Presidency, Amaechi in ‘fresh war’

The Presidency and Rivers State   Governor, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, are in a fresh war of words over allegations that President Goodluck Jonathan is training   snipers and keeping 1,000 people on a watch list.

While the governor stated that he was the number one person on the President’s  watch list and that he had evidence to support this assertion, the  Presidency said the governor was like a drunken man in a china shop who was only interested in bringing down everybody with him.

The Presidency further dared the governor to prove his allegation.

The governor, who spoke to his Chief of Staff, Government House, Chief Tony Okocha, in Port Harcourt, on Thursday, said that he was waiting for the invitation of the National Human Rights Commission.

Obasanjo had, in a letter dated December 2, 2013, accused Jonathan of putting 1,000 people on a watch list and having a killer-squad. Obasanjo had also accused the President of training snipers. The President has denied these allegations, calling on the former president to provide evidence to back his allegations.

But at the All Progressives Congress rally, held at the Liberation Stadium, Port Harcourt on Saturday, Amaechi said that he was number one on Jonathan’s watch list.

He had said: “I read the President’s letter; he said Obasanjo should prove and name those on the list. I am number one on the list. I am number one.”

Okocha told Saturday PUNCH  that  the governor had enough  evidence to back his statement.

He said, “The governor knows what he is talking about and this is not just a claim; it is what is happening. There are indices the governor will use to buttress his point.  We will not make many comments now until the invitation from the NHRC  comes.”

He stated, “One thing you should know is that Governor Amaechi does not say one thing today on an issue and say another thing tomorrow on the same issue. You are aware of the battle between us and the police. Considering all we have passed through in the hands of the police, would anybody doubt the fact that the governor is on the Presidency’s watch list?”

However,  the Presidency  dared Amaechi to go  ahead and prove his allegation  that he is one of the 1,000 persons on the alleged political watch list of  the President.

Special Adviser to the President on Political Matters, Mr. Ahmed Gulak, threw the challenge in an interview with one of our correspondents on Thursday.

Gulak said it was clear to all that Amaechi had completely lost bearing and that Nigerians were aware of the governor’s antics.

According to him,  no  sane man would be talking like the governor is talking to the President.

He said, “Let him (Amaechi) go ahead and prove his claim. I don’t really want to talk about him because he has lost credibility. He is just like a drunken man in a china shop that wants to bring down everybody with him.

Oshiomhole Overcome death in Edo crash

Governor Adams Aliyu Oshiomhole survived a motor accident at Ewu Village along the ever busy Benin-Auchi road in Edo State at about 9.45am Saturday, 28th December, 2013 on his way back to Benin City from his Iyamho Village. The incident occurred at about 9.45am at Ewu, in Edo Central Senatorial District, when a Peugeot J5 Bus filled with tomatoes and plantains apparently lost control and rammed into the Governor’s Flag Car from the opposite direction before swerving into a road side ditch.

Three vehicles in the Governor’s convoy were in front of the Governor’s Flag Car and had passed the Peugeot J5 Bus before it [J5 Bus] had direct impact with the Governor’s Car which had the Governor, his Aide-De-Camp [ADC] and his Driver as occupants. The Governor’s Car was badly affected but no injuries were sustained by both occupants of the Peugeot J5 Bus and that of the Governor’s.

Road Accident In Bayelsa Kills 3

Three persons were yesterday killed in a fatal crash on the Bayelsa State end of the East-West Road, while eleven others sustained serious injuries.

The accident which involved a Toyota Sienna car with registration number BJ 292 BWR and Toyota Hiace passenger bus with plate number YA 820 AAA owned by ABC Motors, occurred at about 10.10 a.m. some distance away from the popular Zarama junction market on the Mbiama-Zarama axis of the East West road.

The deceased persons, all male, were in the passenger bus and were burnt beyond recognition.
It was learnt that the ill-fated bus was coming from Warri, Delta State and was heading to Calabar in Cross River State when it crashed into the Toyota Sienna vehicle in front of it conveying a family of eight.
The car suffered serious damage, but family of eight escaped unhurt, but three of the occupants in the passenger bus were burnt to ashes in the inferno that engulfed the bus.

Child Abuse & Neglect

Child abuse is more than bruises and broken bones. While physical abuse might be the most visible, other types of abuse, such as emotional abuse and neglect, also leave deep, lasting scars. The earlier abused children get help, the greater chance they have to heal and break the cycle—rather than perpetuate it. By learning about common signs of abuse and what you can do to intervene, you can make a huge difference in a child’s life.

Child abuse is more than bruises or broken bones. While physical abuse is shocking due to the scars it leaves, not all child abuse is as obvious. Ignoring children’s needs, putting them in unsupervised, dangerous situations, or making a child feel worthless or stupid are also child abuse. Regardless of the type of child abuse, the result is serious emotional harm.

Police Arrest Banker For Stealing N50m

The Special Fraud Unit of the Nigeria Police in Lagos has arrested a thirty one-year-old staffer of a new generation bank, Adeola Olokojobi, for allegedly stealing more than N50 million from a customer’s account.
Olokojobi, who is also the account officer to the customer, was said to have transferred the said sum in various installments into a different account, where it will be withdrawn.
Confirming the arrest, Police Public Relations Officer at the SFU, Ngozi Isintume said the customer who alerted the police, became suspicious of Olokojobi’s activities, when he was not forthcoming with his account balance.

Over 50 Islamists Killed, Villages Destroyed In Latest Military Offensive On Boko Haram

A military offensive in northeast Nigeria that killed more than 50 Islamist rebels has destroyed four villages and left corpses scattered in bushes, with some civilians among the dead, witnesses said Tuesday.

The defence ministry has said the operation was launched in response to an attack Friday by Boko Haram insurgents on an army barracks in the town of Bama in Borno state, the epicentre of the Islamist conflict.

Defence spokesman Chris Olukolade identified those killed as “terrorists.”

Residents told AFP that an unknown number of civilians also lost their lives as the military bombarded the fleeing rebels. While they reported finding scores of charred bodies in the area, many were thought to be those of Boko Haram fighters.

Area resident Karim Bunu told AFP the military onslaught “completely burnt down four villages,” specifically listing Awaram, Ali-Ali, Suwabara and Kashimri, all in Borno state.

Obasanjo, other politicians don’t own Nigeria –Jonathan

President Goodluck Jonathan again on Wednesday hit out at former President Olusegun Obasanjo over an  18-page letter  in which  he  accused  him  of deceit, deception, dishonesty, incompetence and clannishness.

He had on Sunday  described the  letter  as full of lies.

The President revisited the issue during a Christmas Day service held at the Cathedral Church of the Advent, Life Camp, Gwarinpa, Abuja.

Though he did not mention the name of the former President specifically, Jonathan regretted that some politicians who thought the country belonged  to them had started thinking about the next election.

In the process, he said,   such politicians had   started doing what they ought not to do, including writing letters.

7 Laws to Attract the Person You Love

Do you wish to attract someone to yourself? Is there a man or a woman that you like and want them to fall head over heels for you? If yes is your answer, then the seven principles of attraction is your key to success. The seven principles of attraction are seven simple ways that will help you grab anybody’s attention and master the art of attraction.

Mega Church Pastor Dies In Hotel Room of Drug Overdose

More than two years after the mysterious death of Pastor Zachery Tims in a New York City hotel room, the cause is now known: a toxic, fatal combination of cocaine and heroin.
The New York Medical Examiner’s Office released the cause of death Thursday after a drawn-out legal battle by the Apopka preacher’s mother, Madeline Tims, to keep the cause sealed.
The NYC Office of Chief Medical Examiner’s release says Tims died of “acute intoxication by the combined effects of cocaine and heroin. Manner of death: Accident.” The release came after a New York appellate court ruling Dec. 10 upheld a lower court decision that the Medical Examiner’s office had the authority to release the cause of death, according to a spokesperson with the law firm representing Madeline Tims.

THE BEST FOOD FOR YOUR HEALTH

Best Diet Tip No. 1: Drink plenty of water or other calorie-free beverages.

People sometimes confuse thirst with hunger. So you can end up eating extra calories when an ice-cold glass of water is really what you need.

"If you don't like plain water, try adding citrus or a splash of juice, or brew infused teas like mango or peach, which have lots of flavor but no calories," says Cynthia Sass, RD, a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association.

Best Diet Tip No. 2: Think about what you can add to your diet, not what you should take away.

Start by focusing on getting the recommended 5-9 servings of fruits and vegetables each day.

"It sounds like a lot, but it is well worth it, because at the same time you are meeting your fiber goals and feeling more satisfied from the volume of food," says chef Laura Pansiero, RD.

You're also less likely to overeat because fruits and vegetables displace fat in the diet. And that's not to mention the health benefits of fruits and vegetables. More than 200 studies have documented the disease-preventing qualities of phytochemicals found in produce, says Pansiero.

SAMPLE OF HAPPY FAMILY

"Happy families are all alike." Okay, he wasn't thinking about a three-kids-and-a-minivan lifestyle, but his point was timeless: Some families just seem to enjoy one another's company more; to have more fun; to be, well, happier. What do they know that the rest of us don't? We asked parents and other experts to spill their secrets. For a more joyful clan, why not try what works for them? Here are some of their techniques.
Create Traditions
Whether it's making pancakes for dinner on Sunday nights or ending every car trip by saying "Home again, home again, jiggity-jog," unique family rituals strengthen ties like nothing else.

JOIN ME TO BUILD FOR THE LORD

 

Psalm 127:1 ESV / 37 helpful votes

A Song of Ascents. Of Solomon. Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain.

Proverbs 24:27 ESV / 36 helpful votes

Prepare your work outside; get everything ready for yourself in the field, and after that build your house.

Philippians 4:19 ESV / 13 helpful votes

And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

Luke 6:46-49 ESV / 13 helpful votes

“Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you? Everyone who comes to me and hears my words and does them, I will show you what he is like: he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when a flood arose, the stream broke against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built. But the one who hears and does not do them is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the stream broke against it, immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great.”

Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala Shamed As House Of Reps Committee Walks Her Out Of Meeting

  

Representatives Committee on Finance, on Thursday, walked out the Coordinating Minister of Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, from its meeting it called over the state of the economy of the country from January till date.
The minister, alongside the Accountant-General of the Federation, Mr Jonah Ogunniyi Otunla, had appeared before the committee, chaired by Honourable Abdulmumin Jibrin, but trouble started when she told the committee that she was not feeling fine and that she honoured the invitation out of respect.
“I must tell you that I’m feeling sick. For the past one week, I’ve not had sleep, so I’m not feeling fine. But I had to come because I respect the parliament and the committee. I’ll try my best to respond to your questions as much as possible, and my other colleagues who are also here with me will contribute,” she said.

Hillary Clinton To Decide Presidential Ambition Next Year

Former US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton says she hasn’t made up her mind about whether to run for president in 2016 but will “make that decision sometime next year”.
Speaking in a television interview, Clinton says that it’s a “difficult decision” she does not want to rush into.
She said in the interview the focus should be on issues like unemployment, people “getting kicked off food stamps” and small business that cannot get access to credit.
Polls show Clinton as the leading Democratic contender to succeed President Barack Obama.
The former first lady is writing a book about her State Department years that will be released next year.

Charging Visa, Consular Service Fees In Foreign Currencies Illegal – FG

The federal government has warned foreign missions in Nigeria demanding payment for visas and consular services in foreign currencies to stop the practice forthwith, saying it violates Nigeria’s sovereignty.

Speaking yesterday at a meeting with members of the diplomatic corps in Abuja, Supervising Minister of Foreign Affairs, Prof. Viola Onwuliri described the practice as unacceptable and illegal“It has come to our notice that some diplomatic and consular missions in Nigeria choose to charge visa and other consular fees in foreign currencies. This is totally unacceptable and must be stopped
forthwith.

205 Christians Killed In Benue In Six Months – Report

No fewer than 205 Christians have been killed by Islamic extremists in the last six months in Benue State, Morning Star News has reported.
According to the report which said the killings took place in Agatu Local Government Area from May to November, the deaths were as a result of attacks on farmers by Fulani herdsmen.
The report also quoted Christian leaders as saying that 10,000 people were displaced in the aftermath of the attacks.
The report also noted that several of the perpetrators appeared to be mercenaries from outside the area rather than herdsmen, and locals questioned how the Fulani became so heavily armed.
Motives for the attacks, in most cases were unknown, according to the report, but a herdsmen spokesman alleged that stolen cattle was usually the reason for the bloodshed.

Photo: The effect of doctors' strike

A patient being evacuated from the National Hospital, Abuja by her relations as a result of the on-going doctors' strike.

Nigeria Drops to 37th In FIFA Ranking

African Champions, the Super Eagles of Nigeria, have dropped four places in the latest FIFA ranking released on Thursday, July 4.
The Super Eagles, who were earlier ranked 31st (785points) in the world, dropped to 35th (723 points), occupying 5th place on the continent.

CBN, NNPC ‘Reconciling $10.8b’

Just how much is the shortfall of the cash that should have been sent to the Federation Account?
The question remains as knotty as it was since Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Sanusi Lamido Sanusi broke the news of a missing $48.9billion.
“We will continue our work, until we can come to terms of what is actually the shortfall and what is due to come to the Federation Account,” Finance Minister Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said yesterday in Abuja at a news conference.
With the minister were Sanusi, Petroleum Resources Minister Mrs Diezani Allison-Madueke and Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Group Managing Director Andrew Yakubu.
Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala was speaking on the findings of a revenue reconciliation meeting convened among the CBN, NNPC, the Ministry of Finance and other stakeholders to clarify the discrepancy.

Said the minister: “At the meeting, the NNPC noted that the actual proceeds from crude oil exports over the period amounted to US$67.12 billion, and was thus about US$1.79 billion higher than the revenues reported by the CBN (possibly due to timing differences and Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC) listings, which were not included in the CBN report).”

Fashola Orders Prosecution Of Banger Importers

Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos State has ordered the Attorney-General of the state to prosecute two suspected importers of fireworks that caused last year’s Boxing Day explosions at Jankara Market on Lagos Island, Lagos, western Nigeria.
The governor also banned all markets and improvised warehouses for explosives in Jankara, Ojo-Giwa, Okoya and Moshalashi areas of Lagos Island.
These are contained in the Lagos State Government White Paper on the Lagos Island Explosion and Fire Incident of 26 December, 2012 in which one person was killed, 10 houses razed and 11 cars burnt at Ojo-Giwa Street, Jankara Market.

Fashola had set up a tribunal on the Jankara Market tragedy to look into the immediate and remote causes of the incident and proffer solutions to avert future occurrence. The committee submitted its report to the governor last month.
In the white paper, the governor ordered that Messrs. Joseph Olabode Ibiwoye and Olaleken Semilore, suspected importers of the fireworks that caused the fire at Ojo-Giwa and Okoya areas of Lagos Island on 26 December, 2012, as well as others found culpable be prosecuted by the State Attorney General to serve as a deterrent to others.

APC Chieftain Lambasts Iyabo Over Comments On Obasanjo

A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, APC, and the Lagos State interim Assistant Publicity Secretary of the party, Chief Funsho Ologunde, has come real had on Iyabo Obasanjo, for describing her father, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo as a liar, manipulator, two-faced hypocrite who is  determined to foist on President Goodluck Jonathan what no one would contemplate with him as president.
Chief Ologunde while speaking with P.M.NEWS this morning via telephone call, regretted that this is what the ex-president is getting after making Iyabo what she could not have ever become in her life time.
“This is just living true to the type of children Chief Obasanjo has. Children who do not have regard for their parents, children who will take their parents to the cleaners for no justifiable reasons.
“Children who live on the achievements of their parents but are very quick to disown such parents.

“First, it was Gbenga Obasanjo who told the whole world that his father does not know the year he was born, that he had consistently lied about his age. That Obasanjo was sleeping with his wife. It was a highly distasteful, most embarrassing  and humiliating statement from a son to his father.
“After Obasanjo made Iyabo to be what she could never would have been in her life time. First she was a commissioner in Ogun State, a position she did not deserve and later an unmerited Senator that she was rigged into the senate by her father.

Doctors Strike: LASUTH Sends Patients Home

The management of the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, LASUTH, Ikeja , Lagos, western Nigeria this morning discharged patients from the hospital following the five-day nationwide warning strike embarked upon by the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA). The warning strike started yesterday and will end on Sunday.
Doctors at the teaching hospital, we gathered, have decided to join their colleagues nationwide to protest Federal Government’s failure to address the association’s demands.
All the patients hurriedly discharged were told to come back for treatment on Sunday.
The mother of a discharged patient, Yetunde IFeoluwa, told pressmen outside the hospital that she was asked to go home by the officials of the hospital because doctors were on strike. “ I have an appointment with the doctor today for special shoes for my child who cannot walk. But on getting to the hospital I was told to go back and return on Sunday because doctors are on strike. I have been carrying him on my back since he was born. The doctor said that I should come today for the shoes but I was turned back at the gate by officials of the hospital,” she stated.

Confusion in PDP over 37 Reps’ defection

There   was  confusion in the leadership of  the Peoples Democratic Party on Thursday as it made two conflicting demands  from  both the House of Representatives Speaker, Aminu Tambuwal , and  the  Federal High Court, Abuja on the defection of 37 of its  members to the All Progressives Congress.

While  the PDP  released a statement  in which it requested Tambuwal to  declare the defectors’ seats in the House vacant,  in the court, it asked  for an  order   compelling them  to return to its fold.

In the statement by its National Publicity Secretary,  Olisa Metuh, the  party argued that  since the 37 lawmakers  had   renounced their membership, the Presiding Officers of  the House must declare their   seats vacant without any further delay.

The PDP  said that a court order  which the 37  lawmakers  referred to while announcing their defection on Wednesday  was wrongly interpreted

N255m car scandal: Sack Oduah now, Reps tell Jonathan

The House of Representatives on Thursday agreed that the Minister of Aviation, Ms. Stella Oduah, breached the 2013 Appropriation Act.

It therefore asked Jonathan to review her appointment for approving expenditure of over N643m for the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority to procure 54 vehicles this year.

The spokesman for the House, Mr. Zakari Mohammed, when contacted, explained that the lawmakers wanted the minister sacked.

He said, “The review here means a change in status. It is a mild way of saying that Mr. President should sack the minister.”

The House noted that her approval limit as a minister was N100m.

It  added that in the process, the agency purchased two bulletproof BMW cars at the cost of N255m without the approval of the National Assembly.

The House  took the decision at Thursday’s plenary after  endorsing  the report of its  Committee on Aviation, which investigated the purchase of the bulletproof cars.

Reps raise 50 questions on economy for Okonjo-Iweala

Members of the House of Representatives on Thursday engaged their guest, the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, in hot exchange over the state of the economy.

At the end of the day, the lawmakers sent the minister away with 50-question homework.

Okonjo-Iweala, who is also the coordinating minister for the economy for the President Goodluck Jonathan administration, had appeared before the House Committee on Finance to address members on the state of the nation’s economy.

But, the session, which was chaired by Mr. Abdulmumini Jibrin, turned stormy shortly after the minister complained that she was indisposed to speak.

About three hours earlier, Okonko-Iweala had laid the estimates of the 2014 budget before the whole House where she looked excited, smiling and waving at lawmakers in acknowledgement of their cheers.

In response to the minister’s complaint of not feeling well to speak, the committee offered to grant her two weeks of rest and to reappear to speak to members at the end of the rest period.

The minister however shouted, “No, no, no,” and accused the committee members of being rude and hasty in dismissing her.

Kabiru Sokoto bags life imprisonment for terrorism

The Boko Haram kingpin, Kabiru Umar, alias Kabiru Sokoto, was on Friday sentenced to life imprisonment by an Abuja Federal High Court for his role in terrorist activities, including the December 25, 2011 bombing of St. Theresa’s Catholic Church in Madalla, Niger State.

He was the governor of Sokoto State in the hierarchy of the Boko Haram group, according to evidence that emerged in the course of his trial, which lasted six months.

Justice Adeniyi Ademola found him guilty of facilitating terrorist activities in Sokoto State, and having prior knowledge of the bomb attack at St. Theresa’s Catholic Church.

Kabiru Sokoto, who was finally apprehended by operatives of the State Security Service in the Borno State Governor’s Lodge in Abuja after escaping from the custody of police officers who initially arrested him, was arraigned by the Federal Government on April 19, 2013 on a two count charge bordering on terrorism.

In count one of the charge, the Federal Government informed the court that, between 2007 and 2012, the Boko Haram kingpin facilitated bomb attacks on the police headquarters in Sokoto State and some other government organisations in the state, an offence contrary to section 15(2) of Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (Establishment) Act 2004.

PRESIDENCY THREATENS APC LEADERS WITH TREASON •As party calls for immediate impeachment of Jonathan

PRESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan on Sunday challenged former President Olusegun Obasanjo to prove his claims in the 18-page letter accusing the president of sundry misdemeanour including the training of 1000 snipers towards 2015 election or shut up forever.
A Presidency statement signed by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, in Abuja also threatened to charge the spokesman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Alhaji Lai Mohammed, for treasonable felony over his alleged fostering of public insurrection in the country.

Impeach Jonathan now —APC
The All Progressives Congress (APC) had asked the National Assembly to rise beyond partisanship and save Nigeria from imminent collapse by immediately kick-starting the process of impeaching President Goodluck Jonathan for gross misconduct.
In a statement issued in Lagos on Sunday by its Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said it is issuing this call with a high sense of responsibility and the strong belief that the impeachment of the president is a legitimate constitutional option available to the National Assembly not only to protect the nation’s democracy but also to ensure the country’s unity.
‘’Our country is drifting dangerously and our people are divided now, perhaps more than at any other point in our history, with the exception of the civil war period. There is a total failure of leadership, even as insecurity, unprecedented corruption, palpable impunity, massive unemployment and hunger stalk the land.
“Since the raison d’etre of any government is the security and welfare of the citizenry, and the present administration has failed to live up to the justification of its existence, there can be no other definition of gross misconduct than that.
“Therefore, the time has come for the head of that government, on whose desk the buck stops, to be removed through the provisions stipulated in the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. This is the patriotic thing to do,’’ it said.

Pastor Hacks Wife Over Failure To Attend Church

The police in Ogun State have arrested a pastor with a first generation pentecostal church, Daniel Samuel, for allegedly attacking his wife, Patience Samuel, with machete and inflicting deep cuts at the back of her neck.
The pastor allegedly attacked his wife over her alleged persistent failure to attend prayer meetings and other church programmes.
Our correspondent gathered that 45- year-old David, who became the pastor of the Ode Remo branch of the church about a year ago, had travelled to Owode-Egba in Obafemi Owode Local Government Area, where his wife works and allegedly hit her with the machete that left her injured.

We learnt that the pastor had accused his 42-year-old wife of shirking in her dedication to church programmes.

The pastor was said to have on several occasions complained to his in-laws about his wife’s obsession with office work at the expense of her family and church services.

Our correspondent however learnt that Patience also sells firewood, charcoal and food at the Redemption Camp to augment her husband’s N15,000 monthly salary and to support their five children.

Rape: Osun drags monarch to Appeal Court

Appeal to challenge the judgment of the State High Court which discharged and acquitted the Alowa of Ilowa, Oba Adebukola Alli.
The monarch was accused of raping a former member of the National Youth Service Corps.
The monarch, who was dragged to court by the ex-corps member, Helen Okpara, was freed by Justice Jide Falola on October 8, 2013 after almost three years trial.

A statement from the Ministry of Justice on Sunday by the Information Officer of the ministry, Mr. Opeyemi Bello, stated that the appeal had been filed at the Court of Appeal, Akure Division.

The state government expressed its displeasure about the case and asked the Appeal Court to convict the monarch for forcefully having carnal knowledge of Okpara who served in the monarch’s domain.

The respondent stated in the notice of appeal filed on December 12 that the learned trial judge erred in law when he held that the prosecution failed to tender medical report.

It reads further, “The Investigating Police Officer led evidence to the effect that he took the victim to Osogbo for medical examination after the offence of rape had been committed by the accused.

 “The medical doctor that examined the victim testified as PW1 that she was presented to him for medical examination with the complaint that she was sexually assaulted and that he found bruises on her virginal which suggested struggle in the course of penetration.

“All through the trail, there was no contrary evidence to suggest that medical examination of the victim was not conducted.

“The judgement of the learned trial judge is altogether unmeritorious, unreasonable, unwarranted, perverse and cannot be supported having regard to the totality of evidence adduced before the court.”

The government asked the appeal court to convict the monarch, saying all the ingredients of rape were proved before the lower court.

Opara, who served in Alli’s domain between 2010 and 2011, had claimed that the monarch took her to his private residence in Osogbo, the state capital, where he forcefully had sex with her.

But the monarch denied the claim, saying the ex-corps member was his girlfriend. Opara had said at a press conference that Alli raped her without using a condom.

The former corps member had explained  that she got acquainted with the monarch during the last voters’ registration exercise in Ilowa and he  (Alowa) eventually asked her to assist him to facilitate computer training programme for his subjects.

Caught on camera: chilling moment a 6yr old girl was led away by man who raped and killed her

This chilling photo above shows a 6 year old girl walking hand in hand with a man through the lobby of a skytrain station in Bangkok, Thailand, ten days ago. Her body was later found, raped & violently murdered.

According to Daily Mail UK, her disappearance sparked a 10-day manhunt which ended yesterday after her strangled and decomposing body was found in a deserted area near the city's Suklhumvit Soi 105. Within hours of the discovery police arrested the man in the pic following a tip-off.

The girl known simply as Nong Cartoon went with her father to go see a folk music concert, but when she became sleepy, her father took her to nap in his truck outside the venue around 10pm and returned to finish watching the show. By the time he came back 40mins later, the girl had vanished.

The man pictured with Nong is a 32 year old man named Nui, who was released from prison in August 2013 after serving three years and eight months for the abduction of a child under 15 years. Continue to see more pics from the CCTV footage...

2 of the 6 men who raped a 16 year old girl in Akure, paraded

Two of the six cult boys who raped a 16 year old secondary school student in Akure, Ondo State last week have been arrested by the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC)

The men, said to members of a cult group known as Blue Angel, saw the girl as she was returning from school, they stopped her, took her to their hideout and raped her. All six of them. They recorded the act with a mobile phone and threatened to post the video online if she told anyone what happened.

Fortunately she did and two of the rapists, Wale Fadahunsi, 28, and Banji Olaseinde, 25, have been arrested, while four others are on the run. Those on the run include Tope Oluwole; Tope Jigan and Muyideen. The two that were arrested were paraded a few days ago where they confessed to raping the helpless girl whose identity is being concealed because of her age. Watch the video after the cut..

Senator Yerima divorces 17year old Egyptian wife, marries another 15yr old

Three years after marrying a 14 year old Egyptian girl named Marian, which was widely protested in Nigeria, former Zamfara state governor and serving senator of the federal republic of Nigeria, Sen. Ahmed Yerima, has reportedly divorced her to marry a new wife. According to reports, Sen.Yerima and four men, said to be members of the Zamfara State House of Assembly were in Egypt a few weeks ago for the wedding fathia of a new bride said to be 15 years old.

Marian who is now 17 and a mother of one, is believed to be the daughter of the former governor's driver whenever he visits Egypt. The reason he divorced her is to enable him take a new wife as he's not allowed more than four wives.

The Senator is alleged to have married and divorced a few women in the last few years but has never changed his first three wives, only the fourth ones.

Sen. Ahmed Yerima this year was strongly against the deletion of the section of the 1999 constitution which pegged the official marriage age in Nigeria as 18 year, saying it was anti-Islam.

16, 470 Nigerians Still Live In Refugee Camps – NEMA

 

About 16,470 internally displaced persons (IDP) are still living in refugee camps since the aftermath of the 2012 flooding in Nigeria, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), has revealed.NEMA Director General, Sani Sidi, made this disclosure in Geneva, Switzerland, Sunday, during his presentation at the sixth dialogue of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), on protection challenges facing displaced persons.The occasion which was organised in collaboration with NEMA as part of its efforts to improve the management of the IDPs in the camps, also served as a training forum for trainers on humanitarian /IDP protection. 

In a statement by NEMA Senior Information Officer, Sani Datti, the DG during his presentation, said the displacement in the country was rather volatile.
“At the peak of the 2012 flood disaster, as high as 2.3 million persons were displaced and took refuge in the camps which were spread across several states of the country.
“Which was why we partnered non-governmental organisations, civil society organisations and government to train a total of 45 trainers.”

Champions league: Man City to face Barcelona in last 16

Arsenal will face holders Bayern Munich in the last 16 of the Champions League.

The Premier League leaders, beaten by Bayern at the same stage last year, have paid a heavy price for a final-day defeat at Napoli which relegated them to runners-up in their group.

And Manchester City, who finished second to Bayern in their group, have been similarly punished with a tie against Barcelona on their first appearance in the knockout stages.

Elsewhere Chelsea will be up against Galatasaray and Didier Drogba, the man whose penalty won them the competition in 2012.

And Greek champions Olympiakos stand between Manchester United and a place in the quarter-finals.

City’s draw is all the more galling given the circumstances: needing a two-goal victory at Bayern to finish top, Manuel Pellegrini’s misreading of the mathematics led him to defend a 3-2 lead rather than chase a fourth goal.

World bids Mandela final goodbye

With military pomp and traditional rituals, South Africa buried Nelson Mandela on Sunday, thus  marking  the  end of an exceptional journey for the prisoner turned President.

Mandela,  who died on December 5   at the age of 95,  was laid to rest in his childhood village of Qunu.  His body travelled from Pretoria by air to Mthatha in Eastern Cape province, and then by road to Qunu .

Present at the private burial   were about 450 members of the Mandela family,  political and religious leaders as well as foreign dignitaries, including  Britain’s Prince Charles, American civil rights activist ,Reverend Jesse Jackson and talk show host Oprah Winfrey.

 Tribal leaders clad in animal skins joined the dignitaries in dark suits at the grave site overlooking the rolling green hills.

As pall-bearers walked toward the site after a funeral ceremony,  three helicopters whizzed past dangling the national flag. Cannons fired a 21-gun salute and their   echoes rang over the quiet village.

  Mandela’s widow, Graca Machel, dabbed her eyes with a handkerchief as she watched the proceedings.

“Yours was truly a long walk to freedom. Now you have achieved the ultimate freedom in the bosom of God, your maker,” an officiator at the grave site  was quoted by the Cable News Network as saying.

Military pall-bearers gently removed the South African flag that draped Mandela’s   coffin and handed it to President Jacob Zuma, who gave it to the   former President’s family.

At the request of the family, the lowering of the casket was closed to journalists.

• The funeral ceremony

Impeach Jonathan now, APC tells N’ Assembly

The All Progressives Congress has called on the National Assembly to immediately commence the process of impeaching President Goodluck Jonathan for alleged gross misconduct.

It  said  in a statement on Sunday by its Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, that Jonathan’s impeachment  would  save Nigeria from imminent collapse.

But the Presidency warned the APC and others, who it said were  bent on plunging the nation into political instability,  to be ready for the consequences of treasonable action.

The opposition party,  however, said it  made the  call with a high sense of responsibility and   strong belief that the impeachment of the President was a legitimate constitutional option available to the National Assembly not only to protect the nation’s democracy, but  to ensure its  unity.

It explained that  it based  the  call for Jonathan’s impeachment on the  dangerous drifting of the country.

The APC added that there was a total failure of leadership,  insecurity, unprecedented corruption, impunity, massive unemployment and hunger  in the country.

The statement reads in part, ‘’Since the raison d’etre of any government is the security and welfare of the citizenry, and the present administration has failed to live up to the justification of its existence, there can be no other definition of gross misconduct but that.

Obasanjo bombs Jonathan

President Goodluck Jonathan is under  a fresh attack . This time, it  is a stinker  from a former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo.

 The Balogun of Owu, Abeokuta, did not make an impromptu speech at a public forum, he took his time to pen what he felt to be Jonathan’s  failings.

In  an 18-page  letter to  the President, Obasanjo  accused  him, among other things, of  not honouring his words  and  taking actions calculated at destroying Nigeria.

The  letter dated December 2, 2013 and titled, “Before it is too late”  became public  knowledge on Wednesday. Only on Monday, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal, said Jonathan was paying lip service to  the anti-corruption campaign  in the country.

In the letter, Obasanjo accused the President of  pursuing “ selfish personal and political interests based on advise from his “self-centred aides.”

He also alleged that the President had  failed  to deliver on his promises to Nigerians and to  curb insurgency and corruption in the country.

 “Nigeria is bleeding and the hemorrhage must be stopped,” an obviously angry Obasanjo lamented. He went ahead to declare that  “Jonathan had betrayed God and   Nigerians,” who voted him into power.

Obasanjo further alleged that Jonathan  had not only   placed more than  1, 000 Nigerians on a political watchlist,   he had  succeeded in destroying  the ruling  Peoples Democratic Party and  polarised Nigeria  along regional and religious lines.

He also said the President was involved in anti-party activities.

• PDP crises and Jonathan’s personal agenda

He said the President was using the PDP  National Chairman, Bamanga Tukur, to cause the lingering crises in the party.

Obasanjo said, “Let me start with the leadership of the ruling party. Many of us were puzzled over what was going on in the party. Most party members blamed the national chairman. I understand that some in the Presidency tried to create the impression that some of us were to blame.

“The situation became clear only when the national chairman spoke out that he never did anything or acted in any way without the approval or concurrence of the party leader (Jonathan) and that where the party leader disapproved, he made correction or amendment, that we realised most actions were those of the chairman but the motivation and direction were those of the leader.

Soliloquies by Charly Boy

An interesting article by Charly Boy. Enjoy...

The journey from the village was very hectic, as I had to travel a dusty road to Owerri before catching the small plane that was made available by the airline. I was famished (not for the snack on board), and needed to just soak myself in bubble bath. 

As soon as I got home from the airport, I rushed into the shower so I could quickly settle to the sumptuous meal quietly waiting for me downstairs at the dining.

I felt relieved with the shower, leaving water streaks on my body and in my birthday suit, I made for my walk-in closet which is right across my open plain bath area. 

Midway, a man stands tall looking right into my eyes.

Ahh, what is this, who are you?

This Male bears a lot of semblance with me, physically and as I will conclude hereafter, psychologically, socially, materially, even spiritually.

How I connect with this being is a spiritual thing! We have a lot in common, too much!

He's sometimes mischievous, just like me, fascinated by magic and hocus-pocus; dogged, stubborn, tenacious and what have you.

Vulnerable in many ways, but he has found grand ways of covering his own back, since not many people will do that for you these days.

I see a lot of me in him.

PHOTOS: You Won’t Believe What Funke Akindele & Ini Edo Are Doing With Guns

Presidency Gave N32b To 16 PDP Governors – APC

The All Progressives Congress, APC, has raised the alarm over clandestine moves by the Presidency to dole out N2 billion each to 16 Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) controlled states.

The Interim National Publicity Secretary of APC, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, made this known yesterday while addressing reporters yesterday in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, at a forum organised by the state council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ).

Mr. Mohammed claimed that the purpose of the largesse was to starve APC states of funds for development purposes.He said: “As a matter of fact, as I am speaking today, we have in our possession a document that the President has given N2 billion each to 16 states, and of these states not one of them is an APC state. The idea is to starve the APC states of their constitutional entitlements and secretly fund states that are perceived to be with the President.
“This is a matter we will take up and the National Assembly, we hope, will also take up the matter. I think the matter should be thrown to the court of public opinion.
“The President should understand that whatever money accrues to the Federal revenue account is for the benefit of all Nigerians. It is not for Mr. President to use as Christmas gift or as a carrot for those who support him. We know that the battle for 2015 would not be easy but we want to assure the President that he is going to have a tough battle on his hand.
“Many things are happening in the Villa today. One thing is clear: Mr President is ready to use all manners, all methods constitutional and illegal to ensure he punishes governors.

Tukur’s Son, Others Re-arraigned for N1.8bn Subsidy Fraud

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on Monday re-arraigned Mahmud Tukur, son of Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur; and others for alleged N1.8bn fuel subsidy fraud before a Lagos High Court in Ikeja.
Others who were charged with Mahmud are Alex Ochonogor, their firm, Eterna Plc; and Abdullahi Alao, who is a  son of an Ibadan-based businessman, Abdulazeez Arisekola-Alao.

The re-arraignment took place before Justice Lawal Lawal-Akapo. It followed the transfer of the former trial judge, Justice Adeniyi Onigbanjo, out of the Criminal Division of the Lagos State Judiciary.
The accused persons were initially arraigned before Justice Onigbanjo on July 26, 2012.

All the accused again on Monday pleaded not guilty to the nine counts of conspiracy and fraud preferred against them by the EFCC.
After the defendants took their plea, Lawal-Akapo ruled that the accused be allowed to continue enjoying the earlier bail granted them by Onigbanjo.

Thai PM In Tears, Begs Protesters To Take Part In Election

Her eyes welling with tears, Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra pleaded on Tuesday for anti-government demonstrators to clear the streets and support a snap election, but defiant protest leaders called for her to step down within 24 hours.
After weeks of sometimes violent street rallies, protesters rejected her call on Monday for a general election and said she should be replaced by an unelected “people’s council”, a proposal that has stoked concern Southeast Asia’s second-biggest economy may abandon the democratic process.

Yingluck said she would continue her duties as caretaker prime minister until the election, which is set for February 2.
On Tuesday she held a cabinet meeting at an army club.

“Now that the government has dissolved parliament, I ask that you stop protesting and that all sides work towards elections,” Yingluck told reporters as she went in.
“I have backed down to the point where I don’t know how to back down any further.”

Tears briefly formed in her eyes as she spoke, before she quickly composed herself – perhaps a glimpse of the emotional toll she has faced from weeks of protests.
Yingluck, a 46-year-old former businesswoman, had no political experience before entering a 2011 election that she won by a landslide, largely on the back of rural support.

APC Hails House Of Reps Speaker’s Stand On Corruption

 The All Progressives Congress (APC) has commended the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Aminu Tambuwal, for his patriotism and dedication to the nation, following his principled stand on the Jonathan Administration’s tepid fight against corruption.
In a statement issued in Lagos on Tuesday by its Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said the Speaker exhibited a leadership trait that is rare in these parts by shunning partisanship to say that the President’s body language does not indicate that he has the political will to fight corruption in the country.

”Hon. Tambuwal and President Jonathan belong to the same political party, but this did not deter the Speaker from rising above crass partisanship when the issue involved borders on national interest. This is the stuff of good leadership.
”Hon. Tambuwal has shown that he is indeed the Speaker of the Federal House of Representatives and that the entire country is his constituency, unlike President Jonathan who has transformed himself to a PDP and a sectional leader by viewing serious issues of national importance from the prism of partisanship and sectionalism,” it said, expressing the hope that other Nigerians will emulate the Speaker.

APC set to storm INEC headquarters today

The leadership of All Progressives Congress (APC) is to stage a peaceful procession to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) headquarters in Abuja today to register its disapproval of the Commission’s “string of failures” in the conduct of recent elections.
The party cited the Delta Central Senatorial District by-election and the ‘inconclusive’ November 16 Anambra State governorship election to buttress its position on INEC’s shortcomings.
In a statement on Wednesday by its Interim National Publicity Secretary, Lai Mohammed, APC vowed to proceed with the march to INEC headquarters, despite the move by police to stop it.
‘’We are doing this as a patriotic service to the nation because INEC as presently constituted is not capable of organising a free and fair election again in Nigeria.
“If the Commission is not checked, its incompetence and conniving acts could plunge the country into chaos of unimaginable proportions,’’ the party said.
APC explained that ahead of the march, it wrote a letter to the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command to inform it of the planned procession and to request for police escort to forestall a possible hijack of the march by sponsored hoodlums.
‘’To our dismay, however, the FCT Police Commissioner did not only turn down our request for police escort but also cheekily advised us to restrict our activity to holding a press conference within our party headquarters to convey our grievances to INEC.

I Was Dead For Seven Days…They Started Selling My Properties – Patience Jonathan

Nigerian First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan, yesterday, disclosed why she was absent from the country for almost three months during which the presidency tried to hide her whereabouts and her state of health.
She said she died and woke up after seven days while she battled the ailment that took her out of the country.

Testifying to God’s goodness during a thanksgiving service held at the State House chapel in Abuja, the First Lady said the prayers of Nigerians sustained her, adding that some people who thought she was dead and never expected her back started to sell her property.

The First Lady said she underwent seven surgical operations within one month and even the doctors didn’t think she was going to survive.
“I remember when Chief Obasanjo was the President of the country; I was close to his late wife, Stella. We worshiped together in this chapel. It was a painful moment for me that time when she (Stella) died and her corpse was brought here,” Patience Jonathan said.

We won’t return to PDP, Wamakko tells President

The meeting President Goodluck Jonathan had with Peoples Democratic Party governors on Sunday which was aimed at resolving the crisis in the ruling party ended  again in a deadlock in the early hours of Monday.

 Contrary to expectation, Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso of Kano State  and his  Sokoto State  counterpart, Aliyu Wamakko, who had earlier announced their defection to the All Progressives Congress, stuck to their guns at the end of the meeting.

Wamakko told State House correspondents at about 2.15 am on Monday that he used the opportunity of the meeting to formally inform the President of the defection of five PDP governors, including himself, to the  APC.

He  explained  that   Kwankwaso   and himself  only attended the meeting out of respect for the President, who invited them.

 Wamakko said, “The  meeting went on very well because some of us came here as governors. In the PDP matter, our position has been known.

 “On behalf of the five of us, I have already briefed Mr. President of our position as G-5,  that we are no longer in the PDP mainstream and that we are already in another party.

 “But as a President of this country, if he calls us, we will come and listen to him and respect him as a leader of our country, otherwise what we had there was mostly a PDP affair.”

Eagles Confident, As Nigeria Draw Argentina Again

THE Super Eagles were Friday at the luxurious Costa do Sauípe in Salvador, Brazil handed a group that contains perennial foes, Argentina in the 2014 World Cup draws conducted by FIFA’s Jerome Valcke. 
 Valcke was assisted by Cafu, Fabio Cannavaro, Alcides Ghiggia, Fernando Hierro, Sir Geoff Hurst, Mario Kempes, Lothar Matthaus and Zinedine Zidane, who were representing the eight World Cup winners.
  The 2014 World Cup would be the fourth Mundial that Nigeria will face Argentina in the opening round having met the South Americans at the USA 1994, Japan/Korea 2002 and South Africa 2010 editions of the Mundial.
  In all the three previous encounters, the Argentines had the upper hand a tricky combination of Maradona and Claudio Canniggia accounting for their 2-1 defeat of the Eagles, even after Samson Siasia had given the Eagles the lead in that game.

  At the Korea/Japan edition, a header by Gabriel Batistuta settled the game, while the Argies relied on a Gabriel Heinze header to win the game. And now, both teams will meet again in their last group game on June 25, 2014 at Porto Alegre.

Mandela For Burial On Dec. 15

President Jacob Zuma of South Africa said the Late  anti-apartheid hero, Dr. Nelson Mandela, would be buried on Dec. 15 at his ancestral home in the Eastern Cape.
Zuma said the country’s first black president would be laid to rest in a family plot at his ancestral village of Qunu, 700 km (450 miles) south of Johannesburg.
Three of Mandela’s children and other close family members had been buried there.
Zuma had also announced that the former president would be honoured with a Dec. 10 memorial service at Johannesburg’s Soccer City Stadium, the site of the 2010 World Cup final.
“We will spend the week mourning his passing. We will also spend it celebrating a life well lived’’, Zuma said.
South Africans united in mourning for Nelson Mandela on Friday. Some celebrated his remarkable life with dance and song.
Others fretted that the anti-apartheid hero’s death would make the nation vulnerable again to racial and social tensions.
On Friday, the country’s 52 million people absorbed the news that their most revered statesman, a global symbol of reconciliation and peaceful co-existence, had departed forever.
“It’s not going to be good, hey! I think it’s going to become a more racist country. People will turn on each other and chase foreigners away’’, said Sharon Qubeka, 28, a Secretary from Tembisa Township.
“Mandela was the only one who kept things together.’

Jonathan declares 3 days of mourning

President Goodluck Jonathan has declared three days of national mourning for former South African president Nelson Mandela, who passed away on Thursday.

According to a statement issued in Abuja on Friday, Jonathan urged all Nigerians to unite in solidarity with the people of South Africa as they mourn the great liberator, freedom fighter and hero of the black race.
"The president also calls for special prayers in mosques and churches in Nigeria during the period of mourning which begins today, for the peaceful repose of Mandela’s soul." the statement stated.
A special inter-denominational memorial service for Mandela would be held at the State House Chapel on Sunday.