June 2013





The US President looked visibly moved as he took his wife Michelle and daughters Malia and Sasha to notorious Robben Island.



Barack Obama spoke simply of being “deeply humbled” as he stepped inside the tiny cell where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for 18 years.



The US President looked visibly moved as he took his wife Michelle and daughters Malia and Sasha to notorious Robben Island.



He could be seen quietly speaking to his girls explaining the sheer enormity of the struggle against apartheid which took place here on the island.



For a short while this afternoon he wasn’t the most powerful man in the world - but just a caring dad.



He explaining to his girls how Mandela, and many other revered names of the fight for freedom, were jailed here in 1964.



Mandela has recalled how on being transported on a wooden ferry to the island prison guards urinated over him.



The extraordinary forgiveness he showed following his release in February 1990 was the message Obama was keen for his girls aged 14 and 12 to understand.



Read More - Source



















via NaijaGossip


US President Barack Obama warned Sunday that Africa could only fulfill its rising potential with leaders who serve their people, not tyrants who enrich themselves.



In a strident call for democratic change and good governance, Obama used the political legacy of ailing Nelson Mandela and South Africa’s emergence from grim years of apartheid as proof that freedom will ultimately prevail.“In too many countries, the actions of thugs and warlords and human traffickers hold back the promise of Africa,” Obama said at a speech at Cape Town University.



“America cannot put a stop to these tragedies alone, and you don’t expect us to. That is a job for Africans. But we can help you and we will help you,” he said, announcing major new US programs to boost electricity and health care.“History shows us that progress is only possible where governments exist to serve their people and not the other way around,” said Obama, in a line that drew loud and prolonged cheers from his audience of more than 1,000 people.



The speech was delivered from the same spot where American political icon Robert Kennedy delivered his famous “ripple of hope” speech in 1966, which called on students to decry the “racial inequality of apartheid”.Obama’s goal was to inspire a new generation of Africans with the belief that they could ignite political change and the potential of their continent.He slammed leaders who “steal or kill or disenfranchise voters,” saying that the ultimate lesson of South Africa was that such brutal tactics will not work.“So long as parts of Africa continue to be ravaged by war and mayhem, opportunity and democracy cannot take root,” said Obama.“Across the continent, there are places where still, fear often prevails,” Obama said, warning of “senseless terrorism” from Mali to Mogadishu.“From Congo to Sudan, conflicts fester,” Obama said, hitting out at those who argue that American calls for democracy and freedom are “intrusive” or “meddling”.



He also condemned the rule of Robert Mugabe in neighbouring Zimbabwe, where he said the “promise of liberation gave way to the corruption of power and the collapse of the economy”.Like the rest of Obama’s trip to South Africa, the speech was rich in emotion when he mentioned his hero Mandela, who lies critically ill in a Pretoria hospital.“You have shown us how a prisoner can become president,” Obama said. - See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/06/obama-warns-africas-tyrant-leaders/#sthash.SEhXcB3d.dpuf



via nigerianeye


The excitement and thrill of hanging out with a celebrity has driven a married woman and a mother of three, Joyce Osifo into the hands of the known David Adedeji Adeleke popularly known as Davido on the 16th of June during a concert in Napel. Presently, Davido is on euro tour and according to NCN source, Davido knew Joyce through her brother who opened stage before him. Davido came on stage late in the morning, 17th of June, sang few songs and left. Meanwhile sources revealed that the Omo oba was in his hotel rocking his time with the mother of three who is desperate to come to the limelight through her upcoming show “Miss Black Beauty Italy”. Joyce has three children within the age range of 10, 8 and 6 and she is said to be married. Most Nigerians girls who are married to white men are said to be sleeping around with young black men and sometimes pay them to get laid. Since this is the known tradition, Joyce Osifo added this to her zeal to be out and maybe get Davido to assist in the sponsorship of her event. Let us talk below jor. Joyce is beautiful and there is no way Davido could remove his eyes from her. What was Davido thinking or the mother of three? Just wondering why Davido posted on his istagram that ITALY WAS CRAZY.



What really made it crazy?



Is Davido helping Joyce with his upcoming event or a promise to....??



Source









via NaijaGossip


Beating 2face Idibia to it at the ongoing BET Awards in Los Angeles, US, Ice Prince has just won the ‘Best African Act.



For Ice Prince, this is his second time at being nominated for the award in the same category. Last year he lost out to Wizkid and Sarkodie.



Meanwhile, Yvonne Nelson earlier wished the rapper best of luck.

Yvonne wrote this along with a photo of her and Ice Prince on her Instagram page: ‘Good luck Panshak…#BET you are a WINNER….make me proud. Make Africa proud….my Hommie 4life…yeaaa he calls me Hommie. He’s cool like that‘.



via NaijaGossip





A youth vigilance group, popularly called “the Civilian JTF’’, said it apprehended two women attempting to smuggle assault weapons into the Monday market in Maiduguri on Sunday.



Eyewitnesses told newsmen that the women, who concealed the weapons in their dresses, were nabbed at the Bulabulin entrance gate of the market.





One of the witnesses, Malam Modu Bulama, a trader, said that they were in the market when they heard noise from the gate.



“We rushed to scene, but on getting there, we saw two women in veil with assault weapons,’’ he said.

Bulama said that each of the women concealed an AK 47 rifle, a pistol and some items believed to be Improvise Explosive Devise (IED) in their veil.



A member of the vigilante, Malam Usman Ibrahim, corroborated Bulama’s claim, adding: “we were on a routine checking at the gate when these women came with heavy veil.



“At first we did not bother to look at them, but we realised that one of them was shivering, we said something must be wrong,’’ Ibrahim said.



He said that when they were searched, “we found that each of them concealed an AK 47 rifle, a pistol and IED in their veil.



“We were surprised at the discovery, so we took them to officials of the Joint Task Force (JTF) on Operation Restore Order (ORO) for investigations,” Ibrahim said.



The JTF spokesman, Lt.-Col. Sagir Musa, could not be contacted for comment, but a senior military officer, who spoke on condition anonymity, confirmed the story.



The official said the JTF was already investigating the case. (NAN)



via nigerianeye


Bolt and Maria were the weakest link this week, they are out of The Chase and heading home. Bolt followed shortly after his lady love Betty, who was Evicted in Week 4 while Maria didn’t even know she was replaced and up for Eviction. Ouch!



Maria, who has never been under the Nomination knife was replaced by Diamond HoH Nando earlier this week, saving his own head. You could see that Maria was shocked but like a true lady she carried herself with confidence and poise.



Big man Bolt, was as stunned but he probably saw this Eviction coming considering that he had dodged it at least three times thanks to Betty and Melvin. Seems like Bolt’s luck has now run out and the Housemates will have to do without their resident bully.



But it’s like Nando had said in his Diary Session, that when a fellow Chasemate is Evicted it only hurts for all of five minutes, they talk about how much of a shock it was and then life goes on. The same will be done for both Maria and Bolt. Life will definitely go on.



Stay tuned to DStv channels 197 and 198 for all your Big Brother Africa The Chase action or catch the daily shows on Africa Magic Entertainment (DStv channel 150) at 20:00 CAT.



By Bukelwa Nkungwana



via NaijaGossip


Two teenage sisters have been murdered in Pakistan after they were accused of tarnishing their family's name by making a video of themselves dancing in the rain.



The girls, aged 15 and 16, are seen running around in traditional dress with two other younger children outside their bungalow in the town of Chilas, in the northern region of Gilgit.



The sisters, named as Noor Basra and Noor Sheza, appear to break into dance and one even flashes a smile at the camera.



However, when the footage was circulated via mobile phones, it caused outrage in the conservative Pakistani town.



Last Sunday the girls were shot alongside their mother in their home by five gunmen.



Police are investigating whether the attack was arranged by the girls' step-brother, named as Khutore, who allegedly wanted to 'restore the family's honour'.



The sisters' other brother has filed a case against Khutore and the four other alleged accomplices who are now believed to be on the run.







via NaijaGossip


Echoes of Nigeria’s elimination from the FIFA Confederations still reverberates,with President of the Nigeria Football Federation(NFF) Aminu Maigari,declaring that Super Eagles coach,Stephen Keshi will no longer have the sole responsibility of choosing players for the national team.



The NFF President while speaking in a magazine show, Soccer Africa on Supersports,questioned the players Keshi took to the tournament in Brazil,adding that he went with inexperienced players.



Following Nigeria’s elimination from the Confederations,criticisms have been trailing the technical crew of the Super Eagles,after the team failed to take their goalscoring of their chances at the tournament.



“Spain brought their best players, but we did not. Why would you bring a local player to play Spain at such a big stage?” Maigari asked.



“This is unacceptable. We have experienced players that were not selected and this is where we have to step in.”



“The coach doesn’t have the sole responsibility on squad selection. We all have to contribute. This team belongs to 165 million people”



“Selections should affect all these people so we cannot continue to let this happen because we need to compete well with others.”



Nigeria crashed out of the Confederations last Sunday,after winning just one game against Tahiti,and losing the other games against Uruguay and Spain,despite putting up good performances.

Keshi in his own defence,said that he selected the right players available to represent the country at the tournament.



“I understand Nigerians are emotive and sentimental sometimes but all the players that went to Brazil deserved to be there,” Keshi told BBC Sport.



“I’m the coach and I can honestly listen to constructive ideas on how we can improve as a team.



“But no-one has come to tell me who to pick and not to select. If the team fails the coach is responsible.



“As the coach, it’s my decision and responsibility. For now, the local players have earned the rights to be in the team.”



Does the NFF have the right to meddle in the choice of players,Keshi takes to a tournament?



SOURCE



via NaijaGossip


A Nigerian student Victor Olalusi has emerged the best graduating student with a grade point of 5.0 in the Faculty of Clinical Sciences at the Russian National Research Medical University, Moscow.



According to his friends, Olalusi previously had the best WAEC result in 2004. JAMB Best Science Student (JAMB score 322) – 2006. Cowbell Prize Award – 2006. Medicine First Merit list (OAU) – 2006, Highest OAU Post UME (score – 325) - 2006, Federal Government Scholarship (Medicine and Surgery) – 2006.



via NaijaGossip


The Senator representing Delta Central senatorial district of Delta State, Sen Akpor Pius Ewherido, Is dead.

The senator died few hours ago, after he was reported to have collapsed at his Abuja home while making phone calls, 3 days ago.



He died at the National Hospital Abuja where he was hospitalised and his remains have been deposited at the hospital mortuary.



via NaijaGossip


The Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) said it would begin a three-day warning strike on Monday.





This is contained in a statement signed by NUPENG’s General-Secretary, Mr. Isaac Aberare, on Sunday in Lagos.



The statement said the workers were going on strike over alleged unfair labour practices by some major oil companies in the country.



“The strike is also to protest the refusal of NARTO to implement the signed collective bargaining agreement with the petroleum tanker drivers.



“We are also unhappy over the bad state of roads across the nation, ‘’ the News Agency of Nigeria quoted NUPENG as saying in the statement.





The statement said that all efforts by the Federal Ministry of Labour to intervene in the issue three weeks ago had failed.



It said the oil multinationals had failed to implement the agreement reached during a peace meeting brokered by the Minister of Labour, Chief Emeka Wogu.



The statement alleged that the union’s call for a stakeholders meeting in the oil and gas sector to address the situation had also been ignored.





It directed all members of NUPENG at the various depots to stop loading petroleum products for the next three days.



Members in all the branches in the country must also follow suit,’’ the statement added.



via nigerianeye



The Rivers Police Command on Saturday in Port Harcourt confirmed the abduction of three members of the National Youth Service Corps serving with Abua/Odual local government council of the state.



Mrs. Angela Agabe, the command’s Public Relations Officer, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that two male and one female youth corps members were abducted.





She said they were seized by armed men in the early hours of Saturday.



Agabe, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), said the motive behind the kidnapping was however still unknown.



The police PRO said the command’s anti-kidnapping unit, had since commenced a search for the missing corps members.



“Reports received by the command indicate that the corps members went to Ogomokon jetty, near the council headquarters, where three armed men abducted them early on Saturday.



“So far, no group has claimed responsibility and no ransom has been demanded. The police had commenced investigation into the incident.



“As we speak, our anti-kidnapping unit is on top of the situation. The unit had already commenced work to free the corps members,’’ she said.







via nigerianeye






Former Super Eagles midfielder, Thompson Oliha is dead



A member of the 1994 African Nations Cup winning squad died Sunday morning.



Until his death, Oliha was one of the coaches at the Kwara State Football Academy in Ilorin.

He was aged 44.







NE gathered Oliha was on the bench yesterday morning when Kwara Football Academy(KFA)boys played a team from Mali. He was said to have complained of Malaria and was taken to an undisclosed hospital in the state capital.



He died in the early hours of today and his body has been deposited at the mortuary.



Confirming his death, Bunmi Adedoyin, Kwara State Chairman of Sports Writers Association of Nigeria(SWAN) told a source that Oliha died Sunday morning in a private hospital in Ilorin.



Fred Edoreh, the Lagos State Chairman of SWAN also confirmed the demise of the former Eagles midfielder.



Oliha played for Bendel Insurance (1985-1987), Iwuanyanwu Nationale (1988-1991), Africa Sports (1992-1993), Maccabi Ironi Ashdod F.C. (1993-1994) and Antalyaspor (1994-1995).



via nigerianeye


I know my story will lead people to attack me but I will appreciate any help I can get.



I got married to my loving husband in April 2010. Although at first, I was not really in love with him, but because I was getting older, and I could not find any good man from my religion and tribe, my parents introduced me to him and pressured us into marriage.



The first time I had an affair, it was a mistake. I ran into my ex and we exchanged Blackberry pins. We chat all the time and at that point, I was not really happy in my marriage so I encouraged him. Soon after, we started to hang out and started sleéping together. He eventually moved from Lagos to Abuja so that ended our affair.



Since then, I have had a few flings with four more men including my friend's husband. I currently have two children with my husband but I feel unsatisfied.



My husband is very loving and kind, and I have grown to love him but I'm not able to stop this extra-marital affair. The sad thing is that my husband has no clue what is going on. I never give him any reason to suspect. I delete all my phone messages even though he does not even check my phones. I make sure I cover my tracks because I want to keep my family together.



Recently I talked to my Pastor who encouraged me to keep praying and fasting but this isn't helping because still keep my men outside and I still see them.



I know I need to stop, but I don't know how. Please Help.



Rachael.



via NaijaGossip


The player died on Sunday morning.



Former Super Eagles midfielder, Thompson Oliha, is dead.



Oliha who was born in October 1968 in Benin City, Nigeria, died in the early hours of Sunday.



Until his death, Oliha was one of the coaches at the Kwara State Football Academy in Ilorin.



A retired Nigerian midfielder, Oliha played for clubs in Africa and Europe during a career marred by injury.



He played for Bendel Insurance (1985-1987), Iwuanyanwu Nationale (1988-1991), Africa Sports (1992-1993), Maccabi Ironi Ashdod F.C. (1993-1994) and Antalyaspor (1994-1995).



As a player, he was known for his powerful shots and abilities in the air. Oliha retired at the age of 27, as a result of a serious knee injury.



One of the wishes of Oliha before his death was for the federal government to fulfil the promise of a house General Sani Abacha promised the Super Eagles for winning the Tunisia 1994 Nations Cup. Sadly, he did not see that come true in his life time.



Oliha becomes the third player to die among the much celebrated Nigeria 1994 squad, joining Uche Okafor and Rashidi Yekini in the great beyond.



Source



via NaijaGossip


Some prostitutes on Saturday beat security personnel attached to the Ondo State Task Force on Environment during the monthly environmental sanitation exercise in Akure, the state capital.



Their uniforms were torn into shreds while they sustained injuries due to the beating they received when they tried to enforce the environmental laws where their brothel was located. The Commissioner for Environment, Chief Sola Ebiseeni, led the task force across the Akure metropolis to ensure compliance with the environmental exercise.



During the exercise, which also took the task force to some towns and villages, some people violating environmental laws were arrested.



However, when the team of the task force personnel got to the hotel, located at Oke Padre, off Lao Street, Akure, they met the prostitutes with their clients drinking alcohol and dancing.



Efforts of the security personnel to make them observe the environment exercise were rebuffed.

The prostitutes prevented their clients from being arrested.



The prostitutes and clients thereafter descended on the Civil Defence and security officials attached to the task force and beat them mercilessly while they resisted arrest.



via NaijaGossip


A recent update has revealed that Nigerian Billionaire, Mike Adenuga has spent a whooping N200 Million for a burial site.



The burial site, which is located at Vaults and Garden, an ultra modern cemetery in Ikoyi, Lagos is now final resting place of the rich and affluent.



According to reports, to get an average space in the cemetery would cost about N750, 000 and above. But if you would rather live an even more affluent life after death, N40 Million would get you some of the executive spots.



Report has it that even the super-rich have their own corner. Adenuga's recently deceased sister had one of these to herself. The Globacom boss paid N200 Million to secure a space for his sister. Her next door neighbor in this exclusive section is Gboyega, son of another super rich man, Otunba Adekunle Ojora and his fashionable wife, Ojuolape. Gbegi, like he was popularly known, was born in 1960 and died in 2011.



Right next to him is one of the founders of GT Bank, Tayo Aderinokun. His final resting place is not only very wondrously decorated, but also boasts of his two giant photographs, smiling on those that are still living. We were informed that Before the trio, however, is that of a true man of God, like it is dubbed inside the cemetery – the final resting place of former Redeemed Christian Church of God minister, Pastor Eskor Mfon. Born in 1953, he died in 2007.



It is quite wondrous that these rich are spending so much amount of money to get a posh burial ground, but wouldn't the money be better served on the living, perhaps, donated to a charity?



What do you think?



via NaijaGossip

Men of the Borno Youths Vigilance Group (BYVG) Friday in Maiduguri, the state capital, arrested four suspected Boko Haram members, including sect's operations commander said to be close to the sect's leader, Sheikh Abubakar Shekau. They recovered arms and ammunition near the Sanda Kyarami Park.

According to an eyewitness, the four suspects were arrested by members of BYVG while patrolling and on the "stop and search" operations in Galtimari ward, close to the Giwa Barracks on Gombale Road.


Confirming the incident in Maiduguri, Chairman of the vigilante group, Abubakar Mallum, said: "We were able to arrest four suspects this (Friday) morning, including one of the sect's top commanders.


"You can see that the commander has already been taken into this vehicle to the place where the arms and ammunition were hidden for operations by these terrorists."


Mallum claimed that the arrested commander was close to the sect's leader and would assist the youths to identify the location of hidden arms for retrieval before being handed over to the local commander of the military Joint Task Force (JTF).


On the group's modus operandi, he said unlike the JTF which operates with patrol vehicles and rifles, the volunteers rely on God's protection and the prayers of people, saying they only use sticks, knives and cutlasses for the "stop and search" operations in Maiduguri.


He stated that the intervention of youths in hunting down Boko Haram sect members was to end their incessant attacks and killings of innocent people, including the youths' parents, brothers, sisters and other top government officials, traditional and religious leaders in the state.


However, despite yesterday's arrest in Maiduguri, suspected members of the sect attacked seven hill communities in Gwoza council of the state with Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) and petrol-bombs yesterday, torching many houses and carting away food items and livestock into caves in the hills.


Although the exact number of people killed and houses destroyed in the multiple attacks could not be ascertained, an anonymous community leader of Kunde, said 15 people were killed by the armed terrorists, when they overrun six other communities of Gathahure, Hwa'a, Tihezeh, Hrazah, Hembe and Gjigga on the Mandara Hills which stretches for 16 kilometres east of Gwoza, the council headquarters.


He said residents of his community, and six others fled to Gwoza town, Barawa, Agaplawa, Kurana Bassa, Kwatara, Limankara and Ngoshe Ndahang, a hill community also on Mandara Hills.


The six other communities ransacked by terrorists, he said, border the Republic of Cameroun, where some of the residents had fled with their wives and children.


In Maiduguri, Mallum further disclosed that 15 other suspects were also arrested and handed over to the local JTF commanders at Giwa Barracks for further investigation.


The arrests, which were made on Wednesday and Thursday, he added, were in four wards of Zajeri, Gwange I and II and Bulabulin, one of the black spots identified by the JTF in 2011.



via nigerianeye


PATIENTS seeking treatment for non-referral primary ailments in Lagos State General Hospitals may have to look elsewhere.

The state governor, Babatunde Fashola, has disclosed that the government in the nearest future will begin to restrict access to its General Hospitals, as a move to encouraging the use of Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs).


According to the governor, General Hospitals would only attend to patients referred from the PHCs.


Fashola made this known during the flag-off ceremony of Eredo Primary Healthcare Centre in Epe Constituency II.


He cited the example of the United Kingdom, saying that no specialist doctor would attend any patient without a referral from a general practitioner.


"Very soon, no doctor will attend to you at the General Hospital, except you have a referral from a primary healthcare centre. What you seek in the UK is now here with you. You do not need to travel long distances anymore."


He urged residents of the area to utilise the facility, saying it has been well equipped with facilities and personnel to diagnose ailments, including hypertension, cancer and diabetes.


He also tasked them to report to the PHCs for cases, including antenatal, child delivery, malaria fever and typhoid fever. He said that the PHC would refer delicate cases to the General Hospitals where necessary.


"What we seek to achieve is build a referral healthcare system that moves from a robust and intensive grassroots healthcare, starting from a 24-hour service delivery at various local governments, through to the General Hospitals, and up to the teaching hospitals.


"This is the only way we can fully integrate, redistribute and optimise our assets. This model has succeeded in every part of the world; we want to replicate it here, to make healthcare a local success," he said.


He said the Eredo Primary Healthcare Centre is the fifth in the series to be commissioned of the 24-hour Comprehensive PHC Flagship Centre targeted at each of the 57 Local Governments and Local Council Development Areas.


He recalled that the Iga-Iduguran, Mosan-Okunola, Ajara and Ejire flagship PHCs, already flagged off, are currently providing quality healthcare to residents in the area. He said the initiative was spurred by the fact that local governments do not receive adequate allocation from the Federal Government to cater for all needs at the grassroots; hence the need to collaborate with the councils to bring quality healthcare to the people.


Earlier, Special Adviser to the Governor on Health, Dr. Yewande Adeshina, said the completion of the Eredo PHC has raised the capacity of the centre to cater for more residents and avoid long distance journey, especially for pregnant women and nursing mothers.


While applauding the Chairman of Eredo Local Council Development Area, Dr. Adeshina charged other local governments to take advantage of the collaborative effort of the state government to provide quality healthcare facilities in their councils.


She also charged residents to own the facility, access them regularly as well as report cases of irregularities in the centre to her office.



via nigerianeye


IT will no longer be business as usual for bankers and their customers in Kano, Anambra, Abia, Rivers, Ogun and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), as electronic platforms take the centre stage of banking activities in those states beginning from Monday.

Already, banks are sensitising customers for take-off of the Central Bank of Nigeria's cash-less policy in the five additional states, with some of them sending text messages to account holders alerting them on new cash deposit and withdrawal benchmarks as well as other requirements of the scheme.


Although the Lagos pilot project, which began a year ago, is still fraught with challenges, ranging from poor ICT infrastructure to network 'downtimes' associated with poor quality of GSM services, among other bottlenecks, the CBN governor, Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, had insisted that the project would be extended to these states in preparation for a nationwide rollout. The focus, however, is on key commercial and urban centres of Onitsha, Kano, Port Harcourt, Abuja and Aba.


The apex bank cited heavy cash transactions in many of the states' market or urban centres as the compelling reason for taking the scheme in the areas. But it is feared that the banks will still have to grapple with the traditional banking habits and, sometimes, low literacy and awareness level of the majority of businessmen in some of those states, many of whom are yet to understand the details despite the CBN's campaign.


A big chunk of the rural population in communities that feed into the commercial/ urban areas in most of the selected states remain semi-literate, sometimes completely operating outside of the formal banking system.


"For this reason, we are educating our customers, said an official of one of the new generation banks in Lagos.


Asked to explain what the policy portends for those that would, henceforth, need banking services in the designated areas, she said new cash deposit and withdrawal benchmarks of N300,000 (for personal accounts and N3 million (for corporate accounts) will now be applied in the affected areas.


Also, third-party cheques in excess of N150,000 can no longer be "cash-drawn" over the counter, even as she explained that "although you can use your ATM card to do transactions on a Point of Sale (POS) machine and other electronic/internet channels, you can no longer do more than N150,000 cash withdrawal with your ATM card in a day."


Meanwhile, World Bank's Payment Systems and Remittances Specialist, Carlo Corazza, said 'revolution' in global payment system has resulted in great savings, which are significant for development purposes.


Corazza made the disclosure at the conference on cash-less initiative, organised by DeNovo Limited and Reach Legal Consulting, in conjunction with the CBN, in Lagos.


"Going electronic," he said, "can save about 75 per cent of costs usually associated with cash-based regime, which is huge, especially in this era of stretched resources, urging stakeholders to support the scheme.


According to him, the system has also lowered the costs associated with physical barriers in international trade, making it easier for access to financial services in various countries, another positive signal in international cooperation.


But Deputy Governor, Operations, CBN, Tunde Lemo, who was represented by the Director of Banking and Payments System Department, Dipo Fatokun, said the initiative became necessary, given the fact that an efficient payment system enhances financial inclusion, effective transmission mechanism of monetary policy and overall financial stability.


"This is because the cost of cash and associated risk of a cash-driven economy to Nigeria's financial system were high and in response to these challenges, CBN and the Bankers' Committee initiated the 'Cash-Less Nigeria' project with the pilot run in Lagos and now to be extended to five additional states- Abia, Anambra, Ogun, Kano, Rivers and Abuja by July 1.


"Just this month, we went live on cheque truncation nationwide, thereby making cheque payments to clear within a clearing cycle of T+1. The CBN has licensed about 18 mobile payment operators to offer payment services via the mobile phone that over 100 million Nigerians carry.


Fatokun added that the cash-less policy was designed to promote financial intermediation and inclusion, minimise revenue leakages and increase revenue generation, as well as reduce incidences of robbery and amount of cash payments in the system by encouraging electronic payments.


The policy on withdrawal allows individual customer to make cumulative withdrawal of N500, 000 daily across the counters and the ATM. "Withdrawal above this limit will attract the payment of a processing fee of three percent for the amount above the limit," the official said.


"Corporate customers are allowed to make cumulative withdrawal of N3, 000,000 daily. Withdrawal above the limit will attract a processing fee of five percent.


"The policy on lodgment allows individual customer to make cumulative lodgment of N500, 000 daily. Lodgment above the limit will attract a processing fee of 2 percent above the limit.


"Corporate customers are allowed to make cumulative lodgment of N3, 000,000 daily. Lodgment above the limit will attract a processing fee of three percent above the limit.


"I need to make it clear that it is the account to which withdrawal and lodgment is made that bears the processing charges and not the individual that receives or deposits the cash.


"Cumulative withdrawal/lodgment means the totality of all withdrawals and lodgments across all the customer's accounts in the bank."



via nigerianeye





Gunmen suspected to be Boko Haram members killed a soldier and abducted three others during an attack on the soldiers on Thursday night in Potiskum, Yobe State, a military source revealed.



The source confirmed the incident to Premium Times in Damaturu on Friday.



The source, who sought anonymity as he is not permitted to talk to journalists, said the corpse of the deceased soldier was brought from Potiskum and deposited at a hospital morgue in Damaturu, the state capital.







“The attack was a bad one because a soldier was killed and the terrorists kidnapped three other soldiers to an unknown destination,” he said on Friday.



“Some of our search team are combing within and outside the neighborhoods of Potiskum for the missing soldiers. A helicopter gun ship had been deployed from Maiduguri to join in the search team this morning,” he added.



The soldier also revealed that three soldiers were killed and two seriously injured two weeks back during an attack that also led to the killing of secondary school students by suspected Boko Haram members in Damaturu. The gunmen had killed seven secondary school students and two teachers when they attacked Government Secondary School, Damaturu. The gunmen also attacked a military check-point. The Joint Task Force in Yobe had claimed that no soldier was killed in the attack, and only one was injured, while two of the gunmen were killed; a claim our source says is not true.



“It wasn’t true that only a soldier sustained injury in that attack. The terrorists actually invaded the room where the soldiers were sleeping at night at shot the three of them dead. Two others only sustained injury during a separate attack on the same night. Soldiers were able to kill one of the terrorists and arrested one alive,” the source said.



The spokesperson for the Defence Headquarters, Chris Olukolade, denied knowledge of the Thursday night attack and kidnap of the three soldiers.



“I have not got any of such report, normally they forward to us whatever happens in these areas and we’ve not had any of such reports,” Mr. Olukolade said.



Soldiers’ presence in Yobe, as well as Borno and Adamawa, was increased after the declaration of a State of Emergency in the three states by President Goodluck Jonathan. The military has declared major successes against the insurgents in the states with many of their training camps destroyed. The Boko Haram, however, claim they are winning the war against the Nigerian forces.



Premium Times



via nigerianeye




US President Barack Obama on Saturday met the family of his “inspiration” Nelson Mandela but was unable to visit the anti-apartheid legend who remains critically ill in hospital.





Despite tentative signs of an improvement in the condition of the father of multi-racial South Africa, Obama decided not to visit Mandela during his visit for fearing of disturbing his “peace and comfort”.

Instead Obama and his wife Michelle met privately with some relatives of the revered leader including two daughters and several grandchildren and spoke by telephone with Mandela’s wife Graca Machel.



“I expressed my hope that Madiba draws peace and comfort from the time that he is spending with loved ones, and also expressed my heartfelt support for the entire family as they work through this difficult time,” Obama said, using Mandela’s clan name.



Machel said she had “drawn strength from the support” offered by the Obama family.

“I am humbled by their comfort and messages of strength and inspiration which I have already conveyed to Madiba.”



Speaking earlier in Pretoria, where 94-year-old Mandela lay fighting for his life in a nearby hospital, Obama praised the “moral courage” of South Africa’s first black president.



“The struggle here against apartheid, for freedom, Madiba’s moral courage, his country’s historic transition to a free and democratic nation, has been a personal inspiration to me. It has been an inspiration to the world,” Obama said after talks with President Jacob Zuma.



“The outpouring of love that we’ve seen in recent days shows that the triumph of Nelson Mandela and this nation speaks to something very deep in the human spirit — the yearning for justice and dignity that transcends boundaries of race and class and faith and country,” he added.



Obama said before arriving he did not need “a photo-op” with Mandela, whom he meet briefly in 2005, and the White House on Saturday ruled out a meeting between the two men.



“Out of deference to Nelson Mandela’s peace and comfort and the family’s wishes, they will not be visiting the hospital,” the official said.



Obama’s three-nation tour is aimed at changing perceptions that he has neglected Africa since his election in 2008, while also countering China’s growing economic influence in the resource-rich continent.

But it has been overshadowed by the illness of his fellow Nobel peace laureate, who has been in intensive care for more than three weeks.



Zuma said Mandela remained in “critical but stable” condition, expressing hope that he would improve.

Welcoming the US president to South Africa on the second leg of his tour, he said Mandela and Obama were “bound by history” as the first black leaders of their respective nations.



“You both carry the dreams of millions of people in Africa,” Zuma said.

But the US leader was not greeted so warmly by all South Africans. Riot police fired stun grenades at anti-Obama protesters in the township of Soweto, once a flashpoint in the anti-apartheid struggle.

Mandela’s condition presents Obama with a sensitive political challenge.



He must balance a desire to honour Mandela, in perhaps his final days, with a message that the United States wants to play a key diplomatic and economic role in a region on the rise.

Supporters have been gathering outside the Pretoria hospital to offer prayers for the man who negotiated an end to decades of white minority rule.



A wall of handwritten prayers has become the focal point for South Africans paying tribute to the father of their nation, with singing and dancing by day and candlelight vigils at night.

“I’m here this morning to give my prayers. It’s important because Mandela is so important to us South Africans and Africans,” said Tokozile Sibalo, 50, a receptionist at an Internet company who came with her daughters, 20 and 12.



South Africa’s last apartheid president FW de Klerk cut short a visit to Europe because of the ailing health of his co-Nobel prize winner.



Obama’s itinerary included a visit to Soweto, the sprawling township where riots sparked a nationwide struggle against the racist apartheid regime, with many residents preparing to welcome the US president as a “fellow African”.

“To me, Madiba represents an older and perhaps more traditional generation of black leaders, while Obama represents the new generation,” Tshepo Mofokeng, 43, told AFP. “I’m sure he will be welcomed here as an African.”



The US leader will hold a town hall-style meeting with young leaders from all over Africa, driving home his theme that it is time for a new generation to guide the continent into a new era of democracy and prosperity.

Mandela may be out of sight, but his influence is palpable on Obama’s tour of Senegal, South Africa and Tanzania.



A visit by Obama on Sunday to Mandela’s former jail cell on Robben Island, off Cape Town in particular is expected to be laden with symbolism.

Obama will then visit former Archbishop Desmond Tutu’s youth foundation HIV centre before delivering the central speech of his African tour at the University of Cape Town.



Mandela has been hospitalised four times since December.



The man once branded a terrorist by the United States and Britain won South Africa’s first fully democratic elections in 1994, forging a path of racial reconciliation during his single term as president, before taking up a new role as a roving elder statesman and leading AIDS campaigner.



AFP



via nigerianeye

4 convicts hanged in Benin



On Tuesday, Thankgod Ebhos was dragged to the gallows in Nigeria’s Benin Prison.

He was forced to watch as four men were hanged.



He was billed to be executed next.

But at the last moment, the prison authorities realised that his death sentence, imposed by a military tribunal, required a firing squad. It had not been prepared.





Thankgod was spared, at least for now.




4 convicts hanged in Benin




The Nigerian furniture maker had been on death row for 17 years, convicted of armed robbery. His only son, Solomon, only learned that his father was about to be put to death when he read a local newspaper report that four men had been hanged.



“The morning after the four executions I knew that my day was on death row,” he told Amnesty International. “The article said there was still one person at risk of execution and I knew it was him. My two eldest sisters went down to the prison to try and find out what was happening.”



Solomon described his sense of despair at the news that his father may be put to death at any point from now on.



“My two eldest sisters went down to the prison to see him to get the full information about what was happening. When they came back they said he was sobbing. My sister said that was the second time she saw my father weeping,” he said.



“They had taken him to the gallows and asked him to write a will and told him that they should pass some of the things he had to me, because I’m the only son. They didn’t call us. They didn’t even ask him if there was anyone they could contact. They almost were going to kill him in secret.”



17 years waiting for death

Ebhodaghe Solomon was barely walking when Thankgod Ebhos, was sent to prison accused of armed robbery in 1988.



Ebhos was eventually tried and sentenced to death by a military tribunal in 1995 – some seven years after his arrest. At that time, Nigeria was under military rule. Military tribunals at the time denied defendants the right to appeal.



Amnesty International raised serious concerns about the fairness of military tribunals in Nigeria during that period, which lasted until 1999 when Nigeria returned to civilian rule.



Ebhodaghe Solomon remembers when he first visited his father on death row.



“I finally had the opportunity to see my father four years ago. I was around 21. I braced myself and I was happy to see him in good health, he was doing well,” Solomon said.



He describes how under a new regime of civilian rule, his father hoped he could appeal against his death sentence.



“When we met, he spoke a lot about the family, about his intentions of working, earning money, going abroad. He loves to play music. He learned how to handle musical instruments in the prison. He also loves to read and learned how to paint in prison. He is a very happy spirited person.”



Ebhodaghe Solomon last saw his father four weeks ago.



“Nothing much had changed. He told me that his brothers, my uncles, had been trying to find lawyers to look into the case but every time they did that it would be unsuccessful. Many of the lawyers we had spoken to couldn’t help so all we can do is pray that god would bring him out because my dad has changed completely.”



Surprise executions


There are approximately 1,000 individuals on death row across Nigeria; the country has not executed any prisoners since 2006.



But on 16 June, father’s day, things took a turn for the worse when President Goodluck Jonathan urged state Governors to sign death warrants for death row prisoners – this, in effect, allows federal prison authorities to proceed with executions of inmates on death row in prisons.



A week later the four inmates held at Benin Prison were dragged to the gallows and hanged.

All still had appeals pending in their cases. Their execution came only hours after a federal High Court had dismissed a lawsuit against three of the execution warrants. Lawyers acting on behalf of the men immediately filed an application for stay of execution. The Edo state Attorney General and the prison authorities ignored the judgement.



“The recent executions were an incredible shock to all of us,” said Lucy Freeman, deputy Africa director at Amnesty International.

“Under Nigerian and international law, executions may not be carried out while any appeals are still pending. By executing the prisoners, Nigeria has demonstrated a gross disregard for the rule of law and respect for the judicial process,” said Ms Freeman.



The relatives of those executed were not informed in advance.

Solomon said his family are distraught, knowing that their father may be executed at any moment.

“I would ask the President why he has decided that my father should have his life taken,” he said.

Amnesty International is calling for an immediate halt on the execution of Thankgod Ebhos and an end to the death penalty in Nigeria.

Meanwhile, Nigeria is bracing up to defend the death penalty.



The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Olugbenga Ashiru, at a consultative forum on the forthcoming review of human rights in Nigeria under the UN Universal Period Review (UPR), acknowledged that executions in Edo would likely come up when the country appears before the UN human rights council in Geneva this October for a periodic review of its human rights.



The Minister said state governments are autonomous in Nigeria and for the execution in Edo, Governor Adams Oshiomhole acted within the confines of the law.

The June 24 execution in Edo had been criticised by the U.K. government, United Nations, the EU High Representative and a host of global and Nigerian rights organisation.



Story sourced from Amnesty International




via nigerianeye


Iyanya was on the Tim Westwood show in UK few days back and while free styling Kukere, he replied his ex-girlfriend Yvonne Nelson's recent interview, He sang:



"Yvonne Nelson, I lost your medicine. She called that she's coming over and I ride her like a jangolova. All I want is your waist, no emotions, no tears, no letters, no love, no nothing. All I want is your waist, she ain't even know it. She brought emotions.



Do you think this dude is heartless?...Though he later said he was joking but the message is loud and clear.



WATCH THE VIDEO



via NaijaGossip


The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA has reacted to the photos of Indian Hemp posted by Nollywood actress, Tonto Dikeh, on the social media, boasting that "I smoke ganja".



Disclosing that Tonto Dikeh may spend the next 15 years in prison for daring to smoke Igbo and expose it, the NDLEA spokesman, Mitchell Ofoyeju said:

“Our attention has been drawn to the post quite frankly and I can tell you that action will be taken on it. The law is clear and NDLEA has been very clear on the issue. No one is permitted to sell, use, cultivate or encourage the use of Indian hemp in Nigeria. The weed is one of the banned narcotics in the country."

To had on Friday posted photographs of a wrap of hemp and grains of the weed formed into the letters, ‘Happy birthday POKO.’



She also posted a photograph of herself and added the inscription, ‘Mi smoke ganja mi smoke weed...’ Her picture was also close-up of her face that seemed to depict her in a high state.



Mr. Mitchell Ofoyeju further stated that Tonto Dike's case have already been referred to the appropriate department of the agency for investigation and prosecution.



“NDLEA Act Section 14 (b) states that any person who conspires with, aids, abets, counsels, attempts to commit or is an accessory to any act or offence referred to in this act shall be guilty of an offence under this act and liable on conviction to be sentenced to imprisonment for a term not less than 15 years and not exceeding 25 years," he said.



Possibly reacting to the criticism she has attracted to herself, Tonto Dike wrote on Instagram:

"no 1 kwz my struggle, al they see is Tonto diz, Tonto dat!!!! nt kwin hw hard it hurt deep down to loose ur mom at d age of 3, n it hurt d most nt to hav her enjoy d fruit of her child birth, Mom i missed u alot #POKO"



via NaijaGossip


A Sri Lankan man claims he has survived without food for the last five years.

Although experts believe humans can only live for two months without a meal, Kirby de Lanerolle insists he has only needed fresh air as nourishment.

The breatharian also claims his lifestyle - which he says harnesses light, wind and the 'vibrations of God' - can reverse the ageing process and make him immortal.



In an interview on TV show Taboo USA cited by The Sun, de Lanerolle said: 'There are energy sources out there that are greater than the food calories you are putting in your body.



'Calories come from photons and light and vibrations and wind. Anything can feed you if your energy centres are open.'



He admits to having eaten seven 500-calorie meals over the last ten months, but claims they made him feel ill.



He said: 'In this consciousness, when I do eat food, it makes me feel very tired. And my alertness goes away when I eat now.'



VITAL LIFE FORCE OR DANGEROUS PSEUDOSCIENCE?

Breatharians believe food and possibly water are not needed to sustain life.

Instead, all that's required is prana, a vital life force in Hinduism also known as 'living off light'.



Jasmuheen, formerly Ellen Greve, is credited with starting the Breatharian movement.



She advises followers to convert gradually, first becoming a vegetarian, a vegan, moving to raw foods, fruits, then liquids and finally prana.



However, many in the scientific community believe it is a dangerous pseudoscience that has caused many people to starve to death.



According to odditycentral.com, de Lanerolle was a drug addict at the age of 16.

But he has gone on to become a Gold medalist at the Junior National Level Championship for Rifle Shooting in 1995, winner of several boxing medals, Executive Advisor to the Ministry of Social Services in Sri Lanka and a successful entrepreneur.



He is also believed to be the only person known to have completed a marathon having only consumed water for three months.



He claims he owes his dramatic turnaround in fortunes to the breatharian lifestyle.

Around five years ago, he read about people who didn't eat for up to six years and didn't drink water for 40 days and 40 nights.



He was also convinced by the writings of a guru who said that cancer, diabetes and heart disease are caused by food.



He now wants to teach others to be breatharians, but experts are worried about his claims because some people have died trying adopt the lifestyle.



via NaijaGossip

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