Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar seems to be in love with controversy and he appears to be adogged fighter in the game. In politics, he has an ample dose of unsettled issues with the ruling PDP, especially now that he is linked to the New PDP.

The other day too, he engaged his former boss, former President Olusegun Obasanjo, in a debate about his eligibility to travel to the United States of America without being arrested for corruption.

However, just as the dust is settling, Atiku on Tuesday stirred a fresh debate on the social media, declaring via a post on his website that he bought a house for his mother at the age of 14.

Atiku, in the website post, claimed that:

Contrary to the belief that he “soiled” his hands while serving in Nigeria Customs Service, as well as during his eight-year tenure as Vice-President; he had a history of genuine “business success.”

He said, “It never mattered that I had a history of business success prior to entering politics. It never mattered that from the moment I bought my mother a home as a 14-year-old boy, I was running various businesses to provide for my family.”

But tell it to the marines, seems to be the thinking of the some Nigerian social media users, who received the claim with a pinch of salt. Little wonder, they further prodded him to explain how, at 14, he mustered the financial muscle to buy a house.

For instance, an online socio-political activist, Kayode Ogundamisi, is one of the first critics, who questioned the former Vice-President’s claim.

Ogundamisi said, “How did we end up with deluded characters as so called leaders in Nigeria. That former Vice-President Atiku would have Nigerians believe he bought a house for his mother as a minor/child is a clear indication that Nigeria’s problem is beyond human understanding.”

Another Facebook user, Adedayo Daramola asked,“Was it through innovation or through corruption that the former Vice-President accomplished the feat.”

However, Ogundamisi and Daramola are not alone in the circle of Nigerians doubting the veracity of Atiku’s claim.

For another Facebook user, Steve Collins-Ogwu, there appears to be more than meets the eye.

He stated, “At that age, what was he doing to rake in cash to have been able to afford the home? The last I checked, he was not into entertainment of any kind or an athlete to be able to earn cash at such an early stage. I need him to lecture me on how he did it.”

On Atiku’s blog post also, a reader, who identified himself simply as Inyang described the former vice-president’s piece as “rhetoric” and called him a “trickster.”

Inyang said, “Sir, I pray many Nigerians will be able to see beyond that gibberish piece of write-up and see you for the trickster that you are. You bought your mother a house at 14! What business brought forth such largesse?

“I personally would like to know. Please spare us the rhetoric and leave room for the younger and honest blood in our beloved country Nigeria who are out there praying for the chance to lead this country out of the mess you and your likes have led it. Please find a place to sit and give chance.’’

Atiku noticed the controversy his claim had generated and hurriedly took to Twitter to clarify it:

He said via his Twitter handle, @atiku, that due to his “humble background,” he took vacation jobs to fend for himself and his family members as a teenager.

He tweeted, “It’s true I bought my mother a home as a teenager. At 14, I was working as a clerk for Mallam Adamu Ciroma, the District Officer in the Ganye Native Authority. It was a temporary holiday job.

“The house was a thatched, mud bungalow, with two rooms, a kitchen and bathroom. It cost £9, saved from my £3 monthly earnings. In those days, secondary school students in long vacations took jobs. Temporary jobs for experience and some money, before returning to school.

“Most kids of my age bought shirts and shoes – but my mother was homeless. So, I saved and I bought that home for her. It is possible for people from a humble background to accomplish great things, even as teenagers, believe it or not.”

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The son of a former senator from Ekiti State has been arrested and remanded in prison following his involvement in robbery in Abuja.
According to police sources, the former senator’s son, who hails from Ekiti State, led a gang of armed robbers to rob a Colonel (names withheld) at Mbora Estate by Jabi District, where his AK-47 and other valuable items were removed.
The source disclosed that the robbery operation which took place on the July 5, 2013, resulted in the arrest of the ex-senator’s son whose name was given as Ola Kila.

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We've not finished battling Boko Haram now we are hearing about a new Islamic sect called Kala Kato that has settled in Rafi Local Government Area of Niger State.

According to what the spokesman of the Niger state Police command, ASP Richard Adamu told Daily Trust, the sect are said to be preaching some ideologies thought to be in contrast with conventional Islamic teaching. He said they are preaching against the teaching of Hadith (traditions of the holy prophet) and emphasising only on the contents of the Holy Quran.

ASP Adamu said most locals are apprehensive of their presence.

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Minister of finance, Ngozi Okonjo Iweala said yesterday during the opening of the two-day meeting of Commissioners of Finance and Accountants-General of States, that the federal government can't meet the N92billion being demanded by ASUU.

 Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said

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This is the popular hotel in Onitsha that was demolished by the Anambra State government last week after two human skulls were allegedly discovered inside. The hotel, called Upper Class Hotel, is located at 8 Old Market Road, Onitsha and is owned by business man, Mr Bonaventure Mokwe.

The human skulls, a male and a female head, were discovered after the Nigerian police raided the hotel following a tip off. Mr Mokwe has been arrested along with 10 other people. Continue...

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An Ikeja Magistrate’s Court was told, yesterday, how a woman, Mrs.  Adedoyin Ogunmefun, allegedly married two men at the same time.
She was also accused of having children for the two men she allegedly married.
Mrs Ogunmefun, who was arraigned alongside her second husband, before Magistrate B. O. Osunsanmi, over alleged forgery of National Population Commission certificate of birth AO8/NO/0268923 and AO8/NO/0268922 was said to have been married to one Mr.  Abraham Okoro, who she had two children for before leaving to have another child for the second husband.

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Lagos State governor Babatunde Raji Fashola, SAN, is 50 today. Wishing him many more successful and fruitful years ahead. Happy birthday, sir!

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22-year-old student of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun state who was rumoured to flush her baby inside one of the toilets in her hostel after giving birth narrates what actually went down.

When the news first broke, a lot of people vilified her. It was reported that she wanted to get rid of what many would describe as a bundle of joy.
People thus wondered why a 22-year-old undergraduate would try to flush away her baby in one of the toilets in Moremi Hall, her hall of residence at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State.
Without clarifying the circumstances that led to the delivery in the toilet, they went on to social media networks,  putting on trial Miss Oyinlola Rotimi, the 400-Level student of Agricultural Extension and Rural Sociology at OAU, who delivered a baby boy on Wednesday.
While the news went round the campus, the traumatised young mother was hurriedly taken to the institution’s Health Centre by two cleaners, Mrs. Shipebi Grace and Mrs. Cecilia Ologbenla. The social media was further flooded with stories that Oyinlola wanted to kill her baby. The OAU management investigated the matter and found out it was not true. Rotimi,  who was discharged from the hospital on Friday,  has also narrated her own side of the story.
In spite of the trauma she had passed through since last Wednesday, the student, a native of Ijabe,  a border town between Osun and Kwara states, says she is happy that the embarrassment she received from the controversy that surrounded the birth of her baby has turned into a blessing for her.
She says the baby’s birth has made her more popular and important in the society.
‘God has the best plan for me’
“Why would I flush or kill my baby after going through the pains of carrying him for about good nine months? I am not heartless and I thank God for my life and the safe delivery. I know God has the best plan for me and my baby. I seriously appreciate the cleaners for their assistance because I got here (health centre) before I understood everything that happened to me.
I am happy that I am alive and my baby is alive too. I’m also using this opportunity to thank the VC, the doctors and nurses, my lecturers and everybody because they all stood by me. They all became my father, my mother and everything to me.
“Right now, I can call myself a celebrity and definitely I’m going to be greater than a celebrity. My baby too is going to be great.
Look at the circumstance that surrounds his birth, just some days old, he is already all over in the news around the world and everybody is happy to see him or hear about his story.  He will surely go beyond where I am now. He has turned me into a kind of celebrity. ”
Circumstances surrounding the baby’s birth
“I was purging all through the night and I had no idea of what labour pain was all about. Actually, I was feeling pressed, I can’t call it a labour pain because I was visiting the toilet all through the night till that morning. I just went to the toilet to go and purge when I noticed something just came out of me which I found out was the baby. The baby entered  the closet. I was just there shouting, bleeding and people who saw the blood came out to help me  alongside the baby.
“I was really scared! I was not expecting a baby. I went to the toilet but seeing a baby was terrifying because I was not expecting him or her to come out yet. It is absolutely not true that I took to my heels when people came to help me.
It happened in Moremi Hall toilet and the toilet is a public one where everybody takes their bath, fetch water and clean up. So, some people were around fetching water, having their bath as usual, while I was in the toilet planning to defecate. My friend called the cleaner for help because she was an elderly woman. I was very scared and people around too couldn’t help because we are all young female students. The cleaner later helped to carry the baby out and brought it to the Health Centre along with me.”
Her plan for the baby
“I will continue to keep him more handsome, healthier and nurture him to attain greater height in life. But what he will become later in life is not for me to decide but he will definitely become what God wants him to become. I will just try to train him in God’s way and I am sure His (God) plan for his life will be realised.”
The bean cake she ate deceived her – CSO
According to the institution’s Chief Security Officer, Mr. Paul Ogidi, Rotimi thought she had stomach upset instead of labour pains because of the bean cake she took before going to bed.
“She got to campus late at night on Tuesday and  it was learnt that she could not immediately get herself something to eat but later resolved to buy beans cake within the campus. After eating the snack, she complained severely of running stomach, urinated and defecated at regular intervals.
“She felt her stomach disorder was caused by the bean cake that she took the previous night – not knowing it was labour pains.”
Varsity law does not forbid pregnancy – OAU
Authorities of OAU have blamed the improper use of the social media for the allegation that Oyinlola attempted to flush her baby away.

The Head of Public Relations, Mr. Biodun Olarenwaju, who spoke on behalf of the management, described the incident as a “social media rumour.”
He said, “Social media is designed primarily to disseminate information. But in the Nigerian context, many people disseminate rumours. The only information that should be seen there should be those persons who have the authority to speak concerning that particular incident.
“The only truth in the social media episode is that a bouncing baby boy was delivered in the toilet of the female hostel in our university. Other tales on the social media were totally incorrect. Students should not encourage rumour mongering because of the image of the person involved. They have to be careful not to make rumour the news.”
He explained that it was legal for the student to have delivered the baby in the school, stating that universities are institutions for adults.
“It is not a crime for a student to be pregnant. There is no law or decree that states that a student should be punished, an adult for that matter,  for getting pregnant. And there is no law in this university that states that an undergraduate cannot become pregnant,” he added.
‘My friend didn’t plan to kill her baby’
Rotimi’s friend, Oluwayemisi Satope, who was in Room 103, Block B of Moremi Hall, together with the undergraduate mother, the night before the incident, said Oyinlola was willing to have the baby.
She explained that there was no attempt by them to kill the boy.
She added, “The truth of the matter is that we don’t know how to go about it when we saw the baby. It was our first time and we didn’t want to make a mistake. I had to call Mama Cleaner to assist us. Immediately it happened, I was the first person to shout for help and two cleaners appeared to assist.
“Diana (Rotimi) had to spend the night on campus to enable her to prepare for her 8:00 am examination the next day,  because she stays off-campus. That mid-night, she started complaining of stomach upset and was visiting toilet regularly. A  few minutes to 7:00am,  she went to the toilet to defecate but delivered a baby.”
Students name baby after VC
And as soon as the birth and survival of the baby became known on campus, students in their characteristic manner, launched into an unsolicited naming feast for the baby. Before the official naming ceremony scheduled to hold on Wednesday (tomorrow), OAU students have named him after the institution’s Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Bamitale Omole.
At the Anglo-Moz Car Park of the university,  they gathered and named the baby Moremigbemi (Moremi-blesses-me), Oriyomi (My-head-saves-me), Oluwadayisi (God-protects-this), Eniolorunopa (He-who-God-does-not-kill), Bamitale (Be-with-me-permanently) Omole.
Others at the Moremi Hall named the baby Orisamoremi (Deity Moremi), Moremidayisi (Moremi-protects-this), Omomoremi (Child-of-Moremi), Olorunwa (God-exists), Oniyapupo (One-with-many-mothers) Moremioku (Moremi-is-alive), Iyabo (Mother-Moremi-is-Back), among others.
Moremi is a mythical legend of the Yoruba race.
We forced the door open to rescue Oyinlola, baby – Cleaners
Also, the two cleaners, Mrs. Shipebi Grace and Mrs. Cecilia Ologbenla,  in a chat with our correspondents, said there was no evidence to prove that Oyinlola wanted to kill her baby.
The cleaners noted that they had to force the door open when they were called to ensure the safety of Oyinlola and her baby who was crying.
According to them, the baby was in the water closet when they entered the toilet.
“She would not have wanted to attempt to kill the baby the way we saw her. She only panicked when we forced the door in. We had to force the door in because of the cry of the baby. In fact, it was one of them that came to call us, but you know some students are impatient. They didn’t confirm what happened before they started spreading rumour.”
Undergraduate father keeps mum
Meanwhile, efforts made by our correspondents to speak with the baby’s father proved abortive. He is a 400 Level student of Mechanical Engineering, and is sitting for the second semester examination currently on at the institution.
One of his friends who spoke on the condition of anonymity explained that the young father is very sober about the development.
The friend alleged that the young man and Rotimi had been friends for some time. Along the line, Oyinlola got pregnant and they decided not to abort it in order not to compound their ‘sin’.

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According to Punch, the Special Fraud Unit of the Nigeria Police has declared a former Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Alhaja Sinatu Ojikutu, wanted for allegedly defrauding a land buyer of N130m.

The SFU alleged in a statement on Wednesday that the suspect and her son, Samson, obtained money from the victim by false representation.

The Commissioner of Police for the command, Tunde Ogunsakin, said, “The victim alleged that in September 2011, the suspects conspired and sold a parcel of land at Plot 24 Block 4 situated at Admiralty Way, Lekki Phase 1, Lagos for N130m which he paid into the first suspect’s account with the Union Bank of Nigeria Plc. 

He further stated that after payment, he requested title document and Alhaja Ojikutu procured an affidavit of support to back her fraudulent claim, a police crime extract and a publication in a newspaper all purporting to loss of the original documents of title to the land.

 The victim believed her because of her personality as the former Deputy Governor of Lagos State.

“The bubble burst when the victim commenced development of the land and was on the verge of completion when the bona fide owner of the land surfaced and indeed it was discovered that the land the suspect sold did not belong to her.  She actually sold Plot 23 Block 4 while Plot 24 Block 4 already has a property on it.”

According to police investigation, the land Ojikutu sold, did not belong to her, but to one Mr. Afolabi.  It was also discovered that the Plot 24 Block 4, which actually belonged to Alhaja Ojikutu’s late husband, Samson Ojikutu (senior), was sold by him in 1995 and the suspect was a life witness and appended her signature to the sale of the land.

Ogunsakin said the suspect further perpetrated the crime by alleging that the original Certificate of Occupancy to the property was missing and swore an affidavit which enabled her to obtain a police report and memorandum of loss.  She also put up an advert in newspapers that the original C of O was lost, whereas the original C of O was with the Hallmark Homes, the buyer of the property.

He said, “The suspect, who is a 67-year-old retiree from Lagos Island, allegedly connived with her son, Samson, who is currently in the United States to commit the fraud.  The suspect and her son were parties to the sale of the land and both signed the agreement given to the complainant and obtained the sum of N130m from him.

“She admitted committing the crime but confessed that it was a genuine mistake of plot identification.  She refunded the sum of N50m to the complainant and promised to refund the balance as soon as she disposed of her two properties she put up for sale.  She also confessed that she had invested the victim’s money in her business.

 “She equally made an undertaking and payment plan which was drawn from September, 2012 and was to terminate by November 2012, but she defaulted.”

Ogunsakin stated that the suspect was not willing to abide by the terms of payment and had jumped bail. He added that all attempts to contact her had proved abortive.

“The SFU declares Alhaja Ojikutu wanted. Anybody with useful information regarding her whereabouts should report to the Commissioner of Police, Special Fraud Unit, 13 Milverton Road, Ikoyi,” he said.

Source: Punch

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President Goodluck Jonathan has joined other Nigerians and music lovers across the world to mourn Pa Fatai Olagunju, popularly known as Fatai Rolling Dollar, who passed away on Wednesday.
A statement issued in Abuja by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr Reuben Abati, described Rolling Dollar as an accomplished and multi-talented musician.
“President Jonathan shares the grief of all lovers of music over the death of the illustrious entertainer, master singer, guitarist and exponent of the native thumb piano.
“Fatai Rolling Dollar continued to perform and exhibit his unqualified love for the music profession at an age when most of his contemporaries had long retired.

“The president believes that the late Fatai Rolling Dollar who enthralled his teeming followers throughout his career of over 64 years will, even in death, remain an enduring influence on African music.
“And that the vacuum his death has created in the Nigerian entertainment industry will be hard to fill,’’ Abati said.
He said that the president extended heartfelt condolences to the late musician’s family and prays that God almighty grant his soul eternal rest. (NAN)

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JOINT NIGERIAN SPECIAL FORCES AND A MI-24V HIND ATTACK HELICOPER

Maj.-Gen. John Ewanshia, Commander of the Joint Task Force (JTF) in Borno, on Thursday in Maiduguri said the task force had recorded a lot of achievements since its operations began on May 14.Ewanshia said this during the two-day tour organised for journalists to have first-hand information about on-going military operations in the state.
He said the task force was currently working on the basis of the state of emergency declared recently by President Goodluck Jonathan to restore law and order to Borno, Yobe and Adamawa.
“As we speak, the operations are on-going and a lot of grounds had been covered and achievements had been recorded, but I won’t go into details.
“I will rather allow the gentlemen in the field to do the briefings,” the force commander said at the beginning of the tour.
A member of the JTF, Lt.-Col. Danladi Hassan, who is Commander of Combat Team One, said there had been tremendous progress.
While conducting journalists round the suspected terrorists’ camp in Kirenowa, about 60 kilometres to Nigeria’s border with Chad Republic, Hassan said the suspects left their camp on May 16.
He said this was after an encounter with the JTF and the group’s members had lived under the trees, to evade being spotted.

“This is to ensure that the rays of sunlight, as well as our surveillance from the aircraft do not expose them,” the troop leader said.
He said the camp also served as a training ground for the boys they recruited into the outlawed Boko Haram sect.
Hassan explained that members of the outlawed sect had destroyed their belongings when they discovered that the Federal Government troops were advancing towards them.
He also said when the troops moved into the camp, they discovered some drugs which were used by the terrorists.
Other items found in the camp include burnt cars, refrigerators, electric fans and gas cookers.
The rest are clothes, shoes, used and unused condoms, drugs and injection syringes, among others.
(NAN)
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Since the governor of Lagos can’t get Boli in Shoprite, he heads to street where he could get.

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Mr Efiok Cobham, the Cross River State deputy governor startled his household recently when he commanded his wife, Glory to kneel down and apologize to his protocol officer, Asikpo Okon for allegedly claiming that the protocol officer was in the habit of arranging girls for his boss.

A reliable source said Efiok’s wife and Asikpo have been having running battles since 2011 when, the erstwhile Cross River Broadcasting Cooperation, CRBC correspondent who was covering the government house was said to be having a relationship with the deputy governor.
”Oga was very angry with his wife when she confronted Asikpo over the relationship between him and the CRBC girl that is covering his office”.
Our source said Asikpo who is a relative of Efiok had immediately gone to tell his boss his wife’s claim that he was now arranging the CRBC girl for him and the deputy governor angrily called on the wife and commanded her to kneel down and apologize to Asikpo or kiss the marriage goodbye “Madam felt bitterly humiliated but she had no choice than to kneel down and apologize instead of ending the marriage because she saw the anger and seriousness on oga’s face”.
Glory who has since the second coming of Efiok as deputy governor, been keeping low profile even when her husband was made Acting Governor following his principal’s sojourn in the United States for four months, has been loudly complaining to her friends and relatives that she and her husband have not been having the best of times.
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