My Status, a JoyNews’ Hotline Documentary, tells the story of a 20-year-old girl who became HIV positive after she had unprotected s.e.x with a man who promised to pay for her exam registration fees.
Akosua, not her real name, needed some money to resit her West African Secondary School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) final exams after she failed in two core subjects.
A man, twice her age, offered to help but demanded a “night under the sheets”.
The under-pressured 20-year-old Akosua succumbed to the demand from her helper but little did she know that her benefactor was HIV positive.
“Later on he invited me to his house, I went to his house, I did not know what came and we had s3xual intercourse,” Akosua recounted.
Now she is one of the over 335,000 people living with the virus in Ghana. She has been sharing her story with JoyNews Fostina Sarfo in their latest hotline documentary ‘’MY STATUS.’’
’MY STATUS’’ aired Monday, September 23, 2019, on the JoyNews channel on Multi TV.
The Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, has accused the police in Ondo State of not being serious about resolving the murder of Olufunke Olakurin, the daughter of its leader, Reuben Fasoranti.
The group in a statement on Sunday by its spokesperson, Yinka Odumakin, said it was compelled to speak out over the lackadaisical attitude of the police in investigating the gruesome murder of the woman.
According to Mr Odumakin, the police had shown signs that it had no plans to launch any serious investigation into the matter.
“Mr Kehinde Fasoranti, the junior brother of the deceased had stated openly a day after the incident that the police in Ore told him the sister was killed by Fulani herdsmen when he went to collect her body the day she was killed and challenged the police to bring out the statement he wrote at their station. They have not contradicted him till date,” the statement read.
“The first sign we got that there was no attempt to launch any serious investigation into the murder was when the car in which she was killed was released to the family from Ore police station the day after the murder without any forensic investigation into the most prized evidence at the scene of the crime.
“It was when we engaged the police high command that they came to pick the car six days later. The car has now been returned to the family with no report on the examination.”
Mr Odumakin alleged that there was no attempt by the police to carry out any autopsy on the corpse until the family and Afenifere also demanded one from the police before the burial.
“One was carried out and only that report was given to the family when they went to collect the car,” he said.
“Beyond this, the police have not made any briefing to the family on their investigations into this dastardly act.
“There are other bizarre developments that worry us on police investigations into this murder. For instance, the driver of the car in which Mrs Olakunrin was killed has not been asked a question by the police till date.
“Furthermore, a few days after the killing, a staff of the deceased’s husband, Bankole Olatunbosun, was arrested as he was said to be in touch with Mr Olakunrin’s driver, Femi Ajayi, who drove the Sienna bus in the deceased convoy.
“A week after the killing, Femi was brought into the family house in Akure by police officers in the anti-kidnap unit.
“The story from the crime scene was that Femi got down from the Sienna bus and followed the gunmen who killed Mrs Olakunrin.
“He claimed he was kidnapped but there is no evidence of ransom requested from him or his family.
He and Bankole Olatunbosun are now free men. Femi even sauntered into the Fasoranti family house three days ago.
“All the above put together suggest to us clearly that the police have not done any serious investigations into this murder. And it worries us that we are seeing all the signs of lethargy that usually attend high profile murders with powerful masterminds in our country.
“Afenifere, therefore, calls on all those who respect human lives in Nigeria and across the world to join us in asking the police and by extension the authors of ‘where are the cows?’ Where are the killers of Funke Olakunrin?”
Mrs Olakurin was murdered in July around Ore in Ondo State by persons suspected to be Fulani herdsmen, who also took captive other persons during the attack.
The co-convener of #RevolutionNow protest, Omoyele Sowore, who has been in the detention of the Department of State Services since August 3, 2019, has accused the DSS of maltreating him.
“I was abducted in the middle of the night. I was taken to one of your facilities in Lagos. I was beaten up, rough-handled on my way to the facility in the car. And my cousin, who was in the room with me, was also beaten and handcuffed, and my properties were forcefully seized. And when I got there, of course, the maltreatment continued, they threw me on a cold floor and locked the door.
“I had no contact with even the guards for two nights; I was in that facility before I was flown here by your agents. So, I was seriously maltreated,” Sowore reportedly said during an interrogation session by DSS operatives.
The National Legal Adviser of African Action Congress, the political party on whose platform Sowore contested the presidential race in this year’s general elections, Inibehe Effiong shared the
“Transcript from DSS Interrogation of Sowore Upon Abduction – Excerpt 1,” on his Facebook page on Monday.
According to the transcript, Sowore was interrogated by five DSS operatives in the presence of his lawyer, one “Barrister Sam.”
One Usman Usman, a DSS operative, who led the interrogation, was said to have told Sowore that, “We’ll be asking you questions and our advice is for you to be truthful to the best of your knowledge.
We’ll not force you to say anything. Whatever question we ask and you have a problem with or you don’t have an answer to or you don’t want to answer, there is no compulsion, you simply tell us you’re not going to answer these questions.”
When asked by Usman to say “If in the course of your being here anybody has molested you in any way or maltreated you?” Sowore said, “Yes,” and went on to give the response above.
On whether he was denied food, the detainee said, “While in your facility in Lagos, yes, but I decided that because of their hostility I won’t take any food until I am allowed to talk to a lawyer. I continued to refuse food; until I was allowed to speak with a lawyer, and I have seen my lawyer, but I am still being denied access to my immediate family.”
Asked if he had made calls to his family members, Sowore replied his interrogator, “I’ve not made any calls to them. My brother is outside; he wasn’t allowed to see me as we speak.
“No, I’ve not made any call to my family members, I only made calls to people I remember their numbers to bring me food and asked them to call my brother. My brother came in today. But he was denied access to me, so I haven’t been able to see him and as a result, speak with my mum, wife and kids.”(sic)
It's no secret that having someone else's children over to stay at your house can be challenging.
They can behave badly, be noisy and just generally disrupt the routine you have created for your family.
In order to combat this, one mum decided to get it in writing that any of her son's friends had to treat her home with respect and follow her rules.
The unnamed parent drew up a contract which she has guests sign before they're allowed to sleep over - and it's very strict.
A screenshot of the contract was recently shared on Reddit.
The document features four main rules or terms that the pals have to agree to.
The first states that there will be no touching or tickling during the sleepover.
"Touching/tickling of other people will result in immediate physical separation that could remain in place until pick up time. This means we keep our hands to ourselves and off of each other," it reads.
The second point is all about changing into PJs.
"Changing of clothes will be done independently and in private space with the individual not in company of anyone else. This means no nudity in front of anyone else, whatsoever."
The contract continues to say: "Disruptions including excess volume of voice or electronics will result in suspension of such privileges. This means no shouting, interrupting or blasting the TV or iPad.
"Complaining will not be tolerated. Constructive requests are encouraged in a calm, polite tone of voice. This means, you wait to have my attention and acknowledgement before you start speaking to me."
The document adds: "I have read and understand the rules and conditions of having a play date at Ms. [name removed]'s house and I agree to show respect at all times.
"If my behaviour reaches and maintains standards then a fun time will be had and brunch will occur together the following day. If my behaviour falls below standards then future play dates or sleep overs might not occur again without serious consideration and stipulation."
People on Reddit were shocked by the contract and shared their thoughts in the comments below.
One person proclaimed: "This is completely insane."
Another said: "Makes me feel grateful my mom was never this controlling."
A third added: "It must suck to be this woman's kid."
The Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Yola, Adamawa State, has sacked Shuaibu Langaga of the All Progressives Congress for certificate forgery.
Langaga had his election as member representing Mubi North in the Adamawa State Assembly nullified on Monday because he forged a first school leaving certificate, according to the panel.
The tribunal subsequently ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission to issue certificate of return to Suleiman Vokna of the Peoples Democratic Party.
Langaga however, said he will appeal the judgment.
Russia could face a ban from all major sports events over "discrepancies" in a lab database, the World Anti-Doping Agency has warned.
The country has been given three weeks to explain "inconsistencies" or risk being excluded from the Olympics and world championships.
Russia also faces being barred from hosting major events. "There's evidence this data has been deleted," chairman of Wada's compliance panel, Jonathan Taylor, told BBC Sport.
"We need to understand from the Russian authorities what their explanation is."
Pro-democracy campaigner and Convener of RevolutionNow movement, Omoyele Sowore, will be arraigned at the Federal High Court in Abuja today.
The Department of State Services had on Friday charged Sowore on seven counts bordering on conspiracy to commit treason, cyberstalking President Muhammadu Buhari, and also insulting him in a television interview.
Sowore was arrested in Lagos on August 3, 2019 for planning a series of peaceful protests against bad governance in Nigeria.
Queer Eye star, Jonathan Van Ness, has revealed he's living with HIV. The 32-year-old opens up about his condition for the first time in his new book, Over The Top, in the hope it'll break the stigma surrounding HIV.
The hair stylist who shot to fame on the Netflix makeover show told the New York Times: "I've had nightmares every night for the past three months because I'm scared to be this vulnerable with people."
He says he's been preparing himself mentally for much of the summer for the release of the memoir in which he also talks about being an addict and a survivor of sexual abuse.
But he says they're issues that have to be heard.
"It's hard for me to be as open as I want to be when there are certain things I haven't shared publicly," he says.
"These are issues that need to be talked about."
And, he's been flooded with messages of support from fans and friends.
One person has died of Lassa Fever in Benue State, Commissioner for Health and Human Service, Sunday Ongbabo, said.
In a statement on Monday, he said that a combined surveillance team had already visited the area to prevent an outbreak.
Ongbabo said, “This is to alert members of the public that there is outbreak of viral haemorrhagic fever (Lassa) in the neighbouring states of Nasarawa, Taraba and Plateau.
“So far, 60 confirmed cases, with 16 deaths, have been recorded nationally. “Benue has confirmed one index case with one death.
“The combined surveillance team has already visited to comb the area for tracing.”
Cristiano Ronaldo missed out as Lionel Messi was named FIFA Best Player of the Year for the sixth time on Monday night.
The Barcelona superstar took the award ahead of his long-time rival and Liverpool ’s defensive rock Virgil van Dijk.
Messi, who won La Liga last season as well as the European golden boot, last won the award in 2015.
His win was something of a surprise, given Van Dijk had been expected to take the crown following his role in the Reds’ Champions League success.
The Dutchman had also taken UEFA’s best European player award last month.
But Messi took the honours at the La Scala Opera house in Milan - with Ronaldo conspicuous by his absence.
The Portuguese superstar wasn’t even named by hosts when the FIFPro World XI was announced, with the 34-year-old treated as persona non grata and no mention being made that one of the eleven was missing.
Ten minutes after the ceremony ended in Italy, Ronaldo took to Instagram to show off what he’d been upto away from the event - seemingly immersing himself in a book while son Cristiano Jr appeared to be doing his homework.
He also offered up a few words, although it isn't quite discernible whether he is talking about his not being victorious, or his current thigh injury.
"Patience and persistence are two characteristics that differentiate the professional from the amateur," wrote Ronaldo.
"Everything that is big today has started small. You can't do everything, but do everything you can to make your dreams come true.
"And keep in mind that after night always comes dawn."
Barcelona's Lionel Messi won the best men's player at the Best Fifa Football Awards in Milan as Juventus' Cristiano Ronaldo and Liverpool's Virgil van Dijk missed out on the top prize. It is the sixth time Messi has been voted the world's best, after wins in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2015.
The 32-year-old Argentine helped Barcelona win La Liga and reach the semi-finals of the Champions League. United States forward Megan Rapinoe won the best women's player award.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp was named men's coach of the year after a season in which they beat Tottenham 2-0 to lift the Champions League.
Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson was also a winner as he took the best goalkeeper prize ahead of Manchester City's Ederson and Barcelona's Marc-Andre ter Stegen.
Customs officers in Oyo State have been accused of killing an okada rider. According to the news making the rounds, the officers were allegedly chasing rice smugglers in a Sienna bus when the unfortunate incident happened.
The officers had succeeded in double crossing their vehicle right at the front of Bovas Filling Station, but the occupants of the bus resisted arrests which made the officers open fire, but unfortunately, a stray bullet hit an okada rider.
The report also claims the men fled the scene shortly after seeing what happened. Photo from the alleged scene below...
The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has expressed concern over what it called influx into the Southeast by unidentified faces.
It raised the alarm on Sunday in a statement signed by its chairman in the Southeast, Bishop Dr. Goddy Okafor and the Secretary, Dr. S.C Nwokolo.
The Christian body, which restated its opposition to the controversial RUGA programme, said such strange faces should be made to leave the zone.
According to the group, “all the people without identity, who are flooding the zone should be stopped by immigration and other law enforcement agencies.
“Also, suspected foreign herders and the killer herdsmen are asked to leave the zone immediately. Most of such foreign and killer herders have been identified in some parts of the zone.”
CAN lauds El-Rufai’s decision to save 110-year-old Church from demolition
While commending the Southeast Governors for steps taken so far towards addressing activities of killer herdsmen, it said community policing policy already initiated should be strengthened.
CAN, however, observed with dismay that “the local government chairmen, traditional rulers, President-Generals, (PGs) and councilors are living in the urban areas, thereby abandoning the villagers to their fate.
“We condemn such habit and ask them to start operating from their villages. Let them come back and be the gatekeepers in their villages.”
It maintained its stand that “RUGA should be totally abolished. To this effect, we condemn the inciting statements made by the President of Miyyeti Allah, asking for RUGA in all the States, else there won’t be peace in the country.
“CAN is calling for his arrest, as comments credited to him has always been inciting. Let him be tried by a competent court of law.”
PDP chieftain and a critic of the president administration, Ben Bruce has hailed President Buhari over his action during the xenophobic attacks in South Africa, especially on Nigerians. Sharing a video of himself condemning the President, Bruce wrote;
''@MBuhari showed maturity and restraint on the xenophobic attacks in South Africa and this is commendable.''
Aaron Carter's twin sister has followed in Nick Carter's footsteps, filing a restraining order against her brother.
Angel Conrad filed documents Friday in Los Angeles for a domestic violence restraining order.
Recall Aaron's brother, Nick, filed a restraining order against him on Monday claiming Aaron had "thoughts of killing babies." Nick claimed Aaron had made the claims during a FaceTime with Angel in August. Nick also said Aaron told Angel he was diagnosed with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
Aaron's then-girlfriend, Lina, was there during the convo and chimed in, "Angel, how do you think I feel with him sleeping with a sword next to him?" According to the docs, Aaron got upset and said, "Shut up Lina, you are next on my list."
The judge granted Angel the restraining. In the court documents, Angel says she had a phone convo with Aaron on Sept. 5, and she claims he said, "I have people that would come and harm you." She adds ... due to the fact Aaron has been brandishing his firearms on social media, she fears for her life, as well as her husband and daughter's.
The docs also include this bizarre anecdote. During the August FaceTime convo with Aaron -- when he allegedly made the "killing babies" remark -- she claims he also admitted to torturing a turtle by lighting it on fire when he was a child. She claims he said he felt "no emotion" about the incident.
The restraining order requires Aaron to stay 100 yards away from Angel and her family. He also can't make any social media posts regarding them that include threats or brandishing of weapons.
How many of you remember when Jeremy, the ex-convict, left his wife and son for billionaire daughter, Chloe -- top shop heiress? Honestly we knew it wasn't going to work, we just knew it. Now, Chloe seems to have moved on with an older man, and now, Jeremy has stepped out with another woman who seems to be his new catch, and her profile is cool too.
Jeremy and Chloe have a son together.
Now the latest -- Jeremy showed up Friday night in WeHo, and opened the car door on the passenger side like a curtain at a Broadway play, revealing what appears to be his new chick.
Her name -- Erica Peeples, an actress who's appeared in Netflix's "True to the Game" and 'Law and Order.' Erica says she's also a DJ, a poet and a producer.
They were inside the restaurant for 2 1/2 hours and, on the way out, Jeremy proudly introduced Erica to a photog, well without mentioning girlfriend, lol.
Kevin Hart and the two people in his car that crashed September 1, have all lawyered up, it has been learnt, and everyone's expecting a big lawsuit.
Sources with direct knowledge say, the driver, who sustained serious back and chest injuries has an attorney, as does the passenger in the backseat, who sustained only minor injuries. Kevin has a lawyer as well.
It's said Kevin is in the crosshairs of the other two people in the 1970 Plymouth Barracuda because the car did not have safety harnesses or airbags. The argument is ... Kevin should have worried less about keeping the car authentic and more about safety -- and not doing so constitutes negligence.
The driver could also be on the hook for Kevin and the backseat passenger, but it's a little premature since the CHP is still investigating the cause of the crash.
The big issue is this... the company that customized the car could be looking at a lawsuit. The argument goes like this ... the company is the expert and even if Kevin wanted a custom job without safety harnesses, the company should have refused the job because it wasn't safe ... especially with a powerful, 720 horsepower engine.
Food Network star and celebrity chef Carl Ruiz has died and this is according to his closest friends in the industry.
Carl reportedly passed away Saturday night of a suspected heart attack, so says his pal and social media personality, Matt Farah. Matt also said Carl died peacefully in his sleep.
Guy Fieri also commented on Carl's death, writing on Twitter ... "I’m heartbroken that my friend chef Carl Ruiz is gone. I have no words to describe what a great friend he was to me and my family. His ability to make me laugh and smile under any circumstances was only outshined by his talent as a chef."
He added, "Over the years, I’ve met a lot of great people but a friend like Carl is one in a hundred million. Carl 'The Cuban' Ruiz will forever live on in my heart and in those of all who loved him."
