A 35-year-old housewife, Sarah Gideon was arraigned on Thursday before a Kaduna Magistrate Court for allegedly stealing a goat in the Narayi area of the state.

The accused, who pleaded not guilty to one count of theft, was alleged to have attempted to steal the goat from one Martins Bobai’s residence in the Karji area, on Tuesday.

According to the Prosecutor, Inspector Sunday Luka, Gideon was allegedly working on a farm close to the complainant’s place of residence when she was said to have untied the goat that was in front of the house, and was about to escape with it.

“There was a neighbour that observed the accused pulling the goat away, and he raised the alarm which led to the accused being arrested immediately,” Luka told the court.

He further told the court that the defendant did not give a satisfactory explanation when the police questioned her at the Barnawa Police Division.

The charge according to the prosecutor violates Section 217 of the Kaduna State Penal Code Law of 2017.

Presiding over the matter, Magistrate Ibrahim Emmanuel granted bail to the defendant in the sum of N100,000 with one surety in like sum, and adjourned the case until August 14 for further hearing.

A three-year-old boy, Chibuike Uba, has died after falling into an uncovered soakaway in the Babarinsa area of Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos State.

The heartbreaking event happened on Wednesday when Chibuike’s mother, Utoro, visited her aunt in the community from her residence in the Epe area of the state.

It was gathered that the young mother was packing her belongings to return home when her son left the room to join his aunt, who had stepped outside to make a phone call.

Upon her return, the aunt inquired about the child’s whereabouts, assuming he had gone back inside. However, Chibuike was nowhere to be found, prompting an immediate search.

During the search, Utoro discovered her son’s slippers beside an uncovered soakaway located in a neighbouring compound.

The property reportedly lacks fencing, allowing easy access to the hazardous pit. She immediately raised an alarm and efforts were made to rescue the child.

Utoro recounted the ordeal in an emotional tone to our correspondent on Thursday, saying:
“I visited my aunt and was packing my bags to head back home when she received a call and my son followed her outside. I continued packing, assuming he was still with her.
“When she came back inside, I asked about my son’s whereabouts, and she claimed he had returned inside. I said no and quickly rushed outside to search for him but couldn’t find him.
“That was when I noticed his slippers near the soakaway on the next compound beside the house because it has no fence. I immediately shouted that my baby was inside the soakaway. That was how we quickly made efforts to pull him out and rushed him to the hospital.”

Chibuike was initially taken to a nearby private hospital in the Sapati area, where he was referred to the General Hospital in Akodo. Despite being placed on oxygen upon arrival, medical personnel later confirmed his death.

Utoro blamed negligence for the incident, alleging that her aunt had previously warned the landlord about the danger posed by the open soakaway. She said the warnings went unheeded.

“My aunt called the man and said she had repeatedly warned him to close the soakaway, but he kept promising to.
“Even the plank that my aunt used to cover it was damaged by the flood. As I speak to you, the soakaway is still open,” she said.

A Fulani youth leader in Plateau State, Hamisu Garba, has insisted that any attempt by natives to forcefully intimidate and chase them out of the state will not work as they are also citizens of the state.

Hamisu, who spoke to OSUNDAILY NG in an exclusive interview, said he and most Fulani people were born and raised in Plateau State and they do not know any other place apart from the state and as such, are from Plateau going by the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria which makes it clear that one can claim state of origin where he was born.

Hamisu wondered why some certain people were vehemently bent and concentrating efforts in seeing that Fulani people are exterminated and sent packing from Plateau, noting that such attempts will be resisted.

“I, like many other Fulani people, are also part of Plateau State and efforts, or should I say attempts to intimidate, frustrate and chase us out of Plateau will not work,” Hamisu said.

“I was born in Plateau State, I have my indigene form duly signed by both my district head and local government chairman which makes me a bona fide citizen of Plateau State.

“My parents were born in Plateau State and all my siblings were born and raised in Plateau State.

“All my life, I have lived in Plateau, I went to primary, secondary and university in Plateau State.

“The longest I have been out of Plateau was when I went for my youth service in Enugu State. So tell me, why would anyone say I am not from the state?

“So if anyone says we should leave Plateau, where do they want us to go? Is it a crime that we are Fulanis? Why are some people always profiling us as criminals and trouble makers?

“Yes, I agree that there are criminal elements among our people and just like our Governor, Barr. Caleb Manasseh Mutfwang said sometime ago, there are also criminals in other tribes.

“There are Mwaghavul criminals; there are Berom criminals; there are Tarok criminals; there are Ngas criminals; there are Irigwe criminals; there are Mupun criminals and there are Fulani criminals.

“But everyone is only concentrating on the Fulani, putting all efforts at demonizing and profiling all of us as criminals. I agree that some herders do go out of their way to cause problems but that does not mean all of them do that.

“I can tell you that most of the so-called bandits who attack some communities in the state are not only Fulani people.

“From our investigations, we have found out that there are even the natives among them who are recruited and paid.

“It will interest you to know that some natives are paid as little as N20,000 to provide information on their communities.

“So are those ones Fulani people as well? We have been living in peace for years. I grew up in our village rearing our cattle, playing with our neighbours, visiting them during Christmas and Easter, and they also visited us during Sallah and we ate together, played football together and some of our older uncles and aunties were married to the natives.

“We all lived in peace but I don’t know where and when the battle line was drawn and all of a sudden, the Fulani people became an endangered species that must be exterminated and chased out of Plateau State.

“But I dare say such will not work. No one, and I repeat, no one can chase us out of Plateau State.

“We as youth leaders have been engaging our people and educating them to live peacefully with others. We have been advocating for peaceful coexistence and we expect other tribes to do the same thing instead of putting all their efforts at demonizing us and putting all criminal acts in the state at our doorstep.

“Like I said earlier, not all Fulani people are criminals and bandits.

“We also have criminals in other tribes as well and everyone knows this. We just want to be left alone,” Hamisu stated.