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A 13-year-old girl whose name has been given as Miss Tochukwu Johnson, has been declared missing in Umuahia, Abia State after she was allegedly flogged by her mother for pouring the family’s soup away.
According to a statement released by the Abia State Police Command, Tochukwu Johnson, a resident of Afara Majestic in Umuahia North LGA, went missing on March 22, 2024, after leaving home for an unknown destination.
The statement, signed by Police Public Relations Officer Maureen Chinaka, said the fair-skinned girl left home at Afara Majestic for an unknown destination after she was flogged by her mother for pouring away their soup. Her whereabouts remain unknown, despite efforts by relatives to locate her.
Read Also: How We Spent Over ₦9bn to Offset Pension Arrears – Abia Govt
The statement advised anyone with useful information that could lead to the whereabouts of the 4-foot-5-inch-tall girl to report to the nearest police station or the office of the PPRO of the Abia State Police Command.
In another report, the Government of Abia State has announced that it has spent at least ₦9 billion to offset accumulated pension arrears.
Mr. Mike Apara who is the Commissioner for Finance, made this known in Umuahia on Wednesday at a press briefing after the meeting of the State Executive Council (SEC).
Apara, however, stated that the amount could still go up because pensioners who had issues during the verification exercise could still be sorted out and paid like others.
He explained that the pension payment covers both the arrears that piled up from 2014 and the balance of half payments the retirees received within the past nine months.
“We had an agreement with the Nigerian Union of Pensioners and His Excellency did exactly what we agreed. And the agreement is to pay the arrears of pensions and that is exactly what the government has done and they (pensioners) are happy about that,” he said.
The finance commissioner acknowledged that the retirees agreed to forfeit some percentage of the arrears to make it easier for the government to clear the inherited debt to the senior citizens.
