Straight From the Headlines! What Everyone was Talking About this Week

Thank God it’s Friday!

Hello our dearest Bellanaijarians. Hope you’ve had a splendid week. Welcome to your weekly round up of news stories that made headlines across the country this week.

Its been an interesting week as usual, with a variety of news stories making headlines.

Here’s a recap of some of the stories that made headlines this week:

***

Nigeria may not participate in the IAAF World Junior Championships as the Spanish Embassy in Lagos denied her athletes visas on Monday. Tempers rose as the athletes who were at the Embassy early Monday morning, protested the attitude of the Consular officials by blocking the entrance to the Embassy with their cars, requesting that they be attended to. But the officials remained adamant. The applications for the visas had been submitted two weeks ago, but officials of the Embassy kept dribbling the athletes and officials. The team was scheduled to travel on Sunday night to catch up with the event, which started on Monday, but traveling was most unlikely as a result of the denial of issuing them visas. Officials of the Embassy insisted that visas couldn’t be issued because the officers who were supposed to stamp the passports were not on seat. They asked the team to report on Tuesday morning.

***
Tragedy struck on Monday morning at Umuakoro Village in Emekuku Owerri North Local Government Area of Imo state as 9 bodies of the Pascal Njoku Family were found dead at their residence in the early hours of the day. Sources said Mr. Pascal Njoku who works and resides in Port-harcourt, Rivers state, came back home for the final burial of his mum who died some months ago and he was accompanied by his wife, 5 children, his sister-in-law and her son. Shortly after the burial event the previous night, they all went to their respective rooms to sleep. However, in the early hours of the following day, all nine of them were found dead. At the moment the reason of their deaths could not be ascertained but sources said their mouths were all foaming profusely when the bodies were brought out of the rooms.

***

Nigeria’s human rights activist and lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana, alongside 24 others has been elevated to the elite lawyers’ rank of Senior Advocates of Nigeria, SAN, by the Legal Practitioners Privileges committee. The elevation was endorsed at its meeting held at the Supreme Court complex in Abuja, in accordance with the provisions of the Legal Practitioners’ Act 2004. The other new entrants are Professor Yemi Akinseye- George, a lecturer at the University of Ibadan, Professor Dakas Clement James Dakas, Joy Okungbowa Adesina, Chief Mrs. Connie – Jeanne Aremu, Mahmud Abubakar Magaji, Ogwu James Onoja, Garuba Usman Tetengi, Henry Oghogho Ogbodu, Selekeowei Larry, Abenny O. Mohammed and Charles Nwanne Obishai. Others are Luke Chukwudi Illogu, Francis Chuka Agbo, Paul C. Ananaba, Akinlaja Dayo Moses, Ahmed Raji, Adekunle Theophilus Oyesanya, Rotimi Oluseyi Oguneso, Oluseye Samuel Opasanya, Aderoja Claudius Olumiyiwa, Aliyu Umar, Illo Katune Sanusi, Rotimi Jacobs and Ndukwe A. Nnawuchi. Their swearing in will be announced later.

Pandemonium broke out on Thursday at Ojuelegba, Surulere area of Lagos State when students allegedly from Yaba College of Technology, YABATECH, took to major highways and went after officials of the Lagos State Transport Management Authority, LASTMA, wounding at least four and abducting one in the process. The students, numbering about 50, and armed with various kinds of weapons, blocked major highways at about 11: a.m in protest against  the seizure of one of their union buses for driving on the Bus Rapid Transit, BRT lane, the previous day. The incident led to a  traffic jam along the axis, one of the alternative routes designated by the state government as relief for traffic gridlock that resulted from the on-going repairs on the Third Mainland Bridge. LASTMA General Manager, Engr. Babatunde Edu, who confirmed the development, revealed that one of his men Mr. Obasanmi Oladimeji was abducted in the process at his duty post at Jibowu, Yaba by the irate students. He was later released.

***

Justice Ojo of the Ogun State High Court sitting in Ota has struck out the N2billion suit slammed on the founder of the Living Faith Church Worldwide, Bishop David Oyedepo, for slapping a young lady during a church service in 2009. Robert Igbinedion, a Lagos based lawyer who filed the suit on behalf of the young lady, had asked the court to award N2billion as ‘general and exemplary damages’ against the flamboyant pastor among other reliefs. But delivering judgment Thursday morning, Justice Ojo struck out the case, saying the application lacked merit on many grounds. He awarded a N20,000 cost against the applicant. He said the girl, who was allegedly slapped, remained a ghost victim and that the applicant failed to prove that he attended the service where the girl was allegedly slapped. During the hearing of the case, Dele Adesina, counsel to Bishop Oyedepo, had complained to the court that they did not have a photograph and the video where the Bishop slapped the young lady.

***

The Federal Government has approved a total of 51 universities to offer postgraduate programmes in the country. Minister of Education, Professor Ruqayyatu Rufai announced this during the presentation and distribution of the stipulated benchmark by the National Universities Commision in Abuja. Issuing a minimum academic benchmark, the minister warned all universities offering post-graduate programmes across the country to strictly adhere to it or face stiff sanctions. Professor Ruqayattu Rufai also disclosed that an accreditation process for universities qualified to offer postgraduate programmes will soon commence. According to the executive secretary of the National Universities Commission, Professsor Julius Okogie, the postgraduate benchmark minimum academic standards ,will not only address the shortfalls in the numbers of lecturers required for postgraduate programmes but will also help postgraduate education in Nigeria meet the demands in the global market.

***

A 37-year-old car dealer, Adams Adei, was, yesterday, arraigned before an Ebute- Meta Magistrate’s Court, Lagos, for allegedly duping a 106-year-old traditional ruler of N2.5 million. Adei, who appeared before Magistrate O. Olatunji was alleged to have defrauded Jimoh Abaoba, Baale (traditional ruler) of Okere town in Ikeja. The accused was said to have on June 8 presented himself as someone who could help the traditional ruler buy a car,  a representation he knew to be false.

***

A suicide blast in northern city of  in Maiduguri, killed five people on Friday, 13th July 2012. The suicide bomber targeting “dignitaries” leaving Friday prayers at the home of a key Islamic leader killed five people in  restive Borno state, the police commissioner told AFP. “A lone suicide bomber blew himself up while targeting some dignitaries coming back from the Friday prayers near the Shehu’s palace. Five people have been killed,” said Bala Hassan, confirming the blast in the state capital Maiduguri. The Shehu of Borno, Umar Garbai el-Kanemi, is the top Islamic leader in the state. The Shehu of Borno State, Alhaji Umar Garbai Abba Kyari’s palace was assaulted by a suicide bomber  leaving at least five people dead.

***

How do you feel about the news stories that made headlines this week? Are there any other events that you would like to share with us?

Have a splendid weekend.