Metro
Another Suicide: 300-Level Medical Student Drowns Self for Failing Exam
A 300-level medical student of the Niger Delta University, Ammasoma in the Southern Ijaw Local Governmant Area of Bayelsa State, has committed suicide for failing his examination.
PUNCH Metro gathered that the student, identified as Uzakah Ebiweni, dived into the Amassoma River and drowned before he could get help.
Sources at the university said few hours after Ebiweni’s body was recovered, another student attempted to kill himself by running into a fast-moving motorcycle was rescued by other students.
It was gathered that Ebiweni, a student of Surgery and Medicine at the Faculty of Basic Medical Sciences of the NDU, decided to kill himself following his failure to realise his dream.
He was said to be among the students disqualified by the institution after their results were released on Friday.
Ebiweni, it was learnt, found the development difficult to accept and was said to have dropped a hint about his suicidal intention through his WhatsApp status update.
He was said to have initially posted the picture of a lit candle and later changed it to that of a candle with its light blown out.
When contacted, the spokesperson for the Bayelsa State Police Command, Asinim Butswat, confirmed the incident, but said no official report had been made at the command headquarters yet.
The Public Relations Officer, NDU, Ndoni Ingezi, who also confirmed the incident, told our correspondent that Ebiweni’s body had been recovered and deposited in the Sabageria hospital mortuary.
He said the late student might have resorted to suicide after news that he was among the 22 students shortlisted to be withdrawn from the college.
Ingezi stated, “You know, it is a general practice that every student passes the Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery exams before progressing to the next level of academic pursuit.
“But Ebiweni and 21 others failed beyond the level that they could be placed on academic probation for another academic year; so, they had to be withdrawn. So, in our usual practice, we did not break the news to the students until they had been invited for counselling.
“When Ebiweni was counselled and informed that he would be withdrawn from the college, he accepted the decision of the college in good faith and left, only to for the university to hear afterwards that the young man took his own life.”
The first female President of the Federated African Medical Students’ Association, Esite Winifred, lamented the development.
She said, “Today, a medical student took his life after failing his professional exams. This brought back a lot of memories, especially the number of times lecturers used to spread negativity and discouragement at the initial phase of the medical school.
“Please, this should at least be a wake-up call to all students and lecturers in the faculty. It is not your destiny to demoralise young people who want certificates.
“Mentor and uplift them or be quiet. Nothing at the end of the day is worth dying for, especially not medicine and surgery.”
The Punch
The Corps Marshal of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Shehu Mohammed, has condole with families of the victims of the fuel tanker fire which occurred at the Dikko junction in Niger state on Saturday, charging tanker operators to always adhere strictly to safety standards and observe due protocols in transloading fuel products.
In his reaction to the fuel tanker incident, according to a statement signed by the Public Education Officer, Assistant Corps Marshal Olusegun Ogungbemide, and made available to the National Association of Online Security News Publishers (NAOSNP), the Corps Marshal described the human losses to the inferno as disheartening and disastrous, warning that such incidents must never be allowed to happen again.
The Corps Marshal expressed worry that despite sustained enlightenment programs carried out by the Corps with the tanker drivers on the need to be safety conscious while transporting petroleum products due to their inflammable nature and the general public to stay away from scenes of tanker crashes, many people could still fall victims of the Saturday’s unfortunate tanker incident. While recalling that 73 burnt bodies have so far been recovered by the rescue teams for final burial as arranged by the Niger State Government, the Corps Marshal revealed that the FRSC teams have been directed to sustain the joint operations with other relevant stakeholders to ensure effective management of traffic at the scenes in order to prevent further incidents.
In the same vein, the accident investigation unit of the Corps will work in collaboration with other agencies to unravel the causes and proffer solutions that could address future occurrence. “Meanwhile, those that sustained various degrees of injury have been taken to different hospitals including Suleja General Hospital for further medical attention as normalcy has returned to the area with free movement of traffic,” the Corps Marshal stated.
Shehu Mohammed stressed the importance of inter-agency collaboration and robust engagement with members of the public including critical stakeholders to ensure that the nation does not witness this level of human losses again, especially when the incident could have been prevented by strict adherence to due diligence. “The nation was yet to recover from similar incident that occured in Jiagawa last year, and having to witness another incident of this magnitude at the beginning of the new year is painful and regrettable,” he further stated.
The Corps Marshal assures Nigerians that the FRSC will continue to work with the relevant stakeholders and members of the public to find lasting solutions to all road-based emergencies and called for involvement of all Nigerians in the joint efforts to ensure safety and security of lives and property of road travelers.
While praying God for repose of the souls of all those that lost their lives to the inferno, the Corps Marshal appeals for support to the families of the survivors in the various hospitals to ensure their quick recovery. He further commiserate with the people of Niger state and commended the prompt intervention of the Executive Governor of Niger State who was physically present at the scene.
In furtherance of its ongoing scheme to excite and reward its subscribers across the country, Globacom, on Friday, in Abuja, held another draw to select winners in its Festival of Joy consumer promotion.
The draw, held at the Gloworld, Aminu Kano Crescent, Wuse, had the presence of several observers including Glo subscribers, members of the media and Martin Oteh who led officials of the National Lottery Regulatory Commission (NLRC) to witness the process.
The company had before now presented prizes to winners in several cities since the promo started in October 2024, enabling hundreds of Nigerians who won various prizes to end the year 2024 on a joyful note.
As is the tradition since the start of the promo, the draw precedes the prize presentation exercise, which is to be done on Wednesday, January 22, 2025, at the same Glo office at Wuse, Abuja. The lucky subscribers include the winner of a brand new Toyota Prado and winners of tricycle, sewing machines, generators and grinding machines.
Globacom encouraged new and existing subscribers to dial *611# to opt into the promo and to also keep recharging (voice and data) during the promo period, in order to be eligible to win the prizes on offer. New subscribers can participate immediately by purchasing a new SIM, registering it and dialing *611#.
“New and existing customers are to recharge up to N100, 000 cumulatively during the promo period to qualify for the draw for the Prado Jeep, N50, 000 cumulative recharge for Kia Picanto, N10, 000 in a month for tricycle and N5, 000 total recharge in a month to win a generator. For the sewing machine, a total recharge of N2, 500 in a month is required, while for the grinding machine, a recharge of N1,000 in a week will be eligible for the draw”, the company noted.
Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has revoked lands allocated to Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodimma, his Bayelsa counterpart Douye Diri, and Speaker of the House of Representatives Abbas Tajudeen.
The minister’s media aide, Lere Olayinka, said the withdrawal of the R-of-O for 568 allottees followed the expiration of a two-week grace period to pay their C-of-O bills.
He noted that of the 3,273 allottees initially given two weeks in October 2024 to pay their bills, 568 remained in default after an additional grace period expired on January 15.
Also affected are the Deputy Chief of Staff to the President (Office of the Vice President), Ibrahim Hadejia; former governor of Cross River State, Ben Ayade, Senate Leader; Opeyemi Bamidele, Senate Minority Leader; Abba Moro, Minister of State for Labour and Employment; Nkeiruka Onyejeocha, Minister of State for Industry Trade and Investment; John Eno, Chairperson/Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM); Abike Dabiri-Erewa; late Sports Minister Bala Kaoje; and Regina Akume, wife of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume.
The fresh revocation comes three weeks after the initial withdrawal of 762 plots of land from their allottees.
