FIFA overturns Messi’s four-game ban

Argentine star, Lionel Messi’s four-match ban has been overturned by the world footballing body, FIFA, after reviewing his appeal on Friday.

The Argentine was suspended for verbally abusing assistant referee Dewson Silva during his country’s 1-0 win over Chile in a World Cup qualifier.

He was caught on camera saying: “f*** off, the c*** of your mother.”

In addition to the suspension, the 29-year-old Barcelona forward was fined 10,000 Swiss Francs (£8,111) after being reported to world football’s governing body.

FIFA, in a statement, said: “The FIFA appeal committee has upheld the appeal lodged by the Argentinian Football Association, on behalf of the player Lionel Messi, against the decision taken by the FIFA disciplinary committee, lifting the sanctions imposed on him as a result.”

Despite upholding Argentina’s appeal, the committee stressed it “considered Messi’s behaviour as reproachable” but concluded that “the evidence available was not sufficient to establish” an infringement had occurred.

“The Appeal Committee nevertheless underlines the importance of always showing respect to the match officials, stressing that such a principle is essential in football and any unsporting conduct that may be contrary to the principles of fair play cannot be accepted,” said the FIFA statement.

Messi missed Argentina’s 2-0 defeat to Bolivia as a result of his suspension but will now be available for the next international break.

Argentina’s qualification chances for the Russia World Cup has taken a massive boost with the decision of FIFA.

Messi is eligible to play in the upcoming fixtures against Uruguay, Venezuela and Peru.

Prayer-dispensing machine installed at Stuttgart airport

Henceforth, Passengers passing through Stuttgart airport in Germany are being offered a new way to pray — a photo booth-like machine that delivers prayers from various faiths at the push of a button.

Developed by Berlin artist Oliver Sturm, the machine is scheduled to operate for three months.

An employee of the airport’s chaplaincy said on Thursday that “we installed the machine in the departures area on purpose, as passengers are generally more relaxed after they have passed through security.”

Meanwhile, Sturm said that his “Gebetomat,” a portmanteau of the German words for prayer and machine, had been in operation since 2008, “but this is the first time it is being installed at an airport.

“The machine is not intended to promote any particular religion,’’ he added.

Police Arrest Man With Roasted Human Parts In Taraba

The Police command in Taraba say they have arrested a 60-year-old man, Abubakar Abdulkadir, for allegedly being in possession of roasted human parts.

The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Mr David Misal,  said the suspect was arrested at Alin-Gora Village, Ardo-kola Council Area of the state.

The police image maker said Abdulkadir was arrested with the body parts suspected to be that of his nephew, Ali Gimba, reportedly missing on April 27.

“He was found in possession of body parts of the missing boy. He roasted part of the boy’s body and loaded it in a sack.

“We also recovered a knife and a hoe which the suspect used in digging a hole to pour and cover the boy’s blood,” the police spokesman said.

Misal further said the police were investigating the motive behind the crime, adding that the suspect would be charged to court, after the investigation.

“We want to know the purpose of this crime. Is it for ritual; to eat the flesh, or for sale. - NAN

Banky W & Adesua in cute photo with Wedding Party cast

Banky and his wife-to-be Adesua are lead cast for the film – Wedding Party 2. That would be nice

Mother of 7 jailed 6yrs for human trafficking

A Benin High Court on Thursday jailed a 58-year old mother-of-seven, Mrs. Joy Raji, six years for human trafficking.

The convict who pleaded not guilty to the three-count charge bordering on deceitful inducement to move from any place, receiving a person to be used for forced labour and slave dealings, was arraigned in January 2016.

She was accused of trafficking an 18-year -old girl (name withheld), who worked as an artist designer in Benin City, before she was trafficked to Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, for exploitative purposes.

The prosecution told the court that the offences contravened the provisions of the Trafficking in Persons (Prohibition) Law Enforcement and Administration Act, 2013, as amended.

During the trial, the Prosecution called three witnesses and tendered exhibits, including a slave uniform passport, travel tickets and bank teller to prove its case.

The accused was said to have collaborated with her brother, Evans Aghahowa (now at large) and introduced to the victim, the idea of travelling to Kuwait for better living. But it was said that the victim was sold in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia from one person to another without proper care.

Various sums of money were also collected from the victim’s mother, Mrs. Mary Osula, who is a trader, to facilitate the trip.

In her testimony, the victim said that in Kuwait “a certain man took me to a 20-storey building and I was locked up inside. I never came out again. I was not given food; I ate from remnants I could find. When I complained, the man told me that he paid 750 Kuwait Dinar to purchase me.”

The victim was held in bondage in the two countries and her life and liability was under the absolute control of her “Oga” and “Madam.”

The victim narrated that she ran away once to the police in Kuwait but was unfortunately returned back to her madam who purchased her.

Delivering his judgment, Justice Alero Edodo Eruaga, found the accused guilty and sentenced her to four years imprisonment on count 1, and two years imprisonment on count 2 without option of fine. The sentence is to run concurrently.

It will be recalled that in April, 2017, the Agency also secured the conviction of three human traffickers in Edo State to two years imprisonment each, for trafficking two female secondary school students (16 years and 18 years) to Cote de Ivoire, for prostitution, contrary to the provisions of the Trafficking in Persons (Prohibition) Enforcement and Administration Act, 2015.

 

23-year-old Nigerian man stabbed to death in London (Pic)

23-year-old Seun Isaiah McMillan was stabbed to death in Southgate, London on Tuesday night, May 2.

Homicide detectives believe he was attacked four miles away in a playing field at Masefield Crescent, close to his family home.
Witnesses said they alerted police after an argument broke out "over money" between a group of young men gathered in the park.


A post-mortem examination on 4 May gave his cause of death as a single stab wound to the chest.

On Tuesday, 2 May, police were called to Barnet Hospital at about 19:30hrs to reports that a man - later identified as Seun - had self-presented at the hospital, suffering stab injuries. Seun was later pronounced dead at around 20:20hrs that evening.

Detectives from the Homicide and Major Crime Command are investigating. Detective Chief Inspector Lee Watling, who is leading the investigation for the Homicide and Major Crime Command, said:

"We now believe Seun was stabbed in Cowper Gardens in Southgate and at that time there would have been a number of people there that had attended in cars.

"We are keen to speak to everyone who was there, and would appeal for them to contact us. We would also appeal to anyone who saw what cars were in Cowper Gardens at the time of the incident to also contact us.

"We continue to appeal for any witnesses to the attack, or anyone with any information about it, to contact us.
Meanwhile, two men - aged 27  and 25 were arrested in the early hours of Wednesday, 3 May, in connection with the murder. Both have been released under investigation.

Friends and relatives believe Shea, as he is fondly called, lit candles at a tearful vigil at the senes on Wednesday night as police officers searched drains and checked beneath vehicles in a hunt for the murder weapon.

A cousin, who spoke under anonymity told Evening Standard that he was just so bubbly, he is just a normal guy and he didn't deserve what happened.

"The last time I saw him at the park we were playing football, he loved it and played centre back. I have no idea what happened to him. His mum is just trying to cope. Everybody knows him around here they all liked him. He was a popular guy."

In a note, Seun's grandparents said :

"Such a wonderful and caring young man taken away from all of us family and friends. You will always be in our hearts forever, rest in peace."

Suspended NIA boss’ wife bought Ikoyi flat with $1.6m cash – EFCC

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on Friday named Mrs. Folashade Oke as the owner of Flat 7B, No. 13, Osborne Road, Osborne Towers, Ikoyi, Lagos, where the sums of $43,449,947, £27,800 and N23, 218,000 were recently recovered by the Commission.

Mrs. Oke is the wife of the suspended Director General of the National Intelligence Agency, Amb. Ayo Oke, whose agency had laid claim to the money.

As revealed by the EFCC, Mrs. Oke made a cash payment of $1.658m for the purchase of the flat between August 25 and September 3, 2015.

She was said to have purchased the property in the name of a company, Chobe Ventures Limited, to which she and her son, Master Ayodele Oke Junior, were directors.

Payment for the purchase of the flat was said to have been made to one Fine and Country Limited.

The EFCC stated that Mrs. Oke made the cash payment in tranches of $700,000, $650,000 and $353,700 to a Bureau de Change company, Sulah Petroleum and Gas Limited, which later converted the sums into N360,000,000 and subsequently paid it to Fine and Country Limited for the purchase of the property.

The EFCC on Friday tendered the receipt issued by Fine and Country Limited to Chobe Ventures Limited as an exhibit before the Federal High Court in Lagos, where it is seeking an order of final forfeiture of the recovered money to the Federal Government.

“The circumstances leading to the discovery of the huge sums stockpiled in Flat 7B, Osborne Towers leaves no one in doubt that the act was pursuant to an unlawful activity.

“The very act of making cash payment of $1.6m without going through any financial institution by Mrs. Folashade Oke for the acquisition of Flat 7B, Osborne Towers, is a criminal act punishable by the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Amendment Act. I refer My Lord to sections 1(a), 16(d) and 16(2)(b) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Amendment Act,” a counsel for the EFCC, Mr. Rotimi Oyedepo, told the court on Friday.

In an affidavit filed before the court, a Detective Inspector with the EFCC, Mohammed Chiroma, stated that “Chobe Ventures Limited is not into any business but was merely incorporated to retain proceeds of suspected unlawful activities of Mrs. Folashade Oke.”

While urging the presiding judge, Justice Muslim Hassan, to order the permanent forfeiture of the funds to the Federal Government, Oyedepo argued that the fact that Flat 7B, Osborne Towers was purchased in a criminal manner, made the N13bn recovered therein “extremely suspicious to be proceeds of unlawful acts.”

The lawyer noted that despite the newspaper advertisement of the initial order of April 13, 2017 temporarily forfeiting the money to the Federal Government, no one showed up in court on Friday to show cause why the money should not be permanently forfeited to the Federal Government. 

Mercy Aigbe shows up at police station on invitation

According to LIB, at about 12noon today, embattled Nollywood actress, Mercy Aigbe arrived at the Area F police station in Ikeja on invitation of the Nigerian police.

It was learnt that the actress and her hubby were both invited to the station but only Mercy showed up and at the moment there's no concrete explanation on the state of things.

Mercy Aigbe reportedly declined to speak with journalists at the station and there's no confirmation if the case is proceeding to court as earlier speculated.

Nigerian man arrested for allegedly raping 47-year-old woman in the US

A 53-year-old Nigerian man who worked at a group home in Raleigh, North Carolina was arrested last month after he allegedly raped a 47-year-old woman who lives there.

Police accused Nnamdi Godson Nwankwo of Rolesville of second-degree forcible rape and sexual activity by a substitute parent. Both charges are felonies. Records show that police arrested Nwankwo on Merrell Drive in Raleigh at about 10 a.m. on April 5th. Police said the incident happened a day earlier. 

Source: Raleigh Police

Pastor trying to evade duties check knocks down Customs official on highway

A Customs officer serving in Akwa Ibom State was critically injured on Thursday after he was knocked down on a highway by a man who allegedly tried to evade duties check.

The man, who was later identified as Nsikanabasi Ese, a pastor, and founder of Kairos Rhema Embassy, Uyo, was driving in an SUV along Eket-Ikot Abasi-Port Harcourt Highway, in Onna Local Government Area of the state, when he was reportedly flagged down by Customs officers at a checkpoint around 10.30 a.m.

“He (the pastor) slowed down the vehicle, so we naturally thought he was pulling over,” the injured officer, Daneke Emmanuel, told journalists at Immanuel Hospital, Eket, where he was receiving medical attention. “At the point that we were relaxed, he fired back the engine at full throttle, and before I could dive to safety he had already hit me.”

The pastor, Mr. Ese, was said to have sped off after hitting the officer.

He pulled over the brown colour Toyota Highlander at a short distance along the highway when he noticed that a Customs vehicle was about giving chase, a Customs official who witnessed the incident told PREMIUM TIMES.

“He flung open the car door, walked away from the car and then suddenly slumped on the ground as though he was in great pains,” the witness said. “As we were about to find out what was wrong with him, another occupant of the car jumped onto the steering and ran away with the car.”

The Customs team drove both its injured officer and the pastor to the hospital.

The injured officer, a deputy superintendent of customs, was complaining of pains in his waist region when journalists met him. He could not move his right leg and was assisted to sit on a hospital chair by two other Customs officials.

A medical doctor in the hospital, Dickson Okonjko, said he attended to the 51-year-old officer around 12 noon and had to give him an injection to relieve him of pains. He said he had directed the officer be taken to a medical laboratory in Uyo, the state capital, where they could run some quick tests on him before treatment could commence.

When journalists enquired of the medical condition of the pastor, Dr. Okonjko smiled and then responded, “I have directed that x-ray should be done on him here in the hospital since he is complaining of chest pain”.

The pastor declined to comment on the incident when journalists met him in one of the wards in the hospital. An unidentified young lady was with him.

One of the customs officials told PREMIUM TIMES that they suspected that the pastor was pretending to be in pains to forestall the possibility of him being charged to court.

A handful of customs officials inside two of their trucks were seen arriving the hospital premises at about 3 p.m. - Premium Times

Police Discover New Kidnappers Hideout In Ikorodu

The Lagos State Police Command  said it had discovered a new kidnappers’ hideout where arms as well as Police and military life jackets were recovered.

The Commissioner of Police in Lagos, Mr. Fatai Owoseni, who confirmed the discovery to newsmen, said the hideout was discovered during the raids of creeks at Isawo in Ikorodu area of Lagos.

Owoseni said the hideout was discovered on Thursday by a team of Ikorodu Special Anti-Robbery Squad and Volunteer Police led by Superintendent Godfrey Soriweiu. He noted that the success came two weeks after the discovery of a similar hideout in Isawo.

“In continuation of its onslaught against militants operating from the creeks, Lagos State Police Command early Thursday morning raided and recovered seven Army and Police bullet-proof vests.

“The teams also recovered eight ballistic helmets and nine life jackets from a new kidnapper’s hideout in Lagos.

“Other items recovered by the team include a speed boat belonging to the suspected kidnappers,” he said. - NAN

Shell to invest $25 billion in Nigeria, other countries

Multi national Oil company, Royal Dutch Shell, has announced plans to invest about 25 billion dollars this year in Nigeria and all its oil and gas operation across the world.

Shell made the announcement in its first quarter 2017 financial results released on Thursday.

The report revealed that Shell netted an income of 2.2 billion dollars and was expecting to generate 10 billion dollars in cash flow from the delivery of some of its new projects by 2018.

The company recently announced the resumption of oil production at its 225,000 barrels per day (bpd) Bonga Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) field in Nigeria’s deep-waters.

According to the company, the repair of Bonga will ensure sustained production and reduce unscheduled production deferments.

Shell is also involved in a new deep-water project – the 13.5 billion dollars Zabazaba Deepwater project located in Oil Prospecting Lease (OPL) 245.

The net profit, it said, doubled in the first three months of 2017, as rebounding oil prices and refining gains helped boost its revenue.

According to the report, Shell generated a cash flow of 9.5 billion dollars in the quarter, up 13 fold from a year earlier, and the strongest among some of its rivals in the industry.

“We saw notable improvements in upstream and chemicals, which benefited from improved operational performance and better market conditions,” the Shell’s Chief Executive, Ben van Beurden said in the report.

Shell, with operations in more than 70 countries, is Nigeria’s oldest oil producing partner, holding various joint venture and production sharing arrangements with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and other foreign oil companies.

NAFDAC Destroys Products Worth Over N105m In Nasarawa, Benue States

The National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) in Nasarawa and Benue states have jointly destroyed expired drugs, food, cosmetics, and expired drinks worth N105 million.

Mrs Yetunde Oni, the Acting Director-General of NAFDAC, made this known today at the venue of the joint exercise in Lafia, the Nasarawa State capital.

Oni, represented by Alhaji Abubakar Jimoh, the NAFDAC Director,Special Duties, said the periodic destruction exercise was one of NAFDAC’s strategies to prevent the circulation of fake, counterfeit medicines and unwholesome products in the country.

She said that some of the products earmarked for destruction were voluntarily handed over to NAFDAC by various governmental and non-governmental organisations while others were mopped up from open market via enforcement activities and NAFDAC surveillance systems.

The coordinator said that the total amount of products destroyed was worth over N105 million with 80 per cent of the products from Benue, because the agency that had destroyed products worth N24 million in Nasarawa six months earlier.

He added that to efficiently comb the nooks and cranny of Nasarawa State of illegal and unwholesome NAFDAC products, the agency had set up an outpost office in Karu local government area of the state, to regulate growing commercial activities in the area.

How ExxonMobil Causes Nigeria To Lose $35m Daily

Mismanagement by oil giants, ExxonMobil, of the Joint Venture deal with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), SaharaReporters has learned, has resulted in production losses amounting to 600,000 barrels per day, which cost Nigeria $35million daily. Information available to SaharaReporters revealed that the mismanagement is symptomized by the high-handedness of Mr. Nolan O’Neal, Managing Director of ExxonMobil.

This, the website was informed, has resulted in a shut in at Mobil production facilities, imposing the loss of 300,000 barrels of JV crude per day, 200,000 of Deepwater cruder per day, 25,000 barrels of condensate per day and 43,000 cubic units of Liquefied Natural Gas daily. The production shut in at Mobil facilities was caused by the decision of the Mobil management to transfer previously nationalized jobs to expatriates.

Company sources told SaharaReporters that in 2015, the Mobil management, headed by Mr. O’Neal, met with the company’s chapter of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) to discuss the modality for reducing operational costs due to the stifling business environment. At the meeting the association supported the management’s proposal to trim the workforce by laying off 142 employees.

But, again, in 2016, said sources, the management approached PENGASSAN and tabled a proposal to lay off more staff. PENGASSAN, disclosed sources, argued that the management had no justification to consider another cull, given that over 50 expatriates were brought into the country as replacements for the Nigerians sacked the previous year.

“Available data show that the cost of maintaining these expatriates is higher than the cost of 142 separated employees and cannot be justified by management’s claim of lowering operating expenses,” said a source.

Another source disclosed that the action of the management was part of Mr. O’Neal’s grand scheme to replace Nigerians with expatriates in ExxonMobil’s affiliates in the country. According to the source Nigerian management staff sacked in 2015 and replaced by expatriates in 2016 included Messrs. Jide Ayo Vaughan (Executive Director), Emeka Awobokun (General Manager, Logistics) and Ayo Olubiyi (General Manager, Security). In addition, Mobil sacked 11 Master Mariners and replaced them with unqualified expatriates. The management also brought in 16 expatriates to replace three persons sacked from the security department.

Based on these figures, explained the source, the company’s chapter of PENGASSAN rejected the request of the management to downsize in November 2016. But while discussions were still in progress, explained sources, the management adjourned the meeting indefinitely without any agreement with the local PENGASSAN chapter.

What followed next was that the management started issuing sack letters to staff on 14 December 2016. Many of them, said to have served the company for between 10 and 27 years, got the information that they had been sacked through their spouses and via text messages. Those informed through letters were said to have been marched out of the company headquarters like criminals.

“The action of the management was in flagrant disregard for the collective bargaining agreement (CBA),” a source told SaharaReporters, adding that the action also violated Nigerian laws.

The source maintained that clauses 2 (a) and 3 (f) of the CBA were breached by the management. The former states: “The company confers full recognition of the association as the sole collective bargaining agent on matters affecting the conditions of employment of all the company’s senior staff, who are financial members of the association (as stipulated in the applicable laws) and with classification levels CL17 through CL 25.”

Section 3 (f) prescribes that in the event of major changes affecting the welfare and conditions of service of PENGASSAN members, the association must be informed and “both parties shall agree on the proposed changes before implementation”.

Sources explained that the action of the management amounted to a violation of the relevant clauses, as there was no agreement with PENGASSAN regarding the implementation of either a special severance package or redundancy.

Insiders equally argued that even if redundancy was discussed with the association, management’s implementation of it amounted to a violation of Clause 20 Section 1 (c) of the Nigerian Labour Act.

The section states: “The employer shall use his best endeavors to negotiate redundancy payments to any discharged workers, who are not protected by regulations made under sub-section (2) of this section.”

Sources told SaharaReporters that the discussion held between the management and the association was on special separation package, not redundancy. Company insiders disclosed that media reports of exaggerated sums paid as redundancy allowances were planted by the company to mislead the public, as no impacted staff has been paid anything close to the reported sums.

“The management is being economical with the truth on implementing redundancy,” said a source.

Documents available to this website also show that the management’s action was in breach of Clauses 28 (1) and 31 (1) of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Content (NOGIC) Act 2010.

According to the former, “subject to section 10 (1) (b) of this Act, Nigerians shall be given the first consideration for employment and training in any project executed by any operator or project promoter in the Nigerian oil and gas industry”. The latter states: “For each of its operations, the operator shall submit to the Board a succession plan for any position not held by Nigerians and the plan shall provide for Nigerians to understudy each incumbent expatriate for a maximum period of four years and at the end of the four-year period, the position shall become Nigerianized.”

Company sources maintained that the Mobil management has scant regard for Nigerian authorities. According to them, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Mr. Ibe Kachiukwu, appealed that the sack letters issued be withdrawn for both parties to return to the negotiation table. However, the Mobil Managing Director was said to have blatantly refused. - SR

Woman Swallowed $7000 in a Bid to Hide It from Her Husband

A jilted woman has swallowed rolls of $100 bills amounting to a total of $7000 in a desperate attempt to hide the cash during a fight with her husband.

Surgeons extracted 57 $100 bills from a woman who swallowed $7,000 in cash

A 30-year-old Colombian lady identified as Sandra Milena Almeida, swallowed $7,000 in a desperate bid to hide the cash from her husband after she discovered that he had cheated on her.

According to Dailymail, the jilted wife swallowed the rolls of $100 notes in a 'fit of rage', after she had reportedly hidden the cash, which was saved up for a holiday, in the couple's home.

The surgeons who removed the cash revealed that the woman who after discovering her partner's infidelity, gulped down the rolled-up notes whole in a bid to hide them.

The next day Ms Almeida, from Piedecuesta, northeastern Colombia, was rushed to hospital with severe abdominal pains.

She did not tell doctors about the money, but x-rays showed dozens of 3cm-long objects in her stomach and intestine.

Doctors at the Santander University Hospital in Bucaramanga managed to save $5,700 after cleaning and drying out the notes in the operating theatre.

Juan Pablo Serrano, chief surgeon at the hospital, said his first they thought was that Ms Almeida was a drugs mule as the objects in the X-ray images were similar to bags of narcotics.

He told Colombia's Radio Caracol: 'We took the patient into surgery for two procedures to clear the blockage, on her stomach and intestine.

'The dollar notes were washed and are in good condition, but the rest of the money was lost because of the gastric fluids.'

Mercy Aigbe Writes Husband Open Letter, Proof I’m A CHEAT Or I Will Slam Another Lawsuit On You

Yoruba Actress, Mercy Aigbe has taken to social media asking her husband to proof she is a cheat and mentally sick with evidence. She posted photos above to buttress the accusation levelled against her estranged husband. Read her full statement after the cut.....

"Dear Lanre Gentry, It breaks my heart that I have to do this but as it is you have left me with no choice......I had sleepless night because I just couldn't comprehend why someone i loved , someone with whom I have a child will be hell bent on destroying me, I just cannot comprehend it........
I read with tears in my eyes all the LIES you fabricated against me, LIES you feel will justify your inhumane act, LIES you feel will gain you public sympathy and LIES calculated to bring my person to public opprobrium........

You claim ....
(1) I am Mentally Unstable (2) That you have caught me with different men
(3) That I do not take care of my parents (4) That a man rented an apartment for me..........
LIES all LIES........

Dear hubby I challenge you to back on your claims with PROOF!!!!!!!!!..........
Hmmmm lanre you forget quickly!...., you forget how I have labored and stood by you all these years, even tho all what I was getting from you was constant beating, harrasment ,threat to my life and threat to destroying my image if I dare,leave you...... .,,You must PROOF all your allegations otherwise God knows I am going to add another lawsuit to the one on ground!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Although my Team has been pleading with me to stay silent all these while, but I have come to realize that you want to ride on my keeping mum......
#saynotodomesticviolence #realmendonthit
#mylifeisnotinyourhands

My Wife Slaps Me At Will, Divorce-Seeking Husband Tells Court

An Ado-Ekiti Customary Court dissolved the three-year-old marriage between Mr Mayowa Ogunrinde and his wife, Busayo, over frequent fighting and disrespect for in-laws. The petitioner, Ogunrinde, 35, a civil servant, also told the court that his wife has no respect for him.

“Most of the time, I do all the domestic chores while my wife will always watch me.” The petitioner told the court that the respondent was fond of slapping him whenever there was a misunderstanding between both of them.

He claimed that though he fulfilled all his financial responsibilities as a husband, he always went hungry, as his wife would never fulfill her duties in the kitchen. The petitioner pleaded with the court to grant his application for dissolution of his 3-year-old marriage to Busayo, to enable him enjoy peace of mind.

He prayed the court to award the custody of their daughter to Busayo, but with a clause that he would take custody once she turned six years.

One of the petitioner’s witnesses, Mrs Mary Oluyemi, 60, told the court that she, on several occasions tried to settle the dispute between the petitioner and the respondent without any success.

Busayo, who at several times had been served with court summons was absent in court.

President of the court, Mr Joseph Ogunsemi, after listening to the petitioner and his witnesses, said that the marriage had broken down irretrievably and consequently dissolved the marriage.

‎He awarded the custody of the only child of the marriage to the respondent for proper care until the child turns six years.

Ogunsemi also ordered the petitioner to be paying N2,000 as monthly feeding allowance of the child‎ through the court’s registrar, effective from May, 2017 for onward delivery to the respondent.

He ruled that the petitioner would be responsible for the education of the child at all levels, besides medical bills.

The president granted the petitioner unrestricted ‎access to the child‎. - NAN

 

DSS arrests kidnapping syndicate in Sokoto

Operatives of the Department of State Security Service, Sokoto State Command, have arrested a seven-man kidnapping gang operating in the Goronyo Local Government Area of the state.

Parading the suspects at the command’s headquarters, the DSS state Director, Alhaji Tijani Kafa, said the suspects were arrested between April 15 and 19, 2017.

He added that the leader of the syndicate, identified as Abdullahi Mohammed, aka Hanazuwa, was arrested on April 19, 2017, with a Dane gun through a joint military operation.

Other members of the syndicate are Shabi Danmusa, Muhammed Abdullahi, Isah Aliyu, Ibrahim Maye, Yusuf Ibrahim and one Sule — all from Taloka village in the Sabon Birni LGA.

Kafa added that the suspected kidnappers, who had terrorised wealthy rural farmers, had made confessional statements and would soon appear in court.

He explained that the gang members met their Waterloo when their spiritual head, Muhammed Abdullahi, aka Boka, after an operation, went back to their victim’s family and promised them spiritual protection.

He said, “The security operatives, however, latched on this clue, leading to the arrest of the syndicate.

“The group also kidnapped one Nasiru Maigoro on February 24, 2017, in connivance with a family member at Goronyo, and moved him to Zango Arab, in the Sabon Birni LGA, bordering the Niger Republic.

“The victim was kept with Hanazuwa until the family paid a ransom of N1m, after beating down the kidnappers’ initial demand of N10m.”

GEJ remembers Yar’adua seven years after

Former  president, Goodluck Jonathan has paid a glowing tribute to his former boss, Umaru Musa Yar’adua.

Yar Adua died on May 5, 2010 after a protracted battle with Acute Pericarditis at the age of 58.

Jonathan was immediately sworn in as the President following his demise.

In a moving eulogy to the former president on Facebook, Jonathan described the late Yar’adua as a peacemaker who would forever be remembered for bring a lasting peace to the Niger Delta region.

He wrote, “Seven years ago you left this world leaving behind a legacy of detribalized leadership and a soil that was fertile enough to grow trees whose shade you would never enjoy. As a peace maker, you helped bring peace to the Niger Delta and that singular act brought manifold benefits to Nigeria.

“As a democrat, you promoted due process in government and equity in public administration. Umar Musa Yar’adua, a friend and brother, a great gift to the nation and people of Nigeria. Seven years gone but never forgotten.

“May you Rest In Peace even as we hope and believe that you made al-Jannah firdaus. Miyetti Allah for the life of service you lived and may Almighty God care for the family you left behind. GEJ.”

Photo News : Nollywood Actress, Bimbo Akintola Slays In New Photos As She Turns A Year Older Today

She is 47 today ! Happy birthday !!

Teenager sets 43-year-old lover’s house ablaze over sex

A teenager by the name Sophie Stonehewer, has been spared jail term after setting her 43-year-old boyfriend’s house ablaze.

The 18-year-old set fire to a curtain in Steven Beddows’ house while he was in bed around 3.40am on February 1.

She then ran to a neighbour’s house to raise the alarm when she couldn’t put out the fire herself  and told them ‘he made me do it.’

According to Metro UK, Mr Beddows managed to put the fire out before any major damage was caused at his home in Offerton, Stockport, then refused to give statements about what had happened.

During the court the couple, it was learnt that the couple who are still together, had been arguing about their sex life before the fire was started.

Stonehewer’s defence barrister Robert Lancaster said: “There was an argument between them it involved alcohol and sexual activity.

“The argument was of some severity which left this defendant upset and angry, and in an emotive state. It is right to say that that she was pushed in a very emotive way and she reacted to her partner in a way she had never done before and in a way that she is deeply sorry for.

“She tried to put the fire out with her hands but didn’t have much success. She ran to a neighbouring address to raise the alarm and that friend rang the fire service and the police. When they got there the fire had been put out by Mr Beddows.

“The defendant was in hysterics and she was deeply upset and deeply fearful of Mr Beddows reaction of what she had done. She accepts what she had done and then she became more hysterical when she was arrested and taken to the police station.”

Photos News : Daniella Okeke's luxury vacation in Dubai

Lagos Not Part Of Yorubaland-Oba Akiolu

The Oba of Lagos, Oba Rilwan Akiolu, has claimed that Lagos State is not part of Yoruba land.

Akiolu’s statement is coming barely a week after he publicly humiliated the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi at an event.

In a statement from Akiolu’s palace, the monarch traced the historical background of the state and why it should not be regarded as part of Yoruba land.

The statement reads: “Coming from the palace, with what I was told by my late paternal grandmother who is a descendant of Oba Ovonramwen Nogbaisi and also reading from factual Historical books, let me share this Knowledge with you all on Eko/Lagos.

“Modern day Lagos was founded by Prince Ado, the son of the Oba of Benin, Prince Ado was the first Oba of Lagos, the son of the Bini King, Prince Ado, named the town Eko until the Portuguese explorer Ruy de Segueira changed the Maritime town to Lagos, which at that time from 1942 was Portuguese expedition center down the African Coast.

“It was a major centre of the slave trade until 1851. Lagos was annexed by Britain via the Lagos treaty of cession in 1861, ending the consular period and starting the British Colonial Period. The remainder of modern day Nigeria was seized in 1886 when the Colony and Protectorate of Nigeria was established in 1914 Lagos was declared its capital due to the struggle of the Bini King.

“Lagos experienced growth prior to the British Colonial rule and even more rapid growth during the Colonial rule throughout the 1960s, 70s, continued through the 80s and 90s till date. Thanks to the Awori’s, Bini’s, Yoruba’s, migrants across the nation and world at large, as no particular group of people can take the glory alone.

“Lagos is made up of Lagoons and creeks. The Lagos lagoon, Lagos Harbour, five cowne creeks, Ebute-Metta creeks, Porto-Novo creeks, New canal, Badagry creeks, Kuramo waters and Light house creeks.” - Daily Post

I met Christ where I went to buy Indian hemp in 1972 – Ayewa gospel singer

Joseph Adelakun fondly called Ayewa is a gospel singer, songwriter and televangelist. He shares his life experience with Ademola Olonilua

You have been a musician for over forty years. When you started out, did you ever imagine your brand would be this big?

I thank God for everything but if I say that I ever envisaged that I would be this great in life, I would be telling a lie. I was just like the biblical Joseph who did not know how great he would be in life even though he had visions and dreams. I was from a Muslim background. My father was an Alhaji and he built a mosque for the community. I had in a staunch Islamic background where we never drank alcohol not to talk of smoking.

In our house, once we woke up, the next point of call was the mosque and I loved God. I had dreams that I would be great like Joseph in the bible. Like they say, no pain, no gain; no cross, no crown. There is no one that has attained success in life that does not have a story. There are some dignitaries in our society that hawked several food items as kids just to survive but when it was the appointed time of God, their star came out. One has to go through some suffering in life before attaining success. I hawked food stuff as a child. After school, I would take the foodstuff and hawk; in fact I did this with my school uniform. My father was not a poor man but our mothers made us do it as a form of training. I was raised in a highly disciplined family, the kind of family where you dare not eat your meat till you had finished your meal. I am saying all this because if there is no glory, there would be no story until your life changes before you can tell your story.

How did someone with such a strong Islamic background become a pastor?

It happened miraculously through the will of God. Many people do not know that I did not go to secondary school and the reason is that the year I proposed to go to Olivet High School was the same year my father died. That was in August 1964. My father had five wives and 16 children and after his death, we were like a herd of sheep without a shepherd. The first son who had just left a school of agriculture could not fend for us because his salary was just a stipend. We all had to find our way. I did an exam to go to Olivet High School and I was accepted but I had no money. I passed exams to study at trade centres in Oyo and Osogbo but lack of funds hampered my admission. So when one of my elder brothers approached me asking what I wanted to do with my life, I told him I wanted to become an electrical engineer. My mother was devastated. She said it was the same job one of her friend’s children did before he was electrocuted, she began to cry but I maintained my stand. Luckily, someone came along and told her to let me do what I wanted so as not to regret it later in life. Then I was taken to Kareem Electrical Engineering Service in Ogunpa, Oyo State to become an apprentice.

Back then, Ogunpa could be likened to the rough parts of Ajegunle and Mushin in Lagos. There were a lot of urchins there. It was a very rough area. The gutter where we urinated was the same place we ate and our constant food was gari and groundnut. Most times, we had to help people sweep or do other menial jobs before we could get some food to eat.

My elder brother paid for my apprenticeship and I spent about two years there from 1966 till 1968 and when I left Kareem Electrical Engineering Service, I immediately joined the Nigerian army through one of my friends. He first enlisted into the army and when he came home to visit, he was spending money and we believed he was a rich man. We began to follow him everywhere but as of the time, I was only smoking cigarette till I went to visit him and I met him with some soldier friends of his smoking Indian hemp.

They offered me Indian hemp, initially I declined but shortly after, I joined them and that was the first time I took the substance. Till date, I do not know how I left that place. The next day I woke up with gari and milk all over my body. I was scared because my boss must not know what I was up to the previous day but I really thank God for the life of one of my boss’s wives who covered up for me on that fateful day.

Normally, whenever I woke up, I was charged with boiling water for my boss to have his bath but on that day because I was so messed up, I could not perform my normal duty. When my boss asked after me, his wife told him that I had fever and I was sleeping, so my boss permitted me to take the day off. I vowed never to smoke Indian hemp but shortly after, I broke the promise. Few days later, I accompanied my soldier friend to the cinema and when we were returning home, we stopped to buy Indian hemp again. That was how I started smoking marijuana in 1968. After moving around with my soldier friends, they advised me to join the army because they were recruiting in Agodi Ibadan. Even though I did not meet the required age qualification, my friend urged me to enlist with the promise that he would ask someone to influence it. That is how I joined the army without the knowledge or permission of any of my family members even though I am the only son of my mother. I was about 20 years at the time I joined the Nigerian army in 1969.

I went to Abeokuta depot and after I completed my training, I was posted to Nigerian Army Engineers due to my skills as an electrical engineer. In 1972, I met Christ when I was posted to the Nigerian army engineering regiment in Ede, Osun State. That year, we went to a compound in Ede to buy Indian hemp and as I was going back to the base, they were having a revival, so my friends and I decided to attend and look at what they were doing. We heard that a blind man was leading the ministration but he was very powerful. When I got home that night, I went to pray as a Muslim and in the middle of the night when I was sleeping, I heard someone speak to me in a loud voice saying, ‘I am the person you came to meet and if you allow me I would make you great. I am taking you to great places. I am Jesus whom you know as the Prophet Isah.’ Immediately I woke up, I rebuked the dream. Later that day, while I was sitting among my friends, I heard someone say, ‘I want to use you for my glory.’ I told my friends what I was hearing and I began to make jokes out of the message but they asked me to stop. I did not know that God had chosen and prepared me since I was in my mother’s womb. When I started going to church, my friends said it was because I was trying to get women. They believed I would get fed up but I went because of my conviction as a Christian. Gradually I began to attend church programmes and the Lord began to show me some revelations.

If your father did not die, do you think you would have become the man you are today?

What has been written has been written. Anything that pertains to covenant must come to pass. Even if my father were to be alive, I don’t think anybody could disturb the work of God. I don’t think my father would have disturbed me because he was not an irrational person. He was a staunch Muslim though. When I became a Christian, some of my uncles were unhappy. There was a particular one, although he is dead now, who said that if they had known I would convert to Christianity, they would have given out the ram for my naming ceremony to beggars and God would have been happy. They overreacted but the Lord told me to keep quiet.

What was your mother’s reaction?

Mothers would always be mothers. She was quite happy but she did not let the family members notice her excitement. The main reason she was happy was because I quit smoking Indian hemp after my conversion. She was very bothered about my smoking habit. She felt that as a soldier, no one could talk to me but after accepting Christ and I quit smoking Indian hemp, she was elated. I am glad that my mother later became a Christian before she died. She lived as a Christian for about 29 years before she died.

Before you ventured into music, was there any singer in your family?

There was no single singer.

How did you discover your talent?

I would say it was God. The spirit of music had been impacted in me right from my mother’s womb. The Yoruba have an adage, ‘it is from a black pot that a white pap is produced.’ We did not have any singer in my family but God had impacted that spirit in me because He knew He wanted to use me. Even before I became a Christian, I had always dreamt and anything I saw in my dreams always came to pass.

As a child, I could be going to the market with my mother and I would see some people walking with their head. Out of fear, I would hold my mother and yell that a certain person was walking with his head but my mother would shut me up because she knew the meaning. I saw a lot of strange things as a child, so my mother decided to take me to an Islamic cleric who did some things to me so that I would stop seeing those strange things. Despite that, could not hinder God’s plans in my life. In retrospect, I could have been a very powerful prophet if I was not taken to the Islamic cleric.

As someone without any musical background, how have you been able to produce some evergreen hits?

Sometimes when I listen to my music, I am always surprised. Someone asked me one day about the secret of my success and I told the person that if I knew the answer, it meant that God is no more God. You cannot know the secret of your success because the foundation of any success is God. I am a good composer but it is a God-given talent. I was never a composer till I met God.  One of my hit songs, ‘Amona,’ I was just sitting down one day when I began to scribble down the chorus for my other band mate and the other lyrics of the song came to me effortlessly as we were recording the song. That is why I tell people that I was not the one that made the album, it was an angel. It was a covenant album. All my albums have solid messages but they cannot be compared to the album, Amona, because it was a covenant album after I accepted God’s call. God had been  calling me since 1978 but I did not want to listen to his call because I was enjoying being a soldier.

It means that initially you were reluctant to heed to God’s call?

I did not want to listen to God’s call because I was doing well in the army. I was the orderly to a senior army officer, Gen. D.O Ajayi. I was in charge of everything; be it money, food, drinks, etc. but I never took what was not mine. I was comfortable in the army but when God’s call came, I was at the Command Staff College at Jaji with my boss. A prophet came to meet me and told me that I should either work in the military and wait for my pension after service or quit the military and receive what God had in store for me.

Do you regret or feel bad about the fact that you did not complete your education?

At times I feel bad but the main reason I don’t blame God is because he knows better than any man. Who knows, if I completed my education I could have been a ‘Mr. Know it all’ or I would not humble myself. There was a day I was thinking about it and God told me that he is the one that created man and he knows our capabilities. Since I heard that voice, I have stopped thinking about that.

Also, I would never forget Pastor Ashimolowo.  I still have the letter of the first appointment he gave me in London. When I got to his office, he told me that he realised that I had potential but I should not be shy about speaking because I did not complete my education. He said that I should call some of my members and speak with them even if my English was not correct. Ashimolowo further told me that I should speak bravely and with time, I would improve. He advised that I invest in buying books. I went to a bookshop and spent over £200, that was in 1996. When I got back to Nigeria, I bought an English bible and also a Yoruba Bible. I would study the English Bible and if I came across a word I did not understand, I would check the Yoruba Bible for its meaning. That was how I trained myself gradually. I tried to employ a teacher at a time.

What were some of the challenges you faced when you founded your Ayewa group?

I faced a lot of challenges but our forefathers had witnessed worse. I was just able to overcome due to the discipline I learnt in the military. If it is possible for me to enlist in the military again, I would because I still like that job. I love the job so much because of its discipline. I don’t like lies, so I do not indulge in such. I faced a lot of challenges but I don’t dwell on them because I know that God is in control. I know that if I put those challenges at heart, that would be a burden to me and I would not be able to face what God wants me to do. I am just glad that there has been no history of conflict in the group and if any member wants to leave, I pray for them and we depart amicably. I am also thankful to God that I have never buried any of my band members. This time last year, we had an accident and even though some of my band members were hurt, I thank God that none of them lost their lives. Two of my sons were in the vehicle with my band members but I thank God there was no casuality.

How many albums have you released in your career and which would you say is your favourite?

I don’t normally pick a favourite album out of all my works. The Bible says all what God created are beautiful and fine. All the messages God gave to me are beautiful and fine. The grace in each record may differ from each other but they are all impactful. I don’t think I have any favourite album and I love them all.

At 67, do you have any plans of retiring from music?

Do people retire salt from soup? Until I die and God says it is time for me to come home, I would continue to sing. I love music a lot. Although I am a minister in CAC, the retirement age in the church is 75, I am praying to clock 75 years on time so that I can face my music squarely.  I don’t think I can retire from music.

Why did you choose the name Joseph after you converted to Christianity?

When about nine of us from the military converted to Christianity, they asked us to line up and choose Christian names, I picked Joseph. Later, Pastor Akande told me that I would face what Joseph in the Bible faced. He said that it was an angel of God that opened my mouth and gave me that name. He said that I would face envy and jealousy but I would also emerge victorious in life. I thought it was a joke because I did not have anything worth being envious or jealous about. I did not know he was talking about the future. Till date, if I know that you don’t like my ministry, it does not move me. Everybody is my friend but I know where I am heading.

I don’t talk anyhow and my family members know that about me. That is why I said that being a military man has helped me a lot. Even when someone comes to backbite with me, all I do is watch and when it becomes too frequent, I tell the person that I do not like such an attitude. At first, people began to avoid me especially my family members but I pleaded with them not to do so because I need information but the correct one. Not information that would pollute my mind.

Does it mean that if you come back to this world, you would still want to be a military man?

Yes, I would want to be a military man because of the discipline in the army. If I had an opportunity to join the army again, I would do so.

How did you meet your wife?

I met her in a miraculous way and I know that God chose her for me. I went to Ile Ife to visit a pastor who is now late, Pastor Josiah. My wife also went there to see one of her students who was a prophet and her mother’s pastor. She was teaching in Gbogan, Osun State, at the time. When we met, another pastor was around and he said aloud that she was my wife. On the spot, I told him not to say such because we were about to embark on a spiritual journey to the mountain. Ironically, we left that location to another place and we met my wife there again to our surprise. Then another prophet saw us and called me aside to tell me that she was my wife. I went to pray about it because I am a very prayerful person and God told me she was my wife. He further told me the kind of woman she was and my visions about her turned out to be true. - Punch