Gist Arena

Just received this petition which was sent to the IG of Police and SSS from lawyer and rights activist Festus Keyamo about an alleged threat to his life. Read below... Threat to kill Mr. Festus Keyamo by Mr. Government Ekpemupolo (Alias Tompolo) My name is Festus Keyamo. I am a Nigerian citizen and a senior member of the legal profession in Nigeria. At exactly 10:13pm on Tuesday, October 28, 2014, I received a telephone call from one Mr. Government Ekpemupolo (alias  Tompolo ) with phone number (I removed the number). We have been acquaintances in the past, so I know his numbers. After reaffirming that he is Tompolo  when I picked his call, he went straight to the point by informing me that he wishes to inform me that he and his  “boys”  will kill me by beating me to death or shooting me anywhere they can find me. And that the hunt for me is on. His exact words in pidgin English was  “we dey look for you. Anywhere we see you, whether for Lagos ...

Shop owners and residents along Bariga Road, Bajulaiye, Somolu, Lagos have been trying to locate the family of a homeless old man who has been sleeping on a refuse dump in the area since Saturday. PUNCH Metro learnt that the aged man, whose name had yet to be known, had been lying beside a dump on Bajulaiye canal, Somolu since Saturday afternoon. When our correspondent visited the area on Tuesday morning, the old man looked gaunt and his hands shivered from what appeared to be the effect of hunger and weakness. Some shop owners in the area said nobody knew the family or residence of the aged man, adding that they had called the state emergency numbers to come and remove the man. One of them, who gave his name simply as Oluyomi, said “The old man has been sleeping beside the dump since Saturday afternoon. He does not speak Yoruba. His language sounds like Igbo. We don’t know his name or house around here. But now, he cannot even speak again. “We called the...

The wife of a vigilante has accused policemen attached to the Sapele Police Division, Delta State, of aiding the thugs who killed her 36-year-old husband. The widow, Mrs. Esther Ifi, said the six-man gang had tortured her late husband, Mr. Jimoh Ifi, to a coma in the presence of the policemen around 8pm on July 16, 2014. PUNCH Metro learnt that the gang had attacked the deceased for failing to remit a sum of N500 to the head of the vigilante group, Mr. Felix Ipemu. The sum, it was learnt, was given to the victim by a man who visited their joint in the Igbeku Community when the chairman was not around. Our correspondent gathered that the leader of the group, who also doubled as the youth leader in the community, reportedly ordered his boys to unleash terror on Jimoh for being disloyal to the group. Esther told PUNCH Metro that after falling into a coma, her husband was taken to the police station by the policemen. The father of four was said to have died i...

All is definitely not well between the first two citizens of Ogun State if this letter which was obtained by Punch yesterday is anything to go by. The Ogun State Deputy Governor accused his immediate boss of ‘maltreatment’ and abandoning his office even though he is still very much in power. His official car has broken down, the electricity in his immediate house where he lives with his family disconnected, his vacation money withheld, Government owing him his pocket money for two months now and the list goes on.  It’s quite a touching letter, or do we say I am just an emotional person? Please read the letter obtained by Punch after the cut. “My governor, as I am writing to you, the feeding and out-of-pocket allowance of the deputy governor for the months of September and October 2014, as well as the monthly sundry expenses for the months of September and October 2014 are yet to be paid.” Adesegun claimed during this year’s Eid-el-Kabir and Eid al-Fitr festi...

The actress, popularly known as Olaitan Sugar, is good in her job, she is very passionately about acting and believes her talent will help her to rise to the top, but some men in the industry want her 'thing'. Reacting her s*x for role experience with a movie director, Olaitan said:  To me, it’s not a do-or-die affair. If anybody believes he has to sleep with you before giving you a role, you have the right to accept or reject such offer. I have gone through many experiences but I have never experienced such. If I like you, fine, I can date you. You talked about going through many experiences, how did you handle such situations?  Like the one that happened a long time ago, though it was an English-speaking movie, I met with the woman who was to act as my mother while Kola Oyewo was to be my father. At the last stage of the movie, people really appreciated me for the way I interpreted the role, they were so excited about my talent but sudd...

Pope Francis has called for abolition of life imprisonment ,saying it  offers revenge for victims instead of pursuing true justice.He told representatives from the International Association of Penal Law: 'It is impossible to imagine that states today cannot make use of another means than capital punishment to defend peoples' lives from an unjust aggressor.Media and politicians advocated 'violence and revenge, public and private, not only against those responsible for crimes, but also against those under suspicion, justified or not' Catholic teaching does not proscribe capital punishment.'All Christians and men of good faith are therefore called upon today to fight, not only for the abolition of the death penalty – whether it is legal or illegal and in all its forms... and this, for me, is linked to life sentences. A sentence of life (without parole) is a hidden death penalty.'

39-year-old Lawrencia, mother of four, a devout Catholic, was killed on Monday, October 13, by gunmen. She was shot twice on the chest at close range. She was with her two-month-old son, Moses, when she was shot. The deceased and her husband, Mr. Leonard Onunkwo, a dealer in building materials, waited for 12 years after their last child before they had Moses. They had earlier had three children.Mrs. Beatrice Ibe, a close friend of the family, recalled that Lawrencia was in a vivacious mood, as preparation was in top gear for the dedication of Moses. The older woman, who is like a mother to the deceased told the  Sun We fixed the second Sunday of November, that is 9th, for the dedication of Moses at Our Lady of Loreto Catholic Church, Fadama Mada parish, and she was excited about it.”She called to inform me that she had booked for the reception at Chaba Hotel and we made arrangement for cooking, only to hear the news that she was killed. It is sad.” H...