Gunmen Kill Ondo Monarch in Failed Abduction Attempt

By Wahab Mariam

Tragedy struck Agamo community in Akure North, Ondo State, on the evening of February 18, 2026, as suspected gunmen stormed the palace of Oba Kehinde Jacob Falodun and killed him during a failed abduction attempt.

According to accounts by the monarch’s wife and daughter, about ten armed men gained access to the palace through the Itaogbolu axis. Three of the attackers reportedly positioned themselves at the palace entrance, while the others moved inside the premises.

The Olori narrated that she narrowly escaped death after fleeing into a nearby bush, as one of the assailants chased her and fired shots that missed her.

The attackers reportedly dragged the monarch out of the palace, beating him while attempting to abduct him. After repeatedly carrying him and firing shots into the air, he was killed on the spot.

A female guest who was present in the palace at the time of the attack was also beaten by the assailants, while her mobile phone was seized.

The Ondo State Police Command confirmed the incident. The spokesperson, Abayomi Jimoh, said the monarch’s body was discovered a few metres away from the palace with gunshot wounds.

He added that security operatives, including the Divisional Police Officer, tactical police teams, Amotekun, local hunters, and vigilante groups, have launched a coordinated manhunt for the fleeing suspects.

He assured residents that surveillance and security patrols have been intensified in the area to ensure the safety of lives and property as efforts to apprehend the attackers continue.

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AAUA Library Students Honours VC with Award‎

‎By Boluwatife Kehinde 

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‎ The Department of Library and Information Science (LIS) at Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko, has honoured the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Olugbenga Ige, with an Award of Gratitude and named him Grand Patron of the department.

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‎The honour was given during a courtesy visit to the Vice-Chancellor on Tuesday. The award was in recognition of his leadership, support, and commitment to the growth of the department and the university.

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‎The event was led by the National Association of Library and Information Science Students (NALISS), under the leadership of Comr. Ogunsola Ifeoluwa-Dada, popularly known as Mr. Log, with academic staff of the department.

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‎In his remarks, the Head of Department, Dr. Omotoyinbo D.W., described the recent approval and progress of the department as a major achievement. 

Also, he thanked the Vice-Chancellor for his role in supporting the department and promised that the department would continue to strive for excellence.

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‎In his response, Prof. Ige thanked the department and the students for the honour. He praised them for their effort and assured them of his continued support for academic development.

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‎Others present at the event included the Staff Adviser, Mr. Adeniyi J.T., Mr. Kehinde Adeosun, members of the departmental executive council, and representatives of the Student Union. Among them were the SU President, Comr. Salami Akeem Ologbon; his Chief of Staff, Comr. Adetunji Ayooluwatomiwa Festus (Asiwaju); and Comr. Oluwanishola Ajibola (General Aji).

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SOSSA DECIDES 2026: Young Lawyer Wins SOSSA Presidency

By: Mercy Musa 

The Social Sciences Students Association (SOSSA) conducted its faculty election on Wednesday at the Faculty of Social Sciences, with students voting to elect new executives for the association.

The election, conducted under the supervision of the Independent Students’ Electoral Commission (ISEC), drew participation from students across departments under the faculty of social science. However, the process was not without challenges. 

The presidential and vice-presidential positions were the only offices with opposition during the election. 

Mogaji Samuel Oluwatosin, popularly known as Young Lawyer from the department of Political Science, contested against Afolabi Faith Oluwatoyosimi from the department of Criminology for the presidency, while Joy Icha John from the department of Sociology contested for the position of vice president alongside Mutiu Mariam Omolabake from the department of Economics. 

Following the conclusion of voting, the electoral body, ISEC, announced the results of the exercise:

In the presidential election, Mogaji Samuel Oluwatosin (Young Lawyer) secured 1,406 votes, defeating Afolabi Faith Oluwatoyosimi, who pulled 611 votes.

For the vice-presidential position, Joy Icha John secured 959 votes, while Mutiu Mariam Omolabake recorded 693 votes.

By the outcome of the election, Young Lawyer was declared elected as President of SOSSA, while Joy emerged as Vice President.

Speaking after the announcement of the election results, the newly elected president assured students that his administration would prioritise the needs of SOSSAITES, particularly as examinations approach.

“We are swinging into action with our plans and intentions,” he stated. 

“We will start from welfare for SOSSAITES, now that we are near exams, we will ensure that they have their clearance in time without any delay, and whatever academic support we give within this time before the exam, we will ensure we do that” He added.

Other positions were filled unopposed in accordance with the final screening results earlier released by the Independent Students’ Electoral Commission (ISEC).

Candidates unopposed include Fatoki Oluwapamilerin (General Secretary), Adeagbo Abdulsamad Mayowa (Assistant General Secretary), Okangbe Angel (Financial Secretary), Matthew Juwon Temitope (Social Director), Olaniran Joel Olatunde (Sports Director), Olusegun Olamide Ayomide (Public Relations Officer), Owoyemi Joshua Omolayo (Welfare Director), and Ayanlola Oyinkansola Elizabeth (Treasurer).

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NUCJ AAUA Inducts New Members

|By Ifeoluwa Adeyeye

The Nigerian Union of Campus Journalists (NUCJ), Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko (AAUA) Chapter, on Saturday, February 7, 2026, inducted 11 new members into the association, reinforcing its commitment to strengthening campus journalism and media professionalism.

Speaking on the significance of the induction, the President of NUCJ AAUA, Eniola Amadu, explained that the exercise formally recognizes inducted students as campus journalists.

Eniola noted that the exercise covered students recruited in the previous session as well as new intakes for the current academic year. According to him, 14 students were recruited this year from over 40 applicants.

Explaining the selection process, he stated that “The criteria involve availability, commitment, intellectual capacity, and no affiliation with campus politics.”

He added that the union aims to provide members with a platform to practice journalism while still on campus. In his words, “We want to help them develop their journalistic skills towards what they envision for themselves as future professional journalists. This depends on their commitment to learn and develop themselves.”

Highlighting opportunities available to members, the NUCJ president said inductees would benefit from both internal and external professional trainings, networking opportunities, and access to journalism platforms nationwide.

“Members will have access to trainings organized by us and other sponsored trainings by professional media organizations. They’ll connect with like-minded individuals in journalism and also professionals in the media space based on our relationships with them. They’ll get access to opportunities available for campus journalists across the country. By so doing, they start to break even into the professional space.”

On the union’s plan to expand beyond print journalism, He revealed ongoing efforts to introduce broadcast journalism into NUCJ activities. “At the NUCJ level, we are working assiduously to bring in broadcast journalism into our activities. Most of our works are print journalism, but now we want to balance things up. We’re working towards having our program at Radio AAUA. It is yet to be approved, but we’re positive that it will scale through.”

Reacting to their induction, Akindele Prosper Ayomidimeji, a 200-level Mass Communication student, described NUCJ as “a platform for me to grow and develop rapidly in communicating and becoming an active person in the journalism aspect.”

Similarly, Elerewe Adesua, also a 200-level Mass Communication student, described the union as “an eye-opener to a world of discovery.”

Other inductees shared similar sentiments. Babarinde Kuwam Opeyemi said the induction “felt really good,” while Oyekanmi Tofunmi expressed confidence that NUCJ would help her grow both theoretically and practically in journalism.

In his closing remarks, the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of NUCJ AAUA, Daniel Akinte, advised new members to strike a balance between academics and union activities.

“It will be tasking to combine academic work with extracurricular activities, but it is definitely worth it,” he said.

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Where Love Lives Review: Love or Money?

By Musa Mercy

Rating: 6.5/10

Nollywood actress and filmmaker Bimbo Ademoye has created yet another hit with her most recent movie titled Where Love Lives, a domestic drama exploring the themes of love, marriage, trust and class. This YouTube movie stars actors such as Bimbo Ademoye herself, Uzor Arukwe, Chioma Nwosu, Osas Ighodaro, among many other exceptional actors and was released in December, 2025 gaining 19 million view as at 6th February, 2026, 

The story follows Demilade and Ekene, a doting couple who newly move into a sophisticated estate on the island courtesy of Ekene who gifts his wife a mansion for their second year wedding anniversary, only to be welcomed into the neighbourhood by arrogant, nosy estate women (Queen, Imade and Eno), a man who puts their love to test and stirs up tension in their marriage (Grey) and an already existing atmosphere of class and power play. 

At the start of the movie, we get a vivid picture of the lives of Ekene and Demilade, both as individuals and as a couple. Ekene is a local, typical Igbo businessman in the import and export industry, he is loud and somewhat harsh towards anyone who isn’t his wife while Demilade is the educated, stylish, and soft spoken housewife who enjoys all the many luxuries of being married to a rich man who is head over heels in love with her and she with him, despite their contrasting characteristics and disapproval from Ekene’s family who claims she married him solely for his riches and would flew one day with a younger man. 

As the story unfolds, we get to witness the unrequited love shared between the couple as they often remind themselves of one of their marriage vows; for better, for worse. Which eventually plays out through the entire movie as we watch the couple navigate both the better days and worse days of their marriage. 

Barely three days after settling in the estate, Demilade can already be seen inserting into estate politics by declaring her interest in becoming the next president of the estate’s women association, after getting all the needed information from her charming new friend, Greg, who feeds her all the gossip he can. 

As the days go by, Demilade begins to get much more comfortable within her new environment and we get to have a feel of what her daily life looks like, from early morning runs with Greg to playing dress up and the likes. 

Talking about Greg, he represents the few things Demilade would want for her husband to be; a polished man who dresses well, speaks well and matches her aesthetics and we eventually witness a certain level of desire brewing between her and Greg as we watch them have their little fun texting and even flirting. This becomes Demilade’s little secret as her husband is oblivious to her newly fond friendship. Exciting as it may seem, this new friendship eventually becomes what stirs up a test in Demilade’s marriage. 

The story takes an interesting twist when Ekene receives a picture of his wife embracing Greg. This single piece of photograph throws Ekene into deep devastation as he confronts Demilade who initially denies being with Grey. 

Demilade’s lies eventually pushes Ekene to test her loyalty in an unimaginable way by claiming to have lost all his money and is now in huge debt. Although this poses as such a drastic and dramatic method of testing Demilade, it however builds up the rest of the plot and helps us to understand the characters better. 

Moving away from Demilade and Ekene’s marriage, the movie also gives us an insight into Queen’s marriage where she suffers a great deal of physical and emotional abuse from her husband which highlights the theme of domestic violence as a tool used to gain control in marriage.

 We also get a closer look into Eno’s marriage where she struggles to have children and is convinced her husband is having an affair outside. 

However, under all the luxury and glamour that the movie tries to showcase, Where Love Lives didn’t hesitate to scratch the surface of many marriage realities within the Nigerian high class society, contrary to the perception of marriage being the sweetest particularly when there is financial stability, “ money”. The movie tries as much as possible to incorporate themes such as domestic violence, loyalty and emotional survival.

What happens when all the riches and luxuries are gone, will Demilade stick with her husband during the trials and tribulation or will she leave him because of her fear of returning back to poverty? 

Have you watched this movie or will you be watching? Leave a comment down below.

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Gov. Aiyedatiwa Declares Two-Day Public Holiday To Mark 50th Anniversary

By Oluwapelumi Akintoye

The Ondo State Government, Gov. Lucky Aiyedatiwa, has declared Monday, February 2, and Tuesday, February 3, 2026, as public holidays to enable residents participate in activities marking the 50th anniversary of the creation of the state.

This was announced in a press statement issued on Friday, January 30th, by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Prince Ebenezer Adeniyan.

According to the statement, the public holidays will allow citizens to fully take part in programmes lined up for the golden jubilee celebration, which marks fifty years of Ondo State’s growth and development.

The Governor urged residents to use the holiday period to reflect on the state’s journey and recommit themselves to unity and progress, while essential service providers were advised to ensure uninterrupted services during the period.

Meanwhile, following the state government’s declaration, Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko (AAUA), has also declared February 2 and 3, 2026, as public holidays.

In a circular issued on January 31, 2026, the university announced that the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Olugbenga Ige, approved the closure of the institution for official duties during the two days, except for staff on essential services.

The circular noted that the decision was to allow members of the university community and residents to fully participate in the golden jubilee celebrations.

Academic and official activities at AAUA will resume on Wednesday, February 4, 2026, as the university joins the state in celebrating five decades of progress and development.

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