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Tag: Mushin

  • Cultism: Police arrest 33 suspects in Lagos

    The Police in Lagos have arrested 33 persons allegedly involved to the clash on Wednesday between two rival cult groups at Fadeyi-Onipanu area where two persons were killed.

    Spokesman of the command, DSP Bala Elkana, made this known in a statement on Thursday, and said that two locally-made short guns with 10 live cartridges and other dangerous weapons, including cutlasses and knives, were recovered.

    According to Elkana, at about 11.30 a.m. on Wednesday, the Onipanu Police Station received a distress call that members of rival cult groups from Alakara, Mushin, Onipanu and Shomolu were armed with dangerous weapons.

    Read Also: Police bust suspected child theft syndicate

    He said the suspected cultists engaged themselves in a fierce supremacy fight at Fadeyi, Onipanu, along Ikorodu road.

    “During the scuffle, one Tobi Kuti suspected to be one of the hoodlums and one Samuel Geofrey of DTD Services, Apapa, who was caught in the web were killed by the hoodlums.

    “Patrol teams and operatives of Tactical Units were promptly deployed to the scene. The teams swiftly contained the situation and restored normalcy to the area.

    “The command has deployed more resources to the affected areas for manhunt of other fleeing members of the gangs. Investigation is ongoing,” he said.

    The spokesman said that the Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr Zubairu Muazu, had called on parents to monitor the activities of their children, especially those who engaged in cult activities and gang groupings.

    He said that the command was duty-bound to deal decisively with criminal elements in line with the law and protect the lives of people of Lagos state.

    NAN

  • APC wins two Assembly seats in Mushin

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Sunday declared candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC) winners of the Mushin House of Assembly Constituencies 1 and 2 in Lagos State.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN reports that the results of the Constituency 2 was declared at the Mushin Local Government Secretariat at about 10:15a.m.

    Also, results of the Constituency 1 was declared at St Martins Primary School, Idamegoro, Mushin, at about 11.00a.m.

    READ ALSO: Gunmen abduct campaign organisation DG of APC House of Reps. candidate

    Dr Owolabi Kuye, the Returning Officer for the Mushin House of Assembly Constituency 1 and 2 is from the Department of Business Administration, University of Lagos.

    Kuye said a total number of 28, 678 votes were recorded in the election, with 1,113 void votes.

    According to him, 27, 565 valid votes were announced for the Lagos State House of Assembly by the INEC for Constituency 1.

    The returning officer said that Mr Nureni Ayeni Akinsanya of the All Progressives Congress (APC) polled 20,003 votes to beat his closest rival, Blessing Olawunni of the Accord Party who scored 5,075 votes.

    “That Nureni Ayinde Akinsanya of the APC having satisfied the requirements of law and scoring the highest number of votes, is hereby declared the winner and returned elected having polled 20,033 votes,” Kuye said.

    Also, Kuye had declared Olayiwola Abdul-Sobur Olawale of APC the winner.

    Kuye said that a total of 66,947 votes were cast with 1,600 votes rejected and 65,347 votes valid.

    He said that Olayiwola Abdul-Sobur Olawale polled 23,875 votes, followed by Suleiman Monsuru Olawale of the Accord Party, who scored 6,749 votes.

    Kuye said, “That Olayiwola Abdul-Sobur Olawale of the APC having satisfied the requirements of law and scoring the highest number of votes, is hereby declared the winner and returned elected having polled 23,875 votes.” NAN

  • Polls: Army arrests four in Lagos

    Operatives of the Nigerian Army on Saturday arrested four persons for electoral offences in Lagos.

    The suspects who were arrested at different locations within Ikeja, Mushin and Oshodi, were said to have conducted themselves in ways capable of disrupting the electoral process.

    It was gathered that one of the suspect was held at Onigbongbo while fighting at a polling unit by operatives of the 9 Brigade, while a soldier and one civilian were arrested at Mushin for breaching movement restriction order.

    Confirming the arrests, the Commander 9 Brigade Gen. Lagbaja Abiodun told our Correspondent that another suspect was apprehended with charms at a polling unit in Oshodi while trying to cause a fight.

    He said: “We made three arrests. One was at Onigbongbo involving a young man who was causing trouble. We arrested a soldier and a civilian around Mushin. The soldier was not on election duty and he was breaching the movement restriction order. Because he was with a civilian, it was believed they had intent to cause trouble.

    “Another man was arrested at Oshodi with charms and he was causing a fight. All the suspects are currently in out barrack and would be handed over to the appropriate authorities for further action,” he said.

    Meanwhile, Police Commissioner Zubairu Muazu on Saturday evening ordered the arrest of party officials and candidates found at ward or local government collation centres in the state.

    Muazu who described the election as peaceful, noted that the officials and candidates were violating the Electoral Act by being present at collation centres and their presence could spring violence.

    He gave the order while on tour of Ward collation centres in Ikeja Local Government Area (LGA) after observing the presence of some party officials.

    The commissioner ordered them out of the centres, directing the Police officers leading security teams to arrest anyone found in 15 minutes.

    “Each party is supposed to send a representative to the collation centres. Only the party agents are to be at the collation centres. No candidates who have contested election should be here and no party chieftain.

    “Only electoral officers bringing in results and party agents are wanted here. Any candidate or party official found here has contravened the Electoral Act and would be arrested. Arrest them and bring them to my cell. I have food to give them.

    “I do not anticipate any post-election violence. The whole exercise has been good thus far. We have seen from the polling units and now visited all collation centres in Ikeja Local Government Area and the process is moving smoothly. No problems anywhere.

    “Collation has started in the four wards we have visited in Ikeja. We have seen adequate security in those areas and we have not received complaints from any of the officers over the collation exercises.

    “I have reports of few arrests made within Lagos but I cannot give you details because I am yet to receive full reports from the Area Commanders and Divisional Police Officers (DPOs).”

  • 10 held over clash at Ijanikin, says CP Ebrimson

    The Commissioner of Police (CP) in charge of elections in Lagos West Senatorial District Kenneth Ebrimson on Saturday said 10 suspects were arrested in connection to violence at Oto Awori in Ijanikin, Ojo on Thursday.

    He stated this during an interview with reporters at the Police Command in Ikeja where he assured residents of peaceful polls.

    According to Ebrimson, he had visited all identified flash points in the senatorial district including Okota, Mushin, and Ogba, noting that there had been no issues and voters were turning out impressively.

    On action taken by the police after the Ijanikin violence, he said:  “Well, you know that in a situation like this, there must be hiccups here and there. People are desperate and it is left for the security agencies to track down these miscreants and wherever crisis arise, to timely handle same so it does not escalate.

    “That is exactly what the police have done. As I speak to you now, 10 suspects are cooling down in the cell and they would face the full wrath of all.

    “I think the security agencies are ready to go. Whatever lapses you noticed during the presidential election have been corrected.”

    Asked why the vehicular restriction order was again flaunted in Okota by tricyclists and motorcyclists, Ebrimson said security agencies are to allow people pass once they can prove they were trying to locate their polling units.

    “You know when there is voting, people tend to locate their polling units so the restriction movement is not that they will not go and locate their polling unit. When you restrict people they will not get to where their polling units are.

    “The important thing is that if they have their PVCs and the officer on ground is satisfied that they are looking for their polling units, they would be allowed access with their vehicles. What we mean by the restriction is that you are not allowed to go to another polling unit after voting.

    “As soon as you are done voting you either go back home or stay within the premises of your polling unit with a given distance by Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) so you can do what they call protect your votes.

    “I can assure Lagosians that the noticeable lapses in the previous election have been corrected. Those flashpoints in Lagos State have adequate security provided to contain whatever may arise. They say once bitten twice shy. Wherever we had those challenges, we have blocked the loopholes. We identified more than 20 flash points in Lagos and provided watertight security to cover them. Places like Ojo, Isolo, Mushin, Okota were well captured. We are good to go.

  • Mushin communities to EKEDC: give us prepaid meters

    Some communities in Mushin Local Government Area of Lagos State yesterday urged Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDC) to honour the agreement reached with the company last July.

    Their demand followed the House of Representatives’ passage of Electricity Power Reform Act (Amendment) Bill 2018, prohibiting and criminalising estimated billing.

    The lawmakers proposed one-year jail term and a fine of N1million for defaulting DisCo.

    Under the proposed law, electricity distribution companies are to give prepaid meters to applicants within 30 days. It has to go to the Senate for concurrence before being sent to the President for assent.

    If signed, the law will bar a Disco from disconnecting a consumer after the 30-day period within which a meter should be installed.

    Residents of Igbehin-Adun, Ilasamaja, Papa-Ajao, Oduduwa, Ladipo, Megbon, among others yesterday protested the re-introduction of estimated billings.

    They marched on the streets carrying placards to sensitise others.

    The residents said they are ready to go for months without electricity supply from EKEDC to press home their demands.

    They said EKEDC has reduced the hours of electricity to three hours a day.

    “Despite having lesser hours of electricity, EKEDC has started disconnecting our supply for not paying the outrageous bills. This is contrary to our agreement last July,” Imam Maruf Okusanya told The Nation.

    “We do not want estimated billings again. They brought bills of N15,000, N20,000 among others, whereas those who use prepaid meters spend less than N4,000 monthly and we are using the same electricity. It is unacceptable. EKEDC continues to promise prepaid meters without fulfilling its promise. That’s why we said we will be paying N4,000 monthly until they supply the meters,” he added.

    The General Secretary of Igbehin Community Development Association, Mr Kayode Ogunbola, described the estimated billing as unacceptable to the community.

    He said: “Many of our members are saying that what they are paying for electricity is more than house rent. This is our concern. We want to live as normal human beings and not as second-class citizens. What we want is prepaid meter. Ikeja Electric has been doing well to meter its customers. What stops EKEDC from doing same? Instead, they are using police to harass our members. We urge the state and federal governments to call EKEDC to order.”

    Lekan Bolaji from Ofada Street said some of the residents, who have paid for the prepaid meters, have not received them since 2016.

    “Despite that the government said it’s free, some of our people paid for the meters since.  For almost two years, EKEDC has not installed the meters. We have what the DisCo called Statistical Meter that will be mounted on the transformer for the residents to know the accurate amount of electricity consumed and the bill will be shared among the houses using the transformer. We asked for it pending the time prepaid meters will be provided. EKEDC has not supplied it. Even the analogue meter was being read by the defunct National Electricity Power Authority (NEPA) officials, before bringing the bills,” Bolaji said.

    He urged the government to prevail on EKEDC to stop cheating its customers.

    Salman Uthman from Itire Road said the community has promised the EKEDC officials to help nab those who bypass the meters and those on free rider (those who use electricity without collecting bills).

    “Our stand is N4,000 monthly pending the time they will bring prepaid or statistical meters,” he said.

  • LASG confiscates rail track traders’ wares

    The Lagos State Government on Monday began what it called “Operation all illegal traders must leave rail tracks in Lagos” with the confiscation of wares being sold on the rail lines.

    The Head, Public Affairs Unit, Lagos State Task Force, Mr Adebayo Taofiq, said in a statement on Tuesday that the operation commenced at Ikeja rail track.

    According to Taofiq, different types of goods ranging from used clothing popularly called ‘Okirika clothes’, shoes, belts, fairly used electronics and gas cylinders were confiscated.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Task Force had on Sunday warned traders and other persons doing businesses on rail lines in the state to leave or face arrest and prosecution.

    Areas notorious for rail line trading include Mushin, Pen-cinema, Ikeja, Yaba, Oyingbo and Agege.

    The task force chairman, CSP Olayinka Egbeyemi, had said that convergence of illegal traders selling and buying goods around rail lines was suicidal and an eye-sore in different parts of the state.

    He said that many lives had been lost to the illegal rail track trading.

    Taofiq said the Monday operation was carried out as a follow-up to the earlier warning to traders to vacate the tracks.

    He said that no arrest was made during the operation, as the traders ran away leaving their goods when they saw the task force operatives.

    “It will no longer be business as usual until a zero tolerance on this is maintained. The government has reiterated and warned council officials and market leaders against collection of money from such illegality.

    “Anybody caught collecting illegal fees from these illegal traders on rail lines across the state would be seriously dealt with in accordance with the law,” he said.

  • Two in court for phones theft

    Two men, Oyewale Akeem, 22 and Oyekachi Agoha, 30, on Tuesday appeared at Ikeja Magistrates’ Court, for allegedly robbing a man of his telephones with a cutlass.

    The accused, whose addresses were not provided, are facing a three-count charge of conspiracy, violence and robbery.

    The Prosecutor, Mr Edet Akadu, told the court that the accused, with three others now at large, committed the offences at about 6.30 a.m. on Oct. 13, at Isolo Road, Mushin, Lagos.

    Akadu said that the accused, who were on a motorcycle and armed with a cutlass, robbed the complainant, Mr Moruf Olatunji, of his two phones valued at N42, 000.

    Read Also: Court adjourns Ekiti council chairmen’s suit till November 2

    “The complainant was on his way to his place of work when he was attacked.

    “The accused persons violently used the cutlass to attack and inflict injury on his hand before dispossessing him of his phones,” he said.

    The prosecutor said that the offences contravened Sections 297, 245 and 411 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.

    The accused pleaded not guilty to the charges.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Section 297 stipulates a seven-year jail term for offenders.

    In his ruling, the Magistrate, Mr K.O. Ogundare, granted bail to the accused in the sum of N200, 000, with two sureties in like sum.

    Ogundare ordered that the sureties must show evidence of tax payment to the Lagos State Government.

    He adjourned the case until November 20.

  • Estimated billings: Residents appeal to electricity distribution company

    A community, comprising: Adio Shomade Street, Shotinoye Street, Oloruntoyin Street,  Daramola Street, Odusina Street, a Olapeju Street all situated at Papa-Ajao, Mushin Local Government Area of Lagos State in Mushin, Lagos State has appealed Eko Electricity Distribution Plc, Mushin Business Unit, to stop the distribution of  what they called ‘esimated illegal energy bill’.

    In a letter addressed to The Commercial Manager, Eko Electricity Distribution Plc, by the community’s solicitor, Alkazeem Associates, it said several complaints had been made since the assumption of office by the company regarding the ‘illegal estimated bills’ being distributed to the consumers of the community on a monthly basis.

    The residents wondered why such outrageous bills should be given to them since the streets are residential and not designed for commercial purposes.

    The residents argued that despite the fact that Eko Electricity Distribution Plc was aware that estimated bills were being distributed continuously each month without calculating the amount of energy consumed by the residents, the organization did not stop.

    The residents regard the estimated billing as “an illegal extortion of the law abiding citizens’ and warned that any illegal disconnection will not be tolerated.

    However, the residents said they were ready to follow the terms and conditions of the electricity distribution company by buying recharge card regularly on provision of prepaid meter.

  • Barber ‘steals sister’s ATM card, withdraws N150,000’

    A barber, Muri Adebiyi, who allegedly stole his sister’s Automated Teller Machine (ATM) card and withdrew N150,000 from her account, was on Monday brought before an Ikeja Magistrates Court in Lagos.
    Adebiyi, 30, of Isolo Road, Mushin, is standing trial on a one-count charge of stealing before Magistrate M.O Tanimola.
    Prosecuting Police Inspector Aondohemba Koti said the defendant committed the offence on August 20 at Mushin.
    Koti alleged that Adebiyi withdrew N150, 000 out of the N200,000 in his sister Mrs Kudirat Muhammed’s bank account without her consent.
    The court heard that Muhammed, who received debit alerts on her phone, rushed to the bank only to find that her brother was the thief.
    Koti said: “The complainant got debit alerts amounting to N150, 000 from her account and she immediately went to the bank to lodge a complaint.
    “The bank checked the Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) camera recording and she watched her younger brother withdrawing her money.

    Read Also: Man docked for N6,000 theft in FCT

    “The case was reported to the police and the defendant was arrested.”
    He said the offence contravened Section 287 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.
    But Adebiyi pleaded not guilty.
    Magistrate Tanimola granted him N50,000 bail with one surety in the like sum.
    The case continues on September 19. 

  • Mushin, Lawanson residents reject ‘crazy bills’

    •EKEDC: we’ll look into your complaints

    Some residents of Mushin and Lawanson in Lagos, yesterday protested against what they called “crazy bills” by the Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDC).

    They said they had been receiving such bills in the past three years.

    The protesters from Olufowobi, Adefimihan, Aborisade, Dumade, Onipede, and Durojaiye streets and Mushin road, gathered at Five Star on the Oshodi-Apapa Expressway, with placards, condemning the Disco.

    The inscriptions on their placards read:  “No more crazy bills,” “Stop estimated billing,” “Lets pay for what we use, not what you think,” “We want prepaid meters” and “Stop cheating.”

    They said the bills brought to them monthly did not reflect what they consumed. They said they were not enjoying electricity and demanded pre-paid meters to enable them pay for what they consume.

    The residents returned the bills, which they claimed were estimated, to the EKEDC, saying they were not ready to pay.

    The bills were not received from them.

    Speaking on their behalf, a member of Olufowobi Community Development Association (CDA), Olu Ogunjimi, said: “They have been giving us outrageous bills. They give some houses up to N25,000 and N30,000 monthly for bills that should not be more than N6000 if there was pre-paid meters. We have been asking them for pre-paid meters but they have refused and that is why we have come to their office; if they cannot give us pre-paid meters, they should stop giving us estimated billing.

    “We have been on this issue for over three years and we have tried so many times to get it solved, all to no avail. We have been to the EKEDC office in Jibowu about two three times, but nothing to show for it.”

    A Lawanson resident, Festus Akingbehin, 78, who lives in a room, said he was usually billed N16,000 or N18,000 monthly.

    He said he had written to EKEDC in Marina, Jibowu and copied the Minister of Works, Power, Housing on his estimated bills.

    “I have been to this place several times to lodge the same complaint; EKEDC officials from Jibowu have been to my house for inspection more than 10 times but all to no avail,” he said.

    The septuagenarian wondered how he would be paying N4,000 monthly rent and be paying an average of N16,000 monthly electricity bill.

    “I am a pensioner; how do they expect me to get the money to pay such amount monthly. All I want is pre-paid meters,” he said.

    Another Lawanson resident, Lateef Labinjo said he was paying for the service he is not enjoying.

    “They bring us exorbitant bill every month and I cannot cope with it anymore. They brought us about N30,000 last month for eight rooms. If we had pre-paid meters, our bill will not be more than N5,000 monthly. If we were enjoying it, it would have been a different story. They should give us stable light,” he said.

    A protester, Thomas Iyoha said his bill increased from N51,000 to N100,000, explaining that he always paid his bills regularly and cannot explain where the increment came from.

    Another protester, Busayo Adebanbo said unstable electricity, especially at night, often led to fracas on Mushin road. According to him, if there was light the area boys’ incessant attack would be prevented.

    Responding, EKEDC Commercial Manager, who simply identified himself as Osas, said the complaints would be looked into.

    Osas said: “You are here to make complaints concerning your bills and that you want prepaid meters, the issue you have just raised is not a bad one and it is part of our policies to meter our customers and we will look into it. If you watched the media well, you will observe that the Federal Government has commissioned some agents to do the metering and I know that they will start the project soon. What you need to do is to exercise patience and everyone will be metered.

    “Concerning your bills, you are saying it is high, we will send the marketers to come and check and do proper assessment of those bills and the supply. I know that area well and that area is one that enjoys in terms of electricity supply, but if you are saying the supply in the area is not good, we will verify. I have looked at your bills and I know how the supply to that place looks like, but nevertheless, we will do a crosscheck and verify your claims.