I regret working for Ajimobi in 2011, says Adeseun

The chairman Senate Committee on Capital Market, Ayoade Adeseun, has expressed regrets for being part of the team that worked for the victory of Governor Abiola Ajimobi in the 2011 elections. Adeseun, who spoke with some journalists in his Ibadan residence on Monday, lamented the style of governance of Mr. Ajimobi, alleging that his All Progressives Congress-led (APC) government in the state has made life more miserable for the people than it...

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Osun election and the strong message of death

By JIDE JEGEDE In order to keep its people awake to lessons embedded in happenings around them, Yoruba has a number of sayings that inspire wisdom in caution and action. One of such is: “Iku to n pa ojugba eni, owe nla lo n pa”. Literarily, it means “when death strikes your mate, it sends you a strong message”. The simple logic is that you must open your heart to learn from others’ mistakes or misfortune whenever they occur, and in whatever form....

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Alegeh emerges NBA president

The general conference of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) on Tuesday elected Augustine Alegeh, SAN, of the Benin branch as the association's new president. Alegeh polled 691 votes to defeat four other contestants. His runner-up, Mr. Oladele Adeshina, SAN, had 370 votes; while Mrs. Olufunke Adekoya, SAN, who came third, had 255 votes. Adeniyi Akintola (SAN) and Osas Erhabor had 126 and 17 votes respectively. Five of the votes...

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Adamawa House impeaches Nyako

The Adamawa State House of Assembly, on Tuesday, impeached the state Governor Murtala Nyako. Eighteen out of the 24 members of the Assembly voted to impeach the governor after adopting the report of the seven-man panel set up to investigate allegations of gross misconduct against the governor and his deputy, Bala Ngilari. The panel found the two state officers guilty of gross misconduct. Ngilari, however, submitted his letter of resignation...

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Lanlehin donates buses to Oyo Accord

Less than a week after visiting a flood scene in Ibadan, Olufemi Lanlehin, Senator representing Oyo South senatorial district, has donated two brand new buses to the Oyo state chapter of Accord. The Senator, who delivered the new buses at the Ibadan resident of Rashidi Ladoja, former governor of the state and leader of the party, said the gesture was part of his contribution to the party's growth. He noted that the vehicles could be used to...

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Pregnant woman, five others killed in Ibadan multiple accident

Six people, including a pregnant woman, were crushed to death in an early morning accident in Ibadan on Monday. The accident, involving a trailer, a Honda private car and a Micra commercial vehicle, occurred at New Iyana Agbala junction along Ife/Ibadan expressway. According to an eyewitness, the articulated vehicle, coming from Ile-Ife at a top speed, crushed the two vehicles, killing the six people and injuring a number of others in the process. It...

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Andy Coulson handed 18-month prison sentence for phone hacking (CNN)

Former tabloid editor and ex-Downing Street communications chief Andy Coulson was sentenced Friday in London to 18 months in prison for phone hacking offenses. Coulson, who was editor of News of the World from 2003 to 2007, was convicted last week at the Old Bailey court of conspiracy to hack phones between 2000 and 2006. He had denied the charge. He could have been given up to two years in prison. Handing down sentences to Coulson and four...

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Soldiers set BRT buses ablaze in Lagos to protest 'death' of colleague

Soldiers went on rampage on the street of the ever-busy Lagos-Ikorodu road on Friday, burning public buses (also known as BRT). The soldiers were said to have taken to the street in protest of the alleged death of one of their colleagues, who was said to have been hit by a ‘BRT’ bus. A latest report, however, suggested that the solider did not die, but was still being attended to at an undisclosed hospital. Apart from vandalizing some...

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Man jailed for stealing in Ibadan Shoprite stores

A 23-year-old man, Wasiu Moshood, was on Tuesday sentenced to two years in prison by an Iyaganku Chief Magistrate’s Court, Ibadan. The young man, who was convicted of stealing a Blackberry Bold 5 phone from a woman at the newly commissioned Shoprite stores, Ibadan, had pleaded guilty to the one-count charge when he was arraigned last Friday. According to the Police prosecutor, Corporal Philip Amusan, Moshood picked the phone from Mrs. Falilat...

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Nigerian military arrests key Chibok schoolgirls kidnap suspect

The Nigerian Military said it has arrested a principal suspect in the kidnap of over 200 schoolgirls in Chibok, Borno state months back. According to a press statement from Chris Olukolade, Major-General and Director of Defence Information, on Monday, the suspects, Babuji Ya’ari, was the head of terrorists’ intelligence cell as at the time of his arrest. He was picked up alongside other suspects in the rave of terror ravaging the Northeastern part...

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Tensions deepen after missing Israeli teens found dead in West Bank (CNN)

Nineteen days ago, three Israeli teenagers, trying to hitchhike home from the southern West Bank, disappeared. Monday afternoon, volunteers from a nearby Israeli settlement discovered their bodies in an open field not far from Hebron, a city in the southern West Bank. The teens' disappearance -- which Israel blamed on Hamas -- had already worsened relations between Israel and the Palestinians. The discovery threatens to make it worse. Prime...

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Funso Williams' suspected killers freed

After almost eight years of intense legal battle, suspects in the killing of Funso Williams, former governorship aspirant in Lagos, regained their freedom on Monday. Justice Ebenezer Adebajo of the Lagos State High Court pronounced the six suspects - Bulama Kolo, Musa Maina, David Cassidy, Tunani Sonani, Mustapha Kayode and Okponwasa Imariebie – discharged and acquitted in a two-count charge of conspiracy and murder of the late politician. According...

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Two feared shot as irate Ibadan residents pelt Oyo Deputy Governor

The Deputy Governor of Oyo State, Moses Alake Adeyemo, was on Sunday stoned by angry residents of Apete area of the state capital when he (Adeyemo) visited a day after a heavy rainfall swept away some members of the community. Sources said two people were also shot when security men attached to the deputy governor were trying to repel attack on him. Mr. Adeyemo, who arrived the scene around 11.30 am was booed by the residents who accused the...

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Boko Haram militants kill 56 near Chibok

Gunmen believed to be members of Boko Haram, on Sunday, invaded Kautikari, Kwada and Nguragila villages near Chibok in Borno State, killing at least 56 people. The militants, dressed in military camouflage, also razed many buildings in the communities. According to eyewitnesses, the assailants stormed the three villages from 8:45 a.m. when many Christians were at Sunday services. One source said the militants arrived in the villages in...

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We don’t know where Chibok girls are – US

The United States said on Friday it had decreased its surveillance flights in the search for the about 219 schoolgirls abducted by Boko Haram, but added that the overall effort was unchanged due to more flights by other countries. It stated that it had no idea of the location of the girls, noting however that there is no letup in the efforts to locate and rescue them. “We don’t have any better idea today than we did before about where these...

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Bomb Blast At Bauchi Soccer Viewing Center Kills 10, Injures 14

At least 10 people have been killed while 14 others sustained injuries from a bomb blast at People's Hotel brothel in Bayangarin area of Bauchi township on Friday night. An eyewitness told SaharaReporters that five men in military uniform perpetrated the heinous act. The witness said he was at a viewing centre close to the hotel when the men arrived, detonating explosives and then shooting at random to  kill those trying to escape. “Those...

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Ten feared drowned in Ibadan flood

At least, ten people were reported swept away by an overflown river at Apete area of Ibadan on Saturday. The victims, who were residents of the community, slipped from a makeshift bridge while trying to cross to the other side of the river after a heavy rainfall. “The rain started around 5:00 pm and when it subsided, some of the residents who tried to use the bridge slipped into the river and were washed away. “It was getting dark and rescue...

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Clerics charged, remanded for operating illegal Islamic school in Minna

Eight Islamic preachers have been charged to court in Minna, Niger state capital, for operating illegal quranic school and preaching without obtaining license from appropriate authority. The accused, who are leaders of the Madinatu Muheenu Hamdallah sect, were arraigned before a Minna Chief Magistrate’s Court II on a two-count charge on Tuesday. According to the police prosecutor, Lapai-based clerics' action contravened Section 23 of the...

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My governorship ambition will stabilize Oyo politics, says Akala

A former Oyo state Governor, Adebayo Alao-Akala, has described his ambition to join the governorship race for 2015 as a way of stabilizing the political terrain in the state. Alao-Akala, who stated this at his Ogbomoso residence on Tuesday when members of the Peoples Democratic Party in the five local government councils in the town came to adopt him for the forthcoming governorship election in the state, said the people of the state were yearning for...

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Nigerian journalists charged on investigative reporting

Media experts have challenged Nigerian journalists to focus more on investigative reporting in order to make meaningful impact on the nation’s development. Speakers at the opening of a three-day media training programme holding in Abuja on Tuesday said for the media to effectively play its role as the watchdog of the society, it has to go beyond the usual daily reporting. The event, which began on Tuesday, will run through Thursday as part...

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