THE WORST 10 OF GOODLUCK JONATHAN’S 2014 | A Review by Ayo Sogunro

At the risk of putting a dampener on your holiday festivities, here’s a quick reminder of how badly 2014 went. Of course, we’ll rather sweep all of this under Nigeria’s Big Rug of Forgetfulness, but now that the presidential campaign is in full swing with the achievements of Goodluck Jonathan’s administration in roads, bridges and other petty infrastructure, here’s a quick look at the worst tragic events, inane policies and unresolved issues that plagued us in 2014 alone.

1. The Continuing Boko Haram War which, insanely, is yet to be treated as a war. Instead, the Federal Government of Nigeria treats it as a mild annoyance while the military keeps pretending it’s a top secret experiment being conducted in the basements of Sambisa Forest. Meanwhile, tragic news from internally displaced persons tells of unbelievable horror: captured towns; wanton and brutal killings; extortion by terrorists. The year 2014 has been a kill-fest for Boko Haram: the Borno Massacre, Abuja and Kano bomb blasts, the sudden emergence of female suicide bombers, and terrorist flags raised over Nigeria territories: one would be forgiven to think that the terrorists have been handed a free pass across the North of Nigeria. There was a point in the year where it seemed that the Nigerian Army had got its game on and would soon rout the terrorists, but the Federal Government announced a one-sided “ceasefire” and, to put a cliché on it, “snatched defeat from the jaws of victory”. Boko Haram is currently the biggest headache in Nigeria—and it’s also the most ignored by the Presidency.

2. The Missing Chibok Girls have made international news through the #BringBackOurGirls campaign, suitably embarrassing the Presidency and gearing them to some half-assed attempt at damage control for their initial disregard. Even worse than the disbelief was the earlier lie pushed out by the military that they had recovered the girls—a statement that wrecked whatever little trust Nigerians had in the military. Meanwhile, the Presidency, either because of its unbelievable disconnect from the military or simply through general nonchalance, didn’t believe the girls were missing, that is, until the aforesaid international embarrassment. Afterwards, the President flew to France for a problem solving meeting and later met with members of the Chibok community (in deference to Malala’s wishes—we should add), and then—nothing. Honestly, nothing else. That’s all. The girls are still missing—some of them presumed dead.

3. Abba Moro and the Tragic NIS Recruitment is a story that should have shaken the foundations of public administration in a saner climate. But, not in Nigeria. How do you connect a public service recruitment exercise with the deaths of several people while making a truckload of money too? Leave it to Abba Moro, Minister of Interior. Bad enough that the Immigration Service charged money from potential government employees; bad enough that the recruitment exercise was badly planned and fatally executed, bad enough that Abba Moro was not sacked afterwards—but utterly shameful and irresponsible that the Federal Government didn’t even consider it an issue worth stressing about. There was no sense of shame or regret. Just a casual promise to find jobs for the injured and compensate relatives of the fatal victims—a promise which I understand is yet to be fulfilled. Yet, the same government lost no time in suspending a weekly Federal Executive Council meeting following the death of—wait for it—the Vice President’s brother.

4. That Embarrassing Centenary Celebration would have been deeply hilarious if it wasn’t also a tragic reflection of the distance between the federal government of Nigeria and the reality of millions of everyday Nigerians. This was at a time when the country was in a sour mood and nobody was looking to a national celebration. But, by heavens, the Presidency was determined to party—and party it did. It ran amok with the celebrations and dashed imaginary awards to everyone who ever slept in a government house. Just to rub this indiscretion in the noses of Nigerians properly, the Abachas were also invited to dine. And that’s when even Jonathan’s supporters started to worry about the quality of his advisers.

5. A National Conference or Something Like That, which, to be frank, was neither national nor was it a conference: more like a cross between a political party conference and a bucket list for old men. The President wanted to impress some intellectuals, maybe, but all it featured was a couple or so brilliant speeches and a lot of puzzling fights. We really don’t know where the report by the Conference is headed or what benefit it has conferred on Nigeria. In short, the Conference was another brainwave of the GEJ administration that just didn’t make much sense. The best I can say is this: it started too quickly and ended too late.

6. Twenty Billion Dollars and other Sorry Tales: we all learnt a lot about numbers this year. I learnt that you can host a magnificent World Cup with thirteen billion dollars or thereabouts—ask Brazil. Which is why it’s puzzling that a figure even in excess of that amount could lose its way to the Federation Account and nobody in Aso Rock bothered to send out a search team. Well, the erstwhile governor of the Central Bank tried to raise an alarm and we all saw the President come on TV to insult the man’s intellect on the premise that a man who mistook a mere case of “stealing” public funds for one of “corruption” was unfit to be a central bank governor. A new governor was promptly appointed and that leads to the next point.

7. Rebased, Reserved, Revalued aka Economics, Economics and more Economics. Look, I’m not quite sure any single person in Nigeria can tell you exactly what the hell is going on with the Nigerian economy. First, the economy was rebased in what was supposed to translate into “Nigeria has more money circulating in its industries than we realized” and next, we learnt that our external reserve was going down faster than a belly dancer, and before we could comprehend that imagery, we saw the naira go down even faster against the dollar. All of this in 2014. Till date, the President has not told us what these economic travails mean and how he plans to handle it (except you count the dismissive explanations set out in the 2015 budget). Meanwhile, the new CBN governor has politely asked for a sixty-five naira ATM fee to save banks the trouble of stealing it directly from your account.

8. The Signing of the “Anti-Gay” Law was another indication of the total lack of seriousness by the Federal Government of Nigeria. Not content with dismissing the menace of Boko Haram across the country, the legislators and the executive decided to focus on the singular most important issue bothering all Nigerians today: the lives of gay and lesbian folks getting married in America and Europe.

9. The Military Went Gaga and not against Boko Haram—we’re all for the military going gaga against Boko Haram within the rules of engagement. Instead, newspaper bundles and public buses got a hard year from military onslaught. Front pages were slashed, trucks were waylaid, and buses were set ablaze. When all that fighting had settled for a while, the military suddenly resurrected their death penalty court-martial—not to shoot the soldiers burning buses and newspapers—but to shoot the soldiers fighting an ill-equipped war. And in all these things, the Presidency said nothing but focused squarely on running down the opposition party.

10. The Year of All the King’s Men: The President must have picked up on the criticisms that, maybe, too many women were running the government and we needed some gender balance. So, enter Oritsejafor, Alamieyeseigha, Tompolo, Dokubo, Obanikoro, Femi Fani-Kayode and so on and so forth. Of course, we’ve always had the usual suspects: Okupe, Maku and Abati. But this year was big for the new names: Oritsejafor got to run interference, Alamieyeseigha got a pardon, Tompolo got some warships, Obanikoro got to monitor state elections, and Dokubo got more Dokubo. And so 2014 was a great year for presidential retorts and responses and reactions. GEJ always had a comeback for every idle comment and serious criticism. You could actually hear El-Rufai’s silence—and even Amaechi took a breather.

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Ayo Sogunro is the author of Everything in Nigeria is Going to Kill You. A lawyer by profession, he also indulges in socio-legal philosophy on this blog. Interact with him on Twitter via @ayosogunro.

Thugs Engage Police in Street Battle in Bayelsa

Hell was let loose in the streets of Yenagoa, the Bayelsa state capital, as suspected political thugs engaged men of the Nigeria Police Force in an all-out battle at the state secretariat of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) during a bid to hijack election materials for the House of Representatives primaries on Saturday.

The state commissioner of police, Ntomchukwu, the state chairman of the PDP, Col. Sam Inokoba, his state secretary, Mathew Keku and some newsmen were trapped inside the secretariat building as the battle raged for almost two hours with residents of the neighbouring red-light district taking to their heels for dear lives.

During the battle, the suspected thugs held the members of the Electoral Committee of the party deployed to the state for the conduct of the primaries hostage.

The PDP Election Committee members led by Gen. Idi Adamu as Chairman, Yeye Bola Dare, Zanna Mustapha, Alaye Don Pedro and John Idoko as Secretary were held hostage at the PDP Secretariat for hours.

The incident triggered pandemonium as politicians who had congregated at the secretariat to witness the distribution of materials scampered into the surroundings. This occurred about noon.

According to a journalist who was trapped in the crossfire, Mrs Joy Bello, the thugs arrived the PDP Secretariat in a white Siena space wagon and armed with dangerous weapons including guns.

ThisDay

Buhari comes Hard on PDP

http://dailypost.ng/2014/12/06/boko-haram-sponsorship-allegation-buhari-comes-hard-pdp/?wt=4

Wole Soyinka - Why I hate Snakes

Wole Soyinka: Why I hate snakes: http://youtu.be/x4iYjZVUcYc

Japan millionaire quizzed over cyanide death

CNN) - A 67-year-old woman who reportedly received millions in life insurance money from at least five of her previous partners has been arrested on suspicion of poisoning her last husband with cyanide -- the latest high-profile case in Japan involving so-called "black widows."

Chisako Kakehi, who benefited to the tune of 800 million yen ($6.8 million) over the past 20 years, according to Japanese media, denies any wrongdoing.

"I didn't kill him. I don't know how to kill ..." she told police, according to CNN affiliate TV Asahi.

But an autopsy report on Iso Kakehi, her fourth husband to die, found cyanide in his stomach and blood.

The 75-year old died in December, less than two months after their wedding. It triggered a police investigation into the case, which culminated in Kakehi's arrest in Kyoto on Wednesday.

A previous fiancé, who died when he crashed his motorcycle, was also found to have traces of cyanide in his body.

Police would only say "many" of her previous partners -- who were aged between 54 and 75 -- had died in the past two decades.

Autopsies rare

However, authorities may be unable to prove she killed her other lovers because autopsies are generally rare in Japan. Her first husband died back in 1994.

Kakehi is the latest "black widow" to make the headlines in Japan. Kanae Kijima is currently in prison after being found guilty of killing three men she met on dating websites in 2009 and making it look like suicide in each case. She was 37 at the time.

How Paul Walker's Father Is Still Struggling One Year After Actor's Death

It's been almost a year since Paul Walker tragically died in a car accident.

On Monday, Entertainment Tonight sat down with the late actor's father Paul Walker III, who shared sweet memories of his famous son.

"Well, I'm not looking forward to Thanksgiving," Walker said. "He died two days after that and I guess it'll probably be that way until I'm with him. It's a sad time. We're a very close, loving family and Paul is a piece that's missing now."

The 40-year-old "Fast & Furious" star died last Nov. 30 near an event for his charity Reach Out Worldwide, after the Porsche he was riding in crashed and killed both him and his friend Roger Rodas.

"I miss him even more now ... it's not getting any better for me," Walker added.

When asked about Paul's daughter Meadow, 16, Walker said, "We don't talk enough. The family's in shock, we are afraid to talk to each other ... the only thing I think is it hurts too much, especially the holidays are coming."

Walker also talked about how great of a father the actor was and showed some great family videos of when Paul was just a little boy. He also revealed the moment he found out his son was gone.

"I was on my motorcycle. I kept getting calls," he said. "My brother says, 'Paul has been killed.' ... There was this young guy next to me and I just turned to him and said, 'My son was just killed.' He looked at me and just reached up and gave me a big hug."

You can see the intense love Paul Walker III has for his late son.

ABC News

OBJ is Nigeria’s problem —Bakare

PASTOR and founder of Latter Rain Assembly in Lagos, Pastor Tunde Bakare, on Sunday, said former president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, would be told some home truth in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.

Bakare said this was necessary before the nation collapses on him (OBJ), accusing him of being responsible for the numerous problems Nigeria is passing through now.

The cleric, who spoke about the lofty dreams of the country’s founding fathers, as well as his growing up and personal dreams for same Nigeria, but which had become unattainable due to antics of some cabals, strongly canvassed that a transition arrangement be put in place, stressing that holding election in 2015 was not feasible because of Boko Haram insurgency.

Bakare said this while speaking with newsmen, shortly after delivering a speech, entitled: “The Nigeria of My Dream” at a well attended church service to celebrate his 60th birthday.

Former governor of Ogun State, Chief Gbenga Daniel, was among the dignitaries that attended the service, which took place at the Latter Rain Assembly in Ogba, Lagos.

The pastor, who said he would be a keynote speaker at the 176th anniversary of International Student Day, courtesy of Ogun State government, said: “He who wants to hear, let him hear. I am going to drum what needs to be drummed. I think Obasanjo needs to hear some things before the house collapses on him, because he is responsible for the problems we face now.”

The event, holding at the Cultural Centre, is expected to be attended by dignitaries, including the former head of state, Major-General Muhammadu Buhari, who is also a presidential aspirant on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC); Professor Pat Utomi, among others.

Speaking further, Pastor Bakare, who is also the convener of Save Nigeria Group (SNG), while expressing fears about the possibility of holding 2015 general election, contended that it was better that the country took care of 2014 before talking about 2015.

According to him, there is no wisdom holding an election without dealing with the fundamental problems of the country, suggesting that what should be of concern now should be how to put in place a transition government, with a mandate of a maximum of two years, during which it would address the problems confronting the country currently.

Bakare, who insisted that the current security challenges in the country did not support holding a nationwide poll in 2015, declared that “it appears we are putting the cart before the horse. With the situation in the country, I do not think our primary concern should be 2015 elections.

Scanewsnigeria

The Emir of Kano, Muhammad Sanusi, said residents should "acquire what they need" to protect themselves. The Emir, who until earlier this year was governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, made the comments at a prayer meeting. The BBC's Will Ross, in Nigeria, says such an intervention is very unusual. The Emir normally stays silent on political matters. Jihadists from Boko Haram continue to cause havoc in parts of north-east Nigeria, capturing towns and villages where they have been imposing their own strict interpretation of Islamic law. Primary schools in one of the worst-affected areas have begun reopening after being closed for the past eight months. Boko Haram, which means "Western education is forbidden", often attacks educational establishments. Some of the schools are to be protected by self-defence groups. The Emir, who was an outspoken critic of the government when he was a banker, said people should not be afraid of the militants and should prepare to defend themselves. "These terrorists slaughter our boys and abduct our girls to force them into slavery. People should not be afraid of them because of the recent success they seem to have achieved," he said. "People should not sit idle and say prayer is the only solution. People should be made aware of the importance of being in a state of preparedness and make sure they acquire what they need to protect themselves. "We should be ready to give our lives," he said. The Emir said residents should not wait for help from the military. "There are soldiers who even throw away their guns and flee," he said. There have been numerous reports of soldiers deserting, saying they are not as well equipped as the militants. Our correspondent says that although the Emir did not refer to Boko Haram by name, it was highly unusual for such an influential figure to suggest people should arm themselves against the group. He says it is a sign of just how desperate the situation in north-east Nigeria has become. Over the weekend a local vigilante group helped the military recapture the town of Chibok which Boko Haram had seized 48 hours earlier. Boko Haram fighters kidnapped more than 200 schoolgirls from the town in April, sparking global outrage.

The Emir of Kano, Muhammad Sanusi, said residents should "acquire what they need" to protect themselves.

The Emir, who until earlier this year was governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, made the comments at a prayer meeting.

The BBC's Will Ross, in Nigeria, says such an intervention is very unusual.

The Emir normally stays silent on political matters.

Jihadists from Boko Haram continue to cause havoc in parts of north-east Nigeria, capturing towns and villages where they have been imposing their own strict interpretation of Islamic law.

Primary schools in one of the worst-affected areas have begun reopening after being closed for the past eight months.

Boko Haram, which means "Western education is forbidden", often attacks educational establishments.

Some of the schools are to be protected by self-defence groups.

The Emir, who was an outspoken critic of the government when he was a banker, said people should not be afraid of the militants and should prepare to defend themselves.

"These terrorists slaughter our boys and abduct our girls to force them into slavery. People should not be afraid of them because of the recent success they seem to have achieved," he said.

"People should not sit idle and say prayer is the only solution. People should be made aware of the importance of being in a state of preparedness and make sure they acquire what they need to protect themselves.

"We should be ready to give our lives," he said.

The Emir said residents should not wait for help from the military. "There are soldiers who even throw away their guns and flee," he said.

There have been numerous reports of soldiers deserting, saying they are not as well equipped as the militants.

Our correspondent says that although the Emir did not refer to Boko Haram by name, it was highly unusual for such an influential figure to suggest people should arm themselves against the group.

He says it is a sign of just how desperate the situation in north-east Nigeria has become.

Over the weekend a local vigilante group helped the military recapture the town of Chibok which Boko Haram had seized 48 hours earlier.

Boko Haram fighters kidnapped more than 200 schoolgirls from the town in April, sparking global outrage.

Aitnews

Ombatse Leader ‘Killed’ In Dawn Raid

Baba Alakyo, the spiritual leader of the Ombatse, an Eggon group, was feared killed alongside the village head in an early morning raid on Alakyo, near Lafia, Nasarawa State yesterday, Daily Trust learnt.

Alakyo is the village where about 74 security operatives were ambushed and killed on May 7, 2013. It was burnt down along with other Eggon settlements of Fadaman Bauna and Akura, displaced persons said. Scores were said to have been killed.

The invasion happened barely a day after Governor Umaru Tanko Al-Makura led a peace walk round Lafia, the state capital in celebration of his 62nd birthday.

Barrister Zachary Zamani Allumaga, Legal Adviser of the Ombatse group which has been proscribed by the state government, said information available to him showed that Baba Alakyo and the village head of Alakyo were killed in the raid which he blamed on the Fulani. He however later sent a text message to say the information on the killing of Baba Alakyo may have been cooked by “those who don’t mean well for peace”.

He said Fulani gunmen stormed Alakyo from four directions, killed scores and burnt property.

Villagers said the raid was carried out at about 5:30am, taking the villagers by surprise. It was difficult to locate any source within the village, but persons displaced from neighbouring settlements told Daily Trust that heavy and sustained gunfire was heard at dawn in the village.

They said a large band of militia group suspected to be members of the Ombatse tried to enter Alakyo to save the settlement but went late as it had already been taken by the Fulani militia. They said the Fulani militia also burned down four brand new Toyota Hilux vans. The militia was said to have also entered Fadaman Bauna and Akura, two other Eggon settlements and raided them, killing dozens. An Eggon leader who hails from Akura told Daily Trust on phone that he narrowly escaped death, calling it genocide against his tribe.

He said: “From the information we have received, Baba Alakyo was killed”. Allumaga, the Ombatse leader, alleged that the Fulani came from Wamba, a neighbouring local government area.

Hussaini Mohammed, the state secretary of the Miyetti Allah, a Fulani group, denied that Fulani people were on genocide against the Eggon people, just as he  denied knowledge of any invasion by his tribesmen.

The state’s Head of Service, Dr. Dominic Bako, escaped death when he ran into a road block mounted by gunmen along the Lafia-Akwanga road during the bloody violence. Bako was shot on his left arm and was rushed to Lafia where he was treated at the Dalhatu Araf Specialist Hospital.  He could not identify the gunmen, but said they were in a large number and had gathered along the road.

Aitnews

President Jonathan Unveils N100 Commemorative Notes

President Goodluck Jonathan has formally unveiled the new N100 commemorative notes at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. The ceremony was initially to take place on Wednesday last week but was postponed due to the president's visit to Burkina Faso. 

Joining Mr. President to unveil the note was Vice President, Namadi Sambo and the Central bank Governor, Godwin Emefiele during the Federal Executive Council meeting.

Emefiele said it was issued to commemorate the 100 years of the nation’s amalgamation also listing some countries that had before now issued currencies to mark epochal events to include Morocco, Russia and Costa Rica among others. He added that the new notes were produced with advanced security features listing the design platforms, the note was made to include security, durability, attractiveness, cultural heritage and transfromation.

Jonathan lauded the CBN for coming up with the commemorative note, though it was coming a bit late since activities marking the nation’s centenary had been concluded. He recalled that commemorative N50 notes were also introduced to mark the nation’s 50th independence anniversary.

Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Minister of Finance also commended the CBN for coming up with the notes specifically lauding the QRC feature on the back of the note.

The code, if scanned with smart phones, leads users to a website where the nation’s history could be accessed. The minister also raised questions on the amount the CBN will use to print the new notes and whether it would be done locally.

Jonathan however said the questions would be answered when a memorandum on the issue is presented to the council.

Source: aitnews

US Catholic bishops try to calm anxiety over pope

ByBALTIMORE (AP) — America's Catholic bishops came together Monday to project an image of unity, after a Vatican meeting on the family unleashed an uproar over the direction of the church.

Last month's gathering in Rome on more compassionately ministering to families featured open debate — alarming many traditional Catholics, who argued it would undermine public understanding of church teaching. Pope Francis encouraged a free exchange of ideas at the assembly, or synod, in contrast to previous years, when such events were tightly scripted.

It was a synod of consensus," Dolan said. The pope, he said, has a God-given gift "for attentive listening."

The bishops made the remarks at their fourth national meeting since Francis was elected. While many Catholics have praised Francis' new emphasis on mercy over the culture wars, many theological conservatives have said Francis is failing to carry out his duty as defender of the faith. Some U.S. bishops have resisted turning their focus away from gay marriage, abortion and other contentious social issues to take up Francis' focus on the poor, immigrants and those who feel unwelcome in the church.

The papal ambassador to Washington, Archbishop Carlo Vigano, said in a wide-ranging speech bishops "must not be afraid to work with our Holy Father."

The public sessions at the U.S. bishops' meeting are focused on religious liberty, upholding marriage between a man and a woman, and moral issues in health care. In his speech, Kurtz said the bishops would continue to fight the Obama administration over the birth control coverage requirement in the Affordable Care Act. The administration has made several changes to accommodate the bishops' concerns, but church leaders say the White House hasn't gone far enough. Dozens of dioceses and Catholic nonprofits have sued over the mandate.

At the Rome gathering, tensions arose when Vatican officials released a mid-meeting report that contained language more welcoming to gays and people in civil heterosexual unions. The language was not included in the final report.

At a meeting Monday in Baltimore, Archbishop Joseph Kurtz, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, signaled there was no conflict between a gentler approach and upholding church orthodoxy. Kurtz cited his home visits to parishioners, where he wouldn't give them "a list of rules to follow firsthand," but would instead "spend time with them trying to appreciate the good that I saw in their hearts," before inviting them to follow Christ.

"Such an approach isn't in opposition to church teachings. It's an affirmation of them," said Kurtz, who attended the Vatican gathering.

Cardinal Donald Wuerl of Washington, who also participated in the Vatican gathering, emphasized that last month's meeting was only the start of a discussion before a larger gathering on the family next year, where bishops will more concretely advise the pope on developing any new church practices. New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan said the divisiveness he read in media accounts did not reflect the collegial discussion inside the event.

The Rev. Tom Rosica, a Vatican press office official for English-language media, attended the American bishops' assembly. He said an in interview that Catholic church leaders and lay people, as well as those outside the church, are reacting strongly to the Vatican meeting because they aren't accustomed to addressing issues the way Francis advocates.

"The pope made it clear doctrine would remain untouched," Rosica said.

He said Francis "is traveling at high altitude," above the backlash to his leadership, as he tries to revive discussion and move the church forward.

Yahoonews

Best Divorce Letter

Lol. Hilarious!

Gunmen kill four police, kidnap six in Nigeria oil region

Yenagoa (Nigeria) (AFP) - Gunmen on a speedboat in Nigeria's oil-producing south killed four policemen and kidnapped six Nigerian employees of the Agip energy firm, in the latest unrest to hit the restive region, the security forces said Tuesday.

The attack happened on Friday in the Nembe Creek area of Bayelsa state, which was one of the most violent regions of the delta at the height of an insurgency that formally ended in 2009.

"Four policemen who were escorting a boat were attacked and killed. Six oil workers were abducted in the incident," said Mustapha Anka, spokesman for the military's Joint Task Force in the region.

National police spokesman Emmanuel Ojukwu told AFP that three officers were killed but multiple reports from the region put the death toll at four.

A security source in the delta identified the hostages as employees of the Nigerian subsidiary of the Italian energy firm Agip, which is controlled by ENI, one of the world's largest oil companies.

Criminality, especially ransom kidnappings, has persisted in the delta since a 2009 amnesty deal with militant leaders ended the formal rebellion.

But there is widespread concern over escalating violence in the region, with the amnesty deal set to expire next year.

Officially, the peace deal offered job training and other benefits to militants who voluntarily gave up their arms.

But experts say that in practice the deal amounted to massive cash payouts to gang leaders who could resume fighting if the money is shut off.

The Niger Delta, home to Africa's largest oil industry, is made up of a network of rivers and creeks.

Criminal groups have a track record of speeding around on small boats and launching gun attacks on the security forces and oil workers.

Both foreign and Nigerian hostages have typically been released following a ransom payment.

Yahoonews

Diamond Bank appoints Uzoma as CEO

By Babajide Komolafe

The Board of Dia-mond Bank Plc, has announced the appointment of Mr. Uzoma Dozie  as Managing Director/Chief Executive following the  voluntary resignation of  Dr. Alex Otti, from the bank Friday. The appointment of Uzoma is subject to the approval of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

In an official statement released by the Bank’s Corporate Communications Department, Chairman of the Board of Directors, HRM Igwe Nnaemeka Alfred Achebe, Obi of Onitsha, announced the changes in management.

Uzoma Dozie

Speaking on the outgoing GMD/CEO, the chairman said he would be sorely missed, adding that Dr. Alex Otti’s achieved enviable landmarks during his time. He described his tenure as, “the brightest years of Diamond Bank’s 24 year-history”.

“Dr Alex Otti is a fine gentleman with an outstanding career in the Nigerian Banking industry. We are pleased with the time he spent at the helms of affairs of Diamond Bank Plc and wish him every success in his future endeavours,” Igwe Achebe added.

Under Dr. Alex Otti’s stewardship, Diamond Bank made a remarkable return to profitability and has continued to record  growth across all performance indicators year-on-year.

After writing off toxic risk assets which resulted in the loss of N16 billion in 2011, the Bank posted a profit before tax of N28.36 billion in 2012 and N32.5 billion Naira in 2013.

The Bank also saw its total assets rise from N564.9 billion in February 2011 to N1.18 trillion by December 31, 2012 and N1.52 trillion on December 31, 2013.

He is credited with creating the office of the Chief Risk Officer and designating an Executive Director to head the department.

Vanguard Newspaper

Hubbard indicted on 23 felony corruption charges by Lee County Grand Jury

MONTGOMERY, Alabama --- Mike Hubbard, speaker of the Alabama House of Representatives and a powerful leader in the state Republican Party, has been indicted by a grand jury and charged with 23 counts, including using his office for personal gain and soliciting things of value. 

If convicted, Hubbard faces a maximum penalty of two to 20 years in prison and up to $30,000 in fines for each count. 

Hubbard, 52, who led a historic Republican takeover of the state Legislature during the 2010 election, was charged after an investigation in his home county that has lasted more than a year.

The charges against Hubbard include 23 class B felonies. Those charges include:

Four counts of using of his office as Chairman of the Alabama Republican Party for personal gain;Eleven counts of soliciting or receiving a thing of value from a lobbyist or principal;Two counts of using his office as a member of the Alabama House of Representatives for personal gain;Four Counts of lobbying an executive department or agency for a fee;One count of using state equipment, materials, etc. for private gain.

According to the indictment, Hubbard solicited favors from some of Alabama's rich and powerful. They include former Alabama Governor Bob Riley, Business Council of Alabama CEO Billy Canary, Hoar Construction CEO Rob Burton, Great Southern Wood CEO Jimmy Rane, former Sterne Agee CEO James Holbrook, lobbyist Minda Riley Campbell, Harbert Management Corp. vice president Will Brooke and political operative Dax Swatek.  

Most gave Hubbard what he wanted, according to the indictment, including major investments into Hubbard's company, Craftmaster Printing. 

The special grand jury was called last year. Attorney General Luther Strangerecused himself from the investigationand appointed former St. Clair County District Attorney Van Davis to oversee it.

A letter from Strange to Davis made public in court records named Hubbard as the focus of the probe.

Hubbard has denied wrongdoing and has said the investigation is politically motivated.

The indictment does not remove him from office or his position as speaker.

Earlier this year, the investigation resulted in charges against two other state lawmakers.

Rep. Greg Wren, R-Montgomery, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of using his office for personal gain. He resigned his House seat, was ordered to pay $24,000 in restitution and agreed to cooperate with investigators.

Rep. Barry Moore, R-Enterprise, was charged with perjury and giving false statements. Prosecutors accused Moore of lying to the grand jury in January.

Moore has pleaded not guilty and is scheduled for trial beginning Oct. 27 in Lee County Circuit Court.

Source: Www.al.com

Ekiti Debt Profile: Fayemi Replies Fayose

The immediate past governor of Ekiti State, Dr Kayode Fayemi, has urged his successor, Ayodele Fayose, to study the handover notes before passing unfavourable comments on his administration.

The former governor described as “reckless,” comments credited to Governor Fayose in his inaugural speech suggesting that the debt profile now stands as N84 billion.

Speaking on behalf of the ex-governor in Ado-Ekiti, the state capital, Tayo Ekundayo, Fayemi’s Commissioner for Information, said all credit facilities obtained by the former administration were not only documented but were equally made public.

According to him, Fayemi formally approached the capital market to obtain a N25 billion bond which he used in financing various landmark projects in the state.

He also claimed that the Federal Government owed Ekiti State as much as N20 billion under the immediate administration.

“Fayose should study the handing-over note carefully before making unnecessary noise about the debt profile of Ekiti. I have heard him saying that the debt profile of Ekiti State now stands at N84 billion. I want to say that it is nothing near that figure. We have noticed that tendency in the past but we have refused to join issues with him.

“It is too early for Fayose to be talking about us. He should understand that there is difference between being a candidate of a party and executive of a state,” he said.

According to Ekundayo, over N14 billion has been paid out of the N25 billion.

“Fayose should know that he has assumed a new status now, which is quite different from where he was before now. What I will advise him to do now is to settle down and see how he would improve on the legacies of Kayode Fayemi administration,” the former commissioner said.

Source: AIT

Premature Ejaculation Explained

Premature Ejaculation, just the very word strikes fear in most men. What many men do not realise is that it is surprisingly common.

Premature Ejaculation (PE) is when a man ejaculates too early on during sex. It is often just as the man penetrates the vagina or seconds after. This can cause a lot of embarrassment and frustration as in some cases, sex can be nearly impossible. So much so, that many men prefer to avoid sex altogether causing anger and frustration between partners which ultimately has negative effects on a relationship.

What Causes PE?

There are many factors for PE; the good news is many of the underlying causes for Premature Ejaculation are psychological.

Stress – At work, home or otherwise can have an impact on your sex life.

Performance Anxiety – This is especially common with someone new, the pressure to perform and satisfy can be so overwhelming that nerves take over and this interferes with performance.

Masturbating too often – While not a bad thing, if done excessively, the body soon ends up climaxing quickly in habit.

Confidence issues and low self-esteem- Insecurity with body image, penis size or other reasons can affect confidence and sexual performance.

Physical reasons may include hormonal imbalances (though this is not common) inexperience and even abstinence, where you have gone a long time without sexual activity.

What Can Be Done?

 Premature Ejaculation can be treated very successfully once the cause is established. Severe cases of PE that do not respond to psychological and self-help techniques or natural therapies can be treated by medication prescribed by a doctor.

For the occasional or mild PE some things you can try to prevent or lessen the chances of PE include:

·         Natural based supplements, especially those containing Zinc and L-Arginine, these are scientifically proven to help to increase blood flow and strengthen and promote the general health of the penis resulting in longer-lasting erections.

·         Local anaesthetic gel. Some men like to apply this to the shaft of the penis just before intercourse to desensitize to prevent PE, however, if you are sensitive or allergic to the ingredients it can cause irritation, stinging and redness and can make sex less pleasurable for your partner. Special condoms containing anaesthetic, usually Benzocaine can also be used.

·         The Stop-Start technique. This is where the man masturbates to the point of climax and then stops. It should be repeated three times, allowing himself to ejaculate on the fourth time. If practiced regularly this can help to control ejaculation.

Some couples benefit from sexual therapy. Visiting a sex therapist can help you to learn new ways to control PE, build your confidence and get back on the road to start enjoying sex again.

Whatever method of treatment you choose; rest assured that Premature Ejaculation is treatable and it does not have to get in the way of an enjoyable sex life.

Source: www.healthhotsolution.com

The 'Sinister Side' Of Silicon Valley Egg Plan

In Silicon Valley they call it the 'Dave Rule'. The insider joke goes that if you've got as many women on a team as blokes called Dave, you've got gender equality.

It’s a reminder of how under-represented women are in the tech industry. Only 15% of Facebook’s tech staff is female, and they make up fewer than one in four managers.

Among measures to address the issue, Facebook and Apple plan to fund female employees to harvest and store eggs. Is this "empowering women" as Apple claims or is it a reflection of the darker side of Silicon Valley?

For a start, what kind of message does it send to employees? That if you become pregnant you're letting down the company? That it's okay if you become a mother when you're "older" as by then you're less valuable anyway? Let’s not forget older workers are also a rarity in the Valley.

As this comes under the banner of employee benefits, presumably Facebook and Apple would be aware of who had taken up the offer and who have not.

Could workers feel pressured to freeze their eggs to demonstrate commitment? Might those who haven't (or who are having their eggs thawed for use) fear the impact on their career prospects?

And what of the freezing process? It's more successful, both in terms of harvesting and pregnancy after re-implantation the younger the woman.

At age 40, the chances of pregnancy with a re-implanted egg after one round of associated IVF is less than 13% while the chances of conceiving naturally are around 20% on average, although it falls quite rapidly from there.

According to the American Society for Reproductive Medicine: "Marketing this technology for the purpose of deferring childbearing may give women false hope."

In a statement, Apple said: "We want to empower women at Apple to do the best work of their lives as they care for loved ones and raise their families."

Isn't this an insult to fathers who are increasingly taking their share or more of childcare? Why not ditch the gender stereotype and instead of paying for freezing eggs, why not invest in areas that would help all parents, for example, workplace nurseries or flexible working?

While some have called it a "ground-breaking perk," Emma Barnett, Women’s Editor at The Daily Telegraph, says the "the upshot of it could be very sinister".

This is one Facebook status update that not everyone will 'like'.

By Dharshini David, Business Presenter

Okupe: Buhari, Atiku Are Perpetual Failures

Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Doyin Okupe has described the declarations by the former head of states General Muhammadu Buhari and former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar to contest the nation’s number one seat as a huge joke.

Okupe said both Buhari and Atiku are serial failures who cannot withstand Jonathan in 2015 if he decides to contest the presidential elections.

Speaking with state House correspondents Wednesday, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Dr Doyin Okupe also dismissed reports in an online website that alleging that the president was trying to use the excuse of the insurgency in the north east to elongate his tenure saying “this is not the president that would do a thing like that”.

According to him, owing to the huge pressure being brought to bear on President Jonathan from diverse quarters for him to contest the 2015 election, the president would make necessary consultation and make his decision known “soon”.

Speaking on General Buhari and Atiku Abubakar’s declarations, Okupe said: “You know Yoruba people have one proverb which says it is the biggest Masquerade that comes out last. The declaration by the opposition is not really something new. Most of the candidates of the opposition are serial failures. Atiku (Abubakar) has tried twice and has failed,(Gen Mohammadu) Buhari has done it four times and he has failed. If you present yourself for an election, first, second, third and fourth times, what new things are they bringing? Have they gone to school or are they bringing new things?

“We are absolutely unperturbed. The president is going to contest against serial losers. People who never win election. People who have no leadership quality and it is even now worse for them because this president has been given four years, during which he has demonstrated his administrative capability, efficiency and delivery. It is unarguable that these people in the APC, it is a new and good party, they would become relevant from 2019 upward, not now”, he said.

“This is something that is not true, this type of false information is quite characteristic and it is the hallmark of Sahara reporters in particular. But still, in order that the world is not misled, I want to state categorically here that there is no iota of truth whatsoever in that statement. There is nothing like that. And this is not the president that would do a thing like that and there is no reason whatsoever for this president to do that.

“This is the same president that, as you must have heard recently, over 12 million Nigerians have signed asking him to come out and run. All the stakeholders in his party, the PDP , have endorsed him and are actually asking him to come out and make his declaration to run and it is quite a logical thing to do because there is no reason of changing the winning team.

“Again, the issue also is that as it is everywhere in the world, endorsement itself is not undemocratic because it is a normal pattern in democratic parlance that when you have a sitting president. And he is interested in a rerun, usually he is given the first choice of refusal and the president is yet to make public his desire, but this news from Sahara reporters is absolutely untrue,it is falsehood and we deny it in all its entirety because it is part of the calculated attempts by the opposition to throw everything into the arena to embarrass this president”.

On when the president would formally make his intention known, the aide said it is “my believe that it will be after due consideration that he will take an appropriate decision that would be in the larger interest of the party and the nation, but I don’t see this being too long from now”

AIT News

Ebola outbreak: UN worker dies in Germany hospital

UN employee infected with Ebola has died at a hospital in Germany.

Doctors at the hospital in Leipzig said the man, 56, died in the early hours of Tuesday morning.

The outbreak has killed more than 4,000 people since March - mostly in Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea and Nigeria.

The World Health Organization described it as the "the most severe, acute health emergency seen in modern times". The US and UK are among countries to have introduced scanning at airports.

The man had been working as a UN medical official in Liberia - one of the worst affected countries by the outbreak - when he caught Ebola. He arrived in Germany last Thursday for treatment.

"Despite intensive medical measures and maximum efforts by the medical team, the 56-year-old UN employee succumbed to the serious infectious disease," a statement from St Georg hospital said.

He was the third Ebola patient to be treated for the deadly virus in Germany, Der Spiegel newspaper reports.

One patient is still receiving treatment in a hospital in Frankfurt, while a third was released from a hospital in Hamburg after five weeks of treatment, it adds.

BBC News

Nigeria Not Implicated In the $15 m seized by South Africa!

Within the past three weeks the Asset Forfeiture Unit in the office of the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) in South Africa seized two tranches of fund totaling $15million being payment for the alleged purchase of arms by the Federal Government. Initially, the sum of $9.3 million smuggled into South Africa by an Israeli and two Nigerians was seized last month. The suspicion surrounding the transaction was fueled by the disclosure that the South African company involved in the deal is not a licensed arms dealer and that the jet used to ferry the money belongs to Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, the President of the Christian Association of Nigeria, who is very close to the Presidency. The CAN has since said the plane which was bought for evangelism was converted and leased to another company to raise some money!

Since the Federal Government could not justify the brazen violation of the money laundering law of South Africa by the three suspects it decided to engaged in the diplomatic resolution of the embarrassing incident. However, while the " diplomatic 
row" was yet to be resolved another sum of $5.7 million wired by a Nigerian company to South Africa from Abuja for the purchase more arms was also seized  last week. Convinced that the latest seizure could not be justified the National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (rtd)  lambasted the South African Government and the fifth columnists in Nigeria who are bent on frustrating the Federal Government in prosecuting the war on terror. According to Mr. Karounwi Adekunle, the spokesperson for the office of the NSA, "a business transaction actually took place between a legitimate company in Nigeria and another legitimate company in South Africa through the bank. In the course of events the South African company could not perform and decided to refund the 
money. What is illegitimate in this transaction done through the bank?"

 It is interesting to note that the NSA has not said that it was the Federal Government that transferred the controversial fund to South Africa. Neither has the NPA indicted the Federal Government for the alleged criminality associated with the transaction. In fact, the NPA has not questioned the legal status of both companies. What is being investigated by the NPA is the legitimacy of the receipt of $5.7 million by Cerberus Risk Solutions of South Africa whose license to deal in arms had expired before it entered into the contract. In actuality, it was the Standard Bank through which the fund was transferred which reported the "suspicious transaction". And the NPA promptly applied for and obtained an order of the High Court 
for the seizure of the fund. Both companies-Cerberus Risk Solutions of South Africa and it's Nigerian counterpart, Societe D'Equipments Internationale are yet to challenge the interim order for the confiscation of the fund. 
 

Therefore, contrary to the mismanagement of information traceable to the office of the NSA the Federal Government did not place any direct order for the importation of arms from South Africa. The fact that the NSA signed the End User certificate for the arms importation is not a license for the companies involved in the deal to breach the laws of South Africa. In other words, the Israeli and two Nigerians who were arrested last month for smuggling the sum of $9.3 million and the Nigerian company involved in the transfer of the $5.7 million to South Africa are not public officers.  As independent contractors they were awarded contracts for the supply of arms by the Federal Government and paid accordingly. It is indubitably clear that the suspects were negligent for failing to conduct due diligence.

Hence, they were dealing with companies that are not authorized to trade in arms in South Africa. By the way when was the responsibility of purchasing weapons for the armed forces of Nigeria  transferred from the Ministry of Defence to the office of the NSA?

However, since the Federal Government cannot be held vicariously liable for the alleged criminal activities of the suspects the office of the NSA ought not to have embarrassed the nation by giving the erroneous impression that Nigeria had breached the law of another country. As a sovereign entity the Federal Government can place orders for the purchase of arms either from another government or from independent arms dealers. But when the office of the NSA decided to award contracts to private corporate bodies for the supply of arms it could not have clothed them with immunity or license to breach local or foreign laws.  Instead of exposing Nigeria to further ridicule the Federal Government should stop accepting responsibility for the alleged criminal actions of the suspects indicted in the alleged laundering of the sum of $15 million. 
 Having regard to the facts and circumstances of this shameful episode  there is substantial evidence to prove that the suspects breached the terms of the deal for the supply of the arms. To that extent the Federal Government is perfectly entitled to sue them with a view to recovering the entire contract sum of $15 million. Notwithstanding their inexplicable negligence the suspects should be advised to contest the order of  the High Court which authorised the seizure of the fund. To show that there was no mens rea to breach the law of that country the NSA may wish to testify for the suspects.

By threatening to deal with the South African government over the breach of the law by the private businessmen and corporate bodies involved in the suspicious transactions the office of the NSA has called to question the moral integrity of the Federal Government. By asking South Africa to reciprocate the gesture of allowing  MTN and DSTV to operate  in Nigeria is the Federal Government saying that both South African companies are allowed to breach the law of the land? Regrettably, the National Assembly treated this matter of urgent national importance so cavalierly and in the process left many questions unanswered. Otherwise how could both chambers have failed to examine the statement of the NPA that the official explanations for the suspicious transactions are riddled with contradictions. Instead of grandstanding over the criminal enterprise the Federal Government should apologize to Nigerians and call the NSA to order for dragging the name of Nigeria through the mud.

-Femi Falana SAN.

Ebola: Liberian health workers plan strike

Liberian health officials are appealing to nurses and medical assistants not to go ahead with a national strike, as the Ebola epidemic continues.

The National Health Workers Association wants an increase in the monthly risk fee paid to those treating Ebola cases.

In the US, President Barack Obama has directed more steps to be taken to ensure high safety procedures when dealing with suspected Ebola patients.

A health worker treating an Ebola victim has herself caught the virus.

Liberia's Assistant Health Minister Tolbert Nyenswah said a strike would have negative consequences on those suffering from Ebola and would adversely affect progress made so far in the fight against the disease.

The government says the scale of the epidemic means it now cannot afford the risk fee originally agreed.

The risk fee is currently less than $500 a month, on top of basic salaries of between $200-$300. Staff are now seeking a risk fee of $700 a month.
The health workers also want personal protective equipment and insurance.

Ninety-five of their colleagues have so far died from Ebola. Liberia is one of the countries worst affected by the epidemic.

More than 4,000 people have so far died in the outbreak.

A new UN centre to co-ordinate the fight against the epidemic is being set up in Ghana.

UN aid workers and logisticians are being flown in to Accra, the BBC's Mark Doyle reports. Ghana itself has not so far seen any Ebola cases.

Six months after the epidemic began in west Africa there are still only about a quarter of the treatment beds required to tackle it.

Food is now in short supply as markets are disrupted in some parts of the three countries worst affected: Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea.

In Liberia, elections have been postponed because the gathering of people

US ENQUIRY

How Fayemi lost to Fayose remains a big mystery – Wole Soyinka

Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, has described as a ‘mystery’ the loss of incumbent governor of Ekiti, Kayode Fayemi, to governor-elect, Ayo Fayose.

Fayemi of the All Progressives Congress party, lost the Ekiti governorship election of Saturday, 21 June to Fayose, who contested under the Peoples Democratic party.

Soyinka, who is usually outspoken in his beliefs, commented on the outcome of the Ekiti polls, on Sunday, 12 October, at the inauguration of the new Government House, “Ayoba Villa” in Ado Ekiti.

According to the Nobel laureate, “Somewhere, something went wrong and it has to be corrected. That is the message I have for all of you. Be patient but at the same time be watchful.”

“Many people within and outside Ekiti were mystified. There is a clarity in my mind. That clarity has been demonstrated today and has been manifested in the four years of Fayemi,” he added.

He also advised the people of the state to get past the mysterious outcome of the elections, and build on the foundation put in place by the outgoing governor.

He said, “My own message is that, put the mystery aside and the emotional attachment. Continue to build on the foundation that has been laid by him. The state has been resurrected in a way that all of us should be proud of. I’m glad that there is no sadness on the face of anybody. I’m happy I do not perceive any iota of regret on the face of anyone. That is the way it should be.”

Fayemi, while responding, stated that the legacy projects inaugurated in his last days in office was in service to the people of Ekiti, adding that it was done so that the incoming governor could build on them.

“For us, everything that has happened is about the service to our people. It is about putting our people forward. It is about making the fundamental differences in the lives of our people and making their lives more abundant. The Ekiti we are leaving is far better than the Ekiti we met. Those who are coming behind us can build on this in a sustainable manner,” Fayemi said.

He also went philosophical, saying that Nigerians were on a journey to get the best out of the nation.

“We are on a journey, we are not in a destination yet. That journey would have remarkable progress, undulating lines, we would go into valleys, we would face challenges, and the triumph of it is to see opportunities in those challenges and to keep moving on until a better and greater Nigeria of our dream comes to fruition in our country,” he added.

Source: Ynaija

Doctor cleared of Ebola virus feeling better

WORCESTER, Mass. (AP) — A doctor admitted to a Massachusetts hospital this weekend for an apparent respiratory infection after surviving the Ebola virus was in stable condition and feeling better Sunday, but still has a fever and cough, hospital officials said as they awaited Ebola testing results.

Officials at UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester said Dr. Richard Sacra remained in isolation as a precaution. He was admitted Saturday and is being treated for an upper respiratory infection that doctors believe is not related to Ebola he contracted in Africa.Dr. Robert Finberg, who is leading Sacra's medical team, said at a news conference Sunday that doctors are confident Sacra's symptoms are not related to the Ebola he contracted in Africa.

Finberg and hospital President Patrick Muldoon stressed that there is no threat to the public and that the hospital is operating under normal conditions.Finberg said results of Ebola testing by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention should be available within the next two days."

People are very concerned, that's why we're being extremely cautious," Finberg said. "We're not taking risks with Dr. Sacra and his caregivers."Asked why doctors believe Sacra's symptoms are not related to Ebola, Finberg said he was not aware of any case of Ebola recurring in surviving patients, and Sacra is feeling better and eating."People with Ebola don't feel like eating. They feel like throwing up," Finberg said. "

The fact that he's eating and he feels pretty good, I think is a very good sign."Finberg said Sacra was just being responsible when he decided to go a hospital.Sacra, of Holden, returned to Massachusetts on Sept. 25 after weeks of treatment at an Omaha, Nebraska, hospital.He spent much of the last two decades in Liberia, working with a missionary group.

He also works at Family Health Center of Worcester.Bruce Johnson, president of the SIM USA missionary group, said in a news release that Sacra first visited a Boston-area hospital emergency room Saturday morning because of a persistent cough and low-grade fever and concern that he might be getting pneumonia.

Johnson said Sacra was transferred to UMass Memorial for observation as a precaution under CDC guidelines.Muldoon said the CDC advised hospital officials to keep Sacra in isolation until the Ebola testing results come in. Muldoon said UMass Memorial is well-quipped to handle infectious diseases.

Yahoonews

Nigerian government wants EU to invest in proposed Development Bank

The Federal Government has urged the European Union, EU, to invest in the proposed Wholesale Development bank through the union’s development financing outfit, the European Development Bank, EIB.The Minister of State for Finance, Bashir Yuguda, made the call while receiving a delegation of the European Union led by the EU Ambassador to Nigeria, Michel Arrion.Mr. Yuguda said the bid to set up a Wholesale Development bank has raised significant interest among global funding agencies.According to him, the World Bank has pledged about $500 million to the proposal, while other development-oriented financial institutions like the African Development Bank, ADB, have also committed some funds for the take-off of the bank.The minister explained that the aim was to boost the growth of the real sector by ensuring long term financing and drastically cutting down interest rate, adding that the federal government would soon be embarking on a road-show to some specific countries to raise more capital.“We are developing a whole sale development bank in Nigeria,” he said. “The idea of the bank is to give long term financing to SMEs and increase their source of borrowing. We did a study of the informal sector, which showed that the sector constituted 45 percent of our gross domestic product (GDP).The federal government, he said, has a firm belief that if it was able to increase their access to funds, especially long term, that would go a long way in increasing the GDP of this country and integrating them into the formal sector of the economy.The EU envoy had earlier hinted that EIB is already well established in Cote d’Ivoire and Senegal as a development financier would like to boost their activities in Nigeria by funding long term projects.Consequently, Mr. Yuguda urged the bank to take advantage of the investment opportunities open in the proposed bank and thanked the bank for its rigorous procedure in ensuring that the facilities they grant Nigerian banks were aligned to the nation’s development priorities.“We know that EIB has been helping Nigeria banks. We are also aware that before they grant any facility to any bank in Nigeria they would normally seek for authorisation through your office (EU envoy) from the National Planning Commission, and I went through many of them while serving as the supervising Minister of National Planning.”Mr. Yuguda, who earlier in 2014, brokered the deal for the EU’s grant of 512 million Euros (about N112 billion) towards supporting agriculture and rural development in the north as well as electricity and governance nationwide further welcomed Arrion’s request for EU to boost its support to the presidential Initiative for the North-East, PINE, in the rebuilding of the North East zone.He said, “For Nigeria, the Federal Ministry of Finance, we are handling the safe school initiative which is a very big programme. We appreciate your concern in this regard and will be prepared to provide the necessary support to ensure that your efforts were in tandem with the Presidential intervention programme.”

Florida Man Convicted of Murder in Dispute Over Rap Music

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A Florida man was convicted Wednesday in the 2012 fatal shooting of an unarmed teenager amid a dispute over loud rap music blaring from a car.Jurors in the racially tinged retrial deliberated for about five hours before finding Michael Dunn guilty of first-degree murder.It was the second time that Mr. Dunn, 47, a software developer who claimed self-defense in the death of Jordan Davis, 17, faced a jury.

In February, a jury convicted Mr. Dunn of three counts of second-degree attempted murder – one for each of the surviving teenagers in the Dodge Durango — a crime for which he could receive a 60-year prison sentence.But that jury could not unanimously agree whether Mr. Dunn killed

Mr. Davis in self-defense or in a fit of rage on Nov. 23, 2012. The mistrial prompted the county’s top prosecutor to retry Mr. Dunn for first-degree murder.From the start, the case was infused with racial overtones and stirred the nation’s debate about racial profiling and its possible consequences.

Mr. Dunn is white and the teenagers black.With Mr. Davis’s death coming months after the killing of another unarmed black teenager, Trayvon Martin, the shooting brought renewed focus to Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” laws, which in 2005 made it easier for people to claim self-defense if they had a reasonable belief their lives where threatened, whether the threat proved real or not.George Zimmerman was ultimately acquitted of Mr. Martin’s murder.

Ferdinand: Moyes is a great man

The QPR defender called the Scot's tactics while Manchester United boss "embarrassing" in his autobiography but insists that he would be happy to talk his arguments over in person

Rio Ferdinand says that he would like to meet with David Moyes to discuss his Manchester United reign and claimed the Scot is a "great man", despite his criticism of the manager in his autobiography.

The QPR defender claims that Moyes had him "doubting everything" that he knew due to his preference to train United to stop the opposition, while slamming his "embarrassing" tactics of resorting to a long-ball game.

Moyes was sacked by the Red Devils in April, to be succeeded by Louis van Gaal, having failed to guide the club into Europe, yet Ferdinand insists that he has no problem with the Scot and would welcome the chance to speak with him.When asked if he would like to talk with Moyes, Ferdinand told CNN World Sport: "Yes, of course, I've got nothing against him as a person."I'm saying that he's a gentleman, a great man.

I've never had any bad words to say about him at all in that respect as a person."Ferdinand rejects claims that Moyes inherited a squad in decline when he took over from Sir Alex Ferguson, insisting that the players at his disposal were good enough to replicate their title success of 2012-13."I don't understand how people can say [that]," he remarked. "You've got some great players throughout the squad. You win the league by 11 points.

You've got to be a top team to do that."So [Ferguson] goes and then it all falls apart? So that's his fault? How can people say that? I don't think the buck stops with Sir Alex Ferguson at all. I think you leave and you win a trophy. There's not many better ways to go out than that."

Goal.com

JAIL ESCAPE IN WASHINGTON NOT DETECTED FOR 2 DAYS

MARYSVILLE, Wash. (AP) -- An inmate's escape from a jail in Washington state went undetected for two days last week until the man's defense lawyer stopped for a visit and he couldn't be found.

Rhyan Vasquez, 19, was back in custody in Marysville City Jail, north of Seattle, facing a possible escape charge along with a previous robbery allegation, The Daily Herald reported (http://bit.ly/1rqrM8S ).

His absence wasn't noticed until last Wednesday when his lawyer asked to see him, court papers said.Jail staff checked surveillance video and saw that Vasquez had backed out a door and into a hallway on Sept. 22 while a group of inmates was returning from a Bible study class held in a visitation area.Vasquez was booked back into jail Friday.

He was tracked down by two detectives who questioned his associates, said Robert Lamoureux, a police spokesman.Defense lawyer James Feldman says another attorney from his office was representing Vasquez in the municipal case.

That lawyer wasn't available Tuesday.Feldman said all he knew was the lawyer went to the jail and Vasquez wasn't there."We obviously weren't involved in the planning," Feldman said.---I

Information from: The Daily Herald,http://www.heraldnet.com

U.S. military: Air strikes disrupted ISIS abilities

The U.S.-led airstrikes against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) have disrupted the group’s infrastructure, its command and control and logistical abilities, said General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, on Friday.Speaking to reporters at the Pentagon, Dempsey said he expected a “persistent and sustained” campaign against ISIS, which has seized swathes of land in Iraq and Syria.On Friday, airstrikes targeted the militant group’s oil facilities for a second day, a monitoring group said Friday.The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported new air strikes in eastern Deir Ezzor province and north-eastern Hasakeh province, both of which were targeted a day earlier by the coalition.Additional strikes hit an area in Hasakeh, where the target was not immediately clear, the group’s director Rami Abdel Rahman said. There were no immediate details of any casualties from the strikes.Oil sale has been a major source of funding for ISIS since it captured several oil fields across the country.The group reportedly stopped oil extraction from fields in Deir Ezzor province in eastern Syria after the U.S.-led strikes.“Oil extraction has been halted because of the security situation,” said Leith al-Deiri, an activist in Deir Ezzor who spoke to AFP via the Internet.“People... would wait four days to get oil, because there was so much demand. But now there are no customers... There are no traders or clients going to the fields, fearing the strikes,” he said via the Internet.Deir Ezzor is home to six major oil fields and the Coneco gas field. Experts say the group could be earning between $1 million and $3 million a day from oil sales alone.All the fields have fallen into the hands of ISIS since the militant group took over the majority of Deir Ezzor province. While speaking to reporters at the Pentagon on Friday, Dempsey said a Western-backed opposition force of around 12,000 to 15,000 would be required to retake areas of eastern Syria now controlled by ISIS. “Five thousand has never been the end state ... Twelve to 15,000 is what we believe they would need to recapture lost territory in eastern Syria,” Dempsey said.Last week, Congress gave temporary approval to a plan for the United States to train members of Syria's moderate opposition to combat the Islamic State, which is seeking to expand its hardline rule from a base in eastern Syria. The initial number of opposition fighters to be trained by the United States is expected to be around 5,000.

Arabiya News

Leading Iraqi Human Rights Activist Killed After Anti-ISIS Posts

BAGHDAD, Iraq - A prominent female Iraqi human rights lawyer and campaigner has been publicly executed days after posting anti-ISIS messages on her Facebook page, the U.N. said Thursday. Samira Salih al-Nuaimi was killed by a masked firing squad in a public square in the city of Mosul, an act described as "horrifying" by the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights. She was tortured before her death on Monday, the U.N. said.Al-Nuaimi, a well-known figure in Mosul, was remembered for her courageous work promoting the rights of women and helping the poor. "She used to stand before courts in order to defend those who were detained by U.S. forces, and she did that for free," a Mosul resident told NBC News. Al-Nuaimy was detained Sept. 17 after she posted messages on Facebook describing ISIS' bombing and destruction of mosques and shrines in Mosul as "barbaric." She was accused by the self-styled Islamic court of apostasy and sentenced to death by ISIS fighters. Her body will be handed to family who have been warned against conducting a funeral ceremony, a local journalist told NBC.
Source: NBC News

Fayose beats up Ekiti court judge

Temperamental Ekiti state Governor elect, Ayodele Fayose, slapped a court judge today for being rude to him and then ordered his thugs to beat him further.The victim is Justice John Adeyeye of the Ekiti High Court, Ado Ekiti.The action of Fayose and his thugs triggered some pandemonium in the court, with judicial workers and others running into safety. The sitting of the Ekiti State Governorship Election petition Tribunal could also not hold.Premium Times quoting witnesses said that PDP thugs had besieged the court premises as early as 6am, while a detachment of policemen from the police headquarters were also seen on major streets and around the court.
Justice Adeyeye of High Court 3, who was miffed by the huge number of the thugs as they surged towards the court premises had approached Mr Fayose and urged him to prevail on “his supporters” to keep a safe distance from the court premises.“An enraged Mr. Fayose was said to have shouted the judge down, slapped him and ordered his men to beat him up.Immediately, thugs numbering about 20 pounced on Justice Adeyeye, beat him up and tore his clothes, while his co workers scampered and shouted for help.Following the development, judicial workers hurriedly shut down the court premises thereby preventing any court proceeding for hours before the police fired tear gas canisters to disperse the hoodlums.Justice Adeyeye is presently receiving treatment at a private hospital in Ado-Ekiti.On Monday, PDP thugs had also attacked Justice Adeyeye, adjudicating in a case filed by Ekiti 11 to determine Fayose’s eligibility for the June 21 governorship election.At a press conference in Lagos on Wednesday, Fayose had accused the state judiciary of working in cahoots with the ruling All Progressives Congress to disqualify him and dispossess him of his governorship mandate.The governor-elect said this was the primary reason a socio-political group, Ekiti-11, went to court to ensure that it could achieve this through the back door.He said it was through what he called a ‘dubious’ court judgement that a former governor, Segun Oni, was ousted, paving the way for Governor Kayode Fayemi of the APC in 2010.Fayose, however, vowed that the people of the state would not allow his mandate to be stolen, as they were now more enlightened than before.He said, “The whole scheming in Ekiti State is just about the APC obtaining judgement through the back door after losing elections on June 21, 2014. You will recall that Segun Oni’s tenure was truncated through this back door judgement by some judicial officers who have been compromised.“They can go as far as losing their career if and when politicians pay them well. The Ekiti people have spoken and they have spoken well. I came back into the country on Tuesday night and I have been briefed on the developments in the state. I want to state clearly that we will not allow any back door judgement to stall my inauguration.“Their target is to install the Speaker of the Ekiti State House of Assembly, who is an APC member, claiming that Fayose is not qualified to contest. I want to state that the people of Ekiti State are interested and they are equally more enlightened than before where someone will just come and obtain a judgement through the back door to stall a process and steal the people’s mandate.”He said there was the need for the judiciary in the state to be objective and fair, alleging that the judges in the state had been compromised because some of them were members of the Ekiti-11

P.M News

The Wages of Impunity, By Wole Soyinka

The dancing obscenity of Shekau and his gang of psychopaths and child abductors, taunting
the world, mocking the BRING BACK OUR GIRLS campaign on internet, finally met its match in
Nigeria to inaugurate the week of September 11 – most appropriately. Shekau’s danse macabre
was surpassed by the unfurling of a political campaign banner that defiled an entry point into
Nigeria’s capital of Abuja. That banner read: BRING BACK JONATHAN 2015.
President Jonathan has since disowned all knowledge or complicity in the outrage but, the
damage has been done, the rot in a nation’s collective soul bared to the world. The very
possibility of such a desecration took the Nigerian nation several notches down in human
regard. It confirmed the very worst of what external observers have concluded and despaired
of – a culture of civic callousness, a coarsening of sensibilities and, a general human
disregard. It affirmed the acceptance, even domination of lurid practices where children are
often victims of unconscionable abuses including ritual sacrifices, sexual enslavement, and
worse. Spurred by electoral desperation, a bunch of self-seeking morons and sycophants
chose to plumb the abyss of self-degradation and drag the nation down to their level. It took
us to a hitherto unprecedented low in ethical degeneration. The bets were placed on whose
turn would it be to take the next potshots at innocent youths in captivity whose society and
governance have failed them and blighted their existence? Would the Chibok girls now
provide standup comic material for the latest staple of Nigerian escapist diet? Would we now
move to a new export commodity in the entertainment industry named perhaps “Taunt the
Victims”?
As if to confirm all the such surmises, an ex-governor, Sheriff, notorious throughout the
nation – including within security circles as affirmed in their formal dossiers – as prime
suspect in the sponsorship league of the scourge named Boko Haram, was presented to the
world as a presidential traveling companion. And the speculation became: was the culture of
impunity finally receiving endorsement as a governance yardstick? Again, Goodluck Jonathan
swung into a plausible explanation: it was Mr. Sheriff who, as friend of the host President
Idris Deby, had traveled ahead to Chad to receive Jonathan as part of President Deby’s
welcome entourage. What, however does this say of any president? How came it that a
suspected affiliate of a deadly criminal gang, publicly under such ominous cloud, had the
confidence to smuggle himself into the welcoming committee of another nation, and even
appear in audience, to all appearance a co-host with the president of that nation? Where does
the confidence arise in him that Jonathan would not snub him openly or, after the initial
shock, pull his counterpart, his official host aside and say to him, “Listen, it’s him, or me.”?
So impunity now transcends boundaries, no matter how heinous the alleged offence?
The Nigerian president however appeared totally at ease. What the nation witnessed in the
photo-op was an affirmation of a governance principle, the revelation of a decided frame of
mind – with precedents galore. Goodluck Jonathan has brought back into limelight more
political reprobates – thus attested in criminal courts of law and/or police investigations –
than any other Head of State since the nation’s independence. It has become a reflex. Those
who stuck up the obscene banner in Abuja had accurately read Jonathan right as a Bring-back
president. They have deduced perhaps that he sees “bringing back” as a virtue, even an
ideology, as the corner stone of governance, irrespective of what is being brought back. No
one quarrels about bringing back whatever the nation once had and now sorely needs – for
instance, electricity and other elusive items like security, the rule of law etc. etc. The list is
interminable. The nature of what is being brought back is thus what raises the disquieting
questions. It is time to ask the question: if Ebola were to be eradicated tomorrow, would this
government attempt to bring it back?
Well, while awaiting the Chibok girls, and in that very connection, there is at least an
individual whom the nation needs to bring back, and urgently. His name is Stephen Davis, the
erstwhile negotiator in the oft aborted efforts to actually bring back the girls. Nigeria needs
him back – no, not back to the physical nation space itself, but to a Nigerian induced forum,
convoked anywhere that will guarantee his safety and can bring others to join him. I know
Stephen Davis, I worked in the background with him during efforts to resolve the
insurrection in the Delta region under President Shehu Yar’Adua. I have not been involved in
his recent labours for a number of reasons. The most basic is that my threshold for
confronting evil across a table is not as high as his – thanks, perhaps, to his priestly calling.
From the very outset, in several lectures and other public statements, I have advocated one
response and one response only to the earliest, still putative depredations of Boko Haram and
have decried any proceeding that smacked of appeasement. There was a time to act – several
times when firm, decisive action, was indicated. There are certain steps which, when taken,
place an aggressor beyond the pale of humanity, when we must learn to accept that not all
who walk on two legs belong to the community of humans – I view Boko Haram in that light.
It is no comfort to watch events demonstrate again and again that one is proved to be right.
Thus, it would be inaccurate to say that I have been detached from the Boko Haram affliction –
very much the contrary. As I revealed in earlier statements, I have interacted with the late
National Security Adviser, General Azazi, on occasion – among others. I am therefore
compelled to warn that anything that Stephen Davis claims to have uncovered cannot be
dismissed out of hand. It cannot be wished away by foul-mouthed abuse and cheap attempts
to impugn his integrity – that is an absolute waste of time and effort. Of the complicity of ex-
Governor Sheriff in the parturition of Boko Haram, I have no doubt whatsoever, and I believe
that the evidence is overwhelming. Femi Falana can safely assume that he has my full backing
– and that of a number of civic organizations – if he is compelled to go ahead and invoke the
legal recourses available to him to force Sheriff’s prosecution. The evidence in possession of
Security Agencies – plus a number of diplomats in Nigeria – is overwhelming, and all that is
left is to let the man face criminal persecution. It is certain he will also take many others
down with him.
Regarding General Ihejirika, I have my own theories regarding how he may have come under
Stephen Davis’ searchlight in the first place, ending up on his list of the inculpated. All I shall
propose at this stage is that an international panel be set up to examine all allegations,
irrespective of status or office of any accused. The unleashing of a viperous cult like Boko
Haram on peaceful citizens qualifies as a crime against humanity, and deserves that very
dimension in its resolution. If a people must survive, the reign of impunity must end. Truth –
in all available detail – is in the interest, not only of Nigeria, the sub-region and the continent,
but of the international community whose aid we so belatedly moved to seek. From very early
beginnings, we warned against the mouthing of empty pride to stem a tide that was assuredly
moving to inundate the nation but were dismissed as alarmists. We warned that the nation
had moved into a state of war, and that its people must be mobilized accordingly – the
warnings were disregarded, even as slaughter surmounted slaughter, entire communities
wiped out, and the battle began to strike into the very heart of governance, but all we
obtained in return was moaning, whining and hand-wringing up and down the rungs of
leadership and governance.But enough of recriminations – at least for now. Later, there must
be full accounting.
Finally, Stephen Davis also mentions a Boko Haram financier within the Nigerian Central
Bank. Independently we are able to give backing to that claim, even to the extent of naming
the individual. In the process of our enquiries, we solicited the help of a foreign embassy
whose government, we learnt, was actually on the same trail, thanks to its independent
investigation into some money laundering that involved the Central Bank. That name, we
confidently learnt, has also been passed on to President Jonathan. When he is ready to
abandon his accommodating policy towards the implicated, even the criminalized, an attitude
that owes so much to re-election desperation, when he moves from a passive “letting the law
to take its course” to galvanizing the law to take its course, we shall gladly supply that name.
In the meantime however, as we twiddle our thumbs, wondering when and how this
nightmare will end, and time rapidly runs out, I have only one admonition for the man to
whom so much has been given, but who is now caught in the depressing spiral of diminishing
returns: “Bring Back Our Honour.”

Wole Soyinka, writer, Nobel laureate, and inveterate campaigner for human freedom,
who turned 80 last July, sent in this article from his country home in Abeokuta