Armed men abduct corps members in Rivers

Author(s): Tony Tamuno
Armed men, on Saturday morning, abducted three National Youth Service Corps members serving with Abua/Odual local government council, Rivers State.
According to Angela Agabe, the Police Public Relations Officer in the state, the victims are two male and one female youth corps members, and the motive behind the kidnapping is still unknown.
“Reports received by the command indicate that the corps members went to Ogomokon jetty, near the council headquarters, where three armed men abducted them early today (Saturday),” she said.
She added that the command’s anti-kidnapping unit had commenced a search for the missing corps members.
“So far, no group has claimed responsibility and no ransom has been demanded. The police have commenced investigation into the incident,” Agabe said.

Agbara residents live in fear after police kill suspected kidnappers

Author(s): Patience Ogbo
Residents of Agbara community in Ogun State are living in fear  following the killing of seven suspected kidnappers in the area.
Policemen attached to the Special  Anti-robbery Squad (SARS) of the Lagos State Police Command on Monday, arrested two men and killed seven others in a  hideout at the Agbara area in Ogun State following intelligence report that the gang  had kidnapped an Indian.
The police also stated that the gang was behind the kidnap of the Ejigbo Local government Chairman, Kehinde Bamigbetan and other prominent persons in the state including an unnamed serving High Court Judge.
A source in the community, who requested anonymity said policemen  from SARS stormed the area on Tuesday and arrested four other suspects  for alleged links with the notorious kidnap gang.
The source added that the police went to the house of one Chinedu Nnometa Akor, 25, who is one of the suspected kidnappers killed by the police, and arrested his elder brother Mike Nnometa.
” The residents in Agbara are afraid since the police discovered the alleged kidnappers’ hideout and killed some of them on Monday. The police also came back on Tuesday and arrested Mike Nnometa and three other men in one of the dead suspect’s house. We know Chinedu in this community as a business man and we are surprised to hear he is a kidnapper. His parents are in the United States of America and they are rich so we are perplexed  that he could be involved in crime. Mike, his elder brother was at home on Tuesday and we learnt the police came to their house and arrested him. The police also picked up three other men. We are afraid because we were told that they might have killed them in the cell and this is causing fear in the community,” the source said.
When contacted, the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Umar Manko said that he was not aware of the arrests.
“I am not aware  about  these arrests on Tuesday (sic). We are investigating the matter and we do not kill suspects in our custody. Those who died engaged our men in a gun battle. Two other persons were arrested alive on that day and the public saw them when they were paraded. Like I said, we are still  investigating this matter,” he said.

The Lagos security guard: an endangered specie

Author(s): Ikechukwu Muomah
Security guards have become common fixtures in corporate Nigeria. They work at banks, pharmacies, schools, and nearly every other kind of corporate establishment in the country.

Private security guards have become a common sight all over Nigeria.

Isaac Fajaiye is a 28-year old part-time student who works as a guard at a fast food restaurant in Jibowu, Lagos. He says he supervises the traffic of customers, and monitors the restaurant’s facilities to be able to forestall security threats. He says he earns N26,000 monthly but that the amount is incommensurate with the amount of risks his job involves.
“I just manage this job because I have to pay for my education,’ he said. “N26,000 is not enough to cover for the type of risk I face daily. There was a time when armed robbers came here, and they hit me with a gun when I told them I did not know where the money was.”
Many security guards face similar risks ― but they earn even less.
Bassey Udor is one of them. He’s a guard at a hotel in Festac, Lagos, and earns only N10,000 a month. ”Normally my job is to open the gate for cars to come in and go out, but I want to leave this work soon: the pay is too small and the risk is too much because robbers usually target big hotels like our own,” he said.

A private security guard. Many complain that the job is too hazardous for too little pay.

Considering that they are likely to get attacked while at work, some security guards think their employers should provide them with arms so they can protect themselves and discharge their duties more effectively.
Seun Oyeleye, who is one of the guards at a Lagos bank, belongs to this group. “We don’t have weapons to defend ourselves if the need arises, so if a small boy comes here with a gun and asks me to open the door, I’ll do so or else he may shoot me,” he said.
Most security guards are usually not employed by the company where they really do their work but by a separate security firm. This firm makes a deal with a given company, called the client, and then it hires people to work as guards at this client’s establishment according to the terms of the deal. In this case, the security firm is the real employer of the guards and is responsible for their remuneration and welfare.
Some of such security guards claim that their employer pays them an unfair amount of the money the client pays for their services or that their employer does not provide them satisfactory welfare conditions.
“Here we have no medical, retirement or insurance benefits,” said a guard who did not want his name published. “You’re not allowed to go on leave and nothing is given to you when your appointment is terminated.”
Samuel Yenki gave up after years on the job. “I worked for a security firm for over ten years and left when I learned the client was paying N18,000 for my services, whereas my employer was paying me only N6,000 of it,” he said.
Experts in the industry have decried the trend, saying that such treatment open avenues for security guards to betray the trust reposed on them.
Tony Ofoyetan, the director-general of International Institute of Professional Security, said professional security firms should not pay their guard less than 65 percent of what the client is offering. ”Besides that, a lot of these guards asking for fanciful welfare benefits do not even have the befitting educational or professional qualification,” he said.
Ray Ekwueme, a chief superintendent at the National Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), said that the agency is trying its best to enforce better conditions for guards employed with security firms.

NSCDC officers at weapons training. The Service says it is trying to regulate the private security industry.

“There are rules governing private guarding,” he said. “For example, the employers must provide medical benefits for their guards. So we have seized licenses and closed down some non-compliant security firms in the past. On the issue of what percentage of the client’s actual payment the security outfits should pay their guards, a decision has not been reached because clients don’t pay the same amount. If we say 65 percent, how will the outfits settle guards whose clients are paying N20,000 or less? But then we maintain that every guard must get a minimum wage of N10,000 no matter what his client is paying.”

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“Greedy people fall for our trap” – Fraudster

Author(s): Patience Ogbo
For many years now there have been numerous cases of fraud in the country, and while victims commonly claim that they do not voluntarily cooperate with the fraudsters but that the fraudsters hypnotise them, the fraudsters on the other hand claim that the victims voluntarily cooperate with them out of greed and the desire for easy money. The case of Chidi Nwazor and Mrs Oyekanmi is an example of this situation.
Mr Nwazor was arrested in May by the police in Oyo State for allegedly abducting and defrauding Mrs Oyekanmi of N100,000. He said he was able to defraud the woman because she wanted to get quick wealth.
“I and some friends normally used a car to pick up people at bus-stops,” he said. “We were four in the gang and I was the driver. Two of the others would sit in the car with me alongside a victim. When the victim gets into the car and settles down, I would address one of my gang members, ‘Mr. Man, those dollars you have in your bag in the booth are a lot, and I have to report you to the police.’ Then I would get out of the car, drag a bag full of paper from the booth, and ask everyone in the car to get out so I can go to report at the police station.
“The gang member claiming to own the bag would plead with me not to take the bag to the police and that he would allow me to keep some of the money. We would engage in this drama to get the attention of the victim. If the victim was greedy, he would ask to share in the money and would say I should not report to the police. We would then agree to share the money. Then the ‘owner’ of the bag would say that he stole the money from his boss, that his boss had cast a spell on the money, and that the spell would kill anyone who spent it.
“He would also say the only way to neutralise the spell was to go to a spiritualist to ‘cleanse’ the money. Here, I would volunteer to take everyone to the spiritualist. Our fourth man in the gang was the fake spiritualist. He would ask for a huge sum as fee for breaking the spell, and while we would pretend to bring our part of the fee, the victim would bring his so as to get a larger amount of money as we promised. But after he brings whatever he could get, our spiritualist would collect the money and swear us all to secrecy. Then we would give the victim fake dollar notes, and by the time the victim realises, we would have escaped. Then we would go to another part of town or another state. So you see, greed makes people fall into our trap; we do not hypnotise them.”
Mrs Oyekanmi said she was hypnotised. “I boarded the car (in Ibadan) from Sango to Mokola,” she said. “But the driver drove me to a destination that was unknown to me. I was not myself in the vehicle. There were also two men in the car who were arguing about dollar notes being in the booth. Next thing I know is that they took me to a fake prophet and collected my N100,000. After we returned to the car, my phone rang and it was my husband on the phone. While I spoke to him, I suddenly regained my senses. I was still in the car when I saw a police van and I raised the alarm that I had been kidnapped. That was how the police arrested the men.”
Speaking on if fraud cases are a result of hypnosis or greed on the part of victims, Dr Femi Akinfala, a psychologist and lecturer at University of Lagos, said: “Hypnosis happens. People do get hypnotised, though this cannot be scientifically explained. But most cases are a result of greed on the part of the victims.”

Abandoned slum dwellers fight for education

Author(s): Patience Ogbo

Nigeria, one of the countries which adopted the UN Millennium Development Goals, will continue to produce illiterate citizens as  the government has neglected the education of its teeming poor; experts have predicted.

The MDGs, which aim at providing universal primary education, remain a mirage for many poor and deprived children in Nigeria. Nowhere is this neglect more evident than among the children of slum dwellers.
The Otto-Ilogbo Extension in Lagos Mainland, one of the over forty slums in Lagos State, the commercial nerve centre of Nigeria, has no single government school for its population of about 15,000 residents.
Efforts by the community leaders to get the state government to build a school have not yielded any result, said Agbodimu Musbau, the Chairman of the Community Development Association.
Taking its fate into its own hands, the community initiated the Otto-Ilogbo Model Education scheme; and in collaboration with other nongovernmental organisations, including the UN Partners on MDGs, International Youth Council, the Akiode Foundation and the CARE TRUST, on May 4, 2013, organised a one day enlightenment campaign to sensitise parents and guardians on the need to educate their children.

The community is filthy, with wooden structures on piles of refuse serving as houses. The residents, despite the excruciating circumstance, seem happy and carefree.
The education awareness campaign recorded a massive turn out as most residents turned up with their children to attend a makeshift school built with wood.
Mr Musbau, the funder of the school, said he took the step to check poverty and possible outbreak of crimes in the community as more of the youth were becoming idle and restless.
However, his school can only accommodate 50 pupils in the beginner class despite the over 3000 children in the community.
“The current Education Assistance Scheme came to light with the contributory input of six NGOs coming together to build a wooden classroom and equipping it for the children,” he said. “The scheme also foots the salary of the teachers and equipping the computer laboratory. So far, the school has enrolled fifty children in its-pre-school programmes, and same number in after school learning. We also have a computer appreciation programme, for adults among other health awareness programme for the residents by one of the partners, the Stars Clinic.
As a social crusader, my interest in this scheme was as result of an injustice I suffered in 2011 when I took sole charge of a young boy, Ayodele Olaniyi, whose mother disappeared after his father died. When I got a doctor to look after him, I was accused and detained at the police station for child trafficking. I was released three days later and ever since I resolved to help those children in similar condition. An educated mind is an enlightened mind. A person that is educated would not become a tool in the hands of criminal gangs and dubious politicians who use them as thugs.
We set up the school because we don’t want our community to become a breeding ground for future criminals and societal nuisance. We want our children to be able to compete with children living in Ajah, Lekki and other big communities in Nigeria. Their place of birth should not determine their future as we want them to grow up to become doctors, lawyers, engineers and meaningful citizens in the country. This school will help curb future criminals and society would be better for it.”
Olakunle Sanni, the Founder of Child Advocacy On Right and Education Trust (CARE TRUST), said that educating deprived children is in line with the MDG goal that targets getting 60% of Nigeria children into schools.
“This is necessary as, according UNESCO in 2002, Nigeria had about 10 million out of school  children and most of these children live in deprived communities the slums and in the northern part of the country,” he said. “Our aim is to identify these communities one at a time, and with SUBEB and the Ministry of Education, we carry out enlightenment campaigns for parents and guardians so they can bring the children to school and get them enrolled. We are also working on volunteer teachers so as to improve the students –teachers ratio.”
Mr Sanni added that government need not chase slum dwellers away in the guise of building a mega city. He therefore urged the government to provide basic amenities in the slum to make live enjoyable for the residents.
“The slum is the best place for government to identify the poor and deprived citizens, and if they are serious about alleviating poverty, then they already have a pool of those to help,” he said. “Chasing them away is not the solution as these people would not go back to their villages but would rather fall victims to criminal gangs.
The government should learn from Brazil, how the government there did not demolish shanties or send the slum dwellers away but rebuilt the slum communities and provided basic amenities. If there is anybody that is failing in its responsibility, it is the government as the government is expected to provide at least 250 housing units every year but they have not done that. Let the government live up to its expectation and provide for the poor instead of compounding their problems with constant threat of demolition of their abode.”
A parent  of one of the new students, Caroline Egan, said she was delighted to have her 7 year old son enroled in a school for the first time. “We have been asked to pay N200; I am grateful to them as I can afford this amount,” she said.
John Nwosu, another parent, urged the government to assit the school. “This is a good community project and my daughter is one of the pupils that have benefited,” he said. “Government should assist by paying the teachers and also providing a good classroom.”

Woman narrates police brutality ordeal

Author(s): Patience Ogbo
Tope Moore, a 35-year-old single mother of two children, who was allegedly brutalised by policemen attached to the Pedro Police station in Lagos State and later detained at the State Criminal Investigation Department at Panti Yaba, has been released following an order from the Commissioner of Police, Umar Manko.
Tope, who was detained over allegations that her younger brother, Bolaji Moore, masterminded the killing of one Osondu Obuneke, was released last Friday after Manko was informed of her ordeal.

Tope Martins alleges that she was brutalised by policemen who detained her in her younger brother’s stead.

The CP also detained the team of policemen who brutalised her and effected her unlawful arrest.
When she spoke about her detention, Tope wept as she narrated her ordeal. She said she intends to petition the Inspector General of Police over the police maltreatment.
“I am still in fear over how the policemen treated me. It was around 1a.m. that fateful day when my 12-year-old son, Toheeb, called me on phone that some policemen had held him at gunpoint telling him to take them to his mother. I did not spend the night with my children. I went to my boyfriend’s house that night,” she narrated.
“Toheeb said the policemen  threatened to shoot him if he refused to bring them to my lover’s house. I  was at the balcony of the house waiting, when I saw the policemen. They were over twenty in 5 vehicles. I greeted them, since I know almost all of them. They asked of Bolaji, my younger brother, the last child of the family, and I told them I had not seen him in over three months. One of the policemen  was infuriated  by my answer. He jumped into the compound through the fence, bundled me through the balcony and started slapping me heavily.

Lagos CP, Umaru Manko ordered the detention of the policemen who brutalised Miss Moore.

“I could not comprehend what was happening. It was while the beating became intense I heard him say my brother killed somebody. They took me through the fence. I was injured but they pushed me into one of their waiting vehicles with a corpse. The policemen also arrested more people. They took us to the Famous Hotel where they were given some packages including beer.
“By 2:30a.m. they finally took us to the station, where I  was made to write a statement. I  was taken  into the cell. By then, I  had been totally brutalised. I even passed faeces on my body.
“I was released after paying N15,000 and promising to bring Bolaji. But I told the police after I was taken to see the Area H commander in Ogudu that Bolaji does not reside with me anymore and that ever since I  made Bolaji to work at UAC food as a technician in training but he continued to cause trouble in the neighbourhood, I had told him not to come to my house again.
“I was taken to SCID Panti but was released on Friday after spending four days in detention for a crime I know nothing about. As I am talking to you, I’m still shaken and in fear over my ordeal. I am glad to be released but I will petition the IGP and the Police Service Commission over my ordeal.”

Rights’ group seeks justice for injured orphan

Author(s): Patience Ogbo
Respite seems to be on the way for 21-year-old Chukwudi Adimoha, whose fingers were crushed while working with an Indian polythene manufacturing company in Lagos. A non-profit human rights advocacy group, Crime Victims Foundation, are intervening to assist the orphan in getting justice.
Chukwudi, a Junior Secondary School drop-out left his village, Arochukwu in Abia State for Lagos in 2012 in search of greener pastures. After months of searching, he got a job as a  machine operator with the Bhojraja Industries PLC located in the Ilupeju area of Lagos. But a few months as a machine operator left him without a thumb, and two fingers crushed.

Chukwudi Adimoha’s finger after the removal of the plaster.

His pleas to the company for assistance, as he could no longer use his fingers, have thus far, been futile.
Enter Crime Victims Foundation

The Crime Victims Foundation has become a counsel to the orphan to seek redress over the injury. Sarah Unobe, a lawyer with the foundation said they decided to assist Chukwudi get justice as he  has a right to be treated with dignity in his work place.

“This is sad that an orphan is trying to fend for himself and his other siblings but in the process of his honest toil, the company’s machine crushed his three fingers and they have refused to compensate him after they saw that he cannot use his hands to work any more  We decided to wade into the matter and help him get justice. We have written a letter to the management of the Indian company but they have not replied us.

The machine amputated a part of Chukwudi’s finger meaning that he no longer has full use of his thumb.

“We have decided to take the matter to the office of the Public Defender so that this poor orphan can get justice and his due compensation because as it is now, the poor boy has three younger ones he is catering for but he can’t any more because the machine crushed his fingers and they relieved him of his job; he can’t get job anywhere else too and this is very pathetic,” Unobe said.

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NSCDC seals off private guard companies by Patience Ogbo

The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Lagos State Command, has embarked on ‘Operation Do It Right’, in compliance with its powers over Private Guard Companies.

According to the act which established the corps in 2003, as amended in 2007, it has the mandate to register, license, train and re-train Private Guard outfits in the country.
Mefor Chibuzo, the public relations officer of the Lagos State Command, observed that most of the security outfits shutdown had been operating illegally without licences.
“Equally, the operating licences for some of them have expired and they refused to renew them,” he said.
“In view of this development, the corps has embarked on sanitising exercise to ensure full compliance. In the past three weeks, we have been going round Lagos metropolis sealing-up the offices of those who are operating illegally.”
The PRO warned those operating private security outfits to always abide by the law establishing them because any company found wanting will face the wrath of the law.

Witness says Cynthia Osokogu’s murder was carefully planned

Author(s): Patience Ogbo
A police officer, Joseph Edo, on Friday told an Ikeja High Court that the murder of Cynthia Osokogu was carefully planned and executed.
Edo said this while testifying at the resumption of the trial of four persons charged with the  murder. The accused, Okwumo Nwabufo 33; Olisaeloka Ezike, 23; Orji Osita, 33; and Ezike Nonso, 25, were charged to court by the Lagos State. They allegedly chained and strangled 25-year-old Osokogu to death at Cosmilla Hotel, FESTAC Town, Lagos, on July 22, 2012.
Edo, who was led-in-evidence by the Attorney-General of Lagos State, Ade Ipaye, said that Osokogu was murdered in Room 1C of Cosmilla Hotel. He said that the police began investigations immediately they received the report of the murder.

25-year-old Cynthia Osokogu was strangled to death at Cosmilla Hotel, FESTAC Town, Lagos, on July 22, 2012

The witness said that after investigation, the second accused (Ezike) was apprehended in Awka, Anambra State. According to Edo, the arrest of Ezike led to the arrest of the first accused (Nwabufo) at his residence in FESTAC. The witness said that the police later discovered that the accused persons had carefully planned and executed the murder of Osokogu, who they met on Facebook, a social networking site.
Edo said that Nwabufo instructed Ezike to purchase the chain with which they tied the deceased after drugging her with Rophynol tablets. He said that Ezike bought the drug from Osita, a pharmacist and the third accused. The police officer said the accused ground the tablets into a powder, put it into a pack of Ribena drink and gave Osokogu to drink.
“After we arrested the first and second accused, we checked their mobile phones and saw the correspondence between them,” he said. “There was a photograph from Ezike confirming that he had purchased the chain.”
The witness said that Nwabufo accused Ezike of strangling Osokogu to death at the Area E Police Command, FESTAC.  ”Nwabufo confronted Ezike at the station, saying ‘Why did you bring me to the police to arrest me? Why didn’t you tell them you strangled
the lady to death?’” Edo said.
The cop added that Ezike confessed that after killing Osokogu, he placed her international passport on her chest and took pictures of it with his mobile telephone.
“He (Ezike) told us (police) how he transferred the pictures from his BlackBerry to a laptop, and showed us the pictures which were also on the laptop,” he said.
He said that the police also recovered some items belonging to the deceased at Ezike’s residence. The items, according to him, included an international passport and a driver’s licence issued in the deceased name, a vibrator, jewellery, a pair of shoes and two bags.
The police officer said that the fourth accused (Nonso) was later arrested after he sold one of Osokogu’s Blackberry telephone to a man in Port-Harcourt. The court admitted the recovered items as Exhibits P3 to P13.
Justice Olabisi Akinlade adjourned the case till July 5 for continuation of trial.

NDLEA ARRESTS FIRST COUSINS OVER COCAINE HIDDEN INSIDE SHOE SOLE
Officials of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport (MMIA) Lagos have apprehended two brothers over alleged smuggling of 430 grammes of powdery substance that tested positive for cocaine. The drug which was craftily hidden inside shoe sole was detected during the outward screening of Etihad passenger flight to India.
The first suspect, Okechukwu Samson Agwueze, 23 was arrested when the drug was found inside the sole of the shoe he wore during screening of passengers on an Etihad Airline flight to India. The cousin brother Ogbonna Onwumere, 38, who sponsored his trip was also arrested and currently being interrogated by narcotic investigators.
NDLEA Commander at the Lagos Airport, Mr Hamza Umar expressed delight over the seizure. “It is gratifying that the cocaine which was concealed inside the sole of a shoe worn by the suspect was promptly detected. The second suspect who procured the travel documents and facilitated the drug deal was equally apprehended” Hamza stated.
Okechukwu Samson who is a casual worker said that his grievance has to do with the fact that his cousin lured him into drug trafficking. In his words, “I work in construction sites as a labourer to earn a living. I had wanted to travel out of the country in search of greener pastures but I was swindled of my hard earned N360,000 naira while trying to get my travel documents. My cousin, Ogbonna Onwumere promised to sponsor me to India so that I can work and further my education. He invited me to Lagos that everything was set for me to travel and gave me the shoe to wear that mine was old. He never told me there was drug in it”.
The cousin, Ogbonna who is an importer of textiles said that he wanted to use Okechukwu in smuggling the drugs to India. “I wanted to use him in smuggling the drugs because I used my money in processing his travel documents. I was doing him a favour but I will have to get my money back. Why must I sponsor him if there is no benefit” he stated. Both suspects are from Enugu State.
NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive Ahmadu Giade urged members of the public to be wary of relatives and friend who make offers of sponsoring them abroad. “Members of the public must be cautious of the antics of drug barons. They are not philanthropists but criminals in disguise looking for drug mules to use in advancing their sinister activities” Giade stated.
The NDLEA boss added that the Agency will investigate the case to a logical conclusion.

Ofoyeju Mitchell
Head, Public Affairs

CULTISTS STAB  MAN TO DEATH  IN LAGOS.
By Patience Ogbo
Suspected cultists  on Sunday allegedly stabbed  one  Osondu Boobu 25 to death.
The incident happened  at the Famous bus stop in the Pedro area of Bariga local government Council in Lagos State.
According to an eye witness who requested anonimitu ,Osondu  left his home at 30 Ayinke street  where he resides with his parents to take some bottles of beer at the Famous hotel about 7.30p.m and got to Famous hotel at 8pm. He died from stabbed wound around 10p.m.
"When he(Osondu) entered the bar he met some cultists  of the Eiye confraternity who asked him for money ,his refusal to give them money infuriated them ,as they accussed him of been an Aiye sponsor. Aiye is a rival cult so they said they have seen him  sitting with members of the Aiye at Ladylak area of the state. That's how the Eiye cult members namely ,Bonjeu ,Arinze ,Ahmed and one Feso who once went away with the police handcuff  and ayo and akilapa were all in the hotel bar.They stabbed him severally and he ran away from the hotel seeking for help.
At the scene of the stabbing were two police officers and the hotel manager called Yinka who has a bird as the tattoo on his arms..the two policemen are corporal Sanni formerly with the Pedro police station but now attached to SARS  and one owolabi attached to Pedro,they were together with the cultists  when the incident happened". 
The eyewitness added that
immediately Osondu ran outside bleeding a tricycle  driver assisted him to the Ladylak hospital where the hospital rejected him and asaid he should be taking to the General hospital at Somolu .o
"On their way coming back the tricycle driver was stopped by corporal Sanni who asked that the bleeding Osondu be brought down from the Keke Napep at the Famous bustop. he now ordered that they go and call the mother to come and carry her son as he  denid him of the urgent medicare but before the mother could come to the scene to take him away,Osondu died.
Residents said they are worried about cult killing in the area.
A resident one Mr. Jimoh said "for sometime now Famous hotel like the Arena club at jibowu has been known as the  hideout of the eiye cultists  as the arena is to aye.the manager is a member and some policemen notably owolabi and pepper have been accused of been members of the eye group and always supporting them.
while the sympathisers  were gathered to  mourn Osondo's  death, policemen came to dislodge them,shooting into the air a boy trying to escape hit his head against a wall  and died immediately.

TERRORISM: SECURITY EXPERTS URGE GOVERNMENT TO SET UP NATIONAL CRIMINAL DATA BANK.

BY PATIENCE OGBO

Security experts have called on the federal government to build a national criminal data bank as well as check socio-economic imbalance in the country to address insecurity and terrorism in the country.

These were  part of the recommendations  at a one day  security workshop organized by the Force Intelligence Bureau of the Nigeria police Force  tagged “The South West Geopolitical zone, intelligence sensitization and community partnership with the  theme :Enhancing National security through intelligence and community partnership”.

The workshop which took held at the Kakanfo INN in Ibadan on June 8^th   was  declared opened by the deputy governor of Oyo State, Mr. Moses Alake Adejumo who represented the governor at the event.

 Also, royal fathers ,traditional, religious, youth and community leaders  among business and professional bodies  and police officers from the South West Geopolitical zone were in attendance .

The Deputy Inspector General of police Abudulrahman Akano, the coordinating DIG, South West Geopolitical Zone represented the IGP at the Event.

The workshop was chaired by Professor Tekena  Tamuno, a former  Vice- Chancellor of the University of Ibadan.

Four papers were presented on varied aspects of intelligence-led policing, community-police partnership by security experts.

Mr. Fola Arthur Worrey, the Secretary of the Lagos State Security Trust Fund spoke on the topic “Intelligence –led policing and internal security: The imperative of community partnership.

In his view, Mr. Worrey stated that intelligence –led policing and internal security rest on community participation in the policing process   as he hinged the success of policing to intelligence investigation. The said “The end purpose of intelligence in a democracy is to prevent crime and to convict those intelligence has implicated. We will continue to look for solutions to solving security challenges but this may elude us as the government has failed to develop a national criminal data bank .It is imperative that the president makes an Executive Order to allow INEC and the SIM card registrations data to be available to the police and other security agencies; also where is the National Identity card? These are veritable data that the police can use to know the citizens and tracking criminals from one state to the other will become easy for the police”Mr. Worrey said.

Mr. Worrey added that for the police to succeed in fighting crime there should be conscious efforts to gain the public trust by shunning acts of discrimination, corruption and impunity to the public. He also added that police welfare especially of junior rank should be improved through proper funding.

Dr, Danjibo Natheniel from the Institute of Africa Studies  University of Ibadan, delivered a paper on “Role of Non-State actors in crime management” where he emphasized the role traditional rulers, community leaders, women, professional, business  and youth groups play in collaborating with security agencies to curb crime and criminality.

On his part, Barrister Bamidele Aturu, a Rights activist, blamed the political elites for the insecurity in the country. He stated that government failure to enhance the standard of living of Nigerians is the  bane of insecurity. He decried   the social-economic imbalance among Nigerians and called on the government to improve on the welfare of the people.

“You cannot talk about intelligence led policing and community partnership when there is so much poverty in the land. The political elites have succeeded in creating a social – economic imbalance which has resulted to the insecurity in the country. The political elites should be blamed for underfunding the police and for not providing the welfare for the citizens.

It is also necessary for the government to allow Nigerians to carry arms. It is discriminatory and it deprived Nigerians of their fundamental rights of protecting themselves.  To address the issue of welfare, it is imperative to state that the least take home pay for any worker in Nigeria should be N50, 000; while the highest paid including the president should be N250, 000. This way we can address the socio-economic imbalance and enhance the security of the country.”

Tonnie, Iredia, a former Director General of the NTA delivered a paper on “Policing and community partnership: the communication imperative” where he urged the police officers to create a better image for the police through it public relations department. He also urged the police to communicate better internally and with the public effectively.

Members of the audience in their contribution were unanimous in their call to the government to check impunity among low rank officers in the police force and for police officers welfare to taken seriously.

In his reaction, DIG Akano assured members of the public that the police are committed to becoming a better Force that would serve the public good. He therefore urged the public to continue to assist the police with vital information to check crime and criminality.

“We will continue to lecture our men and officers to treat Nigerians with dignity. The corrupt ones are not spared and we are trying to clean the mess of past failure. We take the blame for the type of officers we have produced. We are committed to securing lives and property and we cannot do this without the partnering with the community”.

Assistant Inspector General of Police, Force Intelligence Bureau, Solomon Arase stated that the police recognized the vital role the community plays in checking crime and therefore the workshop will be a continuous one.

He said “The Force Intelligence Bureau has organized this workshop in other geopolitical zones and this is because we need the public to trust us and partner with the police. This workshop will be a continuous one and the commissioners of police and the AIGs have been charged to  duplicate this workshop at the state and local levels and take the message to the officers and rank and file in their various command . ”

The workshop ended with the adoption of a communiqué.

Group petitions NJC alleged Supreme Court judge’s attempt to influence Ibru case

Telegraphng.com
A justice advocacy group, Access to Justice, has petitioned the National Judicial Council (NJC) over claims by retired Justice Okechukwu Okeke that a Supreme Court judge attempted to influence the outcome of a case he presided over last March.
Mr. Okeke, who retired last month, stated during a valedictory court session in his honour that Clara Ogunbiyi, the Supreme Court judge, extrajudicially attempted to influence how he determined certain proceedings that were pending before him.
The case in question, according to Mr. Okeke, was a suit filed by the Assets Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) in respect of certain properties forfeited by the convicted former Managing Director of Oceanic Bank, Cecilia Ibru.The application was argued on March 1st and the judge ruled in AMCON’s favour.
The retired judge said that a daughter of the Supreme Court judge, Funke Ogunbiyi, purportedly acting on her mother’s orders, visited his chambers and asked him to vacate the order, a directive he ignored.In a statement on Sunday, the advocacy group urged the NJC to investigate the incident.
“These allegations by Hon. Justice O. Okeke (rtd.) were made in the presence of the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Hon. Justice Auta, who was also mentioned in the reported sequence of events involving the named Supreme Court Justice,” read the statement, signed by Joseph Otteh, Director, Access to Justice.
“These allegations raise very troubling concerns for the independence and integrity of the administration of justice in Nigeria and need to be thoroughly, promptly and credibly investigated,” it added.
Mr. Okeke had further said that his refusal to obey the alleged directive of the Supreme Court judge led to her daughter and her lawyers writing a petition against him to the NJC.
The petition earned him a “serious warning” from the NJC in a letter dated May 6th, telling him to desist from acts prejudicial to the judiciary’s integrity.
Access to Justice likened the allegations to a similar incident in the past involving a sitting President of the Court of Appeal and an incumbent Chief Justice of Nigeria.
“The events which followed thereafter brought considerable embarrassment and ridicule to the Nigerian Judiciary from which it is yet to recover,” Mr. Otteh said.
“We acknowledge your efforts as Chief Justice of Nigeria to reform the administration of justice landscape, hold Judges accountable for their conduct and rebuild public confidence in the judiciary and salute this commitment.
“We bring this petition also because of our civic responsibility to help you succeed in the daunting task of transforming public perceptions of the Judiciary by strengthening the independence and integrity of justice delivery in Nigeria,” Mr. Otteh added.
The group also urged the NJC to investigate whether Mrs. Ogunbiyi sent her daughter to Mr. Okeke to discuss a matter pending in his court.
“It would also be necessary to investigate whether indeed she (Mrs. Ogunbiyi) initiated telephone conversation with the Hon. Chief Judge of the Federal High Court to express ‘fury’ over the ruling of Hon. Justice Okeke in a pending proceeding, and whether this prompted the aforesaid Chief Judge to put a call through to Justice Okeke to convey Justice Ogunbiyi’s alleged remonstrations against the Order to the Judge,” the statement said.

How Government neglected Dana plane crash site and hurriedly built a cenotaph two weeks to rememebrance day . By Patience Ogbo

Residents of Iju_Ishaga have accused the government of hypocrisy and vainglory.

The residents reside on Popoola and Okunsanya streets where the Dana Plane 0992 crashed on June 3^nd 2012 said the government neglected the crash site but hurriedly built a cenotaph two weeks to the first year memorial service.

Narrating their ordeal, the residents stated that government and Dana Airlines have refused to compensate them for the property they lost one year after the ill fated plane  crashed and destroyed their homes  and means of livelihood.

While the residents expressed joy to be alive, they however stated that their neighbourhood has   been neglected by the government.

Mrs. Yemis Popoola who led the protest stated that her street has become impassable due to the crash.

“I have live on Popoola Street for the past ten years but since this crash occurred, our street has become a night mare.  The heavy duty trucks to the crash site have destroyed our road. We are surprised that barely two weeks to the remembrance day, the  crash site which had been abandoned for  long got attention and a cenotaph was erected in two weeks  while the road leading  to the site was hurriedly constructed in less than one month all because they want to pay one year remembrance. This is not fair to us as our streets are affected and heavy rain will cause a flood in our house. We are appealing to the government to come to our rescue and rehabilitate our streets.

Also Mrs. Bose Samson, another resident urged the government to take residents’ lives seriously. “Government does not need to wait for the people to die before they built good roads and infrastructure. The Dana Plane crash site was filled with thick bush and armed robbers used it for their hideout to terrorise residents. However, we are surprised that just barely a month, government rushed to built a cenotaph and rehabilitated roads leading to the site - this action had left other streets around the crash site to be flooded and it was so bad when it rained the last time that our children could not go to school and some of them would have drown due to poor drainage and the bad roads. We therefore urged the government to fix our roads and make living here a pleasant one.”

 The residents in expressing their displeasure  used the opportunity of governor Babatunde Fashola’s presence at the event to mark one year of the plane crash   to  displayed banners and placards  with inscriptions “One year later , no compensation, “ Our action governor , help us to get our compensation from Dana, “ While we are suffering, Dana is flying”, “We want justice done now” . “We want to have Dana for Dinner”.

Also the women were not left out in the protest as they carried placards with the inscription “The moderate are not yet compensated, please let justice be done”.  Others read “Our Roads are always flooded whenever it rains –please we need your help_ Popoola Street.”

 Alhaja Ramota Akins a -64 year- old petty trader said she lost her business when the plane crashed and destroyed her house.

“Before the plane crashed that day, I had a grocery shop on number 3 Okunsanya Street but the crash destroyed my shop and part of my house. I have lived in trauma since then due to the shock of the crash but as I am talking to you now, Dana has not compensated me”.

Another resident, Lawal Olatunji, 35 and a father of two said he lost his sight as a result of the smoke from the Dana plane crash.

“I used to use my eyes before the plane crashed although I had operated on the eyes in the past. But when the crash happened, I ran out to see what the loud noise was all about but I was engulfed with thick smoke and my eyes started bringing out water. I was taken to the hospital where it was confirmed that the smoke affected my eyes badly and since then I had become blind. My wife lost her seven months old pregnancy and I lost my cows and other belongings running into millions of naira were destroyed. Despite my appeal and letters to Dana, nothing has been done to alleviate my plight “

Tears,anguish as Government, families,remember Dana plane  Crash victims.
By Patience Ogbo.
Rajulie and Ugabio Oyosoro would have been  16 and  and 13 years  old  respectively this year but this would not be as there lives were cut short by the ill fated Dana plane crash  on June 3rd in 2012.
 These two siblings  with  exceptional promise and  academic prowess were among the 157 victims of the Dana plane 992 which crashed at the Iju ishaga area of Lagos state.
The siblings among others were today remembered by the government and their loved ones.
The one year remembrance service took place at the crash site on Okunsanya street  with the laying of wreathes and the unveiling of a cenotaph   with the names of all the  victims on a tomb.
The event which was held in a very sober mood saw families of the victims in open anguish as they pay tributes  their loved ones.
Paying glowing tributes to the victims, Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola Of Lagos State stated that the death of the victims was a huge national lost and described the the crash as “a horrific day” which touched the world .
He said  “We had experienced a tragic accident whose cause remains yet unknown.But while the cause was at the time unknown, our collective tragedy was immediately unfolding.
Many nations and their nationalities from India, China, the United States and Nigeria were united by a common grief. The loss of their loved ones.It was an accident that took place in Lagos. But its impact and reach were beyond our borders.
Men and women, Muslims and Christians, Hindus and atheists became joined by a common pain. It was a horrific day.A year may seem like a long time, but for the families and friends of the men women and children we lost, that day does not feel like history.The memories of that day are probably as fresh as they are painful; particularly today when you are forced to confront the thoughts you may have pushed to the innermost recesses of your minds, just to enable you get from one day to the next". Governor Fashola said.

Consoling the families , friends and loved ones of the deceased, Governor Fashola assured that the lagos State government will continue to provide all the necessary support to families of the victims to ensure that they are duly compensated .
"What does one say at a time like this? What does one say when words will never be enough. Many of us cannot even begin to imagine how great your suffering must have been this last one year.We can only empathize with you, in the vain hope that our empathy will bring some relief. We can only utter words we know will never fill the voids but which we nonetheless pray will bring some comfort. What I do know is that today, although our grief is deep and our sense of loss unquantifiable, our heads are not bowed.
 We are not crest fallen. Your undying spirit to continue and your presence here today is a sign of monumental courage.
It is not courage without pain. No. It is courage defined by dignity and resolve to get on with life inspite of the pain.I stand before you today, the representative of a Government and a State that shared your pain. A State whose lot it was to play host in the most unwelcome of situations a year ago today.I stand before you today, united with you in remembrance of your loved ones and united in our collective desire to pay our respects to their memories.I say I am united with you in remembrance because I will also never forget that day. This memorial holds true for me forever in a different way” Governor Fashola added.
Family members of the deceased  while responding to the setting up of a yearly  and  memorial service in remembrance of the victims expressed appreciation to the Lagos State government for  conducting a DNA test for thevictims and for setting up the cenotaph for  posterity.
Dr. Ben Ayene who lost six members of his family to the crash urged the government to forestall a recurrence of such an ugly event.
He said  “Those of us who were directly affected were pained, angry, and despondent.The crash could have been avoided if human lives are valued in this country.We should not throw up our hands in resignation that the plane crash was an act of God. God does not kill his own.The victims families mourned, they found a chief comforter in the executive governor of Lagos State.
Lagos provided all relevant paraphernalia of emergency rescue services. Provided mortuary, ambulance, pathological services including DNA analysis to ensure that our people's bodies were identified and properly buried. We urged the federal government to look into the aviation industry becasuse  that sector is very organized and such a thing can only happen due to negligence on the part of those who are vested with the responsibility of proecteing lives in ourt airpace . such a thing hould not allow to happen again”He said

Chizoba Mojekwu,  the Director  Human Resource  with the Central Bank of Nigeria whose sister  Adaobi was aboard the ill-fated flight,  said in tears that  June 3rd  which used to be a special day for her family has become a mourning day as her sister was aboard the flight to lagos to mark birthdays of two family members who happened to have their birth days on June 3rd.
 She said “Attending the memorial is difficult because I am standing at the place where it happened. I’ve been living a life that maybe my sister was on holiday,  also I  lost eight colleagues to the crash. They say time heals all wounds. There is still much to do. Issues of what really happened to this flight remain unanswered
Also the issue of compensation. It is easy to blame the insurance companies but Dana Air has to step up and ensure that people are treated with respect and with dignity
Sometimes I believe that because I've lost my mum and for 14 years we still feel some of that pain.But this is very raw and we are still grieving, There are tons of unanswered questions  and as we speak these questions on how that plane crashed have  not been made public. Our questions on what happened that day is not to apportion blames but to find a closure  so that such a thing would not happen again" Ms. Mojekwu added.
Dr. George AfamIhemefuna  Osie, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Aviation represented the Minister of Aviation at the event .
 He revealed that the  Federal government is in touch with Dana Arilines to ensure all the families of the victims are duly compensated.
Prayers were said for the repose of the souls of the victims.
The high point of the event was the laying of wreaths at the Cenotaph  -157 wreaths. Governor Fashola accompanied by dignitaries  from the  US,China and Indian embassies among others international guests also unveiled the marble  tomb bearing the names of all the victims.

DRUG TRAFFICKING: NDLEA, ARMY RAID MUSHIN, RECOVER 3,166.15KG OF CANNABIS, COCAINE, HEROIN & METHAMPHETAMINE
A combined team of officers with the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and the Nigerian Army have carried out a raid on Akala area of Mushin, a notorious criminal hideout in Lagos. The operation which lasted several hours at the weekend led to the arrest of 47 suspected drug traffickers and addicts with the seizure of 3,166.15kg of narcotics including cannabis, cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine.
Chairman/Chief Executive of the Agency Ahmadu Giade commended the Nigerian Army Commander, 9 Brigade Lagos, Brigadier General Adeniyi Oyebade for giving the needed back-up because of the notoriety of the area. “The Agency will continue to gather intelligence reports and conduct raids on criminal hideouts. We are prepared to clean-up Lagos. This operation is a pointer to the fact that no criminal location is invincible. The understanding and cooperation of the Nigerian Army is highly commendable” Giade stated.
In his reaction, Brig. General Oyebade urged stakeholders to support the NDLEA in the eradication of illegal drugs in our society. In his words, “illicit drugs induce crime and aggravate insecurity. Considering the problem of drugs we are ready to assist the NDLEA whenever they call on. I also urge other stakeholders to partner with the Agency in making the country drug-free”.
NDLEA Lagos State commander, Mr. Aliyu Sule said that a cannabis warehouse was discovered during the raid operation. A total of 47 suspected drug traffickers including addicts were apprehended. They include 42 males and five females. “An illegal warehouse was discovered at the scene of operation where 3,166.15kg of drugs mainly cannabis was seized. There were also 31.4 grammes of heroin, 292 grammes of cocaine and 1.9 grammes of methamphetamine which were prepared in pinches meant for local consumption” Sule stated.
The commander added that the operation is the second raid on Akala in the last seven days. The first operation according to him led to the seizure of 187.355kg of cannabis.
It will be recalled that the NDLEA Chairman met with Governor Babatunde Fashola in February 2013 where the Agency solicited for State support on how to arrest the rise of drug trafficking syndicates following the discovery of several methamphetamine production laboratories in the State.
Investigation has commenced and all those found culpable shall be prosecuted while the addicts shall be placed on counselling.


Ofoyeju Mitchell
Head, Public Affairs