Tanzanian Authorities Conducting Manhunt For British Pilot Killed By Poachers

The Tanzanian authorities are currently conducting a manhunt for the poachers responsible for the death of a British pilot, according to media sources.
 
Helicopter Crash Site BBC 
 
The pilot, Roger Gower, was tracking the poachers on Friday in the  Maswa Game Reserve when his helicopter was fired upon from the ground, according to the natural resources minister, Jumanne Maghembe.
The mission was a joint effort by the Friedkin Conservation Fund and the Tanzanian government in response to what some have termed “industrialized poaching”.

"The government has launched a manhunt to find those responsible for this attack," Maghembe told reporters.

Dan Friedkin, the Chairman of the Friedkin Conservation Fund expressed his grief regarding the death of Mr. Gower.

"This tragic event again highlights the appalling risk and cost of protecting Tanzania's wildlife," Mr. Friedkin said in a statement.

Speaking to Reuters, Mr. Maghembe's deputy at the ministry, Ramo Makani, that five suspects had been arrested since Gower's death and that the operation is still underway for the remaining suspects.

African Union Scraps Peacekeeping Mission In Burundi

The African Union (AU) has scrapped its plan to send 5,000 peacekeepers to Burundi, according to media sources.
 
Scenes Of Violence In Burundi BBC Africa 
 
The central African country has been wracked by political violence since April when PResident Pierre Nkurunziza decided to seek a controversial third term.

Thus far, the violence has left 439 people dead and 240,000 have fled the country.

APC condemns recent transfer of Father Mbaka

– APC condemns recent transfer of Father Mbaka
– Alleges President Buhari’s haters to be behind new development

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has condemned the transfer of Father Mbaka.

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has reacted to reports that controversial cleric, Reverend Father Ejike Mbaka has been transferred by the leadership of the Catholic Church in Enugu.

The Enugu Parish leadership had reportedly transferred the fire-brand cleric from Christ the King Parish in the Government Reserved Area (GRA) of the state to Our Lady Parish, Emene, a suburb of the state and he had immediately cried out over the latest development.

Mbaka who is more prominent for his prophecies against the immediate past president of Nigeria, Goodluck Jonathan, had been in the now former parish for 20 years and is now required to work under a new priest at the Emene Parish.

But Vanguard reports that the spokesperson of the APC in the Southeast, Osita Okechukwu, has condemned the new move.

He said: “It was wrong to punish the fearless priest for his prophecies which has proved to be from God.”
While also expressing concern over Mbaka’s safety, the APC chieftain alleged that the transfer was influenced by outside forces, adding that worshippers may find it difficult to get to Emene for programmes of the Adoration Ministry.

“Whereas we accept that the transfer of priests is a routine exercise of the great Catholic Church, However we do not wholly accept a situation where the church allows external forces to influence transfers as the Mbaka’s case suggests.

“Otherwise, future liberation clergy who speak truth to power will be hamstrung to the detriment of the society.

“Our major concern is the security implications and the fate of his flocks who are mostly the downtrodden who may find it difficult to go to Emene for salvation and healing.
“We frown at anything which will put Fr. Mbaka in harms way or deny his flocks healing.”
“As a party, we have watched with concern and trepidation the criticism, attack, assault and unpleasant comments hurled at Fr. Mbaka since he providentially prophesied that President Buhari would win the 2015 elections.

“Even the Church did not spare him, he was called unprintable names, yet his prophecy came true. We are happy that Fr. Mbaka was vindicated.

“It must be pointed out that accusing fingers were pointed at the direction of some anti-Buhari elements like Ohanaeze Ndigbo, a group that didn’t want to hear the name of Buhari – even though Ohanaeze denied the allegation, doubt still persists.

“For we are still at a loss why a senior priest will be demoted to an assistant parish priest.
“We repeat that we are in solidarity with Fr. Mbaka and our major concern is the security of Fr. Mbaka and the suffering of his flocks, mostly the poor who need his healing powers.

“We had thought that His Lordship Bishop Calistus Onaga could have retained him at the Adoration Ground, as the Bishop Emeritus Gbuji did because of security of his life and easy access by his flocks,” he was quoted to have said.

West Ham sign Emenike

– West Ham have signed Emmanuel Emenike on loan until the end of the season

– Emenike joins Victor Moses at Upton Park

– Emenike’s parent club Fenerbahce are already in search of his replacement at the club

West Ham have signed former Super Eagles striker Emmanuel Emenike.

The 28-year-old striker joins the team on loan until the end of the season.
Dubai-based Al Ain, where Emenike had been on loan, had released the striker last after they declared his services was no longer needed as one of their three foreign players.

West Ham sign Emmanuel Emenike

It was also learnt that Fenerbahce are already in talks with Roma over the signing of Seydou Doumbia as a replacement for Emenike. The coach of West Ham, Slaven Bilic knows Emenike from his time in charge of Besiktas.

Emenike told the team’s official website: “I’m very, very happy and very, very excited that I’m here. I have always known West Ham as a great Club.

“I’ve known Slaven Bilic (West Ham coach) for years. We’ve followed each other’s careers and thank God we are here today and are here together.”

Emenike was linked with EPL moves after 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

It was reported that he was in the radar of Chelsea and Liverpool FC, the energetic striker has not hidden his dream to play in the EPL and he has the attitude, power and speed to succeed there.

He now joins his former Super Eagles team-mate Victor Moses and Nigerian-born Italy international Angelo Ogbonna.

Anti-graft: President Buhari says judiciary is his major headache

– President Buhari lists judiciary as his major headache
– Wants urgent reforms for the sector
– Assures Nigerians of continuous fight against corruption and overhaul of the judiciary

The president wants an overhaul of the judiciary system in Nigeria.

President Muhammadu Buhari has revealed his biggest headache in the battle against corruption in the country.

The Nigerian president, who spoke on Sunday, January 31, 2016, through his special adviser on media and publicity, Femi Adesina, noted that the nation’s judiciary remains his major headache.

According to The Punch, Buhari disclosed that his travails in courts up to the level of the Supreme Court in his three previous attempts at becoming the President showed clearly that the judiciary needs urgent reforms.


“On the fight against corruption vis-à-vis the judiciary, Nigerians will be right to say that is my main headache for now.

“If you reflect on what I went through for 12 years when I wanted to be the President, I attempted three times and on the fourth attempt through God and the use of technology, it was possible for Nigerians to elect an APC candidate as President.

“In my first attempt in 2003, I ended up at the Supreme Court and for 13 months I was in court. The second attempt in 2007, I was in court close to 20 months and in 2011, my third attempt, I was also in court for nine months.

“All these cases went up to the Supreme Court until the fourth time in 2015, when God agreed that I will be President of Nigeria,” he stated.

He however, assured that with the support of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Mahmud Mohammed, Nigeria’s judicial administration system would receive massive boost.

Meanwhile, Governor Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa state has warned the federal government against majoring in minor, advising President Buhari against concentrating on political conquest other than the things which affect Nigerians as a whole.

Dickson said that there is an insufficiency and insensitivity that thrives within the federal government, a problem which he says stems from the team put together by President Buhari to manage the affairs of the nation.

Boko Haram killed 1,637 cattle rearers in Borno - ACBAN

– Boko Haram insurgents attacks claimed at least 1,637 lives of cattle rearers in Borno state alone
– Over 1,000,000 livestock were lost during the 6 year Boko Haram terrorists attack
– The Nigerian army fighting insurgency have been commended

A Fulani cattle rearer

Alhaji Ibrahim Mafa, the chairman of Al-Hayah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (ACBAN) stated that at least 1,600 cattle rearers in Borno state lost their lives in the different Boko Haram insurgency attacks. He added that the terrorists group also burnt tents and hamlets of Fulani herdsmen.

While the chairman of ACBAN spoke to newsmen at the capital of Borno state, Maiduguri regarding the high rate of killings during the 6-year Boko Haram attacks in Sambisa forest and Northern parts of Borno state with its 10 local government areas, he said he was unhappy that the ugly incident occurred.

Alhaji Mafa stated that more than 1,000,000 livestock were lost by cattle rearers under his association to the Boko Haram terrorists attack.

In his words, he said: “We also lost about one million livestock, comprising 146,399 cows, 54, 374 goats and sheep among others.” 

He likewise explained that 395, 605 sacks of grains were lost to the Boko Haram group by members of his association. He praised the Nigerian army for their gallantry in its efforts to end insurgency in the Northeastern parts of the country despite the difficult desert and Sambisa forest terrains.

He said: “We commend the soldiers for chasing out these Boko Haram terrorists from the forest and desert; and liberating many communities hitherto occupied by insurgents.”
“Some of the livestock are smuggled to the neighboring countries of Chad, Niger and Cameroun Republic.”

He concluded by urging the military to deploy more troops to areas where Boko Haram attacks are still ongoing.

“I’m also appealing to the Federal and Borno State Governments to consider assisting the cattle breeders in their rehabilitation and resettlement program for terrorism victims in the North East,” he said, adding that President Muhammadu Buhari and Governor Kashim Shettima, should come to the aid of cattle breeders ameliorate their sufferings.

“We appeal to government rebuild our torched tents and huts, as well as reactivation of our water-points destroyed by the insurgents, while attacking Fulani settlements and hamlets.”
It was just today Sunday, January 31 that more than 100 people were killed by Boko Haram terrorists in a deadly attack on Dalori village in Borno state.

‘Black people more likely to be in prison than at a top university’- David Cameron

‘Black people more likely to be in prison than at a top university’- David Cameron

 

Universities will be forced by law to disclose what proportion of ethnic minority applicants get places, David Cameron has announced as part of a concerted Government anti-discrimination drive.

The Prime Minister said the transparency rules should prompt institutions such as Oxford to work harder to broaden their intake and warned the police, the courts and the armed forces they also had to act.

Education chiefs have been summoned to Downing Street on Monday for talks with Business Secretary Sajid Javid to discuss why young black men are more likely to be in prison than studying at a top university.

It comes as Mr Cameron has hired a leading black Labour MP to investigate whether the police and court system is racially biased.

David Lammy will lead a sweeping review into why black people are more likely to be in prison than at a top university, and why black criminals are given harsher sentences than white offenders.

Mr Lammy’s review is expected to report on his findings and recommend reforms to the Ministry of Justice in the spring of next year.

Mr Cameron said:

“If you’re black, you’re more likely to be in a prison cell than studying at a top university. And if you’re black, it seems you’re more likely to be sentenced to custody for a crime than if you’re white. We should investigate why this is and how we can end this possible discrimination.

“Only one in 10 of the poorest white boys go into higher education at all.

“There are no black generals in our armed forces and just 4 per cent of chief executives in the FTSE 100 are from ethnic minorities.

“What does this say about modern Britain? Are these just the symptoms of class divisions or a lack of equal opportunity? Or is it something worse – something more ingrained, institutional and insidious?”

The UK had come a long way, he added, “but there is much more to do, and these examples I mention should shame our country and jolt us to action”.

“I don’t care whether it’s overt, unconscious or institutional – we’ve got to stamp it out,” he added, warning it would otherwise only “feed those who preach a message of grievance and victimhood”.

Mr Cameron rejected what he called “politically correct, contrived and unfair solutions” such as quotas but said it was “striking” that Oxford’s 2014 intake of more than 2,500 included only 27 black students.

“I know the reasons are complex, including poor schooling, but I worry that the university I was so proud to attend is not doing enough to attract talent from across our country,” he said.

The new rules will require routine publication of data on applicants, broken down by course, gender, ethnicity and socio-economic background.

His intervention is likely to further fuel protests by some students at Oxford over the refusal to remove a statue of British colonialist Cecil Rhodes from the front of Oriel college they say represents racism and oppression.

Mr Cameron said public institutions needed to “dig deeper”, w

arning he also intended action to eradicate “the stubborn problem of under-representation in our police and armed forces”.

“It’s not enough to simply say you are open to all. Ask yourselves: are you going that extra mile to really show people that yours can be a place for everyone, regardless of background?”

Mr Lammy, who wrote a book on the 2011 riots that were sparked by the killing of a black man by the police in his Tottenham constituency, has been tasked with rooting out the causes of “disgraceful” gulfs in sentencing treatment.

“It’s disgraceful that if you’re black, it seems you’re more likely to be sentenced to custody for a crime than if you’re white,” the PM said.

“We should investigate why this is and how we can end this possible discrimination. That’s why I have asked David Lammy MP to lead a review of the over-representation of BME communities in the criminal justice system.

“And this will include possible sentencing and prosecutorial disparity.”

Boko Haram terrorists attack village, killed more than 100 – Nigerian Army

SHOCKING! Boko Haram terrorists attack village, killed more than 100 – Nigerian Army

– Boko Haram terrorists have killed more than 100 residents of Dalori village in Borno state
– The attack on the small village in the Northeastern part of the country lasted at least 4 hours
– Over 70 bodies were deposited at the Maiduguri General Hospital, Borno state

Boko Haram terrorists are still present in the North East of Nigeria

More than 100 people were killed by Boko Haram terrorists in a deadly attack on Dalori village in Borno state. According to the Nigerian army, the insurgents used different ways to kill the innocent indigenes of the small village.

As the Nigerian troops battled suspected Boko Haram terrorists on Saturday, January 3o in Maiduguri, the Borno state capital, it was also later that same day that “insurgents came in two Golf cars, motorcycles, started opening fire and burning houses,” in the night to kill some residents of Dalori village.

In the afternoon of today Sunday, January 31, the military added that it was not just a direct attack on the people that the Boko Haram members used, that they also deployed 3 different suicide bombers to blow themselves up before the residents could escape.

Premium Times learnt that the terrorists were on rampage for almost 4 hours in which as many as 100 of the innocent residents were killed. Information also had it that 35 dead bodies were initially brought to the Maiduguri Specialist Hospital, while another 70 were later deposited to become 105 dead bodies.
The number of those that sustained various degrees of injuries was put at least 100.

One Alhaji Dambatta who is a member of the Civilian-JTF told newsmen that some dead bodies were yet to be evacuated from Dalori village as all those who died as a result of the suicide bombings have not been discovered.

Alhaji Dambatta said: “The casualty is beyond our imagination and most of those that were injured are in very critical conditions. Many of them may not survive because of the degree of injuries.”
The deputy governor of Borno state Usman Durkwa who paid a condolence visit to the Maiduguri Specialists Hospital directed the authorities of the hospital to treat all victims as the government of Borno state would foot the bills.

Ex-militants hijack ship , demand Kanu’s release; Promises to Surprise FG soon

 – Militants hijack foreign vessel and kidnap its foreign crew.
 – Kidnappers demand release of Nnamdi Kanu within 31 days.
 – Threaten to kill hostages in 31 days, despite previous demand, if federal government acts too slowly.

A group of supposedly former militants has hijacked a ship off the Bakassi Peninsula coastline and threatened to blow it up along with its foreign crew if the detained Director of Radio Biafra and Leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) Nnamdi Kanu is not released.

The group of hijackers has given the federal government a 31-day ultimatum to release Kanu or deal with a destroyed ship and murdered crew.

The militants said they enjoy the support of local residents and of pro-Biafra agitators in the area.

Nnamdi Kanu in court

The group’s spokesman, identified only as General Ben, even said the militants might not wait for the expiration of the 31-day ultimatum to carry out their murderous threat.
“We cannot wait till the end of the 31 days to tell the federal government that we are serious. The vessel and the crew are in our custody.

“Any noise, any delay from government, we will blow up everything. We will blow the vessel and everybody in the vessel will go down,” the so-called general said.

“We are not interested in the country that owns the vessel. What we know is that the vessel was coming to Nigeria to lift oil. We are not interested, once it is blown up, let the country and Nigeria resolve the matter.”

The supposedly retired militant said his group remains well informed about Kanu’s detention and condemned the courts for denying him bail based on his dual nationality.

“This is provocative; hence we did not waste time to go into action. We are in support of the Biafra struggle.

“We will not retreat or surrender. The federal government might have taken our ultimatum as an empty threat. But, we will surprise them,” General Ben said.

Controversial Fr Mbaka makes shocking revelation as he relocates

– Reverend father Mbaka has finally moved to another parish.

– The cleric has made shocking revelations about his relocation.

– He also sheds some light on certain church secrets.

 

Prominent Catholic cleric, Reverend father Ejike Mbaka, has revealed that great affliction awaits him in the new capacity which he has been mandated to serve.

 

The spiritual director of the Adoration Ministry Enugu (AMEN), made the disclosure before he departed Christ the King parish, GRA, Enugu on Saturday, January 30.

 

The Vanguard reports that the clergyman left on Saturday for his new duty post at Our Lady Parish, Umuchigbo, Njinike, saying that he was going to suffer.

 

Mbaka said however, that he would not fight anybody over the posting, noting that his posting out of Enugu was a witch-hunt.

 

Reverend father Ejike Mbaka

 The fiery priest was escorted by thousands of catholic faithful in Enugu to his new parish at Emene, an outskirt of Enugu urban.  Sources say it was an exercise laced with emotions.

Mbaka who is adored by his thousands of followers, moaned about the challenges he would face at his new station.

 

He said: “I know we are going to suffer between now and a few months to come. I am going to suffer and suffer. I know that.” 

 

The Nation quoted him as saying. “I’m going to suffer because I have no place to put my head. I am going to suffer because I have no place to keep the Adoration Ministry’s assets. 

 

“I know I’m going to suffer. Fortunately, it is going to happen in the month of lent. So, I am going to use my exit here as a Lenten observance but Jesus said it all in John 16:20 to his apostles that you will be sorrowful and the world will be rejoicing but very soon I will turn your sorrow to joy. But, for now, I know you are going to suffer.”

 

“The Adoration Ministry is passing through suffering right now even though I’ve accepted that is the will of God. Is the will of God through suffering? It is a mega suffering. The quantum of the assets of the Adoration Ministry is the only thing I am bothered about for now. Where am I going to keep them? I am going to stay in one small room that has only one small bed, one small table, little toilet and bathroom. So where am I going to keep all the adoration assets? My clothing and books I can keep in the car or somebody’s house but where will I keep these assets that I have given to the Catholic church of Enugu?,” the clergyman queried.

 

He continued saying: “But I say may God take the glory and whoever that has offended me, I have forgiven. I won’t fight anybody or even dream of battling anybody. If anybody allows the devil to use him, the same that advised you to make a mistake will laugh at you when you cry over the error. The baby is born, there is no going back.” 

 

“We are moving out. We have been doing it and we will do it again. Moses was going out with a rod in his hand, Mbaka is moving out with his Bible and this nobody can take away from me.”

“I am giving God the glory and I welcome the church’s choice and action with absolute acceptance and obedience. So there is no negation to what God has approved and what the church suggested. Nobody should see me as a recalcitrant priest. I am not. 

 

“I have taken an oath of obedience and I stand on it. I pray God to bless all of you who in one way or the other have supported the work of God here and those who have sincerely allowed God to use him or her for the work we did here all these years. 

 

“God will bless the people of God here and reward you according to your labour. The parish is not going to collapse; the church will continue to grow.”

 

Optimistic about what the future holds, Fr Mbaka said: “God has planned a future and hope out of disaster and where I am going. He will go before me to level mountains.

 

“The Bible says that He will deliver me from all evil; He will keep my going out and coming in both now and forever… I am praying that God will keep his church and my fellow adorers so that our journey to Umuchigbo will be a journey of Israelites out of Egypt. 

 

“Some of them were grumbling, leaving Egyptian soil because they were having the phobia for the unknown but I am telling you people as a courageous leader, do not be afraid. We are moving and in not distant time, you people are going to smile.”

 

Witnesses report that as early as 7am yesterday, a crowd had started forming at the Christ the King (CKP) GRA, Enugu preparatory for the movement. Several lorry loads, buses and cars filled with people lined the streets as he made his way to Emene.

 

Band groups dished out music to which people were dancing, and while some were overcome by emotion that they broke down in tears, others praised God for having led the cleric thus far.

The journey reportedly lasted four hours and within the time, social and economic activities along the major streets came to a temporary halt.

Real reasons I conceded to Buhari — Jonathan

Former President Goodluck Jonathan has spoken of the tensed moments he faced on March 28, 2015 ahead of his decision to concede victory to President Muhammadu Buhari after that year’s presidential election.

“I was actually in that valley on March 28, 2015”, he said.
Jonathan also narrated  why he relinquished power to Buhari, saying he did not want Nigeria to slide into a theatre of war, with his  fellow county men and woman dying, and many more pouring into other nations in Africa and beyond, as refugees.

“I never knew that the human brain had the capacity for such enhanced rapid thinking. One hundred and one things were going through my mind every second. My  country was at the verge of collapse. The tension in the land was abysmally high and palpable, in the months leading to the election. The country became more polarised more than ever before, such that the gap between the North and the South and between Christians and Muslims became quite pronounced”, the former President said.

“In fact, it became so disturbing that some interest  groups in the United States began to predict indeed, many Nigerians did buy into this doomsday prophesy as they began to brace themselves for the worst.
“As the President, I reminded myself that the Government I led had invested so much effort into building our country. I worked hard with my top officials to encourage Nigerians and non-Nigerians to invest in our country to be able to provide jobs and improve the lives of our people.

“We worked hard to grow our economy and to improve and bring Nigeria up as the biggest economy in Africa, with a GDP of about half a trillion dollars”.

Jonathan told his story, last week, during a dinner in his honour by Cercle Diplomatique, Geneva, Switzerland. The former President also spoke about his foray into politics, the allure of power and future plans.

He began: “ As you can see, I have not come here with a prepared speech, since what I consider appropriate for this occasion is to just thank you all, members and everyone else in attendance, in a few words, for the dinner and the award, in order not to make the evening look boring. But having said that, I am still tempted to note that if I were to present a written speech, the title, would probably have been “Power Tussle in Africa: A Stumbling Block to Economic Growth.” When Mr. Robert Blum, your President, made his very interesting opening remarks, he introduced me as the former President of Nigeria. He was absolutely correct.

My foray into politics
“However, I believe that not many of you here know that the story of my foray into politics has a peculiar ring to it. I entered politics in 1998 and, barely one year after, I got elected as the Deputy Governor of Bayelsa, my state. I later became Governor, Vice President and eventually got elected as the President of my country. I remain the only leader in my country to have travelled that route.
As the President, I served out my first term but, as Mr. Blum had pointed out earlier, I lost the bid to be re-elected. I am encouraged by the fact that many of you here appreciated my decision not to reject or contest my loss at the polls, not even in the courts as many people had expected.

The allure of power
“Again, I have to agree with Blum that it was not an easy decision to take. This is because the allure of power and the worries about what would become of you after leaving office constitute an irresistible
force. It has an attraction so controlling and powerful that it takes a man who has the fear of God and who loves his people and nation to relinquish power so easily in Africa.

Alone in the valley
“I was actually in that valley on March 28, 2015. I never knew that the human brain had the capacity for such enhanced rapid thinking. One hundred and one things were coursing through my mind every second. My country was at the verge of collapse. The tension in the land was abysmally high and palpable, in the months and days leading to the election. The country became more polarized more than ever before, such that the gap between the North and the South and between Christians and Muslims became quite pronounced.  In fact, it became so disturbing that some interest groups in the United States began to predict that Nigeria would disintegrate in 2015. And, indeed, many Nigerians did buy into this doomsday prophesy as they began to brace themselves for the worst. As the President, I reminded myself that the Government I led had invested so much effort into building our country. I worked hard with my top officials to encourage Nigerians and non-Nigerians to invest in our country to be able to provide jobs and improve the lives of our people. We worked hard to grow our economy and to improve and bring Nigeria up as the biggest economy in Africa, with a GDP of about half a trillion dollars.

Posers I had to contend with
“Should I then, for the love of power, watch Nigeria slide into a theatre of war, with my fellow country men and women dying, and many more pouring into other nations in Africa and beyond, as refugees?

Should I hang on to power and tussle with my challengers, while the investments of hard working citizens of the world go down the drain? I then said to myself, NO!

Resisting the lure of power
“I promised my God that I will not let that fate befall Nigeria under my watch, hence the historic telephone call I put through to congratulate my challenger even when the results were still being
tallied. I believe that for a country to be great, both the leaders and the led must be prepared to make sacrifices. This is why, everywhere I go, I always advise that the new generation of African leaders must think differently. We can no longer afford to wilfully sacrifice the blood of our citizens on the altar of dangerous partisan politics. It is not worth it. This reminds me of one of my campaign statements to the effect that my ambition was not worth the shedding of the blood of any Nigerian. Some people took it then as mere political slogan but I knew that I meant it when I said it.

We must all fight for the enthronement of political stability in Africa, for in it lies the panacea for sustainable growth and development. For Africa to record the kind of advancement that will be competitive and beneficial to our citizens, we must have stable states supported by strong institutions. That appears to be the irreducible minimum that is common to all developed societies. Africa’s political odyssey can distinctly be categorised into three eras, and probably another that would later signpost its classification as a developed continent”.

Challenges
“Some may doubt this, but it is no fluke that Africa is growing and rising. However I will admit before you here that we still have challenges. That is why people like us did all we could to ensure that
Nigeria, the biggest black nation on earth, would not drift into anarchy because such a situation would have spelt doom for the rest of the continent. It would have affected not just Nigeria alone, but the
GDP and economy of the entire West Africa. And if the economy of West Africa crashes, it would definitely affect the performance of the economy of the whole of Africa. As you know, the GDP of Africa is less than three trillion dollars, with only six African countries able to boast of nominal GDP above $100 billion. Even for those in this ‘elite’ category, you can’t really say that they are rich countries. Apart from maybe South Africa that has an industrially competitive economy, the rest are still mainly commodity exporting countries. Even the case of that of South Africa is not very encouraging, because we have a situation which we could refer to as a first world economic performance, yet the ordinary people live the life of the people in the so called third world.
In the case of Nigeria which is even the biggest economy on the continent, the reality is that we have an unenviable per capita GDP of $3,203, which is the World Bank average for a period covering 2011-2015.

Africa’s future is bright
“Even then, I still believe that Africa has a bright future; a promising prognosis that is supported by the fact that the continent remains a very fertile and attractive territory that yields irresistible returns on investments. I believe that in the next few years many more big investors will be jostling to come to Africa, if only we will do the right thing. The process of getting it right has already started with a democratic and increasingly democratising Africa. But we have to deepen and strengthen our democratic credentials through regular, free and fair elections. This will in turn bring about the stability necessary to improve the infrastructure that promotes rapid economic growth. These are the guarantees that would lead us into the next period which I would like to call the era of a developed Africa. I have no doubt in my mind that we will get there some day.

My future plans
“I will be applying myself diligently to two key areas. First, is to work for good governance by promoting credible and transparent elections. This will bring about the strengthening of our institutions
and the enthronement of stability. I also believe that there is the urgent need to create jobs for our
teeming young population. This is another area that will be receiving my attention. I recall that the Vice President of your association made reference in his speech to my achievements in that regard through
what we called Youth Enterprises with Innovation (YouWin) and the Nagropreneur programme which encouraged young people to go into agriculture. I believe more programmes like that should be established to promote youth entrepreneurship. That way, we reduce their reliance on paid employment. We will not only teach them to become entrepreneurs, they will also acquire the capacity to employ other people. We will be paying special attention to this segment of our society, especially young people and women. We will develop programmes that will inculcate in them business skills to be able to set up micro, small and medium enterprises. We shall assist them to access take-off grants when they acquire the relevant skills and capacities. There are many areas that they can go into; food processing, light manufacturing and the services sector are just some of them. I can tell you from experience that this works. As we speak, Our Nagropreneur programme, to promote youth involvement in agriculture value chain, is being scaled up by the African Development Bank presently. It is already being replicated in 19 African countries because of the success of the programme in Nigeria. I invite all of you here today, cabinet ministers, diplomats and private sector people to remain committed to the cause of improving lives, especially those lives in Africa, and making our world a better place. For those of you that will be sharing in this vision for Africa, I assure you that you will not be disappointed. I am very optimistic that if we encourage young men and women in this continent to develop businesses of their own, the story of Africa will change within 10 years”.

Seven months after inauguration, Buhari achieves one of 222 Campaign Promises – Report

Seven months after inauguration, Buhari achieves one of 222 Campaign Promises – Report

Seven months after taking over government, the Muhammadu Buhari administration has succeeded in achieving only one out of the 222 campaign promises made to Nigerians, according to a report by Buharimetre, a civil society monitoring report tracking the implementation of the president’s campaign promises.

The report, which covers the activities of the All Progressives Congress-led Federal Government from May 29 to December 31, 2015, observed in its assessment that the achievement was in the area of the fight against corruption, even though a lot was still left undone in that regard.

“PMB has only achieved 1 out of the 222 tracked promises, which constitutes 0.5 percent of the promises,” Buharimetre reported.

“ More so, it reveals that while the government is taking action to achieving only 27 (12.2 percent approximately) of the tracked promises thus ongoing, 194 electoral promises are still ‘Not Rated.’
“ The latter constitutes 87.3 percent of the tracked promises.”

The electoral promises not rated, it says, is because there is “no tangible related activities being implemented.”

The 2015 report is the fourth on the series of report on the assessment of the performance of President  Muhammadu Buhari  and the governing party, the APC, on the delivery of its 222 electoral promises.

The report examined and focused on issues around insecurity, the economy, oil and gas, corruption, agriculture and social sectors, with emphasis on the environment.

It also provided useful insights into the current state of key sectors as a way of establishing the basis of measuring outcomes.

Assessing the fight against corruption, the report noted that there had been visible efforts to combat corruption since the inauguration of the present administration, naming the arrest and prosecution of some notable persons and the efforts to recover looted funds.

“PMB anti-corruption efforts have been commended as a step in the right direction,” the report noted.
“ Positive opinions in this regard are due to the possible positive impact of the efforts on development and democracy in the country.

“However, the government has been accused of politics of selection in the fight against corruption. A delay in the prosecution of the accused people has been a major criticism of the government. Moreover, while the government has shown unmatched commitment to curbing corruption, such effort should be institutionalised.”
The report observed that one of the promises of the current administration was to strengthen the capacity of anti-graft agencies, particularly EFCC and ICPC, by guaranteeing their prosecutorial and financial independence as well as security of tenure.

“Despite the fact that the anti-grant agencies have shown renewed efforts in the fight against corrupt practices, there has been no effort by the government to amend relevant laws to guarantee their independence in these areas,” states the report.

“Moreover, nothing has been done to enact the Whistle Blower Act, as promised by the administration. We believe that through these interventions, the performance of anti-graft agencies would not rely on the personality and political will of President Buhari, but rather the campaign against corruption would be institutionalised and thereby would extend beyond the current administration.”

While stating that it was aware of government’s commitment to fighting corruption and blocking leakages in both the civil service and the oil and gas sector; and exhibiting a strong political will to fight corruption irrespective of who is involved,  Buharimetre observed that the fight against corruption must not be devoid of strict adherence to the rule of law.

“In the last few months, several of the people accused of corruption have been detained against the law, which stipulates that all accused must be brought before the court 48 hours after arrest,” it stated.

“Some people granted bail have since been re-arrested and detained. The fight against corruption must be pursued in line with due process and never in abuse of the law.

“It is also imperative for the government to acknowledge that the fight against corruption should not be confused as sufficient to address all governance challenges in the country.

“Essentially, fighting corruption is and should remain one of the policy priorities of government but not the only overarching intervention necessary to strengthen governance, especially in a country like Nigeria where democracy is still transitioning.

“The campaign against corrupt practices should simultaneously exist with interventions such as social provisions that could discourage people from engaging in corrupt practices, and to a large extent, galvanize support for the campaign. This may also help institutionalise the anti-corruption process in the country.

“ Allegations of perceived bias continue to be made against the PMB administration in several parts of the country. For instance, the South Eastern part of the country continues to claim marginalization on the part of the government.”

Boko Haram
Although, Buharimetre noted the efforts of the Nigerian military in the fight against Boko Haram insurgency in the north east of Nigeria and to ensure security in the entire country, it said the rising wave of violent crimes such as armed robbery, kidnapping, militancy in the Nigeria Delta and the activities of Biafra separatists groups were posing even greater danger to the security of life in the country.

The report acknowledged the achievements in decimating the capabilities of Boko Haram insurgents in the North East and the reorganization of the entire structure in the anti-terrorism project, but noted that the sect continues to display strong resilience and shocking adaptability.

“Members of the group, who formerly travelled in armoured personnel carriers (APCs), now ride horses, motor bikes and bicycles to carry out their nefarious activities,” said the report.

“ These range from poisoning water when fleeing villages and adopting soft target attacks using suicide bombing, executed mostly by young girls.

“The insurgents have also carried out attacks in Nyanya and Kuje, on the outskirts of the capital city, Abuja.”
It faulted the government’s responses to the increasing number of internally displaced persons whose living conditions had become life threatening.

The report also underscored government’s failure to officially unveil its accountability plans for resolving the Boko Haram insurgency.

“This may be partly because the problem is not Boko Haram alone. Amnesty International recently issued a report titled Stars on Their Shoulders, Blood on Their Hands indicting the Nigerian military for its wanton killings in the war against the insurgency,” it said.

“The ICC-OTP has also established eight possible cases of crimes against humanity in relation to the North East of Nigeria. This includes six possible cases against Boko Haram and two possible cases against the Nigerian security forces.”

The report also drew attention to the fact that the remote and immediate causes of violent extremism are still very much alive in the polity.

“There are smaller, less popular Islamic radical groups present in several parts of Northern  Nigeria,” says the report.

“For instance, Yanlabaiku in Kebbi state is preaching against Western education and Westernisation, and Niger state is pervaded by different radical Islamist groups. Most of these groups live in seclusion, preaching and practicing radical Islam.”

It also cited armed banditry which had continue to terrorise rural communities, rustling cattle, raping and abducting women and girls, killing people and committing highway robbery and thus increasing tension in Northern Nigeria.

Also citing the Biafra struggle, the report noted that the state approach, and particularly the security sector approach in handling the conflicts remained a cause for concern across the country.

“There are fears that if the IPOB is not properly managed, it may degenerate into a low level insurgency, further compounding current security challenges,” it said.

“Soon after the security agents clampdown on the Biafra separatist movement, there were reports that the Nigerian Army, in preventing an alleged attempted assassination on the Chief of Army staff, General Buratai, killed twenty Shia members in Zaria.

“The Shia are said to have put up barricades and blocked the road to be used by General Buratai. The Army went to the sect’s enclave Husainiyyah, the residence of sect leader Ibrahim Zakzaky in Gyallesu, and the DarurRahma mosque, where many unarmed people were killed.

“Human Rights Watch (HRW), has alleged that no fewer than 300 members of the Shia sect were killed and secretly buried by members of the Nigerian army,” the report stated.

Fire kills mother, seven children in Ebonyi

Eight members of a family have been burnt to death in a fire outbreak in Ebonyi state.
Premium Times reports that the tragedy struck on Friday, January 29, in Ohufu village, Ogboji community in Ishielu local government area of the state.

A horrible inferno killed a woman and seven children, while the husband, Sylvanus Nefuru, and one of the children, Ukamaka Nwefuru, escaped death.

It was gathered that the incident happened at 3 a.m., when the family members were sleeping.

A 80-year-old Sylvanus Nweferu said that he heard a loud noise while in deep sleep which woke him up.
The survived girl said that her mother rescued her and went to save another member of the family when she was caught by the fire and died.

Confirming the incident, Henry Eze, the caretaker committee chairman of Ishielu local government area, lamented the death of the family and urged security agencied to investigate the matter.

In December 2015, a similar tragedy happened in Ogun state, when a family-of-five met with an ill-fate, after a night fire engulfed their residence at Abule Ake.

Residents within the Idi Aba area of Abeokuta metropolis were thrown into mourning as none of the Oloruku family was saved from the inferno.

Photo: 33-yr-old woman delivers baby from 4yr-old pregnancy

– Woman delivers baby after being pregnant for four years
– The baby was said to have “got lost” in the womb
– A consultant on naturopathic gynaecologist said it was an abnormal medical record

A 33-year-old woman identified as Oluwabunmi Ogidan was delivered of a baby on Wednesday, January 27 after reportedly being pregnant for four years.

The town of Ikugbomire in Obafemi Owode local government area, Ogun state became a sort of Mecca as people trooped to Alayo Vantage Hospital from far and near for a glimpse of the miracle baby, The Nation reports.

She had gotten married to her husband, Bankole Ogidan on August 27, 2011 and in 2013, there were signs that she was pregnant.

Woman delivers baby from four-year-old pregnancy in Ogun

Narrating what happened, her husband said: “We went for pregnancy test and it was confirmed positive. A few days after, my wife complained that she was feeling pains in her womb. We went to a midwife who told us that the pain was not a problem; that the pregnancy was intact. I was not satisfied, so I took her to another hospital (name withheld) where we did a scan but the doctor said he didn’t see any pregnancy. The doctor said there had been a miscarriage. I asked him that shouldn’t there be an outflow of blood if she had a miscarriage? The doctor said yes. I told him that we had not witnessed anything like that and he was shocked.”

He said they ran to their pastor, Prophet Emmanuel Ogbara, who assured him that God had told him the pregnancy was intact.

They returned to the hospital and were told that she had multiple fibroid in her womb with no chance of conception.

“All this while, my wife’s menstruation had ceased. It was only once after the pregnancy was sighted that we observed that little blood came out but stopped almost immediately. We left there for the Government Hospital in Owode, Ogun state,” Bankole said.

Meanwhile, Oluwabunmi’s stomach had protruded as if she was due for delivery and she had become the gossip of the town’s people.

Bankole explained that on September 10, 2015, his wife became ill with labour signs and he took her to the hospital. She was treated and asked to go for scan.

To the glory of God, the doctor here said he had seen a baby; that my wife was carrying four months pregnancy. At the church, the prophet confirmed again that the child had all along been there; only that scan could not pick it. So the hospital continued to nurture the baby for antenatal. But here again, they still saw fibroid in the womb. But to the glory of God 27th January this year, our baby finally arrived,” he said.
But before the baby was born, it was said to have “got lost” in the womb.

The hospital’s matron said: “We had to do an operation. When we did, we found that contrary to scan reports, we met a different thing in the womb. It was a sac with pus inside. It was not fibroid. And looking inside, we didn’t see any baby. But I remembered that I used to hear sound inside Mrs Ogidan’s womb, so the doctor searched further; the baby was hidden in the uterus.

“We thank God. It’s a miracle. The sac was so big that it swallowed up the uterus where the baby was. The sac was so big that the uterus could not be easily found. The doctor said he had never seen such a thing before.”

Dr Sam Akinyemi, a consultant on naturopathic gynaecologist described the situation as “an abnormal medical record.”

'We are not deterred, we are not dismayed' – Peterside

– Dakuku Peterside accepted the verdict of the Supreme Court
– He noted that the blood of those who were killed during election in the state will demand for justice

“We are not deterred, we are not dismayed. Our first position is that we have accepted the verdict of the Supreme Court, if though, with some form of reservations.”

Dakuku Peterside, the Rivers state governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has stated that the blood of those who were killed during election in the state will demand for justice.
Leadership reports that Peterside said this on Saturday, January 30, while addressing supporters of the APC who were at the Port Harcourt International Airport, to receive him on his arrival from Abuja.
Speaking about the Supreme Court’s ruling to uphold the election of Governor Nyesom Wike, the APC candidate said:

“We are not deterred, we are not dismayed. Our first position is that we have accepted the verdict of the Supreme Court, if though, with some form of reservations. But, we have not alternative. So, that verdict has been accepted but we also know that the blood of all those people who were killed on the 11th of April; all those people who were killed will be crying for justice.

“You may have gotten the judgement of man, but wait for the judgement of God. In the judgement of God, there is no appeal. So, please, don’t be discouraged; you have always known that we are greater together. One thing is definite, and the only thing we are certain about is that God’s judgment is coming and when it comes, there is not any man can do about it.

“We have not heard the end of this matter. If you serve a living God, you have no cause to worry, unless nobody died in the cause of the election, unless they did not use violence on our people, unless, the did not soil their hands, then, they will go scot free. But if they killed one life, if they killed people, if people died, if blood was spilled in his land, nobody who had a hand in it, who participated in the meeting will ever go scot free.”

Speaking earlier, Peterside had promised to offer help to the government of Wike through the provision of virile opposition. He also expressed hope that the Rivers state governor and his team would appreciate the suggestions and proposals that were made in the interest of people of the state.

FA Cup: Iheanacho bags a hat-trick, Ighalo strikes again

– Iheanacho scored a hat-trick for Manchester City
– Ighalo scored for Watford
– Van Gaal is a relieved man
Naij.com sports reviews the fourth round of the English FA cup with Iheanacho scoring his first hat-trick for the Etihad outfit and Ighalo came on as a substitute to make the difference in Watford’s away victory.
Rooney, Blind and Mata eased the pressure on their manager, Louis Van Gaal.

Derby 1-3 Manchester United

A sigh of relief at last for Van Gaal as Rooney, Blind and Mata put a smile back on the face of their beleaguered boss.

Juan Mata was a revelation, and flourished in his favoured playmaker role after eventually earning the trust of the manager to spearhead United’s attacking and creative play.

However, the Spaniard was a peripheral figure in the early exchanges despite his imaginative and fluid movements.

Rooney’s superb curler set the ball rolling before allowing the host back into the game with George Thorne’s equalizer. Jesse Lingard provided the cross for Blind to score, putting United back into the lead.
The diminutive and impressive Spaniard rounded the night proceedings by applying the finishing touch to Martial’s pull-back late in the game to ease the pressure on their manager.

Colchester 1-4 Tottenham Hotspur

The gulf in class was obvious from the first whistle with Spurs continuously peppering the host’s defence. Colchester were not helped by the early loss of both central defenders to injury, with Wynter stretchered off, aiding Tottenham’s domination.

The away side deservedly opened the scoring in the 27^th minute when Lamela slides Chadli into space down the inside right, who curled the ball into the top left.


Erik Dier made it two in 64 minutes and Chadli’s brace made it three for the opposition in 78 minutes with a guided header.

Ben Davies’s own goal gave Colchester some hope of a comeback before Carrol put paid to that aspiration five minutes later by completing the goal-fest with a sweet volley.

Manchester United jubliates. Credit: AP

Arsenal 1-1 Burnley
Arsenal’s defence of the FA Cup continued unabated with a professional performance. Alexis Sanchez saved the Gunner’s blushes with his first goal in as many start since return from injury.

The first-half was fairly even with both sides creating chances. Calum Chambers put the home team ahead, his second-ever goal for Arsenal with a peach of a finish but Burnley deservedly got themselves level with a fine header from Sam Vokes.

Arsenal tightened their grip on the game in the second half resulting in a magnificient team goal. Sanchez started and finished the move when Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s cross was smashed high into the net to put the Gunners in the hat for the fifth round.

Iheanacho celebrates his goal

Aston Villa 0-2 Manchester City
Iheanacho’s brace in the first half gave the opposition the perfect start to this comprehensive victory against an abysmal Villa side on their own ground.

He later secured his first hat-trick for the Etihad outfit in the rout. Iheanacho scored his first from the first corner of the game snatching home Fernando’s headed goal-bound ball on the line.
The second via a penatly awarded after Bacuna was adjudged to have shoved Raheem Sterling. Iheanacho scored his hat-trick when he ran into an empty space before beating Guzan at leisure.
His acrobat overhead kick led to the fourth with sterling bundling in to complete the rout.

Nothingham 0-0 Watford

Nigerian striker, Odion Ighalo’s late goal put his team to the fifth round after coming on as a late substitute, his 15^th goal of the season.

The match was full of efforts and endeavours, but with little quality. The home team came into the match having conceded only once in their last five games and equally less effective scoring goals, Watford on the other hand were neat and purposeful but missed the predatory instinct of the Nigerian.

Ighalo made the difference when he eventually came on by capitalising on Kelvin Wilson mis-kick to drive in the decisive goal.

Full Results of the fourth round of the FA Cup 2016
Colchester1-4Tottenham
Arsenal 2-1 Burnley
Aston Villa 0-4 Man City
Bolton 1-2 Leeds
Bury 1-3 Hull
Crystal Palace 1-0 Stoke
Nottm Forest 0-1 Watford
Oxford Utd 0-3 Blackburn
Portsmouth 1-2 Bournemouth
Reading 4-0 Walsall
Shrewsbury 3-2 Sheff Wed
West Brom 2-2 Peterborough

The Super Eagles must prepare for match against Egypt - Rufai

– The Super Eagles must prepare well for the crucial Nations cup qualifier against Egypt
– Sunday Oliseh needs to evaluate himself
– The team should take positive lessons from the CHAN exit

Nigeria’s ex-international and arguably the best Nigerian goalkeeper of all time Peter Rufai also known as ‘Dodo Mayana’, was at the launch of Ikorodu United, one of the Lagos based newly promoted side to the Nigerian premier league.

In an interview with Naij.com Sports, the ex number one shot-stopper thanked the management of Ikorodu United for returning elite football to Nigeria’s commercial hub.

He also cautions Sunday Oliseh on the crucial Nations Cup and World Cup qualifiers which are fast approaching.

Excerpts:

Naij.com Sports: Sir, Ikorodu United are being launched into the premier league, how do you feel about this?
I have to give the management big kudos. Not just for the success, but one-for-one I can tell you, it would not have been easy.

They have been consistent. If you want to move to the elite league anywhere in the world, there are big challenges, especially in this part of the world.

Having set up a team like this, you fit in the right people into positions, and this has told their story.

Players of Ikorodu United display their kit

Looking at the management and the players, the technical crew, it is not easy managing players in this country. I can tell you, for them to have been able to keep these boys from different background is a big kudos.

For them to be promoted into the elite league, the fans in Lagos that have been longing for this; in fact we thought we would have it with Stationery Stores, it did not come true All efforts did not go well.
This time around, Ikorodu United have made it and I am glad on that note.

Naij.com Sports: Looking at the Super Eagles and their early exit at the African Nations Championship, how did you feel as an ex-international?
Personally, I don’t think that tells well on grounds of what we should be doing now in Africa and in the world, in terms of football.

It is over three decades since Nigeria had dominated the scene; I am talking about the 80s, before my time, then during my time. Right now, we should be in a position of both knowledge of the game and playing of the game, as well as the knowledge of tournaments and participation and knowledge of preparation.
With all these, Nigeria today should have been masters. So, it tells it all. I am disappointed that up till now, we are still struggling with the game itself.

I think the challenges the team had encountered, we hear different information about not properly being taken care of and all that, but I know the present administration are doing everything within their reach. Now we have a Barrister Seyi Akinwunmi, a man with a well-proven knowledge of soccer management alongside Amaju Pinnick, the president.

Peter Rufai

So, we know they are good hands and I wonder what would have happened. However, if we want to look at another perspective where we should know it is time to raise new players for the national team
To do this for the future, we should be ready to take the challenges.

So I think the exit at CHAN has served as a lesson and we should take it as a build-up process.

Naij.com Sports: Now the World Cup and Nations Cup qualifiers are fast approaching, what lessons have we learnt from the early exit in Rwanda?
The early exit took everyone by surprise, because they walloped their Nigerien opponents in the first game.
Their game against Tunisia was a big one, as the North Africans are never push overs in African football; the last game against Guinea; I used to know the Guineans as a very tough team, though many would not observe this. The Camaras of those days, whenever we play against these guys, we are always on our toes.
So we should not let over confidence over shadow us. So, this has served as a lesson for the boys.
I hope this would be a morale booster for the team.

Naij.com Sports: Sir, the Super Eagles will play a crucial AFCON qualifier against the Pharaohs of Egypt about 7 weeks from now, what are the ‘ingredients’ missing which you think Oliseh can quickly work on?
We don’t have anything missing in terms of expertise in our football. I only believe Oliseh would evaluate himself and then pick-up over expectations and work towards the victory of this crucial encounter.

Peter Rufai in action at USA 94′

Naij.com Sports: Finally, what’s your advice for the Ikorodu United players?
Fantastic! Number one they must be discipline, as long as they have this. You can describe the word discipline in over a hundred of pages.

As long as they can handle this with commitment, then the sky is not their limit. They would go as far as possible.

Merkel: Refugees Must Go Home After Wars End

German Chancellor Angela Merkel addresses a news conference at the Chancellery in Berlin January 29.Fabrizio Bensch/Reuters

NEUBRANDENBURG, Germany (Reuters) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Saturday tried to placate the increasingly vocal critics of her open-door policy for refugees, insisting that asylum seekers from Syria and Iraq would go home once the conflicts there had ended.

Merkel, despite appearing increasingly isolated over her policy, has resisted pressure from some conservatives to cap the influx of refugees, or to close Germany's borders. A record 1.1 million migrants arrived in Germany last year.

But growing concern about the country's ability to cope and worries about crime and security after assaults on women are weighing on support for Merkel's Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party and its Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU).

Merkel said that despite efforts to integrate refugees and help them, it was important to stress that they had only been given permission to stay for a limited period of time.

"We need...to say to people that this is a temporary residential status and we expect that once there is peace in Syria again, once IS has been defeated in Iraq, that you go back to your home country with the knowledge that you have gained," she said at a meeting of CDU members in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.

She said 70 percent of refugees that fled to Germany from the war in the former Yugoslavia in the 1990s had returned to their home countries.

Her remarks come after Horst Seehofer, leader of the CSU, threatened to take her government to court if his demand to stem the flow of asylum seekers was not met.

Support for the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) has edged up into double digits. Its leader said in an interview published on Saturday that border guards should shoot at refugees to prevent them from illegally entering the country if need be.

Merkel has tried to convince other European countries to take in quotas of refugees, pushed for reception centers to be built on Europe's external borders, and led an EU campaign to try to convince Turkey to keep refugees from entering the bloc.

But progress has been slow.

Germany wants to limit migration from North Africa by declaring Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia "safe countries," which would end their citizens' chance of being granted asylum.

Merkel said she had spoken to Morocco's king and that Morocco had said it was prepared to take back people from that country.

Children Abused by EU Troops in Central African Republic: U.N.

The U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyer USS Curtis Wilbur patrols in the Philippine Sea in this file photo. The destroyer sailed within 12 nautical miles of an island claimed by China and two other states in the South China Sea on January 30.U.S. Navy/Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Declan Barnes/Handout via Reuters

WASHINGTON/SHANGHAI (Reuters) - A U.S. Navy destroyer sailed within 12 nautical miles of an island claimed by China and two other states in the South China Sea on Saturday to counter efforts to limit freedom of navigation, the Pentagon said.

China claims most of the South China Sea, through which more than $5 trillion of world trade is shipped every year. Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines and Taiwan have rival claims.

Pentagon spokesman Captain Jeff Davis said no ships from China's military were in the vicinity of the guided-missile destroyer USS Curtis Wilbur when it passed near Triton Island in the Paracel Islands.

"This operation challenged attempts by the three claimants—China, Taiwan and Vietnam—to restrict navigation rights and freedoms," Davis said, reflecting the U.S. position that the crucial sea lane should be treated as international waters.

The Navy conducted a similar exercise in October in which the guided-missile destroyer Lassen sailed close to one of China's manmade islands, drawing a rebuke from Beijing.

Davis said the latest operation sought to challenge policies that require prior permission or notification of transit within territorial seas. He said the United States took no position on competing sovereignty claims to naturally formed land features in the South China Sea.

"No claimants were notified prior to the transit, which is consistent with our normal process and international law," Davis said.

The Chinese foreign ministry responded Saturday evening with a statement on its website condemning the action.

"The American warship has violated relevant Chinese laws by entering Chinese territorial waters without prior permission, and the Chinese side has taken relevant measures including monitoring and admonishments," China's foreign ministry said in a statement.

China's defense ministry followed up later Saturday night with a far more forceful statement on its website, calling the American action "intentionally provocative" and "irresponsible and extremely dangerous."
The ministry also said that Chinese navy vessels had immediately taken responsive action, conducted identification checks and promptly gave warnings for the ship to keep its distance.

"Regardless of whatever provocative steps the American side takes, China's military will take all necessary measures to firmly safeguard national sovereignty and security," the ministry statement concluded.
The operation followed calls in Congress for the Obama administration to follow up on the October operation.

This month, the chairman of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee criticized Obama for delaying further freedom of navigation patrols.

He said that allowed China to continue to pursue its territorial ambitions in the region, including by landing a plane on a manmade island in the Spratly Islands archipelago.

SOKOTO : MAN BEHEADED FOR FLYING BIAFRAN FLAG BY HAUSAS

SOKOTO : MAN BEHEADED FOR FLYING BIAFRAN FLAG BY HAUSAS
 
Disturbing report coming in from Sokoto in northern Nigeria has it that an Igbo man was today beheaded by the Hausa Fulani ethnic groups of Nigeria in northern Nigeria for flying the biafran flag. This is are some of the reasons biafrans are asking for a separate state from Nigeria because their freedom and existence cannot be guaranteed in Nigeria. More details coming soon.

Nigerian Men Rush To Eritrean Embassy For Visa Over Compulsory Two Wives Tale

Nigerian Men Rush To Eritrean Embassy For Visa Over Compulsory Two Wives Tale

A recent juicy faboo tale on Punch, SaharaReporters, Vanguard and other Nigerian mainstream media of a mufti who wished for laws that made it compulsory to have two wives or face jail has sparked a “visa rush” in Nigeria as men of all walks of life have been cramming the Eritrean embassy in Kano for Visas.

Eritrea, the Grand Mufti, the highest religious authority in the country, declared that every man must marry two women or face a jail sentence. The declaration was leaked last Thursday on several social media platforms. The Eritrean government will compensate Eritrean men for the marriage ceremonies and houses.  SaharaReporters’ juicy tale.

The fabulous hoax story appears to have first originated from a post in Punch that referenced a misread article in Afkinsider.com.
The form below filled by this handsome young man was filled with “marriage” as the reason for application.

Heavy gun battle between army and BH in Maiduguri (Happening Now)

– Eplosions and gunfire have rocked Maiduguri
– Nigerian troops are battling suspected Boko Haram terrorists
– A civilian Joint Task Force confirmed the attack

The Nigerian troops are said to be battling suspected Boko Haram terrorists as

explosions and gunfire have been heard in Maiduguri, the Borno state capital.

According to Sahara Reporters, the insurgent have been attacking Dailori and Walonri villages, on outskirts of Maiduguri, since 7:23 pm.

Some student of the University of Maiduguri residing at 202 Housing Estate are now running for their lives as the conflict rages.

Speaking with journalists, Hauwa Ba’na, a 300 level of political science student, said: ”We are crying in our hostel because the explosions are loud and everyone is panicking.”

Confirming the attack, a civilian Joint Task Force said: ”We are under attack by Boko Haram. There is heavy fighting with military in Dalori and Wanori.”

Lecturer Dr Danfulani Arrested For Criticizing Buhari On Facebook Denied Bail

Chief magistrate Court 1, Kaduna, has denied Dr John Danfulani bail after being detained by the police for over 24 hours.

Danfulani, a lecturer with the Kaduna State University, KASU, is being held for alleged inciting and hateful statements in the social media against the people of northern Nigeria, thereby, capable of causing breakdown of law and order in northern Nigeria and other parts of the country. This is contrary to section 417 and 418 of the penal code of northern Nigeria.

The magistrate, Alhaji Awwal Musa while presiding over the case, said that the police was empowered to protect, investigate and carry out the duty assigned to them, hence the court cannot deny them their power.

He argued that the police had not finished their investigation yet, and as such, Dr Danfulani be remanded in police custody. He also said that further investigation must be concluded in the matter latest by Monday, 1st February, 2016.

Earlier, Barrister Gamaliel Kore, leading other six defending counsels sought for the bail of the accused person, saying that the case was bailable, and as a responsible lecturer, he would not jump bail.

He argued that the accused was invited by the police which he voluntarily honoured even when he was away in foreign country, stressing that if granted bail, he will always be available to stand trial.

The prosecuting officer had prayed that the court should not grant the accused person bail but should be remanded in police custody for three weeks to allow full investigation into the matter without any interference.

Danfulani, who was detained over an alleged Facebook comment is said to be a known critic of the government of Mallam Nasir El Rufai. Below is a screen shot of the post that allegedly got him arrested and detained.

Zika Virus: 7 Things You Need To Know About The Deadly Viral Infection

Lately, the mosquito-borne Zika virus has become a global emergency and a subject of global concern, even as the World Health Organization has projected that up to 4 million people may be affected in the ongoing outbreak. As of today, cases of the viral infection have been reported in 23 countries across the Central and South America. In fact, latest statistics revealed that 36 people in the United States, including 4 pregnant women have been diagnosed with Zika virus infection. Highlighted below are answers to some of the questions you may want to ask about the Zika virus:

1. What is Zika Virus?
It is a mosquito-borne virus first identified in 1947 among Rhesus monkeys in Uganda. About five years later, Zikavirus was identified in humans in Uganda and Tanzania. Since then, outbreaks of the virus have been recorded in the Americas, Africa, Asia and the Pacific. This virus belongs to the flavivirus genre where Yellow Fever and Dengue also belong.

2. How is Zika Virus transmitted?
So far, it has been established that Zika virus is mosquito-borne. It is usually transmitted to people when they get bitten by an infected mosquito of the Aedes genus, especially Aedesaegyptii, the same mosquito implicated in the transmission of Yellow Fever, Dengue Fever and Chikungunya. Unlike the female Anopheles mosquito which transmits malaria, Aedes mosquito has been described as a daytime mosquito because it usually bites during the morning and evening hours.

3. How can one know if one has Zika Virus?
Although the time of exposure to onset of symptoms (incubation period) is yet unclear for Zika virus, experts have said it is likely to be a few days. The infected individual may experience mild symptoms of fever, skin rashes, muscle and joint pains, headache, malaise and red eyes. Note, however, that only about 20% of infected individuals will show symptoms which typically last for 2 – 7 days.

. Can Zika Virus wreak any havoc?
Intensive research is still ongoing to establish a definite link between Zika virus infection in pregnant women and babies born with small heads (microcephaly). In Brazil which is the worst hit by the current outbreak, more than 4000 children have been diagnosed with microcephaly – a condition where a baby is born with an abnormally small head and by implication, a small brain. Such a baby will most likely experience delays in achieving developmental milestones as well as possible mental retardation in future. In the same vein, the current Zika virus outbreak has been linked with a higher number of cases of Guillain-Barre syndrome, a rare paralysis syndrome that may occur after some viral or bacterial infections.

5. How is Zika Virus diagnosed?
A highly sensitive and specific method employed in the diagnosis of Zika virus is the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) which is based on a process that produces multiple copies of the viral DNA. Since the virus can easily cross-react with similar flaviviruses such as Dengue and Yellow Fever, serological diagnosis is not reliable since it can lead to false-positive results.

6. Can Zika Virus be treated?
Currently, no drug treatment or vaccine has been discovered for Zika virus. However, since the symptoms are often mild, supportive treatment will often suffice such as drinking plenty fluids for adequate hydration, pain relief, bed rest and control of fever.

7. Can Zika Virus be prevented?
Yes, Zika virus infection is preventable by eliminating potential sources of the Aedes mosquito and preventing contact between the mosquito and people. How can this be achieved? By clearing your environment of potential breeding sites such as stagnant water or overgrown bushes, use of insecticide-treated mosquito nets, use of insect repellant creams, putting on clothes that cover as much of the body as possible since the Zika virus often bites during the day. In combating this menace, Brazil has now deployed thousands of workers to scour her cities for mosquito breeding grounds while also fumigating those areas and educating residents on the dangers of still and stagnant water where the female Aedes mosquitoes lay their eggs.