm yesterday.

A store keeper, Yusuf Musa, said: “The fire started at about 7.30am before workers resumed for work. I really don’t know the cause of the fire, but immediately we noticed it, we contacted the fire service men.”

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Pandan Investment Limited, David Chukwudum, said: “I was shocked when I got the news of the fire. I had just offloaded about four containers of kitchen utensils last Thursday. To me, it is a big loss. Only God knows the cause and the exact time it began.”

The inferno was extinguished about 3pm with the combined efforts of the fire service men, the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) and officials of CHI Limited, producers of CHIVITA.

The Head, Isolo Fire Station, Olusanya Taiwo, told The Nation:”Immediately we got the information, we got there in time. The Fire Service Men from Isolo, Ikeja, Ilupeju, Ikotun also came with 10,000 litres of water. People should endeavour to contact firemen immediately there is an outbreak. I thank God our efforts were not in vain.”

Operatives of the Western Marine Customs (WMC) Command in Lagos have impounded smuggled rice and vegetable oil valued at N9.737 million.

The Command’s Area Comptroller, Zaka Audu, told reporters at its Apapa, Lagos headquarters that his men intercepted the goods on Sunday night at Igbede Junction along Alaba Water Way.

He said the goods comprised 1,280 bags of rice valued at N4.448 million with duty payable at 100 per cent, in addition to 10 percent surcharge of N4.893 million, amounting to total Duty Paid Value (DPV) of N9.341 million.

The Customs chief also said the operatives intercepted 93 kegs of vegetable oil valued at N396, 640 in various sizes of wooden containers.

Audu claimed that importers of the rice did not follow the right channel – through the seaport where the necessary duties should be paid into government purse.

While carrying out the operation, he said: “The miscreants attempted to seize the boat from our officers. No arrest was made because the smugglers jumped into the water and swam away.”

On why his men often find it difficult to pursue the smugglers in water, Audu said they lack some necessary equipment, but noted that the Comptroller General of Customs, Dr Dikko Inde Abdullahi and the Customs High Command were doing something about it.

On the fears that insurgents might attempt to bring their weapons through the local water ways just as the rice smugglers, Audu assured the South Western region and indeed the whole country, that his command “is ever-ready to contain such threats.”