Jonathan, governors, others keep long motorcades, private jets as Nigeria struggles against falling oil revenues

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President Goodluck Jonathan, and other officials of his administration, as well as governors and heads of the National Assembly are not letting off any of their conveniences as Nigeria battles dwindling revenues, retaining extra-large convoys and travel teams, and flying private jets and first class with public money while the same government says the nation must accept cutbacks to counter the oil crisis.

While the president and the governors have retained their long motorcades, the senate president, David Mark, and House of Representatives speaker, Aminu Tambuwal, are doing just the same.

Official convoys of the president averages 40 cars, those of the governors exceed 20. Mr. Mark’s convoy as of this week remained at least 12.

Governors travelling around the country mainly for their political needs continue to use private jets, maintained and fuelled at huge cost to public purse.

Only a few governors use public airplanes when travelling. An example is the Cross River State governor, Liyel Imoke. Former Anambra governor, Peter Obi, also did.

Rolling back official conveniences, no matter how little, are usually some of the first steps for nations battling economic downturns. Reduction in official vehicles could help save fuel and maintenance cost.

Nigeria is one of the countries worst hit by the dwindling oil price which currently hovers around $78 per barrel.

With no reprieve, President Goodluck Jonathan last week asked the National Assembly to lower Nigeria’s oil price benchmark from $78 per barrel to $73, to cushion further shocks at the international market, and to grow the Excess Crude savings which the government has turned to in recent months, to help pay workers’ salaries.

Finance Minister, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has said the government is planning higher taxes on high taste products such as champagne, and top range automobiles, to compel the rich to pay more to help the government deal with the situation.

She said the government will significantly minimize foreign travels, and purchase of new equipment in the 2015 budget.

The proposals remain to be seen.

On Tuesday, the Central Bank Nigeria, CBN, announced Nigeria’s toughest response yet, devaluing the nation’s currency against the dollar by 13 naira.

CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele, said the oil shift appears permanent, and warned that the proposed $73 benchmark may be too optimistic. He called for cuts on government habits.

The Nigerian Labour Congress, NLC, civil society and economists, say the government is not showing sufficient seriousness in responding to the crisis.

For a start, they argued, the government must confront corruption headlong, reduce administrative costs, and harness internally generated revenues from government agencies.

“Raising taxes on luxury items is long overdue,” the general secretary of the NLC, Peter Ozo-Ezon, told PREMIUM TIMES. “There has always been the need to tax the very rich in the country. The exclusive items they consume must be targeted.

“Private jets acquired by some individuals should attract huge taxes,” he said.

The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, PENGASSAN, said instead of imposing unnecessary austerity measures on Nigerians, the government at all levels should prune the numbers of their political aides.

“The governors, ministers and federal and state legislators should also be made to reduce their aides to a sizeable number that our economy can bear and whatever is gotten from this exercise should be used in supporting and bolstering the economy,” the union’s chairman, Francis Johnson, said in a release last week.

Corruption and leaks

Many Nigerian said corruption must be the first casualty if the government intends to be seen as serious in managing the economic hardship facing the nation, and they challenged Mr. Jonathan to start right at the top.

“The President (Goodluck Jonathan) has said time and gain that there is no corruption in the country,” said Auwal Rafsanjani, of the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre, CISLAC. “This is very discouraging to discerning Nigerians, because these problems could easily be traced to the corruption and impunity in the country.

“Whenever the President and his wife travel, the huge crowd that accompany them as their entourage are completely irrelevant and wasteful. If the waste is not tackled from the level of the President, how would the problem be solved?”

Mr. Rafsanjani denounced the government for continuing to sponsor pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia and Israel.

Yearly, government offices spend billions on foreign trips.

In 2014, State house administration (not the president or vice) earmarked N240 million for local and foreign travels.

The president earmarked N2.4 billion for travels while the vice president proposed a relatively smaller N68.7 million.

The Ministry of Finance headquarters proposed N465.8 million, as hundreds of other offices did, for travels.

On Transparency International Corruption Index, Nigeria ranked the 134th most corrupt among 175 nations for 2013. In 2012, the score was relatively better: 139 out of 174 countries.

President Jonathan, accused of tolerating corruption and allowing indicted officials be part of his government, famously said stealing is not corruption and vowed not to declare his asset publicly.

Mr. Jonathan is also notorious for travelling abroad for official engagement with oversized team, at one time, over 600 to New York, on public funds.

Such wastes, anti-corruption activists say, reflect on the budget annually with the government allotting money for purchases that were taken care of the previous year.

The commonest commodities that repeat in the budgets of almost all Ministries, Departments, and Agencies, MDAs are computers, scanners, printers, ACs, buses and Hilux pick-ups, checks by PREMIUM TIMES have shown.

Govt. agencies squander N12 trillion own funds

By far, the most scandalous non-oil wastage of public funds are perpetrated still within government offices, where a 2012 report by the National Assembly Budget and Research Office said between 2009 and 2012, N12 trillion was generated by government agencies and ministries, and much of that was squandered.

Simply put, if well harnessed, IGRs from the MDAs could fund much of Nigeria’s budget which averages at N4.5 trillion annually.

The National Assembly report indicted several offices for concealing their sources of revenue, claiming losses where non-exists, and refusing to make remittances to the Federation Account as demanded by the Fiscal Responsibility Act.

The report said the major reason the fraud thrived for years, even till date, was the government’s near-absolute focus on oil revenues.

“Many reasons are responsible for this fundamental lapse,” the report said. “But the major reason is the government’s over-reliance on proceeds from hydrocarbons with scant or no serious thoughts on the imperative for these agencies to generate and remit any surplus revenues.”

The report said while the agencies were expected to pay to government a fraction of their surpluses, amounting to N512.11 billion, they only transferred N264.74 billion.

Majority of the agencies either failed to pay the appropriate sum, or refused to pay anything at all, the report said. Some hid their sources of revenue while others while others simply squandered whatever amount accrue to them.

The News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, for instance, claimed in its filing those three years that it made money only from news subscription, when indeed, it generated extra N41.84 million in 2011, the report found.

Some offices claimed they incurred losses and could pay nothing.

In one puzzling case, the Lagos International Trade Fair, which claimed losses between 2009 and 2011, reversed itself after meeting with the House of Representatives Committee on Finance.

The report said the office promptly cleared a N3.75 million fixed deposit with a bank and made payment into government coffers in December 2012.

Jumbo pay

Governance Programmes Manager, Action Aid Nigeria, Obo Effanga, said he was not impressed with measures put in place by government to deal with the oil price crisis.

Mr. Effanga said the bogus number of ministers, presidential aides and advisers as well as the continued maintenance of the office of the First Lady, which is not recognized under the Constitution, do not show seriousness.

Besides, he said nothing seems to have been done by government to tax certain goods and services, particularly the provision for withholding tax in the country.

“Nobody seems to be aware how much withholding tax government collects from contractors and other services,” Mr. Effanga said. “How much tax did the politicians pay for the N27million or N22million they paid to collect Presidential nomination forms in the various political parties?”

Another notorious waste, the commentators said, remains the huge earnings of members of the National Assembly.

In 2012, the UK-based magazine, Economist, concluded that Nigerian lawmakers were the highest paid in the world. Even so, the report considered only salaries of the lawmakers, not their hefty unclear allowances.

“If government is serious, it must look at the huge earnings by the legislature. The President must do something about the number of jets in the Presidential fleet. The President does not need the number of exotic cars in his official convoy,” said Tope Fasua, Chief Executive Officer, Lagos-based Financial Derivatives Limited.

“Now that government is talking about austerity, who got the benefits of the boom when it lasted? Why are we talking about austerity measures, belt-tightening and more taxes now when businesses are folding up? Mr. Fasua asked.

The Lead Director, Centre for Social Justice, Eze Onyekpere, said for the government to be taken seriously with the proposed measures, President Jonathan must first show that seriousness by dispensing with at least eight of the 10 Sport Utility Vehicles in his convoy immediately, while the National Assembly should drastically cut their N150 billion annual budgetary allocation.

“The frivolous expenditures on meals and refreshments to public officials should be stopped immediately. All subsidy thieves should be prosecuted. So far there is no demonstrable commitment to fight corruption, because none of the subsidy thieves have been sent to jail,” Mr. Onyekpere said. “The NNPC (Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation) that has become sludge fund for government should be reorganized, and the PIB (Petroleum Industry Bill) must be passed to make the industry function effectively.”

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APC not an Islamic party, says Amaechi

Rivers State Governor, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi
| credits: File copy

The Rivers State Governor, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, has dismissed claims in some quarters that the All Progressives Congress is an Islamic party.

Describing those spreading the rumour that the APC is an Islamic party as mischief-makers, Amaechi insisted that the party had no intention to Islamise Nigeria should it win the 2015 presidential election.

The governor, who spoke on Wednesday during an interactive session with students at the Ignatius Ajuru University of Education in Port Harcourt, also described the APC as a party of the progressives.

He stated that one of the APC presidential aspirants, Maj. Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), was not behind the rumour that the party planned to islamise the country, adding that the APC meant well for Nigerians and the development of the nation.

Amaechi urged Nigerians not to be worried by claims from the APC detractors, maintaining that since Buhari never thought of islamising Nigeria when he was a military Head of State, he would not embark on such an exercise as a democratically-elected president.

He said, “The APC is not an Islamic party. This is so because when Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd.) was Nigeria’s Head of State as a young man, he did not Islamise Nigeria, and to do that, he needs the endorsement of the National Assembly to debate over the issue. Buhari cannot Islamise Nigeria. Don’t be perturbed by what our detractors are saying.

“I am an ardent Catholic Christian and I converse with God a lot. It is not true that the APC will Islamise Nigeria. The National Chairman of the APC, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun is a Christian. Bola Tinubu’s wife is also a Christian, Buhari’s cook is a Christian from Igboland, his driver is also a Christian. As a father to all of those Christians, Buhari gives Sunday as a free day to his domestic members of staff to go to church and worship God. So, no one can believe what our detractors are saying about Buhari and the APC.”

He, however, expressed dissatisfaction at the stagnated political economy of the state, alleging that the Presidency and his government’s detractors were responsible for the development.

“The political economy of Rivers State has been stagnated by the Presidency and our detractors. They are all thieves who don’t mean well for our state. They caused mayhem in the last administration. We assumed office and chased them away. Now, as my tenure draws close to an end, I can see they have brought them back.

“You and I have a responsibility to stop them from repeating what they did before. We will not allow them again to steal our funds. Imagine the missing $20bn that was stolen. We expect that our President would have sacked all those involved in the saga. But, he only threatened to sack the former CBN Governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, who was only doing his legitimate duty at that time. Nigerians must have a rethink,” Amaechi said.

On the forthcoming general elections, the governor pointed out that the plan by the PDP to usher in another Ikwerre governor in Rivers State in 2015 was unreasonable, not feasible and would fail.

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My perception of lovemaking and sex — Uche Iwuanyanwu -

Uche Iwuanyanwu is an extremely beautiful and curvy Nollywood actress. She is most known for her role in the Ghanaian hit movie Cheaters.

The voluptuous fast-rising star who recently shot her latest movie titled Second Honeymoon, alongside Alex Ekubo and many others is our this week’s Showtime Celebrity. In this revealing interview, the sexy actress talks about her flourishing career, love life, and more.

When did you start acting?

I started acting partially in 2009 and fully in 2012. In 2009, I was doing movies alongside schooling.

career been so far?

So far it’s been good, it’s been wonderful and I’m enjoying every bit of it. Since I finished school, I’m getting more jobs than I was when I was in school

Which school did you attend?

I went to University Of Jos. I have a diploma in Mass communication and a Bsc in Economics

How many movies have you done so far?

I think I’ve done over 25 to 30 movies

Which is your latest movie?

Reverend Sister Ibu is the latest movie that is making waves in the market. I acted alongside Mr Ibu and Ruth Kadiri. It was a sub lead but it was a good character. I have two others coming out soon; Birthday Bash directed by Desmond Elliot and Second Honeymoon with Alex Ekubo.

Which is your most successful movie so far?

Definitely, I would pick the one I just finished now; Second Honeymoon. It’s not out though but looking at where the movie has gone so far after the shoot, I think it’s going to go really far, so I picture it as my best and most successful

What was it like acting with Alex Ekubo?

Acting with Alex was actually very good; I played the character where I was his wife. It was fantastic on set, it was good, it was interesting and I enjoyed every bit of it.

Did you have any challenging moment in the industry?

I do have some challenging moments. For example, you go for an audition and then you’re picked for the role and after a while, you don’t get any call from the people and you start wondering what’s happening? You know you performed very well at the audition but you don’t get called back and then you just keep wondering. So there have been ups and downs but so far so good. We thank God.

Can you describe yourself in three words?

I’m smart, sexy and very romantic

When is your Second Honeymoon movie coming out?

Give it two-three months, the movie should be out. But I want my fans to actually go and watch Reverend Sister Ibu, it’s my first comedy and it’s hilarious. It’s something that shows me from a different perspective.

Which actor do you have a crush on in Nollywood?

I don’t have a crush on any actor or actress. I only have my role models and they are Joke Silva, Genevieve Nnaji and Uncle Olu Jacobs. These are people I love and I respect so much

Can you date an actor you’ve worked with before?

I can’t, because it is not professional. You don’t mix business with pleasure; it’s unethical so I wouldn’t want to date anybody that I’m in the same career with.

What qualities do you look out for in a man?

He must be God-fearing, he must be very romantic, he must be caring, loving and he should understand my job. You don’t have to give me flowers, you don’t have to buy me limousine or Range Rover even though I need those stuffs, but you should be very caring.

When did you notice the acting thing in you?

When I was a teenager in Church, I was in a teenage drama group and then we used to put up some drama together. I’ve always loved acting as a young person; I’ve always loved to just stand in front of the mirror and just act like someone else.

It’s something I’ve always loved to do since I was a child. Along the line, I finished Secondary School and I just found out that it’s something that could put food on my table. Although I went to school but I still loved acting and I chose to do acting over living as an economist.

How many are you in your family?

We are six, three boys and three girls. I am the third child.

As an actress, can you have sex in a movie?

It depends on your interpretation of acting sex because as an actor, what you need to do is to understand your job first, understand the script that has been given to you and then interpret it properly for viewers to watch and understand.

If I get a script that’s a sexual script, it doesn’t mean I have to make love in front of the camera, I just need to act. For the fact that I’ve accepted a script, it means I should be able to do the job but I’m not saying I would go nude in front of the camera.

I’m saying I would want to be professional about my job. If I get a script and I have to go nude, I don’t have to take jobs like that, I can take jobs that are decent because this is Africa and we respect our bodies so much, so nothing would make me go completely nude or act porn.

But can you do a depiction of sex?

If you want me to do a romantic scene, of course, yes. That’s why I said it’s a matter of choice, you see your scripts before you go on set, it’s not like you just get on set and they give you a script ‘Undress’. It’s a ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ thing. People choose to go on set and decide to go nude for a reason while others do not go nude for a reason.

It doesn’t mean that the person who has gone nude on TV is worse than the person who hasn’t gone nude and it doesn’t mean that the person who hasn’t gone nude is more righteous than the person that has gone nude; it’s just a matter of choice.

If they give you a script that says you should go nude, would you turn it down?

Of course, I won’t do it.

Can you do a kissing scene in a movie?

I’ve done lots of kissing scenes, that’s being professional. There’s no emotion or strings attached to it

How do you view sex off camera?

There’s a difference between sex and lovemaking. I see sex as an activity that goes on between a man and a woman. If you’re married then its lovemaking. If you’re single then its adultery, if you’re a married man sleeping with a single girl then its adultery, if you’re a married woman sleeping with a single man, that’s fornication. It’s a matter of choice; it’s what people want to do. It doesn’t mean that I’m more righteous than people that are having sex and stuff; it’s just a personal choice. Personally, I think sex is just an activity that goes on between two people, two people that are willing to have sex. Sex is spiritual to me; that’s what I think. To other people it might not be, but to me, it’s very spiritual. If I have to go into sex, it has to be with the right person because spirits are actually transferable through sex

What has been the high point of your career?

I just got nominated for an award in Best of Nollywood (BON) as the ‘Revelation of the Year’, so to me; I think that’s a good starting point for someone that has just started. It means that your work is being appreciated out there. Sometimes you really don’t get this recognition except you’re really doing something different from the other person, so I’m very grateful to God and I pray I win the award. The award is actually holding on my birthday, October 11th in Portharcourt

You said you used to get Ghanaian roles before. Have you started getting Nigerian jobs?

Yeah, now I do more of Nigerian films. Since I got back after I shot the movie Cheaters that was in the cinema for a while, I’ve been doing more Nigerian jobs and they’ve been good. I’ve done Reverend Sister Ibu, Birthday Bash, Second Honeymoon and I’ve done one other movie, Double Standard

What’s your view of Nollywood now?

We’ve gone so high; we’re like number 2 in the World now in terms of outputs. You cannot compare Nollywood now to four years ago. I’m not saying there are no drawbacks but what I’m saying is, so far so good, they’ve done better movies; we’ve seen better cinema movies that are recognized internationally

How do you see injection of obscene scenes into Nollywood movies?

Sometimes when you see people accept scripts like that, it’s because that’s what the market and the society want to see. You will be shocked to find out that most people when they go to the market, what they ask for are: ‘Wetin be the latest sex movie now?’ How many people want to watch educative movies? How many people want to watch movies that would make them know there’s God? A lot of people don’t care.

So, what you’re saying now is that people go for the raunchy films?

Some people do. If people don’t buy those movies, they wouldn’t be doing them. Haven’t you thought about that before? The reason why they still do them is because people buy the movies, people are always out there waiting for them to come out. If it’s flooding the market, it’s because people are demanding for them. It’s when you ask for something that you get it in excess.

You said you can never go nude; can you wear a bikini or something like that?

Yeah, I can improvise, that’s why it’s a character. I would shoot anything that has to do with decency in a movie but I won’t go nude. I’ve done a movie before that I was supposed to go semi nude but I improvised and I wore something else; I wore a bra and bum shorts. It doesn’t mean that because I’ve done that movie I don’t know what I’m doing. Of course, I know where I’m going to but I would rather improvise than go nude completely for a role; no matter how much I’m being paid.

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Why I really want to rule Nigeria – Buhari

General Muhammadu Buhari

explained why he is in the 2015 presidential race on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

He said if elected president, he wants to galvanize the economy and lead a general turn around in Nigeria. He said he also wants to provide gainful employment to the masses.

Buhari spoke during a visit to Rivers State to solicit the support of APC national delegates in the state ahead of the party’s presidential primaries.

Addressing the delegates at the Banquet Hall of Government House, Port Harcourt, Wednesday, Buhari bemoaned the infrastructural decay in the country and the poor leadership offered by the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

“My message is just to remind all of us about the condition we are in this country and that next year 2015 is another political watershed in this country. If we allow by any means the PDP to continue, I don’t think by the end of their next term of four years even Nigerians can recognize their country, because all you need to do is to compare what state we were in 1999 when the PDP took over the centre and most of the states. 

“In terms of infrastructure, we used Nigerian Airways, we used Nigerian railways, we used Nigerian Shipping line, even power at that time was relatively stable, more stable than it has been now after spending 20 billion US Dollars. 

“Instead of seeing improvement in infrastructure, in way of life, quality of education, healthcare that immediately concerns the people, everything is going down, so Nigerians must vote PDP out next year. It is a question of survival. If you want our country, you want your son and your grandson to get education, to get healthcare, to get drinking water, to get security, you have to vote PDP out and I am here to ask you for your understanding and support because the journey of a million miles starts with one step.

“This is what APC is all about. We agreed to come together because we found out, no single political party could make any difference. As I said from 1999 till now, collapse of infrastructure, economy, manufacturing, therefore lack of jobs, therefore crises of all sorts,” Buhari stated.

He accused the PDP of lacking accountability and wondered how Nigeria could progress without an accountable leadership. “How can we go forward in this country if there is no accountability?” He queried.

On insecurity in the North-East, Buhari lambasted the federal government for failing to arrest the situation. He said efforts made by federal lawmakers to probe finances allocated to the country’s military were frustrated by government agents.

Buhari also dismissed claims that he would Islamize Nigeria if elected as the country’s President, explaining that he had no powers to Islamize Nigeria.

“I have no powers to Islamize Nigeria. No Muslim can Islamize Nigeria as no Christian can also Christianize Nigeria. Nigeria will remain Nigeria,” he said.

Meanwhile, Rivers State Governor and Chairman of Nigeria Governors’ Forum, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi has upheld the virtues of General Muhammadu Buhari, describing him as a true nationalist.

Amaechi who earlier addressed the state national delegates of the APC, said Buhari is a good presidential choice for the country to bring about change.

Again, he refuted claims that the former head of state is a religious fanatic.

“When I went to Ignatius Ajuru University yesterday, one young woman got up and said governor, ‘you have convinced me, I will vote for APC, but I have a problem’, and I said, what is your problem? She said ‘they say APC is an Islamic party, it will Islamize Nigeria,’ and I said they are referring to Buhari, so let me address her straight: Buhari’s driver is a Christian, his cook is a Christian, who else, the most important staff for a big man is his cook before his driver. So, if a man (like Buhari) can insure his life to somebody who does not belong to his religion, how else will he show you that he is not a religious bigot?”

“Now, those of us who have known him, we want to present him to you. If he wins primaries, we will present the true Buhari to Nigerians because they need to know that he is a different person from what these selfish politicians have portrayed him to be,” Amaechi said.

He urged party members to be dedicated and work for APC’s victory next year and advised national delegates from the state not to accept any financial inducement at the party’s forthcoming presidential primaries in Lagos.

“If Buhari will bring money, we will reject it. If Atiku will bring money, we will also reject it”.

Amaechi also appealed to party members to get their permanent voter’s cards and sensitize other APC supporters in the grassroots to also get their’s or go for fresh registration.

APC anoints Peterside as Amaechi’s replacement

Rep. Dakuku Peterside

Dakuku Peterside, representing Andoni /Opobo Nkoro federal constituency of Rivers state has been picked as the consensus governorship candidate for the All Progressives Congress.

It was learnt that the Elders of the APC settled for Peterside after due consultations, horse-trading and negotiations with other stakeholders in the party.

APC had zoned the governorship slot to Rivers South East. Senator Magnus Abe, represents Rivers South East at the National Assembly.

Peterside who was once the Commissioner for Works in the first tenure of Governor Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi administration is from Opobo, a Riverine area of the state. He was chairman, Opobo Nkoro local Government council. He was also Special Adviser to Governor Odili.

His choice may be in fulfilment of the promise of Amaechi’s administration not to hand over to another Ikwerre like he is.

Abe was a minority leader in Rivers State Assembly, under the All Peoples Party, APP, representing Gokana in Ogoniland before defecting to PDP, when Amaechi was the Speaker of House Assembly.

Abe was later appointed the Commissioner for Information under the Dr Peter Odili administration as Governor. He was later appointed the Secretary to the State Government, SSG.

It was it learnt that Abe was there when the consensus was reached.

It is not clear how the Ogonis will accept the decision.

Abe is yet to give his reaction to the decision of the party.

However, majority of callers into a local Port Harcourt radio station said what just happened in APC will reduce rancour that is plaguing the PDP alleged to have been hijacked by Nyesom Wike,Governorship Aspirant of the party and immediate past Minister of State for Education.

Cheater Husband catches wife having sex with pastor's son in church

What would lead a mother of 6 to have sex in the church with another man?

An angry husband could have sent his adulterous wife and boyfriend to the great beyond.

 (Fallout.wikia.com)

But for divine intervention, an angry husband in Osun State, Nigeria, who caught his wife having sex with their pastor's son right inside the church, would today be charged with double murders as the adulterous duo managed to escape before he could lay his hands on a machete.

The man, Olabisi Afolayan, has however, dragged his wife, Folasade, to a divorce court, praying the court to dissolve the marriage which has lasted the whole of 20 years and blessed with 5 children, as he could no longer take the trauma of the shame she has brought upon himself and his family.

Afolayan told the court that he could no longer condone her promiscuity, stressing that his wife is so loose and in 2003, she also ran away with a man, abandoning her matrimonial home for four years.

Narrating his ordeal in tears, Afolayan said:

"The cause of our problem is her adulterous ways and she causes problems for me because she once ran away with another man in 2003 and I did not find her until 2007.

By the time she came back, I had married another wife. Attempts at reconciliation were made but I refused. She invited the police to harass my second wife until she ran away.

She once told me that she wanted to go and buy bread, and that was how she disappeared for three days. I also came back from work one day and was told she was not around; I later heard her voice and traced her to a church near our house.

When I got there, I found my wife and the pastor’s son having sex. I went to get a cutlass, but before I came back, they had fled.

I want the court to know that I am not the father of our sixth child and I am not responsible for the pregnancy she is carrying." 

But in her defense, Folasade denied the allegations against her, saying her husband is only trying to dodge fending for his children.

Hear her:

"We have six children and not five and we have been married for 20 years, but we have never lived together because of constant fightings."

Kidnappers Of Lagos Oil Magnate Open Up

kidnapper who has been arrested by the police has confessed that his gang collected N20 million from an oil magnate and he got a share of N2.5 million from the deal in Lagos State, western Nigeria.

The suspect, Chukwuma Kinsley, was arrested with Kelvin Igah and his wife, Ogechi and Kelvin’s younger brother, Victor Igah whose role was to keep the victims in captivity at their two-bedroom flat located at 18, Odeniyi Ishola Street, off Bola Road, Isheri Oshun, Lagos.

Kinsley confessed that his gang kidnapped the Director of Dapsey Oil, Chief Idowu Coker and collected N20 million ransom and he promised to pay the remaining of N10 million balance before they were arrested.

•Suspected kidnappers paraded today in Lagos

He said it was after they kidnapped another oil magnate, Alhaji Fashola Hammed, that the police nabbed them.

The three suspects and Ogechi were paraded by the Commissioner of Police Lagos State Command,  Mr Kayode Aderanti, on Wesdenesday at Ikeja, Lagos Command.

Aderanti said he received information  about the kidnapping of Alhaji Hammed Fashola, 55, owner of Kings Petroleum and that the kidnappers were demanding N50 million ransom.

He said he immediately directed operatives of SARS led by Abba Kyari to take action.

He said Fashola was rescued from their hideout at 18, Odeniyi Ishola Street, off Bola Road, Isheri Oshun, Lagos, and four of the suspects were arrested. Other gang members are said to be at large.

Aderanti said that the suspects confessed to series of kidnapping within the Lagos metropolis and the police are making efforts to arrest the remaining gang members.

Coker and Hammed were kidnapped at Igando and Egbeda areas respectively by the gang and kept in a toilet.

Coker spent nine days in captivity before he paid the ransom and regained his freedom, while Hammed spent four days before the police rescued him and arrested the suspects.

Aderanti said the police will continue to work hard to reduce crime, especially kidnapping and armed robbery, to make Lagos a crime-free state.

Prisoner got FOUR female guards pregnant while in jail for attempted murder

Gangster Tavon 'Bulldog' White is now set to appear as a star witness in the trial of five prison officers and two fellow inmates

'Kingpin': Tavon White was serving a 20 year jail sentence, but is said to have run a vast drugs smuggling business from inside

 "Nwoke ike"  A notorious prisoner got FOUR female guards pregnant as he played "kingpin" inside a corrupt jail, a court has heard.

Gangster Tavon White was serving 20 years for attempted murder inside Baltimore City Detention Centre.

But he managed to make tens of thousands of dollars a week by smuggling in drugs and mobile phones, CBS Baltimore reports, and was once heard saying: "This is my jail. My word is law."

Prosecutors say gang members held the balance of power inside the prison, and sex between guards and inmates led to four guards becoming pregnant.

The two of the four women are even said to have had tattoos of White's name, with one displaying a "Tavon" tattoo on her neck and the other on her wrist.

However White, a member of the Black Guerilla Family who is also known as "The Bulldog", is now set to become a star witness in the prosecution of two other inmates and five prison guards over money laundering, drugs and conspiracy charges.

White has already pleaded guilty to a number of drug distribution and money laundering charges.

Victims Narrate Why They Invade Lagos

The unabated killings being perpetrated by the dreaded Boko Haram sect in northern Nigeria have forced many displaced persons from the affected communities to invade Lagos state, the commercial of the country, this is according to a report published by Punch online.

According to the investigative report, many Northerners are now taking refuge in Lagos and other Nigerian cities as a result of the activities of members of the Islamist militants in their states.

“The killings in our communities by Boko Haram members made most of us to run for our lives,’’ Awalu Bernard, a commercial motorcycle operator who hails from Adamawa, told Punch correspondents in Hausa language in Festac Town area of Lagos.

When asked if  he had lived in Lagos before, Awaju stated: ‘’This is my first visit to Lagos. I was a successful farmer before I found myself here. I am not the only one from my place, Madagali Local Government Area of Adamawa State who came to Lagos at the same time. 

“We were many. The killings in our communities by Boko Haram members made most of us to run for our lives. Some of us are staying with our relations while others are staying with friends who helped them to secure commercial motorcycles.

“We are not happy that we are here but the situation turned us into what we have become. That is why there are so many commercial motorcycles in Festac. Some of us who could not afford the motorcycles, resorted to doing any menial job in sight.”

File photo of displaced persons in northern Nigeria.

and other food stuff. I had a big shop. In fact, in a day I could sell 20 bags of rice but because of the destruction in Adamawa, I had to run for my life. 

“I am not happy that I am riding a motorcycle which does not give me enough money as I used to have before. When I was at home, we could invest N50,000 or N100,000 into farming. But the insurgents have destroyed all our farmlands. We could not run to any Northern state because none of them is safe.”

Another displaced person who simply identified himself as Bitrus James, also narrated how he was forced to flee his home town in northern part of Nigeria with only the cloth he wore, leaving his parents behind.

He said: ‘’The situation is worrisome over there. It was so bad that I came to Lagos with only the cloth I had on me. 

“What is going on there is a real war. I don’t know the whereabouts of my parents. We have not spoken since I arrived. We are looking up to God to assist because it is totally bad over there.

‘’Some of our people are also members of the sect. They pay them so much money to join. They pay as much as N200, 000.00 for people to join Boko Haram. The money is part of what attracts young people to the sect. Now that I am here, I don’t have plans of leaving Lagos until the condition gets better.”

Investigation also showed that youths in their hundreds from North Eastern Nigeria where Boko Haram insurgency has become alarming, are trooping to Lagos on a daily basis.

Aside being Okada riders, some others do menial jobs like water vending, cart pushing, shoe mending and security guards.

It was further discovered that most of them have no decent place of abode in the city already overpopulated with about 17 million people.

Some of them are said to be sleeping on the streets in the slums, while others occupy uncompleted buildings in their neighbourhood.

You can read details on Vanguard.