Nigeria’s President, Muhammadu Buhari on Monday met with the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu over the Abule Ado explosion in Lagos.
The bodies of 20 people have been recovered while over 100 houses have been destroyed.

Sanwo-Olu was pictured showing Buhari images of the devastation occasioned by the explosion in Lagos at the State House, Abuja.

Death toll in Sunday’s explosion at Abule Ado area of Lagos, Southwest Nigeria has reached 20, with three dead bodies evacuated on Monday.

The Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, LASEMA, had said on Sunday that it had recovered 17 dead bodies from the Abule Ado explosion.

Three more corpses were recovered on Monday by emergency responders combing the buildings affected by the explosion that rocked Abule-Ado in the Amuwo-Odofin Local Government Area of Lagos State.

The corpses were recovered from the rubble of some of the collapsed buildings at the Bethlehem Girls College in Abule-Ado.

Officials of the school confirmed the identity of the corpses to be workers of Bethlehem Girls College, the PUNCH reports.

The corpses consist of two females and one male, The PUNCH reports.

The state Chairman, Nigerian Red Cross, Adebola Kolawole, while speaking at the scene of the incident, said, three corpses had been recovered.

Francisco Garcia, a 21-year-old youth football coach in Malaga, Spain , has died few days after catching coronavirus.

News reports described him as the youngest victim to die in the entire world.

Francisco was diagnosed with Covid-19 on Friday, along with the devastating news that he had leukaemia.

“Mr Garcia had no idea he had an aggressive form of cancer, which made him extremely vulnerable to coronavirus, when he went to a hospital with breathing problems last Friday”, The Mirror reported.

The president of the Atletico Portada Alta football club said he was told that Mr Garcia was stable, but an hour later was informed that he had died.

Spain is battling with 9,191 cases of coronavirus, with 1349 reported in the last 24 hours. The death toll is now 309, with Garcia now among the statistics.

Worldwide, 173, 177 coronavirus cases have been recorded, with 6680 people dead and 77,811 recovered.

Officers of the Ogun State Police Command have arrested three suspected fake soldiers at Agbado area of the state.

A statement issued by the Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, DSP Oyeyemi Ajimbola narrated how the three men were arrested in military camouflage in Agbado area of the state while the DPO of Agbado Division, SP Kuranga Yero was on routine patrol of his area with his patrol team.

The suspects: Jacob Onebi, 36, Olabode Oluwaseun, 35, and Olanrewaju Adebayo, 33, have been on close watch of the police following series of report from members of the public about their illegal activities in the area.

“On sighting them on that fateful day, the DPO and his men accosted them and demanded for their proper identity.

“The suspects claimed initially to be officers of 174 Battalion, Ikorodu, but on further investigation, two among them confessed to have been dismissed from the Nigerian army long time ago while the third happened to be their friend who was co-opted into their nefarious activities,” the statement said.

Meanwhile, the Commissioner of Police, CP Kenneth Ebrimson has ordered the immediate transfer of the suspects to State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department for further investigation and prosecution.

Results of the 312,000 candidates that sat for Saturday’s 2020 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) nationwide have been released, says Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB).

The Board’s Head, Media and Information, Dr Fabian Benjamin, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Lagos.

Benjamin urged all concerned candidates to check their profiles for the results.

According to him, the board is optimistic that the entire exercise will be hitch-free, as it has worked assiduously to ensure that this year’s examination process will be one of the best ever conducted in recent times.

“I want to say that the Board is happy with the conduct of the examination on its first day, Saturday, March 14.

“This is not to say that we did not register one or two technical hitches.

“There is no way anyone can embark on such massive exercise without a few hitches.

“However, the good thing is that, as soon as our attention is drawn to such hitches, we tackle them immediately.

“So, the Board is fully on ground to take on these hitches as they come, but in all, I must tell you, that we are happy with the conduct of the examination so far,’’ he said.

Benjamin assured that the Board would continue to ensure quality service delivery in a bid to give every deserving candidate an opportunity to excel.

NAN reports that, in continuation of the exercise, a total of 469, 670 candidates on Monday sat for the examination in various centres across the country.

The JAMB Head of Media and Information said by Tuesday, March 17, such candidates’ results would also be ready.

The Court of Appeal played the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Adams Oshiomhole, like football today, 24 hours to the NEC meeting called by rebels bent on cementing his ouster as chairman.

Oshiomhole, with his lawyers was disappointed when the appeal court failed to call the case.

Although he has a conflicting, concurrent court order from Kano High Court, Oshiomhole filed the appeal against the ruling by a Federal High Court in Abuja, which asked him to step aside as chairman.

The Appeal court last week sent notices of hearing to parties in the appeal. But, when parties got to court today, a panel of three justices led by Justice Stephen Adah sat to hear other cases.

The panel later rose, with a promise that another panel will be reconstituted to hear Oshiomole’s appeal, reported The Nation

Parties were however, taken aback when, rather than having a new panel, a female official of the court announced to a packed courtroom that the court has elected to hear Oshiomole’s appeal on a later date to be communicated to parties later.

Oshiomhole and his supporters, who have been in court since a little over 8 am, are currently meeting with their team of lawyers on what next steps to take.

As he left the court, Oshiomhole told journalists that he would await the court’s decision in the case.

Oshiomhole’s appeal is against an earlier judgment of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) which among others, restrained him acting as the National Chairman of the APC.

Meanwhile, Abiola Ajimobi, Waziri Bulama and Paul Chukwuma, new officials of the National Working Committee were armed with a Federal High Court order on 12 March barring the APC from convening a NEC meeting without them. Ajimobi is the new as acting Deputy National Chairman, Waziri Bulama, acting National Secretary and Paul Chukuma, acting National Auditor.

Source: PM News

Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Monday announced the setting up of N2 billion relief fund for victims of Sunday’s explosion at Abule Ado area of Lagos, Southwest Nigeria.

Massive explosion rocked Abule Ado area on Sunday, with 17 people reportedly dead and over 70 houses destroyed.

Sanwo-Olu, who visited the scene of the tragedy on Monday morning, said the state government would be committing N250 million to the fund while corporate organisations and spirited individuals were expected to support with donations for the victims of the explosion.

He appealed to well meaning Nigerians and organisations to contribute to the fund.

“I have set up Abule Ado Emergency Relief Fund; it is a N2 billion relief fund and the state government will immediately put in N250 million to that fund and overnight, I have gotten three banks to open account for that fund and what that are we trying to achieve?

“This is beyond what the state government can achieve on its own. This is beyond what a government, nation or state level can undertake on its own, I am aware that some of my fellow governors have called, and have also received phone calls from the private sector, so what this fund will do is to give everybody the opportunity to be part of it and to be able to donate into it.

“Of course, the utilisation of this fund, which will also be headed by the deputy governor will also be part of the responsibility the committee will be saddled with. Just to know we are serious and are committed to it. I have three account numbers already: I have the Polaris Bank, with the account number-4030017510 account name is Abule Ado Emergency Relief Fund,” he said.

Other account numbers are: Zenith Bank, with account number-10171845716 and GTB, with account number-0568615688.

Sanwo-Olu also inaugurated a fact-finding committee to investigate the cause of the incident, saying that the committee was expected to submit its report in two weeks time.

He governor told the residents that his administration was working with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation and the National Emergency Management Agency [NEMA] to make life easier for the victims.

According to him, “we are working with NEMA, NNPC and other agencies to make life easier to everyone affected in the tragic incident at Abule Ado, which claimed lives and caused extensive property damage. I offer my condolences to everyone affected.

The Enugu State Ministry of Health has disclosed that the suspected patient of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) in the state tested negative to the investigation.

A statement signed by the Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Dr Ifeanyi Agujiobi in Enugu said the ministry received the result of the investigation sent to Irua Specialist Hospital in Edo which was further corroborated by Nigerian Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) as `NEGATIVE’.

“We hereby enjoin the general public to go about their normal business, however, to remain alert and vigilant observing basic personal health hygiene,” Agujiobi said.

The suspected patient, a 70-year-old woman, had a recent history of having traveled to the United Kingdom where she spent five months and had just returned to the country.

She was very stable in the isolation centre at the Enugu State University of Science and Technology Teaching Hospital (ESUTH), Parklane and receiving the best available medical treatment.

Following the development, the state government has released N20 million to the management of the State Isolation Centre to ensure that facilities are optimally ready to deal with the situation and any other emergency that may arise over the weekend.

The Commissioner for Information, Mr Chidi Aroh, made the disclosure in a statement issued in Enugu on Sunday.

According to him, Gov Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi has provided the required leadership and logistic support to ensure that the State Ministry of Health and the Emergency Operation Centre are functioning at an optimal level and fully ready to deal with any emergency in the state.

https://t.co/WSEjRpBHto https://t.co/VY2efIfTQf

— NCDC (@NCDCgov) March 16, 2020

He assured the public that all the relevant agencies and institutions in the state were fully activated and very ready to respond to any issue arising from the Coronavirus or any other health emergency.

The state government maintained that “there is absolutely no reason to panic”.

“The good people of Enugu State are further encouraged to ensure the highest level of personal hygiene including the regular washing of their hands and use of sanitizers in public places”, the commissioner said.

Police Command in Enugu State has declared one Ifeanyi Ukwuani wanted over his alleged defilement of a 10-year-old girl in Egede Community, Udi Local Government Area of the state.

The Command’s Public Relations Officer, ASP Daniel Ndukwe, said in a statement on Monday in Enugu that security stakeholders and residents should provide it with credible information that would lead to the arrest of the fleeing suspect.

Ndukwe said that such information should be reported at the nearest police station or by calling the Command on 08032003702, 08075390882 or 08086671202.

“Sequel to a report on the defilement of a 10-year-old girl at Egede Community received at 9th Mile Police Division on March 9, Commissioner of Police, Mr Ahmad Abdurrahman, directed that a full-scale investigation be carried out to arrest and prosecute the suspect.

“The Commissioner further ordered the transfer of the case to the State Criminal Investigation Department (CID) for a discreet investigation that will lead to bringing the fleeing suspect to book.

“So that it will serve as a deterrent to those hell-bent on committing such callous and mindless offences in the state,’’ he said.

The police spokesman noted that preliminary investigation had linked Ukwuani, the son of an old woman whom the victim lives with as a house help at the said Egede Community.

“The investigation further reveals that the said suspect had left his wife and children in Enugu metropolis and gone to his mothers’ house on the said date and place to perpetrate the offence and thereafter, fled to an unknown destination,’’ he added.

The Omupo Descendants Union in Ilorin, Kwara, has stated that the community is not hosting any ritualist.

The community is reacting to social media speculations and online publications that a ritualist inhabits Omupo community known as Idi-Ifa, Arole Compound.

The union made its position known in a letter signed by the union’s National President, Dr Monisoye Olorunsola-Afolabi, and made available on Monday in Ilorin.

The letter, entitled: “Re: Pandemonium in Omupo over three human heads, body parts found with ritualist”, was addressed to the State Governor, Commissioner of Police, Director of State Security and Opera news.

According to the letter, the publication was false, adding that the report has caused untold embarrassment to the Royalty and the entire good people of the town.

“We wish to state without any iota of equivocation that the story is false in its entirety as nothing of what was reported happened in our domain.

“While we are unsure of the motive or objective of a report of such potentially damaging magnitude, we wish to state as follows, for the avoidance of doubt and to demonstrate that such an incident did not happen in our domain,” it said.

Afolabi noted that the publishers attributed their source to Kwara TV.

He explained that when contacted, the station denied any knowledge of such a story, adding that as of March 12, 2020, Kwara TV published a rebuttal on its Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), Kwara Council Platform.

The national president of the union also said the report also wrongly claimed that the Police Public Relations Officer of the Kwara State Command was Mrs. Olaniyi Aweda, which he said is false.

He noted that the authentic Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) of the Kwara State Police Command is DSP Olasunkanmi Ajayi.

According to him, when contacted, the PPRO denied that his command has any knowledge of the purported incidence or any “ongoing” investigation of such, contrary to what was publicised.

“In view of the foregoing, we are compelled to believe that there is a sinister motive” by the publishers and/or their “accomplices to bring the peace-loving and good people of Omupo to ridicule and public odium through the story under reference.

“Consequently, we have demanded a conspicuous rebuttal of the story in its entirety, with a formal apology to the monarch, the Olomu of Omupo Land and his entire subjects by the publishers of the said story,” he said.