I felicitate with all Nigerians, especially the Muslim Ummah, on the occasion of this year’s Eid El Fitr, which marks the completion of the Ramadan fast.

I congratulate Muslims in Nigeria and around the world on the successful completion of this month-long spiritual journey of fasting, prayer and almsgiving in obedience to the Divine Command.

I sincerely pray that the Almighty Allah will reward our sacrifices with increased blessing and a more prosperous future.

On this happy occasion, it is my strong belief that all true followers of Islam have been rejuvenated on the true meaning and essence of life and through the teachings of Prophet Muhammad (SAW), we have learnt to imbibe the virtues of piety, sacrifice, love, self-denial and good conduct in our daily relationship with one another.

As we celebrate another Eid El Fitr, I admonish all patriotic Nigerians to uphold these lessons and also appreciate the numerous material and human blessings God has endowed us with.

Let us learn to show gratitude, respect and tolerance to one other, irrespective of our religion, tribe, language and political leanings, as we forge ahead to build on our strengths and opportunities to make Nigeria great again.

On Monday this week, the Vice President, the Speaker of the House of Representatives and other government officials joined me to host Iftar reception at the State House with Nigerians of different backgrounds including Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), artisans and Physically-challenged persons.

Like I said during the reception, I want to once again appeal to those of us who have the means, to remember the millions of Nigerians who are suffering deprivation because of violence perpetrated by terrorists.

I am not unaware of what Nigerians are going through and I want to use this medium to commend the amazing sacrifices of Nigerians in the face of the temporary economic and social challenges and also reassure Nigerians that my administration is working assiduously towards providing basic needs and other amenities.

Let me also use this opportunity to reaffirm that we will not relent in the fight against corruption and we will ensure that all appropriate and legal measures are deplored to root out this malaise.

I commend the Armed Forces and security agencies for the gains recorded in the fight against terrorists and the rescue of hostages in the North East part of the country.

I also appeal for the support, understanding and patience of all Nigerians and our international partners as we explore the fastest means to end the economic sabotage in the Niger Delta and amicably resolve the conflicts within the region.

I promise you all better days ahead even as we remain grateful for your unflinching support to our administration.

Happy Eid El Fitr celebration and May the Almighty Allah continue to bless our nation.

Eid Mubarak!

This young skater got involved in an accident in Lagos while skating on the expressway.

According to an eye witness, the young man who wasn’t wearing any protective gear, was holding onto a speeding commercial bus (danfo) coming from Ajah and heading to Lekki.

He lost his control when he couldn’t keep up with the way the driver was speeding, stumbled and slammed onto the major road, breaking his right leg in the process.

See the photos below:

The man, identified as Uchechukwu Orji, made the revelation while standing in as a prosecution witness, in the ongoing murder charge of one Ijoma.

Orji told a Lagos State High Court sitting at Igbosere how Ijoma was murdered by her ex-boyfriend.

According to Vanguard, Ijoma got missing January 10, 2013, before it was discovered that her ex-boyfriend, Ifeanyi Christian, murdered her.

Orji, who was led in evidence by Lagos State prosecuting counsel, Mrs A. A. Saromi, said that he had gone to Ijoma’s family’s house over his intentions to marry the deceased and that they had introduction formalities leading to their engagement.

He said that the late Ijoma, who was 26 year old, came back from the East in January 2013, after travelling in December 2012 for the Christmas and New Year’s celebrations.

She came to his house and while they were discussing, her phone kept ringing and she refused picking the call. The witness further stated that when he asked her who the caller was, she replied that the caller was just a friend and that out of curiosity, he kept asking her who the caller was.

Orji said after much pressure, Ijoma later told him that the call was that of her ex-boyfriend, Ifeanyi Christian. He also said that the late Ijoma informed him that the defendant wanted her to come and see him, but that she refused. He said he ensured that she took a bike from his place down to Alakija Bus Stop and kept calling her while she was on her way to be sure that she gets home.

According to him, the deceased coincidentally met her sister at the bus stop and informed him that she was with her sister, whom he asked her to give the phone to so that he could speak with her, which she did and then ended the call since he had been able to confirm that she was in a safe hands.

Orji, who was testifying before Justice Oluwatoyin Taiwo, said that the next day, which was a Saturday, he started calling her line from 4p.m. till about 7p.m., but that there was no response. So he felt that she was busy and decided to give her some time because she was a food vendor and was probably attending to customers.

He said:

“At about 10p.m., when I called her line again and did not get any response, I became very apprehensive, I then called Ijoma’s sister, who told me that she might probably be busy.

“When she checked and did not see the deceased, she called me back to inform me that she could not find her sister.

“We started searching for her that night and when we could not find her, we went back home and continued the search on Sunday morning.”

Orji also told the court that during the Sunday search, he met with one of her friends named Joy and inquired from her if she knew the whereabouts of Ijoma. Joy told them that Ijoma had informed her that she was going to give the defendant a bottle of acid he kept with her.

The witness said he then asked Joy where the defendant resides and what he does for a living. Joy pointed at a shop located at Aspanda in Trade Fair complex and said that the defendant was not around but that the next day being a Monday, he should be there.

He said:

“On Monday, I saw other people in their shops but I went straight to where I was directed to and I met an elderly man whom I asked about Ifeanyi.

“He told me that I should go to the shop. Wen I went there, I did not see him, so I went back to meet the man. He then asked me to sit and wait till when Ifeanyi will come. As I was waiting, the man asked me if there was a problem and I said yes there was.

“I then asked the elderly man if the defendant brought a girl to his house, but he said no.”

Orji said he further asked the elderly man, a spare parts dealer and the defendant’s boss, if he uses acid to wash his toilet and he said no.

While they were discussing, the defendant was approaching them. The the elderly man asked the witness to hold Ifeanyi firmly, that he tried running away from the house.

The elderly man, according to the witness, said that he had to call the defendant’s brothers to ask him why he was trying to run away from the house.

The witness also said that the elderly man told him that he was not aware of what was happening, as he then called on the security people at Aspanda to arrest the defendant so that he would not escape.

He was taken to Festac Police Station. The witness said that before the defendant was taken to the police station he had informed them that the late Ijoma was at Festac Police Station but that when they got there, the deceased was not there.

That was when the defendant told them that she was dead, and they later saw her corpse on the road side.

However Justice Taiwo adjourned the case to October 24, for continuation of trial.

People were left scampering for safety after a trailer truck climbing the Ijora bridge near Apapa area of Lagos fell off the bridge putting lives at risk.

News emerged yesterday that Twitter had suspended the account of Niger Delta Avengers.

The militant group’s Twitter account was suspended following its announcement on the micro-blogging site that it had carried out five attacks on key oil installations in the last few days.

According to Vanguard, although Twitter does not comment on individual accounts for privacy and security reasons, a spokesman for the site said, Avengers account was suspended in line with the company’s policy, which detailed specific rule pertaining to violent threats.

The rule says that “you may not make threats of violence or promote violence, including threatening or promoting terrorism.”

The Avengers allegedly contravened this rule by using a Twitter account as its main form of communication, using it to publicize claims of attacks and as a platform to criticise the Federal Government.

In February, Twitter said it had shut down more than 125,000 terrorism-related accounts since the middle of 2015, most of which were linked to the Islamic State group.