News
Babatunde Tomori reveals why he drove bus from London to Lagos
The Vintage Car Society of Nigeria has hosted Babatunde Tomori, the man who drove a bus from London to Lagos through the Sahara desert.
Speaking at the occasion in Lagos, Asiwaju Kayode Dada, president of the pan-Nigeria motoring group, said Tomori’s feat cannot be “undermined”.
“The feat should not be undermined, especially for what it meant in refuting the myth associated with such adventure,” he said.
“We are proud of Tomori whom we see him as a worthy ambassador of the Vintage car group and a promoter of the true Nigerian spirit.”
Tomori, who arrived in Nigeria on August 5, 2022, said driving to Nigeria from his base in London, the United Kingdom, was a dream come through.
“I did this trip as a way of debunking the fears associated with the desert trip, especially to make a case for tourism in Nigeria,” he said.
“My conclusion is that the insecurity is exaggerated and spending a huge part of the ten-week driving across the desert and camping with strangers on the road gave me a different impression of the environment.”
Tomori said he had earlier scheduled the over 5,000km trip for 2020 before the coronavirus pandemic broke out.
“The pandemic gave me a good time to further plan the trip, I had to do more work on my van and kept putting things in order till I finally embarked on the trip some weeks back. Primarily the closure of different boarders was a major drawback then,” he added.
He also revealed that his Volkswagen van broke down in Paris — a few days after he set off from London, adding that he stayed back to get it fixed before getting back on track.
According to Tomori, the trip was to address some negative narratives about intercontinental driving between Africa and Europe.
“The help and hospitality offered to me by total strangers are some of the highpoints of my adventure,” he said.
“My zeal for the journey was renewed each time I am shown love on the road. Ordinarily I had planned the trip for six weeks but the attachments I developed on the road with people I met extended the trip.
“In Tangier, a shop-keeper who didn’t know me took me in to help located the hotel I had booked, despite not comprehending my language nor writing. I later discovered that the hotel was on top of the building he had his shop.”
News
FAAN diverts flights as fire breaks out at Murtala Muhammed International Airport
Flight operations at terminal one of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) Lagos have been diverted by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) to the D Wing following a fire outbreak at the facility.
Obiageli Orah, director, public affairs and consumer protection, FAAN, said the incident happened in the early hours of Thursday.
In a statement, Orah said at “05:29 hrs, smoke was detected billowing from the E54 Bridge, leading electrical engineers to immediately cut off power to the entire E Wing”.
“The Airport Rescue and Firefighting Services (ARFFS) team was quick to respond, arriving at the scene by 05:30 hrs. Initial suspicions point to sparks from an electrical unit as the cause, but a thorough investigation is ongoing to ascertain the cause of the fire,” she said.
“The incident, which had escalated into a fire, was brought under control by 06:41 hrs. Efforts to ventilate the smoke from the building are in progress.”
News
JUST IN: 118 inmates escaped from Suleja prison during heavy rainfall, says NCoS
The Nigeria Correctional Service (NCoS) says 118 inmates escaped from the Medium Security Custodial Centre in Suleja, Niger state on Wednesday, during a downpour.
In a statement on Thursday, Adamu Duza, spokesperson for the federal capital territory (FCT) command of the NCoS, said the rainfall ravaged parts of the prison.
He added that the command, in collaboration with security agencies, has apprehended 10 of the fleeing inmates, while raising concerns over the weak walls of the facility which he said were built during the colonial era.
“A heavy downpour that lasted for several hours on the night of Wednesday, 24 April 2024 has wreaked havoc on the medium security custodial centre, Suleja, Niger state, as well as surrounding buildings, destroying part of the custodial facility, including its perimeter fence, giving way to the escape of a total of 118 inmates of the facility,” the statement reads.
“The service has immediately activated its recapturing mechanisms, and in conjunction with sister security agencies, has so far recaptured 10 fleeing inmates and taken them into custody, while we are in hot pursuit to recapture the rest.
“The service is not unmindful of the fact that many of its facilities were built during the colonial era and that they are old and weak.
“The service is making frantic efforts to ensure that all aging facilities give way to modern ones.”
He said Francis John, controller of corrections, FCT command, has called on the public to carry on with their normal activities, adding that the service is working to address the situation.
News
Police order arrest of officers bashing car in viral video
Muyiwa Adejobi, spokesperson of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), has ordered the arrest of officers seen in a viral video bashing a moving car.
Adejobi condemned the incident and called for the identification and summon of the officers involved.
On Wednesday, an X user quoted a video with the words: “Can we agree finally say na animals una carry guns and uniforms give?… The Nigerian Police is the most UNPROFESSIONAL in the entire solar system.”
Reacting to the video, Adejobi wrote: “This is condemned totally. How can human beings be behaving in this unholy manner. #BenHundeyin, #LagosPoliceNG, #PoliceNG_CRU take necessary action. Fish out and invite the men immediately. Thanks.”
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