News
Lagos APC member among seven killed in stampede during customs rice distribution
Seven people have reportedly died in a stampede that occurred during the distribution of seized bags of rice by the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) in Lagos.
On Thursday, NCS commenced the distribution of food items seized from smugglers to ameliorate the economic hardship in the country.
Speaking during the flag-off of the exercise, Wale Adeniyi, comptroller-general of customs, said the rice to be distributed has been repackaged in 25kg to reach more Nigerians.
Adeniyi added that customs has seized over 20,000 bags of 50kg parboiled rice, beans, maize, millet, and soya beans from smugglers.
To get the 25kg of rice, Nigerians are expected to pay N10,000 and provide their national identification number (NIN)
On Friday, many Nigerians stormed the NCS command located in the Yaba area of Lagos to buy the 25kg bag of rice.
During the exercise, a stampede occurred, and seven people reportedly died and others were injured.
APC MOURNS MEMBER
In a short message shared on WhatsApp, the APC leadership in Ward E1 Surulere, Lagos, announced that Adebanjo Comfort Funmilayo, one of its members, died during the stampede that occurred at the customs office in Yaba.
“It is with a heavy heart and regret that we announce the painful death of one of our members in WARD E1, Mrs Adebanjo Comfort Funmilayo of house number 104, Ibidun street by Akinhanmi street, Ojuelegba,” the statement reads.
“She was among the 7 victims that died in the course of buying custom rice at Yaba.
“May God grant all the members of her family and all the residents of WARD E1 the fortitude to bear the irreplaceable loss.”
CUSTOMS CONFIRMS INCIDENT
Speaking with TheCable on Sunday, Abdullahi Maiwada, NCS public relations officer, said the stampede occurred “because Nigerians, who came for the exercise, did not obey simple instructions for the distribution of the items”.
Maiwada said the incident was not due to a “lack of coordination” on the part of the agency but the “attitude of Nigerians”.
“We started an orderly process, and people benefited from it until Nigerians decided not to be orderly and conform to simple instructions and directives. That is what led to what happened,” he said.
“The CGC was at that scene from the beginning to the end of that process. He pleaded with them to comply with the simple directive, and that we have more than enough to distribute.
“Some Nigerians decided to round trip. At a point, we stopped collecting money and started distributing it for free. But Nigerians, in their manner, started round tripping and this is what caused what happened.”
Asked to confirm the casualty toll, he said, “I can’t confirm. I’m not aware. I don’t have any assertive report for now. I neither deny nor confirm. There was a rowdy session. In fact, I am aware we took some people in our ambulance to the hospital with our medical doctors.”
News
Lagos police spokesman Benjamin Hundeyin promoted to CSP
Public Relations Officer of Lagos State Police Command, Benjamin Hundeyin, has been promoted to Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP).
Hundeyin took over from Adekunle Ajisebutu as Lagos police spokesman in 2022 while he was Superintendent of Police (SP).
On Wednesday, he shared photos of himself being decorated by Lagos police commissioner, Ishola Olawale.
“Behold the latest Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP) in town. It is the Lord’s doing and it is marvelous in our eyes,” Hundeyin wrote on X.
Hundeyin holds a BA (Hons) in English Language from the Lagos State University and an MSc in Legal Criminology and Security Psychology from the University of Ibadan.
He also holds a certificate in Civil-Military Coordination from the Martin Luther Agwai International Leadership and Peacekeeping Training Centre, Jaji, Kaduna.
He is an associate of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR), member of the International Public Relations Association (IPRA) and an associate of the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria (CIPM).
Hundeyin was a one-time PPRO at the Zone 2 Command Headquarters, Onikan, Lagos and was a member of the Nigerian contingent to the United Nations Peacekeeping Mission in Darfur, Sudan (UNAMID) in 2020.
He was the administration officer at the Force Public Relations Department, Force Headquarters, Abuja.
News
‘I am currently at my home in Onitsha’ — Obi debunks rumoured arrest in Abuja
Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Labour Party in 2023, has denied the recent rumour that he has been arrested in Abuja, the nation’s capital.
On Tuesday, some social media users claimed that Obi was purportedly arrested by operatives of the Department of State Services in Abuja.
In a statement published on his X handle on Wednesday, Obi condemned the “recurrently fake news” about his purported arrest by security operatives.
The former Anambra governor said he is currently at his residence in Onitsha, adding the motive of the fake news merchants cannot be positive.
“I have been made aware of a circulating fake news about my alleged arrest. Let me state unequivocally that these claims are entirely false,” Obi said.
“I am currently at my home in Onitsha. Anambra State. Such fake News on my person has become a pastime for some people.
“Recall last year September, when I was in Rwanda, similar lies had gone out that DSS invaded my house; now, while I was in my home in Onitsha, Anambra State, they said I was arrested in Abuja.”
“The motive of these peddlers cannot be positive but let us not allow baseless rumors to distract us from the critical challenges we face as a nation.”
News
OpenAI chief, Sam Altman, debunks sister’s sexual abuse accusations
Open AI CEO Sam Altman on Tuesday denied allegations from his sister Annie Altman, who has filed a complaint accusing him of childhood sexual abuse.
“…Annie has made deeply hurtful and entirely untrue claims about our family, especially Sam,” the boss of the California startup said in a letter co-signed by his mother and two brothers, and published on social platform X.
“Our family loves Annie and is very concerned about her well-being. Caring for a family member who faces mental health challenges is incredibly difficult,” they wrote.
One of Silicon Valley’s more charismatic figures, Altman shot to global fame with the launch of ChatGPT in 2022, which ignited a race to advance AI research and development.
A prolific entrepreneur and already a billionaire, Altman, 39, has set himself the mission of developing a so-called “general” AI, with cognitive abilities similar to those of humans and which “benefits all of humanity”.
The Altman family said that they have tried to help their daughter and sister, covering her expenses and guaranteeing her “monthly financial support, which we expect to continue for the rest of her life”.
“Despite this, Annie continues to demand more money from us,” they said, pointing out that they have decided to respond publicly following Anne’s legal complaint filed on Monday, and after years of tension.
“The worst allegation she has made is that she was sexually abused by Sam as a child,” said the family.
“Her claims have evolved drastically over time. Newly for this lawsuit, they now include allegations of incidents where Sam was over 18.
“All these claims are utterly untrue.”
According to the complaint, Annie — who is nine years younger than Sam Altman — alleges the assaults took place from 1997, when she was three, until 2006.
In a report for New York Magazine in 2023, a journalist who met Annie in Hawaii described her as an artist suffering from depression and the growing rift with her family and supporting herself mainly through online sex work.
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