OSAZE ODEMWINGIE LAMBASTS COACH STEPHEN KESHI AND NFF OVER HIS EXCLUSION FROM THE PRELIMINARY 32- MAN LIST FOR AFCON 2013

Coach Stephen Keshi revealed his preliminary 32-man list of players that will go into closed camping for the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations Cup tournament that will kick-off in South Africa on January 19 and some 'Big Names' did not make the list.

Peter Odemwingie, Obafemi Martins and Taye Taiwo have sensationally been dropped from the list of players that will be vying to be part of the 23-man team that will be going to South Africa in January.
West Brom striker Osaze Odemwingie who has been left out of Nigeria’s team to the 2013 Africa Nations Cup has reacted angrily to his exclusion lashing out at Super Eagles coach Stephen Keshi and the Nigeria Football Federation. The Nigerian spent time on Sunday on social network Twitter giving his own story and attacking anyone perceived to have played a role in his being cut from the team.

 Odemwingie, Obafemi Martins and Taye Taiwo were some of the significant names left out of the 32-man squad listed for the final camping in Faro, Portugal.

PETER OSAZE ODEMWINGIE

The Nigerian striker expressed disgust at having to learn of his non-inclusion through the media, insisting it showed lack of professionalism. He maintained that Keshi lied on the reasons given for his exclusion and fingered what he described as other reasons outside the game of football.

“Keshi has no footballing reasons not to invite me but is not saying the truth. He is still in my plans he said haha coach u no dey my plans.

“On my non-inclusion to the Eagles list I am not surprised. Not surprised Keshi and NFF couldn’t tell me themselves. No personality!

“We talk through press hahaha how come I am the only stubborn one but no ex-Eagles player was sent off from the team with respect? This is all a comedy and our poor fans are being fed with lies while they cutting the cake for themselves.” 

Super Eagles coach, Stephen Keshi

                 

“I am arrogant? Why did country’s president threaten to close down our federation for two years?”

“Nff member just called me. Of cos got insulted. I told him I sang national anthem for ten years to be treated like this.”

In one of the several tweets Osaze complained that the national team has not had “a real captain” for many years and suggesting that it had effect on the team.

He said, “This might sound disrespectful but Eagles had no good captain for many years. Everyone looking only after himself.”

 Osaze  did not limit his outbursts to Keshi as he also dared any other challenger.

He said, “To some who wanna put mouth here please act like men. When two men talk 3rd has nothing to do. So Ikpebas and the rest talk to me face2face.”

The Eagles striker who has had several clashes over the years with different national coaches went down the memory lane as he explained all that transpired between him and a former Eagles coach Samson Siasia and Lars Lagerback. He alleged that Siasia dropped him because he did not endorse him for the Eagles top job.

He wrote, “Cos after we got Olympic silver I didn’t say Siasia is ready for Eagles he waited till he gets the job to axe me? 

“Me and Apam begged him to take (Sani) Kaita in the Olympic team. He told us he wants to play Efe Ambrose there who is a centre back? Good plan. The only reason me and Siasia fell out was over kits that were not enough ‘cos they were on sale as the Olympics were on going. Shame!

 “West Bromwich Albion needed me back for an important game and Siasia refused to let me miss a midweek friendly game?

 “Why didn’t Lagerback continue with Super Eagles after World Cup? Chop and run was his plan and they knew it.”

Now we await a reply from the NFF or coach stephen Keshi... but seriously, was it worth making statements like this, afterall, Osaze played just a friendly game under keshi and hasn't  honored any invitation from the man called the 'Big Boss'. Let's take a look at the names on the 32 man list submitted by keshi on the 21st of December.

The 32-man list
Goalkeepers
Vincent Enyeama (Maccabi Tel Aviv, Israel); Austin Ejide (Hapoel Be’er Sheba, Israel); Chigozie Agbim (Enugu Rangers, Nigeria); Daniel Akpeyi (Heartland FC, Nigeria)
Defenders
Elderson Echiejile (FC Braga, Portugal); Juwon Oshaniwa (Ashdod FC, Israel); Benjamin Francis (Heartland FC, Nigeria); Joseph Yobo (Fenerbahce, Turkey); Efe Ambrose (Celtic FC, Scotland); Solomon Kwambe (Sunshine Stars, Nigeria); Azubuike Egwuekwe (Warri Wolves, Nigeria); Danny Shittu (Millwall FC, England); Kenneth Omeruo (ADO Den Haag, Netherlands); Godfrey Oboabona (Sunshine Stars, Nigeria)
Midfielders
Mikel Obi (Chelsea FC, England); Nosa Igiebor (Real Betis, Spain); Ogenyi Onazi (SS Lazio, Italy); Raheem Lawal (Adana Demirspor, Turkey); Obiora Nwankwo (Calcio Padova, Italy); Fegor Ogude (Valerenga FC, Norway); Reuben Gabriel (Kano Pillars, Nigeria); Rabiu Ibrahim (Celtic FC, Scotland)
Forwards
Ahmed Musa (CSKA Moscow, Russia); Emmanuel Emenike (Spartak Moscow, Russia); Brown Ideye (Dynamo Kyiv, Ukraine); Victor Moses (Chelsea FC, England); Uche Kalu (Rizespor, Turkey); Bright Dike (Portland Timbers, USA); Shola Ameobi (Newcastle FC, England); Ikechukwu Uche (Villarreal FC, Spain); Ejike Uzoenyi (Enugu Rangers, Nigeria); Sunday Mba (Enugu Rangers, Nigeria)

School Principal questioned for conducting Virginity test on female students

Rev. Olufunke Oladeojobi the Principal of Ajuwon Senior High School, Ajuwon, Ifo Local Government Area, Ogun State, has been quizzed by the police for allegedly conducting virginity tests on the pupils.

 Rev.Oladeojobi, who was described as a strict disciplinarian, by her pupils called in a nurse and jointly carried out virginity tests on a group of 10 students last week Monday.

 It was further learnt that the principal did not seek the consent of the parents/guardians of the pupils before conducting the test on Senior Secondary School 1 pupils.

During the test, it was alleged that the principal and the nurse whose name could not be ascertained allegedly dipped their fingers into the pupils’ private parts.

After the exercise, which took place at the principal’s office, each of the pupils was given an exercise book.

A 15-year-old pupil, who identified herself simply as Ayo, said the principal came into the classroom on the day and announced that all female SSS 1 pupils should converge on the assembly ground.

She said the principal subsequently asked that those who had yet to lose their virginity should stand apart.

Ayo said, “We are over 600 in SSS 1 but only about 300 of us are females. Those of us that are virgins are 38 and we were matched into the principal’s office with the assistance of members of staff.

“They subsequently divided us into three groups of 10, 15 and 13 and I was in the second group. The principal later addressed us and threatened that any pupil who fails the test would have her name written in the school’s black book and would be suspended.”

Entrance to Ajuwon Senior High School

Ayo said she became apprehensive when everyone who emerged from the office where the test was being carried out came out with a sad and disgusting look.

She said, “When my class captain emerged from the room, I asked her why anyone that came out of the office looked depressed? I was held spell bound when she told me that the principal and the nurse dipped their fingers in turns into their private parts, adding that she had started bleeding as a result of the penetration.

 “Just as I was asking further questions from her, the principal dashed out of her office and announced that she had discovered one student who had lost her virginity out of the 10 students that were examined.

“She wrote her name on one of the notice boards in her office and ordered the rest of us to return to our various classes. Two of my friends who had similar experiences burst into tears as they narrated what happened.”

Thirteen-year-old SSS I pupil of the school, identified simply as Ujunwa,   said the principal was happy  that she was able to “catch a promiscuous pupil” as she felt proud to discuss it on the assembly ground the next day.

She, however, added that her joyous moments was soon short-lived when the parents of the 10 pupils stormed the school in protest against the development.

In an Animal Farm move, the pupils rebelled against Oladeojobi on Wednesday as they did a sit-in on the assembly ground protesting and demanding that she should be redeployed from the school.

It was gathered that it was the teachers’ intervention that calmed the pupils.

Ujunwa said, “The parents of the girl that was said to have lost her virginity who happens to be a member of the Press Club and the other nine parents besieged the school last Tuesday and Wednesday and queried our principal for conducting such an unauthorised test on their children.

 “The parents then came with policemen attached to the Ajuwon Police Division where they had reported the incident on Thursday and arrested our principal.”

The Divisional Police Officer of Ajuwon Division, Mr. Waheed Yusuf, a Chief Superintendent of Police, confirmed the incident to our correspondent.

He said the investigation into the matter was still “ongoing” and declined further comment until “investigations were concluded.”

But, a policeman attached to the station who spoke on the condition of anonymity said Oladeojobi owned up to the incident.

He said, “She confessed that she conducted virginity tests on the pupils and that ‘she was trying to help them.’ We took her in for questioning on Thursday and Friday but she was not detained as my superiors were taking into consideration that she is a civil servant.

 “We might have some problems if she (Oladeojobi) is to be charged to court for sexual assault because the matter was reported to the police late and no medical examination was immediately done on the affected pupils to use as a proof in the law court.”

I REGRET NOT PRAYING WITH MY HUSBAND BEFORE HIS DEATH-- Mrs. Amina Yakowa

Mrs. Amina Yakowa,  Widow of the  late Kaduna State Governor Patrick Yakowa, says that her worst regret was not praying with her  husband before he embarked on his last journey to Bayelsa State on Saturday.

Mrs. Amina Yakowa

Amid sobs, Amina narrated how her husband left the house on Saturday without the usual ‘prayer of agreement’ and how they had planned to meet in Abuja for  a  thanksgiving  service  for  President Goodluck Jonathan’s wife, Patience.

     

She told the congregation at a church service organised for the late governor inside the Sir Kashim Ibrahim Government House that, “Everyday, we normally hold our hands to pray before he steps out of the house to the office. But on Saturday, when he told me he was leaving for Bayelsa State. I just bid him farewell and we said  we would  meet in Abuja for the thanksgiving ceremony of President Goodluck Jonathan’s wife, Patience. I regret that we could not pray as usual. After that he came down and left for Bayelsa.

“We used to wake up every morning to pray. Before yesterday (Saturday), he used to  insist  that we  pray  before he would  step out of the house  for any engagement. On  December 23, we would have celebrated our 34th year of marriage but for death.”

She said she could not pray for her husband on Saturday because she was down with catarrh.

“We planned to meet in Abuja today for the thanksgiving service of the President’s wife. He (Yakowa) had been a pillar of support to our  family,” she added.

Yakowa and ex-National Security Adviser, Gen. Andrew Azazi

 

Yakowa; ex-National Security Adviser, Gen. Andrew Azazi , and four others died when a Naval Augusta 109 Helicopter in which they were travelling crashed in the Nembe-Okoroba  in  Bayelsa State.

They were returning from the burial of  Pa Douglas, the father of an aide to  Jonathan, Oronto Douglas. 

Other victims of the crash were  Yakowa’s special adviser, Dauda Tsoho; Azazi’s bodyguard, Warrant Officer Mohammed Kamal; and  two naval pilots -  Commander Muritala Mohammed Daba and Lt. Adeyemi O. Sowole.

The bereaved being condoled by the Vice President, namadi Sambo

The traditional ruler of Kagoma,  Col Paul Zaka Wyom,  said he would never forget his last encounter with the late governor during the just concluded council poll which incidentally took place on Yakowa’s birthday.

Wyom said, “It is very difficult to give a full description  of the governor. The last time that I saw him was during the Local Government election in the state on December 1, 2012. That was the moment that I will never forget in my life.

“He was a seasoned civil servant. He will be remembered for being the first civilian governor of Kaduna from the Southern part of the state and he will also be remembered for his prudent management of state resources.”

Also on Sunday,   the President-General of the Southern Kaduna Peoples Union, Dr. Ephraim Goje, narrated how Yakowa visited his parents’ grave barely 15 days before he met his death.

Goje said, “One of the last encounters I had with him that I will never forget happened on December 1, 2012 which was his birthday. If you remember, he also conducted the local government elections on that day.  At about 1 pm, I called him to congratulate him on his birthday and for successfully conducting the local government elections.

“He said to me, my president, as I speak to you, I am standing by the graveside of my parents. I have not had the opportunity to come here in the past two years and I am using the opportunity of this elections to come to their graveside.

“He said further that he will surprise the people of Kaduna State when he presents his 2013 budget and that through the document, the people of the state will know that he meant business. I told him that wherever his parents were, I am sure that they would be proud to have him as their son, especially rising through the ladder to be the governor of the state. We are also proud of him and his achievements.

“After the election, I went to his village (Kagoma) to see him and discovered that he had left for Kaduna. I never knew that 15 days later, he will be no more. We are really grieving and sad.”

Goje said the death of the governor came to him as a surprise, noting that  with the loss of  a “great son” like Yakowa, a big vacuum had been created in the state.

 “The death of Patrick Ibrahim Yakowa came to me as a surprise and with great shock. I want to say that Kaduna State has lost a great son and a big vacuum has been created. He was a man with a passion to develop Kaduna State. There were no religious or ethnic considerations in his actions and he was dedicated to the development of the state,” he said.

ABUJA PROLIFIC MUSIC PRODUCER BEATEN TO A PULP... STILL IN A COMMA

      Music is the oil that keeps the engine of life running smoothly. Producers make the music musicians sing and most times get the least credit for their efforts. One of such prolific music producer and artist who has featured in major events in the city of Abuja is Moses Obalaiye aka Mo’Bizzy and proudly one of Abuja's finest, I might add.

Mo'Bizzy on the beat

      Just last night, tragedy struck, as  Mo’Bizzy was given the beating of his life around 9:30pm by Oka riders and some hoodlums.
Mobizzy was on his way back home and had a flat tire with the car he was driven in so he decided to board an okada home around Logoma area of Abuja, he boarded a okada from the estate junction they agreed at N200 to take him to his place on their way the okada rider stopped half way and said that he won’t go any further and demanded that Moses should pay him additional N200, according to source -Moses had been in the studio working all day and he was very tired after the days activities. He pleaded with the okada rider that if he has to walk home from were he stoped him which was almost 3km from his palce he will not pay him N200 as they had already agreed, at that point the okada man raised a false alarm Barawo!”Barawo!!Brawo!!! meaning thief thief thief in hausa language, the other okada riders passing by stopped and descended on Moses and they beat him to Coma and almost burnt him alive.

Good Samaritans passing by tried to intervene but were almost beaten up by the same okada men, after the incident the okada riders told the Police that The musician wanted to rub him of his okada, after he has been beaten almost to the point of death the police finally rescued him and took him to the police station in stead of the hospital, According to source he has been taken to the hospital for proper treatment but he is still in a coma.

OKADA RIDER ELECTROCUTED IN LAGOS.

A man suspected to be an okada (motorcycle) rider was on Saturday evening electrocuted to death in Ejigbo, Lagos State.

The deceased,  Oche Samuel, was said to have met his death at the shop of a motorcycle mechanic in the area.

The deceased had taken his bike for repairs before the sad incident.

An eyewitness, who identified himself only as Kayode, said as Samuel entered into the shop, a Power Holding Company of Nigeria high tension cable sparked and fell on Ailegun Road, off Ronik College.

Kayode said when the incident happened, tension was heightened in the area, resulting in residents running helter-skelter.

He said in the ensuing confusion, Samuel marched on some of the fallen cables and he was electrocuted.

The eyewitness said fear of being electrocuted prevented sympathisers from giving Samuel first aid.

He said by the time an official of the PHCN arrived the scene for on-the-spot assessment, Samuel had died.

Kayode said it was through the deceased’s mobile phone they were able to get his brother.

He said when the deceased’s brother came, he took the corpse to the mortuary.

As at 8.30pm on Saturday, the fire on the pole was still not put out.

              

Public Relations Officer, Lagos State Police Command, Ngozi Braide, who confirmed the incident, on Sunday saidthe deceased was an okada rider, who went to repair his motorcycle when the incident occurred.

“The man, an okada rider went to a mechanic workshop to repair his motorcycle. It was during the time that the electric pole started to spark. In the process, he was electrocuted. His corpse has been deposited at the morgue of General Hospital, Isolo,” she said.

Investigation on the matter is still ongoing.

John Mikel Obi banned

Just yesterday, he extended his contract with Chelsea for the next 5 years, and last night, Chelsea's John Mikel Obi was given a three-match ban and fined £60,000 by the Football Association for threatening referee Mark Clattenburg.

Mikel admitted an FA charge following an incident in the match officials' changing room after Chelsea's defeat by Manchester United on the 28th of October.
The FA accepted the player had believed the referee had racially abused him.
However, the union Prospect, which represents referees, said it was "dismayed" at the "lenient" punishment.
In a personal hearing on Thursday the FA's Independent Regulatory Commission accepted the Nigerian midfielder's explanation.

Mikel Obi and Mark Clatternburg during the Man Utd vs Chelsea game.

"But for that factor the suspension would have been significantly longer," the FA said in a statement.
Prospect national secretary Alan Leighton claimed "far too much weight" had been given to Mikel's mitigating circumstances.
A Prospect statement added: "It is vital that officials were given real respect and this decision regrettably gave entirely the wrong message. A player in parks football found guilty of behavior like Mikel's would have faced a long-term ban."
The FA investigated the allegation against Clattenburg which prompted Mikel's behavior and found that there was no case to answer.
The police also dropped their inquiry into the allegations that Clattenburg had racially abused Mikel.
Mikel's team-mate Ramires had made the allegation and Chelsea later said they regretted the way the matter was handled.
Clattenburg missed four weekends of premier league action while the FA investigated Chelsea's complaint.

THE KRYSS n FRIENDS VISIT TO THE LESS PRIVILEGED ON NOVEMBER 24TH

November 24th 2012, is one day a lot of under privileged people in abuja will not forget in a hurry. Cool fm Celebrity On Air personality, KRYSS 'THA BOSS' MOLOKWU led a lot of his friends, fans and partners to a community development project which has been on for the past 4 years. The twist this time was that, while visits had been focused on orphanages in the past 4 years this year's edition saw the first stop being the domain of the Blind and disabled people.

 Home for the Blind and disabled people in Karimajiji (a suburb in abuja) was the first point of call. Received in the palace of the Disabled Chief, ALH. SULAIMAN KATSINA, who was full of praises, and gratitude for the gesture of the delegation. He was quick to ask the group to ensure that his people were taught how to fish as against giving them fish.

AT THE PALACE OF THE DISABLED CHIEF

In a related development, the Chief of Blinds who noted that the kind gesture was what young nigerians lacked and needed to emulate, asked Kryss and his friends to ensure that the public gets a whiff of the living condition they are subjected to.

SIGNING THE REGISTER

THE BLIND TALKING TO PRESSMEN

In his response,Kryss stated that this marked the 5th year of his philantrophic work going public and he intended to make it even bigger next year, while stating that he didn't see the Blind and disabled as less privileged but as physically challanged. He also admonished the occupants of the colony to stay steadfast in their belief in the oneness of the nation as well as in their abilities to make wealth, as begging is never a way of life viewed with repute.

HOPE FOR SURVIVAL ORPHANAGE HOME

The second place visited was the HOPE FOR SURVIVAL ORPHANAGE home in Gishiri abuja. Here it was a cocktail of mixed feelings as the children at the home were happy to see their visitors, while the visitors in turn couldn't hold back their tears provoked by what they saw in the house. A case in hand was a certain DORCAS who's 6 years old yet can't see, move or sit properly because of a spinal cord injury which would require surgery to be corrected. She needs the attention of well meaning individuals to help her live like a normal girl.

DORCAS

MEMBERS OF SOCIETY AGAINST PROSTITUTION AND CHILD LABOR IN NIGERIA

KRYSS WITH A SET OF TWINS AT THE ORPHANAGE

SOME FANS AND FRIENDS AT THE VISIT

 

HOPE FOR SURVIVAL ORPHANAGE HOME.

Some of the friends of Kryss at the event include BIG MO', YAKSMAN AND OCHE (WAZOBIA FM ABUJA) DANASOR(KISSFM ABUJA), FREDA (newspaper journalist) members of the SOCIETY AGAINST PROSTITUTION AND CHILD LABOR IN NIGERIA, and a hord of fans.

A Call for help for the less privileged

This saturday, November 24th 2012, clebrity radio show host with cool fm abuja, Kryss 'tha boss ' Molokwu will lead a host of people in a bid to give back to the society, in a bid to aleviate the plight of the less privileged in the society. 

Tagged "KRYSS N FRIENDS'', the visit to orphanages has been going on for some time now but started getting much publicity in the past 3 years, with other celebrity Tv, Radio hosts and musicians and philantrophists joining in.

 This year, there's a little twist to the "KRYSS N FRIENDS'' event it will experience a slight departure from the norm, a visit to the Home for the Blind and Disabled people has been put on the bill while there will also be a stop over at an orphanage home. Doctors and drugs have also been put on the line up to ensure that the health of the less privileged is also looked into. 

   For more information and possible participation, call 08079962395. This is a yearly event so you might as well start planning for next year. God bless you as you bless others.

SAD DAY IN LAGOS

Two sisters – Toyin and Bukky Coker – were killed on Wednesday when a part of the two-storey building they lived in at M20, Jakande Low Cost Housing Estate, Isolo, Lagos, collapsed.

Their mother identified simply as Iya Coker was injured.

Three out of the six flats on one of the two wings of the building completely collapsed at about 12:05am.

It was learnt  that the deceased and their mother lived on the first floor.

Toyin, was a 30-year-old medical doctor, while Bukky recently finished her national youth service. Both sisters were graduates of the University of Lagos (now Moshood Abiola University).

One of the survivors, Ahmadu Omoniyi, who lived on the ground floor of the building said he informed Mrs. Coker of the impending danger at about 11.40pm  on Tuesday night when he heard the building cracking.

He said, “When I got home on Tuesday evening, I observed that sand and stone were falling off from the walls and the decking. I informed the caretaker immediately. I moved into the apartment in September.

“Around 11pm, I suddenly woke up feeling uneasy.  I roused the other two people staying with me and asked them to start packing vital things while I went to Mrs. Coker’s place to draw her attention to the situation.

“When I got to her floor, she answered me from inside saying, ‘God will see us through till tomorrow’. Nobody stayed on the second floor, so, I joined my other flat mates downstairs.

“To my utmost surprise as soon as we removed our vitals documents from our apartment and moved like three steps away, the building collapsed. It was God that saved us because the whole place went down.”

A resident of the area, Opeyemi Fagun, said the sound of the collapsed building drew neighbours’ attention to the scene.

He said despite starting the emergency operation started the incident happened, Coker could not be rescued until after about four hours.

He said, “We heard the woman saying, ‘please help, please help’ but we couldn’t locate her on time because of the amount of debris that had fallen all over the place.

“We finally located her at about 4am where a wooden cupboard had fallen over the lower part of her body on the bed she slept. Meanwhile, the cupboard prevented the hard core debris from falling on her.”

It was learnt that calls placed by residents to the number of her two daughters after their mother had been rescued rang out.

Fagun explained that Coker could not also give a comprehensive account of the number of people in her apartment as she seemed to be in shock at the time she was being taken to hospital.

Fagun said, “We kept on searching the debris. We later sighted a leg, which turned out to be that of Bukky under the debris. Toyin’s corpse, which was also buried under the debris was also sighted.

“Both of them were found dead under the debris. We concluded the search and rescue at about 5am after Toyin’s body was recovered. Government emergency officials later started coming around some minutes to six blaring sirens all over the place.”

General Manager of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, Dr. Femi Oke-Osanyintolu, said the bodies of the sisters had been taken to the morgue.

When one of our correspondents visited the scene, oficials of the Lagos State Building Control Agency were seen marking the buildings on the M Zone of the estate for demolition.

Survivors of the incident told one of our correspondents that emergency officials, who were alerted to the impending disaster did not come.

A resident, Daramola Victor, told one of our correspondents that about 11.40pm, it was noticed that the walls were about to give way.

He said, “I live in the second wing. But we noticed that the other wing was cracking and we called the National Emergency Management Agency, Lagos State Emergency Management Agency and fire service on the phone. Only the Red Cross came later after the collapse.

“All these agencies are here now acting as if they are doing something useful. They could have saved lives if they came when we called on them.”

He said when he noticed that one of the wings of the building had collapsed, he rushed back into his apartment and evacuated his family.

“I really don’t know where to go now. All our properties are outside. Neither LASEMA nor NEMA is giving us any assistance in this direction,” he said.

Residents of the buildings at the site that have now been tagged “distressed” and sealed by the  Lagos State Building Control Agency, said no effort was made in the past by government officials to test the state of the buildings in the estate.

Earlier, the Commissioner for Housing, Mr. Bosun Jeje, who was at the site briefly, had said the buildings were “inspected frequently by our engineers.”

He said, “This is a responsible government, whenever anything like this happens government always ensures that those who are affected are taken care of.

“Government will offset the medical bills of victims who are receiving treatment in the hospital. As you can see, the buildings have been marked for demolition because they are weak.”

 Managing Director, Lagos State Property Development Corporation, Biodun Oki, also said the residents had been given notice to quit the buildings prior to the collapse.

“The markings of the distressed buildings had been before now and even some of them moved out before now,” Oki said.

But residents said the buildings were marked for demolition immediately after  Wednesday’s incident. They claimed there was no prior warning from government agencies.

An angry resident, who pleaded anonymity said, “If anybody tells you that they had inspected these buildings before, they are only lying. We had called on the government at different times to compel the owners of the buildings to renovate them but they did not take any step.

“I did the renovation of my own apartment when I moved in. I would have packed out of the apartment if not because I am financially handicapped.

“If government had inspected the houses and said they were “distressed” we would have packed out without complaint. They don’t care about us.”

Another resident, Ibrahim Ade, who corroborated this, said he was angry when he saw government officials sealing other buildings on Wednesday.

He said the inefficiency of government cost the two sisters their lives.

“Go to all the buildings, you will see that they are not in good condition, but government refused to do what was necessary until people died,” he said.

President of the residents’ association, Abiodun Taiwo, also berated the officials for their insensitive attitude to the state of the buildings in the estate.

Culled from the Punch Newspaper

Obasanjo fights with Jonathan on Odi

LAGOS — The alleged strained relationship between President Goodluck Jonathan and his one time benefactor, former President Olusegun Obasanjo was further stretched, yesterday, after Obasanjo rebuffed the incumbent president’s claims that the army invasion of Odi in Bayelsa State in 1999 was a failure.
In a detailed response to the claim by President Jonathan, Obasanjo asserted that contrary to  the claim, the invasion of Odi not only killed the militants but decimated their capacity to wage such acts of terror against the state.
Obasanjo, however, said the Odi treatment would not necessarily be adaptable to the Boko Haram insurgency.  President Jonathan had during the presidential media chat on Sunday rebuffed claims of weakness made against him by Obasanjo, asserting that the invasion of Odi ordered by Obasanjo in 1999 was a failure.
“After that invasion, myself and the governor entered Odi…and saw some dead people. Most of the people that died in Odi were mostly old men, women and children, none of the militants was killed,” Jonathan said on Sunday.
He continued: “If bombarding Odi was to solve the problem, then it was never solved. If the attack on Odi had solved the problem of militancy in the Niger Delta, then the Yar’ Adua government would not have come up with the Amnesty programme. So, that should tell you that the attack on Odi never solved the militancy problem and we had more challenges after that attack on Odi.”
Following the presidential media chat, Obasanjo reportedly briefed Mr. Femi Fani-Kayode, who served as his Special Assistant on Public Affairs and subsequently Minister of Aviation.
Upon the briefing, Fani-Kayode rebuffed President Jonathan’s claims that the Odi invasion was a failure.

A tale of 2 presidents.

            
He said: “During a live broadcast of the Presidential Media Chat to the nation on the evening of November 18, 2012, President Goodluck Jonathan said that the military operation in Odi by the Nigerian Armed Forces in 1999, which was ordered by President Olusegun Obasanjo, did not solve the problem or stop the killing of soldiers, policemen and innocent civilians in the Niger Delta area by the terrorists and militants. He also said that all he saw in Odi after he went there on an official visit as Deputy Governor were the dead bodies of old people. With the greatest respect to Mr. President this is factually incorrect. He has either forgotten the relevant facts or he has been misinformed. Whichever way he is mistaken and it is important for those of us that proudly served the Obasanjo administration to respond to him in order to clarify the issues, clear the air and set the record straight for the sake of history and posterity.
“I had  the privilege of being briefed about all the facts by President Olusegun Obasanjo himself and Col. Kayode Are, the former DG of the SSS, immediately after the Presidential Media Chat and I believe that it is appropriate to share some of those facts with members of the Nigerian public given the grave assertion and serious charge that President Jonathan has made. Those facts are as follows:

Why Army invaded Odi

 “Five policemen and four soldiers were killed by a group of Niger Delta militants when they tried to enter the town of Odi in Bayelsa State in order to effect their arrest. This happened in 1999. After the brutal killing of these security personnel, President Olusegun Obasanjo asked the then Governor of Bayelsa State, Governor Alamieyeseigha, to identify, locate, apprehend and hand over the perpetrators of that crime.
“The Governor said that he was unable to do so and President Obasanjo, as  the Commander-in-Chief of the Nigerian Armed Forces, took the position that security personnel could not be killed with impunity under his watch without a strong and appropriate response from the Federal Government. Consequently he sent the military in, to uproot and kill the terrorists and to destroy their operational base which was the town of Odi. The operation was carried out with military precision and efficiency and it’s objectives were fully achieved. The terrorists were either killed and those that were not killed fled their operational base in Odi. They were uprooted, weakened,  demoralised and completely dispersed. That was the purpose of the whole exercise and that purpose was achieved. The truth is that the killing of security agents and soldiers with impunity by the Niger Delta militants virtually stopped after the operation in Odi and remained at a bare minimum right up until the time that President Obasanjo left power eight years later in 2007. I advise those that doubt this to go and check the records.
”The same thing was done in Zaki-Biam in Benue State in the North-central zone of Nigeria in 2001 after 19 soldiers were murdered in cold blood and then brutally beheaded by some terrorists from that area. Again after the Federal Government’s strong military response in Zaki Biam, the killing of security personnel with impunity stopped. The objectives of the military operations in both Odi and Zaki-Biam were to stop such killings, to eliminate and deal a fatal blow to those that perpetrated them and to discourage those that may seek to carry out such barbarous butchery and mindless violence in the future.
“Those were the objectives and nothing more and clearly those objectives were achieved. There is no doubt that after Odi, there were still unrest, agitations, protests, kidnappings and the blowing up and sabotage of oil pipelines in the Niger Delta area but there were hardly any more attacks on or killing of soldiers and security personnel by the terrorists and militants because they knew that to do that would attract a swift and forceful reaction and terrible retribution from the Nigerian military.

Odi, Zaki-Biam successful — OBJ

“To stop and deter those attacks and killings was the objective of President Obasanjo and that objective was achieved. President Goodluck Jonathan was therefore in error when he said that Odi did not solve the problem of killings in the Niger Delta area by the Niger Delta militants. Not only did it stop the killings but it is also an eloquent testimony of how to deal with terrorists, how to handle those that kill our security personnel with impunity and how to deter militants from killing members of our civilian population and thinking that they can get away with it. If President Obasanjo had not taken that strong action at that time, many more of our civilian population and security personnel would have been killed by the Niger Delta militants between 1999 and 2007.
“By doing what he did at Odi and Zaki-Biam, President Obasanjo saved the lives of many and put a stop to the killings and terrorism that had taken root in the Niger Delta area prior to that time.”
Fani-Kayode further insisted that President Obasanjo’s comments last week were also misconstrued and misrepresented in certain quarters.

When two elephants fight... what happens next?

           
“He never said that the Odi treatment should be applied to Boko Haram or that such action is appropriate in these circumstances. What he said was that a solution ought to have been found or some sort of action ought to have been taken sooner rather than allow the problem to fester over time like a bad wound and get worse.
“There can be no doubt that he was right on this because, according to President Jonathan’s own Chief of Army Staff, no less than 3000 people have been killed by Boko Haram in the last two years alone. That figure represents approximately the same number of people that were killed by the IRA in Northern Ireland and the British mainland in the 100 years that the war between them and British lasted and before peace was achieved between the two sides.
“The same number of casualties that the IRA inflicted on the people of the United Kingdom in 100 years, is the same number of casualties that Boko Haram have managed to inflict on our people in just two. This is unacceptable and it is very disturbing. The Federal Government must cultivate the courage and the political will to stop the killings by Boko Haram and to find a permanent solution to the problem.”

ACN  slams Jonathan, aides

The ACN on its part, also faulted the Jonathan administration as lacking in credibility, saying the president’s response to issues was at variance with the several responses given by his administration’s officials.
In a statement issued by the party’s National Publicity secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party cited a number of past actions and assertions by government officials that were rebuffed by the president on Sunday.
The party said: “Credibility is a key issue in governance, and lack of it renders a government impotent. Perhaps this worsening credibility gap in the Jonathan Administration is one of the reasons that it had so far failed to perform to expectation,” it said.
Citing what it described as the flip-flop or sheer disinformation by officials, the ACN said the president contradicted claims by his spokesman, Dr. Reuben Abati that the government has revoked the power contract awarded to Canadian firm Manitoba.
He also cited reports credited to Dr. Abati in August and this month, that the government was engaged in “backroom channel” talks with Boko Haram, which was also categorically denied by the president on Sunday.
According to the ACN, “it is also instructive that President Jonathan has finally confirmed the reported illness of the First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan, even when the spokespersons for the President and the First Lady said she was hale and hearty, and implied she was vacationing abroad, even as reports circulated that she was being treated for an illness in Germany.”
“We also recall that this flip-flopping and deliberate disinformation or both did not just start on Sunday, and that it has been the hallmark of the Jonathan presidency. For instance, while some spokespersons at the presidency once described the report of the probe of the oil sector by the House of Representatives as merely of ‘advisory’ value to the presidency, others said the presidency has indeed started its implementation.
“Also, shortly after Dr. Doyin Okupe rubbished the Petroleum Revenue Special Task Force Report as inconclusive and therefore not implementable, the President announced the setting up of a White Paper Committee on the report, indicating that Dr. Okupe, in his usual exuberant disposition, may have been speaking for no one but himself.
“This development, which we must say has now been patented by the Jonathan presidency, is of great concern to us as a party and, we are sure, to all Nigerians. This is because the credibility deficiency syndrome now afflicting the Jonathan presidency has far-reaching
implications. It impacts negatively on governance, and sends the wrong message to investors, both local and foreign, as well as the
entire international community.
“We are therefore left with no choice than to ask: Who is in charge at the presidency? Who speaks for President Jonathan? Who do Dr.
Abati and Dr. Okupe speak for? Do we henceforth take whatever these men say about the government with a pinch of salt? Or is the
Jonathan Administration deliberately misinforming Nigerians? If so, for what purpose?” ACN queried.

Fashola defends intended introduction of Chinese in Lagos schools

 

Ikeja –  Lagos State Governor,  Mr Babatunde Fashola, said on Sunday that the plan by the state government to introduce Mandarin in public schools was not  to discourage the teaching of indigenous languages.
The governor said during the commemoration of 2,000 days of his administration in Ikeja that the introduction of Mandarin in schools was to give  pupils functional education in consonance with current realities.
He said the emergence of China as a major economic power should compel any serious government to begin to plan for the future.
Fashola, however, said that  no child would be compelled to take the language in school.
The Commissioner for Education, Mrs Olayinka Oladunjoye, recently announced plans by the government to introduce Chinese language in all public schools.
“Our plan to introduce Chinese in schools is not to discourage or stop the teaching of indigenous languages in schools.
“We will continue to teach Yoruba and other languages but we are saying that giving our pupils the opportunity to learn Chinese will be an advantage in a changing world.
“Whether we admit it or not the Chinese are taking over the global economy and we are only preparing our pupils for the opportunities that the use of Chinese language as the possible language of the future  might provide,“ Fashola said.

Mr Babatunde Fasho

He said the various interventions  by the state government in the education sector had made positive impacts on the standard of education in the state.
The governor said the state was now ranked among the  states with the best public education in country, while the pass rate in WAEC had  moved from less than 20 per cent in 2011 to over 38.28 per cent in 2012.
He further said the recent  training and deployment of over 3,000  health volunteers to Primary Health Centres across the state had boosted healthcare delivery at the grassroots.
Fashola said the the establishment of Maternal and Child Care centres had significantly reduced cases of infant mortality and promoted mothers` health.
Commenting on infrastructure development, the governor said the contract for the expansion of Mile 12 to Ikorodu had been awarded, while a number of inter-city roads across the state had been constructed.
He said the state had recorded some achievements in sports with sound sports development initiatives, saying competitions like the Governor`s Tennis Cup and Principal Cup had helped in discovering some talents.
The governor said the decision of the state to host the18th National Sports Festival was to further develop talents and promised that this year’s edition would be the best ever.
Fashola said the development of inter modal transport system, comprising light rail, BRT system and ferry services was to facilitate the easy movement of people and goods.
He said the enactment of the traffic law was to address the problem of congestion in the state and ensure safety and security of lives.
He restated the commitment of the state government to make life more meaningful for residents and called on residents to support the government through compliance with rules and payment of taxes.
Some of the guests present on the occasion include Brig. Mobolaji Johnson and  Alhaji Lateef Jakande, both former governors of the state as well as Mr Frederick Faseun, leader of Oodua People’s Congress(OPC).
Others are members of the state Executive Council as well as representatives of interest groups, voluntary organisations, traders and artisans. (NAN)

Nigerians wait endlessly for Reps’ report on Lawan, Otedola

 Six months into the investigations by the House of Representatives on the controversial $620, 000 bribery allegation, the report is still not ready.

As at Sunday (yesterday), the House Committee on Rules and Business,had neither been briefed on the report of the probe nor had any document been submitted to it.

 “There is uncertainty over the fate of this report.

“It is seven months running since the House started this investigation, but we no longer know what is happening,” a senior lawmaker confided in  Abuja on Sunday.

The bribery transaction involved a four-time legislator (1999 to date), Mr. Farouk Lawan, and oil business mogul, Mr. Femi Otedola.

Otedola claimed to have given Lawan the bribe in the wake of the April fuel subsidy probe by the House to remove the names of Otedola’s two firms from the list of indicted companies by the committee.

Lawan headed the ad-hoc committee mandated to conduct the probe.

The panel uncovered how fraudulent marketers colluded with government officials to rob the nation of over N1.07tn in subsidy scams.

              

The House had mandated its Committee on Ethics and Privileges in June to investigate the allegation and submit a report within 21 days.

Findings, however, indicated that despite several assurances by the House that the report would be produced, there was none as at Sunday.

Three weeks ago, a member of the Committee on Ethics and Privileges, Mr. Victor Ogene, announced that the panel would lay the report as “soon as the House resumes from the Sallah break”, but nothing happened.

The House resumed from the Sallah break on November 6.

Ogene, said the report was ready, added that the committee was merely awaiting “scheduling” by the House.

The chairman Committee on Rules and Business, Mr. Albert Sam-Sokwa, stated that so far, there had been no contact between his committee and Musa’s over the progress of the $620,000 probe.

He said, “The committee has not brought it (report) to me.

“It is still with the committee. If they bring it, mine is to cause it to be laid for consideration by honourable members.

“For now, my committee has nothing to do with it because no report has come to us from the Committee on Ethics and Privileges.

Dangote to Site N300bn Fertiliser Plant in Edo

The groundbreaking ceremony of a $2 billion (about N300 billion) fertiliser plant, the biggest in Africa to be sited in Agenebode, Edo State will be done before the end of January 2013. 

Disclosing this at a reception in Benin City, on Monday, as part of activities to mark the second term inauguration of Governor Adams Oshiomhole, President of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, said arrangements have been concluded for the ceremony in December or before the end of January 2013.

Dangote, who was listed by Forbes magazine as Africa’s richest man, said the company which is expected to employ about 10,000 people directly and indirectly will be completed in three years.

He said: “yes we will build the biggest fertiliser plant in Africa here in Edo State.”
According to him, “Oshiomhole has delivered on road, infrastructure, but now he’s going to deliver on job creation. We will partner him to make sure he gives us a conducive environment to create jobs here in Edo State.

   

“He has already mentioned that we will set up a fertiliser plant here in Edo State. I am sure he wants me to reaffirm that, yes, we will build the biggest fertiliser plant in Africa here in Edo State. It is a commitment and I am reassuring you, your excellency, by this year, either in December of January, next year, we will perform the groundbreaking ceremony in Edo State. It will be at a cost of $2 billion.

“I am reassuring you, in the presence of everybody, that in the next three years, Edo State will be exporting fertiliser from here to other parts of Africa.”

SARAKI DIES AT 79

It is confirmed. Olusola Saraki, the strong man of Kwara state politics is dead. He was aged 79.  Leader of the Nigerian Senate during the second republic, Dr. Saraki died in lagos in the early hours of this morning.

Late Dr. Olusola Saraki

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

           His son and former governor of Kwara state,  Dr. Bukola Saraki could not be reached for comments, but a family member confirmed the development.
Dr. Saraki was the arrow head of politics in Kwara state for more than two decades till e was displaced as kingmaker by his son, Bukola Saraki, presently a serving Senator and former Governor of  Kwara State.
Reports have it that the politician’s body has will be flown to Ilorin, Kwara state capital for burial according to Islamic rites.

Kadiri Ikhana has quits

Kadiri Ikhana has quit as coach of Nigeria after they failed to retain their African Women’s championship in Equatorial Guinea.

Nigeria Super Falcons finished a disappointing fourth at the 2012 AWC after they lost 1-0 to Cameroon in a third-placed playoff on Sunday.

Kadiri Ikhana

Ikhana, who quit his post on the team’s return to the country on Monday, said though the target set for him in his contract with the Nigeria Football Federation was achieved at the tournament, but he resigned for his failure to meet his own personal target of lifting the trophy.

                  

The former Enyimba and Kano Pillars tactician, while expressing his apology to the nation for the outcome of the team’s performance, noted that he accepted full responsibility for the results at the championship.

Kadiri was mandated in his contract signed on April 1 to among other things qualify the team for the 2012 AWC and ensure the team reach at least the semi-finals of the competition.

He said his inability to fulfil his personal desire to bring the trophy to Nigeria informed his decision to quit the stage, stressing that he will continue to support the developmental programme of the NFF as a Nigerian as he is of the opinion that the nation has the potentials to take the centre stage in world football.

According to him, the notice of resignation to the federation is in accordance with his contract.

Political Parties budget money to bribe security, INEC – Jega

KEY political heavy weights on Monday opened the eyes of the citizenry to the underhand dealings that characterized Nigerian democracy, painting pictures of bribery, power abuse and eagerness to breach the rules.

Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof. Attahiru Jega, said that political parties in the country budgeted money with which to bribe security agents and officials of the electoral body during elections.

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo said party manifestoes were printed for the purpose of electioneering and that such manifestoes were thrown away immediately after election, while Senate President David Mark and the Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives, frowned at the nature of ‘lobbying’ in the country.

They all spoke in Abuja at the opening of a two-day Round table Conference with the theme, “Party Politics in Nigeria and Lobbying, the Lobbyist and the Legislature.”

The event, organised by the national Institute for Legislative Studies, was attended by the majority of the officials of the registered political parties in the country. 

 Obasanjo chaired one of the sessions.

Jega described budgeting money to bribe INEC and security agents as sad, adding that it was against the tenets of democracy.

Jega said the attempt to bribe security agencies and officials of the commission was one of the various ways through which political parties tried to undermine democracy in the country.

He said, “Political parties budget funds with which to bribe security agencies and INEC officials during elections.

“Of course, this is being resisted but we have to stop all this in our electoral process.

“There is a terrible lack of civility with which the parties relate to one another or the stakeholders.

“Many political parties also budget money for litigation and, therefore, look for cases to spend the money on.”

He also said some political parties were in the habit of submitting names of those who did not win primaries or those that did not even take part in primaries at all.

Jega also listed another way through which political parties cut corners to include submission of the names of incompetent candidates for elections and later ask those candidates to withdraw.

“But there was one candidate that refused to withdraw and the political party forged a letter that he had agreed to withdraw,” Jega said.

Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof. Attahiru Jega,

    

He, said there was nothing the electoral body could do even when it was aware of the forgery because of the provisions in the Electoral Act, which disallowed it from interfering in the internal running of political parties.

Jega said financial and procedural accountability in many of the political parties, was deficient and they hardly obeyed their own constitutions but looked for shortcuts in complying with electoral laws.

Obasanjo, however, decried the non-implementation of party manifestoes by political parties.

He said it was obvious that many of the political parties merely used their manifestoes to campaign.

Obasanjo said, “What I have come to understand in Nigeria is that manifestoes are prepared for campaigns and after the campaigns, they are thrown away.

“How then can we hold parties and elected leaders to their parties and electoral promises and manifestoes? Or if they do not have manifestoes, what do we hold them onto?

“No human institution or human organisation would endure for too long without discipline.

“Elections must be free, fair and transparent to the extent that the results would be acceptable to all.”

Obasanjo said pressure was mounted on him to rig out the former Governor of Kano State, Alhaji Ibrahim Shekarau, during his quest to get a second term but that he resisted the pressure because Shekarau won by a simple majority.

He turned to Shekarau, who was also at the forum, and said, “I thank Shekarau for what happened to him in Kano.

“What he did not know which he may know today, is that he won that election with a narrow margin, and if I had yielded to pressure, maybe he would be saying another thing today.

“You didn’t know that. Somebody brought a resident commissioner to you and somebody also wanted me to call that commissioner and I refused to.”

Before Obasanjo spoke, the former governor had said that there was a pressure on him to ask the unnamed REC to work in his favour during the governorship election, but he refused.

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo

But the National Chairman of the All Progressive Grand Alliance, Chief Victor Umeh, told our correspondent that the admittance of Obasanjo of being under pressure to rig out the governor showed that his government was involved in election manipulation.

Umeh said, “That the former President admitted that he was under pressure to rig out Shekarau was an indication that his government rigged elections.

At the event, Mark and Ihedioha described lobbying targeted at legislators as the act of attempting to influence legislation and resolutions made by parliament.

Mark said, “It is unfortunate that the term, ‘lobbying,’ has come to acquire a pejorative connotation, despite its many inherent and positive benefits. This is due largely to the abuse to which it is often liable.

“Even here in our country, it has been turned mostly into a very aggressive and predatory endeavour to extract personal favours, mostly political appointments and money, from political office holders.

“This form of lobbying is clearly unethical.”

Ihedioha said the effort made by the 1999-2007 Sessions of the National Assembly to introduce legislation to guide lobbing as a profession was shot down.

He said the bill was thrown out in the House of Representatives, “basically on the grounds that lobbying meant bribery and corruption.”