Obasanjo blasts Jonathan again

2015-01-06 11:31
Abuja - Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has again launched a public attack on President Goodluck Jonathan, accusing him of squandering $25billion crude oil savings left behind by his administration, Punch reports.

Obasanjo made the allegation while hosting the South-West women leaders who visited him at his Hilltop residence in Abeokuta, Ogun State.

He said his administration left $25billion in Nigeria’s foreign reserve account after paying the outstanding debt at the time but the government of President Jonathan has squandered it.

Obasanjo’ latest attack on the President is coming few weeks after he rated Jonathan’s performance as below average and held him responsible for the increase in the activities of insurgents in the north.

He recently released a book 'My Watch' mid-December in which he berated the president and some other public figures, accusing them of plunging the country into the current economic and political crisis.

Read more on Punch

I'm a saint compared to current administration - Babangida

2015-01-06 12:42
Abuja - Former Military President Gen. Ibrahim Babangida has said that he and those who served in his administration were saints compared to the level of corruption currently in the country, Nigerian Eye reports.

Babangida made the claim in an interview with a team of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission’s press crew. He also denied that he was corrupt as has been insinuated in many quarters.










He said the assumption that his military administration institutionalized corruption in Nigeria is incorrect.

Babangida was alleged to have embezzled the $12.4 billion Gulf Oil War windfall of 1991, an allegation he denied.

He said the oil price at that time was below $18 per barrel. So, there is no way he could make $12.4 billion in three months in which the war lasted.

Read more on Nigerian Eye

Navy receives US warship donation

2015-01-06 13:54
Abuja - The United States has donated a warship to the Nigerian Navy.

The donation was disclosed in a document released by the American Embassy in Abuja.

At a reception held to welcome the ship, Consul General, Jeffrey Hawkins,  said, "Today’s arrival of the Okpabana (the ship) completes a process that started in 2012" the statement read. 

He added that the transfer illustrated the robust maritime cooperation that existed between the US and Nigeria.

"From the transfer of major naval assets like this one, to training for Nigeria’s elite naval special operations units, to multi-national training exercises, the United States is fully engaged with our Nigerian Navy counterparts and is pleased to see the expanding capabilities of the Nigerian Navy."

He pledged his country's commitment to helping find solutions to Nigerian challenges.

- CAJ News

Buhari, Atiku rubbish Jonathan on Twitter

2015-01-06 13:54
Abuja - The presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Muhammadu Buhari and former vice president Atiku Abubakar on Tuesday rubbished the performance of President Goodluck Jonathan, reports NewsDay.

The duo were reacting a tweet by Jonathan’s Special Adviser on New Media, Reno Omokri.

Omokri had in a tweet @renoomokr listed the achievements of the Jonathan administration in the health sector, which earned Nigeria a Guinea Worm-free status in 2013.

Buhari in his tweet @Thisisbuhari faulted Jonathan’s claim, saying there was noting extra ordinary in the performance of Jonathan.

He noted that the job of  government is to ensure security and peace of the nation and not the promotion of religious bigotry.

Atiku in his twitter handle @atiku echoed Buhari condemnation of  Jonathan, saying Nigerians are worst today compared to when Jonathan took over in 2009.

He called on voters to express their constitutional rights in the February 14 presidential election by voting for a candidate with requisite experience to tackle the current challenges in the country.

Read more at NewsDay.

See which striker is about to choose Leicester City over Chelsea!

2015-01-06 15:00
Abuja - Despite a 32 point difference between the clubs in the English Premiership, Leicester City are set to beat Chelsea to the signing of Croatian striker Andrej Kramaric.

Metro report that the HNK Rijeka star will snub Chelsea and the potential English Premiership glory to join basement side Leicester City.

Kramaric has been in profiilic form this season, netting more than a goal a game for the club in the top-flight of Croatian football.

The 23-year-old striker has been linked with a move to England and reports in his homeland suggest that Kramaric will complete a deal with Leicester City shortly.

Leicester City will pay a fee in the region of £9.4 million to bring Kramaric to the English Premiership.

It is believed Kramaric prefers the chance to start for the Foxes over the possibility of being shipped out on loan by Jose Mourinho.

Reverend Father Mbaka alleges threat to life

2015-01-06 15:00

Enugu  - Reverend Father Ejike Mbaka said he has been receiving threat messages since his New Year message in which he asked Nigerians not to re-elect President Goodluck Jonathan in the forthcoming presidential elections, Sunnews reports.

While delivering his sermon on January 4th at the Christ the King Catholic Parish GRA, Enugu, the clergyman said he was not afraid of anybody and that he has delivered the message he was sent to deliver.

He said he has been accused of receiving money from APC Presidential candidate Gen Muhammadu Buhari, a man he claimed he doesn't know in person.

Fr. Mbaka said he would have delivered his message to Patience Jonathan privately but efforts to reach her failed on several occasions.

Read more at Sunnews

What is still not known about AirAsia jet

30 minutes ago

Jakarta - AirAsia Flight 8501 crashed into the Java Sea with 162 people on board, halfway into a 28 December flight from Surabaya, Indonesia, to Singapore. Dozens of bodies have been recovered, and search teams have detected what is believed to be the plane's wreckage, but many questions remain unanswered. Here are some of them:

What caused the plane to go down?
The pilot told air traffic control he was approaching threatening clouds and asked to climb above them, from 9 750 m to 11 580 m. But with six other planes in the same airspace, permission was denied. When the tower tried to make contact four minutes later, there was no response, and the Airbus A320 was gone from the radar. The investigation will hinge on the discovery of the black boxes and the wreckage itself.

Where are the black boxes?
With high surf preventing the deployment of ships that drag "ping" locators, no signals have been detected from the aircraft's all-important cockpit voice and flight data recorders. Both will provide essential information, including the plane's vertical and horizontal speeds along with engine temperature and final conversations between the captain and co-pilot. The black boxes' ping-emitting beacons still have around 20 days before their batteries go dead.

Where are the bodies and debris?
A massive international search effort involving planes, ships and helicopters continues despite heavy rain, high waves and strong currents. So far, only around three dozen bodies have been recovered, some still strapped into their seats. Sonar has identified what is believed to be five large parts of the plane on the seabed, but rough conditions along with mud and silt have kept divers from getting a clear visual on it.

Was the plane authorised to fly?
Indonesia has launched an investigation into AirAsia's operating practices after alleging the low-cost carrier did not have permits to fly from Surabaya to Singapore on Sundays, the day the plane crashed. All of the carrier's flights on that route have since been cancelled. The Transportation Ministry also has suspended officials who allowed the plane to fly without authorisation, including the Surabaya airport's operator and officials in the control tower. AirAsia has declined to comment until the evaluation is completed.
AP