ROBBERS ARE ON RAMPAGE IN LAGOS - KILLS NEWSWATCH EDITOR

The Deputy Editor of Daily Newswatch newspaper, Mr. Toyin Obadina, who was shot early morning Saturday by unknown gunmen, has died at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, LASUTH, Ikeja.

Police sources said Mr. Obadina, 50, was driving a Toyota Yaris car with number plate AKD 701 CE when he was attacked along Ijebu-Ode road by Hypo/Lucky Fibre junction by five armed hoodlums who operated in an SUV whose make and number could not be ascertained.

The source said the hoodlums stole N20,000 from the victim and shot him on his stomach before fleeing from the scene. It was gathered that widow, who was contacted at their Tunde Odewole Crescent, Adamo in Ikorodu, together with other sympathizers rushed the victim to Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, LASUTH, Ikeja where doctors commenced immediate treatment.

NDLEA ARRESTS MAN WITH 107 ATM CARDS

National Drug Law  Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), yesterday, arrested a 36-year-old Turkish airline’s passenger with 107 automated teller machine (ATM) cards at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos.

The suspect, who holds a dual identity, was apprehended during an outward screening of  the Turkish Airline passengers to Istanbul, Turkey at the airport when the cards were discovered by anti-narcotics officials.

Speaking on the arrest, NDLEA  Airport Commander, Mr Hamza Umar, noted that the suspect was also arrested with two international passports  with his photographs but bearing different names.

THE TRAGEDY OF RAPE - HANNATU MUSAWA

Some weeks ago, I went to meet and speak to a brave 2-year-old girl in Abuja. As I walked into the building, where she was standing with her parents, she became startled at the sight of what she must have identified to be a stranger and quickly grabbed her mother’s wrapper to hide behind. I took out a bag of sweets from my bag and upon reaching the mother, bent down and offered them to the frightened little girl.

With my hands full of sweets outstretched, the little girl failed to recognize my gesture as an act of goodwill. After some encouragement from her mother and after my numerous failed impressions of Disney characters, the little girl eventually came out from hiding behind her mother’s wrapper and accepted one of the sweets from my hand. After some time, and after some more impressions by me, she slowly relaxed and finally looked at me. As she raised her head to look at me, I saw that she had the most beautiful big brown eyes. Just as quickly as I smiled at her, my smile became a frown; because within those beautiful eyes, I saw sadness; I saw pain; I saw agony. 

HOW UNKNOWN GUNMEN KILLED RADICAL ISLAMIC PREACHER AND HIS WIFE IN ZARIA

LATE ALBANI ZARIA

The suspected terrorists that last night killed the leader of Sallafiyah in Zaria, Kaduna State, Sheik Muhammad Awwal Adam popularly known as "Albani Zaria" trailed the Islamic scholar and his family from his Tudun Wada school in Zaria. His family told SaharaReporters in a telephone interview.

The family said he was on his way to his home in Tudun Jukun area when the men opened fire on them and instantly killed his wife and son, the scholar was dragged out of the car and shot by the gunmen before they escaped.

Read more after the cut...........................

SHEKAU IS STILL ON THE LOOSE - NIGERIA ARMY

Few months ago, there were speculations that Boko Haram leader, Sheik Abubaka Shekau had been killed by the Army but contrary to this, the Defence Headquarters has said it has not ended its effort to capture, dead or alive, a dreaded leader of Boko Haram Islamic sect. The Director of Defence Information, Maj. Gen Chris Olukolade, on Friday.

The Army spoke just as the the United States Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. James Entwhistle, expressed doubts over the death of the terrorist. Entwhistle had said he was not aware of Shekau’s death while speaking with journalists in Lagos on Thursday. The US envoy was quoted as also saying it would be difficult to track down the Boko Haram leader.

ASARI DOKUBO IS A THUG - EL RUFAI SPEAKS

EL RUFAI

The Interim Deputy National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, Nasir El-Rufai, on Saturday referred to ex-Niger Delta militant leader, Mujahid Asari-Dokubo as a thug, saying there was no basis for comparing both of them.

El-Rufai said this during an interview with Sahara TV, while responding to a question on his 15-hour interrogation by the State Security Service. When the one-time Minister of the Federal Capital Territory was asked if the name of Asari-Dokubo came up during the interrogation, he said no, and stressed that he could not have mentioned Asari-Dokubo’s name because their personalities were not comparable.

HILARIOUS MESSAGE FROM DUDE TETSOLA - I AM NOT MARRIED YET, I ONLY REPRESENTED MY BROTHER

 

Dude Tetsola is a very funny guy... Seriously... You guys will agree with me after reading this...........

Weeks following what many believe was his surprise wedding, singer Dude Tetsola is claiming he’s not married. The singer says he represented his brother who couldn’t attend the wedding because he ‘couldn’t get his VISA’.

‘I stood in for my elder brother. He couldn’t get his visa. They saw the pictures and people started saying I got married. Please, it is not me. I am not yet married’, he told Punch Newspaper.

HORROR IN UAE AS AUSTRIAN RAPE VICTIM WAS ARRESTED AFTER SHE REPORTED THE CRIME AND WAS TOLD SHE HAD TO MARRY HER ATTACKER.

An Austrian woman who was raped in Dubai has been arrested for having extra martial sex and was told by police she could only avoid jail if she married her attacker.

The 29-year-old student from Vienna was facing a jail sentence having been accused of having sex outside of marriage and drinking alcohol, both of which are illegal in the United Arab Emirate capital. It was only after the Austrian Foreign Ministry intervened, that she was able to leave the country and return home.

APC IS INDIVISIBLE EVEN THOUGH THE OPPOSITION KEEPS TRYING - BOLA TINUBU

As the All Progressives Congress, APC, Lagos State chapter, began the process for the 2015 general elections, the  national leader of the party and former Governor of the state, Bola Tinubu, has declared that the party is indivisible, despite all efforts from different quarters to divide the party. He however, assured all members and intending members that the party would follow due process to the letter in the selection of candidates for various offices.

Tinubu, who gave the assurance while addressing members at a stakeholders’ meeting at the weekend, held at the state Secretariat of APC,  in Ikeja, urged all prospective and old members to register in accordance with the party’s constitution, saying that only registered members would get the party’s identity cards and be recognized as such.

Speaking shortly after the guidelines for party membership and registration were read to the large crowd by a senior officer of the party, Tinubu, said: “We love peace in this state and I can be at peace wherever you send me. We want peace at various senatorial districts, local governments and ward levels. Let there be peace. We will not allow those who are trying to divide us to succeed. We are indivisible. We are five and six; twin brothers and sisters and that is the only way we can achieve victory.

NAIJA COMEDIANS ARE SMILING TO THE BANK AND DOING GREAT EXPLOITS.

Days are long gone when the comedy profession was seen as a job meant for the never do wells. As it is at the moment, while so many people are cracking their ribs, laughing at their jokes, these men (and women) laugh all the way to the bank. They count their money in millions and are getting more and more recognition. Now, they even export their jokes and profession outside Nigeria hosting major events. To them, what they do is no longer a joke but serious business. Saturday Beats looks at some of these comedians.

BASKET MOUTH

Ever since Bright ‘Basketmouth’ Okpocha came into limelight over a decade ago, this comedian has been trailblazing the industry. Although he thought he would make it as a musician, God had something else in store for him. In 1991, he discovered his skills in drumming, which he did for over five years. During his days as an instrumentalist for his church and a band at a point, he also discovered his skills in rap music and later diverted into that path in 1994. In 1995, he, his friends and brother formed a group called Da Psychopaths. It had seven members but they split before they could even release an album or a single. Now he is a celebrated comedian. He has a highly anticipated show scheduled for the UK. It is reported that a bank has thrown its weight behind him by sponsoring his comedy tour with N30m. The show is to hold this month in Manchester, Birmingham and London respectively.

FORMER VICE-PRESIDENT ATIKU ABUBAKAR (@ATIKU) SET TO DEFECT TO THE APC FROM THE RULING PDP.

ATIKU ABUBAKAR

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar is set to defect from the Peoples Democratic Party again to the All Progressives Congress. He is not new to defecting from one party to the other..

With the conclusion of his nationwide consultative meetings with that of the North-East geo-political zone in Bauchi on Friday, it was gathered that Atiku would soon make a formal declaration of his defection to the opposition party.

The conclusion of the meetings came on a day that associates of the former Vice President from the North-East were said to have overwhelmingly rejected the PDP and rooted for the APC  as a preferred political platform.

POLICE IN LAGOS ARRAIGNS DOG FOR BITING BANK WORKER'S PRIVATE PART

Wonders they say shall never end. Please read this from PM News.

The police in Lagos State, southwest Nigeria, have arrested and charged a dog with biting a bank worker’s penis at  Idowu Anisere Street, off Governor’s Road in Ikotun, Lagos. The owner of the dog, Adebowale Gabriel, 31 was also brought before Mrs M.B. Folami at Ejigbo Magistrate’s Court Lagos. The dog was specifically charged with assault, while Gabriel was charged with negligence under the Criminal Code.

The arrest of the dog and Gabriel followed a complaint by the victim, Mr. Simon Anwam, to the police in Ikotun division that when he was walking on the street, the dog pounced on him and inflicted deep injury on his penis.

WANDE COAL CONFESSES - I HAVE A FIVE YEAR OLD LOVE CHILD -

After keeping mute about fatherhood for 5 years, Hip-hop star, Oluwatobi Wande Ojosipe, better known as Wande Coal, has opened up on what has been his best kept secret saying he has a five year old son whom he affectionately called Coal Jnr.

He said rather than being subjected to crude speculations by some mischievous groups, he would want to reveal the private side of him that many didn’t know.

“Nobody is going to surprise me anymore. Let me then announce to the whole world that I already have a five-year old son. I had the boy since 2008 before I released my debut album,‘Mushin 2 Mo’Hits’. I have been keeping it secret ever since then but think it’s high time people should know,” Wande Coal said.

TWEETFIGHT CAN FETCH YOU FIVE YEAR JAIL TERM - BE WARNED

For using profane language on other people or pelting them with insults or abusive words on social networking sites, Internet users in Nigeria risk a jail term that ranges between 12 months and five years.

Section 18 sub-section 1 of the Cyber-Crime Bill 2013, which is pending before the House of Reps, expressly states that anybody who “insults publicly, through a computer system or network” commits an offence and will be liable on conviction to imprisonment “for a term of not less than five years or to a fine of not less than N10m or to both fine and imprisonment.”

Also, the bill prescribes a jail term of five years for anyone who circulates or makes any racist and xenophobic material available online. Cyber-criminals, who hide under the anonymity of the Internet to bully, harass other users of online platforms also risk jail terms when the law comes into full force.

POWER BLACKOUT IN MOST PARTS OF NIGERIA TO CONTINUE FOR THE NEXT 2 WEEKS

The Federal Government has said that the near total blackout being currently experienced in most parts of the country will take the next two weeks to be resolved.

The Minister of Power, Prof. Chinedu Nebo, said this in Abuja on Tuesday at the 6th Power Summit/Civil Society Organisations Forum. The electricity supply situation worsened in recent weeks as a result of acute shortage of gas to thermal power stations, shutdown of some plants for maintenance purposes and the failure of at least seven plants to generate power at all.

Nebo said gas supply constraints had grounded several power stations leading to a major cut in supply to the national grid, adding that repair works on the western area gas pipeline was almost completed.

IMMIGRATION STORMS BABY FACTORY IN ONDO

The Ondo State Command of the Nigeria Immigration Services has raided a house allegedly used as a baby factory in Ilutitun, Okitipupa Local Government Area, arresting 24 persons.

The suspects included a 66-year-old man, Mr. Aliu Ojo, who claimed to be a retired Assistant Commissioner of Police and the alleged leader of the factory, Mrs. Happiness Ogundeji (aka Mama Pota) aged 45. They were paraded on Wednesday at the state headquarters of the service.

Five ladies at different stages of pregnancy and eight men, some claiming to be husbands of the women, were also brought to the headquarters.

Parading the suspects, the Comptroller of NIS, Ondo State, Mr.Musa Al-Hassan, said the raid on the house and the arrest of the suspects were sequel to a tip-off from the Comptroller General of the NIS, who directed the command to work on a circular that emanated from Calabar, Cross River State.

I CONTEMPLATED SUICIDE OVER FALSE POLICE CLAIMS THAT I POURED ACID MYSELF - NAOMI ONI

NAOMI ONI

Naomi Oni., the British born Nigerian acid attack victim sobbed during her first television appearance since her attacker was found guilty and revealed she contemplated suicide over false claims she poured acid over herself. 

READ PREVIOUS POST HERE.

Naomi Oni, 21, was walking home on December 30, 2012, when acid was thrown in her face by Mary Konye, also 21, who was wearing a niqab veil. 

MARY KONYE

BEYONCE SHARES FAMILY PICTURES OF BLU IVY AND HERSELF

At just two-years-old, she's already becoming the world's most well-travelled toddler.

Blue Ivy Carter has been present on most of her mother Beyonce's world tour dates, and on Wednesday the Drunk In Love singer revealed intimate shots of their life on the road together.

See more pictures after the cut...................

POLICE ARREST NYSC MEMBER FOR STEALING MOTORCYCLE

While his mates were busy serving NIGERIA with all their strength, a certain corps member decided to play the STEALING game and now stands the chance of losing so much.........

The police in Osun State have arrested a member of the National Youth Service Corps in the state for allegedly stealing a motorcycle.

The corps member, Kazeem Adebisi, was said to have stolen the red Bajaj motorcycle with number plate, FST 680 QB, at Agunbelewo area of Osogbo on Thursday. The owner of the motorcycle, one Mr. Oladeji Oyewole, was said to have gone inside a football viewing centre. He was said to have come out to discover that his motorcycle was nowhere to be found.

FEDERAL HIGH COURT JUDGE ISSUES INJUNCTION AGAINST DANA AIRLINE

A Federal High Court Judge in Lagos has issued an injunction against Dana Airline restraining it from flying outside the country and the jurisdiction of the court.

The Mareva injunction issued by Judge Saidu, comes as part a lawsuit suing the airline for failure to compensate and resettle displaced victims affected by a crash.  

On June 3, 2012 a Dana Airliner crashed in Iju-Ishaga area, a suburb of Lagos, killing 159 people. The plaintiff in the lawsuit, Pastor Daniel Omowunmi, is the owner of a furniture and books warehouse that was destroyed in the crash.  

Counsel to the businessman, Mr. Olumide Olaiya said seeking the injunction became necessary as the airline had become notorious for avoiding compensation to the victims.