Woman stabs robber to death in Lagos in self defence

A middle-aged woman is currently recuperating in a Lagos hospital, after robbers stormed her rented apartment on the Lagos Island, during which she stabbed one of the assailants to death.

It was learnt that the woman, identified simply as Adenike, and her family were attacked on Tuesday at about 2am on Eyin Iga Street. It was gathered that the robbers, who were armed with knives and cutlasses, reportedly gained entrance into the house after damaging the gates.

It was also learnt that when the robbers got to Adenike’s apartment, a struggle ensued between Adenike and one of the robbers, identified as Quadri Iginla, who cut her with a knife. Adenike was said to have wrenched the knife from Iginla, and stabbed him in the stomach.

The robbery suspect reportedly lost balance and fell off from the two-storey building. Neighbours, who learnt of the robbery, were said to have alerted the police at the Adeniji Adele Division.

The other suspected robbers reportedly escaped after the police got to the area. The policemen were said to have rushed Iginla, who was unconscious, to the Lagos Island General Hospital, while Adenike was also taken by her family to a private hospital.

Unfortunately,  Iginla died in the hospital.

Adenike’s husband, who declined to give his name, said the robbers injured his wife.
He said,

“We cannot confirm the number of the robbers. They entered my apartment at about 2am. One of them injured my wife in the hand and there was a struggle. As this went on, other people called the police and a patrol van was sent to our street. “The robbers quickly fled from the house. One of them, who had sustained a knife injury, fell off the staircases. The policemen took him to a hospital for treatment.”

A police source said that Iginla was not attended to at the general hospital for lack of a vacant bed.

He added that the robbery suspect died at a health center on the Adeniji Adele Road.

He said:

“The police patrol team responded to a distress call on the street at about 2.30am. A male robbery suspect, Iginla, was found injured. The suspect and others, who are still at large, allegedly entered Adenike’s room. While making away with possessions, the woman overpowered one of them, and stabbed him in the stomach. “She was also injured in the hand. During the struggle, others escaped, but the robber fell off the building. The police took the suspect and the victim to the hospital.”

A resident, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that Iginla’s girlfriend showed up at the police station, and wanted to know where he was being treated.
He said,
“No one in the area knew the identity of the robber. His girlfriend showed up at the station, and was asking the police to let her stay with him, but they did not allow her.”

The knife has since been recovered, while the case had been transferred to the State Department of Criminal Investigation.


Punch

Female suicide bomber apprehended after failed suicide attempt in Cameroon

 This female suicide bomber was arrested after her failed attempt to bomb a market in Marou, Cameroon yesterday. Another photo after the cut...

Another female suicide bomber arrested after a failed bomb attempt in Cameroon

This lady was also arrested by Cameroonian police after she tried to bomb a market in Marou, Cameroon yesterday July 30th

Photos: 59 men, women & children rescued from Boko Haram camps in Borno villages

59 men, women and children were rescued from Boko Haram captivity after troops of 151 Task Force Battalion launched an attack on the sect members camp in Kashingeri, Wale and Kushingari villages in Borno state today July 30th. A Landrover vehicle and a Tipper were recovered from the sect members after the operation.

In a related development, troops of 21 Brigade and members of the Nigerian Army Engineers yesterday July 29th cleared a notorious terrorists camp at Chuogori and Shantumari, in Borno.

National Human Rights Commission, NHRC, vows to bring justice on violators of human rights.

The Human Rights Commission Executive Secretary, Professor Ben Angwe, at a gathering with officials of the National Council of Women Societies, NCWS, in Abuja expressed NHRC's resolve to bring perpetrators of human rights violation in Nigeria to justice. According to Prof. Angwe, the declaration aimed at curbing the number of women and children becoming widows and orphans courtesy the activities of the insurgents. He called on women and victims  of domestic violence to stop protecting perpetrators and tasked the Federal Government to establish a social security scheme which would cater to rape victims and persons who's rights and dignity have been violated.

source: Daily Post

Police recovers a day-old baby amidst trash

On Monday 27th July 2015, a woman reportedly dumped her day old baby in a carton around Adelodun road in GRA Ilorin, Kwara state. Some resident in the area found the baby and called on the Police to intervene.
It was reported that some Patrol team from the Police Division A came to the spot to evacuate the baby which was taken to the Civil Service Clinic (CSC) for proper medical attention.
A source from CSC stated that the baby is in good condition and will be handed over to the welfare department of the ministry of women affairs and social development.
One of the nurses in the CSC expressed her concern and sadness over what was done to the infant stating that it was a sinful and wicked act.


source: daily post

Man rapes his 2 year-old neighbour

Mr Kehinde Paul has been arraigned in court for allegedly raping the 2 year-old daughter of his neighbour, Mrs. Mercy Ofaghae. According to the complainant,  “That fateful night, my daughter was running temperature as a result of teething. I called my neighbour and friend, Mrs. Layode Paul, the wife of the accused, who brought paracetamol for my daughter and advised me to bathe her. This was 3 weeks after my husband travelled out of the country, precisely on the 12th of January.”“I waited till the next morning to study her reaction to the drug but it didn’t suppress her temperature, so I decided to go out to get another form of medication for my daughter. I left my daughter with my neighbour’s husband, the accused, because the wife had gone to the salon.
“When I got back home with the drug, Mr. Kehinde’s door was locked and after knocking, I had to wait for about an hour before he opened the door; he claimed he was in the bathroom. When he eventually did, I took my daughter to our apartment and I took off her clothes to bath her before administering the drug,” she added.
“I screamed when I wanted to remove her pants as I noticed sperm on it. Neighbours rushed into my apartment to see what the matter was. The defendant was also among those who came in and he asked me if I was accusing him of raping my daughter. At that point, another neighbour slapped him, saying the defendant had finally exposed himself,” the woman said.

source: daily post

Teenager cuts out intestines, kidney and penis of a 4 year-old boy

Residents of Ijanikin area of Lagos state were left dumb-founded yesterday when 16 year-old Tajudeen Azeez lured his 4 year-old neighbour, Ibrahim, to a primary school and killed him for a promised reward of N50,000.
Azeez claimed that a man named Osho approached him and asked him to get fresh human parts in exchange for the sum of 50,000 naira.
“At first, I did not want to give in to what he told me but thoughts of it kept coming. When I woke up on Monday morning, I saw Ibrahim at the back of the house. I told him to accompany me to a primary school not too far from the house.” He gave the name of the school to be "Anglican Primary School, Ijanikin".
“He eventually followed me after much persuasion. I looked around and made sure no one was watching then I stabbed him with a knife from behind. He fell down and I strangled him with a rope,” the accused added.
“I used the knife to cut his stomach open, removing his intestine, kidney and I also cut off his manhood,” he stated.
The Police, on arrival at the scene, found the 4 year-old's lifeless body and the accused soaked in blood. Observations from the Police confirmed that some vital organs had been removed from the deceased and kept in a cellophane bag. Azeez has been arrested and is currently in the State's Criminal Department's detention. In the  meantime, the Police is still on the look out for Osho

Children at IDP camps in Borno need immediate medical attention

These two children are among so many children currently leaving at the Dalori IDP camp in Borno state who are in dire need of medical attention. 5 year old Falmata Modu pictured left has this growth on her stomach while Mustapha Modu pictured right has a growth on his face. They, like many other children, urgently need medical attention.

Collective fight against Early Marriage, Child Abuse

The West African Civil Society Forum (WACSOF)-Nigeria Platform, supported by Ford Foundation held a one-day policy dialogue on early marriage in Nigeria. The dialogue which held in Abuja was themed, "Curbing Early Marriage & Protecting Children's Rights in Nigeria". The policy dialogue which engaged relevant national level stake holders was aimed at generating recommendations that are relevant to specific policies as regards early marriage. In attendance at the dialogue were policy makers, legislators, top government officials, legal experts, law enforcement officers and stakeholders in the development community from various sectors including ECOWAS, Ministries Departments and Agencies, the Academia, Civil Society Organizations, Media and Non-State Actors. The dialogue focused on matters such as the Right to free and fair consent to a marriage as recognized in the Universal Declaration of the Human Rights, and the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) which prohibits child marriage; the Child Right Act of 2003, and the impact of child marriage on these laws and instruments in Nigeria.

Source: This Day Live
read more on:  http//www.thisdaylive.com/articles/collective-fight-against-early-marriage-child-abuse/215318/   

Female terrorist attacks northern Cameroon

On Saturday, 25th July, no fewer than 14 people were killed by a bomb blast pulled off by a young female terrorist. The girl attacked a popular night stand in the town of Maroua in northern Cameroon. The Maroua community priorly recorded two similar incidents with this recent one occurring just three days after.
The Governor of the northern Cameroon told the press that the number of dead and wounded soldiers cannot be specified since they were still discovering new corpse.
The recent attacks on the town were reported to be carried out by young girls who disguise as beggars; carrying the bombs on their bodies.

Although the boko haram terrorist group has not claimed responsibility for these actions, it can be linked to them, as they vowed to attack Cameroon  on account of  the help they rendered Nigeria.

Clean up your military - Senator Leahy to President Buhari

Patrick Leahy – sponsor of the Leahy Law (or Leahy amendment) that prohibits the US Department of State and Department of Defence from providing military assistance to foreign military units that violate human rights with impunity – believes that President Muhammadu Buhari’s opinion of the effect of the law on the war against Boko Haram is “misdirected”. 
Leahy said neither he nor the law could be blamed for the atrocities committed by the “murderers and rapists in the Nigerian military”. “It is well-documented by the State Department and by respected human rights organisations that Nigerian army personnel have, for many years, engaged in a pattern and practice of gross violations of human rights against the Nigerian people and others, including summary executions of prisoners, indiscriminate attacks against civilians, torture, forced disappearances and rape. Rarely have the perpetrators been prosecuted or punished,” he said “This abusive conduct not only violates the laws of war, it creates fear and loathing among the Nigerian people whose support is necessary to defeat a terrorist group like Boko Haram.

Read more at: https://www.thecable.ng/leahy-buhari-cant-blame-us-not-funding-murderers-rapists-nigerian-military

Working Group of 8 ()WG8) on Violence Against Women (VAW) visits the Office of the Public Defender, Lagos state

The WG8, a coalition of 8 Civil Society Organisation (Alliances For Africa (AFA), Baobab for Women Human Rights(BAOBAB), Legal Defense and Assistance Project (LEDAP), Partnership For Justice(PJ),Project Alert on Violence Against Women (Project Alert),West African Network for Peace Building (WANEP), Women’s Consortium of Nigeria (WOCON),Women’s Rights and Health Project (WRAHP), that focus on Violence Against Women, last week paid a courtesy visit to the Director, Office of the Public Defender, Mrs Omotola Rotimi.
The visit was in regard to the group's aim at reducing Violence Against Women in Ikoyi and Ikeja Local Governments in Lagos State. Issues related to Domestic violence were discussed, as well as the best forms of interventions that can considerable reduce domestic violence in Ikoyi and Ikeja.

Alleged BH members disguised as women have an accident in Borno State

According to the person who shared the pictures on twitter, these are alleged Boko Haram members disguised as women. They had an accident (damaged car pictured below) on their way to an undisclosed location in Borno State. More pictures of the alleged terrorists & their weapons after the cut..

Brutalized woman's baby dies in incubator

The pregnant woman who was allegedly attacked by three policemen lost her baby. Sun News reports below
“Take me to my son, I want to see him”, Chika Elekawachi pleaded with family members who were still lost in thought on how to break the news of the death of her baby. Chika is the eight-month pregnant woman who was allegedly brutalized by three policemen attached to the Satellite Police Division in Lagos on Sunday, July 19. The policemen allegedly stripped the woman naked after accusing her of resisting arrest.
She was allegedly assaulted before she was dragged to the police station. Her family members later rushed her to Safe Hands Hospital, old Ojo road, Amuwo, Lagos, after she allegedly passed out at the police station.

Her family members got the shock of their lives when the doctor on duty said in the presence of policemen that Chika was hale and hearty. Unfortunately, she started bleeding at about 11pm on Monday when she was rushed into the theatre for surgery. Although the baby boy was delivered on Tuesday alive, and rushed to Outreach Hospital in Festac town, Lagos, which had a functional incubator, the baby died less than 48 hours after.

Her family members have cried out over what they described as an attempt by the police to sweep the matter under the carpet. This is even as the Lagos police command had ordered the immediate arrest and deten¬tion of the suspects soon after the authouri¬ties learnt that the baby had died.
Chika’s version
Chika told Saturday Sun reporters on her hospital bed before the surgery that about 8pm on Sunday, she left two of her kids at home and was heading to a shop at Agboju, in Oriade Local Council Development Area (LCDA) to buy some foodstuffs for the house.
“I suddenly noticed a bus coming behind me. The bus obstructed me and one of the occupants came out, pointed a gun at me and shouted that I should park. He threatened to shoot if I didn’t park.
“When I discovered that they were police¬men, I tried to explain to them that I wanted to park my car so that I could enter the shop. The incident happened at Pako bus stop along Ojo road where there were so many tankers and lorries parked indiscriminately.
“I begged the one that was wearing a black T-shirt to allow me to go, as I was pregnant. Then, he called me a prostitute. I was angry and reminded him that I am a mar¬ried woman with two kids. I warned him not to call me a prostitute again. But the police¬man dragged me down from the car, even as passers-by and my friend were begging him to let me go.

“While I was screaming for help, saying, ‘I am not a thief,’ they tore my trousers. I was not putting on any underwear, so they stripped me naked. They were dragging me, saying I must enter their vehicle, but I re-fused. They dragged me on the road, but I insisted that I would go with them in my car. In the process, my legs and my stomach were bruised,” she said.
She said she was eventually bundled into the police vehicle and taken to the station, even in her virtually naked state.

“On getting to the police station, I pleaded with them to allow me get a cloth from the shop. I was begging them so that I could meet any woman nearby to give me a wrap¬per because I was naked. People around were asking me what happened, and I replied that the policemen did that to me, even though I’m not a thief. Because, with the way I was treated, one could mistake me for a thief. I had to bite one of the policemen on the back.

“I then entered one provision store near the station where I met a woman who gave me this gown. My phone was in my vehicle and I told the police officers that they should allow me call my people to inform them that I was at the station, but they refused. They said I must be put in the cell. I was run¬ning around, trying to get a phone, but no one would give me their phone because they thought I was a mad woman. They were just looking at me. I then saw a young girl, and I spoke to her in Igbo, telling her I was not a thief. She was the one that gave me her phone and I called my sister, because her number was the one I could easily recall. I told her what was happening, so she came with her husband that night and met me at the police station. They were asking me what happened, but her husband said we had to find those who assaulted me. So, we went into the police station and met the Divisional Crime Officer (DCO). He told us to explain what happened, but as I was talking, I felt dizzy and passed out,” she said.

Police insisted she was pretending-Witness
The victim’s sister, Favour Ifebuzor, ex¬plained that she rushed down to the police station as soon as she got the distress call from her sister.

“When my husband and I arrived at the scene, I saw my younger sister sitting on a pavement, looking weak. So, we took her into the station to find out what happened. My sister told me that she was feeling weak and dizzy, but the policemen rudely told her to stand up and explain what happened. As she tried to explain, the man at the counter was saying, ‘Why don’t you have respect for an officer in uniform? Why did you slap a policeman?’ My sister said it was when the policeman forcefully held her cloth and dragged her that she did that, because it’s lawful for one to defend oneself from dan¬ger. So, as they were forcefully quizzing her, I told the policeman that she was weak and could slump.

“My sister was also whispering to me that she was feeling weak. So, she fell on the ground. And she was crying, saying ‘O my baby, my baby.’ Then she started foam¬ing in the mouth. The policemen there were saying, ‘she is pretending. Let her stay there, she is not serious.’ They were just watching, including the DCO. My husband was saying, ‘You people have killed someone’s wife and mother. Take her. She is your responsibility.’ My husband was dragging me so that we could go, but I told him to have patience. I said; let me get some water, because my sis¬ter was dying. I went to one shop and bought a sachet of water, came back and started pouring it on my sister’s head and body, but she was not responding. Instead, her tongue was coming out, foaming.

“I was so scared because her stomach pro¬truded and her body was getting cold. I had to beg one man to help me look for a vehicle. When he got the vehicle, I told the police¬men to help me put her in the vehicle, but they were just looking at me. I was confused. The driver of the vehicle and the man that went to get him were the ones that helped me put her in the car. The biscuits I bought for my children and my phone, I didn’t even know where I kept them. It was when they put her in the vehicle that I remembered that my phone was on the counter at the station, and I went to the counter and picked my phone.

“I then told the policemen that I was taking her to the hospital, and that if anything happened to her, I would hold them respon¬sible. The vehicle had already left. They took her to Safe Hands Hospital, and my husband and I walked to the hospital. When we got there, the doctor told us she was going into labour, and that we needed to move her to the General Hospital. I was confused. Then I called my sister who also came with her husband. But we heard the policeman who had come there telling the doctor that she was okay. The policeman told the doctor: ‘She’s okay now. You will write everything that she is okay, and that nobody beat her.’ So, the doctor certified her okay, and that she was not in labour again, that he had put everything in order. But this morning, she went into labour again,” Favour told our reporters.

Doctor’s goof
At the hospital, the doctor on duty, Okoawo Innocent, who spoke on behalf of the management, admitted that Chika was rushed into the hospital half conscious. He said all necessary tests were carried out, noting that the results showed that the baby was intact. He, however, said that the victim would be kept under observation.

Saturday Sun gathered that Safe Hands hospital was one of the best in the area but in an attempt to please the policemen who were battling to prove that Chika was actu¬ally pretending to be in labour, they corroborated their claim.

The doctor on duty despite the bruises and the fact that Chika was brought into the hos¬pital unconscious, said that she was perfectly okay. He even suggested that Chika should be released to her family to go home.

Battle to save Chika and baby’s life
But the doctor’s assertion was proved wrong, as Chika soon after started bleed¬ing. As a result, the doctor on duty became confused and requested that another scan be conducted. He was shocked to discover that the placenta had been detached from the baby and Chika was bleeding heavily inside. To save her life and that of the baby, she was wheeled into the theatre where the baby was forced out of her.

The Satellite police station DPO was alerted that the story had changed. It dawned on him and some senior officers that Chika’s story could be true as the officers involved in the assault had sworn that they did not raise a finger against her. The officers involved who were seen going about their normal duty were immediately arrested and detained.

Realising that it was not business as usual, policemen were mobilized to ensure that the ever busy Badagry expressway was cleared to ensure free access to Outreach medical hospital where the premature baby could be put in an incubator. The little one who was already weak as a result of the delay died less than 48 hours after.

Chika’s relative told Saturday Sun that at about 4am on Thursday, Chika called insist¬ing that they should go and check her baby. “I told her that it was too early but she kept insisting that I must move over to the hospi-tal that something is wrong. It was then that my phone rang again and it was the doctor. She told me that the baby had just passed on. It is rather unfortunate,” she said.
On getting to the hospital, senior officers, including the Satellite DPO, were seen leav¬ing after sighting the dead baby and consol¬ing the family. He was said to have been sup¬portive and promised that the suspects would be prosecuted accordingly. He was said to have pleaded with the family members that the police would pay the bill incurred by the family.

On the cause of death, Dr Efunbu Dosekun of Outreach Hospital, who spoke with Satur¬day Sun, explained that the baby had breath¬ing problem which they battled all through the night to control. “It is rare for a prema¬ture baby to survive because there must have been a problem that led to the child being born earlier. When he was rushed in to our hospital, we did all we could to save his life.
“The best thing is for the family to go for an autopsy to have a clear understanding of what really happened. Chika’s placenta de¬tached from the baby and the unborn child was breathing on its own inside his mother’s womb. We thank God that Chika did not bleed to death before the doctors on duty discovered that”, she stated.

She advised that proper medical check-up should be done on Chika to correct the dam¬age that could have been done.
Take me to my son, Chika insists

Back to Safe Hands Hospital where Chika looked well and happy. She told her sisters that she wanted to be relocated to the hospi¬tal where her baby was. “Take me to my son. I need to see my son. Police did not succeed in taking him away from me. I am so happy. I will take him abroad to see his father”, she stood up pacing around frantically trying to pick her bags.

As at press time, she had, however, been informed of the death of her baby and trans¬ferred to another hospital for proper medical examination. “She has not stopped crying. Our major concern at the moment is how to save her life. We had to transfer her to anoth¬er hospital that is not under the jurisdiction of Satellite police station. It appears that the doctors are afraid of the police, that is why they lied. If our sister did not start bleed¬ing from her virgina, she would have bled to death. We thank God for her life,” one of the relatives who spoke to Saturday Sun on phone said.
They will be prosecuted if found culpable –Police

Confirming the incident, Lagos State Po¬lice Command spokesman, Kenneth Nwosu, a deputy superintendent of police (DSP), as¬sured that investigation was ongoing to as¬certain what actually transpired. He said the suspected policemen had been arrested and were in detention, adding that they would be prosecuted according to the law guiding the force.

“The Nigerian police has a procedure which will be followed in ensuring that the suspects will be disciplined”, he added.

National Human Rights Commission stops 40yr old man's marriage to a minor

The National Human Rights Commission last week stopped the planned marriage of a 40-year-old man to a 13-year-old girl who is a primary 5 pupil of POWA Primary School in Abuja.

According to Channelstv, the marriage, which was billed to take place on July 24 in Abuja, was halted by the Commission after an investigation.

A statement by the Chief Press Officer of the Commission, said that following a tip off, the Commission interrupted the ceremony and retrieved the minor from the offender’s house and invited all parties involved to the Commission including the groom to be, one Mr. Ibrahim, who had full knowledge that the girl was less than 18 years of age prescribed by Law.

After thorough interrogations, the Commission cited the relevant laws to back its decision to stop the marriage, including Sections 21, 22, 23 of the Child Rights Act 2003 which prohibits child marriage or betrothal, an offence which is punishable by five years imprisonment or 500,000 naira fine.

The Executive Secretary of the National Human Rights Commission, Professor Bem Angwe, while referring the matter to the Commissioner of Police, FCT Command for prosecution, also expressed the determination of the Commission to ensure the implementation of the Child Rights Act and its enforcement against all persons irrespective of their status or religious belief.

The Executive Secretary enjoined parents and guardians to be vigilant and ensure that their children and wards are not exposed to early marriage which does not only offend the law but has psychological, social and health implications.

Source: Channels TV

#GirlsNotBride

14 dead in a suicide attack in Cameroon. Perpetrator said to be a 12yr old girl

14 dead and over 20 injured in a suicide attack in Maroua, northern Cameroon today Saturday July 25th. The perpetrator is said to be a 12-year-old girl. This is happening barely three days after twin attacks there by suspected members of Boko Haram.

 

World Bank appoints Nigeria’s Arunma Oteh Vice President, Treasurer

The World Bank has announced the appointment of the immediate past Director General of Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission, Arunma Oteh, as Vice President and Treasurer.
A statement sent to PREMIUM TIMES by the bank said, ” As VP and Treasurer, Arunma will manage and lead a large and diverse team responsible for managing more than $150 billion in assets.”
The statement said “Ms. Oteh was selected to this position through an international competitive search”.
Her appointment is effective September 28, 2015, the bank said.
Read the full statement by the World Bank below:
Arunma Oteh, Vice President & Treasurer of the World Bank
Date: July 23, 2015 – 12:49
Arunma, a Nigerian national, was most recently the Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission of Nigeria. Appointed to a five-year term by the President of Nigeria in 2010, she led the transformation of the country’s capital markets industry into a major global presence. She was a member of the Board of the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) and the Chairperson of the Africa Middle East Regional Committee of IOSCO.
Prior to joining the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of Nigeria, Arunma was Group Vice President, Corporate Services, at the African Development Bank Group (AfDB). In this role she oversaw a number of departments, including human resources, information and communications technology, and institutional procurement. From 2001 to 2006 she held the role of AfDB Group Treasurer, where she led AfDB’s fundraising and capital market activities across the world. Earlier roles at the AfDB, which she joined in 1992, included trading room management, investment portfolio coverage, and public sector lending. She also held other positions in capital markets and lending during the course of her career at the AfDB. Arunma began her career in 1985 at Centre Point, where she executed debt and equity offerings in the Nigerian capital markets.
She earned her Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from the University of Nigeria and her Masters of Business Administration from Harvard University.
As VP and Treasurer, Arunma will manage and lead a large and diverse team responsible for managing more than $150 billion in assets. Her top priorities will be to: (i) maintain the World Bank’s global reputation as a prudent and innovative borrower, investor and risk manager; (ii) manage an extensive client advisory, transaction and asset management business for the Bank; (iii) engage, in her capacity as one of the World Bank’s key representatives, with outside stakeholders including global private sector financial institutions, the financial media and the sovereign debt and reserve managers in client countries, as well as ratings agencies; and (iv) collaborate extensively with the Finance Partners throughout the WBG, including with IFC and MIGA, expanding shared approaches, in particular around innovative financing for development and for key new projects.
Ms. Oteh was selected to this position through an international competitive search. Her appointment is effective on September 28, 2015.

NYSC bars pregnant women, nursing mothers, PG students from service

The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has barred pregnant women, nursing mothers and Post graduate students from partaking in the national service across the country.

NYSC DG, Brig-Gen. Johnson Olawumi, said the exemption of people in these categories from service was because they would not be able to undergo the four cardinal programmes of the NYSC, which is mobilisation, orientation, primary assignment and winding-up passing out parade.

Olawumi said it didn't make sense that pregnant women and nursing mothers would be absent from these stages of the national service, only to resurface for posting to their various places of primary assignments. The NYSC also said that pregnant women and children would no longer be allowed into orientation camps across the country.

Pregnant ISIS suicide bomber arrested just before she could detonate bomb on her

This pregnant Saudi ISIS suicide bomber was arrested by Iraqi fighters just before she could detonate her suicide vest.

Good news! Nigeria marks one year without any reported case of Polio

Good news the World Health Organization will in few weeks remove Nigeria from countries where the disease is endemic and declare Nigeria polio free.

Nigerian girls rescued from prostitution in Burkina Faso

6 Nigerian girls have been returned to the country from Burkina Faso where they were allegedly taken to work as prostitutes by a woman named Balikis.

While re-uniting the girls with their parents in Ibadan, Oyo State, on Wednesday, the Comptroller of the Nigeria Immigration Service, Oyo State Command, Innocent Akatu, said the girls were tricked to leave Nigeria, adding that the victims did not tell their parents about the journey.
Akatu said the girls refused to engage in prostitution in Ouagadougu, Burkina-Faso, hence were locked in a room by the trafficker.

He added that their journey back home after three weeks began when one of them escaped and alerted the Burkinabe police.
He said,
“The victims, after being smuggled to Ouagadougou in Burkina Faso, discovered that they were going to be used for prostitution. They were not even told that they were going to Burkina Faso. These girls were told that they would be given lucrative jobs abroad; one of them was told that she was going to manage a jewellery shop owned by her trafficker.
“One of them was taken from her home in Ikorodu, Lagos State, and driven to Saki in Oyo State. When she asked why it had taken them so long to reach the airport, she was told that the plane had left and that they would have to travel by road.
“The Nigerian embassy assisted in arranging emergency travelling documents for them to return to Nigeria after their lucky escape. We have taken them to the hospital for screening and they are HIV negative.”
One of the returnees, Ganiyat Samuel, said she lived with her grandmother in Ikorodu before she embarked on the journey.
She said, “A woman, called Balikis, came to me and said that I would make more money as a fashion designer if I travel outside Nigeria. I told her that I had no passport, but she said that she would take care of it. I did not tell any of my parents.
“When we got to Saki, she said she could not get a passport for me because the office had closed. We travelled for two days to get to Burkina Faso. She took me to her house and told me that I would have to do HIV test. The test revealed that I was pregnant, but HIV negative. She told me that she brought me to the country for prostitution and that I would have to abort the pregnancy. I refused and she locked me in a room. When she brought another Nigerian a week later, I helped the girl to escape and she alerted the police. The police rescued us and arrested the woman.”
Samuel’s mother, Olasunkanmi Afuwape, said her father had died and after she re-married, she took the girl and her brother to live with her mother in Ikorodu.

Source: Punch

At Least 20 Dead in Yaounde, Cameroon

Several charred bodies and a pile of corpses are the results of the blasts that went off in 2 different locations in Maroua, the capital of the Far North Region, a market place and a densely populated area. the attacks were reportedly carried out by young girls in Maroua.
The Boko Haram terrorist groups had previously burnt at least 6 children and 3 adults, leaving 11 others injured during an attack on the village of Kamouna. Police Officer, Eric Bambe, told Associated Press news agency that the actual number of casualties is yet to be ascertained as there are still searching for bodies.

source: DailyPost

Customer Raped by Her Tricyclist

31 year-old Obinna Ezechukwu has been arraigned in a Magistrate Court in Ikeja for allegedly raping his customer. Three counts of stealing, obtaining by false pretenses, and rape were leveled against the accused who resides in Oshodi area of Lagos State.
The prosecutor told the court that the tricyclist who picks the victim everyday from the bus-stop to her work place, promised to secure an apartment within his compound for the victim. After collecting 30,000 naira under the pretext of securing a vacant room in his compound, he invited her to meet with the landlord where he offered her a drugged drink and raped her.
The victim, 23, said that when when she woke up, she found that she was naked and had been raped. The prosecutor stated that the offences were contrary to Section 258(1), 285 & 312(a) of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.
However, the accused pleaded not guilty to the charges leveled against him. the Magistrate, Mr. Tajudeen Elias, in his ruling, granted the accused bail in the sum of 200,000 with 2 sureties each in like sum and adjourned the case till August 18th.

source: Daily Trust

Anaemic Girl Raped by a University of Lagos Graduate

A University of Lagos gradaute, Imonitie Ilen-Otuma, has been arrested by the Lagos State Police Command for allegedly raping a 27 year-old lady with sickle cell. The act was committed when the victim who had previously dated the accused went to the movies, then clubbing with Imonitie. When she insisted on going home around 12 am, the accused refused and instead, lured her to the back seat of his car where he squeezed her throat and forcefully had carnal knowledge of her.
The victim's mother who narrated the incident said that the accused threatened to strangle her daughter and dump her by the roadside. She said the victim pleaded with Imonitie not to rape her because she was a virgin, but her pleas fell on deaf ears.
The victim is presently hospitalized and is undergoing treatment for injuries she sustained during the incident. The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Kenneth Nwosu said the matter has been referred to the State Department pf Criminal Investigation, Yaba

Chibok Girls: The Government can Negotiate with Boko Haram

President Muhammadu Buhari has revealed that his government is ready to negotiate with ISIL's West Africa's franchise, Boko Haram, over the release of the abducted girls. Buhari disclosed the information in an interview with Christine Amanpour of CNN while also adding that the government had to be extremely careful about the credibility of the various Boko Haram groups so as to ensure that negotiations are done with the right group. According to the President, the goal of the negotiations is to free the girls, unite them with their parents, return them to their schools, and rehabilitate them so they can live normal lives.

source: daily trust

Governor Ambode promises support to end Rape and Domestic Violence

Akinwunmi Ambode, Governor of Lagos State yesterday urged state residents to be courageous enough to report and speak against sexual and domestic violence which according to him, is the first step in bringing perpetrators to justice.
The Governor while receiving the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Response Team, stated that the government is ready to protect the identities of those who choose to bring cases of domestic abuse and sexual violence to light.
Furthermore, Governor Ambode promised to put an institutional framework in place that will make the Lagos State Domestic Violence Law 2007 viable, saying that he will stop at nothing to protect the interest of women and children in the state.
Governor Ambode reminded the public that one of his cardinal programmes during his campaign was that he would stand up for everyone which actually means standing up for women and children.

Teenagers Rescued From Baby Factory in Abia

14 pregnant #girls were rescued after police raided an alleged illegal maternity home in Abia State.

According to Punch, the police said the maternity home was allegedly being used as a baby factory at Umukpeyi village in the Isiala Ngwa South Local Government Area of the state.

The age of the victims, according to the state Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Udeviotu Onyeke, range from 14 to 25.

Onyeke explained that the alleged baby factory belonged to a “notorious child trafficking syndicate leader in the state, simply known as Madam Nma”.

The police spokesman said the rescue followed intelligence report that the principal suspect and the proprietor of the illegal maternity home had been habouring pregnant teenagers in the home for commercial purposes.

He said when interrogated, some of the  victims claimed they came from Imo, Anambra, Enugu and Rivers states.

He said, “Majority of those rescued claimed that they were brought to the home by sympathisers after they were driven away from their homes when it was discovered that they had unwanted pregnancies.”

Onyeke said while 12 out of the 14 victims were confirmed pregnant, two said they came to check if they were pregnant.

The police said the owner of the illegal maternity home escaped arrest as she was not at home during the raid, but added that efforts were on get her arrested.

460 Days After... Our Girls Are Still Missing

It’s been 460 days since our girls were stolen in the night. 460 days of fear, months since they spoke to their families, and every night they face the same nightmare: this might never end. But one man could change all that -- and we can drive him to action.

President Buhari has been very vocal about the Chibok girls, loudly condemning Goodluck Jonathan’s response to their abduction -- but 6 weeks into his presidency, he's yet to even visit Chibok. Meeting the girls’ mothers and feeling their agony could give him the inspiration he needs to finally end this nightmare and bring back our girls.

Buhari is still in the first 100 days of his leadership, eager to be the leader who listens. If we build a massive call across the country, we can get him to meet and hear the mothers of the stolen girls. Let's reach 5,000 names and Avaaz will publish our call in daily newspapers, showing Buhari we haven’t forgotten about our girls.

16 year-old Raped by a Pastor

                   
A 16 year-old female victim recounted how one Pastor Basil Princewill of Mountain Mover Fire Ministry Church, Nyanya, Abuja, poured oil on her private part and raped her, all in the guise of delivering her from from evil spirits. She told an Abuja High Court Justice, Husseini Baba-Yusuf that the Pastor told her that her father's wife was trying to kill her and that the Lord has instructed him to deliver her. The victim recounts how Pastor Basil, after asking her if she was menstruating to which she responded in the negative, told her to remove her clothes, led her into a bedroom, instructed her to close her eyes, then placed his handkerchief over her head which made her very weak.
The victim said she cried and begged Pastor Basil to stop but he refused. All she could remember was that she fainted  and woke up later to discover that she was bleeding from her private part. The victim said she was raped several times after because according to the Pastor the demons possessing her were stubborn spirits.T

he victim later discovered she was pregnant. Upon telling the Pastor, he took her to Fantana Head Medical Centre, Mararaba, Nasarawa state to have the pregnancy aborted. She recounted how the Pastor beat her and locked her in a room; giving instructions that she should not be allowed to leave until he comes for her. The case was adjourned by the Court.

For Ugandan children born of war, the struggle continues | Uganda | Children | Conflict

 KAMPALA, 7 July 2015 (IRIN) - Actual combat may have ended almost a
decade ago in northern Uganda, but for many women abducted by the rebel
Lord’s Resistance Army and the children they conceived in captivity, the
war is far from over. Sexual exploitation, beatings, stigmatization and
community rejection, lack of medical care and education, and
deprivation of land rights are among the challenges faced by those who
escaped from or were released by the LRA.


For two decades from the mid-1980s, between 10,000 and 15,000 girls
and women were abducted from their homes in northern Uganda to serve as
fighters, porters and sex slaves of LRA commanders. These forced unions
resulted in a population group often neglected by post-war recovery
programmes: children born of war.



According to a recent article
published by the International Centre for Transitional Justice (ICTJ),
“Thousands of such children exist on the margins, fathered through
sexual violence by not only the LRA, but also government forces and a
multitude of other state and non-state armed actors.”



A new report
by the Justice and Reconciliation Project, based in the northern town
of Gulu, points out that scores more women were subjected to sexual
violence and exploitations in the so-called “protected villages” where
most of the population of northern Uganda was forced to live during the
war.



“As if the original violations were not severe enough, female victims
are especially susceptible to ongoing forms of re-victimisation that
extend long after initial violations occur,” says the report, titled,
“Alone Like a Tree: Reintegration Challenges Facing Children Born of War
[CBW] and Their Mothers in Northern Uganda.”

IRIN Africa | For Ugandan children born of war, the struggle continues | Uganda | Children | Conflict

Australian father jailed over 12-year-old daughter's wedding

An Australian man has been jailed for eight years for arranging an Islamic marriage between his 12-year-old daughter and a man twice her age.
He said he allowed the girl to marry a 26-year-old Lebanese man, in a ceremony in New South Wales, because he did not want her to have sex outside marriage.
The 63 year old was found guilty in April of procuring a child under the age of 14 for unlawful sexual activity.
During sentencing in Sydney the judge told him he had "failed" his daughter.
She said she hoped the punishment would act as a deterrent to others.
'No justification'
The father, who cannot be named to protect his daughter's identity, told Downing Centre District Court that he considered sex outside marriage a sin, so when his daughter reached puberty he decided she should marry.
When the Lebanese man, who was in Australia on a student visa, showed an interest, he arranged for a local sheikh to carry out the ceremony.
It took place last year in the Hunter Valley region, around 250km (150 miles) north of Sydney.
The marriage, which is not recognised under Australian law, was consummated at a hotel on the night of the wedding with the father's permission.
The pair also had sex at the father's home the following weekend. The court heard that the girl later had a miscarriage.
The man was jailed for seven and a half years in March for the sexual abuse of minor.
Australian authorities are now looking after the victim.
The judge told the court that religious beliefs did not justify the father's actions. "They were linked in the purpose that (the man) would have sex with his daughter," she added.

Three Women In The DRC Who Are #Unbroke

Three Women in the DRC who are #Unbroken

In the Democratic Republic of Congo, up to half a million Congolese women and girls have been raped by armed soldiers and militants in the war-torn eastern region. Yet while many women are raped by soldiers or vigilantes as a direct result of the conflict, rape has also become much more common outside of conflict settings—including schools, where some female students are raped by their teachers, who face no legal repercussions. Many rape survivors are stigmatized, rejected by their husbands, families, or communities, and left with no support system.
Here, we meet just a few women who have survived unthinkable assaults, but are recovering and thriving through the support of Global Fund for Women grantee partner Promotion et Appui aux Initiatives Féminines [Promotion and Support to Women's Initiatives] (PAIF). Join us in sharing the stories of these brave survivors and changing the narrative for the DRC's #unbroken women and girls.

Sally, 20 years old

I was 15 years old and out collecting firewood when a DRC government soldier raped me. Now that child is four years old. Two years ago, someone else abused me and that resulted in another baby. Here [at PAIF] I’m learning sewing. It’s good way to support myself as well as watch my children. I received a sewing machine to work on at home. I can make four uniforms in two days, and earn money to support my family. Even my brothers are learning from me now.

Melinda, 17 years old

I am an orphan. My mother died when I was three months old, and my father when I was eight years old. At age 13 I was raped by my 52-year-old teacher while in secondary school. He put has hand over my mouth and used some kind of drug. When I came to I was covered in blood. I was afraid to tell anyone, but I became pregnant. My first baby is now four years old. The school did nothing. One day I accepted a ride from a man who gave me ride in his car because it was raining. He raped me. This baby is my second from a rape. When I became pregnant, he took me in, but he beat me every day, and I suffered so much. I soon discovered that I was his sixth wife and this was his eighth child, so I left when this baby was one month old. I had no one to take care of me until I met with PAIF. PAIF will help me to take my husband to court and sue him, but if they lose he will find me and kill me. There is no justice in this country

Hope, 32 years old, with her one-week-old baby

I’m from Masis in the Congo, where 90% of the women are raped, and many people are killed every day. There’s no presence of government there, only bandits and locals carrying guns. I was married with seven children. One day I went into the forest to collect firewood and I was attacked and raped by four men in military uniforms. They left me to die but some local villagers found me and brought me to a hospital. I didn’t want anyone to know I had been raped but it was soon discovered that I was pregnant. When my husband found out I was raped he ran away and left me with the seven children. He was afraid of AIDS, and when he found out I was pregnant he didn’t want to raise someone else’s baby. Eventually his family and our pastor talked him into returning. This baby was born a week ago. Now we say we have seven children and this one. My husband said at least it’s a girl, she can be useful and work and bring in cows when she marries. PAIF has helped to move away from that terrible area and we now live in their temporary housing in Goma. Because we’re displaced people the children don’t go to school. My life changed that day I went to collect firewood in the forest.

SOURCE: www.globalfundforwomen.org

Pambazuka - The Igbo genocide, Britain and the United States (PT.2)

Mankind must put an end to war or war will put an end to mankind, Says John F. Kennedy. WAR is never a good thing either a solution to a problem.... In my own view, WAR is just a continuation of politics by other means and is something absurd, useless, that nothing can justify. Frankly, The Nigeria/Biafra war of 1967-1970 is a complete mass murder by few serial killers who has not yet been brought to book. I was emotionally disturbed when i saw this Biafran photos, both men, women & children been slaughtered like fowl. More than 1 million lives was wasted during this wicked murder by cold-blooded killers & their counterparts abroad.

Pambazuka - The Igbo genocide, Britain and the United States (PT.2)

GCAP-Ghana MarkS the Finance Our Future Campaign

GCAP-Ghana  marked the Ffd campaign on the  Global Day Of Action with a Flash Mob at the Ministry of Finance to demand from the Minster to ensure the government keeps its promise to finance development through their programmes in the budget and a Media Walk  to  present  their press statement on the FfD summit in Addis

Teenager Allegedly Gang-raped Twice By Same Men After Cops Failed To Follow Her After Using Her As 'Bait'

A teenager was allegedly gang-raped twice by the same men after cops used her as 'bait' to catch her twisted attackers - and then failed to follow her.
The 17-year-old girl was subjected to a chilling knifepoint assault by two men who stole her phone to film the crime and then tried to blackmail her family threatening to release the footage, it is claimed.
The teenager said she reported the rape to the cops in West India who convinced her to agree to meet her attackers to hand over cash as a trap - but when she arrived there were no officers and she was raped again.
The first attack is said to have taken place on July 7, when the two men, posing as cops, accosted the 17-year-old after she had been walking with her boyfriend.

The two men threatened the girl with a knife and forced her into a nearby forest before raping her, police said.
After reporting the attack to police, they asked her to arrange to meet the pair the next day to lure them into a trap.
The alleged victim had reported the rape to police, the two assailants contacted her and her mother in an attempt to blackmail her using the stolen mobile phone and the footage of the rape.
The girl set out to meet the men but police failed to follow her blaming "miscommunication".
Vinod Ejjapawar, the officer behind the plan, has been suspended.

The alleged rapists were laster arrested near a railway station and cops claim they have confessed.
Special Inspector General Vishwas Nagre Patil said: “The plan was that the victim would be escorted by the police to the spot. The victim, however, mistook a regular patrol van which passed by her house as the escort vehicle and thought that was the signal for her to leave for the spot.
"Involving the victim was not the right way. Laying a trap was a blunder.
“To take the help of a victim who is traumatised, and risking her in this situation is a major blunder, it is wrong to use a minor as a bait".