WEEKEND SWEET GAME

Booking Number:JXXY8J 01/04/2016 20:24:00

Code 1692

Date 02/04/2016 15:00:00

Event Norwich - Newcastle Utd

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection Un HT

Code 1690

Date 02/04/2016 12:45:00

Event Aston Villa - Chelsea

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection Un HT

Code 1694

Date 02/04/2016 15:00:00

Event Stoke City - Swansea

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection Un HT

Code 1698

Date 03/04/2016 13:30:00

Event Leicester City - Southampton

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection Un HT

Code 1696

Date 02/04/2016 15:00:00

Event West Ham - Crystal Palace

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection Un HT

Code 2180

Date 02/04/2016 17:15:00

Event UD Las Palmas - Valencia

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection Un HT

Code 2184

Date 03/04/2016 15:00:00

Event Malaga - Espanyol

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection Un HT

Code 1440

Date 02/04/2016 17:00:00

Event Carpi - Sassuolo

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection Un HT

Code 1445

Date 03/04/2016 14:00:00

Event Atalanta - Milan

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection Un HT

Code 2325

Date 03/04/2016 19:45:00

Event Inter - Torino

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection Un HT

Code 1090

Date 02/04/2016 19:00:00

Event GFC Ajaccio - Saint-Etienne

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection Un HT

Code 2379

Date 02/04/2016 19:00:00

Event Toulouse - Caen

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection Un HT

Code 1094

Date 03/04/2016 13:00:00

Event Nantes - Lille

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection Un HT

Code 3179

Date 02/04/2016 15:00:00

Event Dundee - Ross County

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection Un HT

Code 3182

Date 02/04/2016 15:00:00

Event ST Johnstone - Dundee Utd

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection Un HT

WEEKEND HOT CAKE

Booking Number:JXWW3K 01/04/2016 19:51:00

Code 1690

Date 02/04/2016 12:45:00

Event Aston Villa - Chelsea

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection X2

Code 1694

Date 02/04/2016 15:00:00

Event Stoke City - Swansea

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection 1X

Code 1698

Date 03/04/2016 13:30:00

Event Leicester City - Southampton

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection 1X

Code 1696

Date 02/04/2016 15:00:00

Event West Ham - Crystal Palace

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection 1

Code 2182

Date 02/04/2016 21:05:00

Event Celta Vigo - Dep. La Coruna

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection 1X

Code 2179

Date 02/04/2016 15:00:00

Event Atl. Madrid - Real Betis

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection 1

Code 2184

Date 03/04/2016 15:00:00

Event Malaga - Espanyol

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection 1X

Code 2186

Date 03/04/2016 19:30:00

Event Sevilla - Real Sociedad

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection 1X

Code 1441

Date 02/04/2016 19:45:00

Event Juventus - Empoli

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection 1

Code 1443

Date 03/04/2016 14:00:00

Event Fiorentina - Sampdoria

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection 1

Code 1445

Date 03/04/2016 14:00:00

Event Atalanta - Milan

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection X2

Code 2438

Date 02/04/2016 14:30:00

Event Bayern Munich - Eintracht Frankfurt

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection 1

Code 2441

Date 02/04/2016 17:30:00

Event Borussia Dortmund - Werder Bremen

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection 1

Code 2324

Date 03/04/2016 14:00:00

Event Genoa - Frosinone

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection 1X

Code 2325

Date 03/04/2016 19:45:00

Event Inter - Torino

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection 1X

Code 1091

Date 02/04/2016 16:00:00

Event PSG - Nice

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection 1X

Code 2504

Date 02/04/2016 15:00:00

Event Hull City - Bristol City

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection 1

Code 3530

Date 02/04/2016 19:45:00

Event Feyenoord - Excelsior

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection 1

Code 3535

Date 03/04/2016 15:45:00

Event Ajax - Zwolle

Live/Prematch Normal

Selection 1

India bridge collapse: Kolkata rescue efforts under way

 Emergency workers in Kolkata continued to search for survivors underneath a collapsed flyover in a congested area of the eastern city, as the construction firm building the flyover was being investigated.

At least 23 people were killed and more than a dozen were still trapped under the rubble of the under-construction overpass that collapsed in the busy Burrabazar area on Thursday.

Rescuers were using sniffer dogs and special cameras to find trapped people and used saws, small cranes, and their bare hands to dig through the wreckage in search of victims.

Smashed yellow taxis, destroyed rickshaws and the bloody legs of trapped people jutted from the collapsed girders and concrete slabs.

"The condition is pathetic. At this moment no one has any clue how many people are trapped," said Raichand Mohta, a police officer at the scene
 

reporting from Kolkata, said the accident occurred in a "very busy area and the rescue operation is too slow.

"Heavy machinery, cranes, diggers are trying to break through the large slab of the flyover that has fallen on to the ground to rescue people trapped under the rubble.

"However, what is making this rescue operation more difficult is that this area is very congested and densely populated. And the flyover is built in between residential buildings.

'Body parts strewn all over'

Local TV footage showed a street scene with two auto rickshaws and a crowd of people suddenly obliterated by a mass of falling concrete that narrowly missed cars crawling in the traffic jam.

"Before the ambulances arrived, we were here at the location trying to rescue the people out of the rubble. There were body parts strewn all over the place," a witness told hamzysblogspot news

Police said 39 of more than 70 people taken to hospital were still being treated on Friday morning.

Getting survivors to hospital was also complicated by the lack of access for ambulances to the flyover. Safety standards were lax, witnesses said.

"Every night, hundreds of labourers would build the flyover and they would cook and sleep near the site by day," said Ravindra Kumar Gupta, a grocer, who pulled out six bodies, together with his friends.

Investigation launched

Police launched an investigation into the construction firm building the flyover, the local government said, and had reportedly sealed its offices.  

India n company IVRCL was building the 2km Vivekananda Road flyover, according to its website, and its director of operations, AGK Murthy, said the company was unsure of the cause of the disaster.

"We did not use any inferior-quality material and we will cooperate with the investigators," Murthy told reporters in Hyderabad, where the firm is based. "We are in a state of shock."

The Associated Press reported that police officials detained five construction company officials on Friday.

Construction collapses are common in India, where regulations aren't strictly enforced and builders often use substandard materials.

.

No going back on foreign coach – Pinnick

President of the Nigeria Football Federation, Amaju Pinnick has defended his decision to go for a foreigner as the new Super Eagles coach, insisting that no local coach can give us the desired results.
 

In a chat with newsmen in Lagos yesterday, Pinnick who still looked weary after the demands that attended Nigeria’s failed bid for the Afcon 2017 ticket, said he cannot afford to stay in office and see Nigeria lose out in the qualification for Russia 2018 World Cup.

“I cannot put our World Cup hopes on a local coach. We need a world class coach who can reshape our football.”

Citing Hector Cuper, Egypt national team coach who under two years has returned the Pharaohs to the limelight of African football, Pinnick swore, “That is why I cannot compromise my decision for a foreign coach. Egypt have so many professionals abroad, but Cuper used only five and he still went ahead to get the desired result. That is why I am insisting on a foreigner for the Eagles

Sports Vanguard gathered that the NFF leadership may have chosen a coach already and he is a French national. “I am afraid, the new coach may have already began work as he has been talking to countries like The Netherlands and Scotland for friendlies with the Super Eagles,” an NFF source told our correspondent in Abuja.

We further gathered that the new coach wants to stay in Lagos and will be coming with a trainer and a tactician. Emmanuel Amuneke and Salisu Abubakar will be the Nigerian coaches to assist the Frenchman.

Onazi laments Nations Cup miss

Former Super Eagles assistant captain, Ogenyi Onazi is yet to come to terms with Nigeria’s failure to secure a 2017 Afcon ticket.
 

The Super Eagles, with 2 points went to Alexandria Tuesday, with the hope of turning the table against the sleek Pharaohs of Egypt.

The first leg in Kaduna, 4 days earlier had ended in a 1-1 draw and as a result, the Eagles needed an outright win to restore hope of going to Gabon 2017. But they failed as the Pharaohs triumphed 1- 0.

Reflecting on the scenario, Lazio midfielder, Ogenyi Onazi said in Lagos yesterday that they(the Eagles) were feeling ashamed of themselves because of their latest failure. “We feel bad indeed and ashamed that despite the support we get from the Nigeria Football Federation, we were not able to win a ticket to Gabon. It is a shame indeed,” Onazi said.

The Lazio midfielder would not however discuss his exclusion from the starting 11 by Coach Samson Siasia, despite dressing for the game following a two match ban.

That was entirely the decision of the coach. He may have his strategy and knew who he wanted for the match.

In one of the bizarre decisions by interim coach, which attracted sharp criticisms from many Nigerians, Siasia benched Onazi while fielding Amuzie the entire match.

Censors Board D-G slams filmmakers!

The Director General, National Film and Video Censors Board,NFVCB, Ms. Patricia Bala, has expressed worries following what she called “a significant drop in the number of films  submitted to the Board for classification by film makers in the country.”

She, however, decried the rising number of parts 1, 2, 3, movies, describing the development as unacceptable. The Censors Board D.G raised this alarm  during a closed door meeting with the leadership of major associations in the film industry.

Bala said, “In spite of all the things the Board is doing to help filmmakers, there has been a significant drop in the number of films submitted to the Board for censorship and classification.”

According to her, Parts 1,2,3 films are akin to serials, which is what obtains on television. “It is unlawful to break a film into numerous parts as is the practice like a television serial and push the same into the market.” She stressed that “the Board will always insist on merging them when you bring them for censorship.”

AFRIMA, a unifier of Africa — Obasanjo

ABEOKUTA—Former president of Nigeria, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, has described All Africa Music Award, AFRIMA, as a unifier of Africa.

 

The former president said this during the week when, African Union Commission, AUC, and The International Committee of AFRIMA, organizers of the annual event paid him a courtesy visit at his residence in Abeokuta, Ogun state as part of the build up for this year’s edition of the award.

Obasanjo who commended AFRIMA and AUC for unifying Africa through music, said music was part of African culture. He also reiterated the need for music and culture to be commercialized in order to create jobs and reduce poverty among African youths.

Speaking during the visit, the former president said: “I implore AFRIMA and AUC not to relent in achieving their objectives. I am also using this opportunity to call on brands and governments in Africa to partner with AFRIMA. As a president, I recalled that we had similar projects like, All African Games (COJA 2003) and Festival of Art and Culture in Africa (FESTAC ’77) as platforms for promoting African culture and unity that require huge resources to organize. I am also very grateful to AFRIMA for honouring me with their visit,” he said.

Also in his opening remark, the President and Executive Producer of AFRIMA, Mr. Mike Dada said, “The meeting and visit was in recognition of Olusegun Obasanjo as the former Chairperson of the African Union, AU, from July 2004 to January 2006″.

He is an African global icon, a cultural enthusiast and champion of African renaissance. The objective of AFRIMA is to unite Africans through instrumentality of arts, music, culture and entertainment as well as promote and reward upcoming and established talents on the continent. It remains steadfast to the AUC’s values of promoting African unity and celebrating cultural uniqueness. We are also thanking the former president for receiving AFRIMA team at his residence and we are specially inviting you to the 2016 AFRIMA schedule to hold in November”. he said.

‘Ikebe Super’ resurrects in Nnenna and Friends cartoon magazine

Decades after he rested ‘Ikebe Super’ and ‘Super story’, two household magazines in the 80s, humour merchant, Wale Adenuga  has returned to publishing again as he debuts with another comic cartoon magazine titled, “Nnenna and  Friends Cartoon Magazine.”
 

The family delight due to hit the news-stand next week Tuesday, is an “all-work-and all-play”creative mix which has colourful and interesting packages with wide range of contents specifically prepared for the whole family.

Some of the content range from the Super Nnenna Adventures; where Nnenna’s eyes are wide open to the plight of children and she comes to their aid at the twinkle of an eye. The interesting chronicles of the hilarious comedy group; Papa Ajasco and Company adds fun and laughter to the package, Binta’s dilemma stories are full of lessons for children with particular reference to the girl-child as well as parents and guardians.

The magazine also contains cartoon stories of Tortoise and other  interesting animals, jokes, puzzles , games, stunning facts, art and craft, and African proverbs that teach about culture.

Adenuga said, he was inspired to embark on this project, following the vacuum existing in the cartoon market in the country. He revealed that it took him about three years to package the magazine. Interestingly, the humour legend  who single-handedly drew all the ‘Ikebe Super’ characters during the first four years of the publication further revealed  that the cartoons in the  magazine are drawn by the same cartoonists that made “Ikebe Super” and ‘Super Story’  a must read in the 80s.

Buhari’s anti-graft war: Top 8 quotes of Femi Aribisala

Scholar and international affairs expert, Femi Aribisala, was part of the team that discussed anti-graft war in Nigeria during a Round discussion on “Winning the War Against Corruption” organised by the Department of Jurisprudence and International Law, University of Lagos.

Here are some of the notable quotes from his presentation

“There is no fight against corruption in Nigeria. And if there’s no fight against corruption, you can’t even talk about war”
 

The 2015 election was not an anti-corruption election. We did not have any political party that presented an anti-corruption mandate to us. The party that won the election was just a makeover of the PDP, I mean the PDP people moved from the PDP to the APC. If they were corrupt when they were in PDP, they became clean when they were in APC.

“There is no mandate against corruption. If President Buhari was determined to fight against corruption, my feeling is that he gave up after losing election three times. The fourth time, he formed an alliance with people who he despised before. And they were not necessarily people who had a track record of being (sic) anti-corruption. So today, I don’t know who is anti-corruption.”

“We have to make up our minds if we really want to deal with the question of corruption. If we want to deal with the question of corruption, Nigerians themselves must insist on it and we have to deal with it at the institutional level,”

“In ten months of Buhari’s‎ government, there has been no institutional structure that has been laid against corruption. We have simple had media circuses accusing people of corruption.

“You cannot fight corruption with corruption. And corruption is more than just the stealing of money. If you disobey the rule‎ of law, you have corrupted the system. If you create an avenue where you have a big margin between the official foreign exchange rate and the parallel market rate, there’s gonna be corruption. If you have children of the rich getting into the CBN on nepotistic grounds, the corruption is still with you.

“If you have a budget that is padded left right and centre, and after this was revealed you passed it and say only a small amount changed in it, and we do not know what is in the new budget, you can’t say you are against corruption. There is no transparency in any of these things.”

“And that’s why I can’t trust Falana’s prescription that we are going to establish special courts. I don’t trust this government to establish those courts. They will simply establish courts to decimate the opposition. People like Orubebe will be arrested, and they will file cases against him and several months later they will drop the charges against him. And they will have pronounced him guilty in the newspapers on charges that will later on be dropped. That is not a fight against corruption.”

How I became no. 1 Best Seller on Amazon—-Remi Owadokun

Remi Owadokun is one of the foremost weight loss and healthy living consultants in the country. The half Brazilian half Nigerian, had battled with her own weight earlier in her life but used a technique she created to lose the weight. Today she teaches people all around the world this same technique and has become popular for it.

She’s making headlines not for her weight loss programme but as an author. Her book, How I lost 40 kg: the journey that changed my life has just been named number one best seller on Amazon. The book is the only Nigerian book to reach such selling status. She bares her mind in this chat .

By Japhet Alakam

CONGRATULALTIONS on your book topping the best seller list on Amazon?
Thank you very much, it is indeed an amazing privilege, considering it was barely available to the Nigerian audience due to Amazon’s Country restriction. Becoming an Amazon bestselling Author to a mostly international audience is very encouraging. So yes, I am an Amazon International Best-selling Author, I no be local champion. It’s a good feeling.

How did you get to know that your book is number one?

Well once you create an account on Kindle Direct, you get statistics and you watch your book move up the ranks or fall depending on its relevance. But that is for me as an admin on the back end. Anyone who searches for my name in the Kindle App will find the book and it’s details, the details will show where it is ranked on the best sellers list, that list is open to the general public. You can monitor how any book is doing on the ranks or if it made the list at all.
 

Periscope rockstar

The ranks are updated hourly. I made it to number 5 within the first hour and by the time it got to the eighth hour, I was holding on strong at number two. Today I am number one.

Did it come as a surprise or was it something you expected?

When I put my book on Kindle, I wanted to be a best seller, I went in with that goal in mind. I am a go getter so I will not say it was a surprise, I expected to be number one. When I got to number 2, I kept my fingers crossed.

I have to point out that just 3 weeks before I made my book available on Kindle, I met an amazing woman called Naomi Osemedua. She is popularly known as the Periscope Rockstar, she released a book called Socially Speaking.

In the book she talked about her journey on periscope and it made it to number 4 on the Amazon Best Sellers list. I got in touch with her and she gave me some amazing pointers. That also played a major role in my hitting the best sellers mark, she made me believe that I could do it and that gave me psychological permission.

What was the motivation for writing the book?

I knew that I could not go to all the places I hope to go with my message in this lifetime with the time I have available and being one person. So I put myself on the internet which is the closest thing to being omni present. I printed my book so that it could go anywhere in the world without me being physically present. I am a Certified Health Coach and as a coach there is a limit to the number of people I can work with, but with my book, I can coach millions of people whom I may never meet.

Being number one means a lot of sales, you must be very rich now?

I cannot tell you that. Do you want me to be robbed. Yes the money is rolling in, but I did not write the book just because I want to make money. The idea is to help people find the good health that they seek. If I make money on the side, it only means that I have reached a lot of people.

Is this your first book? 

This is my first book as the only contributing author, yes. In 2003, I co-authored a book on youth and community development with 11 others in the United states.

Is there a sequel in the making?

Yes I am presently writing another book and have two other drafts in the pipeline. I should have my next book by the end of the year.

Tell us about your incredible journey to weight loss?

In 2013, I weighed 110kg, I was grossly overweight, suffered from low self esteem, suffered from one obesity related disease to the other (Migraines, pre-diabetes, hormonal imbalance) and one day I was sick and tired of living such a low quality lifestyle and decided it was time for permanent change.

It took me 10 months to lose 40kg, I did not have a personal trainer, was not enrolled in the gym so I spent so much time doing trial and error. I did not know what to eat, what not to eat, how to exercise and what was best to do. I spent a lot of time and money experimenting on all the safe and natural methods.

Like everyone who has ever wanted to lose weight, you have tried and failed many times. So have I. I had tried several times and failed but this time I started, hit a number of bumps on the way but kept going.

Some believe when people lose so much weight, maybe they had undergone surgery, did you do that?

No I never had to go through any medical procedure and I personally don’t encourage that and here is my reason.

When you do a surgery, you fix the symptom, which is fat, you have not dealt with what made you fat, you have not dealt with the root. When you do this, you are still leaving room for it to grow. What will happen when the things that caused you to add weight returns? You do another surgery? So I usually do not encourage quick fixes and trust me there are so many quick fixes available.

Bizarre: 17-yr-old sells child for N500,000, paid N30,000

Akure – HER desperation to get rid of the unwanted child led her to trade off the first fruits of her womb to a couple who also have been waiting desperately for a fruit of the womb for over six years. 17 year old Tessy Obianua, a secondary school drop-out ate the “forbidden fruit”and was made pregnant by one of her acquaintances, Shola.

The shame led her to elope when the pregnancy was five months old and the protruding tummy was becoming a source of embarrassment for her and her parents at their Ogbese camp in Akure North area of Ondo State.
   

Without the knowledge of her parents Mr and Mrs Henry Obianua , Tessy left with another man Jude Azuka for Onitsha, to escape the prying eyes of neighbours and others who may jest of her.

The father was said to have been flabbergasted when Tessy who disappeared with the five month old pregnancy re-surfaced after nine months without a baby which was the evidence of the pregnancy.

Evidence of the pregnancy

Meanwhile, when Tessy disappeared, the father had lodged a complaint via a petition at the Police station that her pregnant daughter was missing and detectives were deployed to smoke her out with the pregnancy.

But a Police source hinted that Jude who was a neighbour of Tessy’s parents seized the opportunity of her condition to lure her to Onitsha where he promised to link her to a “ good Samaritan” that will take care of her,the pregnancy and even the baby after birth. Tessy was ferried to Onitsha and put in the custody of Mrs Chibuzor Okoye who housed her until she gave birth to a baby girl which she also helped her nurse.

Unknown to Tessy that Jude was one of the agents of Mrs Okoye who is a child trafficker, she was reportedly given special treatment throughout her stay with the Mrs Okoye at No 3 Tonny Olisa street Awada in Onitsha.

When she was put in the picture of what would be the fate of her “unwanted child” Tessy according to the Police source had no choice than to agree with them.

While Tessy and the little baby were enjoying the luxury provided by Mrs Okoye, a deal had been struck on how much a desperate couple who had been looking for a baby was willing to pay on her. Police source told Vanguard that a drama ensued when the couple came to the house of Mrs Okoye to collect the baby after the payment of N500,000.

Tessy was said to have put up a fight, vowing she would not let go her baby and it reportedly took the intervention of Jude who brought her to Onitsha before she allowed the couple Mr and Mrs Sunday Kalu to go with her. Sensing that Tessy may have a re-think and probably want to make trouble, they suggested to both Jude and Mrs Okoye that she (Tessy) should sign an undertaking that she would never come back for the baby. After that was done, the baby was taken away and Tessy was settled with N30,000 cash while some new clothes and shoes were equally bought for her from the sale of her baby girl.

But the 17-year old girl in an interview denied having knowledge of the whole transaction saying she was handed N30,000 after she discovered that her baby had disappeared while she was asleep. She said that she later learnt from Jude that N500,000 was collected by them from a couple in need of a baby.

Tessy told hamzy.blospot when she was paraded alongside with four other suspects of the child trafficking and the couple that Mrs Okoye and Jude should be held responsible for the disappearance of her baby.

She said because she was not in support of the sale of the baby that was why she exposed the child trafficker to her uncle who informed the police and she was arrested. The story told by Mrs Okoye differed as she told Vanguard that Tessy was lying and that she was handed over her share of the money while Jude also collected his share.

She said that N200,000 was given to Jude out of the sales while she took N300,000.

The burble reportedly burst when Tessy after she re-surfaced didn’t come with a baby and the father became suspicious and raised alarm. Vanguard learnt that she later confessed that their neighbour, Jude and one Mrs Okoye sold her baby girl to a couple in Onitsha, Anambra state.

Detectives later traced both Mrs Okoye and Jude to Onitsha where they were both apprehended and brought back to Akure, the Ondo State capital.

The five suspects are presently cooling their heels at the Criminal Investigation Bureau CID division of the state police command. Vanguard learnt that the couple were later arrested at their No. 8 Uzogwu street Onitsha

Child trafficking

The Police Image Maker Femi Joseph confirmed the incident saying that the child trafficker and four others are in their custody undergoing interrogation.

Joseph said “through investigation to Onisha, the police arrested Okoye,who specialized in child trafficking at No. 3, Tonny Olisa Street Awada in Onitsha

“It was Okoye, who sold the baby girl to the couple at No. 8, Uzogwu street Onitsha for the sum of N500,000.

“She claimed to have given Jude the sum of N200,000 out of which Jude claimed to have bought clothes and shoes for Tessy and also gave her N30,000 cash.

“Mrs Okoye thereafter forced Tessy, to sign an undertaking that she would never come back for the baby.” The suspects, according to him, would be charged to court after their investigations.”.

I won’t sign 2016 budget, unless… – Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari said, yesterday, in the United States that he would not sign the 2016 Appropriation Bill, passed into law by the National Assembly, last week, unless he critically reviewed it.

 

The President, who spoke at a meeting with the United States Secretary of State, John Kerry, in Washington DC, said in view of the controversial alteration and padding of the budget proposals, he needed to review the document to be certain that its contents tallied with the authentic budget proposal presented to the National Assembly.

He said:  “Some bureaucrats removed what we put in the proposal and replaced it with what they wanted.

“I have to look at the bill that has been passed by the National Assembly, ministry by ministry, to be sure that what has been brought back for me to sign is in line with our original submission.”

Declaring that his administration would continue to vigorously prosecute its war against corruption, President Buhari sought and received an assurance from Mr. Kerry that the United States government would facilitate the repatriation of all stolen Nigerian funds found within the American banking system.

“It will greatly help our country if you assist us to recover all our stolen funds which we can establish to be within your financial system,” the President said.

Acknowledging that the United States had been of great help to his administration in the retraining and re-equipping of the Nigerian Armed Forces which had resulted in the significant success already achieved against Boko Haram, President Buhari said the Federal Government was now working very hard to restore full normalcy in the North Eastern states.

“Boko Haram no longer holds any local government area. We are reconstructing damaged facilities and preparing the police to take over and reassert civilian control over areas affected by the insurgency,” the President told Mr. Kerry.

Responding, John Kerry said he had been told that the stolen Nigerian funds were in “billions of dollars”.

He said:  “It’s not easy to hide that amount of money and we are pretty good in tracing them,” Mr Kerry assured President Buhari, adding that relevant United States government officials would meet with the chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, to discuss further cooperation in that regard.

Kerry applauded the Buhari administration’s success in rolling back the Boko Haram insurgency, saying the United States would continue to give Nigeria all possible support to ensure that the terrorist sect was finally eliminated.

The U.S. Secretary of State also praised President Buhari’s clear order that Nigeria’s Armed Forces must show greater regard for the human rights of persons in the theatre of operations against Boko Haram.

US to render $600m ‘development assistance’ to Nigeria— Kerry

In a separate meeting with the Foreign Affairs Minister, Mr. Geoffery Onyema, Kerry said the US would invest, at least, $600 million in Nigeria in 2016.

Kerry, who disclosed this during the opening session of the US-Nigeria Bi-national Commission meeting, reiterated the commitment of the US government to Nigeria’s growth.

He said his country had been encouraged by President Muhammadu Buhari’s commitment to an economy that was more diversified, and would, therefore, do its best to ensure that the present administration succeeded.

He said: “We want Nigeria to succeed. And I don’t say that with any element of patronising or arrogance or any kind of view other than the fact that we know there are challenges.

“Nigeria is an extraordinary country.  It has huge potentialities, a very rich culture.  And it is finding very vibrant expression in every branch of the arts.  Like the United States, it is a diverse country with a very large and assertive civil society; and like America, Nigeria is looked to for leadership in confronting some of the starkest challenges of our times.

“Now, Nigeria’s future is in Nigerians’ hands. We respect that. The United States is here to help to meet your needs, to listen to you carefully, to understand what it is that you believe is necessary, and to work with you where we can to implement.

“Our development assistance this year will top $600 million, and we are working closely with your leaders – the leaders of your health ministry – to halt the misery that is spread by HIV/AIDS, by malaria, and by TB.

“Our Power Africa Initiative is aimed at strengthening the energy sector, where shortage in electricity has frustrated the population and impeded growth.  And our long-term food security programme, Feed the Future, is helping to create more efficient agriculture and to raise rural incomes in doing that.

“Our Young African Leaders Programme, in which many Nigerians participate, is preparing the next generation to take the reins of responsibility… and in education, we are working together to try to fight illiteracy, especially in the country’s north, where the lack of opportunity has been holding people back, and where the terrorist organisation, Boko Haram, has murdered thousands and disrupted the lives of million

In his response, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Geoffrey Onyema, who led the Nigerian delegation, thanked his host for the warm reception, and expressed Nigeria’s indebtedness to the US for the role it had been playing in its stability.

“We cannot underestimate the impact that your visit and the support of your country has had in shaping the future for Nigeria.

“Of course, we’ve had respect for the United States for a very long time. Your system of government is one that we’ve adopted.  We had a Westminster model once upon a time, but we threw that aside and embraced the United States model – an expensive model it is too, but we’re struggling as best we can.

“We share the same values and we respect very much what this great country has achieved, and this country has really become a model for all countries in the world.  We aspire to going some ways to emulate this model,”Oyema said.

No rift between executive, legislature on 2016 Budget  — Minister

However, the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said yesterday, that there was no disagreement between the Executive and Legislative arms of government on the budget.

There is absolutely no rift, no issue of budget being sent back. Things are just taking their due course,” the Minister said when he visited the corporate headquarters of the Leadership Newspaper, as part of his continuous engagement with stakeholders in the media industry.

He said it was not true that the President has refused to sign the Appropriation Bill passed by the National Assembly.

“It takes a few days (after the passage) for the National Assembly to clean up the document in readiness for the President’s assent,” he said.

Speaking further on the budget, Alhaji Mohammed said when it was eventually passed into law, it would lift millions of Nigerians out of poverty.

The minister said:  “The first is the employment of 500,000 unemployed university graduates who we are going to train as teachers. Two, we are also employing 370,000 unemployed non-graduates, people with National Diploma and Technical Certificate. The third tranche is the social intervention targeted at 1 million people, made up of market women, traders and artisans to be trained and given loans through their cooperatives.

“The fourth one is the home-grown One-Meal-A-Day Programme. Here we are targeting several millions of pupils in primary schools all over Nigeria. The exponential effect of this one meal a day is huge. Even if we are targeting five million pupils and we are giving each of them one egg a day, you are talking about five million eggs that will be provided by our poultry farmers.  This will also help to increase the demand for maize and then you are going to employ people all around.”

The Minister further disclosed that the Federal Government would also commence Conditional Cash Transfer to the most vulnerable Nigerians, in collaboration with some development partners, to bring succour to such people.

He said a special bursary scheme would also come on stream to grant scholarships to students of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics in a deliberate effort to support the students financially, while also bolstering the nation’s drive for industrialization.

Alhaji Mohammed also disclosed that the sum of N350 billion would soon be injected into the economy to enable contractors resume work on abandoned infrastructure projects, with   timeline and target on project delivery and job creation.

He thanked Nigerians for their patience and the understanding of the challenges facing the government, saying rather than give excuses, the government was working round the clock to alleviate the pains of Nigerians.

Four foreign firms scrambling to invest in Bakassi Deep Seaport —Ayade

Cross River State governor, Senator Ben Ayade, has said that four international companies with expertise in deep seaport were scrambling to invest in Bakassi Deep Seaport being  developed by the state government.

Briefing newsmen at the Margaret Ekpo International Airport, Calabar, on his return from an extensive working trip to 11 countries in Europe, Asia and South America, the governor said that it was imperative that he undertook the trip as he seeks to revamp the economy of the state.

Ayade, who was received by his deputy, Prof Ivara Esu and members of the State Executive Council, explained: “In recognising the challenges that we have as a country and of course, with the meltdown in the global economy, it is evident that only states that globalize their economy can move forward.

“So what I have done is to go round the world to source a team of investors and bring them to Cross River State.  What you are going to see in a couple of months is a  team of investors arriving the  state.”

Noting that Cross River State offers special appeal as an investment destination,  Governor Ayade said  that as evidence of the uniqueness of the state as an investment hub, “some teams had arrived the state during my absence to do final  detailed analysis and feasibility studies to  be able to come back with vigour to invest in the state. You will soon be seeing investors pouring  in to finalize the discussions we had overseas.”

Declare 3 years state of emergency on economy, S-E, S-S professionals tell Buhari

ABUJA—To cushion the debilitating effect of the falling oil prices on Nigerians and effectively revitalize the economy, the   South-South South-East Professionals have called on president Muhammadu Buhari to declare a 3 year state of emergency on the sector.

The professionals who noted that the economy of the country was currently in a bad state, said that unless proactive measures were taken, Nigeria would be faced with a bleak future.

The advice was the fall out of an interview the President  South-East South-South Professionals, Mr. Emeka Ugwu-Oju granted to the State House Correspondents at the end of a meeting with Vice President Yemi Osinabjo at the presidential villa, Abuja yesterday.

Leading a delegation of the forum to the villa, Ugwu-Oju also campaigned against giving preferential treatment to some individuals to the detriment of the economy.

He said  the country’s growth required the collective sacrifice of every Nigerian despite their social status.

“On the current state of the economy, we strongly suggested that Mr. President should as a matter of urgency in consultation with the National Assembly, declare a three-year state of emergency on the economy.  And this is not about APC and PDP. It is something that is non-partisan. Our economy is bad.

“We were having $100 a barrel and now, we might not have $50 a barrel in the next three years and we have to factor it in.

“This issue of fuel scarcity is a typical example of what has happened. We didn’t plan for it before. We now have to get every citizen, not a question of Mr. Bad or Mr. Good. The total leadership has to realise that all Nigerians have to come together. We have to roll up our sleeves so that everyone has a role to play.

“We have to be sacrificing. It is not just the poor that should be sacrificing alone. For example, I see no reason why any minister, governor or whoever should be traveling outside economy class. We have to show that things are bad. You can’t tell me things are bad and I see you drinking champagn, flying first class or private jet. Same goes for the private sector.

“These were the things we tried to make the vice president know and then communicate. We had a good engagement and as you know, he is very intelligent, very hardworking, very cerebral and we are happy he is the vice President.”

APC now has two factions —Timi Frank

Despite repeated denials by party officials and members, the All Progressives Congress, APC, is now divided into two factions.

Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the party, Timi Frank, disclosed this in an interview with journalists in Abuja, yesterday.

Meanwhile, the National Secretary of the party, Mai Mala Buni, last night dismissed the claim about division in the party, saying: “The bogus and misleading allegations are unnecessary distractions to the party’s resolve to fully support the President Muhammadu Buhari administration deliver on the motley promises made by our great party to the electorate.”

Frank, who was reacting to allegations that APC chieftain and former governor of Bayelsa State, Timipre Sylva “sold” the state’s ministerial slot to Sen. Heineken Lokpobiri, lamented the inability of the national leadership of the party to steer it from troubled waters.

He said: “I spoke in Bayelsa (about the impending crisis) but they did not take me seriously. Very soon, it (crisis) will happen at the national level too. If anyone tells you that there is no crisis in the national APC, it is a lie.

“The party is now divided into two. The issue of the Senate president is still there and the party is not talking. So, there is crisis in the party. We have so much divisions and they are keeping quiet. If care is not taking, we are soon going to lose our popularity as a party.”

Although he didn’t give identities of leaders of the two factions, Vanguard understands that while the ACN, CPC and ANPP are largely doing things in common, the new PDP seems to be on its own.
Sylva must be probed

On claims by Bayelsa State chapter chairman of the party, Chief Timipa Orunimighe, that Sylva collected money from the Minister of State for Agriculture, Heineken Lokpobiri, to nominate the latter for a ministerial slot, Frank challenged the party to rise to the occasion and get to the root of the matter.

According to him, the allegations are too weighty for the leaders of the party to remain quiet, and such posturing will impact negatively on the image of the administration at the centre.

He said: “Today I am a very happy man because when I came out before the governorship election in Bayelsa to say that Timipre Sylva cannot do the job for the second time in Bayelsa because he was not liked by the people and was very unpopular at that time, nobody took me seriously, including the leadership of the party in Bayelsa State at that time. But today, I am happy and I am thanking God that he has shown Nigerians what I knew then.

“It is a total disgrace if our party cannot act or investigate this allegation and just allow it to go under the carpet without taking action on it. Nigerians and the opposition party are waiting to see what we are going to do.

APC leadership denies rift

According to Mai Mala Buni, “the APC national leadership remains united and solidly committed to the task of bringing cohesion to the party at all levels.

“Recently, the APC held its National Caucus and National Executive Committee (NEC) meetings where positive and far-reaching decisions were collectively taken by the party’s leadership to drive it forward.

“The party will not deny anybody or interest the right to seek justice where he feels this has been denied him. However, we sincerely appeal that we all play by the rules in our engagements and be guarded in our utterances.

“The public is advised not to misinterpret or confuse Comrade Timi Frank’s personal opinions to be the official position of the party or the true reflection of what is happening inside the party.

“For the umpteenth time, only the APC National Chairman and the National Secretary are authorised to officially speak for the party.”

Agatu: Benue leaders flay Buhari, Army, Police, gov, others

MAKURDI—A joint meeting of all Benue socio-cultural groups and religious leaders has flayed President Muhammadu Buhari, Army, Police chiefs, and the state governor for failing to visit Agatu and other besieged Benue communities after the mass attacks and killings in the communities by suspected Fulani militia.
 

They contended that the action smacked of insensitivity and care free attitude on the part of the leaders to the plight of the people of the state.

A communique issued in Makurdi at the end of a combined meeting of the Mdzough U Tiv, the Idoma National Forum and the Omi Ny’Igede, on the killings and wanton destruction of property of Benue indigenes by Fulani herdsmen, they expressed worry at the delay in setting up of the Presidential Investigative Panel as promised by President Buhari.

Among others, the meeting had in attendance, the Catholic Bishop of Gboko Diocese, Most Rev. Dr. Williams Avenya that of Katsina-Ala Diocese, Most Rev. Dr. Peter Adobo.

Part of the communique read, “the inability of the President, the nation’s Army and Police Chiefs, and the Governor of Benue State to visit the worst affected communities of Agatu and other areas where recent mass murder attacks were carried out for on the spot assessment of the level of devastation indicates lack of seriousness deserving of the crisis. The delay in setting up the Presidential Investigation Panel promised by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is also becoming worrisome.

“The proposed Town Hall Meeting by the Federal Government is not only diversionary, but a deliberate ploy to downplay the degree of attention and seriousness that should be accorded the invasion of our land.

“We reject the Federal Government’s proposal at this time, but insist on Judicial Commission of Enquiry to unravel the root cause(s) of the massacre of our people. We advise that all relevant government agencies saddled with the responsibilities of home land security begin the process of disarming Fulani herdsmen across the country to avoid a counter arms buildup by helpless communities in self defence.”

Kaduna anti Christian bill: First step to islamisation

MALAM  El Rufai, appears to be one of the arrows  aimed at making Christians very uncomfortable in Nigeria, by anti- Christian Forces of this country. In January 2013, the former FCT, Abuja Minister wanted to please his god fathers in politics,as a governor ship aspirant  in Kaduna State, twitted an insult on the person of Jesus Christ, claiming Jesus had sex with Mary Magdalene.

Christians reacted  to his insensitive, irresponsible and offensive saying about Christ, and his attack on the sensibilities of Christians globally, which betrayed his his lack of respect for our Lord Jesus Christ and obvious hatred for Christians.

His replywhich added insults to the injury includes “ I must say I am taken aback by the extent of desperate misrepresentation of what was an innocuous attempt to show the godlessness of the Jonathanians to denigrate anyone that dares to ask them to be accountable,” “To those who were genuinely offended by the retweet, I apologise. I did not mean to offend anyone. Jesus or Isa Alaihis Salaam is a respected prophet of Islam. Every Muslim accepts this in addition to his miraculous virgin birth. It is therefore absurd for any Muslim believer to disrespect Jesus Christ,” he added.

The CAN scribe said there was a portion of the response that insulted the Christian faith, pointing out that the association is convinced Mr. El-Rufai is set on a war path with Christians in Nigeria.”  And warned him to stop taking Christians for granted with such foolish comments.Unfolding events have confirmed that CAN was right, El- Rufai hates Christians!

Malam El-Rufai was a Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,not a Minister of any person or party. The problem is godfatherism, and that is why such an uncouth comment could come from a Minister of this nation, and he went ahead to become a Governor!

In Igbo land, a proverb says that when a child is dancing on the main road, someone must have been beating the drums for him in the bush. Someone must be beating the drum from a hidden position, to which Malam El-Rufai is dancing in the public.

In 2013, the APC wanted to field a Muslim-Muslim ticket for the posts of President and Vice President. In 2014, they quickly abandoned a muslim-muslim ticket, and exploited an in road via the Redeemed Christian Church of God, where Vice President Osibanjo SAN, was a Senior Pastor, and that did the job for APC.

While the north voted massively for APC, on both ethnic and religious grounds, votes were divided elsewhere in the country.The church had a distracted or shifted focus, and in what appears now like a compromise by the church, Kaduna state Governor became emboldened to unleash more insults on the Church of God.

The fears expressed by Christians over APC and Buhari’s leadership persists, in spite of the campaign promises of a changed Buhari.One major fear of many Christians include , that the killings and burning of churches will continue under Buhari, but will be seriously suppressed from the public.

A branch of the Living Faith Church, in Giwa LGA, Kaduna state was burnt down on the 30th March, 2015, as elections results were being compiled.

Violence against Christians abound in Kaduna, Kano and other northern  States, Last week Sabon Gari market of mostly Christian traders was burnt in Kano, and some social media commentators announced that it was just the beginning of the fight against Christians in the north of Nigeria, meaning more fires will follow, and nothing happened to them.

Fulani Herds men have exported their evils down to majorly Christian South. Only last week, over 73 persons from a locality of Enugu State were arrested by the Army and carried away to Abia State where they have been detained,for reacting to damages and destructions by Fulani Herdsmen.

Who then, is beating these drums to which the Fulani Herds men are dancing?  A system like ours that uses the Army and Police to protect the source of provocation and destruction,while punishing the victims speaks volumes about unfairness. This system must have been calculated to oppress, and suppress, which can only lead to some form of uprising with time.

Last week, same El-Rufai of Kaduna state proposed a Religious Preaching Bill to make illegal and regulate certain religious activities in the state, citizens across the country have condemned the bill, with many describing it as anti-religious. The bill, currently before the Kaduna state House of Assembly,titled, ‘A Bill For A Law To Substitute The Kaduna State Religious Preaching Law, 1984.’ was first passed  into law in 1984 and was then known as the “ Kaduna State Regulation of Religious Preaching Edict No.7 of 1984, which was amended in 1987. The law was not enforced and now El-Rufai wants to update and enforce it.

The proposed Bill seeks to License religious preachers before they can preach in the state, and this includes visiting preachers, and the license must be renewed yearly. A sponsored external preacher shall be issued with a permit for the priod of the event; Playing of cassettes in public is barred, and playing of inciting media messages is barred.

All cassettes, CDs, Flash drives, or any other communication gadgets containing religious recordings from accredited preachers may be played only inside ones room, the porch of the church or mosque, and any other designated place of worship. Any individual who violates the bill shall upon conviction be liable to a term of imprisonment of two years, and a fine of N200,000. Other offences in the bill include use of loud speakers on a vehicle, preaching without  license, preaching after 8 pm in any public place; Abuses of religious books;Carrying any weapons whether concealed or not into a place of worship, and making of inciting comments.

The major fear of Christians is confirmed by this bill. If passed other states in the north would follow, and that marks the beginning of full islamisation of Nigeria!

Can there be any quicker and better way to heat up the polity, and cause religious conflicts? Who in the north wants Nigeria split?