News

Abia Lawmaker Ikwechegh threatened to pay N50m to people to kill me – Bolt driver narrates ordeal

The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command confirmed the arrest of an Abia State lawmaker, Alex Mascot Ikwechegh, for allegedly assaulting a Bolt driver. The police statement, issued by spokesperson Josephine Adeh, reveals that Ikwechegh is currently under interrogation at Maitama Police Station.

The altercation reportedly began when Bolt driver Stephen Abuwatseya, was delivering a package to Ikwechegh. According to the police, “Preliminary investigations indicate that Mr. Abuwatseya was delivering a package to Hon. Ikwechegh when a dispute arose concerning the method of delivery. During this altercation, Mr. Abuwatseya was reportedly physically assaulted.”

Further highlighting the lawmaker’s dismissive attitude, police cited a troubling statement attributed to Ikwechegh. After allegedly slapping Abuwatseya, Ikwechegh reportedly remarked, “You can go ahead and call the Inspector General of Police.”

This comment, perceived as undermining the authority of law enforcement, has intensified public outcry. Olatunji Disu, Commissioner of Police in the FCT, mandated a comprehensive investigation to ensure accountability.

“The Command is committed to conducting an impartial investigation and ensuring justice in all cases. Upon completion of the investigation, appropriate legal action will be taken,” the statement assured.

The incident mirrors a recent assault case involving British Labour MP Mike Amesbury, who was suspended after being recorded allegedly assaulting a man. The similarity has drawn attention to growing concerns over officials’ conduct both locally and abroad.

In a conversation with social media personality Martins Otse, known as VeryDarkMan, Abuwatseye revealed that Ikwechegh threatened to pay fifty million Naira to individuals to kill him.

He explained that this threat prompted him to record the incident. Abuwatseye also mentioned that he is unwell, noting that the lawmaker hit him several times on the chest.

Parts of his statement:

“You Common Bolt Driver. You Are a Poor Man. You Have Pride in Your Poverty. Do You Know Who I Am?”, Alexander Ikwechegh told me.

Victim’s Account:

“I said, ‘So the problem you have now is that a poor man should not speak. I am a Nigerian and should not be treated as a foreigner in this country. I am from Delta State, and I cannot have you treat me like a foreigner in my own country.

“The honorable member was not detained when he came to the station. He was calling me names. I was mute and sat at an edge. My car is still at the station.

“I brought snails for him. When I got to his estate gate, I called him and told him I was at the gate. He asked me to give the phone to the security personnel, who later directed me to his house. When I arrived at his house, I saw a man seated close to where I parked my car.

When I got out, I greeted him twice, but he didn’t respond. So I thought he wasn’t the one. The next thing I did was call the number on my phone, and his phone rang.

“What I heard was, ‘Are you stupid? Are you mad? Are you a fool? Bring my stuff for me!’ I was not happy with the way he spoke to me because I was just doing my professional job. So I told him, ‘Oga, this thing you are saying to me—we have not gotten to this. Normally, I am not even supposed to bring this to you. You are supposed to come and pick it up yourself.’ That was the only thing that got him angry.

“So he replied, ‘You are asking me to come to your car to pick my stuff? Are you okay? Do you know whom you are talking to?’ He hit me on my chest several times. I am not feeling well. He hit me on my chest repeatedly while I just looked at him. But when he became more of a threat to me, I had to record him because I didn’t go there with the intention of fighting him. If I had gone there with a different motive, I would have recorded him from the beginning.

“I started recording him when he became a threat and said he would pay fifty million naira, and they would ‘delete’ me. He was calling me all sorts of names. He claimed he would pay 50 million naira to people, and they would kill me, and nobody would say anything. When I noticed that this situation was escalating beyond what I ever expected, I quickly took out my phone and started recording.”

News

Man City And Spain Star Rodri Wins 2024 Ballon d’Or: View Full List Of Winners

The 2024 Ballon d’Or ceremony in Paris highlighted a memorable night for Spain, with Rodri and Aitana Bonmatí crowned as the best male and female footballers in the world.

Rodri’s stellar performances for both club and country secured him the men’s Ballon d’Or, while Bonmatí retained the Ballon d’Or Féminin after leading Barcelona to an unprecedented quadruple and guiding Spain to further international success.

Barcelona’s 16-year-old sensation, Lamine Yamal, claimed the Kopa Trophy, awarded to the world’s top Under-21 player.

His remarkable season, punctuated by breakthrough performances for both club and Spain, positioned him as the standout choice for the award.

Carlo Ancelotti, who chose not to attend the ceremony with his Real Madrid squad, was honored as Men’s Coach of the Year.

Ancelotti’s exceptional leadership led Real Madrid to a UEFA Champions League and La Liga double, reinforcing his status as one of the top coaches globally.

Adding to Barcelona’s triumphs, they were named Women’s Club of the Year after a dominant 2023/24 season in which they secured the Liga F, UEFA Women’s Champions League, Copa de la Reina, and Spanish Supercopa.

Here is the full list of winners:

Ballon d’Or: Rodri
Ballon d’Or Feminin: Aitana Bonmati
Kopa Trophy: Lamine Yamal
Men’s Coach of the Year: Carlo Ancelotti
Women’s Coach of the Year: Emma Hayes
Yashin Trophy: Emiliano Martinez
Men’s Club of the Year: Real Madrid
Women’s Club of the Year: Barcelona
Gerd Muller Trophy: Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappe

Business

NBS Releases New Food Inflation Figures, Price of beans rises 272%, eggs 122% in a year

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), says prices of beans, eggs, bread, rice, yam, and other food items witnessed significant price increases in August 2024.

The NBS said this in its Selected Food Prices Watch report for August 2024 released in Abuja on Wednesday.

The report said that the average price of 1kg of brown beans increased by 271.55 percent from N692.95 recorded in August 2023 to N2,574.63 in August 2024.

“On a month-on-month basis, 1kg of brown beans increased by 5.31 percent in August from the N2,444.81 recorded in July 2024.”

It said that the average price of medium-sized Agric eggs (12 pieces) increased by 121.92 percent yearly from N1,031.55 recorded in August 2023 to N2,289.19 in August 2024.

“On a month-on-month basis, the eggs increased by 5.48 percent from the N2,170.17 recorded in July 2024.”

The report said that the average price of sliced bread increased by 113.16 percent on a year-on-year basis from N684.85 in August 2023 to N1,459.85 in August 2024.

“On a month-on-month basis, the price increased by 2.28 percent from the N1,427.25 recorded in July 2024.”

In addition, the average price of 1kg of local rice rose by 148.41 percent on a year-on-year basis from N737.11 recorded in August 2023 to N1,831.05 in August 2024
“On a month-on-month basis, it increased by 3.65 percent from N1,766.64 recorded in July 2024.”

Also, the report said that the average price of 1kg of a tuber of yam increased by 188.31 per cent on a year-on-year basis from N576.39 in August 2023 to N1,661.80 in August 2024.

“However, on a month-on-month basis, the price decreased by -7.82 percent from the N1,802.84 recorded in July 2024.”

The NBS said the average price of 1kg of tomato also increased on a year-on-year basis by 171.72 per cent from N554.37 recorded in August 2023 to N1,506.35 in August 2024.

“However, on a month-on-month basis, the average price of 1kg of tomato declined by 11.07 per cent from N1,693.83 in July 2024 to N1,506.35 in August.”

The report analyzed state profiles and showed that in August 2024, the highest average price of 1kg of brown beans was recorded in Akwa Ibom at N3,276.79, while the lowest was recorded in Adamawa at N1,710.92.

It said that Niger recorded the highest average price of medium size Agric eggs (12 pieces) at N2,996.92, while the lowest was in Jigawa at N1,786.01.

The NBS said that the highest average price of sliced bread was recorded in Rivers at N1,850, while the lowest price was recorded in Yobe at N908.81.

According to the report, Kogi recorded the highest average price of 1kg local rice (sold loose) at N2,680.29, while Benue reported the lowest at N1,206.84.

The report said the highest price of 1kg of tomato was recorded in Abuja at N2,2206.31, while the lowest price was recorded in Kaduna at N734.94.

Analysis by zone showed that the average price of 1kg of brown beans was highest in the South-south at N3,165.11, followed by the North-central at N2,900.86.

“The lowest price was recorded in the North-West at N1,982.78.”

The North-central and South-east recorded the highest average prices of medium-size agric eggs (12 pieces), at N2,789.15 and N2,438.06, respectively, while the lowest price was in the North-West, at N1,963.65.

The report said that the South-South recorded the highest average price of sliced bread at N1,785.56, followed by the South-east at N1,635.73, while the North-east recorded the lowest price at N1,163.78.

The NBS also said that the South-west and the South-south recorded the highest average price of 1kg of local rice (sold loose) at N1,960.87 and N1,886.32 respectively.

“The North-west recorded the lowest price of 1kg of local rice (sold loose) at N1,591.21.”

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that in July, the federal government granted a 150-day duty-free import window for some food commodities in a bid to address the incessant increase in food prices and ensure food security.

The suspended duty tariffs and taxes will apply to the importation of certain food items across land and sea borders, including maize, cowpeas, wheat, and husked brown rice.

However, experts have suggested more sustainable measures such as addressing the issue of insecurity, foreign exchange, and transportation costs to address the soaring food prices and ensure food security.

Entertainment

Fathia Williams receives Backlash for new movie ‘Efunroye: The Unicorn’

Nollywood filmmaker, Faithia Williams Balogun has addressed the controversy around her new movie, Efunroye: The Unicorn.

The actress took to X on Wednesday, October 23, 2024, to announce the release of her movie, Efuronye: The Unicorn. Captioned, “Power, Trade, Legacy,” the official film poster that she released caught the attention of netizens.

Journalist David Hundeyin, tweeting, criticized the movie, alleging that Tinubu was an “ultimate slave trader.”

His tweet, among others, read, “A deliberate decision was made to fund a Nigerian movie lionizing not just ‘a’ slave trader but the ultimate slave trader, as in the Efunroye Tinubu herself. The one who decided she would rather sink a ship loaded with a cargo of kidnapped African human beings than reduce their asking price to the European buyers. That Efunroye Tinubu. This would be like getting Tyler Perry and Spike Lee to produce and direct a movie titled ‘Robert E. Lee: The Unicorn.’”

Also, the 2023 Labour Party’s governorship candidate in Lagos State, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, wrote, “The Yoruba were the biggest victims of Madam Tinubu’s kidnapping, human trafficking and enslavement network. In the British attempt to end human trafficking and her ruthless opposition to it, she was exiled from Lagos. When Nigerians do DNA test like 23 and me, etc., they will see the number of unknown relatives they have scattered all across the Americas and the West Indies. They will realize how close and how deep this chapter of our history is. Unfortunately, Nigerians are still dealing with a ruthless elite that amass their fortune at the detriment of their people.”

Amid the backlash on the yet-to-be-released biopic movie, the actress clarified that there was no political intention behind the movie production. She was more than a warrior, she was a ruler who rewrote history. ‘Efunroye: The Unicorn’ is coming to your screens soon! Are you ready?” the post said.

The post sparked a lot of controversy especially because the movie is about Efunroye Osuntinubu, born in 1805, a Yoruba aristocrat, merchant, and slave trader in pre-colonial and colonial Nigeria.

She is said to have used her connections to establish a successful trade network with European merchants in slaves, tobacco, salt, cotton, palm oil, coconut oil, and firearms and allegedly owned well over 360 personal slaves.

As a wealthy woman, Madam Tinubu was able to influence economic and political decisions during her time. She had a massive security force composed of slaves, and she sometimes executed orders usually given by political leaders during the colonial era.

Fathia Williams, however, took to her social media to address the controversy around the film

“Firstly, “Efunroye: The Unicorn” is not a promotional piece intended to glorify or whitewash a divisive historical figure like Madam Efunroye Tinubu. Nor does it carry any political intent or affiliation. This film is purely a work of artistic interpretation and storytelling. As a filmmaker, my goal is to bring Nigerian stories to life on screen, and this is no exception. The movie attempts to present Madam Tinubu’s life in a balanced and nuanced way, showcasing her triumphs, challenges, and the complex legacy she left behind. It is not an effort to reshape or glorify the historical narrative. “Like all historical figures, Madam Tinubu’s story is layered, and this film aims to capture both her strengths and controversies,” the post said.

She also stressed that the movie is inspired by true events and added that it is important to explore our history.

“As with any artistic work, it draws from history but takes creative liberties to make the story more engaging for modern audiences. I believe that through this film, we can explore important parts of our history, but it is important to understand that it remains a work of fiction inspired by real events,” she concluded