metro

Anambra couple arrested for starving their five underage boys

Published

2 days ago

June 29, 2024

Anambra couple arrested for starving their five underage boys

A couple has been arrested and handed over to the police over the treatment meted out to their five underage sons in the Osumenyi community, Nnewi South Local Government Area of Anambra State.

Mr Uche and Mrs Peace Mbonu are accused of alleged child abuse, starvation and refusal to provide necessities for their five underaged boys.

The arrest was carried out by the security operatives of the Nnewi South LGA before they were handed over to the police through the state Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Welfare, Ify Obinabo.

This was made known on Saturday, June 29, in a statement by the media aide to the commissioner, Chidimma Ikeanyionwu.

The statement read, “On why they starved the kids, the couple denied the allegation and stated in their defence that the kids are always in the habit of eating raw rice, which makes them infuriated.

“While pleading for pardon, the couple said that they always feed the kids but that the children prefer eating raw rice, which they don’t know where they picked up the behaviour from.

“On his part, the oldest of the kids, Chigbo Mbonu, revealed that Peace Mbonu is his father’s third wife, and ever since she came into their family, they have faced a lot of untold hardship.

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“Chigbo Mbonu, who is currently 17 years old, said that they feed once a day for the days their stepmother will give them food but rely on raw rice and palm kernel after hunger must have greatly dealt with them.

He went ahead to explain that he, at some point, stopped schooling because he helped his father in his block industry. He noted that he moulds blocks with four bags of cement on a bad day and six bags on normal days.

“Further physical examination of the children by the Women Affairs commissioner showed that they have been greatly starved and in need of medical care.

“It is important to note that Mr Uche Mbonu has married two wives before finally settling with the third one Peace Mbonu, who was his sales girl, and that the kids are all product of his previous marriages.

“According to the security operatives who helped in apprehending the culprits, they explained that after they got the husband, his wife Peace ran to Nnewi, her maternal home to hide before they eventually apprehended her too.”

While reacting to the development, the Commissioner for Women Affairs, Ify Obinabo, condemned the act and stated that the state government will continue to ensure that child labour, abuse and all forms of maltreatment are reduced to the barest minimum.

The couple has since been handed over to the police for further investigation, after which the matter will be charged to court.

Anambra couple arrested for starving their five underage boys

metro

BREAKING: Pilot survives as NAF helicopter crashes in Kaduna

Published

60 mins ago

July 1, 2024

Trends Admin

BREAKING: Pilot survives as NAF helicopter crashes in Kaduna

A Nigeria Air Force (NAF) helicopter has crashed at Tami village in the Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

The incident occurred in the early morning on Monday, causing significant alarm among the villagers.

The helicopter, said to be on a routine operational flight, experienced a technical hitch that led to the crash.

The pilot managed to execute emergency protocols effectively that ensured his own survival.

Eyewitnesses said the pilot emerged from the wreckage unscathed.

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Residents of Tami village quickly gathered at the crash site, offering assistance and expressing relief that no life was lost.

It was gathered that a team of military officers from the Nigerian Air Force swiftly arrived at the scene to secure the area and conduct an initial investigation.

They cordoned off the crash site to prevent unauthorised access and to ensure the safety of the villagers.

The officers also began preliminary assessments to determine the cause of the crash, which remained unknown at this time.

BREAKING: Pilot survives as NAF helicopter crashes in Kaduna

metro

UK cab driver confesses still getting paid in Nigeria as civil servant

Published

2 hours ago

July 1, 2024

Trends Admin

UK cab driver confesses still getting paid in Nigeria as civil servant

Despite leaving Nigeria for the UK two years ago, Sabitu Adams gets paid each month as a junior official at a government agency back home.

Adams, who now works as a taxi driver in the UK, had his name changed by a BBC report to protect his identity.

The taxi driver has yet to resign from his job in Nigeria.

Adams is one of the thousands of ghost workers, a rampant issue in the Nigerian civil service.
Each year, the government carries out biometric verifications and reels out numbers representing discovered ghost workers, and money saved.

But no one is ever announced to have been arrested or prosecuted.

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Last week, President Bola Tinubu directed that all civil servants drawing salaries from the government after relocating abroad should be made to refund the money.

Tinubu also ordered that the culprits’ supervisors and department heads be punished for aiding and abetting the fraud while they were in charge.

Adams told the BBC that he was not worried about the president’s directives because he earned better as a taxi driver in the UK.

“When I heard about the president’s directive, I smiled because I know I am doing better here – and not worried,” the 36-year-old said.

The cab driver said he did not resign “in case I choose to go back to my job after a few years”.
Adams was quoted as saying he had an arrangement with his boss in Nigeria who is a “relative”.

UK cab driver confesses still getting paid in Nigeria as civil servant

metro

Police rescue 2 kidnapped victims in Abuja

Published

3 hours ago

July 1, 2024

Trends Admin

Police rescue 2 kidnapped victims in Abuja

Two kidnapped victims were rescued by the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command in the Guto community of Bwari, Abuja, on Sunday.

According to a statement by the FCT Police Public Relations Officer, SP Josephine Adeh, the rescue operation was triggered by an early morning attack by gunmen on the community. The prompt response from the police and other security agencies was crucial in handling the situation.

The statement noted: “In response to the sudden attack by unknown gunmen in Guto village, Bwari, earlier today, June 30, 2024, at about 01:30 p.m., where two female victims, Mart Ojadi, 15 years old, and Evelyn Chinaza, 12 years old, were kidnapped and forcefully taken to an unknown location, the operatives of the FCT police command from the anti-kidnapping unit swiftly mobilised to the scene.

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The police, along with the DSS and local hunters, pursued the kidnappers into Gauraka Forest in Niger State, which borders the FCT. The confrontation led to a fierce gunfight, eventually causing the kidnappers to flee into the surrounding bushes with various injuries, leaving the two victims behind, unharmed.

The rescued girls have been safely reunited with their families. FCT Commissioner of Police, CP Benneth C. Igweh, praised the operation and reiterated the commitment of the police force to ensure the safety and security of the capital. He also encouraged residents to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activities to the police through the following emergency lines: 08032003913, 08028940883, 08061581938, and 07057337653 PCB: 09022222352, CRU: 08107314192.”