The Nation Newspaper

Category: Special Report

  • Pope commends Cardinal Arinze at 80

    Thousands of Catholic faithfuls on Saturday thronged the Basilica of the Most Holy Trinity Cathedral Onitsha , Anambra state to celebrate the thanksgiving mass in honour of  Cardinalrancis  Arinze on his 80th birthday celebration.

    In his homily during the service,  Cardinal John  Onaiyekan, said Arinze’s 80th years on earth was dedicated to the service of humanity and God at different levels, locally and internationally.

    Describing the Catholic Church as “clear voice of authentic Christian tradition”, he noted that Arinze was the “indefatigable bearer of that voice”

    The highpoint of the celebration was the reading by the Catholic Bishop of Nnewi, Hilary Okeke, of the goodwill of Pope Benedict Xiv, who thanked Cardinal Arinze for his dedicated service to God and the Church and prayed for the outpouring of God’s grace upon him.

    Governor Peter Obi in his remarks said that Anambra State Government would seek further areas of cooperation with the Church in a partnership intended to make Anambra State a better place in terms  of human development.

    Obi who described Cardinal Arinze as a gift of God to humanity and  also called on younger priests to emulate his apostolic zeal, said that the State was happy over her collaboration with the Church in the area of education and healthcare delivery.

     

  • My experience waiting for the hangman for 17 years —33-yr-old

    My experience waiting for the hangman for 17 years —33-yr-old

    Time was 2 pm on Friday December 18, 2012 at the Kirikiri Maximum Prisons, Lagos. In an emotional scene, 33-year-old Williams Owodo walked free from the prison after spending 17years and 10 months on death row.

    Expectedly, like a rat that had just escaped from the claws of a ravenous cat by a whisker, Owodo raised both arms skyward and then collapsed into the reporter’s embrace outside the prison yard. His sobs became the only sound in an otherwise silent environment.

    Owodo maintained his innocence, saying: “I made a statement of innocence when I was first arrested and questioned by the police at State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) Panti, in February 1995. I made that statement of innocence several times and it became a refrain on my lips to date.”

    The statement that the then 16-year-old Owodo gave shortly after his arrest was allegedly coerced as a result of torture and threats by detectives, the Court of Appeal judges found.

    Spotting a group of local boys playing football at a junction near the Apapa-Oshodi Expressway while on his way home, he wished he could have become one of Nigeria’s greatest footballers. He remembered a time when he was a popular SS3 student for his dexterity in football.

    “Men, I could have become an outstanding Nigerian footballer because I was known for my football artistry as a defensive midfielder in school and my neighbourhood. I was the in my final year at Creek High School, Ajegunle, but instead of making my way through school, I was living on borrowed times on death row for a crime I insist I was innocent of.

    “I had wanted to become a professional footballer when I am through with school but that dream was cut short when I was wrongly sentenced to death. Some of my football mates are now professional players in Europe and regrettably too ,many of them were no match for me as a budding footballer.”

    He was soon to acknowledge the transformation of Lagos when he sighted a number of BRT buses at the Ojuelegba axis of the state. “What kind of buses are these in red and blue colours?” he asked.

    When told that the buses were provided by the Lagos State government to ease transportation and that they have been around for about five years, he said:” Ah, Lagos has changed o.It was not like this when I was arrested during the military administration of Col. Olagunsoye Oyinlola. Then, it used to be Danfo buses that conveyed commuters to their different destinations. Lagos has indeed changed for good.”

    Moments later, Owodo took a bottle of table water, his first in 17 years saying: ”Before my travails began in 1995, there was nothing like this on the streets of Lagos. What we had then was water sold in nylon and the quality was far from being good. This is the first time I am going to take something like this and I can tell you that it would be my only ‘food’ for today because I am too happy to eat any food.”

    He made a brief stop-over at LEDAP’s office in Anthony Village before leaving for his residence at No 6, Ojo Lane, Ajegunle.The neighbourhood was agog as soon as he arrived at about 7.30 pm.It was turned into a crusade ground as neighbours chorused popular hymns to thank God for Owodo’s freedom from death’s jaw.Not a few of the neighbours who spoke on condition of anonymity said his case was shocking considering the fact that he was innocent of the crime he was convicted for.

    Reliving the unfortunate incident, in an interview with our reporter, Owodo said:” I was wrongly sentenced to death. I never believed I could be held for a crime I did not commit let alone earn a death sentence. At that time, I was a final year student of Creek High School, Ajegunle. On February 1, I995, I decided to play football with some of my friends in the neigbourhood, precisely at a place called Amaechi Lane. At about 6pm while I was on my way home after the football session was over, a police patrol van pulled up by my side and I was pushed into the vehicle and taken to Ajeromi Police Station.

    “I was accused of being responsible for the murder of one Daniel Obi. I told them that I was just returning from a football match and that I had been wrongly held for a crime I did not commit. But my explanations to the policemen fell on deaf ears as I was refused access to my parents and relations. I was asked to write a statement not knowing that detectives handling the case were not comfortable with the fact that I insisted on being innocent.”

    He was subsequently taken to SCID, Panti, Lagos for further interrogation and that was where it dawned on him that he might not return home so soon.

    “On February 13, 1995, I was transferred to SCID, Panti where I was interrogated but I kept saying that I was innocent of the allegation and that I was being unjustifiably held. Then, a particular officer took me to a dingy room and asked if I was ready to say the truth or not. I reiterated that I was innocent and he became furious. He then ordered me to get under a table inside the room and hit me with iron rod and gun butt and I started bleeding.

    “Not minding the fact that I was bleeding, the unfeeling officer tore my statement and brought out a prepared statement asking me to sign or get killed. At this point, I had no other option than to sign the contrived statement. The statement was what the police prosecutors presented during my trial at the Lagos High Court. Unfortunately, the court relied on the statement to convict me of murder and wrongly sentenced me to death.”

    He also recalled his years on death row inside the prison:” I was put in Cell 36, popularly called ‘German Cell’. That cell is specially reserved for condemned criminals and it was so small that it could barely accommodate three people but that was where nine of us (inmates) stayed. I never stopped praying to God to exonerate and save me from being used as a sacrificial lamb for a crime I did not commit and I thank Him for saving my life.”

    There are, however, about 66 ordinances for inmates to obey, a violation of which, according to Owodo, earns the culprit punishments.

    “The prison is a peculiar environment. It is referred to as ‘Inside World’ by inmates and there are 66 laws that must be strictly obeyed. My experience in prison has taught me to be more law- abiding because inmates who violate any of the laws risk minimum punishments and I had my own fair of the punishment when I violated some of the laws.

    “Section one of the ‘constitution’ says that the provost’s order or decision is final; section two says the ‘Chief Judge’s’ order is final; section three says that there should be no mutiny in the cell; section four says that there should be no sodomy in the cell; section five says that act of indiscipline shall not be tolerated; section six says that there shall be no expensive joke; section seven says that there shall be no noise after midnight; section eight says that there shall be no killing of lice or bed bug; section nine forbids the abuse of lavatory; section ten forbids pouring of water on the floor among others. Violation of any of these laws could earn culprits punishment ranging from frog jump, beating, washing of lavatory and discharge of faeces of inmates which is the most severe of the punishments because the faeces usually leaked from the bucket while the culprits carried it on their heads.”

    For Owodo, the freedom comes with pains and this much was reflected when he called the reporter on the telephone at about 1.30 am to complain of sleeplessness. He said: “Bros, sorry for disturbing you at this odd hour; it is just that I cannot sleep at all and I guess it has something to do with my days inside the prison. What can you advise?”

    The reporter however asked him to pick up a book or newspaper to read in order for him to fall into sleep.

    The case against Owodo was that he was part of a group of boys who fought and stabbed one Daniel Obi to death in February 1995 in Ajegunle, Lagos State. The prosecutors contended that he was among the eight other boys who were playing cards in the neighbourhood but spread dried cassava flour on the nearby street as bait to rob people. They were alleged to have had common intention that anyone who stepped on the cassava would be challenged, providing them the opportunity to rob such a person of his or her property which included the deceased person.

    But the defence of Owodo was that he had only gone out to play football with his friends and that he was on his way home when a police patrol van pulled up and he was pushed into the van and taken to Ajeromi Police Station.

    Owodo had explained that many other persons were also raided and arrested that evening and brought to the police station. Some of those arrested, he said, paid money to bail themselves out while he had no money to pay for his bail and could not reach his parents.

    He was arraigned for murder and subsequently sentenced to death on December 5, 2003 by a Lagos High Court.

    However, the Court of Appeal, Lagos Division, on November 30, 2012 delivered judgment (in suit CA/L/148C/2005) in favour of Owodo, a juvenile at the time of the alleged offence, discharging and acquitting him of the charges against him after 17 years on death row, following the appeal filed by Legal Defence and Assistance Project (LEDAP), an organisation that works to free prisoners it believes could be innocent of the crimes they were convicted of.

    In the well-considered judgment that resolved all the issues in favour of Owodo, Justices A.A Augie, Ibrahim Saulawa and Adamu Jauro held, amongst others, that “Undoubtedly, the findings of the learned trial judge are prejudiciously outrageous and rather antithetical to the well-cherished fundamental doctrine of fair hearing. There was no eye witness that testified and linked the death of the deceased person to Owodo. The judges said that the High Court which sentenced him to death failed to conduct a trial within trial when the accused person gave evidence that he was beaten with rod and forced to sign the written statement that the lower court relied on to convict and sentence him to death.

    “More so, at the time of the incident, the accused person was under aged and ought to have been taken to Juvenile Court for trial. Consequently, the conviction and sentence perversely passed upon the appellant by the lower court, in charge No.ID/28C/96, are hereby quashed. Accordingly, the Appellant is discharged and acquitted.”

    In his remarks, Owodo’s lawyer, Barr Chino Obiagwu, said:” Again, like I said earlier, this year following the outcome of the appeal of one Olatunji Olaide(who was also freed in similar circumstances by the Appeal Court), this is a case that calls for an in-depth re-evaluation and urgent overhauling of our criminal justice system, especially as it relates to the use of capital punishment. We cannot continue to be sentencing innocent persons to death, only for the appeal court to upturn the judgment after a decade or more when the appellant must have served unlawful sentence and deprivation of his personal liberty in the prison.

    “This case is very pathetic in the sense that a juvenile like Owodo should not have been charged with a capital offence in the first instance”, he added.

    Although, he may have lost the chance of playing professional football, however, Owodo, a native of Isoko, Delta State, did not allow despondency while on death row. He wrote and passed General Certificate Examination (GCE) in flying colours and subsequently enrolled for a degree in Cooperative Management at the Kirikiri Maximum Prisons satellite campus of the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN).

    He said: “I don’t just want to continue to cry and I wanted to do something better with my life since my death warrant had not been signed yet. I knew that I could make up for my academic deficiency since my arrest and trial had truncated my studies in high school, hence, I wrote GCE and passed with good grades. My performance in the examination was what encouraged me to enroll for a degree course in Cooperative Management at NOUN satellite campus in Kirikiri; after all, If I miss playing professional soccer, I shouldn’t miss the opportunity of becoming a graduate in life.”

  • Lawmaker, residents lament as erosion unleashes horror onAnambra communities

    Lawmaker, residents lament as erosion unleashes horror onAnambra communities

    Inhabitants of Ekwusigo Local Government Area, Anambra State are in deep sorrow over the menace of erosion in the area. Besides claiming many buildings, two brothers in Urumabiam in Ozubulu, Ignatius Igwemadu and his younger sibling, were said to have died as a result of the menace.

    At press time, many other buildings were under the threat of being submerged by erosion, causing residents to cry out to the Anambra State governor, the Federal Government and donor agencies to come to their aid.

    The House of Assembly member representing the area, Hon. Paully Onyeka, who was in tears when he visited the communities, told The Nation that his people were in serious trouble.

    In a chat with our correspondent, 74-year-old Ichie Ezekwem Ezeana, said Ihembosi community alone had about 14 erosion sites. He said: “We’re appealing to the government to come to our aid. We don’t want to lose more lives before they come. They should come and help us. We are dying in Ekwusigo.”

    At Ibolo erosion site in Oraifite, a mansion erected by 76-year-old Pa Onyejiaka Anazodo is at the verge of being submerged. Already, the perimeter fence has been consumed by erosion while septuagenarian Anazodo was in tears.

    “If the menace finally takes my building, I do not have any place to run to with my family,” he lamented.

    According to him, the traditional ruler of the community, Igwe Daniel Udoji, had made several representations to the state government, all to no avail.

    The erosion problem began in the area in 1996. But, according to Chukwulobe Ifeanyi, another indigene from the area, it was compounded by Consolidated Construction Company (CCC) when it was working on the Onitsha-Owerri Road.

    He said: “The construction giants failed to direct the erosion to Ekulo river. So, all the water from Ichi, Ifite, Oraifite is channelled to this place. If left unchecked, by the next rainy season, this area will be swallowed and many lives will be lost. Numerous buildings will also collapse,” he said.

    The erosion menace in Ekwusigo has cut off some of the major roads linking different villages and communities, like Awo and Ifite. A student of Saint Paul University, Ufondu Emenike, said the Awo road linking Ifite was motorable until the rainy season began this year.

    Also, at Uruokpalamilo village in Ozubulu, the erosion has consumed the building of one Gabriel Asuzu. The site is believed to be the longest erosion site in the entire West African sub-region.

    The building of Ikechukwu Asuzu is also at the verge of being swallowed by the erosion site, which measures about four kilometres. According to 56-year-old Madam Catherine Mbaonu, it began about 15 years ago, and since them, no help has come to the people from any quarters.

    Another indigene of Ozubulu, Anaeto Echezona, told The Nation that the people of the area are not safe anymore, adding that some members of the affected communities had started relocating to other communities.

    He said: “We are dying in this area. We need somebody to rescue us from this problem. The people of the communities no longer feel comfortable in their own land.”

    Some of the erosion sites are man-made; like the sand excavation centre at Egbema Ozubulu, which is five feet deep. Others are natural disasters.

    The Vice President General of Ozubulu Development Union (ODU), Chief Goddy Ulasi, said the Urumabiam erosion site had been there for 20 years. He said most of the people in the area had fled for dear lives to other places.

    “This erosion has cut off brothers, sisters and relatives from one another. Urumabiam village is no more. We have suffered in this place. People can no longer communicate with their neighbours. This has become unbearable to us,’’ he said.

    Hon. Paully Onyeka, representing the constituency, told The Nation that it is unfortunate that communities that had been living in harmony have been separated from their neighbours by erosion.

    “Our Governor, Mr. Peter Obi, I believe, did not know that there is problem here because I know that he is an environment-friendly governor. If he had been aware of this, he would have done something about it.

    “We cannot continue this way. Nobody knows what the future holds for these people. Every community in Ekwusigo has at least 10 erosion sites.

    “We have over 40 erosion sites in the entire Ekwusigo Local Government Area. Therefore, this place should receive priority attention. It has not been a palatable sight in Ekwusigo.

    “We want to bring it to the notice of the state and federal governments as well as international donor agencies. Before now, Anambra had been inundated with erosion stories at Oko, Nanka and Agulu. But today, it is Ekwusigo.

    “This zone should be declared erosion disaster area. All the erosions in other areas combined are not as bad as that of Ekwusigo. We seriously need help from every quarter,” Onyeka lamented.

  • The velocity of benevolence

    Benevolent people may be a gift to mankind, but they can be infuriating to others out of envy. I have on occasions suffered this fury myself, but rather than reduce the tempo of my commitment because of the pain, I increased the velocity of my benevolence because of the gain I derive from doing good. God never lets me down” – Late Engr (Princess) Comfort Olufunke

    The quotation above illustrates the inner logic that drives the outer sensibility of late Princess Comfort Olufunke Ponnle during her life. She was one woman who never flowed with the tide, but did her things out of strong personal conviction. Conviction apart, the late Princess Ponnle was an incurable optimist. She never believed anything was impossible. She was a woman of character, immense courage, strong determination and unhindered love for others. She had great passion for problem-solving, a lot of zeal, enthusiasm, energy and drive for helping people. No wonder, her children have imbibed this spirit of exceptional benevolence and are presently involved in one philanthropy or another.

    Born in Ibadan on November 22, 1944, Mrs. Ponnle died at the age of 68 years. She had her elementary education at Ibadan. She was trained in the modern school and the Teachers Training College also in Ibadan from 1962-1964. She earned her Associate Diploma in Education from the University of Ife, now Obafemi Awolowo University, a programme she completed in 1970. After obtaining the Diploma Certificate, she taught briefly before proceeding to the Polytechnic of North London where she obtained her Higher Certificate in Electrical/Electronics. She emerged as the Overall Best Graduating Student on this programme and returned to Nigeria in 1972, worked briefly in a few places before settling down with her husband to form a company now generally known as MicCom Cables & Wires, the first indigenous cable and wire company in Nigeria today. MicCom is an acronym formed from Michael and Comfort and they both ran this business successfully until recently when they retired and handed the company and others to their children to manage.

    Late Princess Ponnle was a great woman by every imagination as I found this out during the course of my research work on her joint biography with the husband, Dr Tunde Ponnle, entitled— “The magic of pulling together,” published in 2010. Everywhere I went, everyone I met, every home I touched had this impression of Princess Ponnle as a kind-hearted woman, always eager to help people, particularly the youths, whether she knew them or not didn’t matter to her. I once asked her how she was able to separate people in genuine need from those with opportunistic demands and hear what she said: “I am not enough a professional psychologist to comprehend fully the human nature of pretence which makes people behave in certain ways against popular expectation, but I have worked long enough with people in need that through simple introspection, I can instinctively spot an opportunist from amongst the needy whenever I see one.” Clever woman!

    Through my interaction with her over the last few years, I came to realise that life is not about what you get out of a marriage, but what you put into it; it is not about the benefits you derive from your association with others, but what you throw into the ring so you can make a difference in the relationship.

    Princess Ponnle’s life has proved beyond any doubt that differences in age and social backgrounds are nothing if aims and vision are identical. “Similarity in objectives makes the hearts beat with the same conjugal tempo in a marriage,” she said. The late Princess did everything in her power to hold her marriage together and she succeeded to the end: She was a loving wife, a caring mother and a distinguished grandmother. When asked about the secret of her marital success recently, her response was fascinating: According to her, marriage is not one institution people should jump into or jump out of, without adequate self-examination and proper evaluation. “Unless a wife operates on the same frequency and wavelength with the husband, she will always be left behind. And when this occurs, many things are likely to follow: envy and jealousy, anger and provocation, objection and rejection take over while rivalry and vilification entrench themselves firmly on the front burner, thus helping to further heat up the marriage, until final disengagement becomes inevitable,” she said.

    According to Princess Ponnle, wives must be patient to understudy their husbands well enough so that there will be no mis-steps, particularly in the early days of a marriage.

    “While both partners must endure and make sacrifices to keep the marriage together, the woman must make extra and special effort to soften the ambience of the home front to minimise those things that could cause conflict and aggravate the husband’s personal pains and anxieties.

    “This is because in Africa, the culture is lopsided in favour of men and so when a marriage succeeds, society tends to commend the husband for performing his duties well, even where his attitude is in deficit and the wife is the one patching things up daily to save his integrity. But when a marriage collapses, everyone blames the woman without asking questions. Therefore, women must be conscious of these assumptions and think deep before they act,” she affirmed. Even though Princess Ponnle was frank to a fault during her life, she was a woman of peace – Never one to tangle in a quarrel or cause agitation that could stoke fires of anger and hatred anywhere she found herself. “I love peace,” she once told me during a discussion. “I have never gone out of my way to pull or push trouble and when it occurs sometimes as in people offending me, I am always the first to seek reconciliation, even when I am hurt. As I often told my children, anger is destructive and this is why they should not allow the next sun to set before settling their matrimonial differences with their spouses. In my own case, I resolved all issues amicably, same day, so as to keep my mind in focus and my husband’s mind at rest. My husband, Tunde and I have tried in our own little way to raise the children along this sacred path and I believe we succeeded to a great extent.” she stated. No doubt, they succeeded. All their children are successful professionals who are holding their heads high in the society today.

    For Princess Ponnle, being close to her husband brought its own pains. Many people often thought she stood between them and her husband, sometimes preventing him from helping them. How inaccurate! As someone close to the family, I witnessed situations where she was even the one to persuade the husband to consider series of requests from different quarters. She was always eager to please others just as she was eager to forgive those who offended her without any pre-condition. Over the years, she had used her God-given talent to help thousands of people either personally in her own right or in joint partnership with her husband, even when it was most inconvenient for her to do so, especially in the early days of their marriage. Relating with this wonderful woman has convinced me more than ever that as human beings, there is a joy to be derived in helping others within the limits of one’s resources. Late Princess Ponnle was open in her dealings with people. She gave them the opportunity to prove that they could be trusted. She never made up her mind based on established prejudices. She will be sincerely missed by all who knew her.

    She left behind, a big gap that will be difficult for others to fill, particularly in the area of capacity building, youth empowerment and deep-seated philanthropy. The annual MicCom Scholarship from which more than 2000 Nigerians have benefited over the years will definitely continue to be awarded on the instructions she left behind. It is one big legacy that will continue to empower Nigerian youths the more and make them truly self-reliant into the future. Although her face would be missed at the yearly interview panel constituted for this annual scholarship Award, yet her feet remained firmly established in the sands of time, through this and other development schemes put in place during her life. On this score, late Princess Comfort Olufunke Ponnle scored high marks and proved even in death that like light, benevolence can have its own velocity too!

    Asiwaju Yemi Ajayi

    Author, The Magic of Pulling Together.

    The Joint Biography of Prince Tunde Ponnle and

  • Trader found in latrine 10 days after she was declared missing

    Trader found in latrine 10 days after she was declared missing

    Ten days after she was declared missing, the body of a trader, Iyabo Ogunoye, was found in a pit latrine.

    According to eyewitnesses, the 48-year-old woman, who until her death was a trader at Iloro, Oke-Aro area of Akure, had just performed her ablution when an unidentified man visited her and they went out together. The disappearance of Ogunoye had caused panic in the area with fears that she might have fallen victim to kidnappers.

    Following her disappearance on November 16, 2012, her relations launched a search for her and also reported the matter at the B Police Division, Oke-Aro, Akure.

    A source who asked not to be named said: “It was shocking that the woman’s body had swollen almost beyond recognition by the time she was found in a toilet in the market.

    “On the day of the incident, the woman had barely finished performing ablution when a stranger visited her. Minutes later, she left with the unidentified man to an unknown destination. We had thought she would soon return but she did not until her body was discovered a few days later.”

    A trader in the market, Adenrele Aderomoye, who described the deceased as enterprising recalled the remarks of her relations, which brought a twist into her strange death.

    He said: “The deceased was an enterprising woman and was very prayerful. She would come to the market as early as possible to sell her wares, and she had a thriving business. That is why I do not share the theory that she might have committed suicide or fallen victim to kidnappers.

    “Whatever is responsible for her death should be left for law enforcement agents to unravel. She was very unassuming and pleasant to relate with.

    “However, I want to believe that there is more to her death than meets the eye. For example, one of her relations called Aderobagun claimed that the strange visitor had addressed her by her native name, Rolake, and that the name was only known to close family members.

    “In fact it was further revealed that she had stopped using the name a few years ago when she became a woman leader in her community.

    “When it was time for the removal of her decomposing body from the latrine, the foul smell prevented rescuer and policemen from picking it up. A Hausa trader in the market had to pay some Hausa men some money to remove the body.”

    The remains of the deceased woman have since been taken to the Akure General Hospital for autopsy.

    Another source who pleaded anonymity queried the attitude of traders at the market, saying: “It is rather astonishing that traders at the market were unconscious of their environment. How come the traders did not search the toilet where Ogunoye’s body was found? How come the traders at the market did not perceive the nauseating odour emanating from her decomposing body? All these should form the basis of investigation into the incident to douse the tension trailing the woman’s death.”

    Speaking with our correspondent on the telephone, the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Ondo State Police Command, Mr. Aremu Adeniran, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), said:”The incident is true and the case has been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID). Investigation is ongoing.”

  • Day 10-yr-old shocked Uduaghan

    Delta State Governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, got a shocker from a 10-year-old pupil a fortnight ago while on a visit to Nana College, Warri, as part of his inspection tour of ongoing projects in the state. A Primary Five pupil of Nana Primary School, Taye Madamedon, made an unusual request, perhaps the strangest Uduaghan had got in a long time.

    Nana College was wearing a new look as a new two-storey building towered above what was a decaying premises. Upon Uduaghan’s arrival, hundreds of pupils who were observing the break period, abandoned whatever they were doing and rushed to catch a glimpse of the governor. So also were the teachers who were taken unawares by the governor’s impromptu visit with a small entourage of aides and security details.

    While Uduaghan was interrogating the contractor that handled the project, the pupils seized the moment to sing songs to thank and praise the governor for his intervention. As the crowd grew larger, the pupils became rowdier. Apparently happy to be distracted from their usual routine, they clapped and danced around the governor.

    The governor was later compelled by their persistence to address the cheering school children. He used the opportunity to explain the importance of education to the children. And to their teachers he reiterated his motive for the considerable investment in the renovation and building of new blocks in schools across the state.

    Turning to the children, he charged them to be of good character always, reminding them that the massive investment in education would be useless unless they seized the opportunity to become useful children and good citizens of the society.

    But as the governor turned to leave, Taye, a Primary Five pupil of the school and stocky daughter of a school teacher at the state’s Yonwuren College, approached one of the governor’s aides to ask if she could shake his hand.

    She later told our reporter: “I have been seeing the governor. He attends our church (First Baptist Church) and I see people shaking hands with him. But I have never been able to shake his hands. I really want to shake his hands.”

    The security detail who got the request said he was taken aback by the pupil’s “innocent boldness as well as the desire in her voice. I could see that it would mean a lot to her and she probably won’t get this opportunity again.”

    So, the bewildered security aide approached Mr. Sunny Ogefere, the Chief Press Secretary to the governor. The CPS in turn channelled the child’s request to Governor Uduaghan. While the governor’s aides put their heads together to get her wish across to the governor, the little girl stood away, matting her tiny fingers nervously as she awaited the governor’s response.

    But the enormity of the moment hit her when the governor asked her to step forward. As she walked towards him with two wobbly legs, it seemed like her confidence had abandoned her. She, however, got more than a handshake as the governor put his arms around her and gave her words of encouragement.

    Tears welled up in her eyes as the governor told her and the other pupils that he was once like them. “If I can rise to become a doctor from a humble beginning and then become the governor of this great state, you too can do it,” he said.

    “But to achieve success,” he admonished, “you must work hard. You must read your books. You must listen to your parents and make up your mind that you will be a blessing to your society and not a problem. You must dream to succeed and work towards your dreams by reading your books.”

    Uduaghan afterwards commended the pupil for her boldness, stressing: “I am impressed with her. This is the kind of thing we should encourage. She did not want money or any material thing. What she wanted was inspiration and I hope I have inspired her and her colleagues.”

    Speaking with our reporter later, Taye said: “I feel very happy that I shook hands with the governor. It is a thing of joy for me. I know that one day I will grow up to be an important person in the society like the governor. I am very encouraged by this day and I am very grateful to the governor.”

  • Outrage as landlord’s son allegedly stabs hip-hop artiste in the neck

    Outrage as landlord’s son allegedly stabs hip-hop artiste in the neck

    The Police have arrested a 22-year-old man, Tobi Obadina, for allegedly stabbing a budding female hip- hop artiste, Temitope Bankole a.k.a Tiwa Banks.

    The Ogun State-born crooner, who recently released a song titled Tiwan tiwa, had sustained multiple injuries in her head, neck, shoulder and other parts of her body during the attack.

    Trouble was said to have started on Sunday at their residence on 20, Yusuf Street, Araromi, Iyana-Ipaja, Lagos State, when Obadina, Tiwa’s landlord’s son, accused her of being disrespectful. Tiwa was said to have quietly walked out on Obadina in order to avoid a confrontation with him.

    Her silence was said to have angered Obadina, who returned at nightfall to launch an attack on the unsuspecting artiste who had retreated to her room.

    There were hordes of sympathisers at the private hospital in Iyana-Ipaja area of Lagos State where Tiwa was receiving treatment when our correspondent visited.

    Recalling the incident in an interview with our correspondent, Tiwa said: “I had just returned home from an outing at about 6 pm on Sunday December 9, 2012 when Tobi accused me of disrespecting him. I was actually trying to prepare something to eat when he accosted me and threw away the box of matches I was holding. He said I was becoming too pompous and threatened to deal with me.

    “I tried to take some water into my apartment and he again slapped me on the chest. I warned him to desist from harassing me and I quietly walked away from him in order to avoid trouble, not knowing that he was nursing something evil in his mind.”

    Continuing, she said: “Surprisingly, at about 7.30 pm, he returned to announce that he had come to finish my ‘beautiful face’, and that I would forever live to regret the encounter. He then broke the louvers of the window to my apartment and poured water in my room through the window.

    “There was power outage. I was trying to lit the room when he forcibly broke into my room and stabbed me in the head, neck region, shoulder and other parts of my body. He even stabbed Lanre, my younger brother who was with me in the room and ran after him, threatening that he would kill him for daring to intervene.

    “One of my neighbours who had intervened was also stabbed by him. His father maintained silence while the attack lasted. He left me in a pool of blood and ran away, thinking that I was dead.

    “Some neighbours actually brought me to the hospital. I thank God for being alive because his intention was to sneak into my room to kill me, not knowing that my brother was with me.

    “His father came here to plead for amicable settlement of the matter. But that is too late in the day. I want the full weight of the law to be brought down in the matter.”

    Tiwa’s younger brother, Lanre, shared his experience, saying: “I was not around when he initially confronted my sister. But I had returned home shortly before he came back to carry out the attack. The room was dark because there was power outage, and I guessed he deliberately seized that opportunity to actualise his mission, not knowing that I was around.

    “He broke into our apartment and stabbed my sister. And when he discovered that I was also in the room, he came after me and also stabbed me in the arms.

    “He actually tried to stab me in the chest but I had to run away. He gave me a hot chase, boasting that he would kill me. By then, my sister had fallen down in a pool of her blood and other tenants were scared to rescue her because Tobi had earlier stabbed a neighbour who tried to intervene.

    “Although he ran away for two days, he has since been arrested by policemen from Iyana-Ipaja Police Station where he is being detained.”

    Tiwa’s mother, Mrs. Loye Bankole, described the attack on her children as shocking and barbaric.

    She said: “It is an act of barbarism for a man to unleash horror on a lady. I was so shocked when I saw my daughter’s mutilated body despite the fact that I had earlier asked Tobi’s father to call his son to order following his aggressive acts towards my children.

    “I thank God that my children are responding to treatment.”

    Tobi’s father was sighted by our correspondent at the hospital at about 5.30 pm on Tuesday in company with some clerics he had apparently brought to help intervene in the matter. But they were turned back by Tiwa’s siblings who insisted that the law must take its course.

    At the residence of the victims, some neighbours who spoke with The Nation said Tobi had become a threat to residents.

    One of them, who asked not to be named, said: “Tobi used to work as a commercial bus driver until recently when he claimed to have been employed as a driver in a beverage company based in Mushin. But he had been terrorising residents for a long time while no one dared query him.

    “His father did not help matters with his silence. The attack on Tiwa by Tobi should not be swept under the carpet because that would amount to injustice.

    “Tobi does not live in the house but comes here every other day to harass residents. He has been squatting with one of his friends in Oki village near Iyana-Ipaja, and that was where he initially ran to for two days after carrying out the attack.”

    In a telephone interview with our correspondent, Tobi’s father, Pa Obadina, 75, said his son’s action was regrettable, adding that his son’s detention by the police was weighing heavily on his health.

    He said: “The incident is a sad one, and I can tell you that everyone, including myself, is not happy about the misconduct of my son. He (Tobi) is currently detained at the Gowon Estate Police Station, Alimosho.

    “I am a 75-year-old man and I cannot deceive you. I am not pleased with my son’s misconduct because his arrest and detention is already affecting my health.”

    The spokesperson of the Lagos State Police Command, Ms. Ngozi Braide, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), said although she had heard about the incident, she could not comment officially because she had not been briefed by the DPO of the station concerned.

  • A hellish ride in Lagos train

    THE Iddo, Lagos terminus of the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), established in 1958, is a miniature of what Victoria Station is to the City of London. It is a popular train station in the heart of town that serves as the beginning and the end of most journeys by rail within Lagos and also to the hinterlands. Following the neglect of rail transport over the years and the waning popularity of the railway as a means of transport, the Iddo terminus, like other train stations across the country, sank into irrelevance and sliding decay. However, with population explosion and the increasing need for mass transportation to facilitate the movement of more goods and people across the country, there has been the clarion call to restore the lost glory of the railway. Hence, after a long break, the Nigerian Railway Corporation sprang back to life a few years ago, with skeletal operations from Iddo to Ijoko (Ogun State). This turned out to be an eye opener to the true need of the railway as an alternative mode of transport even within Lagos and its neighbouring states. The population burst in Lagos has also over the years resulted in majority of the state’s work force residing on the outskirts of the city, even as far as Ogun State, due to skyrocketing house rents, non-availability of houses in Lagos to accommodate all, endless traffic jam and high standard of living. For workers who still have to hold on to their jobs while living outside Lagos, the train has become a ‘saviour’ of time and money, allowing them to be at work and also return home quickly at minimum cost after a tedious day’s job. The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) provides a train shuttle service for these workers, travellers and traders who come into Lagos Mainland and Island to transact business. The passenger train shuttle goes from Iddo to Ijoko (Ogun State) at N150 per passenger on week days. The corporation also operates shuttles from Iddo to Abeokuta and Iddo to Ilorin on Fridays, returning to Lagos on Sundays, while warming up with a grand plan to re-launch the Lagos-Kano-Lagos route, which weaves through major towns in northern Nigeria. But what is a ride in these trains like? A one hour-forty five minutes journey between Iddo and Ijoko provides an insight. To be part of the 2 pm train journey, you would have to be at the terminus about two hours earlier in order to be sure of a seat because of the crowd. The arrival of the train from Ijoko signals the commencement of ticket sale for the journey. At times, the train journeys are cancelled even as late as 6 pm when the train develops a fault and fails to return. At such times, Babatunde Adisa, a 56-year-old retiree presently working with a private security firm, calls his family to inform them and then sleeps over at the terminus. He can only go home after work the following day. At such times, he said, the situation at the station becomes chaotic before people begin to pour into the road group after group. Only a few people like him remain. “Even if I have the money on such days, I would not risk my life because I know that going with the bus will mean that I get to my house at Ijoko at 1 am,” Adisa added. The crowd at the terminus consists of the low and middle class. The rush for train tickets is an indication of how important the rail transport has become to its users. Seeing the expression of surprise on the reporter’s face as people rushed for tickets, Mrs Oloruntoba, a retired banker who had waited for long to purchase a ticket, said: “It is still okay now. You have to be strong or very persistent to get to buy the 4 pm and 6 pm tickets, queue or no queue,” she said. Everything at the ticketing counter is done manually. There is no computer in sight while the train station shows that it could do with an upgrading to modernity. Except for the new looking engines which the reporter was told were recently purchased, most of the coaches looked over-used. The inside of the train confirmed the reporter’s fears. The toilets, where they were clean, spoke of old age with either the door or window broken or completely missing. The seats however look recently upholstered, but that’s about all the comfort you get in the train. According to Mrs Oloruntoba, getting a seat on the 6 pm train is usually a tug of war. “Nobody enjoys standing in a heated train through that long journey. And that is why I avoid taking the train late evening. 12 THE NATION, Saturday, December 15, 2012 A hellish ride in Lagos train ALTHOUGHit is regarded as a safe mode of transport, train rides between Iddo in Lagos State and Ijoko in Ogun State have been known in recent times to have had their fair share of accidents. Mr. Muyiwa Adekanbi of the Public Relations Department of the Nigerian Railways Corporation attributes the development to human factor. However, the family of a victim who was involved in a train accident last year, blamed the NRC for the untimely death of their son. But Adekanbi insists that “our people are very stubborn. We tell them not to hang on trains and that if caught, they will pay the fine of N25,000. Yet, people sit on top of the train and also hang on it. “If you have your ticket and do not have a seat, you should go back to the station, return the ticket immediately and your money will be refunded or you wait for the next train since we have up to four trains that work every day. So, if you cannot go with the first one, you wait for the next or return your ticket for refund. “Now, tell me why people still hang on the trains.” In Mushin sometime last year, a train crashed into another and 25 injured people had to be rushed to the Nigeria Railway Corporation Hospital. The blame was heaped on the train signal operator who changed the train lane, putting them at the wrong point. This year, another train had an accident with cattle crossing the rail lines at Mushin. The blame went to the cattle rearer for trespassing and trafficking animals on rail line. Concerned about these avoidable accidents, the Nigerian Environmental Council teamed up with the NRC to fight the war against wrong use of the train. But will the lost glory of the Nigerian railway transport system ever be restored? Stubborn Nigerians are to Those who get in first reserve seats for their friends.” Of course, this leads to spontaneous arguments, scuffles and physical combats before departure. Although there is the First Class compartment where passengers part with N500 for the ride, the tickets are usually over-sold, with people standing on every available space even in the First Class compartment, which is supposed to be air-conditioned. The train officials are not in uniform. But on this day, someone came around the coaches to tell us that due to incoming trains, there would be a slight delay. That took us to 3:30 pm, by which time all available seats on the train had been occupied and people had started standing inside the coaches. The reality of Nigeria being a third world country hit the reporter as the train wobbled out of Iddo terminus blaring. Relics of abandoned trains waved us away on to our journey from another old, abandoned part of the station. The wheels of the train screamed as it forged ahead on the rusty rail line. “The good thing about these trains is that at least they are usually on time. Don’t mind the delay today; it is usually prompt. And they are safe,” Mrs Oloruntoba said. That, indeed, was comforting to hear. But the ceiling fans were not working and thoughts of someone suffocating seized the reporter’s mind. He asked the passenger beside him if there had been such cases. “Yes, I have witnessed such,. It was the passengers that rallied round the lady, fanning her, pouring water on her face and creating more space for her until she came back to life. The officials did not even know what had happened. The checkers were in other coaches.” The train wobbled on through Oyingbo as more abandoned coaches and rusty train engines littered the route. It reminded one of abandoned artilleries after a major war. The station at Alago Meji where NRC’s headquarters is located, is a massive structure which obviously has not escaped the overall neglect. Here, more passengers climbed into the coaches and the train blared off again. Overgrown weeds characterised both sides of the rail, growing into a big bush as the train approached Yaba. The weeds struggled for space with ramshackle huts and then a barrack. There was order at Yaba, but the railway level crossing mounted to forestall accidents with crossing vehicles was not shut. A passenger said it had stopped working. The train gathered speed, racing past Fadeyi into Mushin station as heaps of refuse struggled with weeds on both sides of the rail. Hawkers wriggled through the standing passengers in the now stuffy coaches to market their wares, which were strapped to their bodies. It explained why passengers had scrambled for the window seats at Iddo terminus. Breathing in polluted air is not uncommon in the train. The Mushin station appeared worst hit by neglect. Still along the route, markets and mechanic parks took over spaces that weeds had not overgrown. As the train moved into Oshodi, most of the passengers heaved sighs of relief, counting themselves lucky to have secured a place in the train. This was because heavy traffic had built up on the popular Oshodi-Agege motor road. Here, a big crowd waited to board the train. Getting into the train at this point was like a camel passing through the needle’s eye. The train screeched to a halt and a few passengers alighted while a few still struggled in. School children struggled in through entrances already blocked by hanging passengers. As the train started moving out of the station, the reporter looked out of the window and saw people climbing on to the roof of the train. “I told you once the coaches are full, these young men just go to the roof. But that is even more frequent with the 6 pm train because it is usually more crowded. So, some people actually choose to sit on top of the train where they can breathe well, not minding the danger,” said Oloruntoba. Ticket checkers are about the place. Their work is compounded by the trains overload, and they have to wriggle themselves through passengers to check tickets, including those of passengers at the entrance and the roof. “That, perhaps, is why the job is not attractive to women,” said a man who sat beside the reporter. The checker said ticket defaulters are made to pay double the fare. In a situation where they become unruly, they could be surcharged N1,000 or more, or handed over to the police. Yet such cases are rampant. From coach to coach, fights often break out as a result of frustrations. At the Agege section of the route, the open market on the rail track had almost taken over the rail road. No wonder the train had to crawl through the section. More people came on. For the first time, a large number of passengers got off, but it offered little or no relief to the suffocating atmosphere. Here, the train waited the longest time; about five minutes. At other stations, it had stopped for just 30 seconds or, at most, a minute. As if it had been finally let loose, the train raced towards Agbado station, leaving a lot of dust in its trail. The Agbado station is characterised by a big market and a large beggar community. At this station, half of the passengers alighted and breathing became easier. With more room in the coaches, hawkers had a field’s day. Itoki, Ogun State was the next station. More people got off and the topography changed. For once, I saw school children sit comfortably, looking out through the window and truly enjoying a train ride as the train approached its final destination (Ijoko) at 5:15 pm. I asked Jude and Hakeem, two young men who had sat on the roof of the train, why they chose to do so. “There was too much heat inside and there were no seats. So, we decided to enjoy ourselves up there,” they responded. It was when they were reeking of alcohol that I realised that while they were on the roof, they had the company of liquour. A notice on the wall at the station warned that anyone caught on the roof of the train would pay a fine of N25,000. But Jude and Hakeem laughed it off, as they walked away. Officially, each coach is designed for 90 passengers. But the eight-coach train had no fewer than 1,800 people on board.

  • Smugglers invade waterways with goods

    THE quest by smugglers to sustain their illegal business of smuggling goods from Benin Republic and other neighbouring West African countries into Nigeria may have finally shifted from land to waterways. In the face of the daunting challenges posed by men of the Nigerian Customs Service and the police to their nefarious activities on land, findings revealed that most of the smugglers have resorted to ferrying their goods on rivers that link Seme in Benin Republic from Lagos and Ogun States in order to reduce the cost of conveying their goods on land where they pay heavily to corrupt Customs officials or guard against the risk of losing their entire goods to the security operatives. Visits to some of the rivers revealed that the volume of goods, especially rice being smuggled into the country through the waterways tripled the quantity that was being smuggled in previously. A source close to one of the rivers told The Nation that the development is as a result of the beckoning Christmas and New Year festivities. The source added that the smugglers may have increased the quantity of food items they are smuggling into the country in anticipation of possible food shortage that may arise from the destruction of many farmlands in the country by floods. “The quantity of goods, especially rice being smuggled into the country has drastically increased because of the Yuletide season. Most of the smugglers are highly speculative. Most of the goods coming in now may not be taken to the market immediately. Some of them would be hoarded in anticipation of possible food shortage next year because of the flood that washed off many farmlands this year. If it happens the way they have conjectured, they would sell at higher prices and make high profits,” the source said. The Rice Millers, Importers and Distributors Association of Nigeria (RIMIDAN) recently raised the alarm on the volume of the country’s losses to smuggling. According to RIMIDAN, Nigeria loses N36.7 billion yearly to rice smuggling and wastes in local rice processing. On smuggling and duty evasion, it said N20.4 billion was lost yearly, adding that there is N16.3 billion in unpaid taxes by local processors, whose investments have been crippled by smugglers. In spite of the lamentation of RIMIDAN and the huge losses the country suffers in other areas of the economy as a result of their unwholesome activities, the business seem to be expanding and thriving more than ever before on the waters. The smugglers seem to be unperturbed by the destructive effect of their activities on the nation’s economy. Personal gains to them, is more important than the hemorrhage the economy is currently suffering from as a result of their activities. “From the days of our forefathers, the wealth of Nigeria has suffered violence and only the violent can take it by force’ is a twisted biblical saying commonly heard among them. At the point of loading their ships in Seme, the smugglers’ eyes literary drips of blood and as they set out on the win or lose business journey. This intimidating countenance quickly changes immediately they arrive at their various destinations. On arrival at one of their berthing points at Isashi, the smugglers heaved a sigh of relief. One of them grabbed a bottle of whiskey, opened it and poured its content into the river as a libation and prayed for more blessing. The goods which range from bales of clothes, gallons of vegetable oil, bags of rice and other edibles often berth at Ere, a community along Ado, a surburb of Ogun State. From there, they are moved on land to neighbouring riverine communities like Igbesa, Agbaara, in Ogun State and Isashi and Ishuti area of Igando in Lagos State for onward delivery to various markets. Before the goods arrive at the riverine areas, the smugglers would send information to bus and van drivers to be available at the riverside to convey the goods to their various customers. Idle youths in the riverine communities are readily on hand to offload the smuggled goods into waiting vehicles. Checks revealed that these idle youths always look forward to when the goods would arrive the river because of the money they make from doing the job. A canoe, for instance, carries an average of 200 bags of rice. One of the youths told our correspondent that they are paid an average of N50 to carry a bag of rice from the canoe to the waiting buses. On a good day, he said they could begin loading goods from morning till about 11pm. One of the smugglers who identified himself as ‘Small’, told our correspondent in an informal chat that he took to smuggling when he searched for a means of livelihood to no avail. He said he does not see anything that is morally wrong in the business because it does not take anything from anybody. He said: “Man must survive my brother. Since we cannot get subsidy money to supply fuel or use biro to steal money like people in government, can’t we eke out a living for ourselves? I took to smuggling business after several years of combing the street for a means of livelihood. I started as an apprentice to somebody after which I raised money to start my own. It is not an easy business, but it is better than armed robbery, kidnapping or 419 because we take what belongs to another person. Instead of seeing us as criminals we should be seen as helpers of the people because we make life better for the people by selling things to them at cheaper prices than they would ordinarily get it in the open market. “The people in government don’t want the poor to survive. It does not matter to them if we are dead or suffering. When I was younger, I had always heard of people stealing from the national cake and eating it alone. If they would not drop the crumbs of the national cake for ghetto man to eat, will ghetto man not find a way for himself? Whether they like it or not, ghetto man must survive by fire or by force.” Another smuggler who gave his name as James, said the trend in smuggling goods through waterways was because of the problems they encounter with men of the Nigerian Customs and the police when carrying goods on land. Where there is a will, he said there must always be a way. “Transporting goods on river did not start today. It started long ago but it seems to be the in-thing now. Before now, we could settle Customs and police with relatively good sum of money and carry our goods without any problem. But as time went on, their mouths became too wide that they started asking far above what we even make as profits at the end of the day. Where you fail to part with the sum they ask for, they would seize your goods and make you suffer terrible losses that you may never recover from in life. We have many people who had either died or developed terminal diseases like stroke after their goods were seized for failing to part with the money they were asked. “When we saw that the relationship was not what it used to be, we created an alternative route to transport goods on land. It is easier to track us on land but it is not easy to do so on water. We still settle a little bit to get our goods down here but it can never be compared to transporting them on land where you are likely to meet about ten Customs checkpoints and five or seven police checkpoints on the road. This is Nigeria, you must understand. You cannot remain on a spot to watch the masquerade performance. You have to move around. When one road blocks, another must surely open,” he said. The activities of the smugglers have, however, been generating serious concerns in some of the riverine communities. In some of the areas, their activities have made most of the youths in the area to abandon their education. A resident of Agbaara who gave his name as Pastor Taiwo lamented that most of the youths in the area have found working with smugglers an easy way of staving off hardship. He said: “It is unfortunate that most of the parents do not have the power to prevent their children from helping the smugglers. Some of them even remind their children to go to the rivers to assist them because they cannot fend for their children. Many of them have long abandoned their studies because they are already making money. If you try to advise them, they will tell you that it is money that they and others in school are looking for. They would even tell you of many jobless graduates that come to them for money. The truth is that many of them grow from assisting them to offload goods to becoming smugglers themselves. Government must do something to check this. Government must provide an alternative for both the smugglers and the children that are assisting them.” A highly placed resident of Oto Awori, along Lagos Badagry expressway spoke on anonymity. He told The Nation that the smugglers were always making use of the rivers in the area until the traditional ruler clamped down on their activities because they were affecting the psyche of the youths in the area. But his claim was denied by Chief Samson Obanla, the Akogun of Oto Awori who spoke in the absence of the king of the community, His Royal Majesty, Oba Josiah Ilemobale Aina, the Oloto of Oto of Awori Kingdom. He said: “Smugglers have never used our water for transporting their goods because we have a Customs’ checkpoint right here. Their boat or canoe can never berth here because the moment it berths here, the men of the Customs Service would arrest them. The only thing that happens here is that sometimes when the Customs are pursing the smugglers on land, they could run into our town. But the Oba long instructed our people to arrest and handover such smugglers that run into the community to either the Customs or the police. He has warned our people not to harbour them for any reasons. “We got tough on them after they killed one of our people in the course of trying to escape from the Customs. It is also not true that our people, especially the youths abandoned their education to work with smugglers. Our people are educated. We have Adeniran Ogunsanya Colleage of Education right here and also have Lagos State University very close to us. These are the institutions that our people attend. There may be other communities where the youths have abandoned their studies to be assisting smugglers but it is not in our community.” A resident of Odo, a sleepy community along Igando, a surburb of Lagos, who identified himself as Taiwo bemoaned the hijack of the river by smugglers. He said that their activities have further encouraged all manners of touts to come to the area. “This area used to be one of the most peaceful communities in Lagos State until smugglers began to use it to do ungodly businesses. It is a new site that is just witnessing gradual development. Aside from the major road that is still not tarred, we have no other way of coming in and going out of this environment apart from this river that is a gift of nature to us. “The river connects other communities here in Lagos and part of Ogun State. For example, you can move from here to Ayobo and Iyana Ipaja areas without going through the stress of going back to Igando and travelling a long distance through the expressway to get to either Iyana Ipaja or Ayobo. You can also get to Agbara from here without going back to the expressway. Apart from these communities in Lagos State, you can travel to Ogun State on this river because it links other rivers in Kotowu and Igbesa. It is very cheap and faster to go to all these places from here and that is of immense benefit to us. Besides, it creates a mini employment for both the youths and the women because some of them now use canoes as a means of transporting people while the women sell fruit and food items to people travelling on the river. “The situation has really changed from what it used to be because smugglers have latched onto the opportunity and made the whole area unsafe for everybody. Never in our imagination did we think that the river would be converted to an escape route for smugglers. On several occasions, we have seen smugglers move their goods from Agbara and other parts of the river through this area. Nobody gets close to them. Immediately they get here, they begin to off load their goods. At times, they would be shooting into the air to scare people away. This is unhealthy for a new community like ours because it puts fears in the minds of the people. “Another problem that the presence of the smugglers has created in the community is that it encouraged area boys to make this place their abode. Before the smugglers started passing through this community, we never had area boys in our midst. But since they observed that smugglers use here as their route, they have stormed here in their numbers. I guess they are here for the purpose demanding for settlement from the smugglers. When you get to the sawmill beside the river, especially on weekends and Sundays, you will find these hoodlums smoking Indian hemp and other hard drugs and the very moment you begin to see young men engaging in such unholy lifestyle in any community, then you can be certain that such area is not a safe place to live in,” he said. Tunde, a middle aged man that paddles one of the canoes, told our man he does not carry either smugglers or anybody that is into shady deals. He, however, said that the menace of smuggling on the river has increased drastically. “It is true that smugglers pass through this place when carrying their goods to neighbouring communities, but it seems to be on the increase recently. Previously, it was a weekly thing but it has reduced now. “This river was ordinarily meant for people going to neighbouring communities, but as time went on, it became an exit point for miscreants of all sorts. The first time we experienced their activities here, it was very strange to all of us and it was as if war broke out in the community. Everybody ran for safety and at the end, many people sustained serious injuries. At times, these miscreants beat up people and inflict severe injuries on them if they refuse to give them the attention they want. We would appreciate if the government could flush them out totally so that we can continue to enjoy the peace that was the order of the day in the community some years ago. “As a transporter, I have never carried any of such people because it is against my Christian belief. I would rather manage the little I get than compromise my belief. If the smugglers are doing the right thing, they would never resort to carrying the goods in covert manners. They have chosen this area simply because they do not want to pay whatever money the Nigerian Customs would ask them to pay. As a Christian and believer in the project called Nigeria, I will not partake in anything that would continue to pull the country backward,” he submitted. Another resident who gave his name as Isaac decried the activities of the smugglers on the river. He opined that their activities are capable of endangering the lives of innocent residents that move about on the river. He feared that the menace of the smugglers may be a bad influence on the young ones in the community. The hoodlums, according to him, may have resorted to conveying their booty through the river to avoid falling into the hands of security men on the road. “I have never been comfortable since I found that smugglers make use of this river to carry their goods because it is unsafe for one to live anywhere close to where they operate frequently. Smugglers could be brutal, especially if anything obstructs their movements. “Another fear that I have about this development is that these hoodlums may gradually be influencing our children negatively. If their activities continue unchecked, some of the children in this community may begin to see what they are doing as the right thing and team up with them. Reacting, Uche Ejesieme, the Public Relations Officer of the Nigerian Customs Service Ikeja, said it is untrue that smugglers have been having a field day at the waterways. He averred that the Nigerian Customs Service has rather succeeded in frustrating the smugglers and checkmating their activities. He said: “It is not true that smugglers are bombarding the waterways with goods and having a field day. Their activities have rather reduced drastically as a result of our heightened anti-smuggling exploits. We have continued to make mince meat of their efforts. For example, we have made several seizures on the waterways and most recently we have interrupted a large quantity of contraband goods at the water ways. As a testament to my claims, the Federal Operations Unit Zone A, has recorded a total of 2,459 seizures of various contraband goods between January and November this year with a duty value of N999,495,288. These claims could be empirically verified. We also arrested 254 suspects during the same period. While we have successfully caged most of them, the recalcitrant ones have not given up, but they have continued to have their goods seized by our men. Let them continue to bring in the goods, we would also continue to seize them. We will continue to do so until they stop.” Continuing he said: “In our efforts to checkmate smuggling activities through the waterways, the Federal Operations Unit Zone A has put modalities in place through the deployment of intelligence gathering and collaboration between the Western Marine Command and the Seme Command. “We have intensified our anti-smuggling campaign at the waterways and have been recording spectacular seizures as a result of our activities. The comptroller, Federal Operations Units Zone A, Comptroller Dan Ugo has put every officer on their toes, especially during this last quarter of the year when we anticipate increased trading activities. He has been working tirelessly to ensure full compliance with the CGC’s zero tolerance for importation of all types of contraband goods. We hold weekly meetings at the instance of the Comptroller to identify flashpoints that need to be closely monitored. These days Customs work as a team, irrespective of your command and we also share intelligence with commands in the zone.” On the allegations that men of the Service aid the activities of smugglers by collecting bribes, he said: ”I am not aware of that, but the truth is that there would always be bad eggs in any organisation but I can tell you categorically that the Service and the Unit will not spare anybody who is found wanting.

  • Bedridden with spinal cord injury, youth corps member cries for help

    Bedridden with spinal cord injury, youth corps member cries for help

    The joy of 24-year-old Temitope Ajayi, a graduate of the Adekunle Ajasin University (AAU), Ondo State knew no bounds when he was posted to Kano State for the mandatory one- year National Youth Service Scheme (NYSC) in 2011.

    Notwithstanding the series of violent attacks unleashed on states in the Northern part of Nigeria by Boko Haram sect which occasioned the decision by some state governments in the South- west to reject postings of their graduates to northern states, Ajayi had brimmed with enthusiasm and patriotism to serve his fatherland not knowing that he was embarking on a fated journey.

    In order to beat the deadline for resumption to camp, Ajayi had boarded a vehicle in Akure en-route Kano. His joy was however cut short when he was involved in a ghastly auto accident along Zaria-Kano Expressway leaving him with a spinal cord injury.

    At the moment, the once bubbling life of the young lad has turned nightmarish as he now vegetates in excruciating pains on his sickbed.

    Speaking with our correspondent on his reclining sickbed, he cut a pitiable picture of a person in dire need of assistance as he opened up on his predicament. He said: “I was among the Batch “B” youth corps members posted to Kano State in 2011, and we were asked to report to camp on July 5, 2011.

    “In order to catch up with the deadline, I boarded a vehicle in Akure on July 4, 2011. The journey was smooth until we arrived a particular spot on Kano-Zaria Road when our vehicle got involved in a multiple accident that left in its wake many dead travellers. The accident left me with a spinal cord injury that has since taken me to various hospitals in search of remedy”.

    Amidst hot tears, he expatiated further on the unfortunate incident and the fruitless battle to find a solution to his condition.

    He said: “I was initially rushed to the Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital, ABUTH, Zaria, Kaduna State from where I was later transferred to the National Orthopaedic Hospital, NOH, Kano State. I stayed in the hospital for about one year and left on May 30, 2012. I was discharged because I could no longer afford medical bills.

    “While at the National Orthopaedic Hospital, Kano, the state coordinator of the NYSC visited me on two occasions, but he could not do anything to help because he said only the national headquarters of the NYSC could assist me. We have since approached the NYSC secretariat in Abuja, but we are being tossed around while my condition continues to deteriorate. I struggled to earn good education after losing my father and my patriotic zeal encouraged me to accept to serve in the north despite the violence caused by Boko Haram in that part of the country, yet I have been abandoned to fate by the same Nigerian authority that should ordinarily protect my interest and look after my well-being. It’s sad, very sad. “

    Ajayi’s explanation was echoed by his guardian, Barrister Samson Ufumwen, who narrated the fruitless search for financial assistance to put ailing Ajayi back on his feet.

    He said: “It is almost a hopeless situation. We have called on the authorities of the NYSC to assist in taking care of Ajayi on many occasions, but the responses have not been encouraging. We have written many letters to the NYSC state office in Kano from where we were referred to the national office in Abuja, but the matter is being treated with levity. We were asked to provide receipts of the money spent so far on Ajayi’s treatment and we have complied. But despite submitting receipts to the tune of N1.2million for possible reimbursement about ten months ago, the NYSC is yet to reimburse us let alone respond to Ajayi’s call for assistance to enable him receive proper treatment. The last time we visited the NYSC secretariat in Abuja, a senior female official that attended to us treated us badly.

    “I think the attitude of the NYSC towards Ajayi is not encouraging at all as it is capable of sending a message to other young graduates to have a rethink before accepting the call to serve Nigeria because if Ajayi had not embarked on the trip to Kano , he would not have been involved in a motor accident.”

    Ufumwen said further: “Ajayi is an orphan who struggled to earn a university degree in Linguistics, and it is so unfortunate that he got involved in a motor accident that has since practically rendered him useless. He is an indigene of Akure, Ondo State , and we have also written a letter Governor Olusegun Mimiko for financial assistance, but we have not got any response. We have since approached the NeuroGen Brain and Spine Institute in India which offered to help fix Ajayi’s spinal cord.

    “We have been told that Ajayi spinal problem can be solved through the stem transfer surgery to strengthen his bone and put him back on his feet, but the hospital had requested for the sum of five million naira to carry out the surgery. We don’t have the resources to sponsor him to India for the operation, hence we are calling on Nigerians to assist Ajayi because he encountered this problem while serving his fatherland. His condition continues to deteriorate and we cannot but cry out to Nigerians for necessary assistance.”

    An NYSC official, who asked not to be named because of the sensitive nature of the matter, said: “It is not true that we have abandoned him (Ajayi). As a matter of fact, the NYSC has been proactive when it comes to taking care of corps members with similar cases, and we have recently sponsored a corps member’s medical treatment in India. Concerning the case of Ajayi, as I speak to you, his file is now at the office of the Director-General for necessary action.

    “It is true that Ajayi’s guardian had approached our office, asking for financial assistance on his behalf, but he could not provide all the receipts of medical bills incurred and that is where the problem lies. While they are demanding for one million naira reimbursement, the receipts of his medical treatment submitted only reflect that they have so far spent N500, 000 and that is what the NYSC will pay them. However, when they would be paid is what I don’t know.”

    Those who are willing to assist Ajayi, who is now bedridden, can send their donations via Temitope Ajayi’s First Bank account: 2022208169 while he can also be reached on 08057653553 and 08034245782.