Kidnapped ! Edo Head of Service, Gunmen Kill Driver …www.edo.news

Gunmen yesterday kidnapped Edo State Head of Service, Mr.
Anthony Okungbowa along Oza Road in Orhionmwon Local Government
Area (LGA) of the state several sources have told THISDAY.

Edo state is becoming notorious for kidnapping. On December 3,
one person was killed in the state during a kidnap incident.

During the latest onslaught, the assailants reportedly killed
Okungbowa’s driver, according to different government officials
that spoke privately with THISDAY.

One of the government officials, last night, confirmed the
incident, which he said, had stoked panic among the state’s top
functionaries.

The official disclosed that Okungbowa was kidnapped while
returning to Benin, the Edo State capital after attending a
function in Orhionmwon LGA.

Another government official, also, confirmed that Okungbowa was
abducted while returning to the state, though claimed that the
state government had been making efforts to secure his release from
the den of kidnappers.

He disclosed that the state governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki had
been in constant touch with the Edo State Police to ensure
Okungbowa was released.

News of Okungbowa’s kidnapping has since been trending on the
social media, especially Twitters.

Deji Adesoga in his twitter handle @DejiAdesogan said “Gunmen
suspected to be kidnappers, on Saturday, kidnapped the ‪#Edo State
Head of Service, Anthony Okungbowa, along Oza Road, in Orhionmwon
LGA of the state. His driver was reportedly killed.”‬

Another Twitter handle, @Naija_PR said: “Gunmen have kidnapped
the Edo State Head of Service, Mr Anthony Okungbowa and killed his
driver.”

In its Twitter handle, @SaharaReporters reported that gunmen
Kidnapped Edo Head of Service | Sahara Reporters.

Both the Edo State Government and the state police command are
yet to formally comment on the incident, though manhunt had been
launched to free Okungbowa.

On December 3, one person was killed during a kidnap incident in
Edo State. The police said many people, mainly passengers, were
eventually abducted by the kidnappers.

The police said the dead victim was a member of a vigilante
group in the Urhokosa/Obagie area of the Benin-Ekpoma-Auchi highway
where the kidnap occurred. Members of the vigilante group had
engaged the kidnappers in a shootout.

During the incident gunmen laid siege to the road and attacked a
commercial bus at the Urhokosa/Obagie end of the road. They took a
number of the passengers hostage.

A driver of one of the vehicles plying the road who managed to
escape, Martins Aibogun, said a group of suspected kidnappers led
the first set of the victims to the bush, while a second group
caused the driver of the bus to use the vehicle to block the
road.

Aibogun said, “There were two sets of armed kidnappers. I think
they are coordinated in the way they operate. The security agencies
must step up their tactics to address this problem that has become
a daily occurrence.”

A trailer driver, who saw the blockade and suspected that it
might be for the sinister operation of the men of the underworld,
was said to have refused to stop and rammed his articulated vehicle
into the blockade, killing two of the passengers, according to
Aibogun.

Aibogun said other vehicles also ran into the traffic jam caused
by the blockade, adding that they were attacked by another group of
the kidnappers, who selected victims and marched them into the
bush.

He said a member of a vigilante group in the area, who acted
bravely by confronting the gunmen, was shot dead by the
kidnappers.

The commuter added that he met some other persons, who also
escaped, in the bush, adding that the gunmen were shooting
sporadically for a long time without any resistance from the
security agents.

The Government of Ekiti State has translated five of its laws
into Yoruba.

This is contained in a statement signed by the Director of Law
Review, Ministry of Justice of the state.

The Director said the laws are Amotekun law, 2019; Gender-Based
Violence Prohibition Law, 2019; Property Protection Law, 2019;
Sustainable Development Goals law, 2019; and Ekiti State Transition
Law, 2019.

Read details below:

MINISTRY OF JUSTICE TRANSLATES AMOTEKUN LAW,
GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE ( PROHIBITION) LAW AND THREE OTHERS LAWS INTO
YORUBA LANGUAGE.

In furtherance of the directive of Governor, Ekiti State, Dr.
John Kayode Fayemi on the need to ensure that Laws of Ekiti State
are understood and accessible to the majority of the people living
in Ekiti State, the Ministry of Justice has translated five laws
into Yoruba Language.

These laws are:

1. Ekiti State (Transition) Law, 2019: A Law to establish
arrangements for the political transfer of administration from one
democratically elected governor to another, to provide for the
regulation of the political transfer of power and for related
matters.

2. Ekiti State Gender-Based Violence (Prohibition) Law, 2019: A
Law to repeal the Ekiti State Gender-based Violence (Prohibition)
Law, 2011 and enact the Ekiti State Gender-based Violence
(Prohibition) Law, 2019 to incorporate the provisions of the Law to
Prohibit Female Circumcision or Genital Mutilation in Ekiti State
Cap. E13, the Law to protect the Rights of Widows, Cap. R6 and the
Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act (VAPP) Act 2015, in one
law, and other matters connected therewith.

3. Ekiti State Sustainable Development Goals Law, 2019: A Law to
provide for the mainstream of sustainable development goals across
the workings of government, to raise awareness of sustainable
development goals and practices across Ekiti State and to promote
the adoption thereof.

4. Ekiti State Property Protection (Anti-Land Grabbing) Law,
2019: A Law to prohibit forceful entry, illegal occupation of
landed properties, violent and fraudulent conducts in relation to
landed properties in Ekiti State and other related matters.

5. Ekiti State Security Network Agency Law, 2019: A Law to
establish the Ekiti State Security Network Agency and Amotekun
Corps to assist in maintaining law and order in Ekiti State and for
connected purposes.

This is the first phase of the Ministry of Justice’s
“Translation of Laws of Ekiti State into Yoruba
Language”Project.

Copies of these Laws can be obtained from the office of:

The Director,
Law Review,
Ministry of Justice,
Phase III, State Secretariat
Ado-Ekiti