The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Yaba

  • Multi-million naira Lagos community project under threat

    In this report, Assistant Editor (Arts) OZOLUA UHAKHEME writes that serial burglaries at the Prince Claus fund sponsored multi-million naira workstation at Iwaya, Yaba, Lagos, Mainland are threatening the project.

    •Facility looted four times since August

    A multi-million naira Workstation of Communal Re-Imagination, Iwaya, Lagos, a project funded by Prince Claus Fund, is under threat. The multipurpose space that provides alternative art school for the youth of Iwaya community has been burgled  four times since its inception last August.

    The first two burglaries occured last October 24 and 25. Some people allegedly broke into the workstation through the window and ceiling and carted away valuable items, such as bead works by participants, materials for bead workshop and paints bought for the space. Bulks of the books destroyed were donated to the library by an artist Abraham Ogbobase who relocated to Canada last year. Some of the books and artworks destroyed and stolen include InterInvention by Wole Soyinka,  Lagos Street Maps Unifying Africa by Uche James Iroha,  The Contemporary Art Book by David Hodge And Charlotte Bonham- Carter  Lagos: A City At Work by Kunle Tejuosho (Glendora Books),  We Face Forward ( Art Form),  Techniques Of Photography by Available Light by Colin Glanfield,  Limbus- Saara Estrom by Kiasama, Between Man And Nature by Sunmi Smart Cole,  Time Frames (The Story Of Photography) by Ian Jeffrey and Element of Philosophy by B. E Nwigwe.

    The project is worth about 20,000 Euro and will last for one year.

    Executive Director, Workstation of Communal Re-Imagination, Aderemi Adegbite, who raised the alarm, said in a statement that the latest attack on the facility was on January 29, when almost all the books were destroyed and thrown outside the workstation.

    He said going by the spate of attacks and vandalisation of the workstation, it was clear that those behind the attacks were on a mission. Their intent, he added, is to stop ‘’us from using the space for the purpose for which it was built, which is education. They know that without the books and materials, we will not be able to do anything and thereby get frustrated’’.

    Communal Re-Imagination was conceived and proposed by Mr. Aderemi Adegbite, for the Next Generation Project of Prince Claus Fund, to  help engage the minds and hands of youths in the community. The workstation was built as part of the project as a meeting point for participants and other youths in the community, who are creative and talented.

    Adegbite, an interdisciplinary artist, who works with media photography, is very depressed about the losses. He said his main reason for creating the project was to show youths that there are other means of making life meaningful.

    He recalled that his challenges started when he reported last October’s attacks to the traditional head of Iwaya community, who summoned other chiefs for explanation. He noted that the traditional ruler advised him not to report to the police because a “formal report at the police station will not solve the problem, because the workstation is built in a volatile section of the community, where the police will not even bother themselves to go to.”

    “Two Baales who attended the meeting said to the king that before they could reckon with the project, I must pay N500,000 to them as bribe. My response was that the project was conceived and created for the community to complement what the community leaders are doing in the community by re-channelling the untamed youth energy in the community through art. They all said they understood the motive behind the project, but I still must make the payment for them to fully endorse the project. I made them realise that the funding received from Prince Claus Fund has been used to build the space, so it could be useful for the project and as well the community. But they were adamant,” he said.

    On the third break-in, Adegbite recalled:”When we arrived at the workstation on November 13, 2018, we realised that some of the books in our library were missing. Project manager of Communal Re-Imagination, Taiwo Ayeidogbon, asked participants if they took some of the books home for research and they all said no. So, we were disturbed by the number of books that were missing on the book shelves. We searched every corner of the workstation and saw some book covers in the dustbin. It was appalling the number of books that had been destroyed overnight. The contents of the books were taken away and the covers were dumped in the dustbin.”

    Adegbite stated that he reported the burglaries to two of the three Baales (chiefs, sectional community leaders) who are fully aware of the project from the inception and they promised to look into it. But, that after two days, three Baales were summoned to the palace and were acquainted with the theft case.

    “At the beginning of the project, I met with the Oba-in-Council (King-in-Council) to inform them about the grant and what the project was all about. I was asked series of questions by the king and the chiefs present at the meeting. I explained to them in details all about the project phases and payment procedures by the funding organisation – Prince Claus Fund. Their major concern at that time was about raising fund to build a proper space for the school project and the property that could be used. This was because there is no community owned property in Iwaya community.

    “In fact, some of them mentioned the fact that there is no community cultural centre and therefore it would stress the fund meant for the project because a lot of unforeseen payments have to be made. I assured them that I already have a space I started developing four years ago but couldn’t develop it beyond foundation level and it will be used for the workstation, which will be built as a multipurpose space where the alternative art school project will take place and other community events. And the workstation was built for that purpose. In September 2018, there was Iwaya Community Celebration, I was made the Chair-of-Art/Cultural events. The workstation was used for rehearsals and meetings for the Regatta that was part of Iwaya Community Day celebration. And all the chiefs visited The Workstation during this event in September 2018,” he added.

    On the latest attack, he said: “On 29th January, I received a call from the workstation Manager, Olufela Omokeko, that our library has been once again attacked and almost all the books destroyed this time and thrown outside the workstation.”

    It will be recalled that the image of the community changed from its infamous hoodlum ridden status in the recent time because of the community art projects. In 2015, Adegbite started his community art projects in Iwaya as an alternative engagement for the young people to see and choose alternative means of life through art. In 2016, he created a community-based international art festival to help the youth shun violence and embrace art.

    The international artists invited for Iwaya Community Art Festival, for one month, lived and carried out research in collaboration with the youth in the community. Between 2016 and last year, the festival hosted 13 international artists from Africa, Europe, South America and Middle East.

     

     

  • Nigeria to host Africa in Rope Skipping Sport

    THE Nigeria Rope Skipping Federation (NRSF), an apex body of jump rope/rope skipping sport in Nigeria is set to host African nations in a training workshop scheduled to hold from April 18-20, 2019 at Rowe Park, Yaba, Lagos.

    Secretary-General, Olusesan Olukoya informed NationSport that the workshop was being organised to showcase spectacular talents, skills among youths in African nations that are new entrants with the understanding of introducing new gimmicks and styles to other rated nations who have been skipping for so long.

    Olukoya said that officials and athletes from over 10 countries would take part in the workshop, while seasoned coaches and officials from France, the United Kingdom and the US would handle the programme.

    Apart from the foreign guests coming from around the world of jump rope to attend the timely training in Nigeria, Olukoya said over 1,000 school kids/students as well as 200 teachers from across the country would be participating in the intercontinental workshop.

    Olukoya revealed that Nigeria and Ghana were nominated as the two likely hosts of the workshop at the African leaders meeting during the World Jump Rope Championship and Camp which took place at Orlando, Florida in the United State in July 2018, but other African countries insisted Nigeria hosts it.

    “We are indeed ready to host African nation’s officials and its athletes as well as international coaches and trainers from the United Kingdom, France, and the United States that are expected to honour our invitation for the timely workshop,” Olukoya told NationSport.

    Olukoya said Liberia, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast, Benin and Togo have already indicated interest to attend the workshop adding that plans are still on to bring in other West African nations that are willing to participate in the federations workshop.

    The Federation is affiliated to the International Jump Rope Union, World Jump Rope Federation and the Africa Jump Association.

  • Ruined by substance abuse (1)

    Like a time bomb that is bound to explode if not urgently detonated, the rising incidence of drug abuse which has been resulting in mental health illnesses  among the citizens, precisely teenagers and youths,  may in the near future spell doom for the country if not quickly addressed. The Federal Neuro Psychiatric Hospital, Yaba few days ago said the facility recorded  50 per cent  increase in the number of patents treated for drug and substance abuse last year. The worrisome development  according to experts has ruined the lives of many  promising young boys and girls and rearing to destroy more if not immediately tamed.  INNOCENT DURU who visited some psychiatric homes reports:

     

    “This boy  has dented my image. As a pastor,  how can I explain it that my son indulged in drug abuse, to the extent that he has developed mental illness? What on earth led him into this demonic venture?”

    The above was the lamentation of a clergyman whose son had developed mental illness after a period of indulging in substance abuse.

    Frustration was written all over  him as he paced up and down wondering what had befallen him and how he would have the courage to still mount the pulpit to ask  wayward church members to turn a new leaf.

    “I am at loss over what has happened to me. He had always been a good boy and everybody around could swear that he couldn’t have touched a cigarette before. If I were not around and somebody had said this to me on the phone, I would have refused to believe it because I trusted him. There was no sign that he was into such. How he got into all this remains a mystery to me,” the distraught father said.

    A relation of a female  victim,  who gave his name simply as John, was  embittered as he shared the story of his sister’s plight.

    He said: “We saw all this coming and all our efforts to stop her was rejected by her. Unfortunately, we are the ones still bearing the brunt of her recklessness. She is in her late teens but she has always lived a wild life. She goes out and returns to the house anytime she likes. At times, acrid smell of alcohol would be oozing out  from her mouth.

    “The first time I saw cigarette in her bag, she said it was her friend that forgot it  and she decided to keep it for her. I foolishly believed her without knowing that was one of her tools of self-destruction.”

    “It has been financially and psychologically challenging taking care of her. The stigma alone is worse than anything you can think of because everybody now uses that to describe our family.”

    A relation of a sickle cell patient, who is also mentally sick, said he developed the illness after getting addicted to injecting himself with tramadol meant to relieve pains.

    “They sometimes give them such powerful pain killer whenever they have crisis. But he got addicted to it and always used it even when he didn’t have pains. That was what resulted in her mental problem.

    “The problem we are facing is now two folds. From dealing with sickle cell problems, we are also now faced with the problem of managing his mental illness. All this costs a lot of money and it is  physically, emotionally and psychologically distressing.”

    An undergraduate in one of the rehabilitation homes visited by our correspondent, according to the  care giver, suffered the fate after recklessly indulging in consumption of cannabis.

    “I learnt that he started indulging in hard drugs by  mixing  the cannabis leaf with beans. He subsequently moved from there to smoking it. At that point, he became very daring and began to bully  people around.

    “ It is a very unfortunate development because all the efforts to give him a very sound education in a private university appears to have become a huge waste.  Where are the people that led him into this? Have they not all gone their various ways?”

    At Abeokuta, another care giver said he had tried to stop the child from the unholy practice of drug abuse to no avail.

    “He was always going to some bad joints at Lafenwa where all manner of wayward children converge to  indulge in reckless use of drugs. If you get a part of the area, you will find a heap of cough syrups that these people have drunk. Apart from cough syrups, they also indulge in the use of cannabis, codeine and tramadol. There is one thing that they call sokudaya that they also use.

    On several occasions, we tried luring him away from that place but he kept returning there but it was as if he was under a spell to consume drugs. I am seriously worried that in spite of the large number of security outfits we have in the country, drugs are still being publicly sold. If the drugs are not so much available, many of our children would not have access to it.”

    Experts decry the  rise mental illness among substance users. There have been growing concerns among psychiatrists about the wave of mental illness among substance abusers.

    The 2018 annual report of the Federal Neuro Psychiatric Hospital, Yaba, obtained by our correspondent, showed that there was 5o per cent  increase in the number of patents treated for drug and substance abuse last year.

    The annual report showed that a total number of males treated in the facility rose from  133 in  2017 to 195 in 2018.  The figures of the females rose from 24  in 2017 to 40 in 2018.

    Speaking on the development, a psychiatrist in the hospital, Dr Modupeola  Omotojesi, said:

    “Our statistics has shown us that the use of substance has increased, especially in age groups. We are seeing it in younger individuals  between  15 and 16 years . We are increasingly seeing it.  Statistics has shown us that most children are beginning  to use it more from primary six to Junior Secondary School 1  level as their first level of introduction.  What we see is just a tip of the ice bag compared  to what is happening in the society.

    “It is on a very increased level  and it is something that everybody, the government, the society, the family  needs to be seriously concerned about.  The number of patients using substance has increased in the facility.  Substance abuse is like a monster. We really don’t know what has hit us as a country .”

    She noted that the development  portends a lot of danger locally, nationally and internally. “One of the major dangers it posses is the quality of the next generation we are going to produce because the use of substances itself has shown that when it gets to addiction level, it is a brain disease.

    “Imagine having a population of young people who are the future of tomorrow  already having impaired functioning because of the use of the substances that they have taken, what would be the quality of our leadership in future if we don’t  start attending to it now and begin to take care of it as an epidemic? It is at an epidemic level.  Measures have to be taken. We need a lot of advocacy, a lot of education,  and we need to be aggressive educating the young ones about what these substances are, and what implications they have on individuals and the nation as a whole”.

    She advised  there should be control on the availability of these substances, adding: “We need to tighten availability. We should not be talking about it in hush tones. Drugs abusers could be infected with HIV in the course of sharing needles; the y could have liver damage, Hepatitis, lung infections  and cancer. The person can have personality problems

    “When you have an individual that is anti- social, and you are having them on the increase,  they could cause a lot of violence. Once you are under the influence of substance, you can do anything.

    The use of substances is also a factor for the increase in crime rate in the society because if you do a screening for a lot of people that are violent, many of them have some form of substance in their system. Substance facilitates violence.”

    One of the consultants managing the drug abuse unit at Neuro-Psychiatry Hospital, Aro, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Dr Sunday Amosu, also lamented the development. “In recent times, drugs have become ubiquitous. It is in every nook and cranny of the society and there is no class distinction. The adults are there and the youths are predominant.  The old men also  have their alcohol problems too.  Those drugs that were not with us before are now here. In the past, there were some synthetic drugs like Adam and Eve  and MMVA  that were used abroad but one way or the other they have been smuggled to Nigeria .

    “Some cliques have access to these drugs. Some few years back, a lab was discovered at Satellite Town  where some of these synthetic drugs were being produced here for export. Definitely, such drugs would get to the market here too.   Drug is a big problem. Even in our environment,  cannabis is the number one illicit substance.

    “Studies in our environment as far back as  the 90s by the late Professor Odejide  say that the first exposure to drug is in the early teenage years.

    “ However, before parents get to know,   it is always some months later. People have seen children who are 10  or 11 years doing drugs but parents may not know until much later. but on the average, majority started in secondary school”, he said.

    Amosu, who is a  senior consultant psychiatrist at the Abeokuta hospital, described drug abuse as  a robber, noting that it makes the person to lose everything as he would not be able to play his role in the society. He can’t contribute to the GDP of the country. Such people make unemployment rate to increase.   He could develop  mental illness and liver problems. If they are hospitalised, man –hours are lost and the families are affected.

    “When one person in the family is sick, it affects the others and they have to cough out the money that is not enough. It is a vicious circle because everybody will be affected.  Even when they have this problem, they also recruit some other people. Drug abuse does no one any good in the society.  All hands must be on deck  to tackle it. There is no doubt about the prevalence.”

     

    Tell- tale signs that your child is abusing drugs

    Delving into his wealth of experience, Dr Amosu enumerated some  tell-tale signs   that show somebody is abusing drugs. “Some of them can be smelling of alcohol,  some people  could have angular stomatitis  that show this person has been long on alcohol. Those indulging in cannabis can have blood- shot eyes. On those who inject needle, you can see needle track.

    “ Even at home, you can notice it when somebody develops sudden change in behaviour, an easy going guy confronting his father and warning him.  When you see that  the behaviour of your child suddenly changes and he is becoming more secretive, you have a high index of suspicion. When the circle of friends changes and the ones he comes home with look wild and like yahoo yahoo boys, you should be suspicious of him. Confront him and if he denies, bring him to the hospital so that we can run a test.  There are many things that when we even get from the client, we don’t tell the parents so that we don’t break their hearts.  We may not tell them the extent because when they hear,  it would break their heart”.

    Parents, he said, should have the spare keys of the children’s rooms and should find time to go there to carry out some checks. “Sometimes, you can find what we call paraphernalia of drugs like matches, lighter  and so on.

    “ Some of them try to mask it by eating  candies that have mentol flavour.  Some use perfume and roll on. They tend to be secretive  and would not come to the sitting room when everybody is there.  When a child repeatedly takes  his bath, it  could be an attempt to mask the odour of the drugs.”

    He added: “When you are in doubt, there are tests that you can do if you have the facility. You can do urine screen  and that will pick out cannabis and other drugs.  Those who have breathe analyser, it could pick out acceptable alcohol level  and also detect if it is higher than normal from the breath.

    “When you pick it and the person denies, you can do a confrontational interview by saying the test reveals this, what do you have to say? At that point, you will see them stammering.  Some  at an anxious stage would be the one to come out and  say, I have this problem, please help me. “

     

    Stages in drug abuse

    Dr Amosu went on to list the four stages in drug abuse. “The first is the stage of experimentation or the stage of initial contact.  At that stage he is taking it only once in a while. At this stage there is no tell-tale sign. People may not even know unless somebody stumbles on him.

    “The second stage is that of more regular use.  Here he uses it and can now go and buy it  and still managing to function at home and in the society and as long as he is functioning, nobody might know. There is no curiosity around him.

    “The third stage is the stage of abuse when they would begin to develop problems like drunk driving, involving in auto-crash, having issues at work.  Before they get to that point, some five, six years might have added to their age.  That is why you could see them in their late teens and 20s.

    “The final stage is the stage of dependence or stage of addiction.  The hallmark of that stage is what is called tolerance and withdrawal syndrome.  Tolerance means that he needs to increase the dose to get the desired effect. That is the addiction we are talking about. It is a stage where the person cannot do without it.  The withdrawal symptom is the psycho-psychological symptoms that are specific to the substance.  When  the person does not have access to the substance, he would begin to develop these symptoms.

    “Those who take drugs like heroine and petazozin, when they don’t have access to them,  they would begin to have flu-like symptoms as if they have malaria.They would be drooling saliva, drooling water from the nose , water from the eyes and goose pimples all over the body.  That is what is referred to in street parlance as jonsing. Immediately he takes the drug again, the symptom vanishes. People on this stage are less compared to other stages.

     

    NDLEA yet to speak

    Contacted for the reaction of the agency on  the  menace of drug abuse and its attendant consequences on the citizens, the spokesperson of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) , Jonah Achema, promised to provide a response.  He was, however. yet to respond as at the time of filing this report.

     

     

  • LASG confiscates rail track traders’ wares

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

  • Yabatech admits 14,912

    The Yaba College of Technology (Yabatech), Lagos State, on Thursday admitted 14,912 National Diploma (ND) and Higher National Diploma (HND) students for the 2017/2018 academic session.

    The Rector of tge institution, Mr Obafemi Omokungbe, announced the figure at its 2017/2018 matriculation ceremony.

    Omokungbe said that the number comprised full-time and part-time students.

    He said 23.704 candidates applied for admission into the college’s ND (Full Time) but only 3,666 were offered admission.

    The rector also said 3,871 candidates were given admission into the college’s HND (Full-Time) programme, adding that Yabatech offerred admission to a total of 7,375 candidates for both ND/HND (Part-Time) programmes.

    “The matriculation is of utmost importance; the matriculation oath signifies that you accept to abide by all the rules and regulations governing the conduct of students in the college.

    “You must shun all forms of anti-social activities such as cultism, drug abuse, examination malpractice, sexual misbehaviour and other unruly behaviour.

    “You must at all times ensure that you abide by this oath. You will be introduced to various structures, systems, rules and regulations in the college during the orientation programme for new students,” the rector said.

    He said that students who would
    violate the rules of the college would be penalised as stipulated by the law.

    The rector advised the students to behave well.

    “In line with the Federal Government’s directive and our resolve at improving access to education, we will put more efforts to improve in our current capacity through development of physical structures that would provide additional sitting spaces for our students,“ he said.

    The rector said the students must record 75 per cent lecture attendance to qualify to write examinations.

    “You are, therefore, advised to attend lectures regularly to qualify to write examinations,” he said.

    Omokungbe said that the management of the college had commenced refurbishment of hostel facilities by procuring 3,000 mattresses.

    He added that the management provided modern equipment to upgrade classrooms, studios and laboratories.

    “I implore you to be diligent, hardworking and focussed on your academics. Most importantly, you must refrain from all forms of examination misconduct.

    “You must imbibe the culture of discipline in academics to excel in your career. Shun all forms of distraction and take your studies very seriously, let reading and learning be your sole pre-occupation.

    “ You must also refrain from acts that may tarnish your image, the image of your family and that of the college.

    “The college has high reputation of zero tolerance for all forms of indecent dressing,“ he said.

  • 2019: Lagos lawmakers rally support for Gbajabiamila

    Some members of the House of Representatives from Lagos State have commended the leadership of the Leader of House of Representatives, Mr Femi Gbajabiamila at national, state and constituency levels since his election into the house in 2003 .

    The All Progressives Congress ( APC ) lawmakers spoke in turns at the “Surulere General Assembly’’ on Thursday night.

    They said that they would support his bid to seek re-election to serve his people through quality representation.

    They appealed to residents of Gbajabiamila’s constituency to also support him in his bid to seek re-election.

    The newsmen reports that Gbajabiamila has been representing Surulere 1 Federal Constituency in the green chamber of the National Assembly since 2003.

    The lawmakers are: Messrs Jide Jimoh ( Yaba Fed. Constituency ), Ayo Joseph ( Apapa ), Rotimi Agunsoye ( Kosofe ) Yusuf Ayinla ( Mushin 2 ), and Olaitan Nurudeen ( Ifako-Ijaiye ).

    Mr JIde Jimoh described Gbajabiamila as an asset to the House of Representatives, who he said, had acquitted himself remarkably well as a legislator.

    He said the House Leader had initiated many development-oriented bills in the house and contributed robustly to debates in its sessions.

    Jimoh said Gbajabiamila served his people selflessly, urging residents of Surulere to unite and support him for another term.

    “We are here today to thank Surulere for giving to the house an impactful legislator like Hon.Gbajabiamila.

    “He has been an asset to the house with his great presentation of issues and robust contributions to sessions.

    “We are proud of him and we want you, his constituents to unite and support his bid to seek re-election,” he said.
    Jimoh said that Gbajabiamila was already a principal officer of the house and that replacing him with someone else at this point would not give much benefit to the constituency and the state.

    Also speaking, Hon, Ayo Joseph said lawmaking was about experience, passion and service.

    He said that Gbajabiamila’s wealth of experience as a member of the House was a great asset not only to the National Assembly but also to the nation.

    He urged residents of Surulere to speak with one voice and support the House Leader for another term to “continue the good work he has been doing”.

    Mr Rotimi Agunsoye said the hallmark of leadership was to lead well and see what others could not see.

    He said Gbajabiamila had demonstrated exemplary leadership and had impacted positively on his constituents.

    Agunsoye said the House Leader was a legislator per excellence who commanded the respect of house members with his erudite presentation of issues.

    “When Gbajabiamila speaks others listen. Every one of us loves to listen to him in the house.

    “He is a selfless leader and a legislator per excellence. I want the residents of Surulere to re-nominate this gentleman to keep the flag flying,” he said.

    Also, Mr Olaitan Nurudeen said Gbajabiamila was a rallying point for Lagos lawmakers in the house.

    He added that the lawmaker was a blessing not only to Surulere but to the state, urging his constituent members to support him for another term.

    Similarly, Mr Yusuf Ayinla also commended Gbajabiamila for what he called his achievements in the house, saying he deserved another term for his great performance.

    The Secretary of APC in the state, Mr Hakeem Bamgbala described Gbajabiamila as a great party man who had not only made the state proud but also the party.

    Bamgbala represented by the Vice-Chairman, Itire-Ikate Local Council Development Area, Mr Gbenga Oyebode, said Gbajabiamila had demonstrated exemplary leadership.

    Read Also: Lagos Island Rotary to build hospital

    Also, Mr Desmond Elliot; a member of the Lagos State House of Assembly ( LAHA ), said Gbajabiamila had touched the lives of many constituents.

    He said that he had empowered many residents through so many initiatives and represented the area well at the House of Representatives.

    He urged the residents of Surulere to give the House Leader all the support in his bid for another term.

    A resident and chieftain of the APC, Mr Adeseye Amigos, praised Gbajabiamila for his contributions to the development of Surulere.

    He said that the residents were pleased with him and would support his bid for another term.

    The newsmen reports that other constituents took turns to commend Gbajabiamila at the assembly, pledging support for him.

    NAN

  • MGHS Yaba wins maritime quiz for secondary schools

    Methodist Girls High School, Lagos has won the maiden edition of Maritime Quiz Competition for Secondary Schools.

    Quiz moderator Mrs Violet Williams said at the end of the competition last Wednesday in Lagos that Mind Builders emerged as first runner up while Regency School became second runner up. Ten secondary schools participated.

    She explained that the rationale behind the competition was to expose the participants to the maritime industry and guide them to the “Career of the Future.”

    Williams, who is also the Principal Partner of Vow Ventures, said her firm had exposed the students to the shipping environment before engaging in the competition to raise their interest in shipping career.

    “We want to demystify the aspect of no-go- area in the maritime sector and we have discovered that some school owners do not know anything about shipping.

    “Shipping is a global and international business, and it is in the nation’s best interest to invest in the future by catching them young, thus making them economically and professionally children self-sufficient when they leave school.

    She said that the quiz would be extended to secondary school students  in  the South-East and South-South  of the country which have proximity to the sea before 2020.

    Director-General, Nigerian Chamber of Shipping Mrs Obiageli Obi, advised students interested in maritime career to study hard and explore the maritime industry, regardless of their biases.

    Mrs Obi urged the students to be disciplined and resourceful because shipping business is capital intensive but hugely rewarding.

    President, Women’s International Shipping and Trading Association (WISTA) Mrs Mary Hamman, advised the students to choose relevant courses to enable them to build career in the shipping business.

    She announced that the winners of the quiz would be exposed to all aspects of the  maritime industry within and outside the country.

    Women Governor Association of Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) Mrs Bola Muse, commended the organisers for enlightening the students

    She urged the organisers to extend the competition to other schools to enable Nigerian students understand the profession.

    Six students from the three prize-winning schools – Methodist Girls High School, Yaba; Mind Builders High Schiol, Alausa and ST +T Regency Schools, GRA, Ikeja, are to proceed on maritime sponsorship tour soon.

    Advising the students, Navy Capt. Abel Abuchi (rtd), said “We are trying to  encourage the students not just to be  lawyers, bankers but they can also be seafarers.

    “They can be captains of sea-going vessels or a Navy: all what they need to do after having their “A” level is to go to Maritime institutions such as Maritime Academy Oron, Certified Institute of Shipping and so on.”

    President, Women’s International Shipping and Trading Association (WISTA), Mrs Mary Hamman, advised the students to choose relevant courses to enable them build career in shipping.

  • NGO trains 23,000 women, girls in ICT

    NGO trains 23,000 women, girls in ICT

    An NGO, Women Technology Empowerment Centre (W-TEC) on Friday said that it had trained more than 23,000 women and girls in technology-related careers and businesses since inception in 2008.

    The Executive Director of W-TEC, Mrs Oreoluwa Lesi, said in Lagos that it empowered 4,000 women and girls in 2017.

    Lesi said that W-TEC also partnered with 36 libraries in the Southern Nigeria in 2017.

    “We are an NGO set up to advocate, empower and build capacity of women and girls in Nigeria.

    ”We do this by providing technology training, boot camps, workshops and seminars for women and girls.

    “We aim at inspiring and equipping more young women with skills to become technology creators.

    “Women and girls can have access to computers and participate in technology workshops on programming, web design and digital production in the space we are creating,’’ she said.

    The executive director said that W-TEC had started a partnership with the Lagos State Ministry of Education on an initiative called Code Lagos.

    According to her, Code Lagos is aimed at making coding education accessible to about one million Lagos residents.

    “W-TEC is working as a delivery partner to implement the programme in schools and public libraries in Lagos State.’’

    The executive director said that W-TEC’s passion for empowering women and girls technologically made it to operate afterschool clubs in 10 schools in Yaba, Lagos.

    She said that the NGO had also organised five of such clubs on Lagos Island.

    Lesi said that the organisation held technology camps in Lagos and Ibadan in 2017.

    According to her, W-TEC will expand its technology camps to South-East in 2018.

    “We will be setting up afterschool clubs in Kwara State; we chose Kwara because, according to our assessment, the number of women in information technology in the state is low.

    “We will start by working with five schools but we promise to scale it up to 15 by the end of the year,’’ she said.

    Lesi told our reporter that involvement in women capacity building had been rewarding to the NGO.

    “We have had confidence from our trainees and mentees.

    “Some of the women and girls who attended  our programmes said they  helped them to decide on future careers and businesses.

    “About 35 per cent of them are making money using the technology skills they got from our programmes

    “It puts a smile on our faces by when we see alumni of our programmes pursue technology-related careers or integrate technology into their businesses,’’ she said.

    Lesi said that W-TEC would soon organise a master-class to educate individuals and organisations on strategies to successfully raise funds for online courses.

    NAN

  • Tailor commits suicide in Lagos

    Tailor commits suicide in Lagos

    TRAGEDY struck on Monday on a street in Yaba, Lagos Mainland,  when a tailor committed suicide.

    The incident took place at a Boys Quarter behind the late tailor’s shop at  4, Adebiaye Street, off Tejuosho Road, Yaba.

    Residents could not say how the late Funmi, who was popularly known as Iya  Hamida, took her own life.

    A trader said: “When she was passing my shop just this morning, I was calling her but she ignored me. Not until I heard she committed suicide.”

    The shop owner, Iya Sewa who hired Iya Hamida as assistant tailor, said  the reason for her action was best known to her. According to Iya Sewa,  she didn’t show any signs of depression.

    “I don’t know her reasons of choosing to kill herself; the only thing I know was that she was complaining over the contribution money she was meant to collect last week.

    “She called me on Sunday that she wanted to collect her contribution money from a thrift collector (Alajo) and that if he (the Alajo) fails to give her the money. Wahala ma se le o (there’ll be trouble),” she said.

    Asked about the late Funmi’s relatives and address, her boss said: “I don’t really know her husband and house address. All I know is that she stays at Idi-Araba, Mushin.”

    Another trader screamed, “Allahu Akbar! I saw her sitting at the shop yesterday (Monday); when I came to look for Iya Sewa and she told me her boss was not around. I can’t believe this.”

     

  • Driver allegedly bolts with beer worth N554,000

    Driver allegedly bolts with beer worth N554,000

    A 30 -year-old driver, Tope Alesinloye, who allegedly bolted with alcoholic drinks valued at N554,000, was on Monday brought before an Ikeja Magistrates’ Court in Lagos.

    The accused, who resides at Ifo area of Ogun, is facing a charge of stealing.

    Alesinloye pleaded not guilty of the charge.

    The Magistrate, Mrs O.J Awope, granted the accused N200,000 bail, with two sureties in like sum. Awope said that the sureties should be gainfully employed and show evidence of two years tax payment to the Lagos State Government.

    Earlier, the prosecutor, ASP Ezekiel Ayorinde, told the court that the accused committed the offence on November 8 at Ogba, Lagos.

    Read also: Driver docked over theft of maize

    He said that the accused absconded with 168 crates of Gulder lager beer worth N554, 000, property of Fafem Haulage Nigeria Ltd.

    The prosecutor said that the accused was supposed to deliver the drinks to a customer at Yaba, Lagos.

    “On his way, he diverted the truck to an unknown customer where he sold the drinks.

    “The accused abandoned the truck and ran to Ekiti.

    “He was later arrested and handed over to the police,’’ he said.

    The offence contravened Section 287 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015(Revised).

    Reports say that the accused risks three years in prison, if found guilty of stealing according to the provisions of Section 287.

    The case was adjourned until January 19 for mention.

    NAN