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  • Fred Amata, Judith Audu, others star in ‘The Sessions’

    FRESH from the shoot of her movie titled ‘The Family’, Nollywood actress and filmmaker, Judith Audu, has teamed up with two of her industry colleagues, Omowumi Dada, and Uyoyou Adia for another feature film titled ‘The Sessions’.

    Written by the award-winning Adia, and shot in Lagos, the actress says that the romantic thriller is one that promises to keep the audience glued to the screens.

    “Everyone who knows me knows that I am drawn to a good story. It’s even better that is was written by none other than a person who have won awards for her out-of-the-box storylines. This movie promises something like you have never seen before,” she said.

    A riveting tale of love gone sour, ‘The Sessions’, tells the story of Onome Oghenekaro who is married to Banjo. All seems to be going smoothly until her past comes calling. What was supposed to be a smooth sail turns into a turbulent ride as Onome finds her marriage going through tough times.

    Her friend Eloho, a therapist decides to wade in to help Onome and Banjo get their marriage on the right path, but as they unearth events from the past, the true nature of the situation begins to show. Will there be a compromise to make the marriage work?

    The movie stars the likes of Efa Iwara, Omowunmi Dada, Okey Uzoeshi, Judith Audu, Tunbosun Aiyedehin, Fred Amata, Ada Ameh and Tony Akposheri among others.

    ‘The Sessions’ is produced and Directed by Judith Audu, while Daniel Ehimen serves as Director of Photography.

    Earlier in the week, co-producer of the film, Uyoyou Adia won the Best Emerging Filmmaker Award at The African Film Festival (TAFF) for her short film, ‘#TheFourthSide’.

  • Turkish Airlines’ world amateur golf tournament

    THE Turkish Airlines World Golf Cup,  the world’s largest corporate golf tournament, will be played in Lagos for the fourth time.

    The airline said the golf tournament was a proof that “the airline also serves up the very best for its clients on the fairways as well as the runways – all with the genuine Turkish hospitality famous around the world.

    “Golf is entrenched in the Turkish Airlines philosophy that customers’ clubs can even fly for free. Players can look forward to another unforgettable Turkish Airlines World Golf Cup, which is now in its seventh year and is sponsored by National Car Rental & SOCAR.”

    Yunus Ozbek, General Manager of Turkish Airlines, Lagos, said: “We are thrilled to be back in Lagos with the TAWGC and a new group of golfers as our event has become a highlight on the region’s calendar over the past four years. We are proud that this competition has grown in parallel with the world class Turkish Airlines brand. Good luck to the players, we look forward to inviting the winner to represent Lagos in the Grand Finals in Turkey later this year.

    “Flying to more countries than any other airline in the world, Turkish Airlines supports some of the world’s most successful sports  people and organisations, bridging cultures and continents. Alongside TAWGC, Turkish Airlines is title sponsor of Turkish Airlines Euroleague, Europe’s top club level basketball competition and is committed to supporting the best sporting competitions around the world.”

    The 2018 Turkish Airlines World Golf Cup broke records yet again with 100 qualifying events that took place around the world, including past Open Championship venue Royal Birkdale and Ryder Cup destinations Gleneagles and the K Club in Dublin. Winners reached the Grand Finals in Turkey and the champions in the Finals secured places in the Turkish Airlines Open Pro-Am, where previous winners have played alongside Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy.

  • The truth about lying in your relationship (1)

    BIMPE (not real name) needed to get to a party over the weekend, and had no idea how she would escape from her spouse. So she cooked up an excuse for her husband, Soji. “Sweetheart, our company has organized a training and I was selected as one of the participants.” Soji agreed and was ready to take care of the kids, though he was a man who lacked exposure and didn’t allow his wife go for “owambe”, which is the reason why Bimpe decided to tell a lie. And yes she went for the party nothing happened because Soji didn’t know the true story. I am not saying all women are like this. This is just an example of lie being told to a spouse. There are many more examples of various lies people tell in their relationships.  Over time as we mature, there are certain things we shouldn’t tolerate in any relationship. Our lives are complicated with the problems we face in our economy relating to our careers, family, friends, in-laws, enemies and even ‘frienemies’, sometimes it is all too much to handle. Then we now add a new relationship to the mix, or managing an existing one and you have one more issue with which you have to deal with called LIES!

    If you discover that your partner has lied to you, should you stay with such a person?  It all depends on you as a person. How much are you willing to put up with it and how much time are you willing to spend with such a person whom you have now identified as a liar.

    The key ingredient in any relationship to survive is trust, especially as we grow older. This is very important because if there is no trust, the centre cannot and will not hold, no matter how beautiful, handsome, sexy, great in bed and rich this person may be. Coupled with respect and love, trust is an ingredient that gives you a strong basis as a couple or in any relationship such as colleague at work, business partner etc. While trust is a bond, it is also a tenuous one, easily broken, if one of the partners constantly lies. A partner may tolerate it first, second and third time, but after a while they will eventually get tired of tolerating. LIES about your financial level e.g how much you make or have in your account are also trust breakers, it’s a hard pill to swallow but the fact remains not everyone likes to come clean on exactly how much they are worth

    There are also some lies we don’t want to hear (no one likes any sort of lies really). Lies such as, “I didn’t call because my cell phone battery was low or died.” Or,” I was at work”. For anyone who consistently lies the reality is that this person feels lies are acceptable, and will always have reasons why he or she should lie. He or she may lie about the reason they came home late or say they did something that needed to be done but in reality didn’t do it.  The thing with lies is that, it may start small and you may keep getting away with it, they may not be major lies, but gradually they will progress into major ones and become uncontrollable, it may not mean you are committing adultery or hiding money from your spouse, but a pattern is being established where lying becomes second nature to the truth, when your lies become a truth to you, it has now become a habit and difficult to stop.

    As mature individuals you may have to stop making excuses for the person who lies to you over and over again and face the reality of the situation that your spouse is a LIAR. That person is not going to change and you can’t expect him or her to be truthful, they will lose track of the lies as one lie leads to another lie, then another lie and yet another lie, till it becomes a web they cannot be free from.

    Relationships are made up of many important parts. People are willing to put up with various behaviour with their spouses just for the sake of keeping “hope” alive or maintain an appearance that all is well when in reality all is NOT well.

    Signals that your partner is a liar

    Unfortunately, it is not all the time you can tell when you are being lied to in a relationship. Nonetheless, when a partner’s actions seem shady and unexplainable, or when you cannot connect the dots, it might signify dishonesty. These signs are listed and discussed below.

    1. Change of tempo in your spouse’s voice

    If you’re the type who talks a lot with your spouse, you practically become used to his/her voice. When your partner is lying, you notice a slight change of tone in their voice, either going higher or lower. To others, it might not be noticeable, but to you who has held several conversations with your partner and knows them well, especially if you have been together for a while, then that change is detected immediately, even if it is subconscious. Your mind will speak to you, showing you that all is not well. Unless you want to deceive yourself, you will see the signs.

    1. Change in eye contact

    When having a conversation with your spouse, he/she who was previously looking directly into your eyes while talking suddenly answers a question looking away from you or quickly finding something else to look at, that may be a sign of dishonesty. It is either the person is embarrassed about telling a lie that the guilt forces the person to look away from the other’s eyes. Or be that the spouse is trying to organize their thoughts in order to flow with the lie being told, remember we said one lie leads to another and another and another, trust me it is hard work. When your spouse avoids looking into your eyes or in your direction when answering a question of yours, it could be a sign that something is wrong. A lot of betrayals happen in this way; the eyes are window to a mans soul.

    1. Change in recollection of events

    Remember we mentioned earlier that telling lies is connected and hard work to create a perfect lie. Making the lie to suit certain events that have already happened could be complicated if not done well. The liar himself could divulge a lie by himself/herself.

  • Nurturing your relationship (4)

    Dear Reader, God has been faithful and He has really opened your eyes to so many things you didn’t know before about relationship. I know you have been blessed.

    For the past few weeks now, we have been exploring the subject, ‘Nurturing Your Relationship’ Under this subject, we have been able to look at what relationship is all about, we have leant about the factors that can help you nurture and grow your relationship; The factor of commitment, the factor of Putting your home in order, and last week we discussed Be the man of her dream. I am sure the married men have been able to take advantage of last week teaching in particular. This factor when you put it to use, it will help you to win your wife. Today, we shall also be looking at another interesting factor that can help you as a married woman to nurture and grow your relationship. You want to know this factor? Be the Woman of His dreams!

    Just as every woman has expectations about the man she wants to spend the rest of her life with, woman, know that every man (your husband) also has some basic expectations of the woman he wants to marry.

    Be a Help

    Obviously, God instituted marriage to get a suitable help for man, so He made the woman. The woman is therefore an ordained help for her husband. What are you to help your husband with? As wife God expects you to help your husband bear the load of responsibilities he carries.

    “And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him”

    Genesis 2:18.

    Your ‘ministry’ is to ensure that the man does not fail in his duties and that the family system does not break down. In other words, you are there in the family to help lift the weight not add to it. You are there a helper not a destroyer, castigator or betrayer.

    Be a Home Maker

    Every home is like a garden, and just as God gave Adam an instruction to dress and keep it, every home must be dressed to be kept. No matter how colourful your garden, if it is left unkempt, it is open to the attack of all kinds of insects that will eat up its good fruits.

    “And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.” Genesis 2:15.

    Who keeps the Home?

    Woman, how well kept is your home? This scripture has many implications. A woman is to keep her house spiritually by prayer and sensitivity to the Holy Spirit, but she also keeps it practically by cleaning up and beautifying it. “Cleanliness is next to godliness,” they say. Let the environment be conducive for the Holy Spirit. Titus 2:4-5 says it is the woman.

     “That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children,

    To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed.”

    Feed Him Well

    There is a popular adage that says, “The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.” Woman, your family is what they eat. If they are healthy it can be practically traced to their eating habits.

    It is not enough to feed with sumptuous food, but you need to feed them right. Are the foods they eat nutritious? Or do you give them just anything? Wisdom is profitable to direct. (Eccl. 10:10).

    In this day and age of processed foods and snacks (fast food) please secure the health of your family by feeding them with good food. Remember, “garbage in, garbage out.”

    Eve fed her husband; unfortunately, she fed him with poison instead of life. Woman what are you feeding your dream man with? Genesis 3:6 says,

    “And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.”

    Be Financially Accountable

    Financial rest does not only come when you are a millionaire, it comes by being a good money manager. You must have a financial plan or else you are creating room for financial pain. A wise man once said, “Pain is a sign of disorder” it follows that to experience financial pain is a sign of disorder in your spending.

    You can prioritize your spending and maximize your income. Why must you put yourself into such pain getting into debt? Spend within your means and be content with your income size for now.

    “Though thy beginning was small, yet thy latter end should greatly increase” Job 8:7.

    Complement Your Spouse

    One other way to nurture your relationship is by an often-neglected key, and that is complement. Every human being loves to be praised either for what he has done or simply for who he is.

    The key is to locate the good qualities in your spouse and focus on it. Then express your appreciation for those good qualities by the words of your mouth. Learn to show appreciation for both small and great acts of kindness. You can also show appreciation by giving little gifts.

    Make room for praise in your home. Praise God always and complement your husband or wife and your relationship will be heaven on earth!

    For you to be able to possess good qualities that will make you relationship last, you need a good relationship with Christ. If, peradventure, you are not born again and you want to accept Jesus as your Lord and personal Saviour, then say this prayer in faith: Dear Lord Jesus Christ, I come to You today. I am a sinner. Forgive me my sins and cleanse me with Your Blood. I accept You as my Lord and personal Saviour. Make me a child of God today. Thank You for delivering me from sin and satan to serve the living God and thank You for accepting me into Your Kingdom.

    Congratulations! If you prayed this simple prayer of faith with me, you are now born again and a child of God. He loves you and will never leave you. Read your Bible daily, obey God’s Word and seek Christian fellowship (John 14:21).

    With this, you are guaranteed all-round rest and peace in Jesus’ Name! Call or write to share your testimonies with me through contact@faithoyedepo.org, 07026385437 OR 08141320204.

    For more insight, these books authored by me are available at the Dominion Bookstores in all Living Faith Churches and other leading Christian bookstores: Marriage Covenant, Making Marriage Work, Building A Successful Home and Success in Marriage (Co-Authored).

  • MY ORDEAL IN LIFE INSPIRED ‘BABA ESE’ –OKEZE

    GOSPEL singer, Lillian Okeze, has concluded plans to launch her first official single, ‘Baba Ese.’

    Speaking about her forthcoming debut single, the Delta State indigene and graduate of History and International Relations from the Lagos State University (LASU) stated that her life’s experiences inspired the song.

    “I’ve passed through different challenging situations in life and how God has helped me,” said, Okeze, who joined the choir when she was 17.

    “I say ‘Baba Ese.’ My ordeal in life inspired my songs.

    “All I want to do is to put smiles on the faces of the people by making them realise that there is still hope if they can only trust in God.”

    The forthcoming single is produced by Oluwafemi Anifowose, aka Lalaah, of Lagrouv Musiq.

  • Winners of ATQ 2019 awards emerge

    AFRICAN Travel Quarterly (Atqnews) has unveiled a shortlist of diaspora winners of the Africa Travel 100 Global personalities awards.

    The award recognizes personalities of African origin, living in Africa or outside the continent, irrespective of their current citizenship or nationality that has been contributing to the development of the continent and its diaspora in the area of tourism and travel. This comes as the plan to launch a global tourism association for tourism players in Africa and the diaspora nears completion.

    The African Travel 100 Global Personalities Award will take place during the 15th AKWAABA African Travel Market at Eko Hotels and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos, on  September  23. Akwaaba African Travel Market is from  September 22 to 24.

    The award is expected to honour personalities in the travel and tourism sector that have exemplified themselves in the industry and contributed to the growth of the sector in Africa and the diaspora. The event will be part of the First African Tourism Diaspora Conference 2019. The conference is expected to draw top tourism personalities from around the world to Lagos, Nigeria.

    African Tourism Diaspora Conference 2019 is to mark the 400 years of slavery. Slavery is a very sensitive topic  that has created an uncomfortable relationship between Africa and its diaspora. The conference is an opportunity to celebrate the merging of Africans, Americans, Caribbeans and the rest of the world during this memorable gathering expected in Lagos.

    Africa with 54 countries and a population of 1.2 billion has an unbelievable tourist attraction. The Caribbean and African diaspora have a unique culture, rich heritage and beautiful destinations for tourists, hence the need to connect and combine these wonderful cultures and population, creating a huge global market.

    The African Diaspora Tourism Conference presents a platform to discuss, initiate, dialogue and celebrate a new relationship. The recognition of Africa as a beacon of hope for African people living on the continent and in the diaspora to explore, relate and live using the African Diaspora Tourism Conference as the African platform for the foundation of this long-lasting relationship. Posterity will remember that the improvement was earned not by coincidence, but by conscious efforts to validate the struggles, strengths and linkages between African descendants on a pan-African scale.

    The Africa Travel 100 Awards, now in her 18th year, has recognized over the years leaders, industry practitioners and the government officials who have promoted tourism and improved travel, using unique platforms and new information.

    Among this year’s winners include:    Mr. Edmund Barlett , Jamaica’s minister of tourism; Rosemary Sadlier , promoter of  Black Cultural Heritage in Canada; Dr. Eugene Franklin,  Chairman, Pan African Cultural Heritage Institute;  Diallo Sumbry -, first ambassador of African-America Tourism to Ghana; Carol Hay,  Director of Marketing Caribbean Tourism Organisation, UK and Europe;  Professor Thomas Mensah – Ghanaian / American Pioneer in fiber Optic technology, Author “The right stuff comes in Black too”;  Fabien Anthony- Chairman  and  Co-Founder Pan-African Council;  Kitty Pope,  Creator, Africa Diaspora World Tourism Awards;  Eric Martin and  Kent Johnson,  founders of Black and Abroad; Cherae Robinson , founder, Tastemakers Africa; Macaulay Kalu,  chairman, African Union 6th Region;  Dr. Arikana Chihombori-Quao, African Union ambassador to the U.S;   Carolyn Anderson , founder, Beyond All Border;   Danny Rivers Mitchell , founder, Black Girls Travel Too;  Kumi Rauf , CEO, I Love Being Black; Jessica Nabongo ,  Founder/ CEO Jet Black; Rozan Ahmed,  Cultural Institute Creative Writer, and many others.

  • Malaria: The human host

    I once asked a student in Nigeria when he last had malaria.  He told me that he had never had malaria.  I almost asked him if he was Christian or Moslem to understand him and his statement but I became polite.  Maybe he was telling factual truth. Probably a few adult Africans can boast that they have never had malaria. My story is the opposite.  Whenever I am with a group of people and a mosquito comes around, it comes for me.  I conclude that I lack a mosquito repelling hormone and many people around me in Nigeria must have a mosquito repelling hormone.  Mosquitoes can actually select which humans to bite.  The mechanism of this effect is unknown.

    After mosquito bites, indeed, some people get malaria more easily than others, all external factors being equal.  This has been scientifically studied and theories of immunity largely explain it.  The skin of the host may play a part.  The blood of the host may play a part.  The immune system, evolved by genetic selection, may be largely responsible for immunity in chronically endemic areas.

    Africa is the most malarial part of the world largely because of the Anopheles gambiae mosquito that provides a high transmission rate for the plasmodium parasite, especially Plasmodium falciparum (

    https://www.cdc.gov/malaria/malaria_worldwide/impact.html).

    Generally, human symptoms emerge 10-28 days after the injection of plasmodia. Two kinds of malaria, P. vivax and P. ovale can cause relapsing malaria. “Five countries accounted for nearly half of all malaria cases worldwide: Nigeria (25%), Democratic Republic of the Congo (11%), Mozambique (5%), India (4%) and Uganda (4%).” (https://www.who.int/malaria/media/world-malaria-report-2018/en/)

    Thus, there are significant economic implications for Nigeria.  Nigerians would spend more money on malaria than any other country in the world and is a haven for big business in antimalarials.

    More than two thirds (70%) of all malaria deaths occur in children under five years of age (https://www.afro.who.int/health-topics/malaria). This is because of lack of or low immunity in children. Children in endemic areas may be genetically predisposed to develop resistance. Human genetic resistance to malaria is a chief reason for survival of Africans.  This topic is well discussed by Wikipedia at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_genetic_resistance_to_malaria.  People born and living in malarial parts of the world are able to develop immunity as they grow older. On repeated exposure to the parasite or malaria antigens through mosquito bites, they can develop specific antibodies against the sporozoite, liver parasites, blood parasites, and sexual-stages of the plasmodium.  The human antibodies prevent the parasites from causing disease and from being further transmitted.  Human immune cells also release cytokines (selectively toxic chemicals) that attack the various stages of the parasite.  Humans also produce T-cells in the thymus gland for immune response.  T-cells are directed at liver stages of the parasite.

    Some possible mechanisms of adaptive immunity to malaria include: antibodies block invasion of sporozoites into liver cells, interferon (IFN-y) and CD8 T cells inhibit parasite development in liver cells, antibodies block invasion of merozoites into red blood cells, antibodies prevent clumping of infected red blood cells on the inner lining of blood vessels, IFN-y and CD4+ T cells activate macrophages (defense cells) to eat up  blood parasites; antibodies neutralize inflammatory substances released by the parasites; antibodies mediate destruction of parasite gametes preventing parasites from fertilization (adapted from Stevenson MM, Riley EM. Innate immunity to malaria. Nat Rev Immunol. 2004; 4:169-80).

    Mosquitoes taking a blood meal inject sporozoites of plasmodium into the skin where these parasites may stay for some hours before escaping into the lymph and blood and then reach the liver. Clinical symptoms of malaria are not manifest during liver-stage maturation at the end of which schizonts are released into the blood and each of them ruptures to release up to 30,000 uninucleate merozoites that quickly invade red blood cells.  This is the clinical stage of the disease during which the parasites continue to multiply exponentially using host materials.  A person’s system  may be immune by not allowing or by breaking these multiple host-parasite interactions.

    Another proposed mechanism of natural protection is through genetic variation of glycophorins  and other recptors on the surface of red blood cells through which plasmodium gain entry into the cell.  Modified receptors will not allow entry. This is from a  study by the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, the Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics, and collaborators (Science Daily, 18 May 2017).

    Mothers can transfer immunity to babies. However, malaria can cause fetal and maternal complications in pregnancy .  The natural immunity may be compromised in pregnant women (especially in first time pregnancy) and in adults removed from their endemic home environment for long.

    Thus people may be immune through various mechanisms. Naturally immunity to malaria is because their bodies destroy plasmodia and limit multiplication of plasmodia even without previous exposure to plasmodia. Acquired immunity may be active enhancement of the defense mechanism of the person through previous encounter with plasmodium or malaria antigen.  Acquired immunity may be also passively conferred by the prenatal or postnatal transfer of immune substances from mother to child or by the injection of such substances (vaccination)  (ref . Bruce-Chwatt, L. J. 1980. Essential malariology, vol. 354. William Heinemann Medical Books Ltd., London, United Kingdom).

    Dr. Theresa Adebola John is a lecturer at Lagos State University College of Medicine (LASUCOM) and an affiliated researcher at the College of Medicine, University of Tennessee, Memphis.  For any comments or questions on this column, please email bolajohnwritings@yahoo.com or call 08160944635

  • PFN: Fatoyinbo shunned our panel’s sittings

    The Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN) has declared inconclusive its probe into the rape allegation by celebrity photographer, Mrs Busola Dakolo, against the founder of Commonwealth of Zion Assembly (COZA), Pastor Biodun Fatoyinbo.

    The Christian body said the five-man investigative panel it set up sat for over a month with presentations and attendance by key stakeholders, such as non-governmental organisations (NGOs), church leaders and others.

    PFN’s National Publicity Secretary, Bishop Emma Isong, who addressed reporters yesterday on the outcome of the panel’s sitting, said Mrs Dakolo and her husband, Timi, also attended the sittings.

    The cleric said the panel could not conclude its assignment because Fatoyinbo refused to show up, despite “several invitations and efforts”.

    He said: “The panel met for over one month and interfaced with parties involved in the matter. Unfortunately, all attempts to meet with Fatoyinbo failed, despite many efforts we made.”

    Read Also: Fatoyinbo back on pulpit after rape allegation

    Asked about the efforts the panel specifically made, Isong said Fatoyinbo was invited through letters, calls and proxies without any success.

    He added: “Several efforts were made. Several calls were made, but he rebuffed us. He shunned the invitation of the panel to defend himself.”

    The PFN national spokesman stressed that since the “accused” was absent, it would be impossible for the panel to conclude its investigation.

    The Christian body hailed the Dakolos for showing up at the panel’s sittings.

    “PFN appreciates the respect that Mrs. Dakolo and her husband accorded the panel by showing up and interacting with members,” Isong said.

    He regretted that Fatoyinbo snubbed the panel, despite his call for the body to intervene in the matter in the heat of the accusation.

    Mrs Dakolo accused Fatoyinbo of raping her 20 years ago when she was a 16 and attending the church with her family in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital.

    The accusation attracted public outcry and protests in the Abuja headquarters and Lagos branch of the church.

    The public outcry forced Fatoyinbo to step aside from the pulpit on July 1 to enable appropriate bodies investigate the matter. The COZA founder denied the allegation, saying he had never raped a woman in his life.

    But he returned to the pulpit on August 5, sparking another round of public outcry.

  • Tribunal reserves ruling on Igbinedion, Idiake petitions

    The National and State Assembly Election Petitions tribunal sitting in Benin City has reserve ruling in the petitions filed by Barr. Omosede Igbinedion of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and Patrick Idiake of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

    Barr. Igbinedion is challenging the election of Hon Dennis Idahosa who won the Ovia Federal Constituency seat while Idiake is challenging the election of Joe Edionwele.

    Chairman of the tribunal, Justice O. Ogundana, said ruling would be delivered on both petitions on a day to be communicated to all parties through hearing notices.

    Speaking on Friday during adoption of written of addresses, Counsel to Edionwele, Kingsley Obamogie, urged the tribunal to enter judgement in favour of his client and dismissed the petition.

    Further attempts by Obamogie to speak on his written address were rejected by Counsel to Idiake, Ken Mozia.

    Obamogie told the tribunal that reliefs demonstrated in open court are not forgotten but Mozia interjected saying, “Adopt and leave at that. Unless you want to bring in something else. Why is insisting if what he wants to say is in his address.”

    READ ALSO: Tribunal: PDP, Igbinedion close case after calling 19 witnesses

    Counsel to the PDP, Sunday Aguinede, urged the tribunal to dismiss the petition as totally lacking in merit and substance.

    Mozia on his part said the petitioners have duly established entitlements to the reliefs they sought.

    In the petition filed by Omosede, Counsel to Idahosa and the APC, Robert Emukperuo and C.I Aiguobarueghian respectively urged the tribunal to dismiss the petition for lacking in merit.

    Counsel to Igbinedion, Ferdinand Orbih, urged the tribunal to uphold the petitioners’ case.

  • Amaechi fixes September for groundbreaking of Transport University, Daura

    The Minister of Transportation,  Rotimi Amaechi, on Friday said the  groundbreaking of the Transport University,  Daura, would take place in Septemeber.

    Amaechi disclosed this while inspecting Lagos -Ibadan rail line construction.

    The minister said the ministry would also establish a factory in Kajola, Ogun, to produce materials for the rail project.

    “We have agreed with contractors handling the university and the rail line to have the groundbreaking between September and October for the two projects.

    He said the federal government was expecting contractors handling key road projects to hasten work to eliminate gridlocks, especially in Apapa area, Lagos.

    He said the completion of the rail project would reduce gridlocks in Apapa and other parts of Lagos.

    Read Also: Amaechi and the Transportation University

    The  minister said the fasctory to be built at Kajola would produce wagons and coatches and later locomotives, adding this would reduce import of the equipment from China.

    “So, as part of the benefits, the company will build a factory in Kajola.

    On the slow pace of the rail  project,  the minister linked it to insufficient funds and the absence of a cabinet to approve the payment.

    The News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) reports that the 157 kilometre Lagos-Ibadan rail project was awarded in 2017 to the Chinese Civil Engineering Construction Company (CCECC ) at the cost  of 1.6 billion Dollars with a  three-year completion agreement.

    As at May,  the laying of the rail track had coverd 123 kilometers.

    (NAN)