society
EndSARS: SANWO-OLU FULFILS PROMISE, PAYS N60 MILLION COMPENSATION TO FAMILIES OF SLAIN POLICE OFFICERS
The six police officers lynched in Lagos State in the wake of the violence that trailed the recent nationwide EndSARS protests may not have died in vain.
Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu compensated their family members with N10 million each on Thursday, fulfilling the State Government’s pledge made during an earlier meeting with police officers at the State police command.
The Governor’s gesture, the beneficiaries said, has not only wiped off their tears, it has also brightened their hope to attain the future their slain breadwinners had envisioned.
As part of the promise to the families, Sanwo-Olu also announced scholarship awards to the children of the deceased officers up to the university level.
The Governor presented cheques to the wives and children of the slain officers at the 14th Town Hall meeting on security held at Civic Centre on Victoria Island. The yearly event with the theme: “Lagos Security: Resilience in the Face Adversity”, was organised by the Lagos State Security Trust Fund (LSSTF).
The late police officers are Yaro Edward, an Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), Inspector Ayodeji Erinfolami, Inspector Aderibigbe Adegbenro, Inspector Samsom Ehibor, Sergeant Bejide Abiodun and Inspector Igoche Cornelius.
Sanwo-Olu described the slain officers as “heroes”, saying the deceased sacrificed their lives to secure lives and properties in the State. He said the compensation was the State Government’s modest reward for their gallantry, pointing out that the gesture would help the families to heal from the loss.
He said: “Some of our gallant police officers paid the supreme price for our security and safety during the recent EndSARS protests. These are the officers deployed to protect our families from hoodlums but they were lynched in the violence. Today, I am happy to announce and present N10 million compensation through LSSTF to each family of the officers. All their children have also been placed on scholarship up to university level, courtesy of the State Government.”
The Governor, at the event, received the report of security activities across the State in the last 12 months from Commissioner of Police, Mr. Hakeem Odumosu, expressing his delight at the downward trend observed in sophisticated crimes, such as kidnapping and armed robbery, in the last one year.
As Lagos embarks on a rebuilding effort, Sanwo-Olu reiterated that security would remain a top priority for his Government. He noted that Lagos was on the verge of bridging technological and logistical gaps in its security architecture before the violence that trailed EndSARS protest erupted.
The coordinated arson of the past weeks, the Governor said, has necessitated the need to tighten security across the State, giving assurance that the State Government would invest more in intelligence-led policing and improve operational capacity and welfare of personnel serving in Lagos.
He said: “We must sustain the steady progress Lagos has recorded in security of lives and businesses. The issue of security is a shared mission. The more we are able to engage the citizens, the better we will become at nipping crimes in the bud. Our Government will continue to proactively engage all stakeholders as part of ongoing exercise to address all security concerns.
“We have taken proactive measures to make the necessary budgetary provision for security. We will be committing N37.8 billion to Public Order and Safety in 2021 because we fully understand the correlation between development and security. We will stop at nothing to flush out criminal elements whose sole aim is to foment chaos and perpetrate crimes. Lagos will offer no hiding place for bandits and criminals.”
Sanwo-Olu disclosed that the Government would be committing funds to social protection to address contributing factors to crimes, including substance abuse, unemployment and poor education. He said the State remained focused on addressing issues that led to recent youth agitations, adding that programmes would be rolled out to cultivate young people’s trust and get them to embrace participatory governance.
The Governor thanked the private sector for its support for Lagos security initiative and partnership with the Government through LSSTF.
Odumosu, in his extensive report, said his men rose to the occasion of effectively combating crimes in Lagos because of constant logistics supplies from the State Government.
Despite the trauma the police personnel went through during the EndSARS protests, the police chief said the Command re-mobilised officers to guard troubled communities where police stations were burnt and destroyed.
Giving the breakdown of crimes recorded in Lagos from October 2019 to last September, Odumosu said the Command foiled 273 cases of armed robbery, arresting 1,181 robbers in operations. He said 27 robbers were killed in the encounter during the period.
The police boss said the State recorded a sharp decline in kidnapping in the past year, an effort he linked to improved intelligence-driven operations. He, however, said cases of cultism and drug abuse were on the rise, promising to beam focus to the issues.
Executive Secretary, LSSTF, Dr. AbdulRazaq Balogun, observed that there was a decline in donations to the Funds in the current year, a factor he linked to the outbreak of Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and establishment of similar trust funds agencies by other States.
He said LSSTF had provided 90 patrol vehicles and six units of outboard engine boats for security operations across the State in addition to logistics support provided for the personnel.
He said: “There’s need to acquire more equipment, particularly crowd control assets. Lagos has always set the pace for other States. We deserve to have a security architecture that can withstand any form of adversity.”
CANAAN CITY RESIDENTS DEMAND IGP ACTION OVER POLICE-BACKED LAND INVASION IN ONDO
Ondo, Nigeria – The residents of Canaan City Crescent, Fagun, Ondo West Local Government Area, have called on the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, to urgently intervene in an ongoing land invasion allegedly aided by officers of the Ondo State Police Command and SWAT operatives from Akure.
The disputed land, located at the end of Road 13 Avenue 14, Fagun, Ondo, has been the subject of multiple legal battles since 2007. From the Customary Court to the High Court and up to the Court of Appeal in Akure, the Fasimoye family has consistently been declared the lawful owner.
Despite these clear and repeated court judgments, in August 2023, a group led by Mr. Olanrewaju Fawehinmi and Mr. Williams allegedly invaded the land, destroying crops, obstructing access to property, and intimidating residents, with police backing. Since the invasion, residents have reported a spike in armed robbery, kidnapping, and burglary in the community.
A pending case at the Federal High Court, Akure, between the Fasimoye family and the Nigerian Police Force has not deterred the ongoing harassment and illegal occupation.
The residents are demanding that the IGP:
1. Launch an immediate investigation into the role of police officers in the illegal occupation.
2. Withdraw all police protection from the invaders until the court determines the case.
3. Guarantee the safety of lawful property owners and residents.
Speaking on behalf of the residents, Dr. Bolaji O. Akinyemi stated:
> “If the Nigerian Police can be weaponised by private interests to subvert court rulings, then no citizen’s property or peace is safe. We demand the IGP act now to restore the integrity of law enforcement.”
The residents warn that silence from the IGP will embolden further impunity and erode public trust in the Nigerian Police Force.
Contact:
Residents’ Association – Canaan City Crescent, Fagun, Ondo West LGA
Email: [email protected]
Revolutionizing Nigeria’s Energy Future: The Gbenga Komolafe Story
By Moses Udo
Among the constellation of Nigeria’s leadership, there are individuals whose vision and tenacity do more than just inspire people; they are representatives and architects of transformation. Engr. Gbenga Komolafe, helming the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), is irrevocably one such luminary. His leadership over this critical agency has been exceptionally administrative; it is emblematic of the purposeful reform that has become one of the answers to the clarion calls within the broader framework of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
Komolafe’s leadership has yielded structural innovations, an article that can be likened to a Master builder who is laying the foundation for a high skyscraper. He is constructing a new framework for Nigeria’s oil and gas industry. And for the record, he has championed non-kinetic strategies to quell crude oil theft, a feat which has remarkably reduced losses to 5,000 barrels per day, and has stabilized production at 1.7 million barrels per day. Under his Project 1 MMBOPD initiative, there is an expectation for an additional million barrels per day by December 2026. These types of gains are what cannot just be conjured from rhetoric, but only from disciplined execution by a focused leader.
However, what we can call the most compelling evidence of Komolafe’s reformative ascendancy lies in the report of N5.21 trillion mid-year revenue generated by the NUPRC in the first half of 2025 alone. To put this in a better context, this figure represents 42.7% of the record N12.2 trillion garnered in the entire year of 2024. Even against the N15 trillion target of 2025, this constitutes 34.7% already achieved in just six months. This is a sterling pace amid global oil market volatility and domestic production challenges. This monetary performance is not merely impressive; it is massive and undoubtedly transformative.
Moreover, Engineer Komolafe’s strategies have strengthened the confidence of investors and also repositioned Nigeria’s upstream sector as a reliable sector for the country’s revenue. It’s no mean feat that the nation now holds the largest gas reserves and the second-largest oil reserves in Africa; this enviable status owes much to the labor and strategic framework he has painstakingly put in place.
It is also worth noting to state that Komolafe’s tenure is equally defined by transparency, sustainability, and inclusivity. In achieving this feat, he has pioneered the Nigeria Gas Flare Commercialisation Programme (NGFCP) and the Carbon Credits Earning Framework, becoming a twin initiative that is positioned at the intersection of environmental responsibility and economic sustainability. These flagship projects are aimed at not just eliminating the challenges of gas flaring but also reducing methane emissions, encouraging carbon capture technologies, monetizing the decarbonization strategy, remaining at the vanguard of the country’s energy transition, and promoting sustainable energy practices.
In complementing these, he established the Host Community Development Trusts (HCDTs) and an Alternative Dispute Resolution Centre (ADRC), which help to create a participatory governance and further foster conflict resolution that once marred upstream operations.
Under his leadership, the upstream sector has achieved fiscal discipline through metering reforms, transparent cargo declarations, and simplified royalty frameworks as a result of his adoption of progressive regulation, which is a plan that is rooted in the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), the 10-Year Regulatory and Corporate Strategic Plan (2023–2033), and the 2024 Regulatory Action Plan.
The Energy Policy Advancement Centre (EPAC) lauded this performance as a salient testament to strategic governance, foresight, and institutional discipline. Their Director-General, Dr. Ibrahim Musa, asserted, “NUPRC has moved beyond passive regulation to active value generation”, and he further emphasized that what sets this leadership apart “is not just the quantum of revenue but the discipline with which it is being pursued”.
Musa also praised NUPRC’s debt recovery drive, which yielded $459,226 from outstanding obligations — part of a cumulative $1.436 billion owed from crude oil lifting contracts.
He said: “Debt recovery may not attract headlines, but it is the backbone of fiscal discipline. Every dollar recovered is a step towards stabilising government finances and strengthening our economic resilience. The NUPRC’s persistence in this regard is commendable.”
But why do all these matter within President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda? At its heart, the president’s agenda seeks to restore public confidence, strengthen institutional capacity, and rejuvenate Nigeria’s struggling economy. Fortunately for Nigerians, Engr. Komolafe’s conduct encapsulates these ideals. Komolafe is not merely an agent of reform; he is an embodiment of that agenda’s promise. His work is the praxis through which Renewed Hope becomes a loved reality, and more than just a campaign slogan it used to be known for.
History praises visionaries because they alone perceive possibilities where others see only patches, and Komolafe exemplifies this through his strategic foresight in curbing theft and production stabilization within the oil and gas sector. His holistic reforms have integrated environmental imperatives, enshrined accountability within the NUPRC, and created community welfare; His ability to leverage policies and frameworks to recalibrate oil and gas governance has fostered institutional renewal; and his ability to deliver tangible gains for the federation’s revenue base has ensured fiscal prominence.
As we have found ourselves in an era where grandiloquence often eclipses genuine progress, and political ambition serves personal interest, the tenure of Eng. Gbenga Komolafe in NUPRC has stood among others as impactful, transformative, and substantive. He is not a mere bureaucrat; he is an architect of modern Nigeria’s energy future, who builds a legacy of reforms, and not rhetoric.
His contributions ripple outside the confines of the oil and gas sector, nourishing the ethos and reinforcing the Renewed Hope Agenda upon which our collective future depends. Thanks to him, the oil Industry is now much more efficient as a result of the implemented strategic reform, which drastically reduced capital and operational expenditure in oil production.
Indeed, a man of vision is not just an asset but a lodestar to his nation. In Gbenga Komolafe, we find a man of vision who is unequivocally an invaluable asset to our great nation.
Udo is a public affairs analyst writing from Glasgow, United Kingdom.
PMAN Backs Police Report on Kukwaba Land Dispute, Cuts Ties with Olusco
Abuja, Nigeria — The Performing Musicians Employers’ Association of Nigeria (PMAN) has endorsed the findings of the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Monitoring Unit on alleged fraudulent activities linked to Olusco Heritage & Investment Ltd and its Managing Director, Mr. Olufemi Olumeyan, about Plot 504, Kukwaba, Abuja.
According to the police investigation, there is a prima facie case of fraud, intimidation, violence, and breach of peace arising from unauthorised dealings on the land. PMAN, the rightful title holder, said the report confirms long-standing concerns about irregular transactions and thanked the police for their professionalism.
The controversy began in 2023 when PMAN signed a joint venture agreement with Olusco. The agreement, however, was subject to the payment of a premium which Olusco never fulfilled, leaving it unenforceable. Despite this, Olusco allegedly went ahead to advertise and sell portions of the land.
PMAN said the situation worsened after Olusco requested that foreign investment funds be paid into a personal account, a move the association rejected. Later, it emerged that Olusco had struck a separate ₦350 million development deal with G & D Building & Engineering Ltd before disputes arose, leading to petitions to the police.
The Monitoring Unit also flagged the involvement of former PMAN officials, including Mr. Boniface Itodo and entertainer Mr. Zakky Azzay, who were accused of impersonating executives after their dismissal, thereby misleading the public and aggravating the crisis.
On December 7, 2024, PMAN formally terminated its arrangement with Olusco, citing breaches and risks to the public. The association has since tightened security on the site with police support. During one operation, officers dispersed trespassers, and one person sustained a minor injury while fleeing. PMAN clarified that no shots were fired, countering sensational online reports.
National President, Pretty Okafor, said PMAN’s focus is now on accountability and protecting members of the public. “Anyone who paid money to unauthorised parties should come forward. We are working with the IGP Monitoring Unit and EFCC to trace funds, identify victims, and ensure justice,” he said.
PMAN stressed that no sale or allocation on Plot 504 is valid without its written approval and urged potential buyers to exercise caution
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