Innocent Ojefia Blog

The police in Edo state have arrested a 16-year old houseboy, Zakaria Chiahemba, for allegedly killing his boss, 51-year-old Rejoice Odogwu, and stealing her belongings at her home on number 25, Osazuwa Street, Oluku in Ovia North East Local Government Area of Edo State. Parading the suspect before newsmen, the state commissioner of police, Babatunde Kokumo, said Zakaria used an axe, cutlass and stick to kill his boss and afterwards carted away with her money, phone and jewelry and fled the scene after the incident. The search for him yielded result last Friday, November 23rd when he was apprehended in Taraba state. When paraded before newsmen, Zakaria denied killing his boss, claiming that some customers of the deceased had stormed their home on the day of the incident and attacked her, after saying that their phones were stolen at her shop and that she did nothing to help them recover their stolen items. The police boss said the suspect will be arraigned in court imm...

Kwara State Governor, Abdulfatah Ahmed has stepped down for Senator Rafiu Ibrahim as the candidate for the Peoples Democratic Party for Kwara South senatorial district. According to information gathered by Naija News, the change in candidacy follows the request of the leadership of Ibolo division of Kwara South that the senatorial ticket is retained in the axis. The change in candidacy was confirmed in an appreciation message by Sen. Rafiu Ibrahim on his Facebook page to both the Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki and Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed. The statement further revealed that the decision has nothing to do with the outcome of the recent by-election in Ekiti/Oke Ero/Isin/Irepodun Federal Constituency held on November 17 in which the PDP lost to the APC. The statement, personally signed by Sen. Ibrahim reads: “I wish to express my sincere appreciation to the National Leader of our great party and Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki and Gover...

The Chief of Staff and son-in-law to Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo state, Uche Nwosu has dumped the All Progressives Congress for the Democratic Peoples’ Party, (DPP). According to information gathered by Naija News, Nwosu, some members of the state house of assembly, as well as some of Governor Okorocha’s aides, defected on Tuesday. Their defection is reportedly linked to the fall out of the APC governorship primaries in the state in which Nwosu failed to emerge as the party’s gubernatorial candidate. Recall that as earlier published, Okorocha only recently, declared his support for Buhari and the APC in the 2019 general elections, stating that he remains a member of the party. The governor was however quick to mention that he would work for the victory of Nwosu as the next governor of the state in 2019 even as he pursues his own dream of becoming a senator representing Orlu Senatorial District on the platform of the APC. Okorocha while speaking with newsmen ...

There was a mild drama on Sunday in Owerri, after a beautifully dressed wedding bride was doused with palm oil by her husband-to-be's first wife.  A first wife stormed the venue of the wedding between her husband and his new bride and poured palm oil on her wedding gown, in a mild drama which happened on Sunday, at the Orji area of Owerri, the Imo State capital. An eyewitness identified simply as Lilian who spoke to a correspondent narrated the drama thus: “True life story. A man went to Apostolic Church at Orji in Owerri North to wed his second wife, but the church rejected him. "He went to Altar of prayer Gospel ministry at Nkwo Orji same Owerri North and the pastor accepted to wed them. "On the day of the wedding 25th been on Sunday, the first wife came and poured red oil on the second wife’s wedding gown. I was there life.  "All these ministries, make una take una time. Just because of money, you want to go against the word of God....

Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, has visited the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, to seek his understanding over the choice of Mr. Peter Obi as his running mate. On the entourage of Atiku on Monday were the Director General of the PDP Presidential Campaign Council, who is also the President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki; National Chairman of the party, Uche Secondus; and the National Organising Secretary of the party, Col. Austin Akobundu (rtd). It was learnt that the visit was meant to appease Ekweremadu, who had hoped that he would be the natural choice for the position. It was gathered that the visitors asked for Ekweremadu’s support and explained to him that Obi was picked in the interest of the zone in particular and the nation in general. A source said, “He was told that Obi does not have any corruption case against him and that he does not belong to any faction of the party. “He was also told t...

The first documented census in  Nigeria  was carried out by  Britain in 1866. Following this, others in 1971, 1896, 1901, 1911, 1921 and 1952/53. However, the first census after independence was in 1963. Thereafter, the degree of reliability of the figures has been on a spiral descent and decline. The official  Nigeria  position is that Lagos   State  with a population of 9,013, 534 is second to  Kano  with the first position of 9,401, 288 ( Nigerian Finder ). However, the Lagos  State  government puts the census of the State at 22 million while the United Nations puts it at 14 million. Meanwhile , Lagos State is one of the two globally recognized megacities in Africa. These are cities with a population of at least 10 million people. The other is Cairo, the Egyptian capital. The question is what is the accurate population of  Lagos State ? What of  Nigeria ? Th...

President Muhammadu Buhari, on Monday, has thrown Oshiomhole under the bus and showing he is tired of how he is running the party by declaring his support for aggrieved members of the All Progressives Congress who opted to sue the party over their grievances against the party. The President said the courts remained the last option for the amicable resolution of disputes, hence he insisted that the party must allow aggrieved members to fully explore their democratic and legal rights. The APC has been battling post-primary election crises amid fears that the development may adversely affect its chances at the 2019 polls. The crises have led to court cases instituted by aggrieved members against the party. Reacting to the court cases, the National Working Committee of the APC, led by the party’s National Chairman, Mr. Adams Oshiomhole, issued strong warnings to members that dragged the party to court, asking them to withdraw their cases or face sanctions. But Buhari...

It is necessary to look at how best to return sanity to human relationships, especially the relationships between men and women. I think that, in the long run, things will work themselves out for the good but in the short run we have chaos in lieu of relationships. The idea of women liberation started in earnest in the United States. During the first part of the twentieth century, African Americans struggled for racial equality. By the 1960s the US Congress had passed the landmark Civil Rights Act (1964) and Fair Housing Act (1965) that abolished discrimination in renting to black folks. It is now the laws to treat black folks as white folks are treated.  De Jure discrimination ended but, of course, De-facto discrimination continued, for example, Donald Trump refused to rent his apartments to black folks and was sued in 1972. Traditionally, white men worked like slaves for their women; they placed their women on a pedestal; they exalted their women like they are fragile...

If all politics is local, there must be an exception in Nigeria. Here, all politics is selfish, especially southern Nigeria politics. If President Muhammadu Buhari wins another four year term, it wouldn’t be because of any stellar performances; it would be because of southern Nigeria politicians. Buhari has always won largely in the North East and North West until the 2015 momentum thrust victory into his hands largely because he teamed up with Tinubu the strong man of the South West. Just a few months ago the Senate President Saraki confirmed my earlier suspicion that Tinubu’s aggressive support for Buhari for 2019 after a lull in their relationship was essentially because he hoped for Buhari to hand over to him in 2023. Tinubu is quoted by Saraki as saying that he would support Mr. President for 2019 even if he Buhari was on a stretcher because it was the surest way to guaranteeing his own 2023 ambition of being president. In other words e...