The Nation Newspaper

Tag: death

  • Ugborodo crisis: Committee calls for probe of death, others

    The Ugborodo Administrative Committee (UAC) has accused the Austin Oborogbeyi-led Ugborodo Community Management Committee (UCMC) of orchestrating the unfortunate incident of Tuesday, August 22, 2017, in which Samuel Mayomi died.

    The UAC, in a statement signed by its chairman, Jolomi Metsegharun, who is president-general of Ugborodo community, also accused the leadership of UCMC of forging the signature of the Eghare-Aja (oldest man in the community), Pa Wellington Ojogor, alleging the Eghare-Aja is incapacitated.

    But in a reaction to Metsegharun’s allegation, a member of UCMC, Alex Eyengho, described the allegations as attempt to divert  attention from the real issue, involving responsibility for the death.

    Metseghanrun alleged the signature of the Eghare-Aja was forged in an advert publication in a national newspaper in line with the constitution of the community, noting that the man could not physically and mentally perform such role.

    He, however, accused the Oborogbeyi-led management committee of causing the incident of August 22 and urged security agencies to unravel circumstances surrounding the incident.

    “Apart from forging the signature of the Eghare-Aja, the decision to have a general meeting ougt to emanate from the community where you want to hold the meeting and not from Warri-based elders who claim superiority over the council of elders in the community.

    “We call on the Federal Government to investigate the council of elders in Warri on where and how they arrive at the decision of calling for a general meeting that would hold at Ode-Ugborodo without the input of the council of elders living in Ugborodo”, he said.

    Meanwhile, the UCMC has described the allegations of forgery and orchestration of the August 22 disaster, being tagged on it by the Metsegharun group as laughable and a diversionary tactic, aimed at watering down the effect of the guilt associated with being responsible for people’s is having on them.

    Member of the UCMC, who has been speaking on the group’s behalf since the incident occurred, Alex Eyengho, while responding to the issues raised by Metsegharun, said the allegations were false.

  • Death at Eke-ukwu Market

    •Crises of urbanisation as indigenes resist relocation of ancient market

    It turned out a gory tragedy. The picture of a 10-year-old boy with what looked like a bullet hole in the forehead is indeed gory. Juxtaposed against existential rubble and rampaging bulldozers was nothing but horrific. The bedlam was complete; mass of protesting traders watched in anguish as the Eke-ukwu, probably the largest open market in Imo State, ceased to be.

    Finally, modernity won the argument in a never-ending desire by man to continuously upgrade and renew his environment. Until last Friday night, Eke-ukwu, which may be described as an ancestral market sat right in the middle of the beautiful city of Owerri, the capital of Imo State in the southeast of Nigeria.

    It must be noted that it was the city that caught up with the market and circumscribed it, for it had existed long before Owerri was named capital. But today, the market has become an aberration if not an embarrassment to a fast-growing state capital. And it has been so for about two decades. The major city thoroughfare, Douglas Road, is nigh impassable, impeded as much by human traffic as the ever-present heaps of refuse.

    A stone’s throw from Douglas Road is Douglas House, the seat of the state government. Of course there is a noxious nexus. On a bad day, the din, stench and bric-a-brac of the Eke-ukwu would sail in the vicinity of Douglas House. This is not to mention the environmental hazards a shimmering, sprawling open market invokes on a burgeoning city. There are also issues of touting, criminality and cultism.

    According to reports, previous administrations had initiated moves to relocate Eke-ukwu. But each time, relocation had been resisted. First by indigenes who threatened they would die first.

    Traders on their part had become entrenched in their comfort zone. Many had found wealth, comfort and security in Eke-ukwu all their lives and could not contemplate any other location even if it were a better option. They would give anything and indeed do anything not to shift from a settled place.

    Though the state government said it had built another market to absorb Eke-ukwu, some say it is not completed while others complain about the cost and distance. Government claims it had given them notice for upward of two years as it built the new location but traders countered that notice was short and that they were not allowed enough time to retrieve their goods. The traders also claimed that they have an injunction from the court restraining government’s action, noting that this was yet another case of official lawlessness and disregard for court orders.

    While argument and counters in the Eke-ukwu saga may go back and forth till Christmas, urbanisation is the crux of the matter here. The upgrade, renewal and complete makeover of cities and metropolitan areas have become abiding phenomena of the modern man. Old things will continue to give way as new skylines emerge to dominate human imagination. It is a historical fact that most modern cities of the world once hosted sprawling open markets which gave way to modern shopping malls.

    While affected traders and some Owerri indigenes may rue the relocation, majority of Imo people may well hail the incumbent Governor Rochas Okorocha for mustering the courage to effect a salutary change in the landscape of the city. There is no doubt that a new lease of life would be brought on the city centre when modern complexes rise to replace the shambolic Eke-ukwu.

    But we hasten to admonish that no matter how good intentioned government’s policy may be, it must not supplant the need to apply a human face. The loss of life is unacceptable and could have been avoided. Government must do all in its powers to assuage the parents of the dead child. It is also unacceptable that no one, not in the least, government would flout court orders. The law must be obeyed even at the expense of development. Due process must never be jettisoned no matter how long it takes.

    While the indigenes deserve accommodation in the new development, government has a duty to make the relocating traders enjoy as much comfort as possible in their new abode. They deserve no less.

  • Lateef Raji: Arrogance of death

    One of the most painful experiences anyone could have on earth is the death of a loved one. No doubt about it, death occurs in diverse places and through various means on a daily basis. In fact, man has come to accept with philosophical calmness the reality of death as an integral part of human existence. Such is the audacious brutality of death.

    In spite of the larger than life’s carriage of death, it however takes a sense of personal loss to really come to grapple with the pains that come with the demise of a close acquaintance. When we hear stories about the death of people in far and near places, we just take a casual note, shrug a bit and move on. It is one of those things and life goes on.

    But then, when death decides to pluck from the midst of those you consider as very dear to you, the reaction sharply differs. I had lost a dear brother and it was a very agonizing experience. It is never a tea party to lose a dear one. Though the hurt has healed, but the scar remains. Once in a while, I can’t but ruminate on what life might have looked like if my brother hadn’t succumbed to the cold hand of death. With the experience of my brother’s heart-breaking demise, I had erroneously thought that my heart is now cast in iron and no news of death could ever break me again. How wrong!

    Few years later, death was to strike again. This time around, it happened in a most wicked and traumatized manner and at a most unusual period. February is usually considered as a month of love. It has become a global tradition. Nearly everyone looks up to February in anticipation of a festival of love. But this particular February was a different one. It was a month of thick darkness. Characteristically, with darkness comes deep sorrow. Ironically, it was on a Sunday. Till now, everything had gone perfectly well. We have just had a glorious service at the church and were blissfully heading home. Then, my phone rang! It was a messenger of death! And suddenly, darkness beckoned. Few hours later, we had completed the burial of a dear colleague and her husband who died in a ghastly motor accident.

    It was an awfully tormenting experience that was so hard to fathom. But then, never undermine the capacity of the human heart to absorb misfortune. With time, we got over the shock of the deeply scary episode. Life is like a train in motion, though it stops at various terminals, it must move on. So again, life goes on.

    But then, as earlier affirmed, death is a daily routine in human existence. Few days ago, with the precision of a sharp shooter, death struck again. This time, death was quite subtle in its tactic. When I chatted with Hon. Lateef Raji on a popular social media platform that Saturday morning, I had great hope and immense relief that all was going to be fine. Hope is an essential component of life. Hope is a daily necessity. Without hope, life would be an excruciating torment. Hope has the ability to help people heal faster and easier. But death is arrogant. It has no place for hope. Indeed, death earnestly detests hope. Its primary mission is to turn hope to despair.

    So, barely 48 hours after the chat that ignited great hope in me that Hon. Raji would, indeed, play a fast one on death, the deadly monster struck with the decisiveness of a Supreme Court judge. Very early that bleak Monday morning, the messenger of death was again on duty. The mission was to herald the gloomy news of the demise of Hon. Raji. My heart ached! How does one begin a Monday morning with such devastating news? If he must die at all, must it be on a Monday morning? Such is the arrogance of death. It has no regard for time and place.

    Death meets man everywhere. It is procured by every instrument, and in all chances, and enters through many doors. To some, death come by violence and secret influence while to others it comes by the aspect of a star and the scent of a mist, by the emissions of a cloud and the meeting of a vapour, by the fall of a chariot and the stumbling at a stone. Others encounter death through a full meal or an empty stomach, by watching at the wine or by watching at prayers, by the sun or the moon, by a heat or a cold, by sleepless nights or sleeping days. Others are gotten by death through water frozen into the hardness and sharpness of a dagger, or water thawed into the floods of a river, by a hair or a raisin, by violent motion or sitting still.  Many deaths occur suddenly, like the case of those that recently lost their lives in Sierra Leone after a three day torrential rainfall. You see? Death even hides in rains!

    As I began to process the shocking news of Hon. Raji’s demise, in my distress, I thought: Why couldn’t death spare good people. At least, allow them live longer to reap the reward of their goodness. Hon. Raji was a good man. Initially, as the Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor (2011-2015), he was naturally my boss. But then, good people aren’t too good at playing bosses. So, he soon became a friend. Later he became a mentor. He loved people and he wanted to make them happy. He ran an open door policy. His ears were ever opened to the yearnings of the people. Though he didn’t have much, but he was willing to share the little he had with people. Unlike modern day’s counterfeits, he was a real comrade who didn’t believe in undue craze for wealth. He had little but was quite contented with what he had.

    As I continued to process the news of his sad and untimely death, the rhetorical question came up in my mind once again: “Why would death not spare good people?” Well, that is what makes death arrogant. It does what it wants and gets away with it. Nothing can tame death. Not science. Not technology. Not even watchfulness. Death will strike when it will.

    As for the departed Hon. Lateef Raji, one would like to remind mourning family members, friends, loved ones and colleagues of the philosophical and immortal words of legendary Williams Shakespeare in Julius Caesar: “Cowards die many times before their deaths. The valiant never taste of death but once”. Death has done its worst. It can’t kill him twice. Adieu, Lateef Raji! You have fought a good fight. As for all aching hearts, with time, they will heal again and life goes on.

     

    • Ogunbiyi is of the Ministry of Information & Strategy, Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos.

  • Police arrest 15 students for ‘colleague’s death’

    Jigawa State Police Command has arrested 15 students for the death of their colleague in Yankwashi Local Government, spokesman Jinjiri Abdu told News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Dutse.

    He said the suspects, all students of Government Science and Technical College, Karkarna, were arrested on August 8.

    Abdu said the students, aged 17 and 19, were suspected to have killed their colleague after they beat him up with sticks.

    He added that the suspects allegedly took the deceased to a bush close to the school on August 6 and beat him up about 2.30 a.m.

    ‘‘The suspects were said to have formed a disciplinary committee to deal with the deceased after they suspected him to be a homosexual.

    ‘‘So on that fateful day, they decided to deal with him by allegedly taking him to the bush and beating him up with sticks.

    ‘‘After the beating, they brought him back to school, and it was only his body that was found the following morning.

    ‘‘He was taken to hospital where he was confirmed dead,’’ Abdu said.

    He said investigation into the case has begun, adding that the suspects will soon be arraigned.

    The spokesman said the body had been handed over to his family for burial.

    NAN recalled that the state command of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) recently arrested four students of the same school for allegedly stealing 18 mini Samsung laptops.

    The students allegedly stole the items from the college’s computer room.

    NAN also recalled that the Federal Government donated 25 laptops to the college, out of which the suspects allegedly stole 18.

  • Three in trouble for man’s death

    A Kano Magistrates’ Court in Kano State has ordered the remand of Danbako Danbala, 25, Isi Umar, 22 and Danmalam Malam, 20, for allegedly killing Ali Garba.

    The defendants, residents of Wailari Quarters, Kano, are being tried on a two-count charge of criminal conspiracy and culpable homicide.

    The Chief Magistrate, Muhammad Jibril, ordered the defendants to be remanded in prison custody after they pleaded not guilty.

    Jibril adjourned the case till September 5.

    The prosecutor, Pogu Lale, told the court Abdullahi Yakubu, the commandant of a vigilance group and his colleagues attached to Wailari Quarters of Kumbotso Local Government reported the case at Naibawa Police Division on June 16.

    He said the vigilance group on the same date, about 1.30 a.m., arrested the trio at Wailari Quarters.

    Lale told the court the defendants conspired to inflict cuts on Garba with a cutlass.

    “As a result, he sustained deep cuts in his head and left leg,” he added.

    The prosecutor said the victim was taken to Murtala Muhammad Specialist Hospital, Kano. He died while receiving treatment.

    He said the offences contravened sections 97 and 221 of the Penal Code.

  • Man ‘beats younger brother to death’

    A 23-year-old man, David Orji, has allegedly beaten his younger brother, Onu, to death for being disobedient to their mother.

    The incident, it was learnt, occurred at Ubia Amaetiti, Amoso Edda, in Afikpo South Local Government of Ebonyi State.

    A source, who is a relative, said their mother, Mary, sent the deceased on an errand, but he refused.

    The source, who pleaded anonymity, said the mother reported Onu to his elder brother, David, who beat him up and injured him, resulting in his death.

    Police spokesman Jude Madu said he was yet to be briefed.

    He promised to get in touch with the divisional police officer and get back to our reporter.

  • Undergraduate remanded in prison over death of septuagenarian

    A 25year old Chinonso David Ibekwe 200 level Computer Science student of Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike in Ikwuano Local Government Area of Abia State has been remanded in prison by a court in the state for allegedly killing a 67 year old man identified as Peter Alaebuonu Eseonu.

    In a release issued by the Police Public Relations Office of the Abia State Police Command, Ibekwe, an indigene of Ndiotu Ntalakwu in Bende Local Government Area of the state was said to have been arrested by detectives of Central Police Station on a tip off.

    Although the release give details of what transpired between the suspect and the victim which led to his death, the suspect who allegedly confessed to killing Eseonu, a commercial tricycle operator took the detectives to a ditch at Amuzukwu Ibeku in Umuahia North Local Government where he dumped the body of the victim after killing him.

    The decomposing body of the deceased was said to have been exhumed and was being kept in unnamed mortuary for autopsy and preservation.

    In another development, three male students of Ken Saro-Wiwa Polytechnic, Bori and Rivers State Polytechnic, Ogoni respectively identified as Obike Stanley, Favour Michael and Kingsley Uchenna were arrested in one of the populous hotels located at city center by Police detectives from Ndiegoro Police Division.

    The undergraduates, The Nation gathered were alleged to be members of New Black Movement of Africa (NBM) cult group and were in the commercial city for yet-to-be ascertained reasons.

    Some of the items reportedly recovered from them by the police were one axe, cultist regalia, tramadol tablets and weeds suspected to be Indian-hemp.

  • Floods of death, destruction

    It was a tragedy foretold. Months before the rains started, the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET) warned that there would be flooding in most parts of the country and advised those living in flood-prone areas to relocate. Rather than heed the advice, our people as usual pretended that there was nothing to worry about. They went about their businesses with fire literally on their roofs. The Federal and state governments, which should get the people to comply, were also not forceful enough.

    Both tiers of government did not want to offend voters. This has always been our problem. We are fond of giving every issue, no matter how serious it may be, ethnic or religious or political coloration. What is tribal, political or religious about an advice that those living in flood-prone areas should move for their own safety? Why can’t the government get the people to do the needful instead of waiting until the worst has happened? Which is better – prevention or damage control?

    The truth is there is nothing to do damage control about once the harm is done. How do you bring back a person killed by flood? How do you recompense a family who lost all to flood? How do you console an aged landlord whose house and only means of livelihood is swept away by flood in the twilight of his life? How! How!! How!!! The hows are many, but suffice it to say  that we brought whatever we might be experiencing today from the floods caused by last weekend’s downpour across the country upon ourselves. Despite NIMET’s warnings, we were not prepared for the floods.

    I make this submission with heavy heart because the pictures I saw of flooded roads, houses and submerged cars were not something to smile about. They were something to cry about and I wept in my subconscious mind for my country. The floods were brought about because we did not plan in advance. We knew all along that the rainy season was coming, but we did not deem it fit to prepare for the floods which will certainly follow. We have roads without drains and where there are drains, they are blocked by wastes and pet bottles. Many homes are the same; people care less about the condition in which they live; they know little or nothing about hygiene and when you try to tell them, they pick a fight with you.

    Many will not forget in a hurry what happened last weekend in the plush neighbourhoods of Ikoyi, Victoria Island, Lekki, Banana Island, Park View, Victoria Garden City and environs in Lagos as well as in the not so rich towns in Niger State, where floods wreaked havoc. Eleven persons died in Suleja near Abuja and other towns in Niger State after a five-hour rainfall. In many of these places, nobody could escape the anger of the floods. Even those living in high-rise buildings were not safe. The floods were as high as these buildings that their inhabitants sought refuge on trees.

    Can we call these floods natural or man made disasters? I will say it was man made to some extent in the sense that we have tampered with the topography of the earth, especially around the coastlines, where new towns are springing up. For sure, society will develop, but such development should not be at the expense of human lives. If we are reclaiming the ocean for societal good as we are doing around the lagoon, what measures are we putting in place to safeguard lives and properties against disasters?

    Most of the plush Lagos neighbourhoods were submerged because there were no plans for arresting floods during disasters like this. And water, we are told, must always find its level. In doing that, it will force its way through whatever lies in its path, be it house, car, wall. Nothing can stop the force of water when it is angry. This is why it is dangerous to build on water channels or block dams, canals or drains because when there is a downpour the damage can be catastrophic. Many families are still counting their losses from last weekend’s downpour. We can still save ourselves from a bigger calamity by taking the necessary precautions.

    The rains have just started. The season is expected to be with us till around October/November. To say that it will not rain again like it did last weekend will be wishful thinking. We owe ourselves the duty of safeguarding our lives. We should not wait for the government to do that for us. Let us clear our surroundings of anything that can bring about flooding, while the government takes up the larger responsibility of cleaning the drains.

    And more important, the government should ensure that reclaimed areas are free of encumbrances that could lead to flooding. Otherwise, what happened in those posh areas last weekend will be child’s play compared to what may happen if such magnitude of rain – 178 millimeters – falls again.

  • Don Moen debunks death rumours with family photo

    Don Moen debunks death rumours with family photo

    Popular American singer-songwriter and evangelist, Don Moen, who was reported dead by a news website, has dispelled rumours of his demise by tweeting a picture of his father, himself, son and grandson- the four generations of his family.

    “Celebrating 4 generations in Minnesota today! Here’s a photo of my Dad, son John holding Bennett and me holding Luke. Love my family!!!,” Moen, who is popular for his brand of gospel music wrote.

    The world woke up Wednesday morning to a viral report that the popular gospel artiste was dead.

    Also debunking the news, Nigerian gospel singer, Frank Edwards and ally posted a screenshot of a conversation he had with the American singer’s son.

    The news of Don Moen’s purported death flooded the social media early Wednesday morning, with ‘sympathizers’ sending in their messages of condolence.

    “Bloggers pls repent naa. DON MOEN IS STRONG AND VERY OK!!! He is not going anytime soon. Haba,” he wrote.

    Edwards confirmed that Don Moen is very much alive, saying the news is fake.

    An earlier report by an American medium read; “An American singer-songwriter, pastor evangelist, Don Moen has died after short battle with stomach pain. His family confirmed that he died early this morning at General Acute Care (GAC) Hospital in California shortly after being rushed to the hospital. The cause of his death is not immediately known as the body is deposited at the morgue for autopsy. President Donald also has expressed his tributes, saying Don Moen was one of the best gospel artists that the country has ever produced.

  • Court sentences man to death for robbery

    Court sentences man to death for robbery

    An Ekiti State High Court sitting in Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, has sentenced a man, Aanu Adu, to death by hanging for armed robbery.

    Justice Olusegun Ogunyemi yesterday held that the prosecution proved its case beyond reasonable doubt, based on the evidence before the court.

    The judge also sentenced Adu to two years each on two counts of malicious damage to property in the offence committed at Ilawe-Ekiti, headquarters of Ekiti Southwest Local Government Area on October 28, 2015.

    Adu was charged with criminal armed robbery, contrary to Section 402(2) of the Criminal Code, Cap. C16, Vol. 1, Laws of Ekiti State, 2012.

    He was also found guilty of malicious damage to property, contrary to Section 451 of the same laws.

    The convict was alleged to have robbed Adeleye Funmilayo of N650,000 belonging to Ogunniyi Titilayo and damaged a digital camera belonging to Adeyemi Idowu.

    Titilayo told the court that Adu brought out a gun and threatened to kill her when she went to his house to press for the release of the N650,000 cash he and one unnamed chief forcefully collected from Funmilayo.

    The Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), Gbemiga Adaramola, appeared for the state while the Adu was represented by his counsel, Bunmi Olugbade.

    Titilayo said the robbery was reported at Ilawe Police Station while she took photographs of her banana, which Adu destroyed.

    Eight witnesses were called during the trial while exhibits, such as a cutlass, a cable wire, a brown bag containing the cash, money wrapper, used MTN cards, a search warrant and the carcass of the damaged camera, were tendered.