News
SAD! Gov’s wife unhappy as man plucks out wife’s eyes for rituals
By Mario Deepromoter
The First Lady of Abia State, Mrs Priscilla Otti, has said she is deeply saddened by the case of a man who, early Sunday morning, in Umuahia, gouged out his wife’s eyes allegedly for ritual purposes.
It was learnt that the man, Lawrence Uzor, an aluminium worker from Umuchieze in Bende Local Government Area but living at Adiele Estate in Umueze Ibeku in Umuahia North had, at about 1 am, used a knife to remove her wife’s eyes as she was asleep.
According to the couple’s landlady, Madam Lovejane Nwaiwu, who was also admitted at the Federal Medical Centre, Umuahia, whose husband is working and living elsewhere and who was also inflicted with injuries at the hand and mouth by the man, told our correspondent that, “About 10 pm on Saturday, I heard the man shouting ‘Odogwu, Odogwu (mighty, mighty)’. I was worried as I had not heard the man and his wife, Amarachi Lawrence, praying like that.
“I started praying for them. After that, I couldn’t sleep until about 12 am and was restless. At about 1 am, the wife, who is a teacher with one of the foremost private schools in Umuahia and aged 38 years, started shouting, ‘Mummy, I have been killed’. I opened my door, came out, peeped through their bedroom window and saw the man pressed down on the wife with a knife in his hands.
“I started pushing on people’s gates and calling out to the Umueze people, but nobody came out or responded. After all attempts to call neighbours to come and nobody answered me, I went to their parlour door and started knocking. Suddenly, he opened the door while holding the knife and tried giving me cuts on the head but I defended my head with my hand. He cut me on the hand and further slashed the knife at my face which incidentally cut me at the mouth. Some of my upper teeth came out.
“I ran into my house and locked the door, while he ran outside, locked our gate and went to a neighbour’s house to tell them that he had killed his wife and his landlord’s wife. While inside my room, I called my mother and my daughter, who then called a church neighbour and the community vigilance team who rushed to the neighbour’s house and apprehended him.”
Speaking at the Federal Medical Centre, where the victims are being treated, Mrs Otti said she was deeply saddened by the case just a few days after signing the compact agreement with the UNFPA on gender-based violence, stating, “This is a terrible case of violence, attempted murder and violence”, adding that she would take immediate action to ensure Mrs Lawrence was well and protected.
Mrs Otti further assured the state that she would ensure further GBV response front desk and team took proper actions and commended the Umueze Ibeku community over their response and support to the issue. The Abia First Lady also donated cash for the treatment and upkeep of the victims.
Earlier in his response, the Medical Director of the FMC, Umuahia, Prof. Azubuike Onyebuchi, who was represented by the Director, Medical Services, Mrs Aisha Onyemaobi, explained to Mrs Otti that reports indicated that the main victim, Mrs. Lawrence, (38 years old) was deeply asleep when the husband woke her up and started cutting her, adding, “There was an attempt to gouge out her eyes and she had genital mutilation”, while the suspect is in custody.
Onyemaobi further disclosed that good progress in her recovery was expected.
The victim’s sister, Ijeoma Okpokiri and her cousin, Chioma Okpokiri, both from Emede Ibeku, pleaded with the Inspector General of Police and the government at all levels, particularly the Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, to look into the matter and to also help their sister to recover.
The Sole Administrator of Rivers State, Retired Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas has revealed that there is relative stability in the State, but that the State is still fragile.
The Sole Administrator revealed this in Abuja on Friday when appeared before the House of Representatives Ad hoc Committee on Rivers State.
The Committee had invited the Sole Administrator for a proper briefing on developments in Rivers State, following the suspension of the State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara by President Bola Tinubu.
Speaking when he appeared before the ad-hoc committee, Ibas requested for more time to properly brief the committee on developments in the State.
Ibas, apologisesd for his inability to attend earlier engagements, explained that the absence was not out of disregard, but rather due to the weighty and urgent demands of stabilising governance in Rivers.
“I have always held the National Assembly in the highest regard. I recognise the importance of your oversight responsibilities and your interest in the progress being made in Rivers, which is presently relatively calm, but still fragile,” Ibas said.
He went further to say: “That said, I only request your understanding and the indulgence of this committee to grant me additional time to adequately prepare and present a comprehensive and constructive briefing.
“Given the complexities and sensitivities surrounding the current transitional period in Rivers. It is important that any engagement with this committee is done with the depth, accuracy and clarity it rightfully deserves.
“I remain fully committed to cooperating with the committee and to ensuring that all relevant information is made available in due course to support your important work.
“I only request the understanding and the indulgence of this committee to grant me additional time to adequately prepare and present a comprehensive and constructive briefing given the complexities and sensitivities surrounding the current transitional period in Rivers.
“It is important that any engagement with this committee is done with the depth, accuracy and clarity it rightfully deserves.
“I remain fully committed to cooperating with the committee and to ensuring that all relevant information is made available in due course to support your important work,” he said.
Meanwhile, addressing newsmen after a close door meeting, the Chairman of the Committee, Rep. Julius Ihonvbere (APC-Edo) said that the committee resolved to give a new date to the sole administrator.
Ihonvbere, underscored the constitutional role of the National Assembly in legitimising and overseeing the state of emergency declared in Rivers.
According to the chairman, the federal legislature remains central to the state’s transitional process.
Ihonvbere reaffirmed the committee’s constitutional mandate and expressed satisfaction that the administrator had finally honored the invitation after earlier delays.
He emphasised that the committee’s mandate was rooted in constitutional authority and that some of its terms had already been communicated to the administrator in an earlier letter.
The chairman encouraged the administrator to feel at ease, stressing that the committee members had been carefully selected to ensure broad representation across geopolitical zones and legislative experience.
“I want you to feel relaxed because the members you see here were carefully selected based on zonal representation and membership of the House to advance the progress that Rivers needs to make in order to be part and parcel of the holistic structure of democracy that Nigeria represents today.
“We have demonstrated again and again our preparedness to do this job efficiently and effectively,” he assured.
The Kogi State Utility Infrastructure Management and Compliance Agency, (KUIMCA) has explained the reasons behind the disruption in the service mobile Telecom giant, MTN in the state, pointing out that MTN owing to non compliance.
The Telecom service has been experiencing a service distruption in the last two weeks and witnessed total shut down in the last one week.
The Director General of KUIMCA Director General, Dr Taofeeq Isah while speaking with journalists on Friday in Lokoja attributed the shut down to the failure of the Telecom company to comply fully with rules of operation as stipulated in the official gazette guiding their operation in the state.
“In my assumption of office last August, I went through their files and discovered that they have not fully complied with the rules guiding their operations in the state. I called them for a discussion where they complained of being overbilled concerning the area of the state covered by their optic fibre.
” I went with them for verification exercise to assess their claim which took about 4 days and we found out they were even covering more areas than they claimed.
“We asked they to go and make the necessary payment but MTN refused. That is why we sealed off their facilities after obtaining court order to do so so”.
The Director General called on the citizens of the state to be patient with them since their interest was being protected .
He said that since MTN is not the only network operating in the state, citizens as well as the security agencies to consider switching to other networks considering their importance in securing the lives and property of Citizens which should not be compromised under any circumstance.
Also speaking, the Executive Chairman, Kogi State Internal Revenue Service , Salihu Enehe said that MTN has arrogated to itself so much power that they have been refusing to respond to so many entrities asking for complainces on various termes of operations in the state.
The Chairman who was represented by a Director in the agency Hassana Salawu noted that
MTN has been indulging in violation of various rules not only the optic fibre right of way across the state but also and have violated every rules guiding their operations in the state.
“MTN claimed to have 48 optic fibres when audit revealed they have 199 fibres laid under the ground in the state. We have called for reconciliation meetings severally but they claimed not to be ready up till now”.
But in a swift reaction, the MTN spokesperson in the State, though will not want his name in print, confirmed that negotiations is on going, assured that the issues will soon be resolved.
By Gloria Ikibah
Eight out of the nine Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) members representing Osun State in the House of Representatives have firmly restated their loyalty to the party and Governor Nurudeen Ademola Adeleke, distancing themselves from recent defection claims.
Their stance follows public comments by Rep. Busayo Oluwole Oke, who recently exited the PDP and hinted that other members of the Osun caucus were poised to follow his lead.
In a joint statement released in Abuja on Friday, the lawmakers which include Reps Bamidele Salam, Ajilesoro Abimbola Taofeek, Mudashiru Lukman Alani, Akanni Clement Ademola, Omirin Emmanuel Olusanya, Adewale Moruf Adebayo, Adetunji Abidemi Olusoji, and Oladebo Lanre Omoleye—made it clear they remain committed to the PDP and its leadership in the state.
They described Oke’s exit as unsurprising, pointing to what they called his long-standing pattern of defiance, public criticism of the party, and antagonism towards the Adeleke-led government.
The lawmakers labelled his defection as an act of ingratitude, given the political opportunities the PDP had afforded him over the years, and cautioned him against spreading misleading narratives aimed at courting favour within his new political camp.
-
News12 hours ago2027: Pro-Fubara protesters want suspended Gov to run as Atiku’s VP(Video)
-
Economy20 hours agoMore Nigerians to experience poverty by 2027 – World Bank
-
News15 hours agoOborevwori /Okowa: PDP experiencing a rebirth and will soon bounce back-Saraki declares
-
Politics20 hours agoLabour Party reaffirms Abure-led leadership after Supreme Court judgment
-
News20 hours agoGovernor Oborevwori’s Defection: A Masterstroke That Handcuffs Delta’s Opposition
-
News13 hours agoEdo poll: How APC allegedly offered witnesses N30m bribe
-
News20 hours ago2027 done deal, more governors joining APC – Ganduje declares
-
News13 hours agoFlights resume as NiMET unions suspend strike