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We Will Fight Gay People The Way We Are Fighting Mosquitoes – Yahya Jammeh

Mohammed Useni
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We Will Fight Gay People The Way We Are Fighting Mosquitoes – Yahya Jammeh

Gambian President, Yahya Jammeh has referred to gay people as “vermin”, saying they should be dealt with in the same way as mosquitoes which cause malaria.

President Jammeh made the comments on Tuesday. He has referred to gays as a threat to humanity in the past. A year ago he said that gay rights were a “great mistake” for Africa and that “human beings of the same sex cannot marry or date”.

“We will fight these vermins called homosexuals or gays the same way we are fighting malaria-causing mosquitoes, if not more aggressively,” he said in a speech to mark the country’s 49th anniversary of independence from Britain.

The Gambian president says his country would not accept aid from any country if the welfare of LGBT people is a condition.

“We will therefore not accept any friendship, aid or any other gesture that is conditional on accepting homosexuals or LGBT as they are now baptised by the powers that promote them,” he said.


“As far as I am concerned, LGBT can only stand for Leprosy, Gonorrhoea, Bacteria and Tuberculosis; all of which are detrimental to human existence,” he added.

Same-sex activity in Gambia is punishable by up to 14 years imprisonment.

Peregrino Brimah: The Kerosene Subsidy Scam And The Boko Haram Massacres

Mohammed Useni
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Peregrino Brimah: The Kerosene Subsidy Scam And The Boko Haram Massacres

Boko Haram has struck once again, again after not so long when they had struck again. In this latest strike, over 100 villagers in a Christian predominant Izghe farming village were slaughtered, their homes were burned and stores looted. Re-inspired by the violence in the Central African Republic (CAR) the death vampire cult hopes to trigger such in Nigeria and pit Nigeria’s religious groups against each other to spill the blood they thirst for. God forbid. The terror bandits drove in, in 7 hilux vehicles according to eyewitnesses. This was not the first time terrorists drove freely in convoys within unprotected parts of our nation, operated for hours, killing, raping and burning, and then left, unscathed. They even dared to do so and shoot videos while doing it to our air force base in Maiduguri last December. For this to occur, something is seriously wrong… our civilians and military are ridiculously unsafe.

The two questions to ask are, why do we have such a brazen terror situation which continues to not only seize innocent lives, but also destroy our economy and status, and why can we not combat it?

The answers to both are the same—money (greed) lead to this terror state and money (greed) ensures Nigeria is unable to reasonably abate the crises and protect its citizens.

It was our politicians who invented and armed these terrorists as political thugs, to get in power and loot wealth. The same happened in Borno as happened in Rivers. These politicians, the likes of former Borno governor Ali Modu Sheriff, are still free men, thus validating that crime pays and terrorism is government policy. Our NSA under whose tenure Modu Sheriff and co did these things, is a free man even being nominated—in terror to Nigeria—for the minister of defense spot; under his watch and till date, southern economic usurpers and terror sponsors likewise remain free, the likes of Peter Odili [see “Chop Fine” HRW report of 2007]. Former PDP chairman, Bamanga Tukur who praised Boko Haram terrorists for being ‘freedom fighters,’ is not only free, but rewarded as head of Nigeria’s Railway Corporation. The president has said he knows many other supporters and sponsors of Boko Haram terror.

Nigeria is officially under a terrorist government so long as the Goodluck Jonathan administration protects these terror sponsors; and there will be more deaths, there will be the creation of many more similar, new terrorist operations across Nigeria, especially leading up to the next round of elections.

How many innocent civilians and military men, women and children must be slaughtered before the Jonathan administration stops partying with the terror masterminds and arrests them? This government is dangerously incompetent and has woefully, painfully failed its people. We all know how ruthlessly late Yar’adua with his NSA Mukhtar dealt decisively with the Boko Haram scourge, that the Obasanjo administration, with interests and greed much like the Jonathan admin. was prior playing with. Last week 9 soldiers were killed. This week over 100 civilians were killed. When will enough blood have been spilled for the Jonathan administration to get the balls to do the duty they swore to do—to protect the Nigerian people o to admit and quit in the interest of life? When will our treacherous lawmakers of all parties move forward with a democratic option to impeach for failure to execute the laws of the land and protect the people from economic and its derived violent terror? There is a white-paper report chaired by Interior minister Abba Moro, on the presidents table and NSA Dasuki’s table which listed those who established Ecomog and now Boko Haram. The president had said he gave the go ahead to act. When shall NSA Dasuki act on these evil men? What is the value of our lives to this administration?

Would Boko Haram still be as it is today, able to invade in convoys and burn and destroy for hours, un-accosted, if NSA Dasuki or President Jonathan was made to live in Bama or Baga? Fortified in Abuja and Aso rock and transported in bullet proof vehicles and with a dozen private presidential jets, these people do not even empathize with Nigeria any more when massacres occur.

The second money related aspect that has led to the entrenchment of terrorism in Nigeria is the poverty and oppression levels. Where there is wealth in the hands of the wrong and the reckless and there is poverty among the masses, there will be terror. Nigeria has 100 million destitute. Parts of the north have destitute levels between 75-85% who live under a dollar a day and really have no shoes. Had these regions been autonomous, the people would have been in sync with their governments who would have understood, related with and served to maintain cohesion. However being fed fat by Nigeria’s oil wealth, the so-called leaders in these parts as a part of the national political reckless Cabal block, used the nation’s wealth to create imbalance and rather than alleviating poverty, they colluded with those at the center to further exploit the poor. The poor are exposed to the elements, stripped naked, exploited and armed by the cabal and political ruining class.

The massive looting of Nigeria’s resources is directly responsible for the state of embedded terror today. Why does Nigeria’s NNPC under Diezani Alison-Madukwe have kerosene sold to the people at $150 per liter, while claiming and keeping a subsidy on the 10 million liters sold per day at N40.9/liter, that enables the stealing of N100+/liter from the poor and desperate, through her handful of cabal portfolio middle-men marketers? With the subsidy scam that several political cabal have shares in, the Goodluck administration scams Nigerian masses of $10 million every day! This $10 million stolen daily would go a long way to curing terror in the north east once and for all.

Late Yar’adua banned the subsidy scam, his quick death as he went after processes the greedy ruling politicians used to feed fat and sponsor terror, caused panic among the Obasanjo establishment. Yar’adua had overturned the illegal sale of Nigeria’s refineries to Dangote by the Obasanjo administration, and as he sent several directives to stop the subsidy scam, the ex-president ran helter-skelter to see how to get rid of Yar’adua. Yar’adua’s illness took a sudden turn for the worse, and several close associates of his have relayed that he suspected he was poisoned with his food and had the Obasnajo kitchen staff he was still using, fired for fear that they may have poisoned him. A report also states that his wife feared he may be poisoned. When the Goodluck Jonathan government took over, the senate abandoned investigating his death.

The looting of $10 million per day in the subsidy scam has continued and so has terror. $10 million looted by Diezani and co everyday can buy 10 Armored Personnel Carriers (APC’s) every day. In a recent barrack that was sacked in Borno and had its army wives raped and children slaughtered complains were made of there being only a single APC to defend the barrack. Most of the equipment Nigeria’s military still uses, was purchased since the Shagari regime. The looting governments do not give a damn about equipping the military; rather they arm and equip terrorists to defend their political interests. This topsy-turvy running and ruining of the state is the reason why we are in the current predicament and our people are dying like chickens.

The 10 million the government steals everyday through the illegal subsidy scam could buy 500 drones everyday to ensure that the terrorists are spotted as they dare to drive their convoys into town, and APC’s can block their route and send them to the great beyond. But rather than stop stealing and protect the masses, these greedy officials will keep dipping their hands into the people’s pockets to steal N100 per liter of kerosene so their kids can fly around the world in private jets and flaunt money in public. Diezani has insolently insisted that she will continue to ‘steal’ billions form us via the subsidy scam, regardless of presidential directive, which she says she can disobey.

$10 million stolen everyday by the Goodluck administration in this scam can provide social security and welfare for the people in each state of Nigeria, starting from Borno, through the entire states, investing just one year, 12 days at a time, state-by-state. The people will be happy, victims of terror, kidnapping and armed robbery will be compensated, there will be security measures including police helicopters and drones to provided additional security and trace and track down terrorists and bandits, and Nigeria would be a happy land. But rather than do so, a handful of the ruining class, decide to steal this wealth which ultimately sponsors terror in Nigeria. The government is even so desperate; they steal from Almajiri’s (beggars) as has been exposed in the budget which includes Almajiri education projects with grossly inflated rates. [See: “Federal Ministry of Education has planned in its 2014 budget to spend N950 million on the construction of a single block of three classrooms” in article: “Why steal in the name of Almajiris?”by M.U. Ndagi in WeeklyTrust of 8th February, 2014]. And these are the Almajiris we are trying to support to dissuade their recruitment in terrorism.

The kerosene subsidy scam must stop yesterday! All the middlemen marketers who aided and abetted the oil minister to steal N100/liter from Nigerians for 10 million liters per day in this fourth kleptocratic republic must be arrested along with the above-the law minister. These thieves are at the root of terror in Nigeria. It is time to put an end to economic terror and the political environment of terror in Nigeria! It is enough. #NoToChancing

Written By Dr. Peregrino Brimah
http://ENDS.ng [Every Nigerian Do Something]
Email: [email protected] Twitter: @EveryNigerian

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It is the policy of Newswirengr not to endorse or oppose any opinion expressed by a User or Content provided by a User, Contributor, or other independent party.
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Match With Mexico Will Lift Team Confidence- Vincent Enyeama

Mohammed Useni
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Match With Mexico Will Lift Team Confidence- Vincent Enyeama

Nigeria stars have said next month’s World Cup warm-up match against Mexico will be taken very seriously as it could determine their fate.

The Super Eagles face fellow World Cup finalists Mexico on March 5 in Atalanta, Georgia, USA, as they step up their preparations for the World Cup in Brazil in June.

Eagles first-choice goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama said a favourable outcome would lift team confidence.

“The game will be a good one for us, it will boost our confidence level as the World Cup approaches,” the Lille star said.

Juwon Oshaniwa told MTNFootball.com that he expects a tough match from Mexico and Nigeria will be up for it.

“A friendly match is not usually about winning, but how the team play, how we have improved and to know where to work on, but that is not saying we are not taking the game seriously,” said the Israel-based left back.

“Personally, I will put in my very best in the game, which I know others in the team will do.”

CSKA Moscow forward Ahmed Musa said, adding that Nigeria will aim for victory against Mexico.

“It is going to be a tough game, Mexico are no small team and will give us good test. We as a team love winning and that is what Nigerians love too, we will go there to do our best to achieve that,” Musa told MTNFootball.com

Ogenyi Onazi also said they hope for a good result. “Nigerians want good result in every game we play and that shows they love the team, that is exactly what we will try to do against Mexico. It is going to be a tough game no doubt.”

The previous two meetings between both nations ended in draws with the first being in 2007 in Mexico and the last was in Houston, USA, in 2013.

Nurses And Midwives Threaten Nationwide Strike By Feb. 23

Mohammed Useni
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Nurses And Midwives Threaten Nationwide Strike By Feb. 23

The National Association of Nigerian Nurses and Midwives, has issued a one-week ultimatum to the Federal Government to comply with the judgement of the National Industrial Court or face a nationwide strike on February 23.

In October, 2010, the Association had approached the NIC and filled a suit against the Federal Ministry of Health for the partial implementation of the same awards of 1981. The judgement that was delivered on January 27, 2012,was again in favour of our association. Rather than the federal ministry of health complying with the NIC judgement, it filled an appeal in the Court of Appeal in April, 2012. The appeal was dimissed by the Court of Appeal on January 21, 2014, for want of prosecution.

Mr. Abdrafiu Adeniji, the National President of NANNW, at a press briefing in Abuja, said the association’s patience “has been taken for granted by the government.”

The statements reads, “An ultimatum of seven days has been given to the Federal Ministry of Health to comply with the final judgement of the National Industrial Court after an appeal filed on April 25, 2012, by the Ministry of Health, which was dismissed in January 2014 by the Court of Appeal, Abuja. The continuous refusal by the FMoH to comply in full, the implementation of the Industrial Arbitration Panel awards and subsequent NIC judgements for the past 34 years can no longer be tolerated by nurses and midwives.

“Since nurses have maintained patience for 34 years from May 1981, when the IAP verdict was given, coupled with the fact that subsequent NIC judgements and even appeal by the ministry were all in the favour of NANNW, the government has failed to implement the judgements.”

The association, however, exempted nurses and midwives in Borno State from the industrial action “to prevent further straining the already bad security and social welfare situation in that state.

Passengers Groan As Total Blackout Affect Operations At Murtala Muhammed International Airport Lagos

Mohammed Useni
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Passengers Groan As Total Blackout Affect Operations At Murtala Muhammed International Airport Lagos

It seems the power situation is deteriorating contrary to Nigeria’s government report, the nations gateway – the Murtala Mohammed International Airport experienced a total blackout at Lagos airport leaving passengers stranded.

The Power situation has continued to embarrass the nation as hundreds of passengers are left at the terminals sweating as they wait for several hours for the power to be restored.

The power outage affected the ‘D’ and ‘E’ Wing of the terminal but the FAAN Spokesman, Yakubu Dati claims it was caused by the on-going construction which affected an underground armored cable fault, leading to the outage.

The situation adversely affected operations at the terminal. “The power outage at the MMIA has become an embarrassment to Nigeria and something should be done, said a passenger who does not want his name mentioned.

“How can one travel all over the world, only to get stuck at Nigeria’s airport as a result of power failure, if government must use generator, they should use it” he added.

The report from the airport reveals that the power cables have been damaged and urgently need repairs.

The power outage has continued to affect the operations of the various airlines and passengers.

“Jonathan Breached Protocol” Olubadan Angry Over Exclusion From President’s Visit

Mohammed Useni
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“Jonathan Breached Protocol” Olubadan Angry Over Exclusion From President’s Visit

President Goodluck Jonathan’s visits of selected Monarchs has created ripples between the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Samuel Odulana and governor Abiola Ajimobi.

According to Olubadan is particularly angry that the President by-passed him but was at the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi’s Palace.

In a statement expressing anger over the breach of Protocol, it indicated that The monarch was waiting to receive the president in his palace not knowing he had already gone to Oyo town.
Oba Odulana interpreted governor Ajimobi’s action as recognising the Alaafin as the Chairman of the State Traditional Council.

The statement reads; “While he and other members of the council awaited the arrival of the President, he breached the protocol of visiting him as the Chairman of the Oyo State Council of Obas and Chiefs and instead visited the Oyo state governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi, who went with him to visit the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi III”.

He said that the development indicated that governor Ajimobi recognised the Alaafin of Oyo as the permanent Chairman of the State Council of Obas and Chiefs, contrary to the existing Chieftaincy Law as amended in 2011 in Cap 37 Laws of Oyo State, 2000, which makes the Chairmanship title rotational between the Alaafin, the Olubadan and Soun of Ogbomoso every two years.

Francis Ehigiator: Atiku, Tinubu And The APC Ticket

Mohammed Useni
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Francis Ehigiator: Atiku, Tinubu And The APC Ticket

In the past week, the Atiku Abubakar Media Office has been engrossed in a spirited rebuttal of a story published online. According to the publication, it was alleged that Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the All Progressives Congress (APC) tin-god, had signed an agreement to hand the presidential ticket of the APC to Atiku Abubakar as a precondition for his defection from the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
The advertorial, titled: “Hogwash”, which was placed in many national dailies by the Atiku Abubakar media group, unwittingly, drew the attention of many readers who did not even see, in the first place, the online publication that has kept the Atiku camp rattled, the Tinubu camp exposed, the Buhari clan disoriented and the entire APC hierarchy, highly embarrassed.

Although the former vice president, Atiku Abubakar had stated while jumping again out of the PDP that he was ready to perish his presidential ambition for the overall good of his new party, APC, his well-documented desperation for power gives away this new line as a mere obfuscation. Atiku has never hidden his ambition to be president right from the day former President Obasanjo chose him as his deputy.

Thus, within the first two years in their first term, the former vice president had hatched a near-perfect plan to supplant his boss by lining the majority of the PDP governors against Obasanjo to whom he had un-altruistically sold the Mandela one-term option. Stories have it that Obasanjo literally had to kowtow for his deputy before he got his party’s re-nomination in 2003. And when it was clear that he had fouled the air within the PDP so much so that he could not be trusted with the party’s ticket, Atiku founded and funded Action Congress (AC) under which he pursued his obsessive ambition to be president.

When he failed and realised that AC was too parochial a party to fulfil his lifelong ambition, he returned to a broader platform, which the PDP represents. Back to the PDP, Atiku’s desperation pushed him to canvass the northern consensus candidate when he lost the zoning argument in the PDP. And when he lost the presidential primaries against President Goodluck Jonathan at the Eagle Square in 2011, the Adamawa politician lost control of himself as he resorted to raining unpresidential vituperations on Jonathan so much so that the delegates who voted against him were convinced that that they took the right decision.

As 2015 beckons, Atiku has perhaps reasoned that he has no chance in PDP and is threading the familiar path of shopping for platform again. So when Atiku begins his tales by moonlight that he has joined the APC not to pursue any personal ambition, what does he take Nigerians for? The panicky and un-strategic manner in which the Atiku Media Office that is normally very professional and efficient responded to the allegation of conspiracy between Atiku and Tinubu over the APC presidential ticket, clearly gives stronger credence to the allegation.

In trying to debunk the story that Tinubu had already sold the ticket to Atiku, Garba Shehu and his team largely relied on the ad hominiem argument – a fallacy that seems to attack the source of the story rather than its substance. It is not clear how tracing the story to one Churchill Umoren, allegedly working for the presidential spokesman, Doyin Okupe, affects the veracity of the story or makes it less factual. While the Atiku Media Office struggled all through to discredit the story that Tinubu and Atiku are at it again to their undemocratic best, it was clear that what they sought to achieve was sheer damage limitation but in the end the hogwash advertorial ended up accentuating the wheeling and dealing story between the two APC buccaneers.

The attempt to discredit the story that Tinubu had already traded the APC presidential ticket to Atiku Abubakar ended up being a conspiracy of its own. The bomb shell dropped by Shekarau, a founding leader of APC that Tinubu runs the party as a personal shop further threw spanners to the works of Atiku’s image makers. The former governor of Kano State not only revealed how Tinubu is imposing his whims and caprices on the party but also engaging in other illegalities.

Speaking to the New Telegraph Newspaper recently, Shekarau disclosed how Tinubu and his minions abandoned the right constitution that the party agreed upon and submitted to INEC the wrong one because of their personal interests. Shekarau also revealed how a portion of the APC constitution, which puts a timeframe to the tenure of the interim executive committee of the party, was fraudulently and whimsically expunged by Tinubu and his people as part of the documents sent to INEC for the registration of the party.

The result is that Tinubu and his clique in APC are not thinking about any convention to elect authentic party executives to replace his hand-picked interim executives headed by Bisi Akande. If the party is not thinking about properly electing its officers, why would it worry about electing a presidential candidate?

Moreover, the leaders of APC, and its predecessor parties, ACN, CPC and ANPP are not known to be great advocates of the democratic process. In the defunct ACN, Tinubu and Bisi Akande for all intents and purposes represent the decision making organ of the party. They chose the presidential candidate, the senatorial candidates, the House of Reps and Houses of Assembly candidates whimsically without any reference to the people and party members. The vibrant Senator Olorunimbe Mamora, who lost his ticket, and Hon. Opeyemi Bamidele, who ended up in the House instead of the Senate, are some of the relics of the Tinubu-Akande undemocratic imposition of candidates on the ACN. In the CPC it did not matter who won the primaries as long as the outcome did not reflect Buhari’s predilections and sentiments. ANPP on its own part appeared to have patented the manual of how not to run a political party!

There is indeed nothing new in the story that Tinubu had ceded the APC presidential ticket to Atiku Abubakar even before he crossed over from the PDP. It is on record that the promoters of APC historically have proven themselves as poor advertisement for internal democracy and free choice. The controversies and crises arising from the imposition of interim officers from all the state chapters of APC nationwide seem to validate the story that the APC presidential ticket had been sold to Atiku even before the race began. The Atiku Media Office, rather than publishing “Hogwash” advertorial, should advert their minds to convincing the like of Buhari, Oshiomhole and Tambuwal who we hear are interested in the presidential ticket why they should remain in APC!

Written By Francis Ehigiator

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Abimbola Adelakun: Remind Me Again, What Is Boko Haram Fighting For?

Mohammed Useni
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Abimbola Adelakun: Remind Me Again, What Is Boko Haram Fighting For?

The level of violence perpetrated by the terrorist sect, Boko Haram, at least in the past six months, is just ridiculous. Suddenly, words are not enough to express profound thoughts on the amount of carnage being carried out by the terrorists. The body count rises all the time and who knows, what is being quoted in the media might actually be an understatement. There is no logic or pattern to the killings; they no longer discriminate based on ethnicity and religion in their attacks. They have ransacked whole villages, mosques, markets, public buildings and churches. They have succeeded in shutting down schools, burnt police barracks and killed so many of the security personnel fighting them. They have decimated the North-East zone and overall, reduced Nigeria’s stock on the global market. Now, the group has just graduated to abducting poor young women as sex slaves. Or whatever its members want to use them for. That is quite frightening and only heaven knows where all these might end.

The whole affair is like a war going on, except you don’t really know who you are fighting or why you are even fighting. This is what I keep asking myself: What is Boko Haram’s problem? What really is it fighting for? Or, who is it fighting? There was a time the sect said it wanted to enforce Sharia in Nigeria but no one has heard it articulate a coherent demand in ages.

The explanation that had previously been peddled by apologists and propagandists of President Goodluck Jonathan was that Boko Haram was the battle axe of certain disgruntled elements who didn’t make it to the Presidency in 2011 and subsequently vowed they would make the country “ungovernable” for the president. This argument, I must say, has cloyed and no longer accounts for the massacre. For one, beyond accusations and counter-accusations, nobody has actually provided hard evidence that it is true. If the state security agencies have not successfully linked anyone who made such a statement to Boko Haram activities, then what else do we have other than mere conjectures and a sense of persistent victimhood? There was a time Boko Haram was linked to Al Qaeda because sometime in 2003, Osama bin Laden mentioned Nigeria as one of the countries of interest when he talked about attacking the global energy industry on which the US relied. But even then, bin Laden has long been dead; al Qaeda has been much decimated, yet Boko Haram has grown stronger and more vicious.

None of the points that has been made to support the thesis the incessant attacks are fuelled by hatred for “the southern President” has explained why the sect’s activities are concentrated in the North-East zone of Nigeria; why Borno State has been worst hit; and what informs its choice of specific villages and towns it repeatedly attacks. If this is remotely about enforcing Sharia all over Nigeria, how does attacking random and remote villages help the cause? These days, Boko Haram insurgents seem more and more like hate-driven annihilists who just want to kill simply because they can do it. My hunch is that it does not have as much to do with Jonathan’s Presidency as his sympathisers would have us believe. The fact that Jonathan is in office when all these ballooned might actually be a coincidence.

It is really difficult understanding what ideologies drive terrorism in Africa. You never really know the terrorists; know their faces, their background, their families or any relevant information about them. Could African terrorism be something as “simple” as mimicry? Our youths blow themselves up and kill innocent people because they want to copy zealots in places like Yemen and Pakistan who derive pleasure in martyrdom? Or, is it far more complicated? What is the point, really?

There have been a heap of blame piled on Jonathan on his handling of Boko Haram and its mindless violence but even words have begun to lose their bite. The President, through his action and inaction, has become an easy target for critics but then, it is perhaps a waste of time and efforts to keep criticising him. Who could imagine, some three or four years ago, that Boko Haram would become a barbed wire lodged in the flesh of Nigeria like this? Nobody. What perhaps started as a sect by a tiny group of religious zealots has grown into a Frankenstein monster threatening to swallow us up. The President himself appears to have reached the end of rhetoric. These days, he has nothing more to say other than talk about prayers.

He has gone from telling us we might have to live with the killings to talking tough to encouraging us to stay strong because the carnage would soon end to calling Boko Haram our brothers to toying with an amnesty programme to declaring a state of emergency in some states to sentencing Boko Haram to hell to pleading for dialogue to asking us to at least be grateful that things are not worse than they are because Nigerians have prayed. One can make a content analysis of Jonathan’s speeches on Boko Haram since the attacks became recurrent to track his state of mind on the whole matter. One would notice the highs and lows, the optimism and pessimism and finally, a resignation.

He is not the only one in the executive that is frustrated. The Governor of Borno State, Kashim Shettima, recently admitted a demoralising fact: that Boko Haram is better armed and motivated than Nigeria’s troops and given the present state of affairs, it is absolutely impossible for us to defeat the group. Even Maj-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd.) has been moved to condemn the group.

My fear now is that it will get to a point where we would reconcile ourselves to living with the persistent violence. Countries like Mexico, Colombia, Pakistan and India have not only learnt to live with varying degrees of violence, they factor it into the realities of their national existence. That is not only dangerous for Nigeria where lives are meaninglessly taken daily, it would spell doom in the long run. Any country that routinely spills blood invites the very earth its people walk on to witness against them. No, we should not get used to it.

That is almost unthinkable.

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Article originally published on PUNCH Newspaper

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It is the policy of Newswirengr not to endorse or oppose any opinion expressed by a User or Content provided by a User, Contributor, or other independent party.
Opinion pieces and contributions are the opinions of the writers only and do not represent the opinions of Newswirengr

President Jonathan Suspends Sanusi Lamido Sanusi As CBN Governor

Mohammed Useni
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President Goodluck Jonathan has Thursday suspended Lamido Sanusi as the Central Bank of Nigeria Governor.

In a statement issued by the Presidential Spokesman Reuben Abati, Sanusi is suspended due to financial recklessness and misconduct which are inconsistent with the administration’s vision of a Central Bank under his watch..

The statement issued reads below….

Having taken special notice of reports of the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria and other investigating bodies, which indicate clearly that Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi’s tenure has been characterized by various acts of financial recklessness and misconduct which are inconsistent with the administration’s vision of a Central Bank propelled by the core values of focused economic management, prudence, transparency and financial discipline;

Being also deeply concerned about far-reaching irregularities under Mallam Sanusi’s watch which have distracted the Central Bank away from the pursuit and achievement of its statutory mandate; and

Being determined to urgently re-position the Central Bank of Nigeria for greater efficiency, respect for due process and accountability, President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan has ordered the immediate suspension of Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi from the Office of Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria.

President Jonathan has further ordered that Mallam Sanusi should hand over to the most senior Deputy Governor of the CBN, Dr Sarah Alade who will serve as Acting Governor until the conclusion of on-going investigations into breaches of enabling laws, due process and mandate of the CBN.

The President expects that as Acting Governor of the Central Bank, Dr. Alade will focus on the core mandate of the Bank and conduct its affairs with greater professionalism, prudence and propriety to restore domestic and international confidence in the country’s apex bank.

The Federal Government of Nigeria reassures all stakeholders in Nigeria’s financial and monetary system that this decision has been taken in absolute good faith, in the overall interest of the Nigerian economy and in accordance with our laws and due process.

The Governor of the CBN is due to retire from the apex bank by June 2014. What must have led to the suspension by the President will not be unconnected to the letters and recent outburst over the missing funds at the Nigeria National Petroleum Cooperation, NNPC.

Facebook To Buy WhatsApp For $16bn

NewsWireNGR
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Mark Zuckerberg speaks during an onstage interview with James Bennet of the Atlantic Magazine in Washington
Mark Zuckerberg speaks during an onstage interview with James Bennet of the Atlantic Magazine in Washington

(BBC News) Facebook has bought messaging app WhatsApp for $16bn (£9.6bn), with an additional $3bn given to WhatsApp’s founders and employees.

It is the social networking giant’s biggest acquisition to date.

WhatsApp has over 450 million monthly users and is popular with people looking to avoid text messaging charges.

In a statement, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg described WhatsApp’s services as “incredibly valuable”.

WhatsApp allows users to send messages over internet connections, avoiding text messaging fees. The company claims it is currently registering one million new users a day.

Shares fall

On a conference call to discuss the deal, WhatsApp founder Jan Koum says he plans to operate the firm “independently and autonomously”. He will also become a member of Facebook’s board of directors.

“We’re excited and honoured to partner with Mark and Facebook as we continue to bring our product to more people around the world,” Mr Koum said in a statement.

Mr Zuckerberg said the prospect of a deal was first floated just 11 days ago.

The Facebook founder said he believed WhatsApp was on track to have a billion users, but insisted he had no plans to place advertising on WhatsApp’s interface, saying he did not think ads were the best way to make money from messaging systems.

Shares in Facebook dropped 5% in after hours trading before recovering slightly.

Prior to this acquisition, Facebook’s biggest buy had been Instagram for $1bn in 2012.

It had also reportedly offered $3bn to acquire photo messaging service Snapchat.

 

 

Southeast Presidential Candidate Not Allowed In 2015 – T. A. Orji

Mohammed Useni
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By Emmanuel Ugwu

Any presidential hopeful from the Southeast geopolitical zone dreaming of challenging President Goodluck Jonathan in the 2015 general election would be embarking on a futile venture, the Governor of Abia state, Chief Theodore Orji has said.

He stated this Wednesday when he received a delegation of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Lagos branch who came on a fact finding and courtesy visit to Abia, saying that so long as Jonathan would run for second term he remains “our best bet” and therefore should not be distracted.

The national leadership of Ohanaeze had recently visited known traditional presidential dreamers from the zone to plead with them to shelve their ambition and queue up behind Mr. President in the overall interest of Ndigbo.

Details to follow

Nigerian Senate Passes National Health Bill

Mohammed Useni
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Nigerian Senate Passes National Health Bill

A bill for an act to provide a Framework for the Regulation, Development and Management of a National Health System and set Standards for Rendering Health Services in the Federation, and Other Matters Connected Therewith was Wednesday passed.

The bill by Senator Ifeanyi Okowa-led Senate Committee on Health passed third reading in the senate with an assurance to effectively address the health needs of Nigerians.

Okowa, addressing newsmen said the Bill sought to provide for the management and development of national health system by effectively regulating the health sector.

He added that the Bill aimed at regulating organ transplant as well as provide healthcare services for Nigerians and it seeks to cater for primary health care.

He pointed out that the new bill would also help Nigeria to achieve the Universal Health Coverage and beat the Millennium Development Goals target.

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