Angelou 'brightest light' says Obama

US President Barack Obama has led the tributes to Maya Angelou, describing the poet, author and activist as "one of the brightest lights of our time".
He hailed Angelou, who has died aged 86, as "a brilliant writer, a fierce friend and a truly phenomenal woman".
She made her name with the memoir I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, which charted a childhood of oppression and abuse in the Deep South in the 1930s.
Her family described her as "a warrior for equality, tolerance and peace".
In a statement on Facebook, they said she passed away quietly at home in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, at 08:00 EST (12:00 GMT).
"Her family is extremely grateful that her ascension was not belaboured by a loss of acuity or comprehension," they said.
"She lived a life as a teacher, activist, artist and human being... The family is extremely appreciative of the time we had with her and we know that she is looking down upon us with love."

Barack Obama gave Angelou the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011

In 2000, she was awarded the National Medal of Arts by President Bill Clinton
Mr Obama gave her the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the country's highest civilian award, in 2011.
He said: "Over the course of her remarkable life, Maya was many things - an author, poet, civil rights activist, playwright, actress, director, composer, singer and dancer.
"But above all, she was a storyteller - and her greatest stories were true.

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings dealt with the racism and family trauma of Angelou's upbringing
"A childhood of suffering and abuse actually drove her to stop speaking - but the voice she found helped generations of Americans find their rainbow amidst the clouds, and inspired the rest of us to be our best selves."
Raised by her grandmother in Stamps, Arkansas, Angelou was raped by her mother's boyfriend at the age of seven. After she told her family what had happened, the boyfriend was killed.
"I thought my voice had killed him, so it was better not to speak - so I simply stopped speaking," she said. She remained mute for five years, but read voraciously.
Former President Bill Clinton, who invited Angelou to read at his 1993 inauguration, said America had lost a national treasure and he and wife Hillary had lost "a beloved friend".
"The poems and stories she wrote and read to us in her commanding voice were gifts of wisdom and wit, courage and grace," he said.
"I will always be grateful for her electrifying reading of On the Pulse of Morning at my first inaugural, and even more for all the years of friendship that followed."
Others paying tribute included civil rights campaigner Reverend Jesse Jackson, who wrote on Twitter: "The renaissance woman has made a peaceful transition. She acted, sang, danced & taught She used poetry as a road for peace."
Harry Potter author JK Rowling tweeted one of Angelou's quotes: "'If you are always trying to be normal, you will never know how amazing you can be.' Maya Angelou - who was utterly amazing."
A statement from Wake Forest University, where Angelou had been professor of American studies since 1982, said: "Dr Angelou was a national treasure whose life and teachings inspired millions around the world."
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, which dealt with the racism and family trauma of her upbringing, spent two years on the US best-seller list after its publication in 1970. It was the first of seven memoirs.
After the poverty, violence and segregation of her childhood, she became a singer, a dancer, cocktail waitress, prostitute and an actress before beginning her writing career.

Angelou received a lifetime achievement award from Glamour magazine in 2009
Her career had many outlets, straddling television, theatre, film, children's books and music.
Angelou was also a prominent civil rights activist and a friend of Martin Luther King and Malcolm X.
Through her writing and interviews, her strength and eloquence as a role model for those seeking to overcome inequality and injustice won her many admirers.
In her final Facebook post on Monday, she said an "unexpected medical emergency" had forced her to cancel an engagement.
A selection of tributes from Twitter:

Did you know or work with Maya Angelou? Did her work have a significant impact on you? Send us your memories by emailing Haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk using the subject Maya Angelou.
Naijaswap © 2014

Girl, 7, witnesses father’s murder by policeman[Read 973 times]

Azeez
| credits: File copy

Less than a month after six-year-old Mariam Adeniji, witnessed the killing of her father, Rafiu, in the Mangoro area of Lagos state, another policeman on Saturday, shot to death a father of three, Azeez Omotosho.

Azeez was allegedly shot in the presence of his seven-year-old daughter Aliya, in front of their home at Oyegunwa Street, Sogunle area of Lagos State. He was allegedly shot twice.

The primary 2 pupil tearfully recounted her experience to PUNCH Metro. She said, “My daddy, my mummy and we the children, were inside the car. When we got to the entrance of our house, my daddy saw policemen flagging down his friend’s car. He parked and wanted to help his friend but my mummy said he should not go.

“My daddy left us and went to see the policemen while we went into the house. After sometime, we heard gunshots so we came outside. My daddy was on the floor. The policeman then shot my daddy again before he died.”

When our correspondent visited the family home of the deceased, sympathisers were seen coming in droves to pay condolence; Azeez’s widow, Sherifat, was nursing a seven-month-old baby.

Describing the incident as a nightmare, she said, “The incident happened around 9pm; Azeez had picked us from my shop on Aina Street. We drove to our home which is just about three streets away. Just in front of our house, Azeez saw a policemen flag down the vehicle of his friend’s brother, Samson and he went to intervene.

“I told my husband not to intervene but he said he knew the policeman and would talk to him. He did not even turn off the engine of his vehicle before going. The rest of us alighted and entered our compound when we heard a gunshot.

“We quickly ran out to see what had happened. I saw the policeman touch my husband who was on the floor. When he saw that Azeez was still breathing, he shot him again. The remaining policemen fled while the killer policeman held unto someone and wanted to frame the person. Look at my little children, who will take care of them for me?”

Azeez’s corpse was reportedly deposited at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital mortuary. As a result of the ongoing nationwide doctors’ strike, an autopsy on the corpse, is being delayed.

Upon the death of the 35-year-old, irate youths in the area allegedly marched down to Sogunle Police Division where the killer policeman, identified as Corporal Emejo Gabriel, was said to be attached to.

He was reportedly disarmed and arrested before being transferred to Area F Police Command, Ikeja.

Elder sister to the deceased, Aishat Omotosho, told PUNCH Metro that there was need for the police authorities to stop extra-judicial killings as it had become rampant.

Aishat urged the government to ensure that her brother’s corpse was released on time so he could be buried according to Islamic rites.

She said, “Azeez was a responsible man. This is not the first time policemen will be doing this; it has become common and the government must stop this trend.”

Police Public Relations Officer, Ngozi Braide, however told our correspondent that the killer policeman was first attacked and beaten by hoodlums.

She said, “The incident occurred around 10pm. There was a party at Ajisegiri Street and fighting erupted in the area. Policemen came up with a ‘stop and search’ strategy to arrest the hoodlums. However, Gabriel was hit with a bottle on his head and they attempted to snatch his rifle.

“A shot was fired and a life was lost. The policeman has been hospitalised while his team members have been arrested and investigations are on to determine if the policeman acted in accordance with Force Order 237.”

Read 973 times