Category: News

Anambra Confirms First Monkeypox Case, Declares Outbreak

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The Anambra State Government says that one out of the two suspected cases of monkeypox reported in the state has been confirmed positive.

Dr Afam Obidike, the state’s Commissioner for Health, made the disclosure at a news conference in Awka on Thursday.

Mr Obidike said that the state had been on alert mode following the report of the disease early this year across some states in the country.
According to him, the state emergency preparedness and response team put all the relevant surveillance measures in place toward ending the spread of the outbreak.

“Few weeks ago, two suspected cases of monkeypox were reported in Anambra East, Onitsha and Oyi Local Government Areas (LGAs), out of which the case from Anambra East LGA was confirmed positive.

“The case is currently at the isolation centre of the Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, Nnewi, where he is receiving treatment and recovering.

“In light of the above, Gov. Charles Soludo immediately declared the incident an outbreak and an emergency preparedness and response committee meeting was convened on Wednesday.

“The meeting was attended by relevant stakeholders including the World Health Organisation (WHO) team and the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF). They are providing necessary assistance to the state.

“Planning for immediate response to the outbreak and surveillance, laboratory, case management, risk communication and community engagement, infection prevention and control and safe burial pillars, were activated,” he said.

Mr Obidike said that the state government had commenced the training of health personnel and response officers on enhanced active case search, sample collections and monkeypox management as well as intensify public awareness.

He urged residents not to panic and report to the hospital for proper examination whenever they notice rashes on their skin.

“Once it is established at the hospital, the patient will be taken to our isolation centres for treatment. We have activated all our Isolation centres in the state,” he said

Also speaking, Dr Adamu Abdulnasir, Anambra state Coordinator, WHO, said the organisation would support the state in terms of outbreak response and surveillance and capacity building.

“Since we heard about the two suspected cases, WHO has supported in the areas of sample collection and taking the sample to the laboratory.

“When the results came out, we carried out contact tracing as well as case and risk management.

“In Nigeria so far, we have recorded 41 cases of monkeypox with one death. The government is taking proactive measures to bring this outbreak to a stop and sensitise people on how to prevent and protect themselves,” he said.

Monkeypox is an uncommon disease caused by infection with the monkeypox virus, which belongs to the orthopoxvirus genus in the poxviridae family.

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Civil Defence Deputy Commandant In Multimillion Naira Fraud Scandal.

A Deputy Commandant of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC), Mr. Edike Mboutidem Akpan, is currently enmeshed in alleged N26.7 million fraud scandal.

Akpan, who has already been charged to the Federal Capital Territory High Court, sitting in Kwali, by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), used a private real estate company, Danemy Nig Ltd, to defraud land subscribers.

In a statement, spokesperson of the anti-graft agency, Mrs Azuka Ogugua, said the deputy NSCDC commandant was arraigned on a 17-count charge before Justice V. S. Gaba.

Ogugua said the charge sheet revealed that the deputy commandant convinced many subscribers with the claim of being in partnership with NSCDC, to pay various sums of money for plots of land both in Karshi, Nasarawa State and Sabon Lugbe Extension, Airport Road, Abuja, which were never allocated to them.

ICPC told the court that the offence, committed between 2010 and 2015, violated Sections 19 and 26 (1) (c) of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000 and was punishable under Section 19 of the same Act.

The statement read, ”In one of the charges, Mr. Akpan was alleged to have conferred undue advantage on himself when he allegedly received N13,350,000 in 2011 from a subscriber, Mr. Igwe Onus Nwankwo, through his company Danemy Nig Ltd, as payments for 10 plots of land at Airport Road.

”He was at various times alleged to have received N1,305,000 from Doctors Robert Okoro and Akuneme Marcel Ikwuoma, each, for the allocation of plots of land at the Defenders Family Estate Homes Scheme, Airport Road.

”The NSCDC officer was also accused of receiving N2,610,000 from Mrs. Chidinma Obasi for two plots of land and N1,205,000 from Mr. Etuechere Martins, for a plot.”

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Asisat Oshoala Launches Football Academy In Lagos

Asisat Oshoala, four-time African Footballer of the Year and FC Barcelona Femení star, announces the launch of the ‘Asisat Oshoala Academy,’ (AOA) in partnership with Nike and Women Win.

AOA, which is designed to provide access to football and lifeskills for underprivileged schoolgirls in Lagos State.

The Academy is another initiative of Asisat that will build upon her mission of providing access to sport and education for young girls in her community.

“I have always strived to give back to the girl child in my community and I believe this football academy will provide opportunities for more girls to excel through the combination of sport and education. I want to thank our partners Women Win and Nike for helping bring this platform to life. Together we can go further and achieve a lot more” Oshoala stated.

Meanwhile, the Asisat Oshoala Foundation, established in 2015, will be responsible for the day-to-day management of the academy. Women Win, the Amsterdam-based global women’s fund dedicated to advancing girls and women’s rights, will also bring their expertise to the Academy’s development.

“Women Win is very proud and excited to be partnering with our longtime partner Nike, Asisat and the Asisat Oshoala Academy to leverage the power of sport to support girls in Nigeria to become better equipped to exercise their rights. This partnership and program will be key in ensuring girls can thrive as they face the most pressing issues of adolescence and realise their inherent leadership potential.” Yvonne Henry, Women Win, Brands Director declared.

Also, AOA will provide 30 girls (age 12 – 18) with access to 90 mins of football training three times a week. The program will be complimented with life skills education covering a range of empowerment and rights-based topics. Graduates from the academy will be encouraged to convert their leadership skills to make a positive impact in their respective communities.

In addition to the weekly programming, the Academy will host 4 ‘She Plays’ events a year. These events will broaden the reach of the academy’s activities and will host up to 100 schoolgirls, aged 12 to 18 years, every session.
The Asisat Oshoala Foundation
The Asisat Oshoala Foundation, which was launched in 2015, is a non-governmental, nonprofit organisation, established with a mission to Give hope to the girl child through education and sports.

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“Peter Obi is not fit to become Nigerian President”

~ Lauretta Onochie

“I have carefully studied the leadership style of Peter Obi right from the time he was the Governor of Anambra State and concluded that he’s not fit enough to rule this country.

“Peter Obi doesn’t have the qualities needed to steer the leadership ship of this country because he’s unprepared and may not know where to begin if elected.

“Apart from becoming a State Governor, he doesn’t have any Federal leadership experience unlike Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu who’s experienced and vast in all the sectors of our economy .

“Nigeria doesn’t need someone who will be using Chinese figures to deceive himself and his gullible IPOB supporters all over the internet. He should better withdraw or go for a Senatorial position because it’s obvious he’s going nowhere.”

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Inflation: Sanwo-Olu approves hike in BRT fares by N100

Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu has approved a flat rate increase by N100 in bus fares for all Bus Rapid Transit, BRT, and Standard routes as part of measures to sustain operations.

The increase, which is scheduled to commence on Wednesday, 13 July 2022, was said to aim at ensuring sustainability of the BRT and standard route schemes.

Assistant Director, Corporate Communication, Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority, LAMATA, Kolawole Ojelabi, who announced this yesterday, explained that the operations of the transport scheme, in recent times had been hampered due to rising cost of inputs required for sustainable service offering and the attendant high number of buses out of operation as a result of lack of spare parts.

“For instance, the exponential increase in the pump price of diesel from N187 to N830/litre between August 2020 and June, 2022, had greatly affected optimal performance of the bus operating companies leading to the withdrawal of buses from operation and longer waiting time at bus stations.

New Rates
When the new rates finally commence, a bus ride from Ikorodu – TBS will cost N600 from N500, while Berger to Ajah is now N700, up from N600. Oshodi to Abule Egba will cost N450 from N350 and Abule-Egba-CMS-Obalende will attract a fare of N600.

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2023: Sowore Announces Lawyer, Haruna As Running Mate, Says African Action Congress Will Defeat APC, PDP, Others

The Presidential Candidate of African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore has officially announced a lawyer, Haruna Garba Magashi as his running mate.

Sowore made the announcement on Thursday in Abuja.

The Vice Presidential candidate of the AAC is from Kano State.

According to Sowore, Magashi has all it takes to deliver Kano for the AAC in the 2023 presidential election.

“We hope to defeat APC (All Progressives Congress) over there because the governor has messed up; we know that we will defeat PDP (Peoples Democratic Party), that’s the party that’s in crisis as we speak.

“We don’t need to talk about the Labour Party in Kano because the party doesn’t exist,” the AAC candidate said.

“We know that we will defeat Alhaji Kwankawso and his party, the NNPP (New Nigeria Peoples Party) in Kano because we have got someone who is from there.”

The AAC had earlier submitted Magashi’s name to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

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N525m fraud: Court jails fraudster 235 years in Uyo

Justice Agatha Okeke of the Federal High Court, Uyo has convicted and sentenced a notorious international fraudster, Scales Olatunji, to 235years imprisonment for internet fraud and money laundering.

A statement released by EFCC spokesperson, Wilson Uwajeren, said Olatunji was arraigned on July 2, 2019 on 45-count charges bordering on identity theft, money laundering and conspiracy.

One of the counts reads:

“That you, Scales Olatunji Ishola “M”, Meraiyebu Charles “M”(at large), Gabriel Adeyemi Olugbenga “M”(at large), Ojomo Oluwatobi Ayodele “M”(at large) and Adekola Oluwatoyin “M”(at large), between January 2017 to October 2018, in Nigeria, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court conspired amongst yourselves to convert the total sum of N525,172,580.00 (Five Hundred and Twenty Five Million, One Hundred and Seventy-two Thousand, Five Hundred and Eighty Naira) only, which sum you reasonably ought to have known forms part of proceeds of unlawful activities to wit: fraud (Business E-mail Compromise and Identity Theft), and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 18 (a) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2011 (as amended) and punishable under Section 15 (3) of the same Act”

Another count reads:

“That you, Scales Olatunji Ishola “M” on or about the 15th day of May 2018, in Nigeria, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court with intent to defraud did send electronic messages (email) using emailoffice01@aol.com to one Monica Goulmoen of the Charity Association for providing girls and boys in Kobane with a football pitch, while impersonating a certain Per Ravn Omdal, a former Norwegian Football Association President, demanding the sum of €64,000.00 (Sixty-Four Thousand Euros) to be transferred to you via IBAN GB74HBUK40062132722119 which was paid and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 22 (3)(b) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc) Act 2015 and punishable under Section 22 (4) of the same Act”.

The court ordered that the money in the convict’s account and properties be forfeited and the proceeds restituted to the Norwegian victims.

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How Pastor’s Son Allegedly Butchered Girlfriend, Dumped Her Remains Near River In Abuja

The incident which caused tension and pandemonium in the area attracted a large crowd of residents who thronged the scene to catch a glimpse of the dismembered body.

According to an exclusive reports, the son of a pastor allegedly killed and dismembered the body of his girlfriend, simply identified as Anita, and dumped her remains near a river in Abuja, SaharaReporters exclusively gathered on Sunday.

SaharaReporters on Monday, June 20, 2022, reported how the remains of an unidentified young woman were packed inside two bags and dumped by unknown persons near a river at PW in the Kubwa area of Abuja.

The incident which caused tension and pandemonium in the area attracted a large crowd of residents who thronged the scene to catch a glimpse of the dismembered body.

Findings revealed that a young man, Kelechi Amadi, the son of the Pastor of Freedom Chapel Int’l Church, located in Gbazango, Kubwa on Sunday, June 19 at about 11:00 pm asked a tricycle rider to come to his house and take him for a short trip.

Unknown to the tricycle rider, Kelechi was said to have put the remains of his girlfriend in the bags after he had cut off her head, removed all her sensitive organs and chopped other parts into pieces for ritual purposes.

It was learnt that upon getting to his house, Kelechi brought out two bags which he claimed contained some trash he wanted to dispose of along the road.

A reliable source who spoke to SaharaReporters said shortly after embarking on the trip and upon arriving at PW bridge, he told the rider that he wanted to dump the refuse near the river.

At that point, the tricycle rider was said to have noticed bloodstains on the bags but still did not suspect they could contain human parts.

The source said, “When the driver got home, he cleaned the bloodstains on his tricycle because he did not suspect it was human blood and he continued with his work the following day.

“But when he was passing through the same route, he saw a large crowd on the bridge and stopped. He made an enquiry to know what happened and they narrated to him that somebody dropped two bags containing the dead body of a lady that had been cut into pieces.”

It was at that point that he remembered he dropped a man at the same spot with the same bags the previous night.

It was gathered that the tricycle rider hurriedly rushed to the chairman of the tricycle riders’ union and notified him of the development. The leadership of the tricycle association in the area, therefore, reported the matter at Kubwa Divisional Police Headquarters.

The tricycle rider eventually led a team of detectives to the house of Kelechi.

The suspect was arrested and detained at Kubwa Divisional Police Headquarters before being transferred to the FCT Police Command, Garki for further investigation.

SaharaReporters however gathered that the suspect has confessed to the crime.

Meanwhile, the police had sealed off the church and the scene of the crime when SaharaReporters visited the area on Sunday.

The FCT Police Command on Thursday, June 23 in a statement by the Deputy Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Oduniyi Omotayo said the Tactical and Intelligence team had arrested a suspect in connection with the crime.

He said an investigation was ongoing to unravel other facts surrounding the incident and would be communicated to the press later.

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Security Guard Arrested In Lagos For Impregnating Employer’s Teenage Daughter

A 20-year-old security guard, Samuel Maikasuw, has been arrested by operatives of the Ikorodu division of the Lagos State Police Command over alleged molestation and impregnation of his employer’s teenage daughter.

Maikasuw allegedly impregnated the 15-year-old daughter of his employer, according to a civil society organisation which is familiar with the case, the Advocates for Children and Vulnerable Peoples Network.

The accused served as a gatekeeper at the house of one Fadiji who was a “surrogate parent” to the 15-year-old victim.

Maikasuw was said to have been caught in a compromising position with the minor last year but was warned against repeating such.

The ACVPN said, “The perpetrator who defiled and impregnated a 15 years old girl is Samuel Maikasuw 20yr old. He hails from Abaji in the FCT.

“He was a security man at Ms. Fadiji’s house. He was once caught with the minor last year and was severely warned never to come near the little girl again and he apologised.

“He was later transferred to the shop of the landlord’s wife who later converted him to a sales boy. He was arrested by the vigilantes and policemen in the Ikorodu area after the act. The suspect has been detained at Ikorodu division, Igbogbo.”

When SaharaReporters contacted the Lagos State Police spokesperson, Benjamin Hundeyin, he confirmed the arrest, noting that the crime was “defilement of a minor” which is punishable under the law.

He said, “It is confirmed. It is not just as simple as saying he impregnated someone. Under the law, it is defilement. He defiled a minor. The issue is still being investigated.”

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Jide Kosoko, Yinka Quadri, Femi Adebayo, other Yoruba actors pledge support for Tinubu

Yoruba Nollywood superstars have thrown their weight behind the presidential flagbearer of All Progressives Congress, APC Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

The actors who assured Tinubu of their support in a video claimed that the former governor of Lagos State made acting and politics interesting by influencing many actors to venture into politics

Taking to Instagram, Yinka Quadri shared the video of many of his colleagues drumming support for Tinubu.

Spotted in the video were Fausat Balogun, Yinka Quadri, Jide Kosoko, Taiwo Hassan, Faithia Williams, Femi Adebayo, Shola Kosoko, Saheed Balogun, Eniola Ajao, Murphy Afolabi and a host of others.

Yinka Quadri while speaking in the video said, “I, Alhaji Olayinka Quadri pledge my support for BAT not because I was paid to do so but because of Asiwaju support and influence to all and sundry over the years. Majority of actors who venture into politics today do so because of the influence of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. By God grace, Asiwaju will move from Jagaban of Lagos to Asiwaju of Nigeria. For all your sacrifices, for all your effort, God will reward you this time…. If we look at the rotation of leaders in Nigeria over the years, it is very crystal clear it is Yoruba turn to be president.
BAT, Eyin lol kan (you’re the next)”.