Woman who gave birth to twins at 64 loses custody of the kids after being ruled unfit to care for them

A 69-year-old woman has lost custody of the twins she gave birth to at the age of 64 after Spain's highest court ruled that she was incapable of looking after them.

The Spanish Supreme Court upheld an April 22, 2020 ruling to remove the children, handed down by the Provincial Court of Burgos, which found that the twins were not being cared for in 'optimal conditions'.

The ruling on Monday March 1, brings to an end a four-year legal battle by the woman, Mauricia Ibanez, who gave birth to the twins - Gabriel and Maria de la Cruz - in 2017 after having fertility treatment in the United States. 

 

The court found that the twins were 'in an obvious situation of vulnerability' due to their mother's inability to care for them properly or to cooperate with social services.

 

The decision was based on the 'evaluations of experts,' not the woman's age or mental health, the court said, without elaborating.

 

A report issued by the Provincial Court of Burgos at the time of their initial ruling, cited: ' the mother's personality traits significantly affected the affective and psychosocial development of the minors.'

 

It added that 'non-existent' family relationships, isolation, and a lack of a supportive social network were also of concern. 

The twins, now aged four, were taken into foster care shortly after they were born in 2017.

 

El Pais reported in 2017 that  Ibanez had signed an agreement with social services that she would hire an assistant to provide 24-hour care after it concluded she would need help with cleaning and looking after the children. 

 

However, 10 days after she returned home from spending more than a month in hospital following the births, authorities decided the twins were 'at risk'.   

 

 

'Since she went home, a multi-disciplinary team has been following Ibanez's progress, and their reports all conclude that the twins need looking after in a different environment,' a spokesman from social services in Burgos said at the time, adding that reuniting Ibanez with her children in the future was a possibility. 

'But the obligation in the short term is for them to be with foster parents,' the spokesman said. 

Ibanez also has another child who was placed into foster care in 2014 after the mother was ruled unfit to care for her. Blanca, now aged 11, was also born through IVF and lives in Canada. 

After the 2017 decision, Ibanez's lawyer said his client was 'very distraught and traumatized'.  

The report said she challenged the decision, but her appeal was rejected by the local Family Court, in a decision now upheld by the Supreme Court.

 Ibanez, a former civil servant, had started her family after being given early retirement over mental health issues.

Ibanez's sister tried to have courts declare her 'fully incapable' so that her passport could be taken away to prevent her from travelling abroad for fertility treatment, according to the Spanish newspaper.  

 

However, a judge refused the following testimony by psychologists that her condition, which has not been reported in the media, did not prevent her from 'looking after herself or a child.'  

'I decided to become a mother because the experience of having Blanca, my first child, was fantastic, Ibanez told El Pais from hospital after giving birth to the twins in February 2017. 

'I asked myself if I could really have another. I'm not worried at all about my age. I am old but it has been possible for me to get pregnant: science and medicine are the last opportunity we older people have.

'Of course I am worried that they could take my children away. They are so defenceless, so small and delicate. I am a little bit afraid for them. I just ask God to prevent them falling into the hands of social services,' she told the paper.

Woman treks from Ikeja to Mile 12 after man she met on Twitter punished her for refusing to get intimate

A Twitter user has revealed that she had to trek from Ikeja to Mile 12 after a man she met on Twitter refused to give her transport fare back home.

 

She said she was broke at the time and made him know it but he invited her anyway  and promised to pay her transport fare.

 

However, when she got there and he tried to touch her, she declined.

 

This angered him and he refused to give her the fare as promised.

 

She had no choice but to trek home as she had no money with her.

 

 

 

Texas, Mississippi to end mask mandates and allow businesses to reopen at full capacity

The governors of Texas and Mississippi have announced they would be lifting their states' mask mandates and rolling back many of their Covid-19 health mandates.

 

"It is now time to open Texas 100 percent," Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said on Tuesday afternoon, March 2, at Montelongo's Mexican Restaurant in Lubbock.

 

"Covid has not suddenly disappeared," he said, "but state mandates are no longer needed."

 

Shortly after Abbott's announcement, Gov. Tate Reeves of Mississippi announced that he would end the state's statewide mask mandate, effective Wednesday of this week.

 

"Starting tomorrow, we are lifting all of our county mask mandates and businesses will be able to operate at full capacity without any state-imposed rules. Our hospitalizations and case numbers have plummeted, and the vaccine is being rapidly distributed. It is time!," Reeves tweeted.

 

 

This comes after CDC Director Rochelle Walensky strongly cautioned against the rollbacks over emerging coronavirus variants.

 

"I am really worried about reports that more states are rolling back the exact public health measures we have recommended to protect people from Covid-19," Walensky said at the daily White House Covid-19 briefing.

 

"Please hear me clearly," Walensky said. "At this level of cases with variants spreading, we stand to completely lose the hard earned ground we have gained."

Northern food dealers agree to lift ban on food supply to Southern Nigeria

The leadership of Cattle and Foodstuff dealers under the aegis of the Amalgamated Union of Foodstuff and Cattle Dealers of Nigeria (AUFCDN) have agreed to end the blockade of food supplies to the south.

 

They reached the agreement at an ongoing meeting with some governors in Abuja on Wednesday, March 3.

 

Abdullahi Tom, a youth leader of the cattle dealers in Lagos, told Daily Trust, that Kogi state governor, Yahaya Bello, is among the leaders who appealed to them to end the industrial action.

 

The union went on strike over claims of losing their members and properties during the #EndSARS protest and Shasa market chaos. Read here.

 

New photo emerges showing New York Governor Andrew Cuomo grabbing a woman's face after another woman accuses him of 'unwanted sexual advances'

Another woman has accused New York Governor, Andrew Cuomo of 'unwanted sexual advances', the third time he is being accused by a woman in the space of 8 days.

 

Anna Ruch has claimed that Cuomo asked to kiss her at a wedding in 2019, the latest bombshell as calls for Cuomo to resign grow louder amid the dueling scandals over allegations of improper behavior toward women and his handling of nursing homes during the coronavirus pandemic.

 

According to The New York Times, who published the above photo showing Cuomo holding Anna on the face as she she looked uncomfortably at him, Anna Ruch, 33, claimed that Cuomo asked to kiss her at a wedding in 2019.

 

After he asked to kiss her he now put his hand on her bare lower back.

 

Ruch said she pulled away and was "so confused and shocked and embarrassed" by the incident.

 

 

"I turned my head away and didn’t have words in that moment," she reportedly said.

Over the past week, two of Cuomo's former aides have accused him of sexual harassment, allegations he has denied.

 

 

Charlotte Bennett, a 25-year-old former staffer, claimed Cuomo talked about his willingness to have relationships with women in their 20s.

Prior to Bennett's allegation surfacing, Cuomo aide Lindsey Boylan published a blog post accusing the governor of unwanted touching and kissing.

Cuomo responding to the new allegation, apologized for things that "have been misinterpreted as an unwanted flirtation."

Democratic politicians within the state have already started calling for Cuomo's resignation.

Cuomo has already authorized an independent investigation of the allegations by the State's Justice Department.

HIV positive woman raped at gunpoint by taxi driver and conductor in South Africa says she was afraid they would shoot her if she revealed her status

Photo from the scene 

A 25-year-old passenger who was allegedly raped at gunpoint by a taxi driver and a conductor in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa on Monday, said she was scared to reveal she is HIV-positive.

 

The woman‚ who was dumped in a cane field after the ordeal‚ told Reaction Unit SA (Rusa) security officers on Monday, she wanted to let her attackers know about her status but was afraid they would shoot her.

 

Rusa spokesperson Prem Balram said they were called by a passing motorist just after 3pm after the driver was flagged down by the victim on the northbound lane of the N2 near Sibaya Casino.

 

"Reaction officers and medics were dispatched to the scene. On arrival they located the hysterical female seated in the emergency lane. She told a female reaction officer she operates a stall in Durban‚” he said.

 

Balram said she boarded a taxi to visit her boyfriend.

 

"As they left Durban she asked the two why there were no other passengers in the minibus‚” he said.

 

The conductor put a cloth over her face and instructed her to be silent.

 

"She was driven to a cane field where both men took turns raping her at gunpoint. They then drove off and left her in the field‚” he said.

 

Police spokesperson Capt Nqobile Gwala said a case of rape was opened at Verulam police station.

 

"It is alleged by the complainant that [on Monday] at 2.30pm she stopped a taxi near the Moses Mabhida Stadium as she was going to KwaDukuza. While the taxi was on the N2 Sibaya turn off‚ the conductor covered her mouth while [the driver] pointed a firearm at her. The victim was then raped by the suspects before they left her on the side of the road‚” she said.

35-year-old woman and her four children die in Jos house fire

A 35-year-old woman, Ebere Precious Ogbodo and her four children, Rejoice, Merkel, Harmony and Engel were killed in a deadly fire house fire in Jos, Plateau state. 

 

The tragic incident occurred in Gyel community, Jos South Local Government Area of the state on Thursday night, February 25. 

 

The children died instantly while their mother was rushed to Dee Medical Center in Bukuru, where she passed away the following day. 

 

 

The cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained but speculations attributed it to electrical fault. It was gathered that the inferno was so intense that virtually everything in the house was gutted. 

 

Confirming the development, the husband and father of the children, Philip Ogbodo said the incident occurred on Thursday night, an hour after he left the house to go watch a football match at a viewing center in the area.  According to him, on his way back he saw neighbours battling with the flames In his house.

 

Meanwhile, mother and children will be laid to rest on Thursday, March 4, 2021, in their hometown, Ndiagu Amodu Awkunanaw in Nkanu Local Government Area of Enugu State.

 

 

 

 

Armed bandits kill six in Kaduna

Armed bandits have killed six people in Igabi and Kauru local government areas of Kaduna State.

 

The State Commissioner for Internal Security and Homes Affairs, Samuel Aruwan in a statement issued on Tuesday March 2, said armed bandits barricaded the Birnin Yero-Tami road, Igabi and killed one Hussaini Suleiman Dari. One Dahiru Saidu was left injured and is receiving treatment in a hospital.

 

At Gwada village, Igabi local government area, an attack by gunmen left two persons, Yahuza Sale and Garba Sule, dead.

 

In another incident, armed bandits invaded Ungwan Kure, and killed two residents, Mohammed Sani Suleiman and Yahuza Sale.

 

Similarly, armed bandits attacked Amawan Dadi Rugan Jauru settlements in Kauru local government area. One resident known simply as "Likita" was shot dead.

 

Aruwan said that Governor Nasir El-Rufai noted the reports with sadness, and sent his condolences to the families of those killed, while praying for the repose of their souls. He also wished those injured citizen a quick recovery.

 

Over 100 youths renounce cultism in Cross River community

Over 100 cultists have renounced their membership of various confraternities in Orimekpang community in Boki Local Government Area of Cross River State.

 

The repentant youths said they were tired of living in bondage and that there is no gain in cultism. 

 

 

The renunciation programme which began on Saturday, February 20, 2021, was held at a church premises and was hosted by Rev Fr Emmanuel Ukwa in the presence of Pastor John Ewa, Chairman of Boki Local Government Area; Pius Kejuo Osang, Councillor of Abo Ward; the Clan Head of Orimekpang and his Chiefs; Youths and Women Leaders, among others.

 

Speaking at the denunciation event, Pastor Ewa emphasised on the need for peace and unity which according to him is paramount to the development of every society.

 

Ewa explained to the youths how his children and other politicians’ children are in good private schools, some schooling abroad and that no politician will allow their children to be a cultist.

 

He advised the repentant cultists to never return to cultism as it adds no value to their lives and that of society.

 

 

On his part, the Local Government chairman promised to ensure that those who denounced cultism “will be speedily reintegrated into society through training and empowerment programmes from ITF, UNICEF, RED CROSS and others." 

 

He asked the repented cultists not to allow any political leader to lure them back to such devilish acts again.


Rev. Father Emmanuel Ukwa, who handed over the denouncees into the hands of God by praying and baptising them, advised them to fully surrender to God who according to him, is ready to accept them.

 

Kano state governor orders closure of four tertiary institutions

Governor Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano state has ordered the closure of four tertiary institutions in the state.

 

The closure comes a day after he ordered the closure of ten boarding schools in the state following the abduction of over 300 schoolgirls in neighbouring Zamfara State.

 

A statement released by the state Commissioner for Higher Education, Dr Mariya Mahmoud Bunkure, reads

“The Kano State Government under the able leadership of His Excellency, the Executive Governor of Kano State, Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, has directed the closure of some tertiary institutions in the state with immediate effect,” 

 

The tertiary institutions ordered to be closed include RMK College of Advanced and Remedial Studies, T/Wada; School of Environmental Studies Gwarzo; School of Rural Technology and Entrepreneurship Dev (SORTED), Rano and ABCOAD, Dambatta.

 

All students of the affected schools were also advised to vacate the campuses as soon as possible.

''It is the cruelest betrayal in my entire life''- Nigerian man digs up a grave to bury his wife alive after finding out she's pregnant for his friend

A 49-year-old Nigerian man, Phillip Tersso, pictured left, has been arrested for attempting to bury his wife of 10 years, Mary, alive after finding out that she is pregnant for his friend, Aondowase Chiahemba.

 

Tersso, a native of Yelwata community, Nasarawa State, met mary, 12 years ago and got married to her two years later. They lived happily as a couple but battled infertility as their marriage of 10 years failed to produce a child. Tersso however became ill and was taken to different hospitals for treatment all to no avail.

 

 

On his sickbed, his wife, Mary informed him that she will be getting married when he dies and that she was already pregnant for another man who she revealed to be his friend.

 

Angry that his wife would get involved with another man who happens to be his friend, Tersso upon his recovery, concluded plans to kill Mary and then himself.

“Words cannot describe the agony of finding out after 10 years of marriage that my friend impregnated my wife.

I cannot blame Mr Aondowase but my wife. I truly feel as if someone has ripped my heart out, more so that I was down with sickness and she was busy sleeping with a close friend.

It is the cruelest betrayal in my entire life, my wife is a big disappointment and I can never forgive her. I felt utterly duped and cheated when she opened her mouth and told me with a vow not to abort it.

My whole world has been turned upside down. The only way to pay her back is to bury her alive, so that she would feel the pains of wishing me dead while I was sick.

I cannot imagine my own wife telling me that if I die, she will remarry. Besides, she is already pregnant for the man.

I lost my temper when I recovered from my illness and decided that she should die before me since she wished me death.

I’m not regretting my actions or plans. Since she wanted me to die, I should send her to the grave alive so that her planned marriage after my death will not be possible.

She shouldn’t have been pregnant for another man while I was sick. It means she wished me death.

There is power in spoken words, so let her go into the grave before me, since I did not die as she prayed.”he told The Nation.

 

Speaking further, a distraught Tersso said

“Even though the fertility challenge was there, we were finding ways to address it.

I am fully aware that people were talking and asking questions. My family members were no longer comfortable with the way things were going; that we got married over 10 years now without any issue, and we were tracing the issue. But she lost patience and went into a deal with my friend

I suspected their closeness at a point and somebody raised the issue with me but I never believed my own wife could open her legs for my own friend, more so that I was very sick.

I also did not believe my friend would ever contemplate doing such to me, especially when I was down. But both of them have proved me wrong.

My anger is with my wife. When she told me that she was pregnant, both of us knew that I was not responsible for it, because we did not have sex during my sickness.

She has shamed me. She has ruined my life and I have decided that if I have my way, I will pay her back in almost the same way by burying her alive, because I don’t want to see her any longer in my life.

I want to eliminate her completely from this world. That was why I dug this grave to put her inside and cover her.”

 

Tersso said that he was not unaware of the consequences of his planned actions, but he could not understand why his wife would have an affair with his friend at the time he was sick, reiterating that burying his wife alive was the only punishment that could compare to what she did to him. He also said that Mary committed an abomination by having sex with a man other than her husband.

 

On her part, Mary said she regrets her action but will never abort the child.

“When my husband told me that he would cut me into pieces and put me in a sack, I thought he was joking. But he went ahead and dug a 10-feet grave beside his late father’s grave.

My offence was that when he was sick, I concluded that he might die because we went to several hospitals to no avail. We resorted to traditional herbs.

In the process, I decided to test my fertility with another man who, unfortunately, is his friend, and I took in. I refused to abort the pregnancy and never hid it from him when he recovered.

My neighbours advised me to seek refuge elsewhere since my husband’s illness had turned his brain. He was bitter and wanted to revenge by burying me alive. He wanted to kill me because I had sex with another man and I am pregnant for him.

I regret my actions. It was the devil’s work. I made a mistake and I feel so guilty. My husband and I have been trying for about nine years to have a baby, and if this baby is not his, it will destroy him.

I know from day one that he would feel bad, but I have no choice but to prepare his mind that the baby does not belong to him but to his close friend.

For about 10 years now, he was not able to get me pregnant and I decided to test my fertility elsewhere. My husband has been denying me sex. He had not slept with me for a long time before he fell sick.

I almost thought of leaving him because I am a human being and he cannot starve me of sex for that long. That also contributed to my mistakenly falling in love with his friend. I have feelings too”

 

Mary's father who was also interviewed said he would not support any act of infidelity.

“I don’t support the idea of having sex with your husband’s friend just because you are desperate for a child, especially when he is sick. And then you have the guts to tell your husband about it.

Even at that, the husband over-reacted. His decision (to bury her alive) was not the best, and I wouldn’t have allowed him to go free.

I am not saying my daughter is right, but his plans were too shocking if he had succeeded. That is all I can say for now. But I thank God he did not succeed.''Mary's father  said

Village elders, headed by Audu Ode, were said to be handling the matter, trying to sort out certain areas of grievances with Tersso before the option of handing him over to the appropriate authorities.

 

Audu said he would report the matter to the police but would plead with them to hold on until certain traditional rites are performed, adding that the man might be suffering from brain damage arising from his sickness.

I didn’t collect salary for 8 years as governor of Osun state - Rauf Aregbesola says

The Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, has said that he never collected any salary all through his eight years in office as governor of Osun state.

 

Aregbesola who is currently serving as Nigeria's Minister of Interior Affairs, stated this while dismissing reports published by online that he received 96-month salary arrears in secret when he served as the governor of Osun state. 

 

A statement from Aregbesola’s media aide, Sola Fasure, described the report as a fiction written by elements bent on casting “aspersion on the integrity of Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola”

 

“The report is entirely a piece of fiction, a good exemplar of fake news and disreputable journalism. Let me state categorically again, that Ogbeni Aregbesola did not receive any salary in the entire duration of his eight-year stint as governor in Osun.

His reason being that the state government provided accommodation, security, transportation, food and other conveniences for him and would not need to pay for these from his pocket.

He also explained that all his children are grown up and have graduated and he would not need to pay school fees again. He therefore donated his salaries to the state government.

The author of the report claims to have got the information from some anonymous government officials. He provides no evidence.

The report fails basic journalistic ethical requirement that only truth and verifiable fact should be reported as news. Reading through it, one is not in doubt that the evil intention behind the piece was to smear and cast aspersion on the integrity of Ogbeni Aregbesola.”