Category Archives: enlightenment

Pastor shot dead on the Altar, as armed hoodlums invade Redeemed Christian Church of God


Bolanle Ibrahim, a Pastor at King of King Parish of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) in Lagos, has been shot dead.

It was gathered that Ibrahim was gunned down on the altar of the Church located inside Maidan village in Ikosi Ketu Local Government Area of Lagos State.

The deceased was said to be praying for some person during a child dedication when gunmen broke into the church.
The gunmen reportedly tried to drag Ibrahim out, but another senior Pastor in the church approached them and demanded what they wanted from him.

They were said to have attacked the Pastor before returning to the victim.

The deceased aunt, Mrs. Justina Alebiosu, described the incident as a clear case of assassination.

“Before they killed him, they showed him his picture to identify if he was actually the right person they came for.
His death was an unfortunate one, we have lost a gentleman, it was true we were born as Muslims, but we converted to Christianity. My thinking is that my brother had business transaction with someone,” New Telegraph quoted her to have said.

“I was told when the assailants wanted to drag him out of the pulpit where he was praying for women who brought their children for dedication, he begged them to kill him there and that was where he was eventually killed by the gunmen.”

She stated that the assailants also threatened to shoot any member of the church who tried to challenge them.

Mrs. Alebiosu called on the Police Commissioner, Hakeem Odumosu to release the body of her brother for burial, saying, “presently we are all down morally, because of his sudden death.”

The distraught wife of the deceased, Mrs. Kudirat Ibrahim, who said her husband was fasting the day he was killed dismissed the insinuation that he was a cultist.
The State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), CSP Muyiwa Adejobi, who confirmed the incident, said the police have launched a manhunt for the assailants.
He said: “We are investigating the case because we have a clue into the killing.”
He, however, said, the Commissioner of Police Lagos State, Hakeem Odumosu had directed the tactical Commanders to handle the matter as expected, saying “We will unravel the case.”
He added that the CP had taken steps to stem the activities of cultists in Mile 12 and Ketu areas.

200,000 senior citizens to get cash transfer in August, says FG

200,000 senior citizens to get cash transfer in August, says FG.

The Federal Government, yesterday, said 200,000 of the most vulnerable citizens in urban areas would receive its COVID-19 conditional cash transfer before the end of August 2021.

National Coordinator, National Social Safety-Net Coordinating Office (NASSCO), Lorwa Akpere, made this known in Abuja during the maiden dialogue of the senior citizen’s forum.

Noting that the government has registered 8.5 million households on the social register, he said: “200,000 senior citizens in urban areas have been targeted to receive the COVID-19 cash transfer. When the data is ready, the payment starts this month. This social register of 35 million individuals has over three per cent of senior citizens, which is about 2 million.”
According to him, “Those who identify the poor and vulnerable are community members themselves that say, ‘In this group, here are the vulnerable’. We are not targeting all senior citizens.”

He said the move was in line with the directive of the Federal Government that senior citizens must be captured under the COVID-19 conditional cash transfer programme, which targets one million people across the country.

He explained that the Office would disaggregate the location of senior citizens by their age, gender, educational level, vocation and status in terms of disability and illness so that help could reach them.

In her keynote address, Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Social Disaster and Development, Sadiya Umar Forouq, who lamented the effects of poverty, hunger and the COVID-19 pandemic, noted that any responsible government must fashion policies and legal frameworks to ensure the inclusion of its vulnerable population.

According to her, the efforts of the Federal Government are tailored towards the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals with the mantra: ‘Leave No One Behind.

By developing the National Policy on Ageing and establishing the National Senior Citizens Centre, Farouq said the current administration has ensured that the very essential institutions, systems and mechanisms to facilitate the quality of life, economic and social participation of older persons are guaranteed.

She noted that the challenges of older persons and the opportunities that accrue from meeting the challenges are integrated into Nigeria’s development plans.

She maintained that with the establishment of the National Senior Citizens Centre, the concerns of older persons would no longer be handled arbitrarily but addressed comprehensively as detailed in the National Senior Citizens Act and the National Policy on Ageing.

“The now instituted Older Persons Safety-net Programme, which targets very poor and vulnerable older persons, attests to the commitment of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration to age-inclusive development,” the minister added.