Man on trial for defiling friend’s 10-year-old daughter

For allegedly defiling his friend’s 10-year-old daughter, Godwin Itta, was on Monday docked at an Ikeja Chief Magistrates’ Court.

Itta, a factory worker who resides at Balogun Street, Orile Agege, a suburb of Lagos, is facing a charge of defilement.

The prosecutor, Sgt. Rafael Donny, told the court that Itta committed the offence on October  22 at Jibowu Street, Orile Agege during a visit to his friend’s house.

He said, “The victim, a 10-year-old girl, was the only person the accused met at home.

“The accused pulled the girl on the floor and defiled her.”

The offence contravened Section 137 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.

The accused entered a non-guilty plea.

Suspects arrested for stealing two bicycles worth N3m

The police in Lagos State have arrested two suspects, Umaru Babangida and John Samuel, in connection with the stealing of two exotic sports bicycles worth about N3m.

The bicycles belong to a resident of Babatunde Crescent, Lekki Phase 1, identified as Osarenkhme Afe.

It was gathered that the stolen items – a Scott X10 hybrid bicycle and a giant defy advanced carbon fibre road bicycle – were valued at N1.1M and N1.9m respectively.

Twenty-year-old Babangida, was said to have bought the Scott X10 hybrid bicycle from Samuel and other suspects at large for N10,000.

They were apprehended on October 22, after the case was reported to the police at the Maroko Police Division.

Police, Senate bicker over recruitment

The two-month old feud between Senate and the Police Service Commission (PSC) over recruitment of 10,000 police officers, may soon be resolved, as indications emerged yesterday that the Presidency has stepped in.

The recruitment exercise was suspended two months ago following sharp disagreements over a formula to adopt in the recruitment.

Senate Committee on Police Affairs had wanted the recruitment to be based on nine persons per local government, but the PSC insisted on equality of states as a criterion.

Chairman of the committee, Senator Abu Ibrahim explained that the position of the Senate was informed by the need to ensure that more policemen were recruited from states with higher population and pointed out that the policy of community policing would be better enhanced if policemen are recruited from most rural areas in local government councils.

Before suspension of the exercise, Senate had, in a letter, asked the PSC to suspend the exercise over alleged irregularity in the criteria adopted for the recruitment.

Addressing newsmen, yesterday, Senator Ibrahim said the clash between the chamber and the PSC has been resolved.

“We have resolved the issue and the recruitment would be done on local government basis. Very soon the exercise will resume,” he said.

Troops destroy militants’ shrine, nab chief priest

Troops of Operation Delta Safe, a military outfit in the Niger Delta, have arrested the chief priest of Bayelsa Strike Force, a militant group in Cross River State.

Olaolu Daudu, spokesman of the outfit, who disclosed this in a statement, yesterday, said the shrine located in Ikot Offing Ambai in Akpabuyo Local Government Area was also destroyed.

Daudu said a militant was also killed, while ammunition were recovered.

“Troops deployed at Ikang border patrolled Ikot Offing Ambai in Akpabuyo local government area discovered militants shrine and also apprehended the chief priest of the group with empty box of ammunition at another shrine at Ekpri Ebutong Estate in Bakassi,” he said.

“During anti-militancy operation, troops of sector 4 raided Efut Esighi forest and killed a notorious militant popularly known as Okon Iyo while he was trying to escape.

Miracle of Moses: How he has gone from loan outcast to a key Chelsea player

The transition of Victor Moses from marauding forward to defensive-minded wing-back has been something of a miracle move by Chelsea manager Antonio Conte. The player has been wandering in the wilderness for the four years of his Stamford Bridge contract.

Not even 10 goals in his debut season following a £9million move from Wigan — signed by short-term manager Roberto Di Matteo — was deemed good enough and loan spells at Liverpool, Stoke and West Ham have come in the previous three seasons.

At 25-years-old, many players would have decided it was probably time to move on, but Conte arrived and Moses got his head down once again and the transformation has been spectacular. Even the Italian has been taken aback.

“I think Moses is a great surprise in this aspect because we know him as a winger, but I think he’s playing in a fantastic way,” Conte said after he shone once again in their victory against Southampton, overshadowed only by the resurgence of Eden Hazard and Diego Costa, who both scored. “I think that this role is very important in this system,” Conte added. “You must have good stamina and quality to play as a wing-back. I ask my wing-backs to do offensive and defensive duties.”

Moses’ resilience, however, should shock no-one. He coped with trauma at 12 years old that no child should have to endure.

Son butchers village head, throws corpse into pit toilet in C-River

DISASTER struck, penultimate Monday, at Ekpri Ikot Ene community, Akpabuyo Local Government Area, Cross River State, when an enraged 23-year-old son butchered his father, who is the village head, HRH Francis Ekpo Ene, and dumped his remains inside the family’s pit toilet for persistently accusing him of stealing his money without facts.

NDV gathered that killer-son (Francis Ekpo Jnr.) supposedly acted under a powerful and diabolical influence, as he was not known to be a violent person before the sacrilegious incident.

How it happened—Wife

The wife of the deceased, Mrs. Affiong Offiong Asuquo, who spoke to NDV, said signs of trouble emerged in the household when an unnoticeable amount of money, sometimes between N20, 000 to N50, 000 started disappearing from the safe in the bedroom of the late ruler.

Her words: “The problem started when my husband’s money started missing and he had always thought that it was his first son, who was responsible for the theft, not knowing that he was not the person involved, and he had always denied being the one.  

Naira records marginal appreciation against dollar

Lagos – The Naira on Monday in Lagos appreciated marginally against the dollar at the parallel market, gaining N2. The currency exchanged at N468 to the dollar as against N470 it traded on Friday.

The Pound Sterling and the Euro closed at N565 and 510, respectively. At the interbank market, however, the naira depreciated against the dollar, eroding the gains of Friday in that segment.

It shed N4.31 to close at N308.81from N304.50 posted on Friday. Trading at the Bureau De Change (BDC) window showed that the currency closed at N385 to the dollar, while the Pound Sterling and the Euro traded at N564 and N504, respectively.

Airports record nine per cent drop in passenger traffic

The harsh economic climate that the country is currently experiencing has made the aviation sector to record a decline of nine per cent in activities in the second quarter of this year, according to figures published by the National Bureau of Statistics.

The NBS in its report on the aviation sector explained that the numbers of travellers, aircraft, cargo weight as well as mails that were moved during the period declined as against what were recorded in the first quarter of the year.

For instance, the report, made available to our correspondent on Sunday said 54,405 aircraft arrived at, or departed from Nigerian airports in the second quarter of this year.

This, the report added, represented a decrease of nine per cent relative to the 59,808 aircraft recorded in the first quarter.

In terms of passenger traffic, the report stated that this dropped marginally to 3,532,775 passengers in the second quarter of this year from 3,549,360 recorded in the first quarter.

CBN to Sell $500m FX Forwards to Meet Manufacturers’ Pent-up Demand

Desirous of ensuring that manufacturers get the required foreign exchange (FX) for the importation of critical raw materials as well as meeting the pent-up demand for the greenback, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) will tomorrow sell $500 million through FX forwards to banks, for onward sales to their customers.

he move, which is also aimed at boosting economic activities in the country, would cater to some of the FX demand of manufacturers that want to import plants and machinery, raw materials and agriculture equipment.

A top official of the CBN, who disclosed this to THISDAY yesterday, said banks were notified last week and given till noon today to send the list of FX requests from their customers in the manufacturing sector.

“The FX forwards are specifically targeted at the manufacturing sector,” the source said in a telephone chat with THISDAY.

I made you a billionaire, Obasanjo tells Folorunsho Alakija

Lagos – Former President Olusegun Obasanjo said on Saturday in Lagos that Mrs Folorunsho Alakija, Africa’s richest woman by Forbes reckoning, was among the 25 billionaires he made during his tenure as President.

The former president was reacting to an allegation by Alakija at the event, that the Obasanjo administration frustrated her effort when she ventured into oil business.

Alakija, who spoke before Obasanjo, alleged that his administration illegally took an oil block allocated to her company after her family had invested all its savings to strike oil in commercial quantity.

How laughter boosts your mental health

Laughter is the best medicine, so goes a popular quote, which might be the reason why comedians like Alibaba, Bovi, Basket mouth and others have not only carved a niche for themselves in entertainment but   are also smiling to the bank.

When it comes to relieving stress, particularly in times like this in Nigeria where economic recession and political strife seem to be stifling our happiness and existence, more giggles and guffaws are just what the doctor recommends. In order to regain your sanity, have a good laugh. Scientists say it takes about 43 muscles around the face to frown and just 17 to smile. Laughter does you good. Laughter is a great form of stress relief.

Mental health is simply a level of psychological wellbeing or the absence of mental illness. According to World Health organization, WHO, mental health is defined as a state of wellbeing in which every individual realizes his or her potential, copes with the normal stresses of life, works productively and fruitfully and able to make a contribution to the community.

Jonathan probe: We won’t dictate to EFCC, DSS, says Osinbajo …says security agencies can probe, arrest anyone

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, on Saturday, assured Nigerians that the Federal Government would not interfere in the work of security and anti-corruption agencies if they decided to move against former President Goodluck Jonathan.

Osinbajo, who said the current administration did not believe in arbitrary arrests, explained that the agencies of government were being empowered to do their jobs without undue interference.

The vice president, according to a statement by his spokesman, Mr. Laolu Akande, spoke on Friday in Houston, Texas in the United States at a meeting he had with Nigerians based in the US.

He was said to have answered questions on the economy, the anti-corruption war, the recent arrest of judges and the menace of herdsmen in parts of the country, as well as community policing.

The statement read, “Answering a question from the Internet on when former President Jonathan would be arrested, Osinbajo pointed out that the Buhari administration was not in the business of arresting people anyhow.

Obasanjo makes order for Made-in-Aba shoes

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has made an order for Made-in-Aba shoes.

Obasanjo made the order through the Chief Marketing Officer of Made-in-Aba Product, Governor Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia State during the 2016 Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship Forum in Lagos.

Speaking as one of the panelists at the forum, Obasanjo said to Ikpeazu: “Governor, I listened to you and I commend you for what you’re doing in Abia. Please keep doing what you’ve told us you’re doing.

So, Governor Abia, you have to send a pair of the shoes to me. I use size 42.”

His remark prompted an outburst of laughter in the audience. The ex-president’s special request was a response to what Ikpeazu said in his address to the gathering.

Freedomonline, a newsblog, in a report stated that while making his speech at the event, the Abia State Governor said that Aba remains the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) capital of Nigeria, where young Nigerians are engaged in the business of making of shoes, clothing and other products.