The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Ogun

  • Community fetches beef as train crushes ten cows in Ogun

    Residents of Kajola Community in Ogun on Friday counted their blessings as they freely fetched beef from 10 cows killed by a train.

    The men and women including commercial motorcyclists and passersby used knives, cutlasses to cut from the lifeless cows.

    The train, which took off from Lagos, headed for its final destination, Kajola Terminus, when it ran over the cows which were crossing rail track at 11.50a.m.

    The cows were finding food when they crossed the rail track.

    The herders seemed to be caught unawares.

    No human life was lost to the accident.

    Some of the residents who spoke with our reporter said that the herders had been warned to desist from bringing the animals near the track.

    Read Also:237 die in Ogun road crashes in 10 months – FRSC

    They also said that the meat would waste if people would not fetch them.

    One of the residents, Mr Adeola Paseda, told our reporter that he fetched beef that would be enough for his family for at least a week.

    “I am one of the residents that got here first; I have meat that can last for a week,” he said.

    Mrs Bola Akanni, who was carrying a basin of beef, said, “Times are hard now; if we do not take the meat, it will amount to waste of an opportunity.”

    Mr Fatai Akeem, told our reporter that he was alerted by his friends immediately the accident happened.

    He said that he was sad to see pieces of beef littering the track.

    “I watched as people cut meat in basins and took them to their houses.

    “The herders lost a lot because they could not listen to advice not to bring cows near the rail track,” he said.

    According to our reporter pieces of beef littered the track as the residents continued to fetch the beef.

    The owners of the cows were not seen as at the time of the report.

    NAN

  • Ogun disburses N11.8b to offset cooperative deductions, others

    The Ogun State government has begun the disbursement of N11.8 billion out of the N17.3 billion Paris Club Refund to pay backlogs of cooperative deductions, gratuity, severance and furniture allowances of its workforce.

    The N17.3 billion is the last tranche of the Paris Club Refund received by the state government from the Federal Government, according to the Commissioner for Finance, Mr. Adewale Oshinowo, in a statement yesterday in Abeokuta, the state capital.

    Oshinowo said the disbursement followed the promise the government made to stakeholders in the 236 wards of the state during the recent budget town hall meeting, where Governor Ibikunle Amosun pledged to offset the entitlements of workers and scale up the infrastructural development of the state.

    The commissioner described the civil service as the engine room of government.

    He assured the people that the Amosun administration would clear other arrears once the finances of the state improved.

    Oshinowo said: “In line with the commitment of the Amosun administration to the welfare of workers in the state, their payment is being made a priority.

    “So, with immediate effect, N11.8 billion from the refund will be expended on the workforce, including the local government, while the balance of N5.5 billion will go into social services for the benefit of all indigenes.

    “The Amosun administration places a high premium on the welfare of its workers. This informed its decision to increase the salaries of workers in 2012, which doubled the monthly wage bill.

    “It is also a testament that this government pays the highest salaries in the entire federation and has consistently paid workers’ salaries as at when due. This latest payment will no doubt boost the morale of the public service workforce and enhance its productivity.”

     

  • Ogun flood victims get relief materials

    Ogun State govern-ment has flagged off the distribution of relief materials to 1,800 flood victims in Abeokuta North and South Local Government Areas of the State. Governor Ibikunle Amosun, during the flag off ceremony for the July 13, 2018 flood victims at Arcade ground Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta, said flooding was a global phenomenon, which occurred as a result of climate change and had continued to wreck havoc in different parts of the world.

    Represented by his deputy, Chief (Mrs.) Yetunde Onanuga, Amosun said structures mostly affected were situated at flood-prone areas, with poor sanitation. He called on relevant agencies of government to be more effective at ensuring good environmental sanitation, so as to prevent recurrence. Director General of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Engr. Mustafa Maihaja, represented by the Chief Planning Officer, Mr. Segun Afolayan, noted that 1800 victims registered with NEMA and their items were ready for distribution.

    In his remarks, the State Commissioner for Environment, Mr. Bolaji Oyeleye, stated that relief materials to be distributed included foodstuffs, building materials, mattress, among others, imploring beneficiaries to effectively utilise them.

     

  • The gods in Ogun, Imo and Zamfara

    In V.S. Naipaul’s heartrending comic A House for Mr Biswas, man’s quest for autonomy from even those feeding him is laid bare. Mr Biswas rebels against his in-laws, whose food he eats and house he lives in. He always wants a house of his own. That, for me, is man in his original state. Imagine what will happen when he now has power and money! The last thing he will like is to take dictation from a yesterday man. He will be eager to show who is in charge and that is where violence comes in when the yesterday man refuses to accept his new status.

    It is for this reason that I do not understand why Governors Ibikunle Amosun, Rochas Okorocha and AbdulAziz Yari are hell-bent on deciding who will succeed them. These men are going about this quest as if without it, their tomorrow is ruined!

    Although Amosun has said he will not leave APC, there are reports about some of his men declaring for one colourless party, where they hope to rock the All Progressives Congress (APC) boat. My first reaction when this filtered in is that politicians do not learn. Amosun’s predecessor, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, tried it and it did not work. During the last general election, Daniel’s predecessor, Aremo Olusegun Osoba, was against Amosun and he pitched his tent with the Social Democratic Party (SDP), where he hoped to truncate Amosun’s governorship bid. He failed woefully.

    Yari’s disagreement with other tendencies in Zamfara over his quest to determine his successor is almost causing APC heartache. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) said primaries were not done and candidates’ list would not be accepted. Now, the party’s fate will be determined by the law court.

    The case in Imo, where Okorocha is the lord, is also hanging on court pronouncement. Okorocha wants his son-in-law, Uche Nwosu, to succeed him and this has turned the party in the state apart. Because of this Okorocha has joined the swelling group against party chair Adams Oshiomhole.

    At the outset of the Imo madness, some leaders of the party ganged up against Okorocha and almost took over the party from him until he was rescued by the national secretariat. The crisis has led to a situation where the state has no deputy governor. The House of Assembly removed Eze Madumere as deputy governor, but a court has stalled the installation of a replacement.

    These men cannot afford to rock the boat. What further leaves Amosun and Okorocha with no choice but to work for the APC is their senatorial quest.

    For their sake, I will repeat a story I once told on this space about the futility of giving power to a man and believing he can be controlled from behind. It was told by a governor to a few of us when he was trying to transmute from the National Assembly to the Government House.

    This is the story: The president of the country at the time had contacted him to look for a suitable candidate to be governor in their state. The candidate eventually chosen was not from the zone where power should rotate. By some magic, he was made to originate from the zone to which power was meant to go. A chieftaincy title and a massive house later, he became a member of the zone. He was grateful to the senator for working him to the answer.

    All that however ended immediately he got power. On the day he was confirmed as the governor-elect, he asked the senator to see him. During their meeting, they had altercations and the angry senator wanted to walk out on him and he screamed: “You are walking out on your governor.” Their relationship was sour throughout his tenure and remains sour till this day.

    Perhaps I should draw the attention of Amosun, Yari and Okorocha to what is going on in Akwa Ibom and Kano states. In Akwa Ibom, Senator Godswill Akpabio, as an outgoing governor some four years ago, bulldozed his way to install Udom Emmanuel as his successor. It did not take long before they started disagreeing on key issues. They managed to keep it under wrap, but it is all out in the open now and the battle line is drawn. There are fears of violence.  Not long ago, Nsima Ekere, who is APC candidate in the state, was suspected to have been targeted for assassination when a bullet pierced the roof into his home.

    In Kano, Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso, who uprooted all obstacles to install Abdullahi Ganduje as his successor, is in a dilemma now. He has left the APC for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and plotting how to ensure Ganduje’s second term bid fails.

    These gods can also learn from Sokoto State, where Governor Aminu Tambuwal and his predecessor, Aliyu Wamakko, are now sworn enemies. Wammako, who fought off all opposition to make him governor, is a serving APC senator. Both men have divided the state. The House of Assembly is divided. The political atmosphere is tensed.  After Tambuwal’s failed presidential bid, he is back in the governorship race.

    These gods of our time can also learn from ex-Governor Peter Obi, who I believe till this day, regrets the day he supported Willie Obiano to be governor of Anambra State. Within months of Obiano taking over power, they were at each other’s jugular. Obi did not like the way Obiano was spending the money he was just happy saving when there were things which needed money spent on!

    Another example these gods need to ponder over is Chimaroke Nnamani, who may for the rest of his life feel bad about supporting Sullivan Chime to succeed him as Enugu State governor. Chime’s support for Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi obviously went awry too, if not he will not be in the APC now.

    My final take: These gods in Imo, Ogun and Zamfara are in power but do not understand power because even if they have their ways now there is no guarantee that the puppets they think they are trying to install will not turn against them. Okorocha may be lucky with his son-in-law, but even filial obedience is still not foolproof! They need to be told that they are not Sango and no one will honour them by pouring red oil at their feet.

  • Ogun: APC group berates Amosun’s utterances over Abiodun

    A pressure group within the All Progressives Congress (APC), at the weekend warned the Ogun State governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, against unguarded utterances in the aftermath of the party’s governorship primaries in the state. The group, Internal Democracy Advocates (IDA), in a statement by its National Coordinator, Comrade Oluseyi Olukoju, also described the failure of Amosun to produce a successor through the APC governorship primaries as self-inflicted and a play of Karma.

    The group, in the statement at the weekend, described a statement credited to Amosun that his preferred candidate, Abdulkabir Akinlade, will read next year’s budget in the capacity of governor, as “most irresponsible and pitiable tell-tale signs of inner confusion.” Noting that a free and fair governorship primaries had produced Mr. Dapo Abiodun as the Ogun APC candidate, the IDA said Amosun should go borrow a leaf from the Lagos State governor, Mr. Akinwumi Ambode, “who himself lost a primary election and conceded defeat; not that his candidate lost.

    “We cannot but laugh aloud and at the same time express great pity at the recent conducts of Governor Ibikunle Amosun, simply because his preferred candidate, Abdulkabir Akinlade, failed to win the governorship primaries. Without doubt, Amosun’s plight is self-inflicted and an inexorable justice of the law of Karma. The group warned the Ogun governor to desist from passing “reckless statements against the APC National Leader, Chief Bola Tinubu, and party elder and former governor of Ogun State, Chief Segun Osoba.”

    It, however, called on Ogun people to vote en masse for Abiodun, noting that the party members had put forward its best hand, “who is tested and trusted.”

    The IDA also stated that it had set out to mobilise campaigns for the re-election of President Muhammadu Buhari, “whose performance in terms of infrastructure, prudence and diligence, is unprecedented.”

     

  • Ogun, FMC pay N200m compensation to landowners

    The Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Abeokuta, and Ogun State government have paid over N200 million compensation to communities whose lands were acquired for the University of Medicine and Medical Sciences in Odeda Local Government Area.

    Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Lands, Mrs. Bimbo Oluyinka, presenting cheques to beneficiaries at the Bureau of Lands and Survey, Oke-Ilewo, Abeokuta, explained that one of the cardinal points of this administration was to provide efficient healthcare to residents.

    According to her, “without well-being, wealth is nothing; resources are nothing, which is the reason for this laudable programme. Today’s gesture from the government is beyond financial compensation, it is a compensation that would be forever which your children will benefit from  and the creation of the University would provide employment”, She said.

    FMC’s Chief Medical Director (CMD) Prof. Adewale Musa-Olomu hailed the Muhammadu Buhari-led administration and Governor Ibikunle Amosun for their support in making the compensation a reality.

    “The governor has done so much for FMC and presently connecting the hospital community to the power grid, for a 24 hour power supply.  To crown it all, Governor Amosun apportioned lands worth N5.2 billion to the hospital, free of charge for the project.  This will be the first time a Medical Centre will be establishing a full-fledge University of Medicine and Medical Sciences in the country,” he said.

    The CMD also thanked the host communities for their understanding and cooperation, promising that the university would consider them first in employment.

    Speaking for the beneficiaries, Chief Olukayode Ganiyu, the Baale of Asalu Kemta village, thanked the governments and CMD for the compensation.

  • Ogun empowers 50 female sex workers

    The Ogun Government says it has empowered over 50 female sex workers across the state between January and August in order to take them off the street

    Mrs Biola Kufile- Okonji, Commissioner for Women Affairs, disclosed this in Abeokuta on Wednesday while playing host to the state House Committee on Women Affairs and Social Development.

    The committee led by the Chairman, Mrs Juliana Akintayo, was on oversight visit to the ministry in Abeokuta.

    The commissioner, represented by Mr Olurotimi Sotubo, Director, Social Welfare Services, said that they were trained in soap making, pastries and jelly production in conjunction with the United Nation Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA).

    Kufile- Okonji explained that the sex workers were rehabilitated, trained and equipped with skills to make a living.

    She explained that 250 teenage girls were also trained in sexual reproductive health and livelihood support in collaboration with Action Health Incorporated.

    The commissioner added that over 1, 112 family cases were handled by the ministry throughout the state, saying that 876 family cases were successfully concluded while 160 estranged couples were reconciled.

    “Apart from these, we have raided and evacuated over 575 vagrant lunatics, destitute and beggars.

    “85 per cent of destitute in the state are not from the state, they came in from neighbouring state through Ado Odo Ota local government and Ifo local government,” she said.

    In her response, Akintayo advised the ministry to make its presence felt in all the nook and crannies of the state especially areas nearness to Lagos.

    The lawmaker urged the ministry to ensure more synergy with the House of assembly, saying that the synergy would bring more development to the state.

    “The ministry will continue to build a just society devoid of discrimination against women and ensure continuous empowerment and protection of the rights of children,” he said.

  • Lagos/Ibadan Expressway: FRSC condoles families of accident victims

    The Federal Road Safety Corps ( FRSC ) in Ogun has condoled with families of those that lost their lives in an accident that involved two vehicles on Tuesday at Aseese area on Lagos/Ibadan expressway.

    Mr Clement Oladele, Ogun Sector Commander of FRSC, expressed the corps’ condolences when he visited the scene of the accident which occurred at about 5.30 a.m. on Tuesday.

    Oladele confirmed that 42 people were involved in the accident, which left nine dead, while five sustained various degrees of injuries.

    He explained that the speeding driver of the Marcopolo bus rammed into a stationary truck.

    “The accident is unfortunate and painful, and I pray that God should grant the deceased eternal rest and give their family members the fortitude to bear the loss,’’ he said.

    Read Also: FRSC step up ‘ember- months’ campaigns in Katsina

    Oladele implored passengers to always caution vehicle drivers when speeding and if they refuse to listen, they should be reported to the appropriate authority.

    The sector commander warned truck drivers against indiscriminate parking to avoid unnecessary loss of lives and property.

    Oladele reiterated the FRSC’s commitment to enlighten the public on their safety and the need to make roads safer for them.

  • Nine feared dead on Lagos/Ibadan Expressway

    No fewer than nine persons were feared dead on Tuesday in an accident involving a Marcopolo bus and an Iveco truck at Aseese area on the Lagos/Ibadan Expressway.

    Mr Clement Oladele, Ogun Sector Commander, Federal Road Safety Corps, confirmed the figure to the News Agency of Nigeria  in Abeokuta.

    Oladele said that the accident was caused by speeding by the driver of the bus marked SMK 867 XG.

    He said that the bus lost control and collided with the parked truck with registration number AAA XP at 5:30am.

    Read Also: 11 die in road accident in Southern Philippines

    “A total of 42 persons were involved in the accident; they comprised 34 males and eight females.

    “Three male and two female adults were injured while seven male and two female adults died,” he said.

    The sector commander told NAN that the injured victims were taken to a nearby hospital while the corpses were deposited at the Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital mortuary, Sagamu, Ogun.

  • Man, 38, ‘rapes’ six-year-old girl

    The police in Ogun have arrested one Abiodun Ojo, 38, for allegedly raping a six-year-old girl.

    Ojo was arrested on Sunday at Magbara Village, Idiroko.

    The suspect said to be co-tenants with the victim’s parents, lured her to a bush path under the guise of sending her on an errand.

    He was said to have forcefully penetrated the minor whose screams attracted the attention of local guards.

    The guards, it was gathered, rescued the victim, beat up the suspect and alerted the police at Idiroko Division.

    Read Also: Why we attacked Lagos lawyer – Suspects

    Confirming the incident, the command’s spokesman Abimbola Oyeyemi, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) said the victim and suspect were taken to the hospital for treatment.

    He said the Police Commissioner Ahmed Illiyasu has directed that the case be transferred to the Anti-Human Trafficking and Child Labour unit, State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (SCIID) for further action.