News
NGO! Founder held for allegedly sodomising twin children
The founder of a non-governmental organisation, Jephath Ighodaro, has been remanded in the Kirikiri prison for allegedly sodomising his four-year-old twin children.
He was remanded by a magistrate at an Ogba Magistrate’s Court on Friday.
According to police spokesperson, CSP Chike Oti, said the 37-year-old was arrested after his wife alleged that he sodomised their twin boys.
According to the police, the couple separated in October 2015 after which Ighodaro withdrew the children from their school in March 2016.
He was accused of abusing the children between January and July 2018, as he allegedly penetrated their anuses and made them suck his manhood.
When the children spent a weekend with their mother, they allegedly fondled her breasts, which made her suspicious.
When she queried them, the kids allegedly said their father had been sodomising them.
The Director of the Lagos State Office of the Public Defender, Mrs Adeyinka Adeyemi, had told our correspondent that the results of medical tests from the Mirabel Medical Centre, Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, Ikeja, showed that the victims were abused.
She said while being interviewed at the agency’s office, the children went to toilet about three times, adding that they might have health problems.
The Edo State indigene was arraigned on Friday on two counts of sodomy.
The charge read, “That you, Jephath Ighodaro, between January 2018 (and July 2018), between 7am and 10pm on Saint Augustine Street, Orisunmbare, Lagos, in the Lagos Magisterial District, did unlawfully sexually assault one (first child) by penetrating his anus, thereby committing an offence punishable under Section 261 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, Nigeria, 2015.
“That you, Jephat Ighodaro, between January 2018 (and July 2018), between 7am and 10pm on Saint Augustine Street, Orisunmbare, Lagos, in the Lagos Magisterial District, did unlawfully sexually assault one (second child) by penetrating his anus, thereby committing an offence punishable under Section 261 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, Nigeria, 2015.”
The defendant pleaded not guilty and elected summary trial.
The police prosecutor, Inspector Samuel Ishola, who stood in for the resident prosecutor, Christopher John, applied for the remand of the defendant in prison.
The defence counsel, Sunday Aniebite, applied for the bail of the defendant, saying the law presumed Ighodaro innocent until the contrary was proven.
“The defendant has never committed any offence before and if granted bail, he will not cause obstruction to the cause of justice. He will not jump bail,” he said.
Ishola, however, said, “The charge before the court is tantamount to a capital offence and that is why the police have come with a remand application. If he is granted bail, it will prejudice the interest of justice,” he said.
Ighodaro, on enquiry from the Chief Magistrate, Mr. P.E. Nwaka, said he was a social worker and had recently formed his NGO, Purple Foundation, adding that he got an approval for it in May 2018.
He explained that before he formed the group, he consulted for an international organisation.
Nwaka, who stood down the case after observing an oversight in the remand form brought by the police, later remanded Ighodaro in custody.
He said, “After considering the remand application by the prosecution vis-a-vis the affidavit, and taking into consideration the circumstances of the case, the application of the prosecution is meritorious; I will therefore grant it. The defendant is to be remanded for the first 30 days pending the release of legal advice.”
He adjourned the case till September 3, 2018. Source: Punch
News
France Urged to Address Colonial Legacy as Senegalese Activists Call for Reparations in Dakar Roundtable
Reporter: Sandra Ani
France’s colonial legacy came under renewed scrutiny as journalists, historians, and pan-African activists gathered at African Memorial Square in Dakar for a powerful roundtable advocating reparations and economic justice.
The event highlighted growing demands for France to take full responsibility for its historical role in Senegal and across West Africa.
Organized by advocacy groups including the Association of Descendants of Senegalese Soldiers, the Front for the Withdrawal of French Military Bases (GASSI), and JIF’AFRIK, the roundtable brought together influential voices pushing for reparatory justice and structural transformation.
Among the key speakers were Babacar Dioh of the Thiaroye 44 Movement—a coalition of descendants of Senegalese tirailleurs—and Souleymane Jules Diallo, leader of JIF’AFRIK. Discussions centered on two central demands: official reparations for colonial-era injustices and the urgent renegotiation of trade and military agreements that activists say perpetuate economic dependence.
“The time for symbolic gestures is over,” said Dioh. “We are now filing an official reparations claim and taking concrete steps to hold France accountable.”
Speakers called for the dismantling of existing neocolonial frameworks, stressing the ecological, financial, and social harm that has endured beyond the colonial period. The roundtable marks a turning point in Dakar’s positioning as a hub for coordinated African-led advocacy aimed at restoring historical justice.
This event adds momentum to a growing continental movement seeking tangible reparative action from former colonial powers and reinforces the call for equity, autonomy, and acknowledgment of historical truths.
The Enugu State government has inaugurated a steering committee to eliminate Gender-Based Violence, GBV, in the state, declaring zero tolerance for the social malaise.
The inauguration took place at the Government House Enugu.
The panel, which is chaired by the Commissioner for Children, Gender Affairs and Social Development, Mrs. Ngozi Enih, draws its membership from the Nigeria Police Force, Ministry of Agriculture and Agro Industrialisation, Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Chieftaincy Affairs, Ministry of Human Development and Poverty Reduction, Ministry of Trade, Investment and Industry, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Education as well as the Civil Society.
Inaugurating the panel known as the Steering Committee for Strengthening Institutional and Community Responses to End Gender-Based Violence/Domestication of Enugu State Gender Policy using the Oputa Panel approach, Governor Peter Mbah restated his administration’s commitment to not bringing perpetrators of GBV to book, but also putting in place proactive measures – activities, infrastructure, and systems in place to prevent them.
Mbah, who was represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Prof. Chidiebere Onyia, said, “We take gender-based violence seriously. We have zero tolerance for it, and in Enugu State, we are ready to go the extra mile to deal with it.
“If you notice, the government has selected people that are very committed to this goal. This is not an activity where we just want to check-off the list. We will track this. We will monitor this, and we will have quarterly engagements on the successes that this particular committee has achieved in terms of reference that we are going to send.
“We will tighten those terms of reference indicators, so that we monitor what we are doing both in terms of cost input and the value added. It’s very important to us. Many people will be involved – civil society, the police and various ministries.”
He however, said that the effort was to protect everyone, men and women alike, as GBV was not restricted to any gender.
“The whole idea is to hold people responsible that are involved in matters relating to gender violence and deter people that by culture or by association get involved in that, protect women, protect our children, and in the case of violence against men, protect our men because most times we misconstrue gender violence to mean women, but it can also be men too.
“We encourage our men to speak out and to make sure they understand that the policy that Enugu State is soon going to domesticate is for everyone, and not only for the female gender,” he stated.
In her remark, Mrs. Enih, explained that the Oputa Panel approach was inspired by the need to cover all local peculiarities in domesticating the policy on GBV, restarting government’s confidence in the members of the panel.
“The approach we are going to use is the Oputa Panel approach, and in the Oputa Panel approach, we are going to tour the 17 Local Government Areas to get firsthand information about what our people are going through because policy is meant for the people, and a policy should suit the people.
“Again, every community has its peculiar problems, so that’s why the government decided that if we have to domesticate the gender policy, we have to hear from the people who own the policy and know the changes that they desire to see. That is the reason we are using this approach.
“The committee members are to also serve as judges. As we gather this information from our people, we will come back to tailor it in a way to suit the people of Enugu State, and then our policy is ready.
“We want the people to know that there is a gender policy for them. I can assure you that when the people are aware that there is such a policy, they will seek for the enforcement of that policy. So, this is not going to be one of those policies that will just lie on the shelf,” she said.
Digital solutions provider, Globacom, has congratulated Christians in Nigeria on this year’s Easter celebration, and urged them to emulate the noble qualities of Jesus Christ.
The company, in a goodwill message to the Christian faithful in the country, lauded their perseverance through the Lenten period which preceded Easter. It enjoined them to always promote the ideals of selflessness, love and peace among all as a way of demonstrating the virtues of the exemplary life of Jesus Christ.
“Peace, love and sacrifice are the central message of Easter. Christ offered himself in atonement for the sins of the world and he lived a life which made Him an eternal symbol of peace and goodwill for mankind”, Globacom added.
The company enjoined all Nigerians to share in the lessons of promoting selflessness, a necessary ingredient in the growth and development of every society. It also enjoined all Nigerians to join hands to make Nigeria a better place for all.
Easter is celebrated yearly at the end of the Lenten season of fasting and prayer considered as a ritual of purification for the Christian faithful. It also precedes the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus Christ on Good Friday and His eventual resurrection on Easter Sunday.
The company assured its customers of seamless voice, data and Short Messaging Service (SMS) during and after the Easter celebrations, while urging them to avail themselves of the various data and voice offerings on the network.
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