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Lagos Assembly Considers Bill To Jail Cultist For 21 Years

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A new bill targeted at members of unlawful societies and cultists is currently being considered by the Lagos State Assembly.

The bill entitled; “A Bill For A Law To Provide For The Prohibition of Unlawful Societies And Cultism In Lagos State And For Other Connected Purposes,” went through public hearing on Thursday 24th September, 2020 at the Assembly Pavilion.

The law states that any person who by any means of intimidation, harassment, blackmail or threat of violence, compels any person to join an unlawful society, commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a term of fifteen (15) years.

The bill prohibits people from forming, organising or belonging to any cult society, stating that the activities of the society are inimical to the peace of the society and constitute secret society.

It, however, added that any person who in order to compel a person to join an unlawful society, at or immediately after communicating to the person to join the unlawful society or any other person, commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a term of twenty (21) years.

“Any person, who being a member of a cult or unlawful society sets fire to anything in an open or enclosed place, or uses a firearm or an offensive weapon or causes to be used any deadly object, acid or any potent chemical within a premises in any location within the State or causes a firearm or an offensive weapon to be used or set fire to anything in such a manner as to endanger the health or property of any other person, commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a term of life imprisonment.

“Any student or member of any educational institution must not belong to any group or society that is not registered with the student affairs department of a university or any educational institution in the State,” the bill read.

It added that any association or society of students on campus or any other educational institution whose activities are inconsistent with the promotion of learning, social development and citizenship behaviour shall not be registered.

On Principal offenders, the bill states that any person who contravenes, aids or abets, protects, covers up or condones any other person who commits an offence under this law, or is an accessory before or after the fact of the contravention of any of the provisions of this law, commits an offence and will be regarded as a principal offender, who will be charged with doing the act or making the commission that the person that committed the offence made, and is liable on conviction to the same punishment that the person, who committed the offence is liable to.

On arrest, the bill states that police officer or any other person may arrest without warrant any person who commits an offence against the law.

“A person arrested in accordance with subsection (1) of this section will as soon as practicable be arraigned before the Court having jurisdiction in the place where the offence was committed to be dealt with according to the provisions of the law,” it read.

Earlier in his welcome address, Chairman of the House of Assembly Committee On Judiciary, Human Rights, Public Petitions and LASIEC, Hon. Victor Akande said that the Lagos parliament has institutionalised public participation on law making through public hearing.

“Public hearing is meant to assist the House to come up with better laws. The law is meant to criminalise cultism in our schools and guarantee peace in our societies,” he said.

In his keynote address the Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon. (Dr.) Mudashiru Obasa, represented by the Deputy Speaker, Hon. Wasiu Eshinlokun-Sanni, said that the bills were important to the development of the state.

“We are here today to discuss how to protect ourselves and our societies. We may have noticed the alarming rate of cultism and how our children are being indoctrinated. The issue has now extended to our primary and secondary schools.

“It is incumbent on us to act now to protect our societies. A law against drug abuse is also being considered by the House. The amendment to the criminal justice law will further increase criminal justice system by removing all the bottlenecks,” he said.

The Leader of the House, Hon. Sanai Agunbiade, who did an overview of the Bill, said that it was a very important bill and that the act of cultism has eaten deep into the fabrics of our society, adding that it was important for the government to intervene.

“The Lagos State Government has seen the need to work on the bill and review it. The bill has 19 sections and it takes cultism issue beyond the campus.

“The cultists have left the campuses due to the way they are being dealt with and cultism has extended to primary and secondary schools. The Bill shows the serious desire of the government to keep the society safe. It defines cult, firearms and others,” he said.

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Math Teacher Accused Of Having Sex With 2 Students And Getting Pregnant For One Tearfully Reveals The Baby Was Taken Away From Her

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The UK teacher who had a baby with an underage student while on trial for having sex with another teenage boy broke down in court after revealing her newborn baby girl had been “taken away” from her.

Manchester math teacher Rebecca Joynes, 30, sobbed to jurors over how her baby was taken “24 hours after being born” this past January — and now she only sees her for nine hours a week, Joynes told jurors on Monday, May 13, according to the Manchester Evening News.

“At the moment I have contact with her three times a week for three hours and that’s it,” she said through tears.

Joynes was arrested and released on bail on orders not to have unsupervised contact with anyone under 18 after allegedly grooming her pupil, known as Boy A in court, by buying him a $430 Gucci belt before bringing him to her apartment for unprotected sex.

She was suspended from school and eventually fired, but soon after, she began having a relationship with a 15-year-old boy, known in court as Boy B, whom she had a baby with in January.

Joynes, who has denied having sex with either boy when they were underage, told the court that when she learned of the allegations against her she had gone to the second boy in a “panic” and he deleted all of her phone’s content.

The former teacher denied having a sexual relationship with the second boy until after he turned 16 and she was already suspended from teaching.

According to her narration,

She said he had added her on Snapchat twice, which she only accepted the second time because she thought he “wanted to tell her something.”

Joynes said a friendship developed and he quickly became her “best friend” even though the boy would make flirtatious and sexualized comments toward her when he was drunk.

She told jurors that it wasn’t until after his 16th birthday that he messaged her saying “I’ve left school now” with a winky face.

After she received notice that she had been dismissed from her job, he went to her apartment, where following an emotional conversation, they had sex.

The two then entered a relationship that Joynes described as “quite toxic” telling the court how the teenager was “very controlling.”

After discovering she was pregnant, Joynes hid love notes for the boy to find around her apartment.

The notes eventually led to a piece of baby clothing that had the words “I love my daddy to the moon and back” written on it.

The court was told that she gave birth to their baby girl in January, but following an emergency court hearing, the newborn was taken away from Joynes.

Joynes has denied two counts of sexual activity with Boy A; two counts of sexual activity with Boy B; and two counts of sexual activity with Boy B while being a person in a position of trust.

Her trial is ongoing.

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First Man To Receive Pig Kidney Transplant Has Died

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The first Man to receive a genetically modified pig kidney transplant has died two months after the operation.

Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), which carried out the procedure in March, announced Sunday, May 12, that Richard “Rick” Slayman, 62, has died.

They said there was no indication his death was a result of the transplant.

Transplants of other organs from genetically modified pigs have failed in the past, but the operation on Mr Slayman, who was suffering with end-stage kidney disease, was hailed as a historic milestone.

In addition to kidney disease, Mr Slayman also suffered from Type 2 diabetes and hypertension.

In 2018, he had a human kidney transplant, but it began to fail after five years.

Following his pig kidney transplant on March 16, his doctors confirmed he no longer needed dialysis after the new organ was said to be functioning well.

“Mr Slayman will forever be seen as a beacon of hope to countless transplant patients worldwide and we are deeply grateful for his trust and willingness to advance the field of xenotransplantation,” MGH said in a statement.

Xenotransplantation is the transplanting of living cells, tissues or organs from one species to another.

MGH said it was “deeply saddened” at his sudden death and offered condolences to his family.

Mr Slayman’s relatives said his story was an inspiration.

“Rick said that one of the reasons he underwent this procedure was to provide hope for the thousands of people who need a transplant to survive,” they said.

“Rick accomplished that goal and his hope and optimism will endure forever.

“To us, Rick was a kind-hearted man with a quick-witted sense of humour who was fiercely dedicated to his family, friends, and co-workers,” they added.

While Mr Slayman received the first pig kidney to be transplanted into a human, it is not the first pig organ to be used in a transplant procedure.

Two other patients have received pig heart transplants, but those procedures were unsuccessful as the recipients died a few weeks later.

In one case, there were signs the patient’s immune system had rejected the organ, which is a common risk in transplants.

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Prince Harry And Meghan Markle Arrive Nigeria Today, May 10th

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The Duke and Duchess of Sussex came into Nigeria for a private visit following an invitation by the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Christopher Musa.

The Director of Sports, Defence Headquarters, DHQ, Air Vice Marshal Abidemi Marquis, said the founder of Invictus Games will spend three days in Nigeria and would interact with wounded soldiers and their families.

He said the visit scheduled from 10th to 13th May 2024 would help wounded soldiers in their recovery efforts.

Marquis said: “Because we realised that 80 per cent of our soldiers have been involved in this recovery programme, they are getting better.

“Their outlook on life is positive. You know, when you are engaged in, you experience a permanent disability, you know, issues, it affects your mental health and also your outlook on life.”

Prince Harry and Meghan who are already in Nigeria, First made a visit to children at the Lights Academy in Abuja, Nigeria.

Here are pictures.

Prince Harry and Meghan at Light Academy In abuja

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