Three-Storey Student Hostel Collapses Near Oko Polytechnic, Many Trapped

A three-storey private hostel, Elite Five Star Lodge, collapsed late Sunday night in Oko, Anambra State, trapping an unspecified number of students and other occupants beneath the rubble. The building, located beside Tonimas Filling Station in the Amokpala area behind Federal Polytechnic Oko, caved in during the late hours of Sunday, July 26, 2026, triggering panic among residents and students, with desperate cries for help reportedly heard from beneath the debris shortly after the structure collapsed. Emergency responders, including personnel from the Anambra State Police Command, the Anambra State Fire Service, and the Anambra State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) , immediately launched a coordinated search-and-rescue operation, with several injured victims pulled from the debris and rushed to a hospital in Oko for medical treatment. Bodies recovered from the scene have been deposited in a mortuary, though authorities have yet to confirm the exact number of casualties.

Confirming the incident, the Police Public Relations Officer, SP Tochukwu Ikenga, said a police-led joint security team responded swiftly after receiving a distress call, securing the area to prevent further danger and coordinating rescue efforts. In a statement, Ikenga said that rescue operations are ongoing to reach other persons who may still be trapped, and the number of casualties or affected persons cannot yet be confirmed, adding that some injured victims have been rescued from the debris and evacuated to a hospital in Oko, where they are currently receiving medical attention.

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The management of Federal Polytechnic Oko has clarified that the collapsed structure is a privately owned lodge located in Amaokpala, a neighbouring community to Oko town, and not within the institution’s premises, with the institution’s Public Relations Officer, Dr Oguegbu Celestine Udoka, stating that reports circulating on social media were misleading and exaggerated, adding that the building accommodates both students and non-students. The Polytechnic disclosed that its Rector, Dr Chioma Irene Awuzie, visited the scene early Monday morning to assess the situation and ascertain the welfare of any affected students, accompanied by the Students’ Union Government President, the Dean of Students’ Affairs, and other senior staff.

Residents described scenes of fear and confusion as the building suddenly collapsed without warning, with one eyewitness, who identified herself simply as Ifeoma, saying that many people initially mistook the loud sound for an explosion before discovering that the student hostel had crumbled, and that within moments after the loud noise, the occupants inside started shouting for help as the building fell. Emergency response teams continued operations on Monday, with heavy equipment and personnel remaining at the site, as the building, which is usually overcrowded with students from the academic institution currently in its second semester of the 2025/2026 academic session, collapsed while many occupants were believed to be asleep. The police appealed to residents to remain calm, avoid spreading unverified information, and stay away from the scene to enable emergency responders carry out their work effectively, while the cause of the building collapse has yet to be determined.

Three-Storey Student Hostel Collapses Near Oko Polytechnic, Many Trapped

Kwara Lawyers Begin Indefinite Strike Over Unpaid Allowances, Salary Harmonisation

Law officers in the Kwara State Ministry of Justice have downed tools indefinitely, citing the government’s failure to pay outstanding statutory allowances and harmonise their salaries with those of magistrates. Members of the Law Officers Association of Nigeria (LOAN), Kwara State Chapter, on Monday commenced an indefinite strike following the expiration of a seven-day notice issued to the State Government over unresolved welfare demands. The industrial action was announced in a notice signed by the Acting Chairman of the association, Barr. Kehinde M. Ayorinde, Esq., directing members to suspend all official duties until further notice. “Take notice that LOAN, Kwara State Chapter commences her indefinite strike action today, July 27, 2026, until the government responds to her demands. Members would therefore suspend all official duties till further notice,” the notice stated. The action follows the expiration of a seven-day ultimatum earlier issued by the association to Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, warning that its members would embark on an indefinite strike if their grievances were not addressed.

The dispute centres on the welfare of members, with the association noting that it had previously written several letters to the governor requesting the payment of outstanding allowances but received no favourable response. The lawyers expressed disappointment over what they described as the government’s indifference despite the critical responsibilities they perform in the administration of justice across the state. “Our members confront criminals in court on a daily basis, generate revenue through the vetting of contract agreements, draft bills, prosecute tax defaulters to recover government revenue, and handle cases involving gender-based violence,” the association stated. The lawyers added that they also provide legal advice to ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs), offer legal services to indigent citizens, and mediate in civil disputes, among other responsibilities. The association maintained that its members play critical roles in the administration of justice, including prosecuting criminal cases, providing legal advice to government agencies, drafting legislation and recovering public revenue through the prosecution of tax defaulters.

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Among the demands listed by the association are the payment of the outstanding 50 per cent balance of the 2020 furniture allowance, payment of the 2024 outstanding furniture allowance, settlement of robe allowances for 2024, 2025 and 2026, and the implementation of the harmonisation of salaries and allowances. The lawyers also urged the government to harmonise the conditions of service for State Counsel with those of Magistrates in the Kwara State Judiciary in line with the 1999 and 2005 harmonisation approvals.

The association recalled that its members embarked on a three-day warning strike from October 27 to October 29, 2025, but later suspended the action following the intervention of the Office of the Head of Service and labour unions, which assured them that their demands would be addressed by the appropriate authorities. According to the association, those assurances have not translated into action, with nothing done since 2025 despite several follow-up letters requesting the government to revisit the issues. “It is against this backdrop that we are constrained to give this seven-day notice of an indefinite strike, commencing from July 20 and lapsing on July 26, 2026, to press home our demands and secure the attention of the state government,” the letter read.

The industrial action has disrupted court proceedings and legal operations across the state, with several ministries and departments affected. The strike comes amid broader agitation within the judiciary in Kwara State, with magistrates having earlier in June 2026 threatened an indefinite strike over poor salaries, unpaid allowances and discriminatory welfare treatment. The Magistrates Association of Nigeria (MAN), Kwara State Chapter, had announced plans to embark on an indefinite strike beginning July 2, 2026, over poor remuneration, unpaid allowances and discriminatory welfare treatment among magistrates in the state. The magistrates lamented that a Grade Level 14 Magistrate currently earns less than a Grade Level 14 Court Registrar, describing the situation as unjust and demoralising for judicial officers. They also decried the non-payment of furniture allowance, which is expected to accrue every four years, noting that the allowance was last paid during the administration of former Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed.

Magistrates in the state have also revealed the humiliation, deprivation and neglect they suffer, alleging that most of them earn less than N200,000 monthly and have been forced to rely on commercial motorcycles (Okada) as their primary means of transportation to court. The judicial officers lamented that judges of the superior courts, as well as top judicial administrators such as the Chief Registrar and Deputy Chief Registrar, have benefited from welfare improvements and vehicle allocations, while magistrates and Area Court judges continue to struggle. These recurring welfare disputes among judicial officers and law officers in Kwara State highlight the need for the state government to address the systemic challenges affecting the justice sector, including salary harmonisation and the prompt payment of statutory allowances.

Lawyers Begin Indefinite Strike Over Unpaid Allowances, Salary Harmonisation

Reps Uncover 29 Forged Documents in Fake Agency Probe, Order IGP to Produce Suspect Adeyemi

The House of Representatives has uncovered a massive web of alleged forgery involving 29 government documents as it investigates the phantom Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC). The House Committee investigating the PFIPC has ordered the Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, to produce the self-acclaimed Director-General of the organisation, Adeyemi Adeniyi, before lawmakers by 12 noon on Wednesday. The directive was issued on Monday during a resumed investigative hearing at the National Assembly Complex in Abuja, with Assistant Commissioner of Police Bashir Abdullahi, representing the IGP, instructed to ensure Adeniyi’s appearance.

Providing an update on the criminal aspect of the case, ACP Abdullahi informed lawmakers that the Nigeria Police Force had already filed an eight-count charge against Adeniyi before the Federal High Court, confirming that the suspect had been arrested and arraigned following petitions from the Office of the Chief of Staff to the President. He stated that the case is ongoing but cautioned against demands for disclosures that could prejudice the ongoing criminal investigation and court proceedings, urging the committee to avoid public statements that might influence judicial outcomes.

In a startling revelation during the hearing, Committee Chairman Yusuf Gagdi disclosed that investigators had identified about 29 allegedly forged documents linked to the operations of the non-existent agency, which include purported approvals from the State House, the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, the Federal Ministry of Finance, and several other government institutions. Gagdi noted that representatives from many of the affected agencies had already appeared before the committee and formally disowned the documents attributed to their offices, adding that the committee is also dealing with what is said to be a forged Act of the National Assembly in an attempt to establish a fake agency.

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One of the most dramatic moments of the hearing came when the committee examined signatures on documents allegedly issued from the Office of the Chief of Staff to the President, and when lawmakers asked whether the signatures matched authentic official correspondence already verified by investigators, the police witness responded unequivocally that they are not the same. The committee said the discrepancy reinforced concerns that official State House documents may have been forged, lending credence to suspicions that a coordinated scheme was executed to give the phantom council an air of legitimacy.

The committee is investigating how the PFIPC—which the Federal Government insists has no legal backing—allegedly secured office accommodation in Phase III of the Federal Secretariat Complex in Abuja and received a budgetary allocation of ₦1.32 billion in the 2026 Appropriation Act. The police investigation was triggered by a petition dated October 17, 2025, from the Office of the Chief of Staff to the President, alleging that Adeniyi fraudulently presented himself as the Director-General of both the Presidential Economic Advisory Council and the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council. According to police, the petition alleged Adeniyi used the purported office to secure accommodation within the Federal Secretariat, seek approval to recruit about 300 personnel, attempt to secure a $1.3 billion allocation in the 2026 budget, and plan to organise a World Investment Summit under the platform of the purported council.

Explaining the urgency behind the summons, Gagdi said Adeniyi’s appearance had become imperative given the gravity of the allegations and the integrity of institutions involved, stressing that people’s names, people’s integrity, institutional names, and institutional integrity are all at stake. He maintained that it is not an option for Adeniyi to stay away, as the committee needs him to confirm certain documents in a way that will not undermine the investigation and will enable the timely submission of its report. The committee subsequently directed its clerk to formally communicate its resolution to the Inspector-General of Police. Gagdi assured that the House investigation would continue independently, and its final report could recommend further action by relevant security agencies.

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