Headlines
JAMB Failure: 22 Year old Boy Drinks ‘Sniper’, Films Self
A 22-year-old man, identified simply as Segun, is battling for his life at a general hospital in Ogun State after he drank insecticide, sniper.
PUNCH Metro gathered that the victim had scored 167 in the last Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examinations.
Segun, who was unhappy with his result, went onTwitter and expressed frustration at his repeated failure to secure admission into a tertiary institution despite several attempts.
He lamented that in 2015 when he sat the exam, he scored 189, adding that when he tried again in 2016, he scored 202.
The victim said when he attempted in 2017, he scored 233 and failed to get admission due to lack of funds.
He lamented that when he eventually got a sponsor, he could not get a good exam result in 2019.
In a tweet, he had informed his followers that he would go live on Twitter on Sunday, May 12, to show them how to take Sniper with tea.
“This thing go sweet o. You all should at least make this fun for me by 9pm please. Tune in and wish me luck,” he tweeted.
A clip, which has gone viral on the Internet, showed Segun pouring a bottle of Sniper into a cup purportedly containing tea.
The over five minute video showed as he took a spoon of the mixture, while reading live comments from his friends. A sombre music played in the background.
The 22-year-old could be seen leaving the room for a few seconds, before returning to continue reading the live comments, as he toyed with the poisoned cup.
Some Good Samaritans were reported to have run to the scene and rushed him to a private hospital, from where he was referred to the general hospital.
Segun, who took to his Twitter handle,@TweetsOfSHEGUN, on October 4, 2018, narrated how he lost his father at six and his mother had to cater to four children alone.
He said, “I graduated from secondary school in 2014. I went out to search for jobs. I found few unsuitable jobs, did them for a while, and later came across a pharmacy; I was employed.
“After a year, my mom asked, ‘Won’t you go to a tertiary institution?’ I said yes, I won’t go. She insisted; I asked her where we could get the funds. She said she would get a loan that I must go to school.
“So, from my savings I got a JAMB form in 2015. I requested time off work to register for JAMB, sat JAMB exam, and post-UTME also. I wrote JAMB exam and passed, passed post-UTME too, but I was not admitted. I tried again the following year. Same fate!
“Tried again the following year 2017, passed and got admitted for Medicine. I resigned from work, mom applied for a loan in more than three places and none was given to her. Why? The state government had bans on loans (if you are in Ogun State; you will know this to be true). She tried her best. Ultimatum for acceptance fee elapsed. My admission was withdrawn!”
A Twitter user, Pamilerin Adegoke, after reading the post, said he had decided to put Segun on a scholarship and he would pay all his university bills till he finished school.
However, Segun made a post on how he did not get a good result in the 2019 UTME, saying he would kill himself.
“It is now when people want to send me to school that I will score 167 in UTME? 167? LMFAO. Make I close eyes picks answers sef…Me?? 167??
“Meanwhile, I will be teaching y’all how to make tea with Sniper by 9pm live on Twitter. Tune in,” he wrote.
Adegoke told PUNCH Metro that the victim was in a stable condition.
He said, “We are at the state hospital where we were transferred to. If we don’t see improvement, we will move him to a private hospital. He is currently receiving treatment and in a stable condition.”
The punch – Oluwatobi Akindele
Burkina Faso has released Nigerian soldiers who were detained after their aircraft made a forced landing in the Sahelian country earlier this month, Nigerian officials said.
In a statement, Alkasim Abdulkadir, Tuggar’s spokesperson, said both sides resolved the matter amicably and secured the release of the Nigerian Air Force pilots and crew.
The soldiers had been held for nearly two weeks after the Confederation of Sahel States (AES) described the aircraft’s landing as an “unfriendly act” carried out in defiance of international law.
The Nigerian Air Force, however, said the crew encountered a technical issue that required a precautionary landing in Bobo-Dioulasso, the nearest available airfield. It said the landing complied with standard safety procedures and international aviation protocols.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Farouk Ahmed, has resigned following a meeting with President Bola Tinubu amid corruption allegations.
Tinubu, on Wednesday, summoned Ahmed to the Presidential Villa in Abuja, following allegations of economic sabotage and corruption.
Also caught in the web of resignation was the CEO of the Nigeria Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Gbenga Komolafe, according to a statement on Wednesday by Bayo Onanuga, special adviser to the president on information and strategy.
Tinubu was said to have nominated successors to the senate for approval.
“Tinubu has asked the Senate to approve the nominations of two new chief executives for the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC),” the statement reads.
“The requests followed the resignation of Engineer Farouk Ahmed of the NMDPRA and Gbenga Komolafe of the NUPRC.
“Both officials were appointed in 2021 by former President Buhari to lead the two regulatory agencies created by the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).
“To fill these positions, President Tinubu has written to the Senate, requesting expedited confirmation of Oritsemeyiwa Amanorisewo Eyesan as CEO of NUPRC and Engineer Saidu Aliyu Mohammed as CEO of NMDPRA.”
Onanuga said the two nominees are seasoned professionals in the oil and gas industry.
The Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Engr. Farouk Ahmed, has responded to recent claims regarding the financing of his children’s education and his integrity in office, insisting that the allegations are misleading and ill-timed.
Ahmed said the allegations “necessitated this response, not because I fear scrutiny of my finances, which I welcome, but because the timing and nature of these claims demand context that only three decades of public service can provide.”
Ahmed highlighted his career in Nigeria’s petroleum sector, which began in 1991, noting that he rose through merit rather than political patronage.
He recalled his experience across technical divisions, crude oil marketing, gas supply monitoring, and downstream operations, stressing that his decisions have always been guided by Nigeria’s national interest.
“I spent my formative years in the technical divisions, where decisions are measured not by political expediency but by engineering precision and market realities,” he said.
He further outlined his rise to General Manager of the Crude Oil Marketing Division in 2012 and later Deputy Director in 2015, before being appointed NMDPRA Chief Executive in 2021.
On assuming the role, Ahmed said, he understood the challenges of implementing reforms under the Petroleum Industry Act, acknowledging that enforcing transparency in a sector long characterised by opacity would inevitably meet resistance.
Addressing the allegations about his children’s education, Ahmed said the claim that he spent $5 million on their Swiss schooling was misleading. “Three of my four children received substantial merit-based scholarships ranging from 40% to 65% of tuition costs, verifiable information are available to any authorised investigation,” he said, adding that contributions from his late father, a Northern Nigerian businessman, further supported the education costs.
He added: “When scholarships, family contributions, and my own savings accumulated over three decades are properly accounted for, my personal financial obligation was entirely consistent with someone of my professional standing and length of service.”
Ahmed confirmed that his annual compensation of approximately N48 million, including allowances, is publicly documented, and that he has submitted detailed asset declarations to the Code of Conduct Bureau throughout his career.
The CEO also linked the timing of the allegations to recent regulatory actions taken by NMDPRA.
“These allegations resurface precisely when NMDPRA has enforced quality standards revealing substandard petroleum products in the market, implemented stricter licensing requirements, and insisted on transparent pricing mechanisms that eliminate opacity benefiting certain market players. This timing is not coincidental,” Ahmed said.
He defended the authority’s import licensing decisions, emphasizing that they comply with Section 7 of the Petroleum Industry Act, which mandates supply security and prevention of scarcity.
“Granting import licenses when domestic supply proves insufficient is not sabotage, it is our legal duty,” he said.
Ahmed invited formal investigations into his finances and tenure, stating: “I formally and publicly request the Code of Conduct Bureau to conduct comprehensive review of all my asset declarations since 1991, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to examine all my financial transactions and sources of income, and the National Assembly to exercise its oversight function regarding any allegations of regulatory compromise during my tenure. I will cooperate fully, provide all documentation, and answer all questions under oath if required.”
Concluding, Ahmed reaffirmed his commitment to regulatory independence and transparency.
“Three decades of service to Nigeria’s petroleum sector have taught me that integrity is tested not in comfortable moments but when powerful interests demand compromise. My response is simple: investigate thoroughly, examine every claim, scrutinize every transaction. My record both financial and professional will withstand any legitimate inquiry.”
