A truck has reportedly crushed a Vehicle Inspection Officer (VIO) to death opposite Mega Primary School, along Hospital Road, Akure, the Ondo State capital.

Residents were seen shouting in a video shared by Akure-based radio station, Crest FM on Friday.

According to eyewitnesses, the officer tried to intercept the truck, which was already in the fast lane, but couldn’t stop it before the incident.

The officer was reportedly trapped beneath the trailer after the truck struck him, leaving residents at the scene in distress.

The video also showed some of the officer’s colleagues panicking as they watched the incident unfold. Residents could be heard shouting while people gathered around the scene.

The circumstances surrounding the incident, including the events that led to the officer’s attempt to stop the truck, were not immediately clear.

The President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero, has called on the Federal Government to review its minimum wage.

Ajaero maintained that state governments initially presented as unable to afford higher wages are now paying more than the Federal Government.

The ₦70,000 minimum wage in Nigeria became law on July 29, 2024, when President Bola Tinubu signed the National Minimum Wage Act.

Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily on Friday, Ajaero said labour accepted the ₦70,000 minimum wage partly because President Bola Tinubu asked them to consider the financial capacity of state governments.

According to him, the President indicated that he could afford a higher amount but raised concerns about what the states could pay.

“Part of the reason we agreed on 70,000, the president said, and I quote, you know, I can afford to pay 150,000, you know, but the sub-nationals, you have to put them into consideration in deciding, you know, this 70,000 Naira minimum wage and we were keyed into it,” Ajaero said.

The NLC president said the negotiations had reached a deadlock over ₦60,000 before direct talks between labour and the President produced the ₦70,000 agreement.

“That was a negotiation between us and the president directly, not the minimum wage committee,” he said.

However, Ajaero said subsequent wage decisions by state governments had called into question the affordability concerns raised during the negotiations.

He cited Imo State as paying ₦104,000, saying some other states were paying ₦100,000, ₦85,000, ₦84,000 and ₦75,000.

“I think the least could be 72 or more. All the states are paying more than the federal government,” he said.

Ajaero questioned why the Federal Government had retained its rate despite the higher amounts he said states were paying.

He argued that the development warranted a fresh assessment of the Federal Government’s position on workers’ pay.

“So I think it’s incumbent on the federal government to go back to the drawing board and find out what is happening,” he said.

After foiling a kidnap plot against one female cleric in Abuja, the Nigerian Police Force have warned worshippers against publicly sharing personal achievements during church testimonies.

The warning came after four members of a church were arrested over an alleged plot to kidnap Prophetess Elizabeth, who was reportedly targeted after sharing a testimony about her achievements.

The Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of the Intelligence Response Team, Adamu Muazu, gave the warning on Thursday while parading the suspects, saying the planned attack was to be carried out after an evening service.

Muazu urged church leaders, particularly those operating in isolated locations, to strengthen security arrangements and ensure the safety of members attending evening services.

He cautioned worshippers against assuming that everyone in a congregation had good intentions.

“You can’t go to a church located on outskirts and you go to evening prayers and closing in the evening, coming down to your home after making testimony of what you have achieved in life, you know?” he said.

He added, “It doesn’t conform with common sense and rationality in the midst of a gathering of people watching you, thinking that they are all men of God. No, everybody has his own motive of going to the church.”

The police officer urged church leaders to assess security risks around their premises and advise members on necessary precautions, especially when services ended late at night.

“If church has to be located on outskirts, I believe the runners of those institutions must equally think of the security of their members and must advise them adequately,” he said.

Muazu said churches holding evening services should pay particular attention to the security of routes leading to their premises and the entrances and exits.

“If you must hold evening services, that has to be guided with a lot of security observation of the routes in and out, exits of those churches in and out,” he added.

He expressed concern that some of the suspects allegedly involved in the plot were closely connected to the intended victim and the church’s leadership.

“Surprisingly, this happened to be her driver, who worked with her. And the second suspect is a bodyguard to the head church pastor. They are all members of the same church,” Muazu said.

The police warning followed concerns that information shared during religious gatherings could be exploited by people with criminal intentions, particularly when worshippers travel home after evening services.