The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Woman

  • Family in disarray as woman, two kids disappear over native rites

    Why would a mother of two leave her home and disappear without any trace with her children after her husband’s family members requested that her daughter be made to go through some traditional “purification process”?

    These is the real poser the family of Chief Andrew Iyoha is still contending with 48 months after his son’s wife, Cristina Funmilayo, and her two children, Heaven Eghenayamu Iyoha and Light Osaruki Iyoha, suddenly disappeared from their home.

    What is more worrying to Chief Iyoha, who is the head of the family and doubles as the community head of Uguokha in Igueben Local Government Area of Edo State is that, apart from the unknown whereabouts of both mother and children, his own son, who is also Crtistina’s husband, has since remained incommunicado.

    Raising the alarm, the distraught Iyoha family head told our correspondent that Cristina and her two children were last seen in March 2013.

    Iyoha claimed that he had since 2013 reported the matter to the police in Benin, Edo State, but there had been no information concerning their whereabouts.

    He said: “Since 2013, Cristina and her two children suddenly disappeared after she vehemently refused and opposed to being taken with her children to our village for her daughter to go through the process of a purification exercise. She was last seen in March 2013 and nothing has been heard from her and her husband up till now.

    “We are notifying the general public again that whoever have any useful information regarding her, her husband and their children should contact the head of the family, who is also the community head of Uguokha in Igueben Local Government Area of Edo State, Chief Andrew E. Iyoha or the nearest police station.”

    A police report signed by the Divisional Police Officer of the Airport Command in Benin confirmed that the family head lodged a complaint with the police on May 30, 2017 concerning the whereabouts of Cristina and her two children.

    According to a copy of the report,  Chief Iyoha had earlier in 2013 and 2015, respectively, lodged complaints with the police station on the whereabouts of the woman and her two children.

    The report added that the matter had been referred to the Nigeria Police Headquarters/SID for further investigation.

  • Woman gets one month for throwing baby into bush

    A woman, Mrs. Bosede Oyetunde, has been sentenced to one month imprisonment for throwing a day-old baby boy into the bush.

    Mrs. Oyetunde and Mr. Opeyemi Isaac reportedly committed the offence on July 4.

    The prosecutor, Ojumu Olayemi, said the accused conspired to commit felony to wit murder and unlawfully attempted to kill a day-old baby by wrapping it in a nylon bag and throwing it into the bush.

    He said the offence contravened sections 516 and 320(2) of the Criminal Code, Cap 37, Vol.1, Laws of Ondo State of Nigeria 2006.

    The accused pleaded guilty to the two-count charge.

    Olayemi told the court the accused dropped the baby on Ore/Akure Road, adding that the police took over the care and welfare of the child.

    He said the boy’s naming ceremony was held at the police station.

    The accused said she took the decision because of the fear of how to take care of the baby.

    The Chief Magistrate, Mrs. O.A Edwin, sentenced the accused (Oyetunde) to one month imprisonment.

    She ordered her to render two-month community service at Igbotako Police Station.

    Edwin directed the first accused to go for mental assessment because the court observed she was not mentally fit to nurse a baby.

    She ordered the mother to breastfeed the baby at the Ondo State Children’s Home, Ore.

  • Widow banished for having sex on late husband’s bed

    Widow banished for having sex on late husband’s bed

    For allegedly having sex with a man on her late husband’s matrimonial bed, a 70 woman been banished from her community.
    The widow Mrs Maria Okoh, it was gathered, was allegedly caught by her granddaughter allegedly having sex with the 30 year old man said to be  her lover at Amaudo Nkpoghoro village, Afikpo North Local Government Area of Ebonyi State.

    In Afikpo, it is a considered a taboo for a widow to make love on her late husband matrimonial bed.

    Maria’s  grand daughter was said to have gone to her grandmother’s house to give her some food items which she bought for her when she saw the 30 year old man making love with the grandmother.

    She immediately raise alarm and immediately reported the matter to some members of the community who reported it to elders in the area.

    Some of the villagers immediately held the woman and the man and dragged them out of the house chanting disgraceful songs on them.

    The villagers paraded the widow and the man round the community while chanting disgraceful songs  as punishment for their act.

    The woman was allegedly banished from the community after the parade.

    One of the villagers, Egwu Azubuike said  the woman would have faced  greater punishment if her husband was still alive.

    He noted  that the act has brought shame to the widow’s family, adding that the widow was among the most respected women in the community
    before the incident.

    Meanwhile, according to the community’s custom, the woman will  give three goats as fine  to appease the land before she will be accepted back.

  • Woman bathes co-tenant with faeces

    A 28-year-old jobless woman, Temitope Abiodun, was yesterday arraigned before an Ikeja Magistrates’ Court for allegedly bathing her neighbour with faeces.

    The accused is standing trial on charges of assault, breach of the peace, and resisting police arrest.

    She pleaded not guilty plea. Magistrate J.A Adigun granted her N100,000 bail, with two sureties in the like sum.

    The sureties, he said, must be employed and show evidence of two years’ tax payment.

    Prosecuting Godwin Awaze said the accused committed the offence on June 12 at her residence.

    “The accused had a misunderstanding with one of her neighbours and in the process, she bathed her with faeces,” he said.

    Awaze said the accused also conducted herself in a manner likely to cause a breach of the peace by stripping herself in the public in order to escape police arrest.

    “The accused resisted Sergeant Gabriel Ejiofor, a police officer, while trying to arrest her; she removed her clothes and became naked to avoid being arrested.”

    The prosecutor said the accused, who was a member of a dreaded secret cult called “Awawa,” had been terrorising residents of the area.

    “She always brings her gang to threaten residents and also beat up the complainant,” he said.

    The offences contravened Sections 42, 166, 119 and 173 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015(Revised).

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Section 44 prescribes three years imprisonment for membership of an unlawful society; Section 119 provides three years jail term for resisting arrest.

    The case continues on July 3.

  • Sterling Bank sponsors Sexually Confident Woman programme

    Sterling Bank sponsors Sexually Confident Woman programme

    Sterling Bank is powering the Sexually Confident Woman programme holding at the Sheraton Hotels and Towers in Lagos this month.

    The One Woman proposition was introduced by the bank to inspire and empower women to achieve their potential.

    The theme and sub-theme of the Sexually Confident Woman programme are “Self-love” and “I’m in love with the shape of you” respectively. It addresses the issue of low self-esteem among women, especially those who are conscious of their weight and are living in self-doubt.

    Speaking on the programme, Henry Bassey, Chief Marketing Officer, Sterling Bank said “We are committed to creating new platforms for the Nigerian woman that addresses real issues she most overcome to enjoy a thriving social life that enables her fulfill her dreams. This explains our support for the Sexually Confident Woman programme which seeks to break the invisible barriers preventing the Nigerian woman from developing to her highest potential.”

    On her part, Omolara Akinfolarin, Head of MSME, Sterling Bank said “We are supporting the Sexually Confident Woman programme team led by Tope Mark-Odigie, because of its visionary nature and alignment with the One Woman proposition. As a caring brand that encourages women to be bold for change, we remain committed to programmes designed to inspire women to embrace their inner beauty.

  • Mabel Osuntokun (1932- 2017) – A virtuous woman

    The former Mabel Osanyin who married Joseph Oduola Osuntokun was the first child of the man who became the first bishop of Ekiti when the present four dioceses in Ekiti State were just one. This wonderful lady is being laid to rest tomorrow, Friday June 23 in Ibadan. She grew up in Kano where for some time, her father had served as a missionary in the Anglican Communion.  She grew up in Kano when the grandfather of the present emir was Ciroman Kano Sanusi before he became Sarkin Kano. Because of her sojourn in Kano, she spoke some Hausa and as a girl growing up in the restrictive cultural environment of Kano, she was rather shy and for a while withdrawn. Her father came from Ijebu-Jesha a town not too far from Okemesi where her future husband came from.  In other words both Mabel and her future suitor belonged to the Ijesha sub ethnic group of the Yoruba The Osanyin brothers apparently liked the northern part of the country where about three of their family found a place for their material sustenance. Her mother was an attractive lady who because of her initials L. B Osanyin was popularly known as “London Beauty”.  She was not an Ijesha like her husband. She complimented and added value to the work and life of her husband and she helped him build a solid middle class home which was rare in Nigeria of their time. She had a complex web of provenance stretching from Ado -Ekiti, Awo, and Ijero.

    Mabel Osanyin therefore belonged to the privileged class of children of the clergy especially at a time when the Anglican Communion (CMS) was the established church in Nigeria. She trained as a teacher. It was as a teacher that the man who later became her husband and who was looking for  a virtuous unspoiled and God-fearing and husband compliant lady found her and proposed marriage to her . She was 20 years old and perhaps too young and inexperienced for her suitor, a world wise, widely travelled man, a graduate, the second graduate in the whole of what is now Ekiti State, and a budding politician who was a member of the western house of Assembly. Oduola Osuntokun was almost a decade older than the young lady he wanted to marry. He was an irresistible handsome man with huge prospects for the future. He was a great catch and Mabel fell in love with him.

    In spite of ups and downs of life she stood by him in good times and in bad times. Their marriage was a wonderful union blessed with seven great children who have excelled in their various professions. Mabel Osuntokun that later became “Mama Tinu “ as she would be known by all and sundry was so beloved by all members of the Osuntokun family that whenever there was any argument between husband and wife the family always sided with the wife.  In this case blood was not thicker than water !When our father died and the burden of headship of the family fell on her husband rather than grumble she rose up to the occasion and supported her husband  in providing for the larger Osuntokun family.

    The inevitable storms in the life of a politician did not overwhelm her and she always took her problems to God. She who was used to affluence as the wife of a minister adjusted quickly when her husband had to go back to the humble life of a secondary school principal and teacher. She always made the home environment pleasant and soothing to her husband who sometimes found the transition so uncomfortable and dispiriting that he sometimes felt like a well beaten boxer. The larger Osuntokun family provided a psychological refuge at the time of difficulty and despair. Mabel in those years demonstrated financial and business acumen to provide for her growing family and one after the other her children became adults and were able to fend for themselves. She continued to provide a rallying point for members of the Osuntokun family outside her own immediate family. She was known by the growing little Osuntokuns as “Big Mummy” not because of her size, she was actually petite, but on account of being the wife of chief Oduola Osuntokun the scion and head of the family. Other women who came later into the large Osuntokun family looked up to her as the trailblazer. She fulfilled the role and loved the younger wives in the family who reciprocated by deferring to her in family affairs. Her husband in his later years was grateful to her for her unflinching support and unstinted love.

    Mrs Mabel Osuntokun, the child of an Anglican Bishop became a fervent supporter of the Pentecostal mode of worship to the extent that she turned her home into a chapel while her new denomination was building its church. She did not see any contradiction in this and her argument was that she would worship in any church where the name of Jesus Christ was the centre of worship. All her life she was used to being in the middle of large families whether in the vicarage where her parents lived and were supported by children of relatives and church members who were sent there for grooming or in her own family. When her children grew up and left home, she would go to the backwoods of Oyo State to bring poor children to live with her, send them to school and colleges and when they leave others will be brought to replace them in an unbroken chain of Christian charity. Whatever she had, she shared with others. She seemed to have found joy and satisfaction in not living alone but in harbouring total strangers and in stretching her hands of fellowship to the less privileged people who cannot reciprocate her acts of generosity.

    She lived for 85 years in good health until recently when her health deteriorated. She had the support of her children and members of the wider Osuntokun family and the Osanyin siblings towards the end of her life. She must have had satisfaction in knowing she was much loved and cherished. Life is fleeting and what will endure is not how long we live but how well.  Memories are for ever she will continue to be remembered with fondness and for good. In any case she lived long

    We have lost a wonderful, loving and caring person. She took care of everybody who needed care, food, shelter and love. She remained a beautiful lady till the end wishing the best for everyone. What we have lost is a gain by heaven. I have no doubt that her place in heaven is secure. I personally have lost not just a sister-in-law, but the lady who was responsible for my grooming and a lady who brought me up from a simple lad to a gentleman. Rest in perfect peace.

  • Woman, 52, commits suicide in Ondo

    A 52-year-old woman, Opeyemi Babatola, has reportedly hanged herself at her home at Aule area of Akure, the Ondo State capital.

    Sources said the husband of the deceased, Pastor Adeolu Babatola, saw her body dangling and reported the incident to the police.

    The cause of her death was unknown at press time last night.

    Babatola, who is in police custody, reportedly discovered his wife’s body when he perceived the foul odour from a room in the house.

    It was gathered that the late Opeyemi told her husband that she was going to a mountain to pray but reportedly went into one of the rooms in the house where she hanged herself.

    A source said: “She told her child and her husband that she wanted to go to a mountain to pray. So, her husband probably thought she was praying on the mountain because it was not her first time of doing so.

    “However, on Monday morning, her husband went to the back of one of the rooms in the other apartment of the house and discovered many house flies by the window. He opened the room and found his wife hanging. He cried out to the neighbours.

    Police spokesman Femi Joseph, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), said investigations had begun into the matter.

    He added that the husband of the deceased, Adeolu has been invited to the command for interrogation.

     

  • Pastor accused of killing woman, 60, in Ondo

    A Pastor at Ode-Irele in Irele Local Government Area of Ondo State, Elijah Taiwo, has been accused of killing a 60-year-old member of his church, Mrs. Ajisomo Lawson.

    Taiwo, who is the founder of CAC Oke Oluwa Sekun Mi Derin, allegedly killed the woman for ritual reasons.

    Mrs Lawson’s body parts were allegedly removed after her death.

    It was gathered that Taiwo invited the woman at the weekend – from Liseri village, via Ode Irele, where she lived, for a spiritual programme.

    The Nation also learnt the pastor arranged for a motorcycle to take her back to her village after the spiritual programme, but she did not get home.

    Sources said Mrs Lawson’s family became curious when she did not return home from the pastor.

    The development reportedly prompted them to raise a search team, which found her body in a bush inside a palm plantation on Irele-Ore Road.

    A source said the deceased’s private part, breasts and eyes were removed by her suspected killers.

    The family’s efforts to know her whereabouts from the pastor were unsuccessful.

    Taiwo was said to have fled the town when the death occurred.

    One of the children of the deceased, Seyifunmi, recalled that her mother was invited to Irele by Pastor Elijah for a revival, initially scheduled to hold on Friday but cancelled.

    She said: “Mama told pastor of her interest to return to her village since she was not prepared enough to stay longer than necessary at Ode Irele. The pastor promised to arrange an Okada (commercial motorcycle) rider to take her back the following morning.

    “Our mother left with the Okada rider at 7 a.m on Friday. Unfortunately, she did not get to her village.”

    Police spokesman Femi Joseph, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), said it was not clear yet if the deceased was killed by ritualists.

    He said: “We cannot say for now if it was a spiritual killing because before the deceased was found, her body was already decomposing. So, one cannot say yet if parts of her body were removed.

    “But we are waiting for the result of autopsy to determine the cause of the death.”

    The police spokesman said a member of Taiwo’s church had been arrested in connection with the killing.

  • Married woman dies in hotel room with ‘lover’

    A married woman has died in a hotel room in Enugu while “enjoying” with her lover during a one-night stand.

    A statement by police spokesman Ebere Amaraizu, a Superintendent of Police (SP), said the deceased was identified as Mrs Ifeyinwa Udeh of Ugboezeji in Abakpa Nike of Enugu State.

    The statement said: “On that fateful day, the deceased with her lover, identified as Joel Ugwu of Abakpa in Enugu State, had allegedly checked into one hotel located around Nowas Junction of Transekulu in Enugu.

    “She was later confirmed dead by a doctor at St Leo’s Hospital Transekulu after suddenly falling ill and becoming unconscious.

    “She was taken to the hospital for medical attention at 11.15 p.m by her lover.”

    The statement said Ugwu, who is in police custody, is assisting the investigation on the incident.

    It said the suspect confessed that he and Ifeyinwa “comfortably checked into the hotel on that fateful day, but later, the lady lover started complaining of ill health. According to the suspect, she was immediately given a bottle of malt drink and bottled water, which he allegedly bought for her while they were relaxing in the hotel room”.

    The police added: “He said following the development, he rushed her to the hospital for medical attention, but she was confirmed dead by the doctor on duty.

    “The body of the deceased has been deposited at the morgue of the Parklane Specialist Hospital in Enugu for autopsy.”

    Also, detectives from Homicide Section of the police command have begun a full scale investigation into the incident.

    The police said they recovered from the hotel room some tablets and capsules as well as other materials, which they said would aid operatives in their investigations.

     

  • I am a woman of many parts, says Babcock’s best,

    I am a woman of many parts, says Babcock’s best,

    With an outstanding Cumulative Grade Point Average of 4.90, 22-year-old Alexandria Braie of the Department of Accounting, Babcock University was the cynosure of all eyes at the university’s 15th undergraduate and sixth postgraduate convocation.

    Braie dwarfed other 88 first class recipients to emerge the valedictorian among a total of 1,807students that took a bow out of the university at the weekend.

    She was a lady of many parts- a fashion enthusiast, devoted Christian, sociable personality, just name it. And that of course placed a challenge on her path to attain equilibrium so that one does affect the other.

    “I feel blessed and honoured,” Braie began her success story.

    “Being the overall best (student) was what I set my heart to achieve right from the start. I have always been outstanding since I came to this school. I am not a bookworm type of person but I made sure I balanced every aspect of my life.

    She continued: “I am a fashion freak, I love makeup, but I tried to balance my social, academic and spiritual life. I didn’t try to place a priority on a particular one. I read in quiet environment because that is when it is suitable for me. I tried to obey the school’s rules and regulations because I believe there is time for everything. I have always stayed positive towards my studies especially when I was confronted with some difficult courses, but i conquered them all because of my determination to excel.

    Ogun State Governor Ibikunle Amosun advised the graduating students to be problem solvers. He said they should exhibit  good morals to complement their academic qualifications.

    “Be ready to make positive difference because ultimately, one day we will answer the call of the Almighty. We should ask ourselves what is going to be said about us when we are gone. You have the opportunity now. It will be in your own interest to make sure as you leave this school, to remember all that you have been taught so that you think beyond seeing yourself as a graduate” he admonished.

    Amosun praised the school for its commitment towards producing quality manpower for the development of the state.  He also reiterated his commitment to improving the state especially in the education sector.

    The Vice Chancellor, Prof Ademola Tayo, said the undergraduate curriculum is undergoing  review to meet global needs. He noted that the school  has engaged in laudable researches and had several awards to its credit.

    He described the graduands as peacemakers who have been groomed to ensure peaceful co-existence with fellow humans. He, therefore, urged them to make their parents and the country proud.