2 Teachers Remanded For Defiling 5-Year-Old Pupil

An Ikejaa Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday ordered that two teachers, Samson Banjoko and Olajide Babatunde, be remanded n Kirikiri Correctional Centre for allegedly defiling a five-year-old

Magistrate M.O. Tanimola, gave the order, following a motion moved by the Prosecutor, ASP Victor Eruada, that the matter be referred to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) for advice.

The magistrate, who did not take the plea of the defendants, also directed the prosecutor to duplicate the file and send to the DPP for advice.

She adjourned the case until Jan. 29 .

Earlier, the prosecutor told the court that Banjoko, who resides in Olowora, Berger while Babatunde lives in Magodo Phase II both in Lagos State, was being tried for defilement

He said that the duo committed the offence on Dec. 15 in the school premises located at Magodo Phase 1, Isheri, Lagos.

The prosecutor said that the defendants lured the girl into an empty classroom and defiled her.

The offence, he said, contravened the provisions of Section 137 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State 2015 which stipulates life imprisonment on conviction. (NAN)

​Tough time for consumers as FG hikes electricity tariff by 50%

The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, NERC, has approved over 50 per cent hike in electricity tariff effective January 1, 2021.

The new tariff hike regime is to paid by customers of the 11 electricity Distribution Companies, DISCOs. This is coming just two months after the Commission forced implementation of the much-opposed hike on Nigerians in November 2020.

In a revised Multi-Year Tariff Order (MYTO) signed by the new Chairman of NERC, Engr. Sanusi Garba, on December 30, 2020, the new tariff increase took effect on January 1, 2021, and supersedes the previous Order NERC/2028/2020.

In the new Order NERC/225/2020, the commission said it considered the 14.9% inflation rate rise in November 2020, foreign exchange of N379.4/$1 as of December 29, 2020, available generation capacity, US inflation rate of 1.22% and the Capital Expenditure (CAPEX) of the power firms to raise the tariff.

The revised Service-Based Tariff (SBT) also saw an increase in the rates payable by all classes of electricity users unlike the one of November 2020, that exempted low power getters.

This is effective till June 2021 while a Cost Reflective Tariff (CRT) expected to raise the new cost higher will be activated from June to December 2021, the NERC Order revealed.

Recall NERC earlier in December 2020, notified that it had begun a review for another tariff, which has been completed and had taken effect from January 1, 2021.

NERC had raised tariff for the DISCOs in September but that drew outrages from customers and the organised labour, prompting the Federal Government to suspend it to pave ways for parties to dialogue.

Subsequently, by November 1, 2020, the suspended tariff was implemented after some discounts were given for customers who get 12 hours and above power supply daily.

​‘Omo Ghetto’ leads top 10 Nollywood films of 2020

When the Omo Ghetto came to town it had all the trapping of something special. From the premiere to its tour of cinemas it was a financial tsunami that swept all box office records in its wake.

In its first weekend, the movie by Funke Akindele made a whopping N89 million. It was a record second to none in Nigeria in 2020 regardless of its release date which was December 25, 2020.

By the first of January, the film has amassed over N187 million in the box office. Next in line to Omo Ghetto is Fate of Alakada which came a distant second raking in N113 million and it was release a long two months away before Funke Akindele money-spinner. On the third spot is Rattlesnake.

The picture tells the story of the remaining 8 that made the list of top 10 Nollywood of 2020, according to statistics made available by Film One Entertainment.

​2023 PRESIDENCY: Southerner’ll succeed Buhari —Osoba

Former Governor of Ogun State, Chief Olusegun Osoba, said, yesterday, that an agreement was reached during the merger of the All Progressives Congress, APC, that the presidential candidate of the party for the 2023 presidential election would come from the South.

Speaking when he featured on an ARISE Television’s programme, Osoba, said the agreement was that the North would produce the president in 2015, while the chairman of the party would come from the South.

His words: “We had a clear gentlemanly understanding that the Northern part of the country will produce the president when we did the merger in 2013. And the chairman of the party will then come from the South.

“We have had a president for six and a half years now from the North in APC. The president will be there for eight years until 2023. The chairmanship has moved from Chief Bisi Akande in the South-West to John Oyegun from the South-South and then from John Oyegun to Adams Oshiomhole, also from the South-South.

“Of course, at the end of the tenure of President Muhammadu Buhari, the gentlemanly arrangement is that the presidency will come to the south and I talk of the south in terms of the two territories that were forced to amalgamate in 1914 which means the south-south, the south-east and the south-west zones which are also not in the constitution can bid and should be allowed to produce the next president for this country.

“Therefore, those from the South-East, South-South and South-West can put up candidates for the party’s primary and whoever emerges from the primary can then be the candidate of our party.

“That is the gentlemanly understanding that we reached when we were doing the merger arrangement.”

​Boko Haram: Western nations have shown Borno more concern than Arab countries, says Zulum

In the midst of challenges with the Boko Haram insurgency, countries from the west have shown more concern for the plight of Borno people than rich Arab nations whose people share the similarity of religion and culture with majority of Borno citizens, Governor Babagana Umara Zulum has said.

Zulum stated this yesterday in Maiduguri when he received the Palestinian Ambassador to Nigeria Saleh Fheied Saleh in Maiduguri. Zulum praised Palestine for being one of the few exceptions, within the Arab community.

“I am a practical person. I work with the realities I see on the ground. In the face of our challenges over the years, we have received humanitarian support from the UK and other parts of Europe, the United States, Canada, from Japan and a host of others who have demonstrated concern and have made efforts to support our traumatized citizens in many ways especially on food, medicals and livelihoods.

“However, that level of concern never came from Arab countries with whom millions of Borno people share a similarity in religion and culture. We even have indigenous shuwa Arabs in Borno and this shows how our histories are tied. We have made severe efforts, written and visited embassies of Arab countries, especially those that are rich and not dealing with crises, but obviously, the majority of the Arabs do not care about our situation, neither do they support us.

“The Arabs have not shown concern to us. Your visit, however, has renewed our hope especially and we are very grateful for your visit” Zulum said.

The Palestinian ambassador had informed Zulum that of a plan to support the Government of Borno State in some areas of need.

“There are a lot of Palestinian companies in Nigeria, they are willing to work with the Borno State Government, we are ready to cooperate with you, we are ready to help in anything you want us to do that we can do” Amb Saleh said.

The Ambassador also said many Nigerians are currently residing in Palestine, particularly Borno indigenes, some of whom have diligently served the government and people of Palestine. He cited that among Borno people in Palestine, a lady called Fatima Barnawi was once a minister and a police chief.