EFCC arraigns Metuh for destroying his statement

Detained Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) spokesperson Olisa Metuh was arraigned yesterday before the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, for allegedly destroying the statement he made to Economic and Financial Crimes Commission’s (EFCC) operatives. Metuh is being held at the Kuje prison, Abuja, following his arraignment at the Federal High Court, Abuja, on a seven-count of money laundering. He was accused of receiving N400 million from the former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki and allegedly making doubtful investment of $2 million. Yesterday, he was arraigned before Justice Ishaq Bello on a two-count charge. The PDP spokesman pleaded not guilty, following which the judge ordered that he be remanded in Kuje prison. Count one of the charge filed on January 18 reads: “Statement of offence: Destruction of document to prevent its production as evidence, punishable under Section 166 of the Penal Code CAP 532 LFN, Abuja (2004). “Particular of offence: Olisa Metuh, on the 5th day of January 2016 in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, destroyed the document, to wit: a statement made under caution to investigators/operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on January 5, 2016 with the intention of preventing the same from being produced or used as evidence in a court of law. Count two reads: “Statement of office: Mischief contrary to Section 326 and punishable under Section 327 of the Penal Code CAP 532 LFN, Abuja (2004). Particular of offence: Olisa Metuh, on the 5th day of January 2016 within the jurisdiction of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), with intent to cause wrongful loss or damage to the property of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), committed mischief by destroying/tearing into pieces a statement you made under caution to investigations/investigative of the EFCC.” The offence is said to be punishable under Section 166 of the Penal Code Cap 532 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, (Abuja) 2004. Shortly after Metuh pleaded not guilty, prosecution lawyer, Sylvanus Tahir, urged the court to fix a date for trial. Metuh’s lawyer Onyechi Ikpeazu (SAN) prayed the court to grant the accused bail, taking into consideration the punishment, which does not exceed two years. Justice Bello, while ordering Metuh to be remanded in prison custody, adjourned the matter to January 25, 2016, for hearing on the bail application. Earlier, the judge questioned the rationale behind separating this charge from the earlier one before Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court, Abuja. Justice Bello noted that since the alleged attempt to destroy evidence flowed directly from the case before the Federal High Court, it would have been proper and reasonable to accommodate the new charge in the pending one. In his response, Tahir said the fresh charge was brought under a different law, the Penal Code as against the Money Laundering Act, under which the older charge was brought.

Some Health Problems that result from Stress

What are some of the most significant health problems related to stress? Here's a sampling.

    Heart disease. Researchers have long suspected that the stressed-out, type A personality has a higher risk of high blood pressure and heart problems. We don't know why, exactly. Stress can directly increase heart rate and blood flow, and causes the release of cholesterol and triglycerides into the blood stream. It's also possible that stress is related to other problems -- an increased likelihood of smoking or obesity -- that indirectly increase the heart risks.

    Doctors do know that sudden emotional stress can be a trigger for serious cardiac problems, including heart attacks. People who have chronic heart problems need to avoid acute stress -- and learn how to successfully manage life's unavoidable stresses -- as much as they can.

    Asthma. Many studies have shown that stress can worsen asthma. Some evidence suggests that a parent's chronic stress might even increase the risk of developing asthma in their children. One study looked at how parental stress affected the asthma rates of young children who were also exposed to air pollution or whose mothers smoked during pregnancy. The kids with stressed out parents had a substantially higher risk of developing asthma.

    Obesity. Excess fat in the belly seems to pose greater health risks than fat on the legs or hips -- and unfortunately, that's just where people with high stress seem to store it. "Stress causes higher levels of the hormone cortisol," says Winner, "and that seems to increase the amount of fat that's deposited in the abdomen."

    Diabetes. Stress can worsen diabetes in two ways. First, it increases the likelihood of bad behaviors, such as unhealthy eating and excessive drinking. Second, stress seems to raise the glucose levels of people with type 2 diabetes directly.

    Headaches. Stress is considered one of the most common triggers for headaches -- not just tension headaches, but migraines as well.

    Depression and anxiety. It's probably no surprise that chronic stress is connected with higher rates of depression and anxiety. One survey of recent studies found that people who had stress related to their jobs -- like demanding work with few rewards -- had an 80% higher risk of developing depression within a few years than people with lower stress.

    Gastrointestinal problems. Here's one thing that stress doesn't do -- it doesn't cause ulcers. However, it can make them worse. Stress is also a common factor in many other GI conditions, such as chronic heartburn (or gastroesophageal reflux disease, GERD) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), Winner says.

    Alzheimer's disease. One animal study found that stress might worsen Alzheimer's disease, causing its brain lesions to form more quickly. Some researchers speculate that reducing stress has the potential to slow down the progression of the disease.

    Accelerated aging. There's actually evidence that stress can affect how you age. One study compared the DNA of mothers who were under high stress -- they were caring for a chronically ill child -- with women who were not. Researchers found that a particular region of the chromosomes showed the effects of accelerated aging. Stress seemed to accelerate aging about 9 to 17 additional years.

    Premature death. A study looked at the health effects of stress by studying elderly caregivers looking after their spouses -- people who are naturally under a great deal of stress. It found that caregivers had a 63% higher rate of death than people their age who were not caregivers.