Headlines
Mother of Three Siblings Killed in Akungba Crash Dies of Shock, AAUA Shut
The management of the Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko, on Sunday ordered the closure of the institution until further notice.
The development was not unconnected to the protest that followed the fatal accident, which occurred opposite the campus of the institution on Saturday, in which no fewer than nine persons, including some students of the university, were killed.
The directive to close down the school was contained in a circular issued by the acting Registrar, Mr Opeoluwa Akinfemiwa.
The circular read, “Further to our circular of Saturday, January 23, 2021 and the attendant protest by students on Sunday, January 24, 2021, the acting Vice-Chancellor, Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko, Prof. Olugbenga Ige, on behalf of the Senate, has directed that the university be closed with immediate effect until further notice.
“All students are therefore advised to vacate the campus latest by 6pm today, Sunday, January 24, 2021.”
It was gathered that three siblings were among the victims, who lost their lives in the crash.
According to the Ondo State Sector Command of the Federal Road Safety Corps and the state command of the Nigeria Police, no fewer than nine persons were killed, while several others were injured in the accident that involved a truck belonging to Dangote Cement.
It was gathered that the cement-laden truck was heading for Owo from Obajana in Kogi State, when its brake allegedly failed. As a result, the driver lost control of the vehicle and swerved off the road and rammed into some shops directly opposite the university.
In a Facebook post, a former spokesman for the Lagos State chapter of the All Progressives Congress, Mr Joe Igbokwe, said the mother of the three siblings killed in the crash also died of shock on Saturday after hearing the sad news about her children.
Igbokwe’s post was titled: ‘I am in deep pains and totally diminished as a mortal’.
He wrote, “An accident occurred yesterday (Saturday) in Akungba, Ondo State….these three guys were from same parents, a trailer crushed the three of them together in their shop and they all died instantly. Their mum died on the spot on hearing the news. Two of them are final year students of Ondo State University…….”
Similarly, a former Student Union President of the university, Samuel Adesomoju, popularly known as Sampraise, was also confirmed to be one of the victims of the crash.
The Global President of the National Association of Ondo State Students, Ayoade Kikiowo, confirmed this to journalists.
The body of Adesomoju, a 500-level law student, was discovered in the mortuary after the crash. One of his friends, Iyantan John, also confirmed this on his Facebook page.
He wrote, “The ugly event that happened yesterday in Akungba community will not concern the ‘Authorities’ that is why these incidents continue to happen often and often.
“The most painful thing is that I lost a brother who is so dear to me. Former SUG President and 500level law student, my acquaintance while in AAUA. May God console his family and the families of the late students. #RescueAkungba.”
Following the incident, students of the university took to the streets of the town to protest against incessant road crashes in the community, particularly along the university road.
The protesting students, who were singing solidarity songs, barricaded the roads that entered into the town and asked vehicles going into the town to turn back.
The angry students also sent back the state government delegation led by the Chief of Staff to Governor Rotimi Akeredolu. All efforts to appeal to them failed.
They demanded the personal appearance of the governor and not a delegation. The students stopped the delegation at Iwaro junction, in Akungba Akoko, stating that the government had neglected the community as no effort was made to curb incessant road accidents in the community.
However, they allowed the state Commissioner of Police, Mr Bolaji Salami, to enter the town with his security aides, while the government delegation returned to Akure.
Meanwhile, the Deputy Senate Leader, who is representing Ondo North Senatorial District in the National Assembly, Prof. Ajayi Boroffice, has described as unfortunate the avoidable crash that led to loss of lives and propertys in Akungba on Saturday.
The senator said in a statement by his media aide, Kayode Fakuyi, on Sunday, “It is time to stop the incessant carnage on the Akungba Road.
“It is deeply disturbing to hear about another accident on the Akungba Road. It becomes more confounding that the accident claimed many lives and property.
“Many accidents have occurred along that route in the past and worthy counsels and viable suggestions have been offered.
“The situation is not helpless and it is time to put an end to the incessant carnage on roads in Akoko land.”
The Punch
The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), on Thursday, published a list of 9, 532 alleged land title debtors in Abuja, giving them a two-week ultimatum to settle their outstanding bills.
The list, which includes prominent individuals and government agencies, was published on November 26, with defaulters expected to pay for their certificate of occupancy (C-of- O) within the stipulated timeframe.
Among those listed as defaulters is former Head of State, Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida (IBB), who owes N152 million for a plot of land in Asokoro, a highbrow area in the nation’s capital. IBB, who ruled Nigeria from 1985 to 1993, is not the only high-profile individual on the list.
Other notable defaulters include Samuel Ortom, former governor of Benue, who owes N950,000 for a plot of land in Bazango, and Aminu Tambuwal, senator representing Sokoto south, who owes N18 million for a plot of land in Carraway Dallas.
The FCTA has threatened to revoke the land titles of defaulters who fail to settle their bills within the stipulated timeframe. The administration has urged defaulters to settle their bills by e-payment to the “FCT department of land administration” account.
In addition to individual defaulters, some federal agencies, including the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), the navy, and police, were also named as defaulters.
The Lagos governor’s lodge in Asokoro, the Kaduna state government, and ‘State House Abuja’ were also listed as land title debtors.
This development is not the first time the FCTA has taken steps to recover outstanding debts from landowners. In June this year, the administration set up a committee to recover over N29 billion owed by property owners.
The committee has since identified 430 individuals and organisations as defaulters, with plans to prosecute them.
The FCTA has also partnered with anti-graft agencies, including the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), to check the activities of land grabbers in the territory.
The Senate has granted approval to the ₦1.77 trillion ($2.2b) loan request of President Bola Tinubu after a voice vote in favor of the request.
The Senate presided by Deputy Senate President, Barau Jibrin, approved the loan after the Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Debts chaired by Senator Wammako Magatarkada (APC, Sokoto North) presented the report of the committee.
The request which was submitted by the President on Tuesday is part of a fresh external borrowing plan to partially finance the N9.7 trillion budget deficit for the 2024 fiscal year.
Tinubu had on Tuesday written to the National Assembly, seeking approval of a fresh N1.767 trillion, the equivalent of $2.209 billion as a new external borrowing plan in the 2024 Appropriation Act.
The fresh loan is expected to stretch the amount spent on debt servicing by the Federal Government. The Central Bank of Nigeria recently said that it cost the Federal Government $3.58 billion to service foreign debt in the first nine months of 2024.
The CBN report on international payment statistics showed that the amount represents a 39.77 per cent increase from the $2.56bn spent during the same period in 2023.
According to the report, while the highest monthly debt servicing payment in 2024 occurred in May, amounting to $854.37m, the highest monthly expenditure in 2023 was $641.70m, recorded in July.
The trend in foreign debt servicing by the CBN highlights the rising cost of debt obligations by Nigeria.
Further breakdown of international debt figures showed that in January 2024, debt servicing costs surged by 398.89 per cent, rising to $560.52m from $112.35m in January 2023. February, however, saw a slight decline of 1.84 per cent, with payments reducing from $288.54m in 2023 to $283.22m in 2024.
March recorded a 31.04 per cent drop in payments, falling to $276.17m from $400.47m in the same period last year. April saw a significant rise of 131.77 per cent, with $215.20m paid in 2024 compared to $92.85m in 2023.
The highest debt servicing payment occurred in May 2024, when $854.37m was spent, reflecting a 286.52 per cent increase compared to $221.05m in May 2023. June, on the other hand, saw a 6.51 per cent decline, with $50.82m paid in 2024, down from $54.36m in 2023.
July 2024 recorded a 15.48 per cent reduction, with payments dropping to $542.50m from $641.70m in July 2023. In August, there was another decline of 9.69 per cent, as $279.95m was paid compared to $309.96m in 2023. However, September 2024 saw a 17.49 per cent increase, with payments rising to $515.81m from $439.06m in the same month last year.
Given rising exchange rates, the data raises concerns about the growing pressure of Nigeria’s foreign debt obligations.
Channels TV
Self acclaimed leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Simon Ekpa, has been arrested by law enforcement in Finland.
The BBC reports that Ekpa was subsequently sent to prison by the district court of Päijät-Häme for “spreading terrorist propaganda on social media”.
Ekpa was said to have committed the crime in 2021 in Lahti municipality.
The Finnish National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) also arrested four other men over alleged terrorist offences.
A citizen of Finland and Nigeria, Ekpa has described himself as leader of the separatist IPOB group since Nnamdi Kanu’s incarceration.
Finnish police say Ekpa’s activities and social media rhetoric may have fanned the flames of violence in the south-east of Nigeria.
“He carries out these activities from his social media channels, for example,” said Otto Hiltunen, detective chief inspector of the NBI.
In February 2023, Ekpa was arrested by police at his residence in Lahti but was released after hours of questioning.
Using his social media channels, Ekpa had directed Igbos not to participate in Nigeria’s 2023 general election.
In September 2021, the Biafra agitator and secessionist denounced Nigeria and vowed to return the medal he won for the country at the 2003 African Junior Athletics Championships.
