Metro

Pensioners Protest, Wants Edo Govt. Pay Gratuities

Published

3 years ago

November 18, 2022

Pensioners under the Edo State civil service, Friday, protested to the secretariat of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Edo State council in Benin City, appealing to the state government to effect payment of their gratuities.

The servants are those who retired in 2012 and 2013.

They said their letter of authority otherwise called yellow form was collected in 2017.

Aggrieved with the lingering issues of unpaid gratuities, the retirees, carried placards with inscriptions as: ‘We wore white cloth to campaign for him’; ‘state government pay our gratuity’; ‘he has for0According to the protesting pensioners, they had protested for the umpteen time but no positive outcome.

Speaking on behalf of the protesters, Frederick Okoloise, one of the pensioners, said many pensioners are now dead while some are sick and living with a meager pension.

“Upon retirement, two letters are given to the retirees; a letter of monthly pension and letter of authority of gratuity (yellow form). The one in question is the letter of gratuity. On the 5th to 8th April 2017, the Edo state government invited 2012/2013 pensioners for screening for payment of gratuity.

“After the screening, the then Head of Service collected the letters of authority from us and promised to pay us within two weeks. The state government has refused to pay us till now,” Okoloise said.

Another senior citizen, Margaret Ebekine, however, commended the governor for the prompt payment of pensions but noted that, with the current economic reality, payment of the gratuity will bring succor to them.

According to her, “Our gratuity for about 10 to 11 years have not been paid to us. In 2017, we were asked to come for screening and were given fat meat-pie and malt. We were all happy with the hope that in one to two months, we will get paid but nothing has been done.

“We, the pensioners, ensured that the governor comes for a second time because we believe he will pay us. We are so disappointed and he is not talking about it.”

Metro

Auto-crash Claims 2 Lives On Lagos-Ibadan Expressway

Published

12 hours ago

January 9, 2026

Editor

The Ogun State Traffic Compliance and Enforcement Corps, TRACE, on Friday confirmed that two people died in a lone accident around Oremeji Bus Stop on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

The Corps’ spokesperson, Mr Babatunde Akinbiyi, disclosed this in a statement issued in Abeokuta.

Akinbiyi said the accident, involving a Mazda bus with registration number YNF 414 XN, occurred at about 1:30 a.m.

He explained that the two occupants of the vehicle, the driver and conductor, both adult males, died on the spot, adding that no injury was recorded.

According to him, eyewitnesses said the bus lost control due to speeding, hit a road barrier, and somersaulted.

Akinbiyi further said the vehicle, which was conveying live chicks, had been towed by the Ibafo Motor Traffic Division of the Police for further investigation.

He added that the remains of the victims had been deposited at the Divine Touch Hospital morgue in Ibafo by operatives of TRACE, the police, and the Ogun State Emergency Services (OGSAES).

He noted that traffic was briefly affected during the rescue operation but was later restored through the efforts of TRACE and the police.

Metro

Court Sentences Man To Death For Killing Son

Published

1 day ago

January 9, 2026

Editor

The Kano State High Court has sentenced Abubakar Alhaji Sabo to death by hanging after finding him guilty of killing his newborn son.

The Kano State Government prosecuted Sabo before the court on charges of culpable homicide and causing grievous harm.

He was accused of force-feeding the infant with a local insecticide known as ‘fiya-fiya’, resulting in the child’s death.

Sabo killed the baby after the mother, his girlfriend, refused to obey his instruction to kill the child to avoid the shame of fathering a child out of wedlock.

Following the incident, he was also found guilty of striking the girlfriend’s father on the head with a brick after he caught Sabo poisoning the baby.

During the trial, the prosecution counsel, Barrister Safiya Yalwati Yahaya, presented three witnesses, while the defendant testified in his own defence.

After reviewing the evidence presented by both parties, Justice Aisha Yau, who presided over the case, found him guilty of infanticide and sentenced him to death by hanging.

The court also imposed an additional three-year prison sentence for causing grievous harm.

Metro

Nine Kwara Victims: Kidnappers Insist On N300m Ransom

Published

1 day ago

January 9, 2026

Editor

No progress has been recorded on the bandits demand for N300m ransom for the release of nine victims abducted in Adanla community of Ifelodun Local Government Area of Kwara state on Boxing Day, December 26, 2025.

Coordinator of the Joint Security Watch for Kwara South Senatorial District, Zubair Olaitan, disclosed this on Wednesday.

According to DAILY POST, the bandits have so far made three contacts with the community leaders that “if the N300m is not paid, the victims will not be released.”

The bandits seized the nine victims in an attempt to abduct the King of the community, and his wife on Boxing Day, but failed.

The King, David Olarinoye, was away to Igbaja town for a programme when the armed bandits invaded his community.

The bandits, however, later seized nine other victims in the community and marched them to the bush.

While seven victims were abducted at the palace of the King, two others were captured on their way to the bush.

Following the abduction, the bandits demanded a N300m for the release of the abducted victims, resisting any negotiations for reduction of the ransom.