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Tag: OFFICER

  • ‘Fajuyi died a loyal officer‘

    ‘Fajuyi died a loyal officer‘

    Major-Gen. Adeyinka Adebayo (rtd) succeeded the late Lt.Col. Adekunle Fajuyi as the military governor of the defunct Western State. In this interview with MUSA ODOSHIMOKHE, he reminiscenses on the 1966 coup and counter-coup.

    How will you describe the late Lt. Col. Adekunle Fajuyi?

    Apart from the fact that we are from the same area in Ekiti State, he was very close to me. I was senior to him in the army from beginning. He was a bold soldier, honest and hardworking. When the coup came in 1966, I was surprise that he was involved. But nevertheless, he was great, honest and dedicated officer. His death gave me an insight to plan my life as a military officer.  For a bold soldier like him to be cut short in a coup, the thought of planning the life of my family and those of the extended ones came to my conscience. This could happened to any officer especially not having unplanned life. The planning has to be extended to other members of the families because being the bread winner; it was my responsibility to ensure they were well catered for. I was already married when the coup took place, so I had to plan the education of my children in view of what had happened. It was a great lesson on how to conduct my personal life in the social sphere and otherwise. It was also a reminder to work harder in planning the future children.

    How comes the coup planners to eliminate Fajuyi, when Aguiyi-Ironsi was the target?

    Militarily and naturally, that was what is expected during a coup. When the host, particularly is a junior officer, he could not have been spared when his boss was being killed. You could not kill Gen. Aguiyi-Ironsi and spared Fajuyi. Aguiyi-Ironyi who was the most senior military officer in the country, was visiting a unit commanded by Fajuyi, so he had to die along with the commander. The speculation that Fajuyi said if you must kill Ironsi, you have to kill me may not be true, but it is natural that the coup planners could not have spared Fajuyi when Aguiyi-Ironsi had been killed. So, the coup planners could not have said let kill Aguiyi-Ironsi alone and spare Fajuyi. In a military life, there must be loyalty to seniority which was what happened in the case of Fajuyi to Ironsi. When they wanted to kill his boss, they had to kill him too.

    Could the coup have been averted?

    Nobody could have predicted that the coup will take the senior and save the junior. The coup was against the military itself. They wanted to get the leader of the military out of the way, so they had to take away anything that could hinder the taking away the leadership of the military. So, when Aguiyi-Ironsi was taken away, they had to take Fajuyi away with him. This could have happened to anybody, it was just that the person they wanted to eliminate was with Fajuyi which made him to become a victim of the coup. But, the coup could have been averted generally because it is not the best method to change any government.

    Being someone close to you, how did you receive the news of Fajuyi’s death?

    Before their deaths, Aguiyi-Ironsi was my senior and I was close to him as well, just like I was close to Fajuyi. It was so painful when the news was broken, but as a military officer, I had to take it in that stride. It really made me to reflect because if this is happening to our senior, it could happen to one as well. They could not have said take Aguiyi-Ironsi away and spare the subordinate officers who was with him. So, if a coup takes place, one should expect anything to happen. I was only lucky that it was not within my domain the C-in-C was visiting. It took place when he was visiting Fajuyi’s command, so if one was there, it could also happen and I could not stop it.

    Is there any way the military can be stopped from staging coups in the country?        

    It is very difficult for the military to be stopped from staging coups. This is because soldiers have different commands. And each command has its leadership. The leader has his independent thoughts. But loyalty to the country is the most important thing in any command. Though, under a central command, some officers could simply think otherwise.

    You gave Fajuyi the last salute during his burial in Ekiti. what was your feeling?

    First of all, I had to say good bye to him even though I was senior to him. It was fashionable to give military salute to a military man being buried. I felt bad emotionally, but there was nothing I could do. And whether junior or senior, one has to give him the last salute. The loyalty has to get to the end, either to the Commander-in-Chief or someone junior during the final rites. The loyalty is very important; I Lt. Col. David Ejoor and Major Mobolaji Johnson, who was a junior officer, in the company of other gave him the good-bye salute.

    How will you describe Aguiyi-Ironsi?

    I had the privilege of knowing him and militarily you have to be loyal the C-in-C. So, I was loyal to him even though I was in a distant command. We were very close and our families were equally loyal and they interacted. My family was very close to the Ironsi family. One had to keep that loyalty because loyalty in the army is very important. On the party of Fajuyi, he was loyal and close to me as well. I was close to him too and his family, I had to look after his family when he was killed. Immediately after his death, I had to cater for Fajuyi’s family. Loyalty is very important because others coming behind are also noting what one is doing. It could happen to them as well, so they have to learn from example they see.

  • Remembering an officer and gentleman

    Remembering an officer and gentleman

    The first Military Governor of the defunct Western Region, Lt.-Col. Adekunle Fajuyi, was killed 50 years ago alongside the Head of State, Major-Gen. Johnson Thomas Ummunakwe Aguiyi-Ironsi in the counter-coup of July 29, 1966. Assistant Editor LEKE SALAUDEEN extols the virtues of the gallant soldier and the supreme sacrifice he made for the unity of the country.

    He remains an unsung hero in the history of Nigeria. The role Lt.-Col. Francis Adekunle Fajuyi, the first Military Governor of the old Western Region, played in the history of Nigeria singled him out as a “star”. He did not take part in the January 15, 1966 coup, but he was a victim of the counter-coup of July 29, which was staged to revenge the killings of the first coup. In the process of trying to protect the late Head of State, Major-General Johnson Thomas Ummunakwe Aguiyi-Ironsi, who was his guest on the fateful morning of the coup, he was consumed in the bloody take-over of government, alongside his boss.

    Aguiyi-Ironsi-Ironsi had arrived Ibadan on July 28, 1966 to address a conference of traditional rulers of Western Nigeria in Ibadan. Having concluded his assignment, he was to have returned to Lagos by the evening of the same day. But, his host prevailed on him to spend the night with him at the Government House, Ibadan and he obliged.

    A bloody overthrow of the civilian regime of Prime Minister Abubakar Tafawa-Balewa’s government had taken place in January 15, 1966 in which the Prime Minister and other top government functionaries, mainly of northern extraction, were killed. Ironically, Aguiyi-Ironsi did not participate in the violent bloodletting, but he inherited the pieces of a shattered republic by virtue of his seniority in the Armed Forces. He, alongside his courageous host, Fajuyi, was assassinated by the revenge-seeking northern soldiers. They were killed at a village near Ibadan.

    It was obvious that the coup plotters never set out to kill Fajuyi; their objective was to abduct Aguiyi-Ironsi. But, Fajuyi refused to hand-over the late Head of State; he insisted on tagging along with his friend and boss. As a gallant soldier, he took the decision to die in action. An Ekiti man to the core, he was fearless and stubborn to what he perceived as injustice.

    The author of Aguiyi-Ironsi’s autobiography, Chuks Ilogbunam, gave an account of the unfortunate incident in the wee hours of July 29: “The telephone rang. Lt. Andrew Nwankwo, the Supreme Commander’s (Ironsi ‘s ) Air Force aide-de-camp (ADC), picked up the receiver instantly. Bad news, he taunted his physique. The voice at the other end of the line belonged to Police Superintendent Joseph Adeola. His message was that the much- feared and much –rumoured counter-coup had indeed started……

    “In quick, heart-piercing succession, unfolding events cast gloom of an impending doom. Soon, desperation set in. One by one, the Head of State and Col. Fajuyi started to send out their aides to approach the gates (that had been surrounded by enemy soldiers) and determine the position of things.

    “It was a season of betrayal and conspiracies. Unknown to the duo, some of their aides were either moles or had switched loyalty. But between the Head of State and the governor, there was obvious necessity to reassure each other that none had a hand in the fate loosely hanging over their heads.”

     

    How he was killed

    Fajuyi told his guest: “I make bold to declare to you that I am with you in soul, spirit and body. And, mark my words, whatever happens to you today, happens to me. I am your true friend, dear J.T.U. like the dove to the pigeon; and by the grace of our good God, so will I humbly yet proudly remain till the very end.” To this, Aguiyi-Ironsi replied: “Yes, Francis, I retain my absolute confidence in you. I have never for once doubted your integrity.

    “And, so, it was for the host and his guest. Fajuyi did not treasure his personal safety over that of his Commander-in-Chief and intimate friend. When the hour came, both were physically battered by the coupists on their way to the serene, sleepy and desolate area called Lalupon at the outskirts of Ibadan. There they were finally killed and buried in a shallow grave.”

    Another account reveals that the security guards who were supposed to protect Fajuyi and Aguiyi-Ironsi caved in and both men were exposed to danger. Fajuyi was said to have roared to the assailants: “You want to kill him in my house? Why didn’t you kill him when he visited your place? And if you want to kill him, you must kill two of us. With these heroic words, he was abducted with his guest, tortured and later assassinated.”

    It was a deep but subdued mourning for their families; for the new military authorities did not readily admit that they had died in the retaliatory coup. It took seven months before an official announcement confirmed what had been widely known.

    The bodies of Aguiyi-Ironsi and Fajuyi were exhumed from the Ibadan cemetery for decent reburial later. The corpse of the late Head of State was brought to the Lagos Airport on January 20, 1967 where the former Military Governor of Eastern Nigeria, Col. Emeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu and Aguiyi-Ironsi’s widow, Victoria, stepped forward to receive it.

     

    Heroic burial in Ado-Ekiti

    Few days after, the same scene played out between Ibadan and Ado-Ekiti for Fajuyi. Both the low and mighty gathered at the Liberty Stadium, Ibadan to pay their last respects to the fallen hero. In contrast, the pain-filled Ado-Ekiti indigenes could still not muster the courage to come to terms with the tragedy as the transition train moved to St. Patrick’s Catholic Church in the city.

    For the Fajuyis, the emotions of bereavement were absolute and consuming. Sympathisers thronged their family house in Ado-Ekiti to offer words that were intended to lessen their pains. The bereaved were hardly comforted.

    Analysts believe the course of history of this country would have been different if that exceptional soldier of soldiers, Fajuyi, had behaved differently. According to them, the Nigerian history had clearly marked Fajuyi as a soldier of distinction who died defending the Nigerian state and her unity.

    A sociologist, Dr Innocent Okechukwu, described Fajuyi as a strong moralist who adhered strictly to the ethics that a host is obliged to protect his guest. Fajuyi’s self-sacrifice, he said, proved that Ekiti tribe of Yoruba nation had no hands in the death of the Aguiyi-Ironsi.

    Former Ekiti State Governor, Chief Segun Oni, described Fajuyi as great patriot who choose to pay the supreme price for a friend and more for the unity of Nigeria. “On July 29, 1966 at the Government House, Agodi, Ibadan, a thick cloud descended on the shining star of a great son of Ekitiland, Lt. Col. Francis Adekunle Fajuyi,” he recalled.

    Commending the courage of the slain former military governor, Oni said: “Only God knows what would have become of the Nigerian nation, if he had allowed the arrest and assassination of Gen. Aguiyi-Ironsi on July 29, 1966 in Ibadan.  Indeed, Lt. Col. Fajuyi chose to pay the supreme price for a friend and more for the unity of the country. He was indeed a patriot.”

     

    Politics of succession

    Following the brutal killing of Fajuyi, General Adeyinka Adebayo relunctantly took over the reins of governance in Western Region.  Initially, Adebayo rejected the offer on seniority grounds; that he could not take over from his junior.

    The former military governor argued that having served as the Chief of Staff, and with the full rank of a Colonel at the time Fajuyi was killed along with the then Head of State, Gen. Aguiyi -Ironsi, he found it difficult to take a lower position as military governor, a position which Fajuyi , a junior officer occupied till his death.

    Following his inability to get any Yoruba officer to be appointed governor of the region, Adebayo was prevailed upon to take the appointment.

     

    Family neglect

    Fajuyi was barely six months in office as military governor when he was assassinated. He neither had a personal house in his hometown of Ado-Ekiti, nor in Ibadan, the capital of Western Region. His family had to relocate from Government House to the family house in Ado-Ekiti; that was the first shock the family had to contend with. It took the intervention of Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, a non-Ekiti who built a befitting house for the family after more than four decades of Fajuyi’s death.

    A childhood friend of Fajuyi, Pa Adeola Akeju, blamed Gen. Adebayo for the family’s travail. The nonagenarian said he had expected Adebayo, a fellow Ekiti man, to provide a soft-landing and rehabilitate the Fajuyi family, in appreciation of his service to the nation and the circumstance of his death.

    Akeju said: “Fajuyi’s children were young at the time he was killed; the eldest had just finished from secondary school. There are those that grew up without knowing their father. His widow, Eunice, who died in June 2013, was responsible for the upkeep and education of the children. She became a widow at the age of 29. We thank God today that all the children, most of them university graduates, are doing fine.

    “Even though the people of Ekiti had continued to mourn him as an illustrious son, they too did very little to rehabilitate his family. Apart from naming a recreation centre as Fajuyi Park, with his monuments and statue as a fallen hero, the Ekiti State Government has not appointed his children into positions to compensate the family. Although one of the sons was elected as a local government chairman when Ekiti was part of the old Ondo State, that could not be regarded as political appointment.

    “Again, Fajuyi’s name was not amongst the medalists in the centenary celebration; the Federal Government has done nothing to compensate the family. While the former Presidents Shehu Shagari, Olusegun Obasanjo; and military Heads of State like Gen. Ibrahim Babangida, Sani Abacha and others helped, by appointing Aguiyi-Ironsi’s, Balewa’s and Ladoke Akintola’s children into diplomatic service and ministerial positions, such gesture was never extended to Fajuyi’s family.”

    His eldest son, Donald, attested to the neglect of the family when he said his father died a poor man, owing to his selfless service, even when he had the opportunity to acquire wealth. The 67-year-old lawyer said the late governor never had a personal house of his own; he was not rich at the time he was killed. But, he died as a fulfilled man, whose name is on the positive side of history and a contributor to the country’s unity.

    One of his daughters, Mrs. Monica Desola Olujuyigbe, who was three years old when his father was killed, also reflected over the burial of the fallen hero: “What I do remember is that the funeral scene, with a lot of music and loud sounds. It made an impression on me. My younger sister was a year old at that time and somebody held her, but I was standing by, and I kept picking up her feeding bottle and giving it back to her each time it fell.  But, I didn’t understand what was going on, but I knew that something was going on, and there were military men there and they were well-dressed.

    “But, I did not know what was going on as nobody told me anything. Most of the things I got to know I read about; until I reached out to my brothers, and got answers to many questions. They probably thought they were protecting me, but I wasn’t told much, until I became an adult.”

    To immortalise their father, Olajuyigbe said the family instituted an education trust to offer support and welfare to the children of soldiers who died in the battle field. She said the Adekunle Fajuyi Education Trust regularly organises entrepreneurship and scholarship programme from donations received.

     

    His profile

    Fajuyi was born on June 26, 1926 to the late Pa Isaiah and Felicia Osundunke Fajuyi of Ado-Ekiti, in the present day Ekiti State. He attended St. George’s Catholic School, Ado–Ekiti. He joined the army on November 16, 1943.

    After the basic military training in Zaria, he proceeded to the Army Clerks Training School, Yaba, Lagos. The late Fajuyi also attended courses in Teshi, Ghana and the Officers Cadet School in the United Kingdom, where he was commissioned as a Lieutenant in 1954.

    He served as Military Adviser, Headquarters ONUC, Congo (August to December, 1961; Officer-in-charge, Third Battalion, Nigerian Army, Kaduna; Commanding Officer, First Battalion, Enugu and Commander, Abeokuta Garrison. He served in Germany on attachment to the British Army. In 1957, he attended the Platoon Commanders course in England. He also trained as an officer in Pakistan in 1964.

  • Kidnapped immigration officer regains freedom

    A Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) officer, Peter Omofulue,  who was abducted on Monday has regained freedom.

    It was learnt that the man resurfaced yesterday evening a day after his abductors contacted his family demanding N30million as ransom.

    Omofulue, an officer attached to the Ikoyi passport office was whisked away by gunmen around 6:30am at a jetty in Ikorodu, while trying to board a boat to work.

    His abductors, The Nation gathered, shot sporadically to scare people before whisking him away in an unregistered vehicle.

    The victim was said to have notified his relatives through a text message of his kidnap, who later reported the matter to the police.

    But while the police were still plotting on how to track his abductors, the man resurfaced yesterday.

     

  • Row over death of Fire Service officer

    Row over death of Fire Service officer

    •Family alleges foul play  

    • ‘We found him  in his pool of blood’ 

    Was Ime Okon Eyo, an Assistant Commander with the Federal Fire Service (FFS), killed?

    His family members are alleging foul play in his death and are demanding probe.

    Eyo died on May 6 when he came from Abuja, where he had just been transferred to, to pack his things from the Fire Service Barracks in Ojuelegba, Surulere, Lagos, Mainland.

    “An autopsy report said his death was “primarily caused by intracranial haemorrhage as a result of basal skull fracture.”

    His sister, Mrs. Gloria Ekpenyong and her husband, Henry, said they left him at the Barracks with some of his colleagues around 6pm that fateful day.

    They said they received phone calls between 6:45am and 7am on May 7 that he died around 10pm the previous day and his body was deposited at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) mortuary.

    He was said to have blood on his mouth and nostrils, and injuries on his face and the back of his head when his relatives saw his body at the mortuary.

    The family, through its lawyer, Enobong Etteh, is seeking “thorough investigation” of the death of Eyo, who The Nation gathered was a Pastor at Narrow Way Gospel Ministry in Itire, Surulere.

    Etteh said: “Until his brutal murder, the deceased was a serving public officer deployed to the Federal Fire Service. His last rank was Assistant Commander Fire at the Command Headquarters, Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja. The deceased public officer was last seen on May 6, at the service quarters, Ojuelegba in the company of Fire Service colleagues and friends. At about 6:45am on May 7, a member of our client’s family, Henry Ekpenyong, received a call from Mr. Asako Asuquo, a colleague of the deceased, informing him that Mr. Ime Okon Eyo was dead.

    “About the same time, Ekpenyong’s wife (the deceased’s sister), received a call from another colleague of the deceased, Mr. Macaulay Anthony, an Assistant Commander, also informing her that Ime was dead. Anthony then requested that she should come over to the Fire Service at Ojuelegba. Our clients met at the Fire Service Quarters and proceeded to LUTH mortuary led by Macaulay Anthony, Isang Asuquo, Ewa Ekeng and other Fire officers. Macaulay Anthony and Isang Asuquo informed our clients that they received a telephone call the previous night that the deceased was dead and that they should come and identify the body at LUTH.

    “Our clients were further informed that they met Ekpenyong Iwat, a fellow Fire Officer at the Mortuary in the company of some pastors from the Narrow Way Gospel Ministry. We have reported this cold blooded assassination to the Inspector-General of Police, the Controller General of the Federal Fire Service and other relevant government agencies. Our clients are calling on the President, the Minister for Interior and all the relevant agencies of government to ensure a thorough investigation into this assassination and the culprits brought to book. This is one assassination of a public servant that must not be swept under the carpet.”

    The Nations gathered that the late Eyo had gone to 1, Balogun Street in Itire to visit a female friend, Vera Mbang, at about 9:30pm that fateful day.

    We was found on the floor there bleeding and rushed to LUTH where he was confirmed dead.

    Mbang told The Nation that she found him on the ground near the stairs, bleeding, adding that she screamed for her neighbours to assist in rushing him to hospital.

    She said: “He’s my friend and a pastor in my church. I have known him for about four years. He usually came to our place and he was a very quiet and likable person. That is why I do not think anyone would have wanted him dead. It was raining the day he came. It was in the night and I was upstairs. But, suddenly, I heard someone shout and when I came down, I saw him on the ground with blood everywhere. I really do not know what happened, but I guess he might have fallen.

    “So, immediately I saw him, I called my neighbours to come and help so that we could rush him to the hospital. While they took him to the hospital, I ran to the church to inform the senior pastor of what had happened and they went to the hospital. They were the ones who told me later that he died.

    I never knew any of his family members and so, there was no way I would have contacted them.”

    One of her neighbours, Chioma Nwankwo, who signed the mortuary card for the late Eyo’s body to be deposited, said he was gasping for breath when she saw him.

    “It was raining and I was fetching water. I went up to get other buckets to continue fetching water but when I got to the stairs, I saw a shadow and someone gasping for breath. I asked who it was but the person did not answer. Since I wasn’t properly dressed, I went back into the room to put on my clothes but by the time I came downstairs, I saw him on the ground with so much blood. I raised the alarm and others came. We rushed him to the hospital in one of my neighbour’s cars, where he was confirmed dead.”

  • Army officer fights drug abuse in schools

    An officer of the United States Army, Captain Sunday Adebomi, has organised an essay competition to help secondary school pupils in Ekiti State fight drug abuse.
    Adebomi, who hails from Ise-Ekiti, headquarters of Ise/Orun Local Government Area of Ekiti State, was concerned that many youths are hooked on drugs.
    He bankrolled the initiative in conjunction with Youth Saving Lifestyle Creation Initiative (YSLCI), a non-governmental organisation, and the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) to create awareness on the evils of drug abuse.
    Forty-one pupils were short listed after undergoing series of tests in their schools to participate in the final competition.
    All 41 wrote an essay titled: “Drug Abuse, Cultism and Youth Violence in Secondary Schools in Nigeria” in the presence of the audience at the Sheikh Ibiyemi Hall of Olaoluwa Muslim Grammar School, Ado -Ekiti.
    The essays were graded and results were announced immediately, producing three female winners who would represent Ekiti in the southwest zonal competition. Deborah Ekunloluwa of Comprehensive High School, Ado-Ekiti, came first with 80.5 percent; Kolawole Kehinde of Ijaloke High School, Emure-Ekiti came second with 77.5 percent and Fabunmi from Okemesi High School, Okemesi-Ekiti came third with 77 percent.
    Adebomi, while presenting laptop prizes to the trio, congratulated them for their outstanding performance.
    He promised to pay the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) fee of the overall winner. The top 10 students also got certificates and notebooks.
    Ekiti State Commander of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Sulaiman Jadi, hailed Adebomi for the gesture which he said would go a long way in discouraging drug abuse among pupils.
    The programme was chaired by the Onikun of Ikun-Ekiti in Moba Local Government Area of the state, Oba David Olatunde.

  • Army officer takes drug abuse campaign to secondary Schools

    An officer of the United States Army, Captain Sunday Adebomi, has an essay competition to help secondary school pupils in Ekiti State fight drug abuse.

    Adebomi, who hails from Ise-Ekiti, headquarters of Ise/Orun Local Government Area of Ekiti State, was concerned that many youths are hooked on drugs.

    He bankrolled the initiative in conjunction with Youth Saving Lifestyle Creation Initiative (YSLCI), a non-governmental organisation, and the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) to create awareness on the evils of drug abuse.

    Forty one pupils from various schools were short listed after undergoing series of tests in their schools to participate in the final competition.

    All 41 wrote an essay titled: “Drug Abuse, Cultism and Youth Violence in Secondary Schools in Nigeria” in the presence of the audience at the Sheikh Ibiyemi Hall of Olaoluwa Muslim Grammar School, Ado -Ekiti.

    The essays were graded and results were announced immediately, producing three female winners. Deborah Ekunloluwa of Comprehensive High School, Ado-Ekiti, came first with 80.5 percent; Kolawole Kehinde of Ijaloke High School, Emure-Ekiti came second with 77.5 percent and Fabunmi from Okemesi High School, Okemesi-Ekiti came third with 77 percent.

    The three winners would represent Ekiti in the southwest zonal competition.

    Adebomi, while giving out prizes to the three winners, congratulated them for their outstanding performance.

    He gave the first 10 students in the essay competition certificates and notebooks for participation while the top three winners got laptops.

    He promised to pay the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) fee of the overall winner.

    Ekiti State Commander of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Sulaiman Jadi, hailed Adebomi for the gesture which he said would go a long way in discouraging drug abuse among pupils.

    The programme was chaired by the Onikun of Ikun-Ekiti in Moba Local Government Area of the state, Oba David Olatunde.

  • Ex-Army officer empowers women with N3.2m

    A retired Colonel in the Nigerian Army, Sunday Akinola has disbursed over N3.2 million to 67 women drawn from various quarters of his hometown, Ikere-Ekiti under a programme tagged “Women Poverty Alleviation Initiative.”

    Speaking at the inauguration of the scheme, Akinola, who explained that the gesture might continue throughout his lifetime, said the beneficiaries were not to pay back the sum of N50, 000

    disbursed to each of them.

    He encouraged them to make judicious use of the fund as it would boost his morale in expanding the programme this year.

    Akinola, who said the beneficiaries were expected to form a co-operative society through which they could build strong capital base for possible expansion of their businesses, noted that the scheme, which he said was in honour of his late father, Chief Akinola Oisa, would go a long way in turning around the economies of the womenfolk in the community.

    “This is the first phase of the programme; we hope to establish a co-operative society in memory of the late High Chief Akinola Oisa where a high percentage of Ikere women could draw from a trust fund from Wema Bank as loans to do their businesses,” he said.

    Delivering a keynote address at the event, the Ogoga of lkere-Ekiti, Oba Adejimi Adu Alagbado thanked the donor for the gesture, noting that he was impressed by the swell of positive developments being championed by prominent indigenes of the community since his ascendancy to the throne.

    He praised Akinola for keeping the fame of his late father who he noted died several years ago in the memories of the people of the community.

  • Police officer arrested for defiling seven-year-old girl

    Police officer arrested for defiling seven-year-old girl

    Ebonyi State Police Command Monday arrested one of its officers Ndubuisi Ewerem for allegedly defiling a 7 year old girl, Chiamaka Nwankwo.

    The Police officer who has been detained at the Central Police Station, (CPS) Abaakaliki allegedly defiled the little girl and daughter of his neighbour at his residence at No. 29 off Nibo street.

    The Nation learnt that the suspect lured the victim by telling her to buy Onion for him and as soon as the girl came into his apartment to deliver the said item, he used the opportunity to defile her.

    While residents within the neighborhood alleged that the victim was raped by the policeman others accused the suspect of being in the practice of sexually abusing teenagers.

    The Commissioner of Police, CP Peace Ibekwe Abdallah confirmed the ugly episode but said investigation is still ongoing.

    She insisted that whether the victim was raped or fingered, the act allegedly perpetuated by the policeman was a crime punishable under the law.

    She stressed that the suspect would be punished if found guilty of the crime.

    The command, she maintained, was committed to sanitizing the force and promised that acts contrary to the laws guiding the constitution of the Nigerian police were decisively dealt with.

    She said: “The case was reported to the Central Police Station, CPS Monday by the parent of the victim and going by the statement of the victim, she was fingered by the policeman. We don’t tolerate such act in the Nigerian police force. Whether rape or not, any act of defilement is a very serious crime which must be dealt with. The suspect is under detention.”

    According to the Commissioner of Police, the result of the medical test conducted on the victim would ascertain whether she was raped or not as investigation into the case was still on.

  • Police after murderers of officer

    Police after murderers of officer

    The Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Fatai Owoseni, has said the command is on the trail of suspects involved in the killing of a police officer, Cpl. Sunday David at Agege, a suburb of Lagos on January10.

    “We are making efforts to track down those criminals so that we can get to the root of that matter and get to know the people behind it,” he said.

    “Detectives are still working on the case; you have to be patient with us as such cases are not cases you can just close and open your eyes and pick out the suspects,” he said.

    Residents of the area recalled that trouble started when a suspected  alleged to be an internet fraudster, was approached by some people who were asking him for some money.

    They said when he refused to respond to their demands, they decided not to let him go and he asked the late police officer for a help.

    “On getting to the scene, David, while trying to shoot in the air, allegedly shot two persons who later died at the hospital,” one of the residents said.

    They further said that David and the suspect tried to escape in a car but some people ran after them by a motorcycle and allegedly killed them.

     

  • $2.1b arms contracts: EFCC detains top military officer

    $2.1b arms contracts: EFCC detains top military officer

    Metuh ‘being investigated over N400m’

    Anenih, others to be quizzed

    A top military officer has been detained in connection with the  $2.1billion arms deals.

    The officer was a technical aide to a former National Security Adviser(NSA), the late Gen. Owoye Azazi and his successor, Col. Sambo Dasuki (rtd.).

    The detention of the officer is said to have created anxiety among military chiefs who were involved in arms procurement.

    A high-ranking military chief  was said to be in charge of procurement in one of the services.

    A top official of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) confirmed last night that  Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) spokesman  Olisa Metuh is being investigated for allegedly collecting N400 million from the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA). He is likely to be invited for interrogation.

    It was also learnt last night that the EFCC had invited a former Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the PDP, Chief Tony Anenih, over the investigation.

    The officer is believed to have been detained in the last two weeks.

    The military top shot was said to be in charge of the arms bought during the tenure of the two former NSAs.

    A source said: “The military officer was picked up in connection with the purchase of the arms because he was in charge of inventory and how each unit of the Armed Forces got its equipment.

    “The EFCC has invited the officer to verify the arms purchase and the delivery status.

    “This same officer related with many former and serving chiefs. There is no way he can be questioned without involving some of these officers in the military hierarchy.

    “The arms scandal is messy and many ranking officers were involved. This is causing anxiety in the military because if the detained officer opens up, the probe will lead to more revelations.”

    Some former Service Chiefs and military officers have been trying to find out what transpired between their detained colleague and the EFCC, The Nation learnt.

    “These anxious military officers and associates have had limited contact with the top chief in detention facility,” the source said, adding:

    “The latest dimension of the investigation shows that heads may roll in the military over these arms deals.”

    It was learnt that the detention of the military officer by the EFCC has raised an inter-service issue.

    Some officers are said to be “uncomfortable” that the detained officer ought to be questioned by an Armed Forces panel and not EFCC because he did  a technical job for the NSA.

    But, said the source , they have been made to realise that the EFCC is only handling fraud-related matters on the arms deals and not a military probe.

    “The investigation is at the behest of the President and Commander-In-Chief of the Armed Forces. This mandate empowers the EFCC to question any public or military officer,” he said, pleading not to be named because he is not permitted to speak on the matter.

    Responding to a question,  another source said Dasuki inherited the officer from his predecessor, the late Gen. Owoye Azazi.

    “Following their good performance and conduct in office, Dasuki retained all the senior military assistants /aides who served Azazi.

    “Dasuki felt since they had the knowledge of the operation of the ONSA, it was better to allow continuity for a smooth take off in office.

    “The experience of the officers accounted for the coordination of the war against Boko Haram by Dasuki as NSA.

    “But while in office, the officers ran purely military errands and managed professional duties.”

    Also yesterday, there were indications that the agency may interact with a former Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP), Chief Tony Anenih.

    A source said: “I think we are inviting Anenih and a few bigwigs implicated in the arms deals by some of the accused persons.

    “Some of them will need to explain how they came about the cash given to them and how to effect refund.”

    It could not be immediately ascertained  whether or not Anenih had received a letter of invitation from the EFCC .

    A former Minister of State for Finance, Amb. Bashir Yuguda, named some PDP stalwarts as the beneficiaries of the cash from ONSA.

    In a Statement of Witness/ Caution, which he wrote on oath, Yuguda  admitted to the EFCC that he gave N600million cash to six chairmen of the Contact and Mobilisation Committees of the PDP for the 2015 general election.

    He listed the beneficiaries as Bode George( South-West); Amb. Yerima Abdullahi (North-East); Peter Odili (South-South); Attahiru Bafarawa (North-West); Jim Nwobodo (South -East) and North-Central (Ahmadu  Ali).

    George, Nwobodo and Odili have denied collecting cash from Yuguda.

    George admitted that $30,000 was given to the South-West Contact and Mobilisation Committee.

    Yuguda also said he instructed Jabbama Limited to transfer N300million to BAM Properties whose account was given to him by a former National Chairman of PDP, Bello Haliru.

    Bafarawa admitted that he collected N100million from Yuguda through Sagir Attahiru.