The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Lagos State

  • Man in court over stabbing of victim with broken bottle

    Man in court over stabbing of victim with broken bottle

    A 27-year-old man, Archibong Aniekan, who allegedly stabbed Ikechukwu Ajuke with broken bottle, was on Friday admitted to N200, 000 bail by an Apapa Magistrates’ Court.

    The accused, who resides at Ajegunle area of Apapa, Lagos, is facing a charge of assault.

    The Magistrate, Mr M.A Etti, in his ruling, said that the accused should produce two sureties as part of the bail conditions.

    Etti said that the sureties must be gainfully employed and show evidence of two years tax payment to the Lagos State Government.

    Earlier, the prosecutor, Sgt. Olusegun Kokoye, told the court that the accused, who entered a not guilty plea, committed the offence on March 5 at Suru-Alaba Market in Ajegunle area of Apapa, Lagos.

    Kokoye alleged that the accused assaulted Ajuke by stabbing him with broken bottle on his left arm and also beat him.

    He said that the assault followed an argument which ensued between the accused and the complainant.

    Kokoye said that after Aniekan had stabbed the complainant, he tried to escape, but was apprehended by some pedestrians at the scene and handed over to the police.

    He said that the offences contravened Section 171 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Section 171 prescribes three years jail term for assault occasioning harm, if found guilty.

    The case was adjourned until April 12 for mention.

     

  • Salesman docked for stealing N10m

    Salesman docked for stealing N10m

    A 35-year-old salesman, Adewale Oduniyi, was on Thursday brought before a Tinubu Magistrates’ Court in Lagos for allegedly stealing N10million.

    Oduniyi, a salesman with Vital Products Plc., is facing a two-count charge of conspiracy and theft.

    The accused, however, pleaded not guilty.

    The Prosecutor, DSP. Sunday Ekong, told court that the accused had between 2012 and 2015 at Ogba in Ikeja, Lagos conspired with three others to steal N10 million belonging to Vital Products Plc.

    He said that the accused converted N10 million proceeds from sale of the company’s products in his care to his personal use.

    The prosecutor said that the offences contravened Sections 285 (1) (7) and 409 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.

    Report shows that Section 285 stipulates three years imprisonment if found guilty.

    The Defence Counsel, Mr Kelechi Nweke, applied for bail for his client, assuring court that Oduniyi would not jump bail.

    The Magistrate, Mrs F.O. Ikobayo, granted the accused bail in the sum of N200, 000 with two sureties in like sum.

    The court adjourned the case until May 31 for hearing.

     

    NAN

     

  • 50 Nigerians deported from European countries arrive Lagos

    Some 50 Nigerians were on Thursday deported from eight European countries for committing immigration-related offences.

    The Nigerians were deported from Switzerland, Germany, Sweden, Luxembourg, Austria, Belgium, Spain and Hungary.

    Their deportation is coming barely 48 hours after another set of 40 Nigerians were deported by the Italian Government, for similar reasons.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the fresh batch of deportees arrived at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMlA), Lagos at about 7.36 a.m.

    The deportees, comprising of 48 males and two females, were brought back in a chartered Privileged Time aircraft, with registration number EC-L20.

    DSP Joseph Alabi, spokesman of the Lagos Airport Police Command, confirmed the development to NAN.

    Alabi said: “this morning, we received 50 Nigerians who were brought back from Europe.

    “We had three males from Switzerland; from Germany, we had seven males; from Sweden, we had four males, from Luxembourg, we had six males; from Austria, we had 18, comprising of 17 males and one female.

    “From Belgium, we had only one female; from Spain, we had five males and finally from Hungary, we had six males, which makes it a total of 50,’’ he said.

    Alabi said all the deportees were alleged to have committed immigration-related offences in their host countries.

    Alabi said the deportees were received by officers of the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS), the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) and the Police.

    Also on ground to receive them were officials the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) and the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).

    NAN gathered that the deportees were profiled by immigration authorities and were allowed to depart to their various destinations.

     

  • Sales girl in court over theft

    Sales girl in court over theft

    The police on Thursday arraigned a 27-year-old salesgirl, Adewumi Adelani in an Ikeja Magistrates’ Court in Lagos, charged with theft of
    N72, 000.

    Adelani, whose residential address was not provided, is facing two-count charge of stealing and fraud.

    The prosecutor, Insp. Akadu Edet, told the court that the defendant committed the offence on March 8 at Buari Street, Mushin, Lagos.

    He said that the salesgirl stole N72,000 from the shop of her employer, Ganiu Salawu.

    He added that Salawu discovered that Adelani misappropriated proceeds from sales during audit of the shop’s account, an offence that contravened sections 285 and 312 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.

    Section 285 stipulates three years jail term on conviction.

    However, the defendant pleaded not guiltyand the Magistrate, Mr E.O. Ogunkanmi, granted her bail in the sum of N50,000 with two sureties in like sum.

    He said the sureties must be living within the court’s jurisdiction and have verifiable addresses and adjourned the case until April 26 for further hearing.

     

  • Lagos State: Errors in question papers

    SIR: I wish to draw the attention of the Honourable Commissioner for Education of Lagos State to my humble and personal observation on the above subject matter.

    The good work, especially subsidising education for the children of the less-privileged and the poor by the Lagos State Government, deserves commendation by all and sundry. The sustained intervention of the State Government in this regard has gone a long way in making champions out of the children of the poor, who would have otherwise become miscreants and dregs of the society.

    Nonetheless, the State Government and, in particular, the State Ministry of Education, still need to do more. I have recently observed, with dismay, that the question papers ( especially Mathematics ) of examinations, such as ‘Junior WAEC’ and other terminal examinations, set by the Lagos State Ministry of Education are riddled with typographical and/or presentation errors, at least for the past three years since I became curious.

    A case in point is the SSI Mathematics question papers of the just concluded second-term examinations. On close look at the questions, I discovered 10 questions that have typographical errors. Typical examples are Question 4 (a), theory part and Questions2, 12, 17, 32, 37, 40, 41, 46, 49 and 50, from the objective part.

    Education is the means by which the totality of an individual is developed in order to be of optimum productivity to the society. This is likely to be achieved by imparting qualitative knowledge by experts or specialists in various fields to those who yearn for knowledge.

    In the course of acquisition and impartation of knowledge, in the formal educational set up, examinations are conducted at various stages with a view to assessing the suitability or otherwise of the candidates for either promotion to the next level, for those who are still studying, or awarding of certificates, diplomas or degrees, as the case may be, to those who are at the point of completing their studies.

    Permit me, therefore, to state here that the instrument for the assessment, i.e. examination, should be or ought to be flawless or error-free; otherwise the whole exercise will not yield the desired result.

     

    • Joel Kamba Talake,

    Murtala Mohammed Way,

    Ebute-Metta / Yaba,

    Lagos

  • Group condemns masquerades’ attack on Catholic priest

    Prof. Ishaq Akintola, Director, Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC), has called for the prosecution of masqueraders, who attacked a Catholic seminarian in Nsukka on March 29.

    A Catholic seminarian, Lawrence Ezeugwu, was attacked by masqueraders in Nsukka, and was beaten to coma at Ugwuoyia, Nsukka, Enugu State.

    The group, in a statement on Tuesday, condemned the exhibition of religious extremism by traditionalists, describing it as crude.

    Akintola called on the Inspector-General of Police, to ensure that those who carried out the attack are fished out and punished.

    “We call the attention of the Federal Government of Nigeria to the excesses of traditionalists, particularly in Southern Nigeria.

    “Even in the South-West, the Oro cult worshippers behave as if they are above the law.

    “Traditionalists impose illegal curfew without being challenged by the authorities.

    “A good example is the curfew imposed by Oro cultists in Ikorodu, Lagos State, during the last Ramadan season, which nearly caused a violent clash between Muslims and traditionalists.

    “It is well known that Muslims shuttle between the mosques and their homes day and night during Ramadan.

    “The imposition of a curfew during such a period was not only illegal but also provocative.

    “Although the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria Section 38 (i) & (ii) guarantees freedom of religion, thereby empowering traditionalists to freely practice their faith.

    “It does not allow one group to laud it over another.

    “The right of traditionalists to religious freedom stops where it begins to encroach on others’ rights and vice versa.

    “For genuine and enduring peace, Nigerians must learn to respect one another’s rights.

    “This country has witnessed too many human and material losses as a result of religious crisis.

    “And the only way to guard against recurrence is for the authorities to strictly apply sanctions against those who violate the sanctity of religious freedom,” the group said.

    MURIC also advised state and local governments to ban illegal proclamation of curfews by cultists.

  • LCCI to CBN: Grant exporters free access to export proceeds

    LCCI to CBN: Grant exporters free access to export proceeds

    The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has called on the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to review its foreign exchange policy that restricts exporters’ free access to their export proceeds.

    The Director-General, Mr Muda Yusuf, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Lagos that the policy was detrimental to non-oil export and did not motivate exporters.

    “The Chamber has received several complaints from exporters about the adverse effects of current foreign exchange policy on export business.

    “The policy hurts exporters as it denies them of the natural advantage of increased profitability which a weak currency offers.

    “Indeed, many Asian economies deliberately devalue their currencies to stimulate their export sectors.

    “A major advantage of weak currency is the incentives it provides to exporters because the currency depreciation makes exports cheaper, boosts demand for exports, creates more business for exporters and improves profitability.

    “It also makes it possible for the export sector to create more jobs, contribute to recovery and growth of the economy.

    “But the foreign exchange policy has denied exporters this very important advantage as they are denied unfettered access to their export proceeds,” he said.

    According to him, the current regulation makes banks custodians of export proceed which they covert to local currency for exporters at official rate.

    “Given the free market premium of about 35 per cent, the policy represents a major disincentive to export business.

    “Yet export sector development is one of the major planks of the economic diversification programme of the present administration,” Yusuf said.

    The director-general said that the policy resulted in a decline in official declaration of export proceeds and led to sharp practices and corruption in export documentation processes.

    “This is a major shortcoming of the current foreign exchange policy of the CBN.

    “It does not augur well for the economy and not consistent with the objectives of the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP),” he said.

    “Yusuf urged the CBN and the Economic Management Team to urgently review the policy and not impose conversion rates on exporters.

    “All forms of restrictions to foreign exchange inflows should be removed so that the supply side of the market can be positively impacted and reduce the current pressure on the Forex market.”

    Yusuf said that implementing this would complement recent efforts of CBN to ease the pressure on the foreign exchange market, strengthen the naira exchange rate, bolster foreign reserves and boost investors’ confidence.

     

  • N30m cable theft: Scaffolder gets N10m bail

    A Tinubu Magistrates’ Court  in Lagos on Monday slammed a N10 million bail on a 27-year-old scaffolder, Sunday Eze, charged with breaking into estate and stealing armored cables worth N30 million.

    Eze is facing charges of breaking, entry and theft.

    He, however, denied the charges.

    The Magistrate, Mr Omolaja Kareem, who gave the ruling, said the accused should provide two responsible sureties.

    Kareem said the two sureties must be a civil servant and a relation, who must deposit N2 million each in the court’s Chief Registrar’s account.

    Earlier, the Prosecutor, Insp.  Philip Osijiale, told the court that the accused had on March 11 at about 5.00 a.m. broken into Cooplag Garden Estate, Lagos, and stolen rolls of cables valued at N30 million, property of the estate.

    “The vehicle which the accused used in conveying the cables was stopped at Eleganza Bus Stop by the Rapid Response Squad (RRS) patrol team following a tip-off.

    “The policemen caught Eze and recovered the armored cables,” he said.

    The offences contravened Sections 285 (5), (f) and 306 (2) of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2015 (as amended).

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Section 285 prescribes three years imprisonment for stealing, while Section 306 provides seven years imprisonment for entering residence with intent to steal.

    The case has been adjourned until April 24 for trial.

  • Ooni celebrates Tinubu at 65

    Ooni celebrates Tinubu at 65

    The Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, has felicitated with Sen. Bola Tinubu as he clocks 65-years-old, describing him as an eminent descendant of Oduduwa.

    The monarch congratulated Tinubu in a statement signed and issued on Wednesday by Mr Moses Olafare, his Director of Media & Public Affairs.

    Tinubu, a former governor of Lagos State and national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC) clocked 65 on Wednesday.

    According to the royal father,  Tinubu is a patriotic Nigerian and elder statesman; a Pan-Africanist to the core, who remains a great inspiration to the African youths.

    He said that Tinubu had, no doubt, spent the larger part of his life in deeds worthy of emulation, noting that, as a school student, he designed his focus very carefully.

    “As a professional in the private financial sector, he remained focused and discharged his duties creditably well.

    “As a politician, he has been an outstanding leader and quintessential bridge builder.

    “As a senator of the the Federal Republic of Nigeria, he stood firmly with the masses till he went into exile where he continued alongside other patriots in the struggle for democracy which was won on the May 29, 1999.

    “As a governor, he left a legacy of excellence that has continued to make Lagos a socio-economically enviable society within the comity of the globally recognised cities in the world,” he said.

    The Ooni prayed the Almighty God to bless the rest of his journey in life with good health, long life and fulfillment.

  • LASU’s best graduating student delivers baby girl

    LASU’s best graduating student delivers baby girl

    It was double joy for Mrs Elizabeth Orefuwa, the overall best graduating student of the Lagos State University, Ojo, as she was delivered of a baby girl barely a day after graduating.

    Orefuwa graduated with a Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA)  of 4.74 at the university’s 21st convocation held on March 22.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on reports that 36,540 students were conferred with degrees, diploma and doctorate while 26 made first class.

    An ecstatic Orefunwa, said she felt the contraction just before the convocation and was scared if the baby would deny her the opportunity of participating in the graduation.

    “I was having contraction and was scared that the baby might come before the convocation.

    “I told God to take control because I wanted to experience the convocation and God took control until I got home.

    “It was when I got home that it started again and my husband took me to the hospital where I gave birth at about 1. 00 p.m. on Thursday,’’ Orefuwa told NAN.

    Reliving her experience, 29-year-old Orefuwa said she had yet to come terms with the reality of becoming a mother.

    Earlier, she told NAN during the institution’s convocation on Wednesday that the journey through the school did not come easy but with determination and motivation, she had a good story to tell.

    “The journey through the institution was not easy; it took me seven years of writing the UTME before I finally gained admission in 2012.

    “I also applied for direct entry three times at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife.

    “During this period of waiting, I started professional career at the Institute of Chartered Accountant of Nigeria (ICAN) in 2007 and qualified as an Associate Chartered Accountant (ACA) in 2010,’’Orefuwa said.

    She said that she wanted to study accounting but found herself studying education, adding that she enjoyed every bit of it and never dreamt of coming out with a first class and becoming the best student.

    According to her, self-determination and motivation through her father’s insistence on academic excellence gave her an edge.

    “My aim is to get my first degree certificate after several years of waiting and to satisfy my dad, who has been insisting on academic certificate before professional certificate.”

    She said that her marriage in the final year and the pregnancy did not affect her academic performance.

    “I had a CGPA of 4.72 before marriage and I graduated with 4.74 point; I got married in 2016 and my husband was very supportive.”

    A chartered accountant, Orefuwa, said she would love to combine teaching with practising accounting profession.