The Nation Newspaper

Tag: colleagues

  • When Olanipekun feted colleagues, others

    When Olanipekun feted colleagues, others

    Courtroom gladiators – from both the Bar and the Bench – dropped their customary jackets and gowns for the event. Their wigs and bibs were off-duty. It was no moment to splutter legalistic authorities to either defend or “kill” a case.  It was an event where clinking of wine glasses replaced unnerving sounds of the gavel.

    The event was not a court session. The rendezvous was the serene premises of the Premier Hotel in the ancient city of Ibadan, the Oyo State capital. The hilly hotel gathered learned souls and leading lights of the legal profession to celebrate another evidence of God’s Grace in the life of an outstanding legal icon, Chief Wole Olanipekun.

    To them, having a reception in honour of Olanipekun, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), an Officer of the Federal Republic (OFR) and a serviceable President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), who added another feather to his cap as a Doctor of Law (LL.D), courtesy of Nigeria’s Premier institution, the University of Ibadan, at the institution’s 66th Founder’s Day, worth the while.

    The honour was bestowed on him earlier in the day alongside other notable achievers, who have also distinguished themselves in their chosen careers. They are: The Emeritus Professor of Literature and the Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, who bagged Doctor of Letters (D. Litt.); Emeritus Professor Theophilus Ogunlesi, Doctor of Science (D.Sc), and Emeritus Professor Tekena Tamuno, Doctor of Letters (D.Litt.).

    Amid rapturous applause, Olanipekun and his co-awardees were praised in superlative terms for using their endowments in selfless service to their fatherland.

    Also last Sunday, the President of Ibadan Business School (IBS), Chief Yinka Fasuyi, treated Olanipekun, his family and well-wishers to a lavish “pre-award” reception at his palatial home in Iyaganku GRA, Ibadan.

    Explaining the outing, Fasuyi said it was the school’s “token identification with the “laudable honour bestowed on Chief Olanipekun, our Vice Chairman”.

    The reception at the Premier Hotel perhaps exemplified Olanipekun’s value in the eyes of his colleagues, friends, associate and kinsmen. Gleefully, they thronged the venue in their best bib and tucker.

    Chief Folake Solanke (SAN), Dele Adesina(SAN), Prof Taiwo Oshipitan(SAN), Dayo Akinlaja (SAN) all stepped out to be counted. So was Eyitayo Jegede, Ondo State Attorney-General.

    The Ooni of Ife, Oba Okunade Sijuwade and the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi, were represented by Oba Kole Ojutalayo and Oba Olayiwola Adereti; High Chief Kayode Ogunleye represented the Ewi of Ado Ekiti. The Regent of Ikere-Ekiti, Princess Ayooye Adegboye-Oyinlola was there with some of his chiefs. Also present were Prof Kolawole Jayeola; the Vice Chancelor, Ajayi Crowder University, Oyo, Prof Dele Olowokudejo; former presidential aspirant Dr Olapade Agoro; Dr Festus Akindunni, Managing Director, Geomatics Nigeria Limited; Ibadan-based lawyer, Ola Alonge and other frontline indigenes of Ikere Ekiti.

    Sumptuous foods and assorted drinks were there for everyone. It was merriment all through as Dele Galaxy Entertainment Band, led by Bamidele Ogunsola, kept all wriggling their waists to his songs – well blended with pulsating drum beats.

    Olanipekun, his delectable wife, Princess Omolara; their children and some of their in-laws were practically pleading with everyone to dine and wine to satisfaction.

    On the lips of most of Olanipekun’s guests was his exemplary humility despite his legendary accomplishments at the “young” age of 63.

    The Chairman of IJUNT Construzion Limited, Yusuf Adeoye, who said he had done some works for Olanipekun said described him as a unique giver. “His kindness is rare,” he said.

    The dancer in Olanipekun and his better half came to the fore – though to the pleasant surprise of many a guest – when they took to the dance floor. Not a few suspended their meals to catch a glimpse of his well-calculated dance steps amid cheers.

    In batches, guests joined the awardee at the cake-cutting session after which the dancing continued.

    Akindunni described Olanipekun’s honour as robustly deserved, adding: “He is the most humble, intelligent and hardworking professional. He is a gift to Nigeria and humanity as a whole.”

    To Agoro, “Wole is an embodiment of loyalty, industry, and humility. He is a rare human being with golden touch.”

    Asked how he felt about the award, Olanipekun said: “Coming at a time it came and given the caliber of eminent few, who also got awards same day from the same institution, and in a country where merit is not recognised, I see great honour in the honour. It is an encouragement for one to continue to do what one believes is good.”

  • How police sergeant,colleagues ‘robbed’ this man of N.28m

    How police sergeant,colleagues ‘robbed’ this man of N.28m

    Like a scene out of a gangster movie, a man Dr Babatunde Oloyede has been ‘robbed’ of the sum of N280,000 by a team of policemen led by a sergeant, who had arrested him under the flyover bridge at Ojuelegba, Lagos on allegation of committing crime.   Asst. Editor, SINA FADARE reports.

    March 18, 2014 is a day Dr Babatunde Oloyede a Nigerian working as an expatriate in Costa Rica will remember for the rest of his life. It was the day a team from the Nigeria Police accosted him under the flyover bridge at Ojuelegba in Lagos and ‘robbed’ him at gunpoint of the sum of N280,000.

    It was a day that began on a promising note but ended badly when he was rough handled by a man who he initially thought was a hoodlum but later identified as Sergeant Eshue Augustine with police no 247516.

    Oloyede who had just returned from Costa Rica where he was residing with his family and was going to the church on this faithful day was shocked that he could be accused of being a criminal by Augustine in broad day light even when nothing incriminating was found on him. Sergeant Augustine later dragged him to his other colleagues seated in a yellow painted commercial bus parked somewhere under the bridge.

    According to Oloyede in a petition to the police and a human rights advocacy group, ‘Citizen Right Empowerment Initiative’, alleged that  Augustine with his other colleagues   Stg. Mohammed Yahaya with police no 356567, not only threatened to send him to Kirikiri prisons, but said they are ready to set him free if he could part away with N500,000.

    “I thought l was in the hand of armed robbers because Augustine who first accosted me was in mufti, until l was dragged to the Danfo bus where a driver was permanently on the wheel and was asked to drive me to Kirikiri if l did not cooperate with them. I was scared with the way they were cocking their guns as another police officer who put on a pull over to cover his identity also came over to tell me that the best way for me was to cooperate because l may not get to Kirikiri before my life would be terminated. This forced me to agree to play ball.

    “At this point my wallet was thoroughly searched by Augustine who found nothing inside apart from my Bible, cheque book and documents relating to my family. When he saw these documents he was enraged, shouting that they are forged documents and that if the I.G monitoring team should see me, l may spend 24 years behind bars and that there is no lawyer that can bail me out of this crisis unless l cooperated with him,” he lamented

    At this point, Oloyede’s two phones had been confiscated and he was led to the nearest ATM  to collect the  said amount but he resisted, insisting  that he cannot give them the half a million being demanded for because the money in his account was intended to be used for his ticket back to his base in Costa Rica.

    Augustine was more enraged and he later introduced Yahaya as a police commissioner who can determine his case and fate and that the ealier he cooperated with him the better it would be.

    “At this point l told them that l can only withdraw N280, 000 from my account and that this could only be done across the counter. They forced me into the Danfo vehicle and the driver who must have been working for them did not utter a word, he was told to drive to the nearest Guarantee Trust Bank, GTB at Bode Thomas, Oba Akran way Surulere.

    “At the bank, Stg. Augustine followed me inside and warned that l should not discuss with anybody while the two others and the driver of the Danfo bus were outside the bank. Immediately l withdrew N280, 000, we both went out and he said l should follow him to a corner where he collected the money. When he did, I then asked for my phones which had been seized and they were given to me with a warning that l should not receive any call or call anybody till they will drop me off.

    “Later they took me round for a while before we got to (Lagos) Island under the bridge by the lake side, they said l should get out of the bus, when l complained that after all, l had settled them and l don’t know anywhere around this place, Augustine then got out of the bus and Yahaya assured me that  he will drop me off at Ojuelegba with a warning that if l make any attempt to report the case anywhere, they will deny it, frustrate me and my life will be wasted because this is the business they are doing for a living.” he said

    Oloyede trauma did not end there; he later reported the case to a non Governmental Organisation, ‘Citizen Right Empowerment Initiative’ who advised him to contact a lawyer and then report the case to police authority.  Three days after the incident he reported the case to the IG monitoring team  at Kam Salem, House, Obalende where Superintendent  Gbenga attended to him.

    Gbenga eventually caught Augustine and his cohorts in the act at Ojuelegba when they wanted to ‘rob’ another victim,  a manager with Nigeria Football Federation, NFF; Gbenga intervened and took all of them to Obalende. He later confirmed that they are not armed robbers as he initially envisaged. It was at Obalende that the case was officially reported to the Provost Marshall.

    ‘After interrogation and Augustine who initially denied ever seeing me before now confessed that he actually searched me but vehemently denied that he collected any money from me.  Later after we left their office he charged at me that since he had warned me not to report the case and I was proving too stubborn, he will tell me that nothing will come out of the investigation and l am going to be the loser because he will terminate my life, no matter the involvement of any lawyer and that if l like l should engage the service of a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, (SAN)”

    As predicted by Stg. Augustine, nothing came out of the Provost Marshal’s office as all of them decided to frustrate Oloyede by blaming him why for not raising an  alarm when the officers were dealing with him.

    “Despite the fact that the police authority went to the bank to collect the CCTV camera and said Augustine was identified inside the banking hall that day by one Inspector Garuba Mohammed, they still blamed me for not shouting while inside the bank, even if Augustine was ready to shoot me as  l claimed”

    When The Nation went to Ojuelegba to verifying the veracity of Oloyede’s claim, it was discovered that Augustine and his colleagues, Yahaya are so popular among the drivers and hawkers under the bridge to the extent that Yahaya was being referred to as a police commissioner.

    Speaking to The Nation on condition of anonymity, a driver who is an executive member of the National Union of Road Transport Workers, NURTW in Lagos State said Augustine and his colleagues have constituted themselves into a powerful clique to the extent that anybody who reports them could be killed.

    “As you know they cannot be operating under this bridge in the last two years without having a godfather in their office. At times some of their victims thought they were armed robbers because most of the time they were in mufti. Can you believe that they paid some of the Danfo drivers that they are using on a full booking everyday” he lamented

    At the office of the Lagos State Police Public Relation Officer, PPRO, the Deputy PPRO, Assistant Superintendent Lelma Kolle told The Nation he had once been a victim of such assault under Ojuelegba bridge when he was working at Apapa.

    According to him the man who accosted him was dressed in mufti and he concluded he was one of those hoodlums who operate under police cover to perpetrate evil. “when the guy demanded to know what was inside my bag, l gave it to him and he asked me to open it, when l did, he saw my uniform and said so you are an officer, why didn’t you identify yourself earlier, in annoyance and because l was getting late l just left the scene.”

    At Kam Salem House in Obalende, The Nation met a brick wall as our correspondent was not allowed to see the Provost Marshal who was in charge of Oloyede’s case. However a police Inspector said “the more you look, the less you see when you are talking about disciplining police officers who took bribe here, because a lot of intrigues and deceits are involved.”

    He confessed that a lot of people have been victims of Augustine and his colleagues who also make a lot of returns to some top officers. That is why they are always confident that any case you brought against them will be thrown into the trash bin. But as l used to tell them, God is watching”

    It is obvious that Dr Oloyede who is a PhD  holder has been frustrated and he could not travel to his family in Costa Rica, neither can he sleep with all eye closed as Augustine has promised to waste his life.

    “l am a frustrated man now because my family has been sent away from Costa Rica because l was supposed to be there to renew my contract, but this is not possible and to make matters worse l cannot send money to them due to my account that is in red. I cannot believe that this is what Nigeria that l left almost twenty years ago has turned to,” he lamented.

  • Former colleagues pay tribute to Godwin Eke

    Former Flying Eagles’ and Green Eagles’ defender, Godwin Eke who died on Monday has been described as humble and very efficient  in the discharge of his job as an active footballer and coach.

    The  right full back, who was in Nigeria’s U-20 squad to USSR 85 where the country grabbed a historic bronze medal died of suspected heart failure on Monday morning as he had no ailment and even attended church service  a day before his death.

    Most of his team mates have been commenting on his death and they have described him as a person whose death would be sadly missed by Nigeria and Imo State.

    First to speak was his friend with whom he attended church  on Sunday, Mike Obi who also played for the Green Eagles before his retirement.

    He said Eke gave no account of any ailment and was hale and hearty when they attended church together and even added that they discussed  business and other facets of human endeavour before they departed and promised to meet the following morning.

    Obi said he  has been in  a state of shock ever since he got the news on Monday.

    Obi told SportingLife:”It is sad news to me because this was a man we attended the same church together on Sunday. We chatted freely after the church service and agreed to meet on Monday at work only to be told he died barely 24 hours later.”

    A colleague of the late Eagles’ defender at USSR FIFA U-20 World Cup and in the senior national team, Christian Obi said he was shocked when the news got to him at his stable in Jalingo that Eke had died.

    He said the former international was very humble and humane and that during his  playing days he was a rock at the right full back.

    Oladunni Oyekale of the Saudi Arabia 1989 FIFA U-20 World Cup fame among others have also paid tributes to the late Eagles’ star whose death came to them as a surprise.

    Eke was born on June 1, 1968 at Isiekenesi in Ideato South area of Imo State and he played and captained Spartans FC of Owerri. He also played for Inwuanyanwu Nationale and First Bank of Lagos and his crucial tackles helped the Flying Eagles to the bronze medal at the USSR 1985 FIFA U-20 World Cup.

    No burial arrangement has been made public by his family.

  • Students protest ‘defilement’ of colleagues

    Students of the Federal College of Agriculture, Akure (FECA) in Ondo State yesterday marched on the streets to protest the alleged defilement of three female students by hoodlums.

    They started the protest in the morning and resisted moves by the police to maintain peace, demanding the arrest of the hoodlums and the Chief Security Officer of the institution.

    Some reporters were molested by the students for attempting to enter the college premises to perform their duties.

    During the incident, the ever- busy Fiwasaye/Owo Road was blocked by the students, causing traffic jam that lasted many hours.

    The Students’ Union leader, Oladapo Akindamini, alleged that five hoodlums, led by a part time student of the school, invaded the campus around midnight and headed for the female hostel.

    He said the students were alerted by the alarm raised from the female hostel, only to discover that two of the female students had been allegedly defiled and the third assaulted.

    Akindamini said: “Before we could rush to the female dormitory to restore normalcy, two of our colleagues had been defiled and one was molested. Two other students were also assaulted when the rapists were trying to overpower them. We took them to the General Hospital.”

    He said the students, who were preparing for their examinations, trooped out of their hostels and apprehended one of the hoodlums, who was handed over to the security officer.

    He alleged that the security man, however, kept him in an open room instead of handing him over to the police and the hoodlum escaped.

    The students said security on the campus could no longer be guaranteed.

    The Provost, Dr. Mary Ogunkoya, said the police were handling the case, adding that those found culpable would be prosecuted in line with the law.

    Police spokesman Wole Ogodo said: “We have put the situation under control”, adding that the victims have reported the incident at the Divisional Police Station in Ijapo, Akure.

    He said the victims were on admission at an undisclosed hospital and investigation is ongoing to arrest the culprits.

  • Ibadan traders mourn colleagues

    Traders at the popular Bodija market in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, yesterday shut their shops to mourn four of their colleagues, who were killed by gunmen in Maiduguri, Borno State, on Sunday.

    The victims, simply identified as Nihas; Fatai (a.k.a. Coach); Alaba and Amodu, travelled to Maiduguri to buy millet.

    They were shot dead by gunmen near Maiduguri.

    It was learnt that the gunmen ambushed the commercial bus conveying the late traders.

    One of the market leaders, who pleaded for anonymity, said: “We heard there were 16 passengers in the vehicle and the four traders were the only Yoruba among them.

    “We heard that the gunmen ordered them to lie face down and shot them. They stole the millions of Naira they had on them.”

    The traders got the news on Monday and decided not to open their shops yesterday.

    To prevent a reprisal attack on Hausa traders, armed policemen were deployed in the market.

    The traders discussed in groups and many shoppers turned back disappointed.

    Skeletal trading resumed around 5pm when traders selling perishable goods displayed their wares.

    The traders condemned the killings, which they said had become one too many.

    One of them said: “That was how they killed three cattle dealers from here in the same area last October. We often contribute money and send a few traders to the market to cut cost.”