The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Lagos State

  • ‘Lagos’ Onikan is third world coolest neighbourhood’

    ONIKAN, Lagos State has been picked as the third among the world’s 50 coolest neighbourhoods by Time Out, a report of Cable News Network Travel.

    Time Out described coolest neighbourhoods as places to spend a vacation, famous attractions or gorgeous natural wonders.

    “But if you really want to get to know a city like a local, your best bet is to look for the neighbourhoods where they hang out, where the most interesting new restaurants, art galleries and coffee shops emerge,” the report stated.

    Time Out stated that Onikan was chosen as a result of being home to artists, writers, designers and Nollywood actors.

    “You might spot some of them hanging out in cool Onikan, where “past, present and future collide effortlessly”.

    “The central neighbourhood on the Lagos Lagoon is home to some of the city’s most important cultural offerings, including the Nigerian National Museum and Rele Gallery, which focuses on contemporary art,” the report indicated.

    Onikan was picked ahead of neighbourhoods in Wedding, Berlin, Filipinotown, Los Angeles, Strasbourg-Saint-Denis, Paris (seventh), Astoria, New York (eight); Embajadores, Madrid (ninth), Pilsen, Chicago (10th), Peckham, London (11th), Soi Pridi Banomyong/Phra Khanong, Bangkok (12th), .Melbourne, Zhongshan, Taipei, Tel Aviv,  Kypseli, Athens and others.

    Other African neighbourhoods, which featured in the report, are Jamestown, Accra (21st) and Melville, Johannesburg (41).

    In list of the world’s 50 coolest neighbourhoods, CNN Travel stated that Arroios, Lisbon, which is the No.1 coolest neighbourhood, might be the coolest city in Europe.

    “There are lots of independent things happening, young people, artists and people from all over the world. A neighbourhood that people used to be afraid of is now Lisbon’s dynamic, intercultural hub,” the report stated.

    The second coolest city is Shimokitazawa, Tokyo. The publication said: “Shimokitazawa is to Tokyo what Brooklyn is to New York, only cooler.

    “If you’d rather bypass the speed of central Tokyo but still be near good public transit, Shimokitazawa is your spot.”

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    Time Out gives the neighbourhood the nod for top-notch Japanese curry restaurants like Ten To Sen as well as vintage shopping.

    Wedding, Berlin is the fourth neighbourhood in the category. Wedding is a neighbourhood in the northwest section of Germany’s capital.

    “Though the city is known as a place for 24-hour partying, Wedding’s side streets are quiet enough to guarantee you’ll get a good night’s sleep once you’re done hitting the beer halls.

    “By day, you can enjoy the great outdoors at Plötzensee Lake and woodsy Volkspark Rehberge,” it added.

    Historic Filipinotown, Los Angeles (LA), which is the fifth choice of the report, is LA’s Asian-American community.”It is rich and thriving, especially for its food cultures,” Time Out indicated.

    Time Out noted that “the area is still in the early stages of its rise, so don’t expect five-star hotels or bespoke cocktails”.

    “Instead, the focus is about casual walks and bike rides along Temple Avenue, stopping for snacks and photo ops along the way,” it added.

    Other neighbourhood are The Waterfront, Hobart (sixth), Strasbourg-Saint-Denis, Paris (seventh), Astoria, New York (eight); Embajadores, Madrid (ninth), Pilsen, Chicago (10th), Peckham, London (11th), Soi Pridi Banomyong/Phra Khanong, Bangkok (12th) and others.

     

  • WAEC Registrar Uwadiae retires

    REGISTRAR at the international office of West African Examinations Council (WAEC), Dr Iyi Uwadiae, will complete his tenure at the end of this month.

    During a tele-conference from Ghana headquarters of the examining body yesterday, Uwadiae told reporters at the WAEC International Office in Agidingbi, Ikeja, Lagos State, that his seven-year tenure (consisting of a five-year official tenure and two-year extension) as the 12th registrar of the council, was successful.

    Uwadiae, who took over from another Nigerian, Alhaja Mulikat Bello, on October 1, 2012, refused to name his successor.

    The outgoing registrar said his successor, who had been appointed, would be named when he assumes office on October 1.

    “I anticipate that you will be anxious to know who is going to succeed me. I am glad to inform you that my successor has been appointed. I will, however, want to appeal to you to grant me the indulgence of not unveiling the personality at this forum. As you are quite aware, the Council has an official process of doing so soon, after assumption of office.  There will be a press release or conference to that effect,” he said.

    Read Also: WAEC: we won’t re-issue certificates

    During his tenure, Uwadiae said the council completed its headquarters, which took 15 years to build, in 2016.

    The registrar said Liberia fully adopted the West African Senior Secondary Certificate Examinations (WASSCE) last year, while the Council increased additional diets of the WASSCE and Basic Education Certificate Examination for private candidates in member-countries.

    To prevent examination malpractice and leakages, the Registrar said the Council acquired facilities to print in-house.

    “The secretariat paid the deserved attention to the issue of examination leakage and resolved to settle for nothing short of total eradication of the nuisance. We pursued a status of self-reliance in printing services, which could guarantee our set target of 100 per cent in-house printing of question papers.

    “As at now, each national office has reached a certain stage in the establishment of an in-house printing press. Other types of malpractice also received our deepest reflection, as the Council constructed or furnished for use its own standard/model examination halls in places like Lagos and Benin City in Nigeria, Accra, Cape Coast, Wa and Koforidua in Ghana and Tubmanburg in Liberia,” he said.

    On the use of technology, Uwadiae said the Council under him used software and various gadgets to prevent and check examination malpractices.

    “We built tighter security around our examination materials and conduct as various gadgets and software were deployed for identification of candidates, capturing of data and detection of irregularities at examination centres,” he said.

    The Registrar also said the tele-conference facility used for the media briefing was being used for the first time.

    He added that the facility was in place in three of the five member-countries, namely Ghana, Nigeria and The Gambia.

     

  • Lagos to crack down on land grabbers

    The Lagos State government has assured residents of Ayobo of its determination to tackle activities of land grabbers in the area.

    The assurance was given in a statement issued in Lagos on Wednesday signed by the Coordinator, Lagos State Special Task on Land Grabbers (LSSTF/LG) Owolabi Arole.

    Some residents of Ayobo and other communities in the area had staged a demonstration to protest against activities of land grabbers allegedly led by one Moruf Owonla aka Kaka who have been allegedly terrorising their communities.

    Arole, in the statement, assured them that government has already started investigating the incident.

    He said government, through the Special Task Force on Land Grabbers, is committed to reducing to the barest minimum, the activities of persons who use force and intimidation to dispossess or prevent any person or entity from acquiring legitimate interest and possession of property acquired.

    Arole advised persons and communities whose land is forcibly taken by land grabbers to formally file their complaints in writing to the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice.

    Read Also: Five killed, seven injured in Lagos crashes

    The statement further stated: “We receive with serious concern, the land grabbing reports levelled against certain persons in Ayobo area and we have since commenced Investigation into the allegations.

    “We would like to assure affected residents of the area that the Lagos State Property Protection law of 2015 would take its full course in this regard.

    “Although, the Lagos State Special Task Force on Land Grabbers has not received any formal reports from the affected communities, the Lagos State Special Task Force on Land Grabbers in conjunction with the Lands Bureau and Directorate of Public Prosecutions will look into the matter and ensure appropriate actions will be taken.

    “We therefore use this medium to call on representatives of the affected communities in Ayobo and all residents of the State, that in the event of any illegal dispossession or attempt to dispossess them of the rightful possession of their land, a formal complaint in writing should be made to the Honorable Attorney General & Commissioner for Justice”, the statement added.

  • ‘Police is investigating former Lagos chairman’

    The National President of the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN), Comrade Eriyo Osakpamwan, has called on the members of the body in Lagos to remain calm as the crisis rocking the state chapter has been handed over to law enforcement agents

    Osakpamwan, who made the call at a press briefing at the national secretariat of the association in Abuja on Wednesday, also shed light on the cause of the crisis, alleging that the immediate past chairman of the Lagos chapter, Alhaji Musa Mohammad, was trying force himself back into office after his tenure has expired and his executive council declared dissolved, adding that he (Osakpamwan) had refused to ratify an illegality.

    Osakpamwan also described as illegal the announcement by a group of members of the association, including the embattled former chairman of the Lagos chapter, claiming that the national president and general secretary of the association had been expelled, noting that the group lacked the authority to make such decision or pronouncement.

    Explaining the sequences of the events that led to the faceoff, Osakpamwan explained that Mohammed’s executive council’s tenure, which was inaugurated in June 2014, had exhausted its five year tenure, adding that the Mohammed-led executive council was dissolved in Abuja at a National Executive Council (NEC) meeting in Abuja recently, with Mohammed present at the meeting.

    “The Lagos executive council was dissolved because their tenure has expired. Outside that, there are series of petitions from members of the association in Lagos, some of them alleging that the former state chairman, Alhaji Musa Mohammad, forged their signatures as well as trying to force them to support him for his second tenure. They wrote petitions on those allegations to this office as well as to the Ministry of Transportation.

    Read Also: Buhari beats Atiku in Lagos State

    “The former Lagos state chairman also invited me to Lagos to swear him in, based on the signatures he claimed his members had signed for his continuity. My own was to go ascertain if what he claimed was true; that the members are indeed the real owners of those signatures. I went to Lagos and found out there were serious issues on ground and I told him that there was no way I would swear him in because those he claimed to have given their signatures are the same people who said they are not in his support.

    “I called a NEC meeting, to which I invited everybody, to the Abuja off. He, as well as his executive members, was here. At the NEC meeting, we decided to dissolve the Lagos State chapter of the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria, to which Alhaji Musa was chairman, and set up a 23-man committee to run the Lagos affairs.

    “Surprisingly, I got a call from Lagos yesterday the the man invaded the Lagos office with thugs and policemen and we have since sent a petition to the Inspector General of Police. The matter has been passed on to the State Commissioner of Police for investigation. The true position is that the Lagos chapter executive council has been dissolved and it remains dissolved”, he explained.

     

     

  • Cuba to produce anti diabetic drugs in Nigeria, awaits licence

    THE Cuban Ambassador to Nigeria, Carlos Travor, has said that his country was awaiting a formal license for the production of a drug that will prevent  amputation of limb of people suffering from diabetics.

    Travor also said that the Cuban government has supplied equipments for early detect of diseases like cancer and other ailments in Nigeria, adding that Cuban specialists will arrive in the country  this week to train Nigerians on the use of the equipment currently installed at Alimosho in Lagos State.

    Speaking at a news conference to announce the sixth African Conference on solidarity with Cuba, the envoy said the drug which was produced in Nigeria by Cuban specialists has been undergoing clinical test in the country for the past one year.

    He said that once the approval is given, the drug will now be produced and distributed in Nigeria, adding that the local production of the drug will give succour to diabetic patients in the country.

    The Ambassador who said that his country cannot be involved in business dealing at the moment in Nigeria as a result of age long economic blockade against the country by the United State (U.S.), said Cuba will however continue its solidarity with the people of Nigeria and other African nations.

    Read Also: Cuba testing diabetic drug in Nigeria, says Ambassador

    He said that Cubans will continue to stand with Africans, describing them as “our stand fore fathers”, and appealed to Nigerians and other African to assist the country in fighting against the economic ban placed on them by the U.S.

    Also speaking, the National Coordinator of the Nigeria Movement of Solidarity with Cuba Comrade Abiodun Aremu said the sixth African conference on solidarity with Cuba is scheduled for September 23 to 25, 2019 in Abuja.

    He said the conference was necessary because the historic bonds between Africa and Cuba extends from the first decades of the 19th Century when about one million Africans, including Nigerians were taken to Cuba as slaves.

    Aremu called for the lifting of the 56-year-old American economic embargo which stopped Cuba from freely accessing the international market and trading with other countries, adding that such embargo is counter productive, unhelpful and should be lifted without delay.

    He said it is in Africa’s interest to follow the development path of Cuba which guarantees free and qualitative health and education for all its citizens, gender equality as well as its ability to locally produce medicines and vaccines for its people.

     

  • Religious stewardship beyond physical, Olonisakin tells Nigerian leaders

    CHIEF of Defence Staff (CDS), General Gabriel Olonishakin, has urged church leaders to look beyond church walls in their evangelical drive.

    The CDS noted that religious stewardship in the 21st century goes beyond church budgets and building projects.

    Olonisakin spoke at the weekend at the 29th convocation ceremony and 30th anniversary of West Africa Theological Seminary (WATS) in Ipaja, Lagos State.

    The CDS, who was represented by the Chaplain of the Defence headquarters, Abuja, 2nd Lt.-Col. Chukwudi Ochoji, said it was important for Christian leaders in the 21st century to connect with godly actions.

    He pleaded with the graduating clerics to embrace a larger perspective of stewardship which connects more with the people.

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    “As Christian leaders in the 21st century, I urge us to embrace the larger views of leadership, which reaches beyond church budgets or church projects. It connects everything we do with what God is doing in the world.

    “Christian leaders need to be faithful stewards of all that God has given us within the opportunities presented through the providence to glorify him, serve the common good and further his kingdom,” Olonisakin said.

    The CDS congratulated the graduating students for completing what they started.

    He hailed the founder of WATS, Dr. Gary Maxey, for holding on to his vision of the seminary and for his doggedness over the years.

     

  • Community protests blackout

    RESIDENTS of Orile Agege in Lagos State have staged a protest at the Ikeja Electric (IE) Plc office in the community.

    The protest, according to the residents, was to get their issues resolved following a power blackout in the community since June 30.

    The residents said a transformer serving Alonge Street, Ajiboye Crescent, Oshikalu Estate and parts of Lagos Abeokuta Expressway, had its cable stolen last June and since then the areas attached to the transformer have been in total darkness.

    They claimed that IE asked them to pay N1.7 million to get the cables fixed, but could only raise N900,000. They called on government to come to their aid.

    The aggrieved residents while expressing their displeasure over the blackout disrupted activities in the IE office for several hours; they raised pla cards with such inscriptions as  “We are tired of ghost customers attached to our transformer, why are you still operating like the failed PHCN”, “IE Orile-Agege undertaking: stop this xenophobic attack on our transformer .”

    The leader of the protesters, Damilola Olorunto said the problem began June 30.

    “We just woke up that Sunday morning and there was no light. We assumed it was the normal blackout but after 24 hours, I went to the transformer and discovered that some cables were not there, so I called for the IE officials here in Orile Agege to fix the transformer as I always did, but getting there, they told us that the transformer has been vandalized and cables stolen.

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    “Normally when transformer is vandalised, the cables are cut, but at our transformer, the cables were loosened at both ends indicating that it wss an expert work. I am an electrical engineer, so I know well about cables.

    “After six weeks we were told that the total amount for the stolen transformer cables was N600,000 and that we should raise the money by paying what is on our bills. When the money raised was over N400,000, we were told by the IE to pay double of what was on our bill for them to come and fix the transformer. We rallied round again and the money raised was about N592,000 but they later changed the amount and told us it was N1.2m they were expecting from us.

    “We (some of us in the affected communities) went round to beg residents affected to pay but by three weeks ago, we were told its N1.9m that we should raise, at this point , I told them at the IE that there was no how we could raise such money because they had not even given us light in almost three months. I also wondered if it was residents responsibility to go round houses to collect bill’s for IE. At some point the IE officials told us to pay N1.7m to get it fixed.  All together we have been able to raise almost N900,000 and yet the light is not fixed.

    “We were given a list that we have 159 customers on the transformer but going round we discovered that 64 houses are not on the transformer, including a demolished building that was billed over N2m, abandoned buildings and empty land.  We have also been to the IE office in Ponle, Egbeda but nothing has been done.”

    He lamented that business cannot go far in the community, saying they buy fuel at least N500 everyday.

    “We are here for this protest because we want to escalate this issue to the highest authority to resolve it for us. We have tried our best but it seems our best is not enough and the IE are not ready to shift grounds. If we have raised N900,000 without using light for almost three months, they should listen to us and restore our light,” he said.

    A resident in Oshikalu estate, Princess Adesanya begged government to intervene.

     

     

     

     

     

  • Police arrest ‘fake’ EFCC official in Lagos

    RESIDENTS of Igando-Ikotun Local Council Development Area, Lagos State have been advised to pay attention to their environment to avoid environmental disasters.

    This was the crux of the message of Hon Joseph Kehinde, member representing Alimosho Constituency 1 to his people at the constituency stakeholders’ meeting held at the council head-office in Ikotun, Lagos.

    Chairman of the LCDA, Chief Mrs. Morenike Adeshina Williams, party dignitaries in the community, traditional rulers and other community stakeholders attended the meeting.

    Stressing that the meeting is to “re-orientate ourselves on the need to properly handle our environmental challenges to rid Lagos of its recurrent waste challenges,” Joseph craved the co-operation of all stakeholders in the community, while promising that all the issues espoused and solutions suggested will be tabled before the House of Assembly and governor to prepare the 2020 budget.

    Read Also: Police deploy detectives as gunmen kill six in Kaduna

    A brief video detailing some of the nagging challenges of the community spanning health, education and the environment was also shown, to demonstrate the MPs familiarity with his constituency.

    Speaking on behalf of the traditional rulers in the community, the Elegbe of Egbe, Oba Ashimiyu Olorunfemi called the attention of the authorities to the dilapidated state of the Ikotun-Egbe-Ejigbo road, which he says causes constant gridlock and untold hardship to road users.

    He also condemned the reckless one-way driving of some motorists, which constitutes risk to life and called on the police authorities to rise up to the challenge.

     

     

  • Seven ‘killed’ in Ajah cult war

    Seven persons were at the weekend feared killed following cult clashes that occurred in Ajah, Eti-Osa Local Council Development Area (LCDA) of Lagos, residents have said.

    They said four people were killed on Friday night and three others yesterday, claiming that cult wars were a daily occurrence in Ado, Badore and Oke-Ira areas of Ajah.

    But the police denied any life was lost on Sunday night, noting that the gunshots residents talked about were fired by policemen to scare the gangsters who were planning to strike.

    The Nation gathered that the police have arrested about 70 suspected cultists in the affected areas in the past three months, most of whom have been charged to court.

    Already, 12 suspects identified as Juwon Abdulahi, 22, Ibrahim Ismaila, 32, Aliyu Abdulahi, 25, Kehinde Ajiwon, 29, Wale Yusuf, 34, Monsuru Muazu, 25, Umar Ali, 15, Jeremiah Ezekiel, 25, Isaac Ibrahim, 22, Haggai Sylvanus, 25, Emmanuel Samuel, 28, and Bernard Abosede, 40, have been arrested in connection to Sunday’s clash.

    Our correspondent learnt on Monday that the cultists usually came out around 8pm armed with cutlasses, guns and axes.

    A resident who appealed to the state government and police authorities to put an end to the cult wars, said it had claimed over 25 lives since it began months ago.

    He said, “The cult boys come out daily once it’s 8pm with guns, matchet and other weapons to fight. Four people were killed on Friday night. Two are innocent and two cultists.

    “Yesterday (Sunday) they shot for about one hour on the road unchallenged.

    This is a known fact on Oke-Ira, Ado. Despite that it happens daily, you will never see the police there,” he said.

    At Addo Road, it was learnt that one person was murdered last Tuesday in front of bar.

    “Even at Badore Roundabout where police are stationed, the police disappear before 8pm the time the cultists start their war.

    “The Inspector General of Police (IG) and Govenror Babajide Sanwo-Olu should come to our aid. We live in fear of being killed. People close their businesses around 6pm out of fear.

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    “Any vehicle parked on the road will have their widescreen broken or damaged and anyone seen would be robbed.

    “I am worried because I left Port Harcourt two years ago for this same reason. I sold all my properties and moved to Lagos but this same problem has continued for many months now.”

    Contacted, police spokesman Bala Elkana, a Deputy Superintendent (DSP), said 12 suspects were arrested on Sunday, insisting that no death was recorded.

    He said: “On September 8, at about 2pm, team of policemen were deployed to Adoh village based on credible information received that cult members were gathering by the transformer in Baale Adoh’s house in a bid to disturb the peace of the community.

    “On sighting the team of policemen these street urchins took to their heels while policemen shot in the air to disperse them.

    “They later regrouped and came out through Okeira Nla in a bid to start robbing passersby. Some of these boys were seen wielding dangerous weapons.

    “They were given a hot chase and in  the process twelve of these street urchins were arrrsted. Exhibits recovered include cutlass, jack knife, an expended ammunition and stolen handsets.

    “Investigation is still ongoing and further development will be

  • Tribunal affirms election of Senator Tinubu for Lagos Central

    THE National Assembly and State Houses Assembly Elections Petition Tribunal sitting in Ikeja, the Lagos State capital, has affirmed the election of Senator Oluremi Tinubu of the All Progressive Congress (APC) for Lagos Central.

    The three-man tribunal, led by Justice Kunaza Hamidu, in a seven-hour judgment delivered yesterday, held that the petition filed by Chief Adesunbo Onitiri of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) challenging the election of Senator Tinubu did not establish any prima facie case against her.

    Other members of the tribunal are: Justices W. R. Olamide and S. I. Okpara.

    “The petition lacks merit and is hereby dismissed. The declaration of Senator Oluremi Tinubu by INEC as winner of February 23 National Assembly election is hereby affirmed,” the tribunal declared.

    Onitiri had filed a petition against the victory of Senator Tinubu and her declaration by INEC.

    Read Also: Tinubu achievement revisited as Lagos PS bows out

    The PDP candidate challenged the result of the Lagos Central Senatorial District election for alleged irregularities.

    The APC and Independent National Election Commission (INEC) are second and third respondents.

    Onitiri alleged that INEC wrongly declared Senator Tinubu as the winner of the polls with 131,725 votes, while he was said to have scored 89,107 votes.

    He claimed that the INEC ought to have declared him (Onitiri) the winner of the election instead of Senator Tinubu, claiming that he scored the highest lawful votes cast in the election.

    In a petition filed before the tribunal on his behalf by his counsel, Onome Akpeneye, the PDP candidate alleged that the results declared by the INEC was fraught with vote-buying, violence, over-voting, inducement of voters with monetary and material gains, campaigning and lobbying voters on the day of election.

    Other irregularities he stated in his petition, include: non-accreditation and/or improper accreditation of voters by INEC officials, intimidation and arrest of his supporters and poll agents, as well as instigation of electoral violence by the agents of first respondent.

    Onitiri claimed that apart from those irregularities, there were irreconcilable entries in the result declared and the number of votes recorded in favour of Senator Tinubu by INEC in forms EC8A and EC8B.