The Nation Newspaper

Tag: girl

  • Girl, 17, seeks N2.5m for correction of limb deformity

    After 12 years of pains from severe bowing of both limbs, which made her to drop out from the Senior Secondary School form 1 (SSS1) in 2016, there is a ray of hope for 17-year-old Ijachi Blessing Maria to correct her lower limb deformity and put an end to her endless pain if only she could pay N2.5 million for surgery.

    Born to Mr. and Mrs. Ijachi of Otada Local Government Area of Benue State, Blessing, who was born and has remained in Lagos all her life, started having problems with her legs from the age of two and half years.

    “By age three, the pains as my mum told me, were becoming too severe, I was taken to the General Hospital, Ikeja, and referred from there to the National Orthopaedic Hospital, Igbobi, Lagos.

    “Igbobi prescribed a surgery for me, my dad was required to donate blood for the operation but he was sick at the time and later passed on. We couldn’t raise the money after my dad’s death, so, it was impossible for us to go back to Igbobi for the operation,” Blessing recalled of the beginning of what is today threatening to completely deform and make her life meaningless.

    But even with the pains, Blessing managed to go through elementary school, and then her Junior Secondary School (JSS) at the Ikeja Junior Secondary School, Oshodi, Lagos. But the pains and level of deformity worsened as she grew older and it eventually became impossible for her to walk to school daily, sit all through in the class and walk back home.

    The exceptionally brilliant Blessing, as her teachers would describe her, finally dropped out of school at the Ikeja Senior Secondary School in 2016.

    “It was a very painful end to the education of a promising child. Blessing was brilliant and quiet, and she was doing very well. Obviously, she was one of the best of our students and we knew, if nothing went wrong, she had a bright future ahead of her, but the cruel hands of life got hold of her and took the shine off her. Both teachers and students paid several visits to her to see how we could get her back to school, but it proved impossible as it was something beyond us. She could not just continue to come to school in her situation, and alone with just a mother, who was barely managing to survive,” her last class teacher in the school, who declined to have her name in print, remarked of the little girl then.

    With the medical hope of getting her back fully on her feet once again now a possibility, Blessing, still burning with the desire to return to school to complete her studies and go further, recently returned to the National Orthopaedic Hospital, Igbobi, Lagos, to explore that possibility. Doctors at the hospital did not only confirm that but carried out all required tests that gave her hope of treatment at a cost of about N2million, exclusive of post-surgery expenses.

    The hope-rising medical report signed by Dr. Izuagba Emeka B., Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon, Pediatric Orthopaedics and Limb Reconstruction Unit, NOHIL, dated March 26, 2019 and entitled: Re: Medical Report on Ijachi Blessing Maria/ Female/17years, Hospital No. 639273, states: “The Above named patient of our hospital was first seen on 17/09/2018 with complaints of severe bowing of both limbs of 12 years duration. There is an associated knee pain, difficulty in walking or running.

    “She was initially presented to the hospital seven years ago for treatment but defaulted as she could not afford the cost of the required surgery. The deformities have since progressively worsened up to the present state.

    “On presentation, she was thoroughly re-examined and a diagnosis of severe Bilateral Infantile Blounts disease to rule out skeletal dysplasia was made following clinical assessment and X-ray imaging studies.

    “She requires a surgical treatment of gradual correction of lower limb deformities using Ring Fixator/Taylor Spatial Frame due to the grotesque nature of the deformities.

    “A surgical assessment has already been given to her detailing the cost estimates required for the surgery.”

    Blessing only hopeful on the support and help of members of the public to be able to raise the N2.5million needed for her  the surgery and go back to school to fulfill her life dreams, appeals for donations from good spirited members of the public, businesses, politicians, governments, religious homes and leaders. She promised to remain grateful to donors if she is able to successfully perform the surgery.She appealed to  donors to make their contributions to John Blessing Maria, GT Bank Account No. 0468466784.

  • Girl, 11, needs N9m for treatment

    The parents of young Esther Oluwanifemi Oladapo, 11, are not happy. Their lovely daughter has been diagnosed of neurological deficit with recurrent seizures since last year.

    The couple has spent all their fortunes on the little girl. But, after several unsuccessful treatments at the General Hospital, Somolu, Lagos, Mr and Mrs Femi Oladapo decided to seek assistance from a foreign specialist.

    With a referral from the General Hospital signed by Dr. N. O. Oja, the family got the nod of Stem Cell Institute, Panama City to carry out the surgery.

    But, paucity of funds is denying young Esther the chance of medical treatment in Panama. About $15,000 is urgently needed to balance cost of the operation scheduled for next August

    In an email acknowledging the deposit paid by the Oladapos, the institute replied that it received $800 on January 31, this year, leaving a balance of $15,025, which is due on first appointment date prior to the commencement of treatment.

    According to Oladapo, Esther, suddenly developed health complications after birth and was diagnosed of Lumber Meningitis with cerebral palsy seven months later. “Consequently, she suffers from recurrent seizures and paralyses, which has left her disabled.

    “As parents, we have sunk our livelihood into treating her, but to no avail. To the glory of God, a foreign hospital has offered to provide medical treatment to restore her to normalcy at a cost of about N9million.

    “We have been able to raise funds to pay for medical deposit at Stem Cell Institute, Panama City, Panama, and purchased recommended drugs before her treatment commence. Some several months ago, all her back and buttocks peeled, having large sores and very painful from a close observation. We thank God that the sores healed up over a great amount of time later on,” he said.

    Oladapo, who is calling on well-meaning Nigerians for support, said his family is committed to this cause and trust God for its success.

    “Funds are urgently needed for medical treatment abroad and travelling expenses of child and parents. We greatly need your help indeed so that Esther our daughter may fulfill her purpose and destiny,” he prayed.

    He gave their bank account opened for the fundraiser as follows: Account: Esther Oluwanifemi Oladapo. Account Number:  016 346 5525, GTbank. Mr Femi Oladapo on 080 600 70 600 (father)

  • Girl, 3, dies after falling into hot water

    A former private school  worker was yesterday arraigned before a Lagos High Court for the death of a pupil in 2015.

    Rukayat Amisu, formerly of Olab Private School, Lagos Island, was said to have sat Aliyah Ahmed, 3,  on a hot water container, which the girl later fell into.

    The charge against Amisu reads: “That, you Rukayat Amisu, on October 21, 2005, at about 10am, at Olab Private School, 11, Idowu Street, Lagos Island, unlawfully killed one Aliyah Ahmed by negligently allowing her to be burnt by hot water.”

    Justice Adedayo Akintoye ordered the defendant remanded in prison after she pleaded not guilty to the one-count charge of manslaughter preferred against her.

    Prosecuting counsel Babatunde Sunmonu alleged that the defendant unlawfully killed Aliyah Ahmed by negligently allowing her to be burnt by hot water.

    “The defendant negligently sat the little girl on top of a container containing hot water and the child fell inside the hot water,” he said.

    Justice Akintoye will on March 11 hear the bail application brought by the defendant’s counsel. A. O. Ladipo.

  • Teenager charged with impregnating girl, 12

    A 19-year-old boy, Olalekan Fatokun, who allegedly defiled and impregnated the 12-year-old daughter of his neighbour, yesterday appeared at a Yaba Chief Magistrates’ Court in Lagos.

    Fatokun, who lives at 8, Oguntuga Street, Abule-Ijesha, Lagos, is facing a charge of defilement of a child.

    Prosecuting Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Thomas Nurudeen told the court that the accused committed the offence last August 10, 11 and 13 at 8, Oguntuga Street, Abule-Ijesha, Lagos, when he had unlawful carnal knowledge of the girl.

    Nurudeen said the defilement resulted in a pregnancy.

    He told the court that the girl had been living next door to the accused for over four years.

    Read also: Row over demolished building at Oshodi

    “My Lord, it was the minor’s mother that discovered the pregnancy, said to be two months, when she noticed changes in her daughter.

    “Even at the police station, the accused did not deny being intimate with the minor,” Nurudeen said.

    The accused pleaded not guilty.

    Chief Magistrate K.B. Ayeye granted the accused N100, 000 bail with two sureties in the like sum.

    She said one of the sureties must be a relation of the accused and they should be employed with evidence of tax payment to the Lagos State Government.

    Ayeye adjourned the case till March 25.

  • Three boys ‘gang-rape’ girl, 8

    Three teenagers were yesterday remanded in Kirikiri Prison by an Ikeja Chief Magistrates’ Court following their arraignment for allegedly gang-raping a teenage girl.

    Chief Magistrate Olufunke Sule-Amzat rejected their bail application and ordered that they be kept in custody.

    They are Wasiu Lawal, 18, Tosin Taoreed, 18, and Peter Joseph, 19, who reside in Ikate, Ajah, Lagos.

    Prosecutor Benson Emuerhi said the offence was committed on November 18 at 11pm, at Eyiwuawi Street, Ikate, Lagos.

    Read also: ‘Police, FRSC, others abet rice smuggling’

    He alleged that the 18-year-old girl, who was sent on an errand by her uncle, was returning home when she was ambushed by the trio.

    “When the girl was going home after delivering the message, she met the accused, who forcefully dragged her inside a workshop.

    “The accused covered her mouth so that her cries would not be heard and gang-raped her,” Emuerhi alleged.

    He said after the assault, the girl went home crying and told her uncle what happened.

    “The case was reported at the police station and the accused were arrested,” the prosecutor added.

    Sule-Amzat adjourned till January 21.

  • Girl, 20, donates N500,000 textbooks to Oyo students

    A third-year student of University of Southampton in the United Kingdom (UK), Miss Tolulope Ogunremi, yesterday donated 350 Mathematics textbooks valued at about N500,000 to pupils of Community High School, Ajara, Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.

    The figure is made up of about 124 pupils of the junior secondary (JS) and about 200 from the senior secondary (SS) classes.

    The presentation was witnessed by the father of the donor, officials of the state Ministry of Education, officials of the school and pupils.

    Miss Ogunremi, who is studying Mathematics and Computer Science, said she would also be getting in touch regularly with the pupils to check the results of their assessments in Mathematics each term.

    She said: “I am pleased to announce that after a review of the assessments at the end of 2018/19 session, top five pupils in JS 2 and top five in JS 3 will have their tuition fees paid by my humble self until the end of SS 3.

    “I am here today because I felt the need to empower pupils by providing relevant resources. A better knowledge of Mathematics will never be a waste. I hope the donation of these textbooks will inspire you all to forge ahead.”

    Miss Ogunremi said she was passionate about empowering young people of African descent to pursue careers in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics).

    The UK-based student said she would also launch Project Hezi soon, saying the project was about improving the state of education in Nigeria.

    “The word ‘Hezi’ Basque means to educate and I am setting out to improve the state of education in Nigeria,” she said.

    Mr Taiwo Ogunremi, the father of the donor, said the inspiration of his daughter began after she visited Nigeria and saw the need to help children hawking during school hours.

    He said his daughter later informed the family of her decision to raise funds to assist the less privileged kids to return to school with whatever she can do.

    According to him, his 20-year-old girl raised the funds for the donations on her own.

    The Permanent Secretary in Oyo State Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, Mrs Ibironke Fatoki, hailed the donor for the gesture.

    She urged other well-meaning Nigerians to emulate such.

    The head teacher of the school, Mrs Adebola Adeleye, and a pupil, Samuel Augustine, lauded Miss Ogunremi’s philanthropic gesture.

    They said the effort would encourage the pupils to do better in their study of Mathematics.

    Adeleye noted that the importance of excellence in Mathematics could not be over emphasised, saying it was a prerequisite for all science and social science in our universities.

    “I commend Miss Tolulope Ogunremi for the help she has extended to the students in this sub-rural area who have hitherto not been able to purchase mathematics textbooks.

    “I promise that the books will be put to judicious use and we pray that Miss Ogunremi and her family shall be amply rewarded by God,” she said.

  • Girl cuts off boyfriend’s manhood in Jigawa

    A 17-year-old girl, Ramatu Tafida, has cut off the manhood of her 25-year-old boyfriend, Abdullahi Sabo in Jigawa State, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence (NSCDC) said yesterday.

    Spokesman for the organisation in the state, Adamu Shehu, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Dutse yesterday  the incident occurred in Babura Local Government Area.

    Shehu said the victim is a resident of Kofar Gabas and a teacher at Government Girls Secondary School Babura engaged under N-Power.

    “The incident occurred on Thursday in Babura when the attention of our officers was drawn by a good Samaritan who informed them that some youths were about to lynch a girl in Kofar Arewa, the residence of the suspect.

    “Immediately the officers swung into action and went to the scene and whisked the girl away to the office for safety, but they still followed her.

    “It was upon reaching the office that we realised what led to the whole matter.

    “Ramlatu confessed to have used a knife to cut off the manhood of her husband-to-be.

    “According to her, Abdullahi is the love of her life and he was even introduced to her family members and has equally given the sum of N30, 000 as an introduction fee.

    “And because of that, she was free to be with him almost all the time. As a result they became too intimate that they engaged in sexual relationship.

    “However, Ramlatu later learnt that the victim planned to dump her for another girl since he had already known her as a woman. And that was what made her to plan and execute her attack,” he said.

    Shehu said that the suspect further confessed that it was while they were together and about to start their usual affair that she confronted the victim with the issue and he responded in the affirmative.

    “And already, she had a knife with her without his knowledge which she brought out and chopped off his manhood.

    “After committing the offence, she ran to her parents’ house to inform her mother. And it was while she was there that the youths stormed the house.”

     

  • Girl, 6, relives how man, 39, raped her

    Six-year-old girl in Ikorodu has told The Nation how she was raped by a 39-year-old neighbour, Benjamin Akande on July 27.

    The incident happened at their Ikorodu, Lagos residence where both Akande and the girl’s parent live as tenants.

    The girl said Akande sent her groundnut and raped her in his room after delivering the goods.

    She said: “He asked me to buy him groundnut and when I got back, I told him I want to ease myself, but he didn’t allow me to; he said I should come relax. I heard people calling my name and I told him I wanted to go, but he did not let me go. He laid me on the ground, removed my trouser; he also removed his own trouser and laid on me. When I heard people still calling my name, I told him I wanted to go but he didn’t allow me and he covered my mouth with cloth.

    “He later took me to a school compound in our area and warned me never to tell anyone what happened, else he will beat me. He poured sand on my head and told me to tell those calling me that I was playing in the school compound.”

    The Nation gathered that Akande was arrested by officers from Owutu Police Division.

    The girl’s mother, Kudirat Olaniyi, a food vendor said she normally keeps her children with the landlord’s wife when she is going out and pick them from there when she returns.

    “On that Friday, I set out for work around 12:30pm. Her father, a commercial bus driver, had left around 4am. We returned around 4pm that day. I was told that they were looking for my daughter at a point, but that she had been found, though she refused to tell anyone where she was.

    “Around 7pm, while I was preparing their food, I asked my daughter where she went to but she said nothing.  When I slapped her, she said it was Brother Benjamin that sent her to buy groundnut and asked her to come into his room. She said he undressed her and also himself. She said he laid her on the ground and laid on her. I asked her what she did when she heard people calling out her name, she said she told him she wanted to go and meet them but he covered her mouth with cloth. She told me that when people stopped calling her name, he took her to a school at the back of our house, put sand on her head and told her if people ask where she was, she should tell them she was playing in the school.”

    Mrs Olaniyi said when Akande was been arrested, he threatened her that he would retaliate.

    The landlord’s wife, who simply identified herself as Alhaja Akoninikewu, said: “The girl and her brother were playing with my children in our shop because I was attending to visitors in my house. When it was time to go to the mosque, we noticed that this girl was nowhere to be found, we searched for her, shouting her name everywhere but all was to no avail. I told the children to go to the mosque and we later found her in a school compound with sand on her head. We asked where she had been and what she was doing but she said nothing, until her mother spoke with her later in the day.”

    The Deputy Coordinator of Child Protection Network (CPN), Alhaji Lateef Akinborode, said his organisation took the matter up immediately the information got to them.

    “Immediately the father of the girl informed us about the case, we informed the Lagos State Police Command and the case is now in court,” he said.

     

  • Girl, 17, seeks divorce

    A 17-year-old girl, Mrs Halima Mohammed, has told the Alakuko Customary Court, sought divorce from her husband, Ismail.

    Ismail, she claimed, was always sending her errands at midnight. He also beats me, she said told the court.

    The woman, who wants the court to dissolve her one-and-a-half years marriage, said she was no longer interested in the union.

    She said she was forced into the marriage by her aunt following her parents’ death. The petitioner said she had been out of her matrimonial home since last month.

    “He beats me often, sends me midnight errands to grind pepper and always abuses me that I don’t know how to cook. He bought koboko to use on me. I told him I want to go to school but he refused and decided to make me learn a trade which I refused.

    “All I want is a divorce, I don’t want to go back to his house and I want to go to school,” she said.

    Ismail denied the allegations.

    He claimed that she was influenced by people, noting that he has never beaten her, nor did he buy koboko.

    Ismail said: “I really love her and I can’t treat her badly, I send her on errands but not in the midnight. I bought gold for her with her bride price which I gave her to family as it is done in Hausa culture. I did not force her into the marriage; she willingly got married to me”

    The case continues on till August 14.

  • Girl, 17, gets admission into 19 top varsities

    A 17-year-old Nigerian, Oludamilola Oluwadara Adekeye, has reportedly been accepted by 19 of the world’s top universities, including Yale, Stanford, Columbia and the London School of Economics.

    Speaking with CNN, Oluwadamilola, who is a student of Brighton College, Abu Dhabi said she applied to 20 universities and was accepted by 19.

    Dami as she is fondly called also said she has a passion for music, but has not decided on what to study in the university.

    “I’m 17 years old and I’m a student at Brighton College Abu Dhabi. I was recently accepted into 19 out of the 20 colleges I applied to,” she said.

    “I’m very involved in music at my high school. I’m in three musical groups and I started a fourth,” she said on CNN.

    “I’m still undecided but I might double major in international relations and economics.”

    Lastyear, three Nigerian-born teenagers – Jude Okonkwo, Ifeoma White-Thorpe and Nina Uzoigwe – were accepted by some Ivy League schools.

    While Nina was accepted by seven Ivy League schools – Harvard, Dartmouth, Cornell, UPenn, Columbia, Princeton and Yale, Ifeoma, a New Jersey high school student was accepted by nine: Harvard, Yale, Columbia, UPenn, Brown, Cornell, Dartmouth, Princeton and Stanford.

    Jude, 17, based in the United States, also received acceptance letters from Brown University, Columbia University, Cornell University, Dartmouth College, Harvard University, the University of Pennsylvania, Princeton University and Yale University.