PHOTO: TREE KILLS OVER 20 PEOPLE IN OWERRI, IMO STATE

Thirty one persons were killed when a tree at the Ukwu Uko evening market at Umuejinwaoke Umudagu village, Mbieri, Mbaitolu Local Government Area, Imo, fell on them. 16 others sustained degrees of injuries during the incident, which was caused by rainstorm on Thursday night. A resident of the community, Mr Nnaemeka Emenyonu, said in Owerri that the tree fell on the affected persons around 8:00 p.m. He said the tree also destroyed the village hall. “The big tree fell suddenly on 31 people, who died at the spot and injured 16 others. Those injured were taken to hospital. “The victims include two sisters, who sell tomatoes. Honestly, this is a saddest event in the history of our community,” he said. The traditional ruler of the community, Eze Godwin Duru, lamented that such a tragic incident had never occurred in the community. This is Tragic...God please receive their souls!!!

Mad Melon: Why I parted ways with Danfo Driver

For Azubuike Henry Oghenemario popularly known as Mad Melon of the Danfo Driver fame, you can take a man out of Ajegunle but you cannot take Ajegunle out of the man.
After hitting fame and fortune a few years ago, the musician moved out of Ajegunle, a sprawling ghetto and settled in Iyana-Iba, a quiet suburb of Lagos. But now he has retraced his steps back to Ajegunle because, according to him, Iyana Iba was too quiet for his liking.
In a chat with The Entertainer, Mad Melon who recently released a10-tracker entitled, Back in D Days, speaks on why he parted ways with his colleague, Mountain Black and decided to go solo. He also talks about his future plans among other issues. Excerpts:
Background
My name is Azubuike Henry Oghenemario popularly known as Mad Melon. I was born and bred in Ajegunle but I hail from Ndokwa East Local Government Area of Delta State. I had my primary and secondary school education in Lagos.
Mountain Black and I
I and my colleague, Mountain Black were in a group and we sang a song entitled, Danfo Driver which became very popular, but we could not get much exposure because our record label then did not promote our works very well. Right now, I’ve decided to do something different which made me to go solo but Mountain Black and I are still together, we’ll release an album if the need arises.  
Coming into music
I started singing when I was nine. I performed with Ras Kimono when his music was in vogue. I also used to dance to the late Michael Jackson’s songs to the admiration of my fans then. Someone took me to NTA where I performed for children, and I received a lot of gifts from those shows.
Later, I went fully into music but couldn’t make it due to funds. I couldn’t finish my education and I did the work of a conductor for some time. Later, I became a bus driver but I still had time for music. I performed at various clubs, birthday parties and child dedication ceremonies. Also, Mountain Black and I collaborated and released Danfo Driver, an eight-track album containing songs like Iya Mi O, and No Matter What Dem Do. Our second album was Kpolongo. It had tracks like Where You Dey and Where We Travel. In 2009, we released an album, New Chapter and in 2011, we released another album entitled, Back 2 Sender under two different record labels.
Both record labels could not promote our albums well and we could not shoot videos of those songs. Later, we did a video of New Chapter, Mishango and it was also not promoted well. So, both albums were not successful and it prompted our fans to think that we were out of music. But right now, I’ve decided to do something different because my partner could not meet up. I wrote my songs and understand them, not that I’m doing a song for someone else, so that was why I decided to do something different for the market, to show that this is Mad Melon, this is the key of Danfo Driver. It is still Danfo Driver, but I am releasing on my own label.
Back in D Days
My new album, Back in D Days, is a 10-track album. It has 10 tracks including Kanyi Gba Egwu, We Go Dey, Wetin Dey (Ghetto Song) Dey Well, Topom (Burkina Faso) Ololufemi, Gbemi Ga, Me Sha Dey Go, and Gbangan.
The name, Mad Melon
The name, Mad Melon came as a result of my love for Egusi, my best soup. I assume the microphone to be my melon. Each time I eat Egusi soup, it makes me feel different, and each time I hold the microphone, it enhances my mood to sing on stage.
My brand of music
I play reggae and conscious music because my mentor always plays my kind of music. That’s why I wail anytime I am on stage. I love the style they play.
Challenges
My major challenge is piracy, which is really pulling me back. An artiste will take all the pains to release an album and pirates will steal the songs and begin to reap from the sweat of that artiste. Piracy has made artistes not to benefit from their works and it is killing the industry.
On Nigerian music industry
The way we used to play music before is not the same now. Music is going higher now. But as for me, the sky is not just my limit, heaven is my limit and I hope to excel in my career as a musician.
Why I am different from others
It is the kind of music I play. Theirs is different from mine. I play household music, music that has message for the old, young and everybody, and people enjoy my songs. No, my music is not only for people living in the ghetto of Ajegunle but for everybody, hence, I play household music. I called it household music because it’s for everybody.
What I admire in a woman
I admire black and beautiful women. I like their physique. I am not married but I have two kids and there is no hope of reconciling with their mother. Right now, I am in a relationship and I intend to marry the lady.
Future plans
I just pray that this album I am coming out with takes me to the next level. I know it’s not by my power but God’s. I believe that my new solo album will take me to places.

Scandal

AN Abuja High Court Friday ruled that former chairman of the House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee on Fuel Subsidy regime, Farouk Lawan, and the secretary of the committee, Boniface Emenalo, must stand trial over the seven-count charge preferred against them by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), over alleged receipt of $620,000 bribe.
Ruling on Lawan and Emenalo’s application to quash the charges against them, the trial judge, Justice Mudashiru Oniyangi dismissed it as he held that the charges, as presently constituted, do not constitute an abuse of court process as claimed by the accused persons.
Justice Oniyangi held that the court has jurisdiction to hear the case as he held that the prosecution has established prima facie case from the proof of evidence placed before the court.
The court further held that Section 185 of the Criminal Procedure Act (CPC) does not require the prosecution to attach witness statement to the proof of evidence. It added that it was a misconception on the part of the accused persons’ counsel to say that the prosecution needed to attach witness statement to the application to prefer charges against the accused.
Farouk and Emenalo were accused by ICPC of receiving the sum of $620,000 from a Lagos based oil magnate and businessman, Femi Otedola to influence the report of the committee in favour of Zenon Oil and Gas Limited.  They were subsequently arraigned on a seven-count charge in which they pleaded not guilty and were granted bail.
At the last adjourned date, counsel to the two accused persons, Ricky Tarfa (SAN) moved an application to quash the charges preferred against the accused persons.
Moving the application, Tarfa claimed that the court ought not to have granted the application for leave to prefer the charges because the prosecution failed to provide adequate materials necessary for the judge to grant the application.
He asked the court to discharge the accused persons since no prima facie case had been established against them, adding that the foundation of the case against them was not legally laid.
According to him, the prosecutor failed to comply with the provisions of section 185 (1)(b) of the Criminal Procedure Code, which required that statements of witnesses be attached to the application to prefer charges.
Opposing the application, the prosecutor, Chief Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN), urged the court to dismiss the application, describing it as frivolous and a delay tactic to waste the time of the court, as well as an abuse of court process.
According to Awomolo, the Supreme Court had held in many cases that the purpose of seeking for leave of courts to prefer charges was to ensure that frivolous criminal charges were not filed, and not to allow the accused persons to see the details of the charges against them.
He therefore argued that the charges remained valid, adding that non-attachment of witnesses’ statements did not vitiate the legality of the charges.
Count one of the charge reads: “That you, Farouk Lawan (M) and Mr Emenalo Boniface (M) sometime in April 2012 or thereabouts in Abuja within the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) under the jurisdiction of this honourable court did, while acting in the course of your official duties as chairman and secretary (respectively) of House of Representatives ad-hoc committee on monitoring of fuel subsidy regime, conspire between yourselves and with each other to corruptly obtain the sum of $3,000,000  for yourselves from Mr Femi Otedola, chairman of Zenon Petroleum and Gas Ltd, as inducement to remove the name of Zenon Petroleum and Gas Ltd from the House of Representatives ad-hoc committee on monitoring of fuel subsidy regime’s report and did cause the House to remove the name of Zenon Petroleum and Gas Ltd from the said list and thereby committed an offence contrary to section 26(1)(c) of the Independent  Corrupt Practices and Other-Related Offences Act, 2000, and punishable under section 8(1) of the same Act.”
In count two, Lawan was accused of corruptly asking for $3,000,000 from Otedola with the intention of favouring him (Otedola) in the report of the ad-hoc committee, an offence punishable under section 8(1) of the same Act.
Lawan, in count three, was said to have corruptly agreed to accept the  $3,000,000, count four indicated that he obtained $500,000 from Otedola Otedola.   In the same vein, count five accused Emenalo of asking for $3,000,000 for himself from Otedola as a bribe, an offence punishable under section 8(1) of the ICPC 2000 Act.
The prosecution alleged in count six that Emenalo was offered bribe by Otedola but he failed to report the offer to any officer of the ICPC, an offence contrary to section 23(1) of the ICPC Act, 2000, and punishable under section 23(3) of the same 2000 ICPC Act.  In count seven, Emenalo was equally accused of receiving  $120,000 from Otedola.