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NDLEA arrests Lagos community leader, wives, son over drug trafficking
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has at the weekend nabbed a wanted kingpin, the community leader and Sarkin Yamma of Badagry, Alhaji Bashir Mohammed Talba.
This, the agency said, followed the arrest of the community leader’s two wives: Hauwa and Asma’u and son, Sadat, as well as the seizure of a total of 226.2kg cannabis at their homes in Badagry on September 18.
It also nabbed a wanted drug kingpin Ajiboye Damilare Samuel (a.k.a Na God) after 12 months of evading arrest.
Director, Media and Advocacy NDLEA headquarters Abuja, Femi Babafemi, said Ajiboye was arrested at a bank in Ogun State by the agency’s Directorate of Assets and Financial Investigation, which traced 20 bank accounts to the suspect and blocked them.
Babafemi, in a statement yesterday, said also following his arrest, the suspect’s warehouse in Akala, Mushin, Lagos, was raided by operatives, where a total of 1,101 kilogrammes of Ghana Loud, a strong strain of cannabis was recovered on September 4.
Babafemi said in Katsina, two ex-convicts: Muhammad Machido, 44, and Zakari Ya’u Buhari, 32, were arrested by NDLEA operatives with illicit substances.
He said while Muhammad was nabbed along Kano-Katsina highway, Kankia, last Monday, with 51,000 pills of opioids, Zakari was arrested in Daura with 14 blocks of cannabis weighing 7kg.
He said Zakari was first arrested on February 8, 2024 and sentenced by court to 15 months’ imprisonment with an option of 15,000 fine, which he paid.
Muhammad’s case was earlier arrested with 45kg cannabis sativa and 2.5kg tramadol on December 12, 2022 and sentenced to two years in prison.
According to the statement, the agency also arrested an auto spare parts dealer Ejiofor Nnaemeka Chiwuzie for attempting to export consignments of heroin and loud, a strain of cannabis, concealed in LED rechargeable lamps and sofa metal legs through the export shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja Lagos.
Babafemi said Ejiofor was arrested last Tuesday at the Trade Fair Complex, Ojo, Lagos where he sells auto spare parts , following the seizure of his cargo containing auto parts, rechargeable lamps, sofa metal legs and electronics going to Liberia at the export shed of the Lagos airport.
He said concealed inside the LED lamps and sofa legs were 37 parcels of heroin weighing 1.10 kilograms and four blocks of loud with a total weight of 1.20kg. A follow up led to the arrest of two freight agents and Ejiofor.
The statement reads: “In the same vein, attempts by drug trafficking networks to export consignments of loud, tramadol pills, co-codamol tablets, pentazocine injection, dihydrocodeine and promethazine tabs through some courier companies to the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Thailand and Oman were foiled by NDLEA officers of the Directorate of Operation and General Investigation (DOGI) attached to the logistics firms.
“While 2.3kg of loud hidden in a carton was going to Thailand, 749 grammes of tramadol concealed in soles of local footwears were heading to Oman, with 60 ampoules of pentazocine injection going to the United States.
“No less than 200 pills of co-codamol were meant for Australia while a total of 700 tablets of dihydrocodeine, promethazine and tramadol as well as 20 ampoules of pentazocine injection concealed in soles of footwears were heading to the United Kingdom. Going to Canada were 58 ampoules of pentazocine injection hidden in female clothes. All the seizures in the courier houses were made between September 23 and 24 in Lagos.
“In another operation in Lagos, no less than 9.7kg cannabis sativa and 50 litres of monkey tail, a fermented combo of cannabis and dry gin, were recovered from a suspect Florence Moses at Badore area of Ajah, Lekki on Tuesday 24th September.
“In Kogi, three suspects: Owolabi Dele, 42; Ayodele Monday, 40; and Olawale Ojo, 22, were arrested by NDLEA operatives along Okene-Lokoja-Abuja expressway while conveying 132 sacks of cannabis weighing 2,062.00kg in a Mercedes container truck from Osun state to Dei Dei in Abuja. Another suspect, Benedict Simire, 57, was arrested at Ayetoro Road, Kabba, conveying 33.40kg of the same psychoactive substance and a pump action gun with six cartridges on Wednesday, September 25.
“On the same Wednesday, operatives of the Marine Command of NDLEA intercepted a two 40HP Yamaha engines boat bearing 71 bags of Ghana Loud weighing 2,982kgs along Alfa beach, Lekki area of Lagos. Men of the Nigerian Customs Service Western Marine Command were on hand to support the NDLEA officers to recover the boat and exhibits after the two suspects in the boat dived into the water.
“Also, on September 25, NDLEA operatives at the Port Harcourt Ports complex, Onne, Rivers State intercepted 1,500 cartons of codeine-based cough syrup containing a total of 150,000 bottles during a joint examination of a targeted 40ft container, with men of Nigerian Customs and other security agencies.
“While NDLEA operatives in Niger State recovered 6,000 ampoules of pentazocine injection from Chukwudi Nwanoche, 38, at the former Minna city gate, their counterparts in Kano arrested Aminu Danmanya, 31, with 15,530 capsules of tramadol at Kano Residential Hotel, Katsina Road.
“In Plateau State, operatives on Friday 27th September arrested a female suspect Jummai Luka, 58, behind Jehovah Witness junction, Kabong, Jos North LGA, in possession of 12,000 pills of tramadol while NDLEA officers in Oyo state on Tuesday 24th September nabbed.
Segun Asogba, 50, with 601kg cannabis sativa and a Dane gun at Igangan town.
“While Benjamin Benjamin Ebei, 33, was arrested at Biase LGA Cross River State, with 38kg cannabis recovered from his vehicle, operatives in Edo State on September 24 raided a house along Okpuje road, Uzebba in Owan West LGA where they arrested a suspect Idonuan Ajilo, 53, and seized 112.5kg cannabis from his store.
Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig.-Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd) applauded the commands for their efforts, urging them not rest on their oars.
By Gloria Ikibah
Speaker House of Representatives, Rep. Abbas Tajudeen, has been awarded an honorary doctorate degree in Public Administration by the Al-Hikmah University, Ilorin, Kwara State.
Though the degree was conferred on January 7 during the university’s 14th Convocation Lecture, Speaker Abbas was formally decorated on Thursday in his office by the institution’s founder, Dr Abdulraheem Oladimeji, and the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Noah Yusuf.
Speaker Abbas had earlier delivered the 14th Convocation Lecture on December 30, 2024, titled Beyond Oil: Exploring Alternative Revenue Potentials for Economic Growth and Sustainable Development in Nigeria. His presentation has since attracted widespread commendation from academics and economists globally.
The Al-Hikmah University delegation, led by the Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Prof. Lateef Folorunsho Oladimeji, visited the Speaker’s office to express appreciation and officially present him with his academic regalia.
The Vice-Chancellor noted that Speaker Abbas’ lecture continues to receive international recognition, further cementing his contributions to economic discourse.
By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
Nigeria may not fully utilise the hajj seats allocated it by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for the 2025 hajj pilgrimage due to low turnout as the payment deadline lapses today.
The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) set the payment deadline for January 31, and reports indicate that there will likely be a repeat of last year’s situation where only 51,447 pilgrims paid, despite Nigeria receiving 95,000 slots.
The same number of slots have been allocated for 2025, but officials attribute the low turnout to the high hajj fares and short payment window.
This year’s hajj fare ranges between N8.3m and N8.7m for pilgrims travelling with state welfare boards. Those booking with private tour operators face even higher fares.
The early payment deadline was set by Saudi Arabia’s new policy, which requires all participating countries to finalise agreements four months before the start of the hajj to allow for better logistics planning.
While the payment deadline was extended last year due to low turnout, it remains unclear if that will happen this year.
FCT
In the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), the territory’s Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board said only 700 intending pilgrims had completed payments by the deadline.
The board was allocated 4,148 seats, with 40% (1,659) reserved for the Jaiz Bank hajj scheme. The remaining 60% (2,489) were for general pilgrims, but as of January 30, only 700 had paid.
Muhammad Lawal Aliyu, the board’s spokesman, said while people are still rushing to make payments, the final count will be determined after the deadline.
States
In Kano State, which was allocated 4,356 seats, 2,100 intending pilgrims had completed their payments by January 30. The state government set February 3 as the payment deadline.
Sokoto State has 5,216 seats allocation, but officials are still compiling payment data from local governments and expect to finalize the list by February 2.
In Kaduna, over 6,000 seats have been allocated, and registration continues at 24 centres across the state. Officials could not confirm the exact number of registered pilgrims as of January 30, but they are hopeful that many will pay before the February 5 deadline.
In Kwara, the Pilgrims Welfare Board confirmed that over 1,000 pilgrims had made payments, with 4,365 seats allocated. The figure is expected to rise before the payment deadline.
Gombe had 1,480 seats allocated, but only 500 pilgrims had paid by January 30. The state is still encouraging more pilgrims to complete payments before the February 2025 deadline.
In Lagos, 500 pilgrims had completed their registration, but less than 50% of the 2,000 allocated seats have been filled as of January 30.
Officials cited the high cost of the hajj as a barrier, noting that many pilgrims were struggling to pay due to the economic situation in the country.
Alhaji Abdulfatah Abdulmojeed, a stakeholder in hajj operations, urged states to remit the funds for pilgrims who have paid to NAHCON to avoid delays in the preparation for the pilgrimage.
He also emphasised the importance of the Hajj Savings Scheme, similar to those in countries like Indonesia and Malaysia, to help Nigerian pilgrims manage the high costs.
He noted that the current economic situation may prevent Nigeria from filling all 95,000 hajj slots.
Efforts to reach NAHCON’s spokesman, Muhammad Ahmed, were unsuccessful. His phone number wasn’t reachable, and he also didn’t respond to text messages.
However, an internal source indicated that the commission might not extend the deadline due to the agreements already made with service providers for the 2025 Hajj.
He said early payments are crucial to securing accommodation and other logistics for Nigerian pilgrims.
By Faruk Shuaibu & Hussein Yahaya (Abuja) Salim Umar Ibrahim (Kano) Abubakar Auwal, (Sokoto) Mohammed Ibrahim Yaba (Kaduna) Mumini Abdulkareem (Ilorin) Haruna Gimba Yaya (Gombe) & Abdullateef Aliyu (Lagos)
By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
South African model Tshego Gaelae has been crowned the winner of the 40th Mrs World pageant, held in Las Vegas, USA.
Sri Lanka’s Ishadi Amanda was named the first runner-up, while Thailand’s Ploy Panperm secured the second runner-up position.
Celebrating her win, Gaelae expressed her gratitude in an Instagram post, writing, “To God Be The Glory. Thank you so much for the love and support, I am beyond grateful and elated! My beautiful South Africa, the crown is coming Home.”
Tshego Gaelae
Tshego Gaelae. Photo: Instagram (@tshego_gaelae)
Mrs World is the first beauty pageant for married women, conceived in 1984.
The organisation that supported her journey, Mrs South Africa, also hailed the achievement in a social media post, stating, “From Soweto to Vegas and now the World, @mrsworldpageant The Crown is Coming Home! Thank you to everyone who supported our Queen on her incredible Journey.
“Thank you to the @mrsworldpageant organisation and judges for everything you do, and for seeing our queen and her brilliance. What an honour to have a South African queen as the 40th Anniversary Mrs World, and first ever Black Mrs World.”
Gaelae’s triumph comes in the wake of intensified beauty pageant rivalry between South Africa and Nigeria.
In 2024, Miss Universe Nigeria Chidimma Adetshina made history as the first Nigerian and West African to finish as the first runner-up at the Miss Universe 2024 competition held in Mexico City in November.
Miss Universe Chidimma Adetshina
Chidimma Adetshina
Adetshina, who also won the title of Miss Universe Africa and Oceania, faced scrutiny over her South African citizenship, a controversy that led to her withdrawal from the Miss South Africa pageant.
Adetshina was then invited to participate in the Miss Universe Nigeria 2024 pageant, which she won.
The situation fueled discussions over the growing competition between both nations
Al-Hikmah University Honours Speaker Abbas with Doctorate in Public Administration
Hajj 2025: Poor turnout as fare payment deadline ends today
South Africa’s Tshego Gaelae crowned Mrs World
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