OMG!!! Girl Commits Suicide In Abia After Her Mother Blamed Her For Being Gang-raped

A JSS 3 student of Isieke Community Secondary School who had just finished writing the “Junior WEAC” exam, was allegedly raped by three boys; Ndubuisi Wogu, Chinaza Ufomadu, and Francis Onwoboro, who are now on the run.

The deceased, Comfort Uche-Ume, a native of Amaeke Abam in Arochukwu LGA of the state, who until her death resided at Iyienyi village with her parents, had gone in the company of her sister who was married at Okwoyi, a neighbouring village, to see her (sister) husband.

He said that as evening approached, the deceased opted to return home to remove the clothes they spread outside to save them from getting wet from the threatening rain.

But another source said the deceased decided to return home because she was having the key to their house so that the parents who travelled would not be stranded upon their return.

The PPRO said that as the deceased was trekking back to Iyienyi village alone, she was allegedly accosted by Nwogu, who had been making unsuccessful advances at her.

He said Nwogu, assisted by two other accomplices, dragged the victim to a nearby bush where they gang-raped her, threatening to kill her if she raised any alarm.

Police said that when the sister of the deceased returned home, she met her crying and after enquiries, Comfort narrated her ordeal to her.

Irked by the sexual assault on her sister, she was said to have informed her husband, who quickly rushed to confront one of the suspects and engaged him in a free-for-all.

According to the police, the victim was later brought to Umuahia Central Police Station around 9pm by her parents to officially report the matter.

Onyeke said after lodging the complaint, the police first decided to take the victim to the police clinic for examination and medical attention.

He said after she was examined and the police wanted to take her statement, but the parents pleaded that they should be allowed to take her home, promising to return the next morning since it was getting late so that they could still get transport home.

The incident, according to him, took place Friday last week.

“But instead of returning as they promised, the parents never showed up. The mother of the deceased rather decided to scold her over the incident.

“The mother mismanaged the situation. She said to her ‘Have I not warned you not to go to Okwoyi village alone? Now three men have raped you and if you become pregnant, who will be the father of the baby?’

“On Tuesday morning, the mother of the victim allegedly went to her room again and started talking to her. She later invited her for the family’s morning devotion, but she declined,”

The state police spokesman pointed out that when the family began to hold their morning devotion about 20 minutes later, a shout was heard outside the house and the family members rushed out.

According to him, the initial thinking of family members was that the rapists had come to attack her again.

But that was not to be as they were shocked to their marrows to see the lifeless body of their daughter, who was reportedly seen leave her room with a head tie/ veil across her shoulders, dangling on a guava tree beside their house. She had committed suicide!

Police said the deceased might have decided to take her life out of frustration and possible stigmatisation.

The PPRO, therefore, advised parents and guardians to exercise caution when “they manage sensitive situations that might come their way, especially the ones affecting their children or wards.”

He said, “Parents should avoid stigmatising their children, but treat them with love anytime such unfortunate situation comes up.”

Onyeke also appealed to members of the public with any credible information about the whereabouts of the alleged rapists to volunteer same to the nearest police station for prompt action.

Meanwhile, a source at Okwoyi told our correspondent that the villagers had begun a manhunt for the suspects.

The source said hunters had been mobilised to comb every nook and cranny of the village for their possible arrest.

According to the source, the villagers are not taking the incident lightly, vowing to stop at nothing in bringing the culprits to bok.

“This is an abomination and we will make sure we fish them out of any hole they may have run into,” the source said.

Confirming the incident, the Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Ezekiel Onyeke said the police had declared the suspected rapists wanted.

Source : Punch

Fresh explosion rocks Maiduguri

A blast suspected to be from a vehicle loaded with explosives, has occurred in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state.

The explosion occurred around Bulumkutu area just in front of Shehu Elkanemi college.

A witness who spoke via phone, told PREMIUM TIMES that “the vehicle exploded on traffic and there were two people inside the car”.

He called in afterwards to clarify that the blast was from the popular commercial tricycle, Keke, which was riding behind a packed police patrol vehicle.

The witness said it was likely all occupants of the Keke and the police vehicle were dead.

A resident of the area, Mallam Sheriff, confirmed the incident.

“Yes, we just heard a large explosion from the direction of the area and I can see many ambulances and military vehicles heading in the direction. God help us, ” he said.

Defiled by her aunt’s husband, tortured by the aunt, abused teenager tells her horrific story

The rate of child abuse in the country has yet to lessen. A fresh case involves a 13-year-old girl from Imo State, Chinemerum Nworie, who is believed to have been dealt a cruel fate by her guardians.

Little Chinemerum was brought to her aunt in Warri, Delta State, in 2013, as a domestic assistant. The aunt was delivered of a baby girl three months ago. Chinemerum had been enrolled at Ekpan Basic Secondary School in Uvwie Local Government Area of Delta State. But her aunt’s husband, Onyeji, allegedly began to have sex with the minor as soon as she arrived in his home. Onyeji, it was gathered, works with an offshore engineering company in Warri.

The bubble burst a fortnight ago when the girl went to school with N1500 and the money got missing. After a search by the class teacher for the money, Chinemerum was accompanied home for an insight into the reason someone would give a child such amount of money to take to school. Chinemerum insisted it was her aunt’s husband who gave her the money. There and then, the bubble burst as the minor, when further pressed at night by her aunt, revealed what had been going on between her and Onyeji.

But rather than pity her girl and nurse a scorn for her hubby, the woman used a hot knife on the little girl and excoriated her. The deed landed the woman in Ekpan Police Station. She was soon released on the grounds that she was nursing a three-month-old baby. The husband was away at work on Monday, June 29, when his deed came to light. The girl is now undergoing medical care in the custody of her school counsellor, Mrs Rita Oboh.

The Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of Ekpan Police Station, CSP Chris Sogbara, has said nothing will stop the case from going to court. 

In the meantime, EBENEZER ADUROKIYA, who spoke with Chinemerum at the police station, presents excerpts from his interaction with the minor.

Can you tell us your name and the school you attend?
My name is Chinemerem Nworie. I attend Ekpan Basic Secondary School.

What class are you?
I am in JSS 2

Can you tell us what happened to you?
We were in the class. I had brought some money to school — about N1500 — which I kept inside my mathematical set. In the afternoon, no teacher came to our class. They were having a meeting in the staff room. So, I said, ‘let me use this opportunity to go and buy what I wanted to use the money for.’ But when I opened the mathematical set, I did not find the money. I went to the staff room and reported to our teacher. The teacher came and searched all my classmates, but she didn’t see the money. Angry, my classmates followed me home to know who gave me such amount of money. When they got there, the gateman called my aunt. When my aunt came out, they told her I brought N1500 to school. Later in the evening, around 9.00 p.m., she asked me who gave me the money and I said it was uncle (her aunt’s husband) that gave me the money. Then she lit the stove and put a knife on it. She asked me why uncle gave me the money. Before I could tell her that her husband had been sleeping with me, she used the hot knife to pierce my body.

How many times did your ‘uncle’ sleep with you?
He has been doing it for over two years.

How old are you now?
I am 13 years old.

Did you report your ‘uncle’ to your aunt?
Yes, I once told her, thinking that she would take me back to my parents, but when she confronted him, he denied it.

When was the last time he slept with you?
I can’t remember.

Did he give you money before he travelled recently?
Yes, he gave me the money (N1,500) on Monday (June 29) before he travelled.

Did he sleep with you before he travelled?
No.

How often did he sleep with you?
He normally comes back on Fridays and goes back on Monday.

So, he would sleep with you during that period?
Yes.

Where would his wife be at that time?
She was either dropping the children at school or she was in the market.

Which of them is your relation?
The wife.

Who is she to you?
She is my mother’s cousin.

How long have you been staying with them?
About three years.

Have you told any of your teachers at school before now or did he warn you not to tell anyone?
Yes, he warned me not to tell anyone. He said I should not tell his wife or I would be in trouble.

How many days does he spend offshore?
Sometimes one week. Other times, two weeks.

...Meaning each time he visits home, he sleeps with you?
Yes.

The first time he slept with you, did you tell your aunt?
No.

Has any other person slept with you before?
No, he was the first person that slept with me.

The first time he slept with you, what happened?
I can’t remember.

What did he say when he came to you? Did he force you?
He forced me. He would tell me to come to his room. If I went there, he would forcibly remove my clothes and tell me not to worry because my aunty was not here.

Didn’t you shout?
I normally shouted, but nobody would come.

How many children does he have?
Four. Three boys and a girl.

How old are the children?
The eldest is eight years old. The second is four years old, the next one is three years old and the last one is three months old.

Are your parents alive?
Yes.

Have you told them what your aunt’s husband has been doing to you?
I have not seen them.

When last did you see your parents?
I saw them two years ago.

Do you speak with them on the telephone?
I spoke with them more than a year ago.

How many children do your parents have and what is your position?
We are six girls and I am the third.

What about your friends at school, did you tell them about what has been happening to you?
I told some of them.

What did they advise you to do?
They told me that I should tell my aunty, but due to fear, I couldn’t tell her. They told me that anytime he wanted to do it, I should struggle. So, sometimes if he wanted to do it, I would hold the handle of the door and he would leave me alone and tell me to go.

Sometimes?
Yes.

But sometimes too, you agreed?
No.

How much did he usually give you?
Sometimes, N200 and sometimes N500 or N1000.

But the last time, he gave you N1500?
Yes.

What did you always do with the money he gave you?
I used it to buy maths set and novels. I also used it to buy food.

They say you come late to school everyday...
Yes.

Why?
Before I would come to school, my aunty would drop the children in school. She would come back around 9.00 a.m. And sometimes if I have not finished my chores, she would tell me to finish them before going to school.

How does she drop the children in school, do they have a car?

No.

How are they treating you at home, do they feed you like their own children?

Sometimes she doesn’t feed me.

They say you come to school without notebooks and biro, is that true?
Yes.

What about your last exams, did you write all your papers?
No.

Which subjects did you miss?
I missed Cultural and Creative Arts, Agric Science and Maths. I didn’t finish my work in time and I came back from school tired, so, I used the strength I had left in me to sweep the house. I said I would do the rest in the morning. When I woke up, she said, ‘You are not going to school; you are going to miss your exam.’

Have you ever told them that you wanted to go back to your parents?
Yes, I told grandma. Grandma came to my school but they said I should wait until after the third term. Grandma is my aunt’s mother.

She wanted to take you home?
Yes, but the teachers told her to wait until after the third term before taking me back.

Where are you from?
 I am from Imo State, Isuluka Local Government Area.

What’s your village’s name?
I don’t know.

Do you want to go back home?
Yes.

Do you regret ever staying with them?
Yes.

Why did your parents give you to them?
It was because my aunty gave birth and she could not walk normally. Somebody must carry her. When she was pregnant, she could not walk and when she gave birth, she could not walk normally, so, her mother came to my mother’s house and said that they wanted me to help her in the house.

There are some marks on your back, what offences did you commit?
This one (pointing at an fresh wound), she asked me to cook yam. When the yam was boiling, she came and shouted why I had to cut the yam in big pieces. She said I should have cut it in little pieces. That time, I was wearing a gown with zippers. She then took out a hot piece of yam and put it on my back.

Didn’t you shout? Don’t you have neighbours?
Yes, we do but everybody is on their own.

When your ‘uncle’ came back from work, did he not see all these marks and the scars all over you?
This one (pointing at another sore), she hurt me and said I shouldn’t tell anybody or she would kill me.

Your uncle did not see you with these marks or he left for office before she did it?
Yes.

What does she use to beat you?
Sometimes she uses stick. Sometimes she uses turner and sometimes she uses rod.

You also have sores on your legs. What is the cause of that one?
A hot knife.

So, you want to go back to your parents?
Yes.

Credit: Nigerian Tribune 

Etcetera is back..... Tells President Buhari To Wake Up

Etcetera is back and he says.....

''Wake up, President Buhari. Get in the game; you have left the door open for more Federal Government bailout. The question is, why would the Federal Government get involved? And, beyond that, why should it? Can the Federal Government really help a state like Osun? Hell no!! The predicament of these states is due primarily to two causes. 

One is mismanagement, which has amounted to billions of their total shortfall. The second is the money that was borrowed through the years for unseen projects and other unnecessary obligations. Disappearing jobs, empty factories have all played a role, too.

There are so many reasons why bailing out cash-strapped states that mismanaged public finances with over N7bn should be prohibited henceforth. We are talking about public funds here and Nigerian taxpayers need to watch their wallets. If not, there will be a call for a federal bailout to finance the purchase of private jets for state governors. 

The National Assembly should act now to ensure taxpayers aren’t forced to pay for years of mismanagement by government officials. Failure of some of these states to properly manage their funds might be rooted in an unholy alliance between the governors and their godfathers. The issue of ghost workers is another thing that should be looked into. It is a fact that some of the commissioners liaised with the permanent secretaries to milk the states by employing ghost workers.

Leaving aside the argument of the merits or demerits of federal relief for these financially troubled states, the way these governors squander public funds makes it morally troublesome and that’s to put it lightly.

It would have been understandable if this bailout was as a result of natural disasters like earthquakes or outbreaks of terrible diseases such as Ebola. Seeking federal bailout to pay workers’ salaries is preposterous, especially when the said states have been receiving regular monthly federal allocations. Osun State needs to lie in its own poorly made bed; the rest of the country cannot be expected to pay for the myopic misdeeds of a lazy government.

Consider an uninsured driver who negligently makes an illegal turn that causes an accident with another car. Witnesses call the police, reporting who is at fault; the police transmit this information to the traffic offence unit. When they arrive at the scene and find that the car of the driver at fault is uninsured, will they tow his car to the workshop and have it repaired at the expense of the government? Let us also pause and consider whether this bailout shows respect for ordinary Nigerian citizens. The state governors having chosen to run their risks, they deserve their misfortune, so society need not save them from it.

There are so many good reasons why the Federal Government shouldn’t have offered a bailout to these states. That the government treasury is empty is certainly one salient factor. Another is the issue of moral hazard: if these states can turn to the Federal Government whenever their finances go down, other states will have much less reason to manage their money effectively and make tough but crucial budgetary decisions.

Culled from Punch.

Buhari, Osinbajo slash own salaries by 50%, as part of campaign promise

As part of his plans to actualize his campaign promise, President Muhammadu Buhari will only receive 50 per cent of the salary paid to his predecessor, Goodluck Jonathan, the Presidency announced on Friday.

The president’s decision to take a pay cut was conveyed to the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation by the Permanent Secretary of the State House, Nebolisa Emodi.

“I write to forward the completed IPPIS registration form of Mr. President and to draw your kind attention to Mr. President’s directive that only 50 per cent of his salary be paid to him,” Emodi, was quoted as saying in the letter with reference number PRES/81/SGF/17.

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has similarly given up half of his official remuneration, the Presidency also confirmed in a statement signed by a presidential spokesperson, Garba Shehu.

9-Year-Old Nigerian Girl Writes a Book on "Effects of Terrorism on Children" (Photos)

A 9-year-old pupil of Unique Blossom School, Maitama, Miss Splendour Joe Abisoye has presented to the Defence Headquarters a copy of her book titled“Effects of Terrorism on Children”. Splendour was accompanied to the Army Headquarters by her parents, Rev. and Mrs. Joe King Abisoye.

In the book, Splendour shared her experience when she visited an IDP camp in the North and what some of the children there told her. She said that the minds of most of the children have been debased. For instance, Splendour said, many of them were said to prefer to join Boko Haram group to ensure their protection. Her inspiration was further boosted to write with the understanding that these terrorists were once children and only proper education could guarantee a terror-free society.

She sought to use the Defence Headquarters as a platform to reach out to other stakeholders in the fight against terrorism in the distribution of her books and to send them to all IDP camps, Almajiri schools and all military schools in Nigeria.

Receiving the book, General Olukolade applauded her for writing it. He also commended her parents for their support and encouragement which galvanized their daughter to write such a beautiful book.”This is the type of encouragement we should give to our children. We will continue to encourage you and 

others that have this same talent. If you keep it up, you will be one of the greatest authors in the world,” he added.

Here are some pictures from presentation:

“My daughter Iyabo said I was going to die in office” – Olusegun Obasanjo

Former President Chief Olusegun Obasanjo has revealed in his memoir, My Watch, that his first child Iyabo, told him he was going to die in office. Obasanjo said Iyabo’s position came up when he informed her and 3 of his other children about his desire to contest the 1999 presidential election after he had consulted almost all those that mattered before joining the presidential race that held in New York. Obasanjo said it was ironic that Iyabo became a senator during his tenure, and she was before then a commissioner in former Ogun governor Otunba Gbenga Daniel’s administration.

In Obasanjo’s words “My mind was almost made up (to vie for the position of President) but I had to consult with my children. I got four of them together in New York. I told them I was going to decide whether to go into politics or not. Iyabo was the most antagonistic. “She burst out loudly, ‘I know you will join and you will die there and if you die, I will not weep.’

“I told her ‘if I die and you weep, it is for yourself and others, not for me as I will not know you are weeping.’ It is ironic that within 10 years, Iyabo became a Senator and I completed two terms of eight years without a scratch.” Obasanjo further disclosed that of his 4 children in the meeting, it was only Segun who said, “Daddy, you have always said that we must serve God and humanity and if this is the way you have chosen to serve God and humanity, I will pray for you.”