A 19-year-old kidnapper, identified as Mohammed Abdullahi, in Gujba local government area of Yobe State, has kidnapped an 11-year son of a neighbour, demanded ₦600,000 in ransom, killed the victim with a substance drug, and later buried him.

The Commissioner of Police in Yobe state, CP Ahmed Garba, paraded the suspect and 17 others at the Police Command headquarters in Damaturu and expressed concern over the reemerging criminal activities in the state.

“Mohammed Abdullahi, a 19-year-old suspect from Buniyadi, abducted the son of their neighbour’s 11-year-old and later demanded a ransom of 600,000 naira. When the parents of the victim could not meet his demand, he later bought drugs and administered them to the victim to sleep and the victim later died. The suspect later buried the corpse in their house while his parents were away and was later apprehended by the police,” he said.

Another suspect, Sani Musa, aged 22 years, who stabbed his victim, Sheba Simon, with a knife and snatched her cell phone, was also trailed, arrested and paraded by the police.

In an interview with Channels Television, the suspect, Sani Musa, admitted to committing the crime, saying his intention was not to kill her but to collect the cell phone.

Other suspects paraded were transformer vandals at the Pompomari community of the state capital, and house burglars among other crimes, ranging from rape and armed robbery where 3 AK47 rifles and live ammunition were recovered.

The CP who expressed worry over the insecurity, urged the Yobe State government, to provide empowerment and skills acquisition for the teaming youths in the state, to keep them busy instead of roaming about, taking unwanted drugs, and causing mayhem to communities.

Former prime minister of the UK, Boris Johnson, was turned away from his local polling station after forgetting to bring the required photo identity.

Johnson had joined locals in South Oxfordshire on Thursday to vote in the police and crime commissioner election.

Polling officials however told him he would not be allowed to vote without providing his identity.

There are 22 acceptable forms of ID in the UK including passports, driving licences, blue badges, and certain local travel cards.

As prime minister in 2022, Johnson introduced the Elections Act which requires photo ID — a development that sparked intense criticisms from Britons.

Last year, the Electoral Commission warned that the new law could exclude hundreds of thousands of people, including minorities and those with disabilities.

A spokesperson for Johnson confirmed he had forgotten the photo ID, but that he was able to cast his ballot after he returned with a valid ID.

“Mr Johnson voted Conservative,” Sky News quoted the spokesperson as saying.

Downing Street said it would “look into” changing the controversial rules which require photo ID in order to vote, so that ID cards of veterans can be added to the list of valid identification.

President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero, says state governors can afford to pay the proposed N615,000 minimum wage if they get their priorities right.

Ajaero spoke on Thursday during an interview with Channels Television.

Recently, organised labour announced that the new minimum wage should be pegged at N615,000.

The proposal came amid ongoing minimum wage negotiations between federal and state governments on one hand, and organised labour on the other.

In 2019, the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari pegged the national minimum wage at N30,000.

After the new minimum wage was announced at the time, it took some states forever to implement the increment.

Asked during the interview if organised labour’s proposal of N615,000 is realistic, Ajaero said the amount is the “most realistic” given the galloping inflation in the country.

The NLC president said organised labour considered factors like transportation, housing, and feeding before arriving at the sum.

“If you are talking about being realistic, the N615,000 demand is the most realistic. Being realistic is not about slave wage,” Ajaero said.

“However, N30,000 is big money if inflation is brought down, and at a single digit.

“Look at the indices that create inflation. If you check them, you can talk about being realistic. All other factors in the country are going high and wages remain constant.”

Asked if states can afford the N615,000 proposal, the NLC president averred that it is not about ability to pay but the priorities of states.

“I think we need to understand the issues of ability to pay and not getting the priority right,” he added.

“Most of the states that have shown willingness to pay the current minimum wage are not among those getting the highest revenue.

“During the time of Muhammadu Buhari, some states were declared not having enough money to pay and he released funds for them to pay.

“Those states still refused to pay. It is not the question of either the quantum of money that they have or not, it is what they decide to do with such money.

“If they get their priorities right, then a lot can happen.”

Organised labour has also threatened to embark on a strike if a new minimum wage is not announced before May 31, 2024.