LAND OF INSECURITY ! Ondo senator: I can no longer travel to my town because of kidnappers

Ajayi Boroffice, senator representing Ondo north senatorial district, says he can no longer travel to his hometown because of the fear of being kidnapped.

Boroffice, who is the deputy majority leader at the upper legislative chamber, said this during a visit to the Akure residence of Reuben Fasoranti, Afenifere leader, whose daughter, Funke Olakunrin, was killed by gunmen.

Olakunrin, 58, was murdered along Benin-Ore highway while returning to Lagos after visiting her father in Akure, Ondo state capital, on Friday.

Boroffice called on the federal government to beef up security across the country.

“The government which I’m part of, should find a solution to this problem. The ordinary people in Ondo state will still carry out their businesses… you can’t ask them not to go out. In the senate, we discuss this issue of insecurity on regular basis,” he said.

“I’m here in Akure now, I would have loved to go to Oka, my hometown but the fear is that how do I move from Akure to Oka because their is a spot near Oba where these people (kidnappers) are. So, this issue is affecting everybody.

“It’s not something that we should feel unconcerned about. We are all concerned and I believe there is something going on on how to find a solution to this problem.”

- THECABLE

I slept with my brother-in-law thinking it was my husband – Woman tells court

A trader, Mrs Kuditat Ajayi, 52, told an Igando Customary Court that she slept with her brother-in-law because she thought he was her husband.

Ajayi’s husband, Akande is seeking the dissolution of their 35-year-old marriage, accusing her of infidelity, NAN reports.

”I was in bed in the night when my husband’s younger brother came to the house my husband rented for me.

“I thought it was my husband who normally come to the house at that particular time between 9 p.m. and 10 p.m. to play and sleep with me.

“It was after he finished making love to me that I realised that he was not my husband.

“When I queried him, he claimed that my husband had traveled that was why he came to have sex with me.

“I reported the case to my brother’s wife, who advised me not to tell my brother so that peace can reign in the family.”

The respondent said that her husband treats the children of the other wives better than hers.

The mother of four denied being fetish as claimed by husband.

Ajayi prayed the court not to grant her husband’s wish for the dissolution of their marriage that she still love him.

The petitioner, Akande approached the court to terminate his 35-year-old marriage accusing wife of infidelity.

He said that his wife was wayward and adulterous that her man friend was claiming paternity of one of their children.

“When I married her, I rented an apartment for her because I have other wives and I don’t want them to live together.

“I started hearing from people in the area that my wife was having affair with a man, initially I ignored it until her lover came claiming ownership of one of my children.

“The man eventually came to the house but I refused to open the door for him.

“When I questioned my wife, she confessed that the man slept with her but it did not result in pregnancy.”

The 71-year-old businessman said that his wife was fetish.

“I once caught her burying something in my compound, I accosted her and tried to remove what she buried there but I could not.

“I went out before I returned, she had cemented the place.”

He begged the court to end the marriage that he was no longer interested that the love he once had for her husband had faded.

The president of the court, Mr Adeniyi Koledoye, urged the two parties to maintain peace and adjourned the case until August 22 for judgment.

- DAILY POST

Buhari’s service chiefs operating illegally – CSOs

Several civil society organisations (CSOs) have accused the service chiefs of operating illegally in office since their tenure had elapsed on Saturday, July 13, 2019.

The CSOs under the aegis of Coalition of Civil Rights for Justice, Peace and Security (CRJPS), faulted the approval given by the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai, for a shake-up within the top hierarchy of the army.

Speaking to journalists in Abuja on Monday, Executive Secretary of the coalition, Barr. Abubakar Dan Bauchi, said given the worsening insecurity in the country, it was high time President Muhammadu Buhari listened to agitations in many quarters and overhaul Nigeria’s security architecture.

He said, “We note with regret that the continued retention of the Chief of Defence Staff and the Service Chiefs despite the fact that their constitutional tenure of office lapsed since July 13, 2019 is not in the spirit and letters of our revered Armed Forces of Nigeria.

“The failure of President Muhammadu Buhari to listen to voice of reason and retire the security chiefs has not helped matters either; as the development has in no small measures contributed to stagnation in careers of our able military personnel besides the obvious fact that their morale in professional duties had been dampened.

“We, the Coalition of Civil Rights for Justice, Peace and Security have appealed to the president to immediately do the needful by retiring the Chief of Defence Staff and the service chiefs given that their constitutional tenure of office had since lapsed.

“Any official action taking by the Chief of Defence Staff and the service chiefs after this date is deemed not only illegal but also considered null and void.

“Their continued stay in office would amount to gross violation of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and will also demoralize officers and men who cannot grow in the system.

“As not only citizens of this country but also lovers of the current government, we are constrained to make this appeal to Mr President to immediately retire the service chiefs who were appointed on July 13, 2015 for a tenure of two years and whose tenures of office were extended. Our records show that they completed a four-year term.

“Given this, we kindly appeal to Mr President to immediately retire the Chief of Defence Staff and the various service chiefs as any official action taken by them in the office after July 13, 2019 will amount to illegality.

“Besides, their continuous stay in office is compressing the system and may have been responsible for the so much security lapses we have in the country today.”

The service chiefs include: Chief of Defence Staff, General Gabriel Olonisakin; Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Tukur Buratai; Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas; and the Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar.

- DAILY POST 

Danger! Read LASG’s timely warning on consumption of food preserved with chemicals

The Lagos State government has warned the public against consumption of food preserved with pesticides or other agro-chemicals, noting that it is harmful to human health.

This warning is coming on the heels of recent reports on social media in which it was alleged that grains, especially raw beans was being mixed with known insecticide – dichlovorous also known as ‘Snipper’ to preserve it and prevent insect infestation.

Lagos State Ministry of Health’s Permanent Secretary, Dr. Titilayo Goncalves who gave this warning on Monday explained that dichlovorous, which is from the class of the Organo-phosphotus chemicals, were poisoning in nature and dangerous to human health.

She added that the chemical was oil based and did not wash off easily on grains when rinsed with cold water.

“It is criminal to spray food items, including grains, with such poisonous chemicals, these chemicals have lasting odour and retentive capacity”, Goncalves said.

The Permanent Secretary stated that anyone who consumed food preserved or contaminated with dichlovorous would exhibit symptoms ranging from abdominal pain, diarrhea, vomiting, breathlessness or respiratory disturbances, become irritable, and that this might lead to coma and even death.

Goncalves added that the effect of exposure of human, especially traders and marketers in edible grains who use it to preserve their product and prevent pest infestation might include irritation of eyes and skin, headache, nausea, dizziness, chest tightness, discharge of thin nasal mucus and even paralysis.

“Any person who exhibits any of these symptoms should report immediately to the nearest health facility for prompt management”, she said.

She explained that thorough cooking of grains generally reduced risk of exposure to the chemical, stressing that the best possible caution against exposure was to avoid preserving food with poisonous chemicals, including pesticides.

She advised residents to wash all raw foods, including grains, fruits and vegetables thoroughly before cooking and eating, saying that that thorough washing of raw foods and fruits in several rinses of water before cooking was a lot better than just cooking without washing.

“You are advised to also report any individual or group of people suspected of involvement in harmful food preservation techniques to the State Government through the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Agriculture, the Lagos State Safety Commission”, Goncalves said.

While reaffirming the State Government’s commitment to the good health and well-being of residents, the Permanent Secretary stated that government was working towards ensuring food security and safety.

According to her, the State government was aware of various harmful and unhygienic practices of food processors, traders and marketers in food preservation and was doing the needful to curb food poisoning in the state.

Goncalves warned traders, marketers and processors of raw foods to desist from the use of unapproved chemicals for killing pests on raw food, noting that the State government was against any practices inimical to the good health and wellbeing of the populace.

“We wish to reiterate that the Lagos State has zero tolerance for distribution of unwholesome foods and all forms of food poisoning in the State and we will therefore leave no stone unturned in ensuring wholesomeness in the process and distribution of foods that Lagosians consume”, she said.

While soliciting the support of residents in exposing any unhygienic and harmful health practices, Goncalves tasked them to make formal reports to the aforementioned agencies of government or call the 09095259940.

- PM NEWS

Global hunger on the increase – UN

More than 820 million people worldwide were under nourished in 2018, the third consecutive year of slight increase after decades of decline.

This is said according to a report presented on Monday by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) to newsmen, United Nations officials and stakeholders at IFAD’s headquarters.

The 239-page ‘The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World’ report, released annually, is a comprehensive look at the state of hunger worldwide.

The report is produced by IFAD along with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the World Food Program (WFP), both based in Rome, as well as the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

According to the report, the number of hungry people in the world is increasing more or less in step with the global population growth.

This means the figure of 820 million hungry people in 2018 represents a slight increase compared to 2017, but in relative terms, the number of undernourished people in the world has held steady at just under 11 per cent.

More or less consistent in percentage terms since 2015. Before that, the report said, the number had steadily decreased in percentage terms.

“We can no longer wait to transform global, national and local food systems,” IFAD President Gilbert Houngbo told Xinhua via email.

“This report comes at a time when the calls are growing for a radical transformation of food systems.

Houngbo said the world needs “food systems that are sustainable, nutritious, inclusive and efficient.’’

The report said Africa is hardest hit by under nourishment, with nearly 20 per cent of the population suffering from hunger.

In western Asia, hunger is on the rise, with more than 12 per cent of the population impacted.

Hunger is also becoming more common in Latin America and the Caribbean, where nearly 7 per cent of the population is affected.

More than two billion people live without sufficient access to safe and nutritious food.

That includes around 8 per cent of the population in North America and Europe, the most economically developed parts of the world, noted the report.

It added that the number of babies with unhealthily low birth weight and the level of obesity worldwide are also on the rise.

It cited poor economic development, climate change and violence as the main culprits behind the trends.

The cheapest food options in many countries, including large economies in transition like Brazil, China and India, contain increasingly high levels of fats and sugars.

This is making it harder for people with low incomes to eat a healthy diet, it pointed out.

The report said the rising number of hungry people in the world underscores the immense challenge of achieving the Zero Hunger target by 2030.

This is a reference to one of the main planks from the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals agreed to in 2015.

The Zero Hunger provision includes efforts to end hunger, eliminate malnutrition (and) to build inclusive and sustainable food systems

- PM NEWS

Estimated billing: NLC tells NERC to provide meters

Ayuba Wabba, the President Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has called on the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to direct Distribution Companies (DisCos) to stop estimated billing.

Wabba made the call at the “Public Consultation on Capping of Estimated Billing, Distribution Franchising and Competitive Transition Charge’’ organised by NERC in Abuja on Monday.

He said that estimated billing was exploitative and had continued unabated, adding that it could be addressed by providing meters to customers.

“Your organisation is essentially a regulatory outfit, recently I had to make a statement that it seems the agency is soft on the operators and hard on customers for obvious reasons.

“How can we make progress in such a situation, it shouldn’t be about profit, but it should be about service to Nigerians.

“Therefore, I want you this time around to make sure you bring the full wrath of the law to respond to those people that are actually making things difficult for Nigerians.”

According to Wabba, power is central to development of the country and businesses, especially those in the manufacturing sector.

He said that labour and capital work hand-in-hand, adding that “what affects capital, affects labour, so that is why the issue of electricity is dear to our heart.”

The NLC boss said that the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) had continued to decry the lack of stable power supply as their businesses were almost going under.

“Industries are closing down because they have to run on generators, power is not stable and it is too expensive.

“We cannot create jobs if we don’t have stable power supply, if we are going to the wrong direction, we should put a stop to this as it will not take us to the ultimate direction.

“This type of interaction is very important but you must also act on our complaints, we must be able to do what is right.”

- PM NEWS

Another Lagosian shot dead by SARS

Men identified as members of the special anti-robbery squad (SARS) of the Nigeria police force have shot dead a man in the Ilupeju area of Lagos state. 

A witness told TheCable that incident happened on Ajisegiri street in Ilupeju, Odiolowo Ojuwoye local council development area of Lagos, on Monday morning.

The victim was simply identified as Francis, while residents said he had gone about his daily job of cleaning when he was killed. 

“The guy was in the area to sweep the compounds of his customers,” a witness told TheCable. 

“The Ajisegiri area is notorious because of these boys who come there to smoke, and the area has always been raided by police. But this morning none of the boys was there, just this man going about his business. He was shot and he died almost immediately.” 

Bala Elkana, spokespsman of the Lagos police command, did not immediately respond to a message seeking an update on the matter.

In March, there was a nationwide outrage following the killing of Kolade Johnson, a football fan, in Onipetesi area of Lagos.

Johnson had left his on a Sunday evening to join friends at Kingstine-Jo, a nearby bar, to watch the live English premiership match between Hotspur and Tottenham.

His killers were later identified as Ogunyemi Olalekan, an inspector, and Godwin Orji, a sergeant who have now been dismissed from the force.

- THECABLE