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Court Remands Journalist In Prison Over Hairstyle

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By Lukman Amusa

An Ogudu chief magistrate court yesterday ordered the remand at Ikoyi prison of a 24-year-old photojournalist with Talk Village

International, Yinka Badmus, for allegedly sporting a hairstyle that some policemen concluded made him a cultist.

Badmus, who his employer said had just bagged a scholarship, was arrested by policemen attached to the Lagos State police command Anti-Cultism unit for allegedly wearing a dreadlock.

According to the journalist’s employer, Stephen Oguntoyibo, the

Chief Executive Officer of Talk Village International, convener of the Lens Adventure, a project that attracts young people to use films and photography as a toolkit for advocacy, he had received disturbing phone calls from prison warders urging him to ensure Badmus was granted bail and taken to a hospital to ensure he did not die.

Oguntoyibo explained that policemen from the Anti-Cultism unit,

Pedro bus stop, Gbagada, Lagos, arrested Badmus on December 31, 2018 while he was eating noodles in the community where he lives.

Oguntoyinbo said the policemen described Badmus as a cultist, detained him and wouldn’t allow him to contact anybody. His whereabouts was eventually known after a detainee, who was granted bail, contacted one of Badmus’ relatives. The journalist was said to have already spent three days in police detention before then.

Oguntoyibo said, “After three days in detention, Yinka was able to send a message to a close relative on January 3. He was found at the station. The information given by the police was that he was arrested at Surulere, Lagos, because of his hairstyle.  I was asked to come to the Gbagada police station on January 4 to bail him and see the officer in charge of his case.”

Oguntoyibo said when he went to bail Badmus, he was shocked to see the police conveying him and other young men in a Black Maria to be arraigned at the Ogudu magistrate court.

Oguntoyibo further said, “At the Ogudu court, the resident judge asked that Yinka be granted bail and a lawyer in the magistrate court was attached to us. The lawyer subsequently requested for a proof means of identity, a house rent receipt, NEPA bill and tax payment evidence for two years. He also collected N10,000.

“After this, the lawyer demanded for another N20,000 for his service, with a promise that he would have a meeting with the magistrate and effect Yinka’s release. On Tuesday, I called the lawyer to submit the requested documents so the boy could be released. The lawyer again demanded for another N25,000 for bail-bond and also made me to know that I would have to pay the police for verification and other processes. Meanwhile, the boy had been remanded in Ikoyi prison.”

Oguntoyibo disclosed that between Sunday and yesterday, he had been inundated with phone calls from prison, alerting him that Badmus’ health was deteriorating.

The national coordinator of the Network for Police Reforms in

Nigeria, Okechukwu Nwanguma, furious over the continued incarceration of the journalist, said, “Two things: the police officer was quoted as saying the guy was arrested because of his hair style. Where in the law is a hair style a crime? And why did the police officer go ahead to charge him? Since he was granted bail, why did the lawyer keep making financial demands from the surety, including money for the police to verify the surety’s residence? Isn’t that unbecoming of a lawyer? The innocent guy is languishing in prison, reported to be very sick, all because of a lawyer’s greed.”

 

 

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LASTMA RECOVERS 2 DEAD BODIES, AS TRUCK RAMMED INTO A MOTORCYCLE PLYING ONE-WAY IN LAGOS

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……motorcycle operator later died at the hospital.

AJAGBE ADEYEMI TESLIM

SPONSORED BY: H&H

Operatives of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) today recovered 2 dead bodies trapped under an empty long ‘Man-Diesel’ truck by Barracks Bus-stop along Lagos- Badagry Expressway, Lagos.

The Director, Public Affairs and Enlightenment Department of LASTMA Mr. Adebayo Taofiq confirmed that the 2 (two) recovered dead bodies were passengers on a motorcycle riding on direction prohibited by law ‘One-way’ on the Lagos-Badagry Expressway.

While these two (2) motorcycle passengers died instantly, the rider later died at a hospital around Satellites Town.

Preliminary investigations revealed that a truck driver while on a top speed lost control as a result of a rear busted tyre and rammed into a motorcycle plying one-way by Barracks Bus-stop inward Iyana-Iba along Lagos-Badagry Expressway.

While the truck driver ran away after the accident, Police men from ‘Onireke’ Police Division’ took away the recovered two (2) dead bodies.

Lastma Ogunremi Olanrewaju (Lastma Commander Area D) who led the recovery operations and his team immediately evacuated the truck and motorcycle off the road for an unhindered free vehicular movement around the Expressway.

The General Manager of LASTMA Mr. Bakare-Oki Olalekan while warning truck drivers to always stop over speeding however appealed to motorcycle operators to stop playing one-way including all restricted routes across the State.

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REA to Deploy NASENI Renewable Technologies To Light Up Rural Areas in Nigeria 

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.. To Partner NITDA On Local Content Development

AJAGBE ADEYEMI TESLIM

SPONSORED BY: H&H

The Executive Vice Chairman/CEO of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), Mr Khalil Halilu and the Managing Director/CEO of the Rural Electrification Agency (REA), Mr. Ahmad Salihijo Ahmad have agreed to work together to deploy NASENI Solar resources and other renewable energy technologies, to increase electricity supply to Nigeria’s rural areas.

This commitment was the outcome of discussions between the two chief executives in Abuja on Friday September 15, 2023, when the EVC/CEO of NASENI visited the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) office as part of his efforts to engage with stakeholders to promote the adoption of NASENI’s technologies.  

Mr. Halilu, who assumed office two weeks ago as NASENI’s chief executive, said, “The focus is to hit the ground running by nurturing effective collaborations with the right stakeholders who will assist NASENI to fulfil its mandate of providing the science and engineering infrastructure base for Nigeria’s businesses and economy to thrive.” 

According to him, “The strategy, going forward, for NASENI includes knocking on the doors of potential end-users of the Agency’s technology and engineering products, making off-take of our Research & Development (R&D) easy, while also bringing the direct impact of our work to bear on the Nigerian economy.”

The two chief executives pledged to work together to bring down the cost of solar power installation in rural areas, through efforts such as increased local production of solar panels by NASENI. The overall goal, according to the REA MD, Ahmad Salihijo, is to facilitate the Federal Government’s ambition to achieve the electrification of Nigeria’s rural areas in record time.

Earlier in the day, Mr. Halilu visited the Director General/CEO of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) Mr. Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, on a similar mission. The two CEOs emphasized the need to look inward and develop local content (human and material) capacity to transform the economy.

Halilu sought to leverage on the long-standing relationship between himself and the NITDA boss, and also between the two organisations, to share experiences and best practices in management and in resource optimization.

Abdullahi disclosed that NITDA’s strategy of focusing on changing both the mind-sets and skill-sets of its staff are two critical factors that have helped the Agency achieve up to 62 percent of its goals and objectives within two (2) years, ahead of its four (4) year projection. He noted that the same approach would work for NASENI, as long as there was a well-thought-out strategic plan, and clarity of vision and goals.

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kidnapping: Again, So-Safe rescues victim, arrests suspect in Ogun

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AJAGBE ADEYEMI TESLIM

SPONSORED BY: H&H

The Ogun State Community, Social Orientation and Safety Corps also known as So-Safe Corps has captured a kidnap suspect alive, rescuing the victim in Ogun.

This is contained in a statement issued from the Office of the State Commander of the Corps, Commander (Dr) Soji Ganzallo through the office of the Director of Information and Public Relations of the Corps, Assistant Commander Moruf Yusuf.

Ganzallo said that on 13th July, 2023, the Headquarters of the Corps charged the Ijebu Zonal Command under ACC Marcus Ayankoya to rescue a woman who was kidnapped at about 2200hrs on her way back from market.

Ganzallo noted that he instructed his men to swing into action and get the culprits alive and to ensure the victim gained freedom in earnest and they went after them immediately.

He explained that the State Headquarters of the Corps was briefed as the operation was on that the kidnappers collected the victim phone, gold jewelry, N100,000 in her possession and 1 Atm Card and they drove her away with her car.

The team could not catch up with them because of Logistics issue.

Ganzallo later disclosed that the team did not relent untill they were informed of a strange footprints on a farmland at Oke-Ako Community in Ijebu-Ode Local Government Area .

The Commander then instructed the Isiwo/Itamapako Divisional Officer of the Corps, SC Aderibigbe M.O to mobilize and lead his Special Squad to deal with the suspected kidnappers decisively. The kidnappers were tracked down after rigorous search for them as they tried to move the victim to a new location.

Ganzallo reported that
there was a gun duel between the crime suspects and the Corps before the criminals bowed to the superior response of the Corps, while one of the kidnappers, who is 32 years old named Tunde Salami and a resident of Ibadan, Oyo State was captured alive and the kidnap victim was rescued unhurt.

Ganzallo also said that the rescued victim was traumatized but not harmed.

One locally-made pistol was also recovered from the suspect.

The apprehended kidnap suspect and the rescued victim had been transferred to the Nigeria Police Force, Obalende Divisional Police Headquarters.

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