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Tag: kogi

  • 17 passengers die in Kogi motor accident

    17 passengers die in Kogi motor accident

    Seventeen people have perished in a ghastly motor accident at at Irepeni on Okene-Lokoja-Abuja highway in Kogi State.

    The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) Sector Commander in Kogi, Mr Solomon Aghure, confirmed this to newsmen in Lokoja on Tuesday.

    He said that the accident, which occurred at about 5am, involved two vehicles in a collision.

    Aghure said that the two vehicles, a luxury bus and a Toyota Hiace were both conveying a total of 55 passengers to different destinations.

    He said that 15 passengers died on the spot while two others died in hospital, bringing the total number of casualties to 17.

    “The Toyota Hiace was going to Auchi , Edo State and the luxury bus was coming from Okene axis. The luxury bus overtook a car and in the process lost control.

    ”Of course it was night, so it came and hit the smaller Toyota bus, pushing it into the bush. The vehicle somersaulted, and 15 people died on the spot and two later died in the hospital,” Aghure explained.

    The sector commander said that 25 other passengers who sustained varying degrees of injuries were taken to a private hospital for treatment while the corpses of the 17 were deposited at the morgue of the Federal Medical Centre, Lokoja.

    He said that further investigation into the accident had commenced, urging motorists to avoid night travelling and speeding while driving.

    “It is very important for motorists to obey the speed limit which is 90kph for commercial vehicles and 100kph for private vehicles,” he stated.

    In order to reduce stress and road accident during the festive period, Agure said that 522 personnel had been deployed to different routes in the state .

    He said that additional personnel were also being expected from Ekiti and Kwara States to complement those on ground and advised motorists to always obey traffic rules.

  • Yuletide: Police prohibit use of fireworks in Kogi

    Yuletide: Police prohibit use of fireworks in Kogi

    The Nigeria Police Force, Kogi State command, has banned the use of fireworks during this festive period.

    The Kogi State Commissioner of Police, Ayuba Edeh Ekpeji revealed this while briefing the senior officers of the Command at the Police State Headquarters, Lokoja on Monday.

    A statement issued by the Police Public Relations Officer, (PPRO) DSP William Ovye Aya on Tuesday morning, stated that the police boss advised parents and guardians to warn their children and wards to stay away from knockouts as policemen across the State were directed to arrest anyone who violated the order.

    He directed the Area Commanders, Divisional Police Officers, as well as Operational Commanders to review their crime fighting strategies and increase visibility of policemen to ensure peaceful Yuletide in Kogi State.

    The Commissioner of Police further assured members of the public that the police in synergy with other security agencies in the State were putting more efforts to ensure a peaceful festive period.

     

  • Gunmen kidnap Isaac Ekpa Kogi ex-local govt chairman

    Gunmen kidnap Isaac Ekpa Kogi ex-local govt chairman

    Gunmen have kidnapped Mr. Isaac Emmanuel Ekpa, a lawyer and former Chairman of Olamaboro Local Government Area in Kogi.

    He is now a senior legislative aide (SLA) to Senator Jibrin Isah Echocho (Kogi East/APC).

    DSP William Aya who confirmed this on Sunday in Lokoja said that Akpa was kidnapped along Ochadamu Road in Ofu Local Government Area.

    He said that a police patrol team attached to Ofu discovered the abandoned car of the victim at Ochadamu area in the late hours of Dec. 18, the day of the incident.

    “On close scrutiny, they found an abandoned ID card in the vehicle bearing the name Emmanuel Isaac Ekpa, apparently indicating that he was kidnapped by gunmen,” Aya said.

    The State’s Police spokesman added that the state Commissioner of Police, Mr Edeh Ayuba had raised a team to track the kidnappers and ensure safe rescue of Ekpa.

    Meanwhile , the abductors had made contact with family of their victim, demanding N25 million ransom for his release.

    A relation who confirmed this to newsmen on condition of anonymity said that negotiation was still ongoing.

  • #EndSARS: Kogi records over N44 billion losses from protests

    #EndSARS: Kogi records over N44 billion losses from protests

    Kogi State state government has reported a loss of more than N44 billion during the looting of both private and government properties in the wake of the protests in Lokoja.

    Asiwaju Idris, Commissioner for Finance and Economic Planning who doubles as Chairman of the Committee set up by the State Government to determine the items stolen from warehouses in the state, said this when his committee presented the report of their findings to Governor, Yahaya Bello.

    Hoodlooms, hiding under the guise of the protests and hunger, invaded both public and private properties, looted Covid-19 palliatives in the state. They also carted away relief materials meant for flood victims, medical, and agricultural items.

    At the end of its assignment, the Chairman of the Committee to ascertain the amount of damage, submitted a report of the list of items stolen.

    The committee also made recommendations on how to replace the items as well as compensation for private citizens whose stores were vandalized.

    Governor Bello used the opportunity to counsel the youths on the need to be more responsible in asking for their rights. The Governor also appealed to security agents to return to their duty posts.

  • 50 die of strange disease in Kogi community, Assembly cry for help

    50 die of strange disease in Kogi community, Assembly cry for help

    The Kogi House of Assembly has called on State and Federal Ministries of Health to unravel the cause of the strange disease which has killed 50 persons in Olamaboro Local Government Area of the state.

    The House made the call at Tuesday’s plenary sitting in Lokoja following adoption of a motion on Urgent Public Importance, raised by Anthony Ujah (APC-Olamaboro), over the strange illness that has claimed over 50 lives.

    According to the lawmaker, the unknown disease comes with symptoms such as headache, red eyes, loss of appetite, inability to urinate or defecate, convulsion and death.

    Ujah said that the residents of Etteh Community in the local government area have been thrown into confusion by the outbreak of the alien disease.

    He maintained that the cause or nature of the disease is still unknown, adding that infected persons die within one week of contracting the disease.

    More worrisome, according to him, is that all efforts to get solution using local herbs and treatment at primary health centres with referrals to clinics and hospitals in neighboring Ogugu and Okpo have been unsuccessful.

    “The reports reaching my constituency office from the community leaders confirmed that over 50 people between the age of 25 and 40 years have died since September,” he said.

    Seconding the motion, Edoko Moses Ododo (APC-Dekina/Biraidu), said that the people of the community now live in fear.

    He said that urgent steps need to be taken to save their lives as the disease can adversely affect the economic input of the agrarian community.

    Supporting the motion, Deputy Speaker, Ahmed Mohammed, submitted that the community shares boundary with Enugu State and efforts should be made to urgently avert further loss of lives.

    Mohammed prayed that the State Government should establish a Hospital in Etteh Community to prevent or tackle future occurrence of such epidemic and other health challenges.

    The Speaker of the House, Prince Mathew Kolawole, later asked for a minute silence in honour of the deceased.

    He directed that a letter be sent to the Federal Medical Centre, Lokoja, for immediate support and assistance.

  • Yahaya Bello dissociates self from ‘bread tax’, says it is wicked, embarrassing

    Yahaya Bello dissociates self from ‘bread tax’, says it is wicked, embarrassing

    The Governor of Kogi State, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, has dissociated from report that his administration has imposed a tax on individual loaf of bread to be paid by bakeries and bread sellers in the state.

    Edward Onoja, Governor Bello’s Deputy made this known in a statement on Saturday.

    ‘We have just seen a purported consultancy agreement between one of our ministries and a private firm to impose an ill-conceived levy on bread in the state.

    “For the records, neither the Governor nor the state executive council has imagined or proposed such a devilish tax regime, how much less imposing same on any food or essential commodity, not to mention bread which is a table staple and the basic lifeline of many a household,” the statement reads.

    It insisted that such a claim was “in fact, an embarrassment to the state government.”

    The Deputy Governor revealed that his boss directed him to debunk the news to underscore how serious government considered the disinformation.

    READ ALSO Yahaya Bello makes fresh appointments

    “I am directed by His Excellency to give the lie to news of an alleged tax imposed on each loaf of bread to be sold in Kogi State. There is no iota of truth in the claims that we have approved such wickedness, because we have not and cannot.”

    He highlighted Governor Bello’s responses to issues impacting the welfare of his people during the Covid-19 pandemic as proof that such a tax runs counter to everything the administration stands for.

    “It is well-documented in the media that Governor Yahaya Bello has fought powerful forces, more than any other governor perhaps, to keep his people safe. As CoviD-19 ravaged the country and the world he has mobilised them for lifestyle changes that defeated the virus in the state.

    “He spared them lockdowns and the inherent disruptions to their lives and livelihoods characteristic of covid responses in other places. He scrupulously obeyed WHO and NCDC guidelines to provide testing to high risk individuals.”

    Onoja noted that though widely excoriated in those early days Governor Yahaya Bello remained undaunted because of his desire to protect his people at all costs.

    According to him, “today, the result of my Governor’s novel approach to the novel coronavirus are evident for all to see on every daily update given by the federal authorities.

    “Kogi State sits at the bottom of that list, and even those 5 cases allocated to us are controversial at best. To put it mildly, we have had no confirmed case of Covid-19 in Kogi State.

    “About 3 months ago we rolled out the Kogi Care Initiative, for which Council approved N1.56 billion as a post-COVID economic stimulus and recovery programme customised for different sections of our people – the poor, the elderly and the MSMEs.’ He therefore rejected the notion that ‘we can now impose a tax on individual loaves of bread sold in the state.”

    The Deputy Governor said that no extra financial burden will apply for the time being on citizens and assured that “any business which has met the regulatory requirements for doing business in Kogi State including payment of routine tax is entitled to operate freely, and that includes bakeries and bread traders.”

    Onoja therefore urged everyone to disregard the alleged bread tax as not only improbable but impossible in Kogi State under the current administration.

    He also reassured the media and the general public that those behind the rumours would be fished out and punished.

    “We will not tolerate our own officials trying to profiteer off our people in any way, or even acting ill-advisedly in manners that cause them any form of distress.”

  • Kogi imposes levy on every loaf of bread

    Kogi imposes levy on every loaf of bread

    Kogi State Information and Communications Commissioner Kingsley Fanwo said yesterday that the newly imposed bread levy in the state was to protect indigenous bakers from those “who bring bread to the state without paying any form of levy.”

    Fanwo in a statement in Lokoja said no responsible government would “sit by and watch her indigenous businesses lose the local market.”

    He added: “Our indigenous bakers have complained bitterly about the activities of external bakers who packed their bread to the state in trucks and sell without paying anything to the state government.

    “Poor sales by our bakers may lead to job losses, a situation we are determined to use legitimate means to avert.

    “We assure the Master Bakers of our open-door policy and our readiness to keep listening to them in order to smoothen relationships and factors aiding their production as bread consumers have nothing to fear.”

    The state chapter of the Association of Master Bakers and Caterers of Nigeria had said it received a memo from the state’s ministry of commerce imposing a levy “on each loaf of bread”. The association said the move would bring unbearable pains on its members.

  • JUST IN: Four feared dead as residents storm Kogi warehouse for COVID-19 palliatives

    JUST IN: Four feared dead as residents storm Kogi warehouse for COVID-19 palliatives

    Four persons were feared to have died on Sunday afternoon in Kogi as hundreds of residents stormed a warehouse in Lokoja in search of COVID-19 palliatives.

    The warehouse, located along the Murtala Mohammed Way, close to Kpata the market was reportedly invaded as early as 7am on Saturday through Sunday, mostly by women.

    The fatalities, it was gathered, resulted from stampede by residents who rushed at the government warehouse.

    The State Government had last week commenced distribution of COVID-19 palliatives to the 21 local government areas.

    Each local government area got at least one trailer load of palliative items, including rice, semovita, indomie noodles and pastas in 10 kilogram packs.

    The siege on the warehouse, it was gathered, might not be unconnected with an order by Governor Yahaya Bello that the remaining items be distributed to people.

    An witness said casualties were recorded despite warnings by security personnel deployed to the area that the residents should maintain the peace and avoid anything that may lead to stampede.

    Some of the women who confirmed the development said they were there in response to the Governor’s directive that the remaining items be distributed to them.

    Meanwhile, government has expressed appreciation to residents who turned out to share in the palliatives.

    The Commissioner for Information and Communications, Kingsley Fanwo, in a statement on Sunday said: “Report at our disposal showed that local government authorities ensured the palliatives reached the masses and helped in ameliorating the hardship visited on our nation as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

    “We urge our people to continue to stand tall in public conduct as government will always put their welfare on the front burners.

    “The Government of Kogi State also wishes to sound a note of warning to miscreants that all constitutional efforts will be geared towards protecting shop owners in the state as any violation of law and order will be met with superior resistance by law enforcement agencies.

    “Our people should go about their normal businesses as Kogi State remains safe.”

  • JUST IN: Ex-Kogi council chair dies few days after assassins’ attacks

    JUST IN: Ex-Kogi council chair dies few days after assassins’ attacks

    Former chairman of Dekina Local Government Area in Kogi, Adejo Akowe, is dead.

    According to sources, the council chairman died on Saturday (today).

    Akowe until his death was a chieftain of the APC.

    He died following an injury from an attack from unknown gunmen. He would be buried according to Christian rites as would be announced by the family.

    The former chairman was last week attacked in Ayingba. He was admitted at the Lokoja Specialist Hospital before he was moved to National Hospital Abuja, where he died on Saturday.

    He died at National Hospital, Abuja at about 21:20hrs of Friday 16th October 2020, exactly the same time, hours and day he was attacked and shot by some unknown assassins at Domibite restaurant in Anyigba.

    Late Adejoh Akowe, was said to have attended the just concluded APC primary election that affirmed the candidacy of Hon. Prince Ishaq as the flag bearer of the party APC in Dekina town.

    He returned to Anyigba late night of Friday on 9th of October, and went to Domibite to eat, was said to have been shot by the unknown gunmen that night.

    He was immediately rushed to Maria Gorretti Hospital, Aynigba.

  • VIDEO: Kogi suffers another fire incident barely 48 hours after tanker explosion

    VIDEO: Kogi suffers another fire incident barely 48 hours after tanker explosion

    Barely two days after a tanker fire burnt 23 people to death in Kogi State, another fire tragedy struck the state again in the late hours of Friday.

    A multi-million naira electronic plaza in Lokoja, the state capital identified as Peelinks was completely razed by fire.

    Reportedly, the electronic plaza was gutted by fire around 11:50 pm on Friday as residents were helpless to the situation.

    The said building is only a stone throw away from the office of the Federal Fire Service, yet there was no help from the firefighters.

    Eyewitness at the scene of the incident were only subjected to lamentation. An anonymous eyewitness lamented saying that the plaza is someone’s life investment burning. He said the entire electrical plaza has been burnt and asked what someone has to do to survive?

    Another resident lamented that despite the proximity of the fire service no help was rendered in quenching the fire.

    Peelinks electronic world limited, located along Muritala Muhammed way, close to GT Bank Junction, Lokoja, is the biggest electronic plaza in Kogi State and serves the need of both government and individuals.

    Recall that on Wednesday, 23 people were burnt to death in Kogi State after a tanker fire. It lead to the Kogi government declaring two days of mourning for those who lost their lives in the tragedy.