₦airaland Forum

Ihuoma Chiedozie, Enugu

A former Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, Dr. Emeka Anyaoku, on Tuesday canvassed the abolition of the 36 states in the country.

Anyaoku, who spoke at a public symposium organised by the Nigerian Bible Society in Enugu, said most of the state governments were not viable as they were finding it difficult to pay their workers.

At the event which held at Cathedral Church of the Good Shepherd, Anglican Communion, Enugu, Anyaoku canvassed a return to the regional structure practised in the First Republic, with the country’s six regions forming federating units.

He argued that the current 36-state structure was unwieldy and very expensive.

According to him, the multiplication of administrative organs, occasioned by the 36-state structure, means that a major proportion of the country’s resources is spent on administration.

Anyaoku said, “The present governance arrangement we have, with the country comprising 36 non-viable states, most of which cannot pay the salaries of their teachers and civil servants, is not the best.

“Rather, we should return to an arrangement, where the six regions will form six federating units.

“Having 36 states means we have 36 state assemblies, 36 judiciary services and so on. All these mean that the country is spending too much money on administration.”

Anyaoku noted that Nigeria recorded more development during the era of the six regional governments.

“Those of us who are old enough to remember the six regions know that the country was developing better in those days,” he added.

Anyaoku commended the Anglican Church in Nigeria for opposing same-sex marriage, despite the acceptance of the practice by the English chapter of the church.

He lauded the Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Enugu, Rt. Rev. Emmanuel Chukwuma, for openly resisting moves by western powers to impose gay marriage on the Nigerian congregation.

http://www.punchng.com/anyaoku-canvasses-return-to-six-regions-abolition-of-states/
Lalasticlala

There is palpable fear in the camps of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) in Abia State as the Supreme Court begins hearing on the appeal of Dr. Okezie Victor Ikpeazu.

Recall that Ikpeazu had approached the country’s apex court challenging the judgment of the Appeal Court sitting in Owerri, Imo State which sacked him and declared Alex Otti of the APGA the governor of the state.

The Nation gathered that while some members of the two parties were optimistic that the Supreme Court would rule in their favour, others were skeptical of whether the judgment was going to be in their favour.

Information also have it that supporters of the two parties across the 17 local government areas of the state have equally been mobilized to leave for Abuja ahead of Wednesday’s sitting of the Supreme Court.

Supporters of both parties it was gathered have booked for assorted kinds of drinks at respective drinking joints to celebrate the victory of their candidates should the Supreme Court decides to rule on the matter before it the same day.
Some of them who spoke anonymously expressed fears that the judgment and stated that they were willing to accept whatever would be the decision of Supreme Court.

One of the supporters said “you know what happened in Rivers and Ebonyi state matters respectively when they came up for hearing at the Supreme Court. Such a thing may happen in Abia’s case and as I speak with you now, we are on our way to Abuja ahead of tomorrow’s court sitting. Supreme Court like you know is the apex court of the land and whatever their decision is, we will abide by it. But I am sure that our candidate will get a fair hearing.”

It was also gathered that security agencies have beefed-up their units in the state to avoid being caught unawares should any person or group of persons decide to cause breakdown of law and order in the state.

http://thenationonlineng.net/abia-tension-as-supreme-court-set-to-hear-ikpeazus-appeal/
Lalasticlala

There was anxiety yesterday in the political camps of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Akwa Ibom State ahead of tomorrow’s Supreme Court verdict on the governorship election appeal between Governor Udom Emmanuel of the PDP and Umana Umana of the APC.

The Supreme Court fixed tomorrow for hearing in the appeal. Based on the current trend with appeal cases in other states, the apex court is expected to deliver judgement on the same day.

Already, members of both parties have taken to the social media to express diverse opinions on what the outcome of the verdict could be.

Those in the PDP are hoping that the verdict would not be different from what the Supreme Court justices delivered in the case between Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike and APC’s Dakuku Peterside, which upheld Wike’s election.

But those in APC hoped Umana would defeat Emmanuel, based on the facts and evidence before the court.
It was learnt that the state’s Local Government and Chieftaincy Commissioner had started mobilising former political office holders ahead of the possible outcome of the verdict.

Some text messages forwarded to the former chairmen was obtained by our reporter. One of them reads: “Chair, pls attend an urgent meeting with the Commissioner for Local Government, Victor Antai, as follows: Date February 1, 2016; Time – 1pm; Venue: Ministry of Local Government, Uyo. Please, come with all former caretaker/transition chairmen in your local government who are still members of the PDP. Thanks.”

The agenda of the meeting, it was learnt, would dwell on the Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal pending before the Supreme Court, whose verdict would be delivered tomorrow.

http://thenationonlineng.net/tension-in-akwa-ibom-as-supreme-court-delivers-judgment-wednesday/

African leaders have backed a Kenyan proposal pushing for a pullout from the International Criminal Court, leaders said Sunday, repeating claims it unfairly targets the continent. Chad’s President Idriss Deby, elected African Union chairman at the two-day summit, criticised the court for focusing its efforts on African leaders. “Elsewhere in the world, many things happen — many flagrant violations of human rights — but nobody cares,” Deby said at the close of the summit late Sunday, which had an official theme of protecting human rights.

No legally binding decision was made, and the decision to leave the ICC’s founding Rome Statute is up to an individual nation. The decision is a “proposal…for the AU to develop a road map for the withdrawal of African nations”, a Kenyan presidential statement read. The war crimes trial of former Ivory Coast president Laurent Gbagbo began last week, rekindling a bitter row across Africa over the international justice system.

Set up in 2002 as the last resort to try war criminals and perpetrators of genocide never tried at home, the ICC has opened probes involving eight nations, all of them African: Kenya, Ivory Coast, Libya, Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo, Central African Republic, Uganda and Mali. The AU, led in particular by Kenya, has accused the court of unfairly targeting Africans for prosecution as the majority of its cases come from the continent.

This included a failed case to try Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta and a faltering case against his deputy William Ruto, for allegedly masterminding deadly post-election violence in the east African country in 2007-2008 in which some 1,200 people died. “We refuse to be carried along in a vehicle that has strayed off course to the detriment of our sovereignty, security and dignity as Africans,” Kenyatta said in a statement.

In November 2015, Ethiopian Foreign Minister Tedros Adhanom, speaking for the AU at an annual meeting between the 123 countries that have signed up to the Hague-based ICC’s founding statute, said it was “no longer a court for all.” Around one-third of its member states are in Africa. But while leaders criticised the court, others said that was a mistake.

“Leaving the ICC with no credible mechanism for justice for mass crimes in sight would be an error of colossal proportions,” Kenya’s Daily Nation said in an editorial. “It is far better for member states to stay in the court and advocate reforms, rather than bolting and leaving millions on the continent unprotected by an international court which can step in when national institutions fail.”

http://sunnewsonline.com/new/african-leaders-to-withdraw-membership-from-icc/

Lalasticlala do you think this a good idea?

SaharaReporters has found that reports that the Eritrean government issued a decree requiring all men to marry two women, or face imprisonment, are false. This story was published by several African media organizations, including SaharaReporters, following two days of intense interest on news websites and social media.
According to conversations SaharaReporters had with experts and Eritrean government representatives on Wednesday, the report is now understood to be a rumor originating on social media that later became extremely popular. The rumor later found its way to news websites in Nigeria and across Africa.

On Wednesday morning, a SaharaReporters correspondent spoke with a Eritrean government representative attached to the Eritrean Mission at the United Nations in New York.  The source flatly denied the rumor, and expressed frustration that hoax had gained the traction it had.

Also speaking to a SaharaReporters correspondent on Wednesday morning, Eritrean expert Awet Weldemichael, an Assistant Professor at Queen's University in Canada, stated that he believed the reports were fictitious and “started as a joke” online.

Mr. Weldemichael added that “I have not seen, read, or heard anything credible which would confirm the story.”

“I think it [such a decree] is in the realm of the improbable or impossible,” Mr. Weldemichael said.

According to the false reports, the primary justification for the mandatory marriage was intended to fill the population gap in the country following the Eritrean war for independence in 1991 and the Eritrean-Ethiopian war between 1998 and 2000.

Mr. Weldemichael, however, dismissed the notion that the Eritrean government would solve this supposed “population gap” with a decree forcing all Eritreans to engage in polygamy. In fact, the academic argued, the population of Eritrea has actually increased substantially since the war.

Mr. Weldemichael also stated “if you read [the reports] closely they have no basis in Eritrean tradition, which is almost half-Muslim and half-Christian” and that Eritreans are cognizant of the diverse “belief systems which do not always allow multiple wives.”

The Eritrean government has not published an official statement addressing these rumors at the time of publication.

Editorial Note: A previous story carried by SaharaReporters reporting a Eritrean law requiring men to marry two women was false and has been corrected.

http://saharareporters.com/2016/01/27/fact-check-reports-eritrean-law-requires-men-marry-two-wives-are-false

New Living Translation
Isaiah 4 vs 1
In that day so few men will be left that seven women will fight for each man, saying, "Let us all marry you! We will provide our own food and clothing. Only let us take your name so we won't be mocked as old maids."


Lalasticlala

STAR technique: What you need to know
by Michael Cheary


There are no sure-fire secrets to answering an interview question. But there is an acronym…

Knowing how to answer competency questions can often be your key to success at an interview. And whilst we can’t provide you with the exact response you’ll be able to use, we can make sure you approach each one the right way. And it’s all about technique.

Never heard of STAR before? Here’s how you can use it to nail your next interview:

What is STAR?

A simple, structured technique to help you answer interview questions.

It stands for Situation, Task, Approach and Results.

When do you need STAR?

Ever been asked a question that starts with ‘Tell me about a time you did X’ by an interviewer? Chances are that you were being asked a competency question.

Competency questions are generally used to find out how candidates would react to certain situations, by asking for real-world examples to back-up their claims.

Candidates can easily be thrown by these types of questions, but don’t let their open-ended nature fool you. There is a formula you can apply to keep your answers on track, and that’s where STAR comes in.

How do I use STAR?

To use STAR effectively, all elements of your answer need to work. Here’s a breakdown of how to approach each letter:

S – Situation

Think of this section as ‘setting the scene’.

Provide the interviewer with a bit of background about the question, and give them some context. Try and be specific, and include names and dates wherever appropriate to help add credibility.

Example:

At Company Name Ltd, I was responsible for representing the firm at tradeshows. My second year there, it just so happened that three events we usually attended were scheduled within a month of each other – generally they were spread out over a much longer period of time.

T – Task

Build on the background you’ve given, and outline the task at hand.

Specifically, how did the situation relate to you? And what were the major tasks you needed to undertake to resolve it? Include how important or difficult the situation was to overcome, as well as any constraints you came up against.

Example:

It meant a tremendous amount of work was compressed into a really tight window of time. These shows were a huge source of lead generation for the company, so it was essential we attended and presented our products in the best light.

A – Approach

Translation: what did you actually do to resolve the situation?

Outline the steps you took to ensure a successful outcome, without being tempted to take all the credit. The key to effectively incorporating the ‘approach’ part of your answer is to identify what skills the interviewer really wants to see, and reinforce them throughout.

Example:

I hate to say I can’t take something on at work, but I took a long, hard look at the situation and realized preparing all three up to the standards I’d want was going be impossible, so I sat down and prioritized the events. One, I realized, was much less relevant to us, so I scheduled a meeting with my manager and we agreed to focus on only two events. Once that was settled, I could draw up a detailed to-do list with interim deadlines for each item so that I’d have all the materials I needed to really represent the company well.

R – Result

Finally, it’s time for the pay-off.

What was the outcome of the situation? Remember, everyone loves a happy ending, and recruiters are no different. Make your happy ending quantifiable, and you’ll really have nailed your answer.

Example:

The two events went off without a hitch and I was able to bring several really solid leads back to our sales department. One of them actually resulted in a £100,000 contract, so in the end I was pleased I’d made the call to eliminate one event. 

Final thoughts

Impressing at a competency-based interview is all about the way you tell your story, so it’s particularly important to prepare for this sort of interview. Put some concrete, quantifiable details down on paper, which could fit a range of situations.

Don’t shy away from including a bit of adversity or failure. It humanises you and helps convince the listener of your sincerity. All jobs involve difficulties. The interview is trying to figure out how you’ll handle them.

A final word of wisdom about STAR: as a structured system, it can help guide your answers and calm your nerves, but don’t follow it too rigidly – you’re not a robot. Make sure your responses flow naturally, from one point to the next.

So keep it natural, conversational and concise, and this acronym will be your new best friend at your next interview.

Need more interview advice?

https://careeradvice.reedcloud.co.uk/star-technique-what-you-need-to-know/

Lalasticlala happy Sunday!!

State-owned Indian Oil Corporation has nearly doubled the crude oil it buys from Nigeria on a term or fixed contract as it looks to diversify sources of supplies. The nation’s largest refiner, IOC buys some 8 million tons a year of crude oil from Nigeria. Most of it is bought from spot or current markets where prices are subject to extreme volatility.
Nigeria has now agreed to increase the term contract from 1.7 million tons per annum to 3 million tons in 2016,” Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said. A term contract offers not just assured supplies but also cheaper price as the rate is based on official selling price of exporting country. IOC is the only Asian company to have been offered a term contract by the new government in Nigeria which last month overhauled oil contracts, choosing to sell directly to international refineries, trading houses and local downstream firms. For 2016, Nigeria signed term contracts for 991,000 barrels per day of oil or half of its around 2 million bpd of production. IOC was among the firms chosen for the contract alongside refiners like Spain’s Cepsa, Italy’s Saras, and ENOC of the United Arab Emirates. On the list were also trading houses Trafigura, Mercuria and Vitol and international oil companies ENI, Total, Exxon and Shell. China’s Sinopec and its trading arm Unipec, which are large buyer of Nigerian oil, do not figure in the list. IOC Chairman B Ashok said Nigeria choose the companies from their track records and trading experience to ensure that its crude cargoes are not left unsold. In 2015, Nigeria had sold term crude oil to 43 companies. For 2016, 278 companies had submitted bids for crude oil contracts. Nigerian crude, Pradhan said, is low sulphur and suits Indian refineries. Nigeria is India’s third biggest oil supplier, selling 11.59 million tons in first half of current fiscal. It was behind only Saudi Arabia (19.56 million tons) and Iraq (17.01 million tons) in terms of supplies.(dnaindia.com)
Read more at http://dailytrust.com.ng/news/business/india-doubles-crude-oil-buy-from-nigeria-on-term-contract/130215.html#oF56mLYbKuq3YutG.99

So sad

Lalasticlala

Sunday Aborisade, Abuja

The Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, explained to the Senate on Tuesday that some harsh monetary decisions taken by the United States and Nigeria’s over dependence on foreign goods were responsible for the continuous fall in the value of the naira against major foreign currencies.

The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Media and Publicity, Senator Sabi Abdullahi, stated this when he briefed journalists at the end of the closed-door meeting with the CBN boss.

Emefiele was said to have stated that other factors like the declining commodity prices and the geo-political tensions along important trading routes were equally injurious to the naira value.

Abdullahi said, “He (Emefiele) touched on the global economy conditions in which he informed us that we are not immune from external shocks that are currently going on in the world. These shocks include the following: declining commodity prices, geo-political tensions along important trading routes and tightening of monetary policies in the United States of America.

“The Senate appreciated the need to support the various policies being formulated to strengthen the currency.”

Abdullahi added that the Senate also acknowledged the pains that many people were experiencing currently, especially in the light of the shortage of foreign exchange for legitimate businesses.

He, however, said that having carefully considered the policies of the CBN, the upper legislative chamber would like to commend and support them because they were mostly geared towards increasing local production, creating jobs in the country, safeguarding the commonwealth and expanding economic opportunities and growth.

Abdullahi stated, “It is, therefore, critical that we all join our hands together to seek both short-term and long-term solutions to our underlying problems of non-diversification of foreign exchange earnings and revenues rather than pointing fingers at who did what and who’s to blame.

“The Senate believes strongly in the resilience of the Nigerian economy and the ingenuity of the Nigerian people, and as such, we are confident that we will all pull through these difficulties and come out as an equitable and prosperous nation.”

Abdullahi anchored the meeting with the CBN governor on the section of the CBN Act, which required that it should brief the National Assembly on periodic basis.

He said, “This appearance by the CBN governor and his management team is in line with Section 8 of the CBN Act, 2007, which requires that the governor of the bank provides the National Assembly periodic updates on the activities of the bank as well as the performance of the economy.

“In view of the above, the CBN governor presented a detailed, comprehensive and lucid account of the performance of the Nigerian economy in the last one year.”

The Senate spokesperson noted that Emefiele explained the occurrences within the Nigerian economy, especially with respect to the over 70 per cent decline in oil prices from about $116 per barrel in June 2014 to about less than $30 presently.

He said “The CBN governor also gave us an insight into the bank’s analysis and understanding of the situation and, therefore, the rationale underlining the various policy actions the bank has taken over the past couple of months.

“He also provided an insight into other countries that are facing similar difficulties and how they have dealt with them. Based on these analyses, it is clear that Nigeria is not doing badly, and I think we are on course to see how we can bring back Nigeria into the path of economic prosperity.

“After the presentation, of course, there were questions from distinguished senators on many issues, especially the stoppage of foreign exchange to the Bureaux De Change, the gradual rise in inflation, and the fallen foreign exchange reserves, among others.”

Copyright PUNCH.
All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express written permission from PUNCH.

Contact: editor@punchng.com
Lalasticlala

EU earmarks £26.8m for Nigeria but afraid it will be siphoned by corrupt officials

A report has warned that half the money the European Union spends on aid is wasted, stolen or held up by incompetence.
These include a £1.8million EU scheme for a solar panel installation that is not working, as well as £26.8million earmarked to combat corruption in Nigeria, which cannot be handed over because of fears it will be siphoned off by corrupt Nigerian officials, MailOnline has reported.
The study by MEPs responsible for auditing EU spending found that £11.5billion of the £23billion doled out by Brussels each year fails to achieve its stated aims.
Ingeborg Graessle, chairman of the European Parliament’s committee on budget control, said the EU was “effectively throwing money down the toilet”.
The senior German MEP called for a wide-ranging review of the way Brussels spends aid money.
She told the Sunday Times: ‘Hundreds of thousands of people flee to Europe from countries where we are spending billions without any apparent effect.
“Year after year, funds are committed to obscure projects in what is effectively throwing money down the toilet. We need an urgent revision of spending, independent scrutiny and a clear procedure to actually measure what we are achieving.”
Miss Graessle said more than 900 aid projects worth £11.5billion are either significantly delayed or will fail to achieve their objectives.
She warned that her findings may be the ‘tip of the iceberg’, as some embassies are suspected of ‘sugar-coating’ reports to make the projects appear more successful.
The European Parliament’s committee on budget control is due to report this week on the EU’s £23billion aid budget.
Britain’s share of EU spending is 11.8 per cent, which equates to about £2.7billion. The report will say: “Every second euro spent does not achieve what it pays for.”
The study will raise fresh UK concerns about the size of the aid budget and its use. The report is expected to warn that vast sums are wasted because of poor management, corruption in recipient countries and theft.
Several of the failed projects highlighted are in countries that are now a source of mass migration to the EU, such as Morocco – where aid projects cost the EU £508million, Jordan – where the EU contributes £248million – and Lebanon, where £198million is spent.
The EU is the biggest development aid donor in the world, but has faced criticism over its failure to properly measure the outcomes of the vast expenditure.
In 2012 the then international development minister Alan Duncan said: “We share the people’s anger on this. We are forced to give money to the European Union. We ask them to focus aid on poverty but they don’t, and we have no choice in the matter.”
This week’s report is expected to highlight a number of failed projects bankrolled by the EU


http://www.pmnewsnigeria.com/2016/01/18/eu-earmarks-26-8m-for-nigeria-but-afraid-it-will-be-siphoned-by-corrupt-officials/

A Court of Appeal in Port Harcourt, Rivers state today confirmed the judgment of a Federal High Court in Port Harcourt that sacked all 23 local government council chairmen elected during in 2015 under the government of former Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi.
The sacked chairmen are all members of All Progressives Congress, APC.
The elected local government council chairmen had approached the Federal High Court, Port Harcourt seeking reinstatement following their sack by Governor Nyesom Wike, the incumbent but the court threw out their suit.
On Monday, January 18 the Appeal Court in Port Harcourt also dismissed the suit filed by Mr Augustine Ngo and 22 others against the PDP.
The appellate court declared that the suit filed by the former council chairmen lacked competence and was therefore dismissed.
Addressing newsmen after the judgment, Rivers State Attorney General, Emmanuel Aguma, SAN, described the Appeal Court judgement as a confirmation of the judgment of the Federal High Court which declared council polls illegal.
It will be recalled that Amaechi was accused to have circumvented the law by illegally conducting local government council elections less than one week before handing over on May 29, 2015.
PDP had filed a suit against the conduct of the council polls at the Federal High Court in Port Harcourt.
Despite a court injunction stopping Amaechi, he went ahead to conduct the illegal election.

http://www.pmnewsnigeria.com/2016/01/18/appeal-court-upholds-sack-of-23-apc-lg-chairmen-in-rivers/

ULTIMATE SHOW OF SUPPORT? FAN GETS MARRIED IN FULL ARSENAL KIT

The support got the nod from his other half to walk up the aisle in full Gunners garb... better than the more traditional top and tails?
The ultimate show of support or... something else? An Arsenal fan walked up the aisle in full Gunner garb recently after getting the approval of his wife.

"My wife is from Woking and she is awesome," he wrote on Facebook. "She let me get married in my full Arsenal kit! Maybe I just got lucky."

In another post, the unidentified man wrote: "It's like I won the FA Cup and found the best woman in the world ever."

He may have got the thumbs up from his wife, but Extra Time is not convinced.
 

Posted by Bizzo Musicmad on Saturday, 16 January 2016

http://m.goal.com/s/en-gb/news/4160/extra-time/2016/01/18/19466232/ultimate-show-of-support-fan-gets-married-in-full-arsenal?utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=engbfb&utm_referrer=http%3A%2F%2Fl.facebook.com%2Fl.php%3Fu%3Dhttp%25253A%25252F%25252Fbit.ly%25252F1S0xqKf%26h%3DoAQFxl9rX%26s%3D1
Lalasticlala

More

More

http://time.com/4013034/american-kids-school-lunches-around-the-world/

Check out some countries school meal
1) Madagascar
2) Nigeria

President Muhammadu Buhari has ordered the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) to give relief materials seized from smugglers in it warehouses to Internally Displaced Persons, (IDPs)
According to the para-military public relations officer, Wale Adeniyi, the comptroller general has set up a national committee that would coordinate and manage the movement and the transfer of seized relief items to give effect to the President’s directive.

“It is important to stress that these items are only those that have been condemned properly in the competent court of law and have been forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria.

“They include food items like rice, vegetable oil, spaghetti and essential items like soap, used clothing materials, mosquito nets, beddings and others,’’ he said.
Mr. Adeniyi said that members of the committee were drawn from Customs Service, Army, Air Force, Police, Immigration Service and the EFCC.

According to him, the customs boss also included some NGOs, civil society organisations and the media to give the committee a measure of transparency and credibility.

However, he said that the distribution of relief items to the IDPs would slightly be different from the previous ones the service had done.

“This time around, our targets are not the IDPs camps; our targets are the IDPs themselves who are in these camps.”

“We expect that the exercise will take a period of about eight weeks and the trip will start very soon.

“The exercise is going to be slightly different from what we have been doing before because we want these things to end up directly with the end users.
We are going to be working with state governments, community leaders and other relief agencies to ensure that these items get to the IDPs in a secure and transparent manner,” Mr. Adeniyi assured.

Hundreds of thousands of people were displaced by the Boko Haram insurgency that has ravaged north-eastern Nigeria.

Meanwhile, the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has mandated all its officers to declare their assets.

https://www.naij.com/699052-buhari-orders-customs-give-seized-rice-vegetable-oil-others-idps.html/?michael&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_group=free
Lalasticlala

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPkr3A9DTOc


The plane that can detach its entire CABIN in the event of an emergency: Concept can 'drop' passengers to safety using built-in parachutes
Engineers have revealed a radical new way to save plane passengers in the event of an emergency.

The design shows an aircraft with a detachable cabin that releases in emergency situations.

During take-off, landing or flight, the redesigned cabin detaches from the plane and safely lands on the ground or water– saving everyone's lives on board.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3401939/The-plane-detach-entire-CABIN-event-emergency-Concept-drop-passengers-land-using-built-parachutes.html?ito=social-facebook

Lalasticlala please fly without fear, the future is here lol

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, today arraigned 12 persons, two companies and a vessel, MV PSV DEBY before Justice Muhammad  B. Idris of the Federal High Court, Lagos on a four count charge bordering on conspiracy, forgery and illegal dealing in petroleum products.
MV PSV DEBY and its crew members - Christopher Okorie, John U Mbah, Tammy Bami, Osi Prince, Chukwuji Festus, Kabiru Adeyemo, Ayannubi Moses, Sopuruchukwu Chukwudi, Obinna  Ebu,  Abdullahi Oyelade, Charles Ubey and Achia Vincent- were intercepted by Nigerian Navy Ship Beecroft patrol  boat on the 3rd of September, 2015 on suspicion of illegal dealing in petroleum products. Further investigation revealed that the vessel was carrying thousands of  litres of suspected illegally refined automotive gas oil, AGO.

Counts one and two of the charge reads:

“That you Christopher Okorie, Phonic Marines Services Limited, MV PSV DEBY, John U. Mbah, Banquet Chambers Nigeria Limited, Prince Idowu Ilara (at large), Tammy Bami, Osi Prince, Chukwuji Festus, Kabiru Adeyemo, Ayannubi Moses, Sopuruchukwu Chukwudi, Obinna Ebu, Abdullahi Oyelade, Charles Ubey and Achia Vincent between July and September 2015, at Lagos within the jurisdiction of this Honourable court, did conspire among yourselves to commit felony to wit; dealing in petroleum products without lawful authority and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 3(6) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act Cap M17, law of the Federation of Nigeria 2014 and punishable under Section 1(17) (a) of the same Act.

“That you Christopher Okorie, Phonic Marines Services Limited, MV PSV DEBY, John U. Mbah, Banquet Chambers Nigeria Limited, Prince Idowu Ilara (at large), Tammy Bami, Osi Prince, Chukwuji Festus, Kabiru Adeyemo, Ayannubi Moses, Sopuruchukwu Chukwudi, Obinna Ebu, Abdullahi Oyelade, Charles Ubey and Achia Vincent between August and September, 2015 at Lagos within the jurisdiction of this Honourable court did without lawful authority store 600,000 litres of Petroleum Product (Automotive Gas and Oil) in MV PSV DEBY and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 1(17) (b) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act Cap M17, law of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004”.

The accused persons pleaded not guilty to the charge.

In view of the plea of the accused persons, the prosecution counsel, M. F. Owebe prayed the court for a trial date and to remand the accused persons in prison custody.

However, the defence counsel asked for a short adjournment for hearing of the bail application.

Justice Idris ordered that the accused persons be remanded in Ikoyi prison and adjourned the case to Tuesday January 26, 2015 for hearing of the bail application.

Wilson Uwujaren
Head, Media & Publicity
15th January, 2016
http://saharareporters.com/2016/01/15/alleged-oil-theft-efcc-arraigns-12-persons-and-vessel
Lalasticlala

Lol
Lalasticlala

Health Ministry To Begin Testing New Preventive Vaccine For Lassa Fever

The minister of health, Isaac Adewole, on Thursday January 15, said that the ministry is working on a potential vaccine to be used to prevent the Lassa fever virus While briefing the Senate committee on health headed by Sen. Lanre Tejuoso on the outbreak of Lassa fever in Nigeria, Adewole said that the number of cases presently was 129.

He said that although there was no preventive vaccine for the disease at present, he had been notified of the development of a vaccine to be tested.

He said: “We call it a candidate vaccine and we would want to run it through trials and that takes some time.
Hopefully we will do that this year, once we consider it to be effective and safe then we put it to use.

“If it works then that means that we would be able to immunize people in the affected areas but for now we will continue with our surveillance,” he said.

The minister, who described the outbreak as a national embarrassment, said the virus would have been defeated if there was the political will to implement a roadmap designed in 2012 to forestall future occurrences.

He also said that although there were 1723 cases in 2012, the percentage death rate of the current outbreak was higher.

The minister said in 2012 1723 cases were recorded, but no action plan was implemented to ensure the outbreak would not be repeated in the future.

The federal ministry of health has disclosed that 35 people have lost their lives since the outbreak of the disease in November 2015.

Also 79 people were infected across eight states including Bauchi, Niger, Nasarawa, Kano, Rivers, Oyo and Edo.

https://www.naij.com/696977-health-ministry-begin-testing-new-preventive-vaccine-lassa-fever.html/?jerrywright&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_group=free

Lalasticlala

By Babajide Komolafe, Henry Umoru, Joseph Erunke & Michael Eboh
The Naira appreciated yesterday to N302 per dollar in the parallel market, thus halting three days of sharp depreciation even as the price of Nigeria’s reference crude oil grade, Bonny Light, slid below the $30 per barrel mark, dropping to $29.47 per barrel.
Meanwhile, following the increasing depreciation of the Naira, the Senate, yesterday, summoned the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Governor, Godwin Emefiele, to appear before it next week.
From N305 per dollar, Wednesday, the parallel market exchange rate dropped to N302 per dollar at the close of business yesterday, indicating N3 appreciation.
President, Association of Bureaux De Change Operators of Nigeria, ABCON, Alhaji Aminu Gwadabe, said that the appreciation was occasioned by drop in demand for foreign exchange and indications that CBN might review its decision to stop dollar sales to bureaux de change, BDCs.
The naira depreciated in the parallel market by N25 naira between Monday and Wednesday, following the announcement by CBN on Monday to stop sales of dollars to BDCs.
Earnings dip
Also, the price of Nigeria’s reference crude oil grade, Bonny Light, slid below the $30 per barrel mark, dropping to $29.47 per barrel, according to data obtained, yesterday, from CBN.
This was even as the price of Brent crude, the benchmark crude oil grade, rose to $30.77 per barrel in the international market. Brent crude had dipped below $30 a barrel on Wednesday, for the first time in more than 10 years, a day after the U.S. benchmark took a similar fall.
Specifically, Brent traded as low as $29.96 a barrel before settling down 55 cents, or 1.8 percent, at $30.31 a barrel on ICE Futures Europe, the lowest settlement since April 2004.
Therefore, using an average crude oil production of 2.2 million barrels per day, as stated by CBN, it is expected that the total amount accruable to the Federal Government and oil companies in Nigeria on a daily basis would dip to $64.83 million, about N12.967 billion daily, using an average exchange rate of N200 to a dollar.
Job loss at BP, Shell, Chevron
Consequently, as a result of the continuous decline in the price of Nigeria’s Bonny Light and other crude oil grades, experts are predicting massive job cuts in the Nigerian and global oil and gas industry in the next couple of days.
Already, the world’s biggest oil companies are slashing jobs and discontinuing major investments, especially as the price of crude falls to new lows.
A report obtained from the Associated Press noted that companies that would be affected by the declining oil price would not only be the big oil producers, but the numerous companies that do business with them, such as drilling contractors and equipment suppliers.
Particularly, companies like BP, which had earlier in the week said it is cutting 4,000 jobs, had already commenced trimming down their operations to cope with the slump in oil, whose price had plummeted to its lowest level in 12 years and is not expected to recover significantly for months, possibly years.
The report had quoted Chevron as saying last year that it would eliminate 7,000 jobs, while Shell announced 6,500 layoffs.
Furthermore, some analysts are forecasting a drop near $10 a barrel, making companies to brace up for more trouble.
In particular, Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets, said: “Calling the bottom in a market is always dangerous, akin to catching a falling knife. But when the clamour for lower prices becomes a stampede, warning signs and alarm bells tend to start going off, which suggests that a more prudent approach might be advisable.”
The uncertainty, the report said, is making companies think twice before sinking money into new oil projects.
“On the North Sea, there is a standstill in the new project, which may create a hole in the pipeline of projects next year,” said Florent Maisonneuve, Managing Director and co-head of Oil & Gas at AlixPartners in Paris.
Subsequently, CBN had in its Economic Report for the Month of October 2015, put the average price of Nigeria’s reference crude, Bonny Light at $49.23 per barrel in October, indicating a 1.3 percent increase relative to the level in the preceding month.
The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, on the other hand, had stated that of the 18.24 million barrels of crude oil lifted on the account of NNPC in October 2015, 12.07 million barrels and 6.17 million barrels were for domestic and export markets, respectively.
It said: “At an average oil price of $47.45 per barrel and exchange rate of N195.95 to a dollar, the domestic crude oil lifted by NNPC is valued at $572.998 million or a Naira equivalent of N112.279 billion for the period.
“The remaining crude oil lifted for export was valued at $305,856,048.03 at an average price of $49.58/barrel. The total value of crude oil lifted on the account of NNPC in October, 2015 was thus $878.854 million.ý”
Meanwhile, concerned by the increasing depreciation of the Naira, the Senate, yesterday, summoned the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, to appear before it on Tuesday next week at 11a.m., to explain the continuous weakening of Naira against the Dollar.
The development was sequel to a Point of Order raised by the Leader of the Senate, Ali Ndume, APC, Borno South.
The Senate President, Bukola Saraki, who presided over the plenary where the issue was raised, having listened to Senator Ndume, subsequently directed Ndume to convey the Senate’s resolution to the CBN governor.


http://www.vanguardngr.com/2016/01/depreciation-of-naira-senate-summons-emefiele/


Lalasticlala

Celine Dion's husband Rene Angelili has died at 73.

The singer released a statement on Thursday to People magazine which read: 'Rene Angelil, 73, passed away this morning as his home in Las Vegas after a long and courageous battle against cancer. 

'The family requests that their privacy be respected at the moment; more details will be provided at a later time.'
In August, Dion revealed her husband's final wish was to be with the singer when he passed away.

Recalling their conversation, she said: 'I'll say, 'You're scared? I understand. Talk to me about it.'

'And René says to me, 'I want to die in your arms.' OK, fine, I'll be there, you'll die in my arms.'

https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2016/01/14/21/302CB81A00000578-3400068-image-a-51_1452808058100.jpg

https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2016/01/14/21/302CB8F600000578-3400068-image-a-50_1452808043534.jpg

https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2015/10/17/00/2D7C764D00000578-3276667-image-a-11_1445036483889.jpg

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-3400068/Celine-Dion-s-husband-Rene-Angelili-dies-73.html?ito=social-facebook

The Naira depreciated further to a 43-year low at N305 per dollar as scarcity of dollars intensified in the unofficial market.

From an average of N287 per dollar on Tuesday, the parallel market exchange rate rose to an average of N305 per dollar across the country.
Similarly, the New Year stock market hemorrhage entered the eighth day yesterday, with a total N1.22 trillion losses to investors, giving a year-to-date decline of 12.36 per cent in market capitalization.

The market key index, the Nigerian Stock Exchange All Share Index, NSE ASI, declined year-to-date by same margin.

The stock exchange, which opened this year at market capitalization of N9.851 trillion, began a free fall till yesterday, closing at N8.63 trillion while the NSE ASI which opened the year at 28,642.25 points closed yesterday at 25,103.05 points.

The losses were heightened in the last 48 hours with a cumulative two-day loss of N430 billion following the escalated foreign exchange management crises which came with CBN’s announcement of its decision to cease sale of foreign exchange to BDCs on account of the precarious state the operators had forced the entire economy.

Since Monday when the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) stopped weekly dollar sales to Bureau De Change (BDCs), the Naira has been depreciating against the dollar.

BDC sources who confirmed the development, however, said that the exchange rate situation is uncertain as the rate changes from time to time. Investigation revealed that though the exchange rate touched N305 in major cities like Lagos, Abuja and Kano, it dropped slightly to between N295 and N300 per dollar in Lagos and Abuja at the close of business, while it closed at N305 in Kano.
Chief Executive Officer, H.J Trust BDC, Mr. Harrison Owoh, said that the market is fluid.

“You cannot quote any rate for anybody now because the rate is changing every time.”

An Abuja based BDC operator who spoke on condition of anonymity said that the rate closed in Abuja at N298 but was above N300 during the day. He however said that it was difficult to quote any specific rate now, as the situation was unpredictable. He opined that the rate would stabilize by next week, when the market would have absorbed the impact of the new CBN policy.

Financial analysts believe that the CBN’s state-of-the-economy address, which came with the BDCs forex ban are having immediate negative effects on the economy, causing investors to withdraw from the Nigerian bourse to safer securities on the continent.

CBN justifies action against BDCs
Justifying the ban, the CBN Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, had said: “This fall in oil prices also implies that the CBN’s monthly foreign exchange earnings has fallen from as high as US$3.2 billion to current levels of as low as US$1 billion.

“Yet, the demand for foreign exchange by mostly domestic importers has risen significantly. For example, the last we had oil prices at about US$50 per barrel for an extended period of time was in 2005. “At that time, our average import bill was N148.3 billion per month.

‘’In stark contrast, our average import bill for the first nine months of 2015 is N917.6 billion per month, even though oil prices are now less than US$35 per barrel.

“The net effect of these combined forces unfortunately is the depletion of our foreign exchange reserves.

‘’As of June 2014, the stock of Foreign Exchange Reserves stood at about US$37.3 billion but has declined to around US$28.0 billion as of today.

“With the current economic realities in the country, the NSE, with the aim of hitting N200 trillion market cap by 2019, may well be moving away from its target.

Reps speaker meets BDC operators
Meanwhile, the Speaker of the House of Representatives yesterday held a closed door meeting with the leadership of the Association of Bureaux De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON) over the continued depreciation of the naira. The meeting was still ongoing as at the time of going to press.

Also today the Director General of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, NSE, Mr. Oscar Onyema is expected to present the market outlook where investors’ sentiment is expected to be shaped.

: http://aitonline.tv/post-naira_falls_to_the_lowest_level_in_43_years__now_n305_dollar#sthash.RKdEna8M.dpuf


Lalasticlala, Mynd44

Russian Scientists Have Proved That Prayer Is A Cure: Restores the body, destroys stress and provides security

By definition, prayer is a form of addressing God, by establishing a relationship with God or a deity, talking to Goddess, God or Gods, angels and saints.

Recently, Russian scientists from the University of St. Petersburg scientifically have proved that miraculous healing associated with spirituality is a reality and have found many physical and mental changes that one can experience in a moment of prayer or religious ceremony.

Scientists have proved that the believer immersed in prayer completely shuts down his cerebral cortex, and that indicates full security and the absence of stress.

Prayer – a cure against negative thinking

Professor Slezin was able to measure the power of prayer, and found that a monk, who prays, completely shuts down the cortex which was only noticed in children up to three months that feel safe near their mothers.
As people grow, a sense of security is increasingly reduced, and brain activity is increased. The activity is reduced only during deep sleep and prayer, which has a good influence on people.

“Prayer is a powerful cure, and not only that it regulates all the processes in the human body, but also it restores the damaged structure of consciousness,” said Professor Slezin, director of the Laboratory for neuropsychology at the Institute for Research and Development of neuropsychology in St. Petersburg.

Scientists have proved that after the spiritual and religious ceremonies, blood pressure normalizes, and so do the other values measured in the blood.

Most diseases are caused by such negative situations and mentally intensified problems which during prayer retreat or even disappear completely Interesting, isn’t it?


http://www.stayonthehealthypath.com/russian-scientists-have-proved-that-prayer-is-a-cure-restores-the-body-destroys-stress-and-provides-security/#sthash.kcJt7kA0.dpuf

Lalasticlala, Mynd44

Beauty of maths

More smart cars n roads

Smart roads
Google is hogging all of the limelight with its self-driving car, but what good are smart cars if they still have to drive on "dumb" roads?
One of the most exciting new ideas is a roadway that acts as a charger for electric vehicles. A New Zealand company has already built a large "power pad" that can wirelessly charge a parked electric car [source: Barry]. The next step is to embed the wireless charging technology into actual road surfacing so electric vehicles can recharge on the move. No more refueling stations!
Fb : civil engineering discovering
Lalasticlala, Mynd44

The Punch reports that the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), has demanded the release of Ibrahim El-Zakzaky, leader of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN).

Malami, according to a statement, asked the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs to formalise its request for the ‎release of the Shi’ites’ leader, who alongside some members of the group, have been in detention since December, 2015.

Sheik El-Zakzaky may regain his freedom soon.
This was after the group clashed with troops in the convoy of the Chief of Army Staff, Lt Gen Tukur Buratai, ‎in Zaria.

Salihu Isah, the AGF’s special adviser on media and publicity, in a statement on Thursday, informed that Malami gave the advice on how to press for the detainees’ release during a visit to him on Tuesday by a delegation of the supreme council to put together by its national president and the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar.
‎

“I will do whatever I can within the confines of the law to see how an amicable resolve can be achieved.

“So when your demands are formalised, I will treat and facilitate it to the appropriate quarters accordingly,” the AGF was quoted to have said.
“As Muslims, we know what is obtainable in Islam especially in the area of rights, individual rights, especially rights of way.

“As Muslims, we have a collective responsibility to create awareness through our preaching on tolerance and compliance according to the dictates of Islam,” Malami stated, adding that the clash between the Shi’ites and the Nigerian Army in Zaria was unfortunate and sad.

https://www.naij.com/689316-finally-attorney-general-demands-release-shiites-leader-el-zakzaky.html/?damilare&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_group=free

Lalasticlala, Mynd44

In a swift rebuttal on Wednesday, authorities of the Federal High Court of Nigeria (FHCN), dissociated the court from media reports it granted bail to the tune of N250 million to the embattled immediate-past National Security Adviser (NSA), Colonel Sambo Dasuki (reted) and others being tried in relation to the $2.1 billion arms deal scandal.
Acting Chief Registrar of the FHCN, Emmanuel Garko, stated that authorities of the Court could not have granted bail to any of those being tried in relation to the arms deal because none of them was charged before the court.
In a statement issued by Garko, he said the clarification became imperative in view of misrepresentation in the media that the Federal High Court granted bail to Dasuki and others at N250million each.
He said: “It will be in the interest of the reporters and editors (the media) to note that these cases involving the accused persons are not all before the Federal High Court of Nigeria as reported by some national dailies, but before Justice Hussein Baba Yusuf and Justice Peter Affen of the High Court of the FCT.”
Explaining that the Federal High Court of Nigeria is different from the High Court of FCT, which has their respective jurisdiction, Garko however, urged the media to be cautious in their operations and always endeavour to cross check facts before publication.
However, recall that Dasuki and others were only granted bail on two occasions on December 18 and 21 last year at N250million by Justices Hussein Baba-Yusuf and Peter Affen of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Dasuki is currently involved in three criminal cases pending before the Federal High Court, Abuja and the High Court of the Federal Capital territory (FCT), Maitama, Abuja.
Dasuki is being tried alone on a five-count charge of money laundering involving about N84.6m and illegal possession of firearms before Justice Adeniyi Ademola of the Federal High Court, Abuja.
The second case involving Dasuki is that in which he is being tried with an ex-Director of Finance and Administration in the office of the NSA, Shuaibu Salisu and former Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Aminu Baba-Kusa in a 19 count-charge bordering on criminal diversion of funds.
Dasuki, Salisu, Baba-Kusa and two companies – Acacia Holdings Limited and Reliance Referral Hospital Limited were charged with conspiracy and criminal breach of trust under the Penal Code Act and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (Establishment) Act.
The trial judge, Justice baba-Yusuf admitted each of them to bail in a ruling on December 18 at N250m with one surety and adjourned toJanuary 21 for commencement of trial.
In the third case, Dasuki is being tried with former Minister of State for Finance, Bashir Yuguda, former Sokoto State governor, Attahiru Dalhatu Bafarawa, his son and firm – Sagir Attahiru and Dalhatu Investment Limited – and former Director of Finance and Administration in the office of the NSA, Shuaibu Salisu in a 22-count charge of alleged diversion of over 20billion.
Justice Affen, on December 21 last year, granted bail to each of them at N250m with two sureties and fixed February 2 for commencement of trial.


http://www.vanguardngr.com/2016/01/federal-high-court-denies-granting-dasuki-others-n250m-bail/


Lalasticlala, Mynd44

•Election to hold February 22

Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra leader Ralph Uwazuruike has announced plans to set up a parallel government in the Southeast and Southsouth.

Election will hold on February 22 into wards, provinces, districts, regions and zones of the Southeast and Southsouth, which it said are Biafra  territories.

Speaking during the presentation of the 2016 Biafra Budget at the Ojukwu Memorial library, Uwazuruike announced the appointment of Rev. Fr Samuel Aniebonam, a Catholic Priest, as the Chairman of the Biafra Independent National Electoral Commission (B-INEC).

His words: “In line with our principle of non-violence towards establishing a sovereign control over the territorial boarders of the New Biafra, a Catholic Priest, Rev. Fr. Samuel Aniebonam has been appointed the Chairman of Biafra Independent National Electoral Commission, (B-INEC).



“The Chairman, with other anointed men and women of God as members, will supervise the internal election into the offices of the new Biafra Government on February 22.” The separatist leader said the election will be by open ballot, popularly known as Option A4.

“Our election will not be like Nigeria’s election, it will be a transparent one. In Biafra, there won’t be electoral fraud. The tenure of the elected Regional Governor or Minister would be four years and nine months. There shall be no second tenure.

“Once you are defeated, you won’t appeal in a tribunal against your opponent. This is why members of the commission would be men and women of God.”

MASSOB’s National Director of Information, Sunny Okereafor, in a telephone interview, said the elections is in line with democratic ideals and international best practices, which Biafra was founded on, and where citizens would find satisfaction.

He explained that only members of MASSOB and its parent body, the Biafra Independence Movement, (BIM), are qualified to vote and be voted for in the election.

“The electioneering has began; we are conducting elections into all offices from wards to the zones, to elect leaders to administer Biafra. We are going to show Nigeria how to conduct free and fair elections without rigging, intimidation and favouritism.

“Biafra will be a country where others would come to learn how democracy works. We have already set standards. Our non-violent approach is legendary and we have received several commendations for it. We want freedom; Biafra is the answer.”

Okereafor said as soon as the elections were concluded and winners sworn in, Biafra would re-introduce its legal tender, the pounds.

http://thenationonlineng.net/uwazuruike-to-set-up-parallel-govt/
Lalasticlala, Mynd44