Shockwaves are reverberating across Yorùbáland and the global Yorùbá diaspora following the sudden death of the Baba Ọba (King’s Father) of the famed Oyotunji African Village in South Carolina, USA. The late Baba Ọba, Lukman Arohunfale, a revered socialite and traditionalist, passed away under circumstances already sparking fierce controversy. His death comes just days after he publicly accused the newly installed Alaafin of Oyo, His Imperial Majesty Oba Akeem Adéyẹmọ Owoade, of allegedly ordering his courtiers to beat him mercilessly during a recent courtesy visit to the Oyo palace in Nigeria. In a widely circulated voice recording, the deceased recounted how what was meant to be a simple homage turned violent. Although the Baba Ọba had reportedly battled ill health in the past year, growing insinuations suggest that the alleged physical assault may have aggravated his condition, ultimately leading to his untimely death. The palace in Oyo recently denied that s...
A Thai teenager was rushed to the hospital after a python bit his penis as he sat on the toilet. Siraphop Masukarat, 18, went to the toilet on Tuesday evening, September 8, when he felt a sudden sharp pain in his male member. He looked down and saw the python with its jaws clamped around the tip of his penis. It quickly let go as blood spurted around the toilet bowl. Siraphop ran out of the toilet with his pants around his ankles in Nonthaburi, central Thailand, around 13 miles north of Bangkok. His mother called paramedics who rushed the teen to the nearby Bang Yai Hospital to have his wounded penis treated. Doctors gave Siraphop three stitches in the glands at the tip of the penis and treated the bite wound with an antibiotic wash, to kill any bacteria from the python's fangs. Narrating his ordeal, Siraphop said: "I was using the toilet but a few moments after I sat down, I suddenly felt pain in my penis. I looked down and saw there was a snake hanging in the toilet. Then there was blood everywhere."It was only a small snake but its bite was so strong. I hope that my penis can recover." Animal handlers arrived at the two-storey home and found the snake still coiled up in the toilet bowl. They used snake catching equipment to snare the python and put it into a sack before releasing it back into woodland. Siraphop's terrified mother, Sutapath, said she was still in shock about the incident as she wondered how the snake got into the house. She said: "I don't know how the snake got into my house. It could have been through the drain connected to the toilet. "I know the snake really hurt my son but I'm relieved it was only a non-venomous python. If it was a cobra, he would be dead. "He will be scared every time he goes to the toilet. But he's recovering well at the hospital and I'm thankful to the rescue volunteers for catching the snake."
