₦airaland Forum

A Lagos court has ordered the release of yoruba comedian Baba Suwe on bail. Baba Suwe is to be released on Friday.

The actor and comedian was arrested on 12 October after a body scanner at Lagos airport identified suspected drugs in his stomach, officials said.

His lawyer argued that his continued detention was unlawful.

Fans and other actors gathered outside the High Court in Lagos to show solidarity with the Nigerian comedian.

The BBC's Tomi Oladipo in Lagos says Baba Suwe, whose real name is Babatunde Omidina, looked distressed during his court appearance - the first since his arrest.

He is due to be released on Friday - when a previous court order allowing Nigeria's National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) to keep him in their custody expires, our reporter says.

The judge set his bail at $3,300 (£2,000).

'No drugs excreted'
Baba Suwe was arrested as he was about to board a flight to Paris after a body scanner identified suspected drugs in his stomach, NDLEA spokesman Ofoyeju Mitchell said at the time.

The NDLEA suspected that Mr Suwe had ingested drugs and the agency was waiting for him to excrete them.

But the NDLEA has admitted that he has not yet excreted any drugs since his arrest nearly three weeks ago, our reporter says.

Baba Suwe's lawyer, Bamidele Aturu, said the court's ruling was a victory for justice.

However, Mr Aturu said he wanted to draw attention to the fact that many Nigerians are detained for lengthy periods without being charged and their cases are never highlighted.

Baba Suwe is a famous comedian in Nigeria's film industry, known as Nollywood, and his arrest shocked many of his fans, says our correspondent.

He acts in both English and Yoruba language films, often playing the role of a befuddled butler or security guard.

Source: http://www.

Federation of International Football (FIFA) has released a 23- man list of candidates to fight for the ballon d'Or 2011. The players includes:


Éric Abidal (France), Sergio Agüero (Argentina), Karim Benzema (France), Iker Casillas (Spain), Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal), Dani Alves (Brazil), Samuel Eto’o (Cameroon), Cesc Fàbregas (Spain), Diego Forlán (Uruguay), Andrés Iniesta (Spain), Lionel Messi (Argentina), Thomas Müller (Germany), Nani (Portugal), Neymar (Brazil), Mesut Özil (Germany), Gerard Piqué (Spain), Wayne Rooney (England), Bastian Schweinsteiger (Germany), Wesley Sneijder (Netherlands), Luis Suárez (Uruguay), David Villa (Spain), Xabi Alonso (Spain), Xavi (Spain).

Shortlisted Coaches

Vicente Del Bosque (Spain/Spain national team), Alex Ferguson (Scotland/Manchester United FC), Rudi Garcia (France/Lille OSC), Pep Guardiola (Spain/FC Barcelona), Jürgen Klopp (Germany/Borussia Dortmund), Joachim Löw (Germany/Germany national team), José Mourinho (Portugal/Real Madrid C.F.), Óscar Tabárez (Uruguay/Uruguay national team), André Villas-Boas (Portugal/FC Porto, Chelsea FC), Arsène Wenger (France/Arsenal FC).

Source: http://www.

There is no doubt that since the picture of a tattoo of star Nollywood actress, Tonto Dikeh was posted online some days ago, it has generated lots of controversies both within and outside the country.

Many tongues have wagged on the controversial tattoo. Different meanings have been read into the piece. For some, the tattoo depicts some undertone of the devil, while others see no diabolic meaning to the creature created in the tattoo but just a piece of fashion. The controversial happy queen of Nollywood, who has grown a thick skin to most abusive writings and comments directed at her has finally come out to talk on what the meaning of the creature drawn on her back carries.

According to Tonto, “the tattoo took me 10 hours to be done with, while I had a two hour break in-between.” Speaking further, when asked if the controversial tattoo had any undertone meaning, she simply answered, “yes, and it is very deep, I am a witch.” Tonto Information available to nigeria.com disposal from a very reliable and impeccable source, confirmed to us that only strong people carry such tattoo on their body.

According to the source, “you cannot see any ordinary human being with this kind of tattoo. Though I am not suppose to say this, I know the society she belongs to, but I am not going to tell you. If she does not take things easy with herself, she might not like the end of it all, that I assure you of.” Tonto has since her 2006 AMBO days seen a very quick rise to fame in the make-believe industry in Nigeria. She is presently in the United States for Damage US tour and she is expected back in Nigeria in some days to come



Source: http://www./tonto-dike-i-am-a-witch/

Sorrow has once again hit the movie industry with the news of the passing away of a top Enugu based veteran actress,Franca Onanga.

The aged actress who has been in the industry for several decades is based in Enugu where she started her career and died after a brief illness.
The dark skinned woman has featured in so many movies where she majorly plays the role of an elderly woman.

A lot of movie stars across the country have started paying tribute to the family of the deceased.


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A 70-year old man, Pa Tayo Okunsanwo, a staunch supporter of former Premier League champions, Chelsea collapsed and died after the team he supported lost 1-3 to defending champions, Manchester United at Old Trafford, September 18.

September 18th 2011, Pa Okusanwo left his apartment at 34 Adebiyi Street Shomolu, Lagos down the street to a viewing centre located about six houses away.


Late Pa Okunsanwo
Pa Okunsanwo, was definitely not prepared for what awaited him when he left his apartment to the viewing centre. With a strong belief in the ability of Chelsea players and their young coach, the septugenarian supporter was sure of victory for the Blues.

Before the end of the match Man United were 3-1 up and the Chelsea man began showing signs of distress. He made attempt to stand up to go but couldn’t.

Eye witness account has it that Pa Okunsanwo managed to stand on his feet but soon went down like a sack. “He collapsed and became speechless. He could not talk again,” Debadola Okunsanwo, son of the late Chelsea supporter recounted.

”Soon after my dad collapsed, I was informed on phone and I rushed down to the place. My father could not say one word when we took him to the house. Before we prepared to go to the hospital, he had given up the ghost,” the son recalled.

He said the body of the late septugenerian had since been taken to Ogun state and buried,

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He has enough to spend already. Good he is giving back to the economy.

Silverbird chairman, Ben Murray Bruce, was yesterday screened out of the Bayelsa governorship race by the Gubernatorial Screening Appeal Committee of the PDP in Bayelsa State, for possessing dual citizenship.

According To LIB, The committee only cleared three candidates; Youpele Kalango, Christopher Enai and Henry Seriake Dickson as eligible candidates to contest in the upcoming Guber election.

The panel also excluded the name of current governor of the state, Timipre Sylva, for allegedly operating foreign accounts.

Funny!!!

Source: http://www./ben-murray-bruce-disqualified-from-bayelsa-governorship-race/

President of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote has pledged to provide N2 billion fund to the Federal Government to tackle housing problems.

Nigeria needs about 18 million housing units to address the housing shortage of its over 150 million population that is projected to hit about 200 million soon.

Recently, the Minister of Housing and Environment, Amma Pepple said that there was urgent need to address the nation's housing deficit especially in view of the unemployment situation.

The Minister also explained that the housing deficit is a big challenge which could be turned to a job creation strategy in line with the objectives of the transformation agenda and the vision 20:2020.

Dangote said he offered to contribute to the efforts at providing houses as an opportunity to create jobs, according to a statement from the Dangote Group.

He said the N2 billion would serve as a revolving facility to stir the housing and construction industry of the economy and create jobs in different sectors of the industry.

President Goodluck Jonathan, at a recent retreat for the Economic Management Team canvassed the support of the private sector in rejuvenating the economy particularly the housing industry by reducing the housing deficit.

The Minister of housing said the job creation model using home construction will create a value addition and synergy in construction industry as various industry sector operators such as dealers in sand, stone, cement, iron rod, plumbing, electrical and engineering would earn more income from such constructions, thus creating the much needed jobs.

Dangote offered to provide the money to stimulate job creation through the construction of houses on a build- sell-off and replenish basis.

The details and terms of the facilities are being worked out between the business mogul and the Federal Ministry of Housing and Environment so that the scheme could take off as soon as possible.

Alhaji Dangote has always expressed the belief that the future of the country and Africa in general is in the hands of the citizens as no foreigner could love the nation or the continent more than the citizens themselves.

He told a forum recently that he shared in the report of Mckinsey that only Africans can genuinely work towards the development of the continent hence the decision to spread his investment round African countries.

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MANILA, Philippines (AP) — She came into the world at two minutes before midnight, a tiny, wrinkled girl born into a struggling Manila family. On Monday, she became a symbol of the world’spopulation reaching 7 billion people and all the worries that entails for the planet’s future.

Danica May Camacho, born in a crowded public hospital, was welcomed with a chocolate cake marked “7B Philippines” and a gift certificate for free shoes. There were bursts of photographers’ flashes, and speeches by local officials.

The celebrations, though, reflected symbolism more than demography.

Amid the millions of births and deaths around the world each day, it is impossible to pinpoint the arrival of the globe’s 7 billionth occupant. But the U.N. chose Monday to mark the day with a string of festivities worldwide, and a series of symbolic 7-billionth babies being born.

Danica was the first, arriving at Manila’s Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital at two minutes before midnight Sunday — but doctors say that was close enough to count for a Monday birthday.

“She looks so lovely,” the mother, Camille Galura, whispered as she cradled the 2.5-kilo (5.5-pound) baby, who was born about a month premature.

The baby was the second for Galura and her partner, Florante Camacho, a driver who supports the family on a tiny salary driving a ‘jeepney,’ ubiquitous four-wheel drive vehicles used by many poor and working-class Filipinos.

Dr. Eric Tayag of the Philippines’ Department of Health said later that the birth came with a warning.

“Seven billion is a number we should think about deeply,” he said.

“We should really focus on the question of whether there will be food, clean water, shelter, education and a decent life for every child,” he said. “If the answer is ‘no,’ it would be better for people to look at easing this population explosion.”

In the Philippines, much of the population question revolves around birth control. The government backs a program that includes artificial birth control. The powerful Roman Catholic church, though, vehemently opposes contraception.

Camacho, a Catholic like her husband, said she was aware of the church’s position but had decided to begin using a birth control device.

“The number of homeless children I see on the streets keeps multiplying,” Camacho said. “When I see them, I’m bothered because I eat and maybe they don’t.”



Demographers say it took until 1804 for the world to reach its first billion people, and a century more until it hit 2 billion in 1927. The twentieth century, though, saw things begin to cascade: 3 billion in 1959; 4 billion in 1974; 5 billion in 1987; 6 billion in 1998.

The U.N. estimates the world’s population will reach 8 billion by 2025 and 10 billion by 2083. But the numbers could vary widely, depending on everything from life expectancy to access to birth control to infant mortality rates.

In Uttar Pradesh, India — the most populous state in the world’s second-most populous country — officials said Monday they would be appointing seven girls born Monday to symbolize the 7 billion.

India, which struggles with a deeply held preference for sons and a skewed sex ratio because of millions of aborted female fetuses, is using the day to highlight that issue.

“It would be a fitting moment if the 7 billionth baby is a girl born in rural India,” said Dr Madhu Gupta, an Uttar Pradesh gynecologist. “It would help in bringing the global focus back on girls, who are subject to inequality and bias.”

According to U.S. government estimates, India has 893 girls for every 1,000 boys at birth, compared with 955 girls per 1,000 boys in the United States.

On Monday, the chosen Indian babies were being born at the government-run Community Health Center in the town of Mall, on the outskirts of the Uttar Pradesh capital of Lucknow.

Six babies were born from midnight to 8 a.m. Monday. Four were boys.

Meanwhile China, which at 1.34 billion people is the world’s most populous nation, said it would stand by its one-child policy, a set of restrictions launched three decades ago limiting most urban families to one child and most rural families to two.

“Overpopulation remains one of the major challenges to social and economic development,” Li Bin, director of the State Population and Family Planning Commission, told the official Xinhua News Agency. He said the population of China would hit 1.45 billion in 2020.

While the Beijing government says its strict family planning policy has helped propel the country’s rapidly growing economy, it has also brought many problems. Soon, demographers say, there won’t be enough young Chinese to support its enormous elderly population. China, like India, also has a highly skewed sex ratio, with aid groups saying sex-selective abortions have resulted in an estimated 43 million fewer girls than there should be, given the overall population.

India, with 1.2 billion people, is expected to overtake China around 2030 when the Indian population reaches an estimated 1.6 billion.


Source: http://www./7-billionth-baby-born-in-the-world/

IT will be a rare spectacle this Friday, November 4, when a Christian ministry devoted to the conversion of people considered as gross sinners holds its "Guys Night" in Lagos.

Smoking, drinking of alcohol and dancing to immoral music - all of which are considered sin by much of Christendom - will not only be tolerated at the event but would indeed by actively supported by the organisers.



'At the show, booze will be free and cigarette free too; even food will be served freely while music of all kinds will also be played. There will also be other side attractions such as drinking competition, dancing competition, eating competition, fashion parade and testimony night,' said Lizzy Mbanaso, the founder and head of a Christian ministry known as Nice Time Club.

'People that are expected are the drunkards, prostitutes, drug addicts and all those that are considered to be wayward because God told me He cares for these set of people,' she added.

Providing further details of the programme, Evangelist Mbanaso said: 'When they come, we will spice it up with drama, concert and talk shows. They will feel at home and enjoy themselves before we now chip in the word of God. At the end we will do alter call after which we hand them over to church pastors who will further counsel them on how to follow the Christian life.'

The event is scheduled to hold at hospitality facility on Ekoro road in the Abule Egba area of Lagos.

It is Evangelist Mbanaso's wish that some of the expected converts would be drafted to the Living Faith Church (Winners Church), where she worships while in Lagos.

'But my problem is that you can't force them to attend certain churches,' she said.

She also spoke of 'several attempts' she had made to speak with the Winners General Overseer, Bishop David Oyedepo, on the project but disclosed that she 'has not been given audience yet.'

Originally from Cameroun and a secretary by profession, Evangelist Mbanaso is married to an Abia man from Umuahia.

She started her unusual Christian ministry in 2008 but is holding it in Lagos for the first time.



The woman who professes to becoming a born-again Christain in 1994 as a Secretarial Administration student of the Oko Federal Polytechnic, Oko, Anambra State, says she got a divine revelation to start the ministry during a journey from Lagos to her base in Umuahia, while returning from a Christian programme.

Her words: 'I decided to preach in the bus I entered. As I was ministering, I decided to have a short prayer and in that spiritual session, a tiny voice said to me that I should open a nightclub.

'I was surprised because I didn't know anything about club and I have never gone to club before.

'As I was wondering on what to do, that same voice said again that I should do it for the drunkards, drug addicts, prostitutes and those considered to be wayward.

'It further said, "Just gather them together, give them what they want and allow them to feel free, play music after which food and beer would be served." '

Mrs Mbanaso believes that, that tiny sonorous voice belongs to God Almighty and to further fulfil this mandate, the secretary turned evangelist started out in 2008 to host prostitutes, drunkards, smokers and drug addicts in Abia State.

Many men of God and some close associates have tried to dissuade Mrs. Mbanaso from this project but she has forged ahead with it out of the conviction that her commission is directly from God.

Asked whether she has plans to open a formal nightclub in the future, the evangelist said: 'It will not necessarily be a nightclub but it will be something like a drinking joint where people will be allowed to drink and also listen to the word of God through the television and audio tapes.

At times I will give these drinks out for free say ones in a week.



'This is because, I know quite well that beer is not the worst sin; there are many other sins.

'In the process the ones that give their life to Christ will be taken to church. When they settle down in the church, I will help them by making sure I impact some of the skills which I have already acquired such as hairdressing, fashion, catering amongst others.'

Born and wedded in the Methodist Church, Mrs. Mbanaso has soft spot for people who are in one bad habit or the other.

Most of her friends are some of the notorious sinners whom she converted.

'The people I am close to are wayward people. I have soft spot for wayward people. My closest friend today is a drug addict who I converted to become a Christian,' she said.

Narrating how she makes contacts with drug addicts, smokers and prostitutes, the only daughter in a family of five from her mother in a polygamous family said that most times she goes out of her way to seek them out.

'At times, I dress and paint well like a prostitute and just walk into the hotel and stay with them. At times I use the media too to reach out to them.

'Before I go make sure that inform my husband so that he would be aware. Thank God I have a wonderful husband who understands and supports me,' she told The Moment On Sunday.

The evangelist said that from her interactions with prostitutes, she has noticed that most of them are not there because they want to but because of circumstances.

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'Because we are born-again does not mean that we are better. So nobody should just sit down here and be condemning them. It is just God's grace.

'Most of the men of God today were just like that and somebody has not spoken to them, they will not be saved. These prostitutes always have challenges that took them there,' she stated.

Mrs. Mbanaso said that when prostitutes become born-again, they make great preachers because they have seen it all.

She also declared that nobody that is bad really desires to be bad, adding that Nigerians should form the habit of bringing them closer to themselves so as to make them have hope.

'When we do this, this crime that we are talking about in this country will be reduced to the barest minimum.

'Let us help ourselves and let Nigeria encourage these set of people and make sure that they come back to life,' she stated.


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The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has ‘held talks’ with former Super Eagles captain, Stephen Keshi following last Friday’s sacking of Samson Siasia.

President of the NFF, Aminu Maigari exclusively told SuperSport.com that the Federation made contact with Keshi of Friday but refused to divulge the subject o the ‘discussions’.

“Yes, we (NFF) spoke to Keshi on Friday but I can’t tell you the nature of our discussion,” Maigari told SuperSport.com.

Following Siasia’s sack, name dropping and speculations have been making the rounds as to Siasia’s replacement.

Stephen Keshi and Sunday Oliseh have now been installed as favourite to succeed Siasia.

The technical committee of the NFF will meet on Tuesday to deliberate on the choice of the next Super Eagles Manager.

A decision is expected to be reached on Wednesday.

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Ambassador Musiliu Obanikoro is not new in politics. He was chairman, Lagos Island Local Government, a former senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and currently the nation’s High Commissioner to Ghana.
In this interview, he speaks on the recent local government election in Lagos, describing the results as shocking.

His son, Jide Obanikoro, contested the chairmanship position of Ikoyi/Obalende Local Council Development Area (LCDA) on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and lost. But the ambassador is bitter about what he termed brazen disregard for the people’s mandate and accused former governor of the state, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, under whose administration he served, of being the brain behind the “fake” results. He also expressed disappointment in Governor Raji Fashola, who he described as a hostage, and retired Justice Fatai Olayinka, who presided over the election.
It was a no-holds-barred interview that took place in Ghana.

Did the result of the local government council election shock you?
If there is any word better than shock that is what I would use. I knew they would try anything humanly possible to rig us out, and I also knew they employed Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) members as electoral officers, but I never thought we could win an election and they (ACN) would write a completely fake result and announce it. Even IBB did not do that. It is completely unbelievable. And this coupled with the fact that the presiding officer is a retired Chief Judge and the governor of Lagos is a Senior Advocate of Nigeria. I am not surprised by the former governor, Bola Tinubu, because of his antecedent, but in Fashola and Justice Olayinka, I am grossly disappointed.

How did you know it was a ‘fake’ result that was announced?
Thank God you were there and you saw the results on the table. On the day of the election, we had results from all the polling units. What they did was to instruct all officers presiding at the polling units to bring all the results to the local government for collation. They already knew they lost the election at the polling units. They lost throughout the local government. We won all the five wards. The field officers brought the results while the local government chairman and his people were upstairs.

While we were waiting for them to set up and collate the results, we realized they were thumb-printing ballot papers, trying to make up for what they had lost. Our people went in there and apprehended the ACN members thumb-printing the 500 ballot papers and handed them over to Suruj, the Area Commander. You would expect a fair-minded Area Commander to make an arrest, but up till tomorrow he had not made any arrest. Rather he used the RRS security outfit to smuggle the electoral officer out of the place. There were no returning officers, or electoral officers, the only people left there were the SPOs, who cannot collate results from wards and announce.

The result was left on the table since the electoral officer absconded, so who will now announce the result? Nobody! The most shocking was that the PRO of LASIEC (Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission) announced results that had not been collated and was still on the table. Lagos Television (LTV) and Television Continental (TVC) were scrolling the results that ACN had won. How could that be possible when those responsible for the result from the field were still in the local government with the results on the table? Later in the day the chairman countered it. You can see that this was a premeditated thing. They are all in sync - Fashola, Tinubu, RRS, and LASIEC.

Is this not the reality of politics and democracy you are also involved in?
Why do we call Lagos ‘Centre of Excellence’ if we are going to behave like others? Let me make a point, those of us who are core Lagos people are not into this type of politics, because we are all members of the same family. Look at Fashola, his family background, his family house and ours are not far from each other. Tinubu is the one corrupting all of us. We don’t play politics with bitterness.

We recognize that we have something that binds all of us together, which is bigger than politics. But when you bring somebody, who is foreign to that set up, he doesn’t have respect for what we cherish and protect. Despite our political differences you still see us flocking together. We set politics aside. But, to this man, who is alien to our system, everything is politics, even if it’s going to destroy the family. There is no way Fashola and Olayinka would have done this, but this is what you have when people are not courageous enough to stand up to a dictator.

What next for your son, Jide Obanikoro?
We have not seen the end of this. I don’t have confidence in the tribunal Tinubu has set up. My son has decided to go to the tribunal along with others. I won’t stop them from going, but I don’t have confidence in the tribunal. Let them go to the tribunal, but like I said, I don’t have confidence in them. Look, let me tell you, the entire judiciary of Lagos State came here and part of our job was to receive them, but they refused our hospitality and did not visit the commission. When I spoke with one or two of them, they said they were afraid of Tinubu and Fashola. If they could be afraid over such matters, what do you think would happen at a tribunal? Tinubu does not believe in democracy. Do you know there has not been democracy in ACN since 1999?

Why are you indicting the police?
I was shot at; my son was also shot at. Policemen were there, but they did not make any arrest. They moved the APC they were using to protect us out and within five minutes hired thugs came in and started shooting.

Why is your son in politics?
It was not my decision, it was his. Jide is 30 years old; he can make up his mind. We have family business where we are all shareholders. We are into haulage, downstream sector, farming and real estate. And as a father, I support him.

What do you expect of Governor Fashola?
Well, if there is any hostage here, I think it is Governor Fashola. He is being held hostage by Tinubu and the whole Lagos knows this. I believe his conscience will prick him, but unfortunately, he is also a hostage.

What do you think of Asiwaju Tinubu?
I think those God wants to destroy He first make mad. That’s the situation with him now. The process has begun. What he is doing is worse than what Abacha and IBB did. The only difference is that they were military dictators.

What do you think of Justice Olayinka?
To be honest with you, I am disappointed beyond comprehension. This man is supposed to be a Muslim and a retired judge of Lagos State. He is almost 70. What else is better for a man like that than to leave a legacy worthy of emulation? I still can’t comprehend why a man like that would allow an evil-minded dictator use him.

You talk as if you and Tinubu will not do politics together again, why?
I am not interested in his type of politics. That was the reason I left him, to begin with. I don’t play extreme politics. Moderation is the watchword for anything I do in life. I can’t play his type of politics. I saw some extreme postures, greed and corruption, so I left. One man playing God! Look at the sand-filling going on at Ikoyi today, he is primarily behind most of them.

There is a lot of reclamation going on. I have it on good authority that the secretariat building of Eti-Osa has been sold. I understand he is moving them to Obalende. If you go to Senator Olajumoke’s house and Chief Rasheed Gbadamosi’s, those places used to be waterfront, now Tinubu has reclaimed the land. I wonder why someone like that still goes out without covering his face? How much does a man need to live a good life? I saw some of these things coming, that’s why I left him.

Do you still talk to Demola Seriki?
Yes, if we have reason to talk, we do.

Do you feel let down by his going back to ACN?
Demola is my personal friend, so no comment. Those of us who are core Lagos people; despite our differences we still accommodate each other. We even like Fashola.

Do you talk with Fashola?
Fashola is my brother; I will continue to say this because we are from the same village in Lagos Island. If there is need, I will talk with him.

What about Tinubu?
I have lost every respect for him. Let me tell you, when IBB annulled the June 12 election results, he didn’t go outside to write another result.

Would you contest in 2015?
Nobody is sure of being alive tomorrow, not to talk of 2015. People are saying this local government election is about 2015 and I laugh. It is God that crowns. Let me tell you, in 2007 Fashola and Tinubu were travelling to London in the same plane I was. We sat beside each other and I asked Fashola what next for him, and he said he was going back to his chamber. I told him I was contesting and I am sure I would win, but today, he is the governor. So, it is God that crowns, not any man. This is not about 2015.

What is the way out?
There were two polling booths in front of Tinubu’s house, we won there. We also won at the police barrack near his house; that is to show how unpopular he is. The way forward is that good people like Wole Soyinka, Wole Olanipekun should speak out. There must not be selective justice. People like Wole Soyinka stands for the truth. This is one occasion he should speak out because there is hardly anybody that does not look up to Prof. Wole Soyinka. We cannot condemn injustice on one hand and embrace it on the other.

www.nigerians.com.ng

“A Zimbabwean man claims he hired a prostitute which later transformed to be a donkey. He claims he is “seriously in love with the donkey”
“It happened when I left the bar, but I am seriously in love with (the) donkey,” Sunday Moyo told the court, according to The Herald newspaper.
Moyo, 28, was arrested in the town of Zvishavane, about 185 miles south of the capital Harare on Sunday.

He said he had paid $25 for a prostitute, and was surprised Sunday morning when he heard people accusing him of having sex with a donkey.

Moyo has been charged with bestiality and remanded in custody. The court has ordered him to undergo a mental examination, The Herald said.

Source: http://www./prostitute-in-kenya-turns-to-a-donkey/

Sam Loco’s eldest son, Bismarch Efe spoke to HVP shortly after his Dad’s funeral rites concerning the kind of relationship that existed between the departed actor and his children. He also explained why his Dad did not encouraged his children to take after him in the area of acting.

What’s your position in your family?


Bismarch Efe
I’m the third child, and also, the first son. We are a family of six children.

While your Dad lived, what did he mean to you?

He was a nice Dad, a friend and a peace-loving father; a forgiving father. He was a real man, someone I called called a friend, a brother and a true father. He gave us all the freedom and support, a father could give to his children, ensuring that we did not mess it up.

How would you describe the relationship that existed between your father and his children?

Like I said earlier, we call him a friend. Everyone of us see him as our friend, you know what that means.

Even though we still maintain that father– children– relationship. Friendship is the right word to describe the kind of relationship that existed between us and our late Dad.

What would you say, you learnt from him while he lived?

He was a very truthful man, and someone who would stand for what he believed in. If my father believed in something, you hardly could influence him to change his mind. He would hold on to what he believed in, no matter the situation.

In fact, most times he believed in doing the right thing. I have come to learn that from him. Secondly, he happened to be someone who liked to make people around him to be happy. I have also learnt that attribute from him.

Your Dad left big shoes for you to wear. How well are you prepared to fit into his shoes ?

Prosperity will help me; God will be my strength. Many factors will combine to ensure that I live up to the expectations of my father’s admirers. It’s not by charm, rather it was meant to be that way. The only thing that can prevent me from sustaining the legacy my Dad left behind is the environment.

I pray that the environment should be friendly, and hopefully, I will fit into his shoes. One thing, I know even before now is the fact that my Dad was born great and I think ,I’m born greater. I have always had that dream. Dreams cannot be manipulated because I know one day it will surely come to pass.

What are you going to miss most about your father ?

His fatherly care, it encompasses every other thing. He was just a cheery father.

What was your reaction when you heard of your father’s death?

It was the biggest shock I have ever heard in my life. I still remember vividly that Sunday afternoon when the news of his death filtered into my ears. I was just stepping out of my Church premises after the service, when I got a distress call that my attention was needed in Owerri. Immediately I knew that my father was in a critical condition. I quickly rushed down to Owerri and when I got there, I saw my father’s corpse.

At that point, I realised that life must go on, since I cannot bring hm back to life or change the situation. I had to accept the fact that he is no more, and I must learn to live without him.

Would you say burying your father in Benin has helped to resolve the age-long controversy that surrounded his identity?

My father was born in the eastern part of the country. He grew up in Enugu, worked and lived there all his life. Indeed, he had always been part of the eastern bloc. He understood the culture of the Igbo nation. He spoke their language fluently and enjoyed their local dishes. I don’t know what destiny has in stock for me.

Before and after his death, do you feel comfortable watching your Dad on screen?

I hardly watch my Dad’s films, even when he was alive. He appeared to be same person to me, whether in real life or on screen. I don’t get extra-excitement watching his movies. He was just the same person both on screen and in real life. Even now that he’s no more, it will be a good reason for me to stay away completely from his works.

There was a dream your father did not accomplish until his death- his farm project which he sited at Abakiliki. Do you intend to keep that dream alive?

We are thinking about it. We don’t know what to do yet with the project. I will try to keep his dreams alive and I hope to continue from where my he stopped.

But as it stands now, I need to understand what the business is all about… It’s a bit complicated now.

Now that your father is no more, is any of your siblings considering the idea of taking after him?

We grew up in Benin and we are also popular in our own rights not because of him. But because of who we are, he never encouraged us to go into acting.

May be, he didn’t really like acting as a profession. He may have liked it for himself ,but not for his children to be part of the profession. Until recently, the industry was not very rewarding. He suffered a lot and went through a lot of difficulties to achieve what he achieved in life. That could be part of the reason he didn’t want us to go into the profession . Because he never knew what the future would hold in stock for us.

www.

One of Africa’s most successful female musicians of all time, Onyeka Onwenu, is a sad woman. The elegant stallion as the Imo State born crooner is better known is devastated following the death of her mother Madam Hope Onwenu.


Onyeka Onwenu
A Community leader and former Choirmaster of the Anglican Church in Lagos Mama Onyeka who would have turned 93 years old on January 6, 2012, died on Saturday, October 22, in Anambra State.

Mama according to family source had had lived a very fulfilling life and was enjoying the best of health before death came calling.

But in the words of Onyeka Mama’s final hours were enveloped in joy and happiness.

“I spent the whole Wednesday, October 18 with her, plaiting her hair and even revisiting one of her woman’s classic compositions, Ochie Dike Nnem with her”.

Narrating what exactly happened that day, the songstress said in a text message she sent to this writer , “We sang Ochie Dike Nnem, the song she wrote for her own mother and we sang praises to God in our usual manner. She slept off and I left.

I promised to come back on Tuesday. But I have been praying ever since, that if it was her time, that God will take her away gently and peacefully in her sleep. That is exactly what happened.

I give all the glory to my God. May my mother’s indomitable spirit rest in perfect peace. Ochie Dike, ka Omesia. Dalu nnem. I love you” she said in an emotion laden voice.

Her burial plans will be announced in due course.

Source: Vanguard

An expert on malaria said on Friday that Nigerians were the largest exporters of the illness in view of the mobile nature of the citizens.

Luis Benavente, director, Improving Malaria Diagnostics, a United States Agency for International Development-supported organisation, said this at a training for laboratory scientists in Lagos.

“Nigeria is the biggest exporter of malaria in the world and it can only be reduced if it is controlled in Nigeria,” Dr Benavent said.

He said that studies had shown that Nigerians were very entrepreneurial and travel to a lot of countries to transact businesses while carrying with them malaria parasites, thereby disseminating them wherever they go in the world.

He added that to control malaria in the world, it had to be controlled first in Nigeria and stressed the need for competent laboratory technicians to diagnose the illness.

Also speaking at the training, Wellington Oyibo, Consultant Parasitologist, College of Medicine, University of Lagos (UNILAG), said that some clinical examinations misdiagnose every type of fever for malaria.

He added that when most people experience feverish feelings, they automatically think it is malaria and treat it as such.

Dr Oyibo warned that the intake of malaria medication for every type of illness would make the body drug-resistant and, therefore, make the illness very difficult to treat.

He stressed the need for microscopic diagnosis, which would assess the parasite and confirm if it was malaria or not.

He urged governments at all levels to provide funding for training of microscopists and provide adequate microscopes in hospital laboratories to help in proper diagnosis of malaria thereby reducing the scourge in Nigeria and the world at large.

About 25 laboratory scientists from six states of the federation participated in the training sponsored by Malaria Action Programme for States in collaboration with UNILAG College of Medicine, WHO and Kenya-based African Malaria Research Foundation.

Luis Benavente says that Nigerians travel to a lot of countries to transact businesses, carrying with them the malaria parasite

Source: 234 NEXT

A 13-year-old boy, trapped for five days inside fallen debris, used a rock in a desperate attempt to dig a hole and free himself from a building that collapsed in a massive earthquake that struck eastern Turkey, his uncle said Friday.
Rescuers from Azerbaijan pulled Ferhat Tokay out of the debris of a multistory building early on Friday, the latest survivor to emerge from the devastation of the 7-2-magnitude quake that leveled buildings and killed at least 570 people.

Some 2,500 were injured in the temblor that brought down about 2,000 buildings and left thousands homeless.

Tokay was working in a shoe shop on the ground floor of a multistory building in Ercis when the quake hit on Sunday.

“With a rock, he tried to open up a hole,” the uncle, Sahin Tokay, told NTV television hours after the rescue. “He thumped on walls to try to open up a space for himself.”

Tokay said the boy also placed shoes under his head and used them as a pillow to sleep, peering through a tiny gap to distinguish between day and night.

“He was hungry on the first day, but the hunger pangs later disappeared,” Tokay said.

The state-run Anatolia news agency said the boy drank rain water which helped keep him alive.

For the family who had anxiously waited outside the crumbled building for days, Ferhat’s rescue was a miracle.

Rescue teams sent the boy’s father and other relatives away from the site to get some rest in the early hours of Friday, saying there was no chance of finding him alive. Soon after, they were called back with news that the crew had reached him.

“He didn’t even have a scratch on him!” the uncle said.

Television footage showed the boy smiling at people standing around his hospital bed.

“He said he was hungry and asked for food,” he uncle said.

“He also got his father to promise not to play tile rummy (in coffee houses) anymore” Tokay said in reference to a popular pass-time for men in Turkey.

The 213-person team from the Azeri Special Risk Rescue Service, equipped with sniffer dogs, have pulled out 10 survivors since arriving to offer services late Sunday, including Tokay and 18-year-old Imdat Padak who was brought out late Thursday.

Attesting to the dangerous nature of the rescue operations, rubble fell on a sniffer dog called Cip while searching for Padak inside a gap, seriously injuring its paws, the Azerbaijani team said.

The government’s crisis management center said a total of 187 people have been freed from rubble alive. Search and rescue operations have ended in the provincial capital of Van, but were continuing in Ercis.

Turkish authorities delivered more tents after acknowledging distribution problems that included aid trucks being looted before they reached Ercis.

Tents, prefabricated homes, blankets and heaters also started arriving from a dozen countries, after Turkey said asked for assistance to help shelter people left homeless in near-freezing conditions.

Israel, which has a troubled political relationship with Turkey, sent emergency housing units, blankets and clothing. Britain, Ireland, Germany, Russia, Romania and Ukraine also contributed.

About 2,000 buildings have been destroyed and authorities declared another 3,700 buildings unfit for habitation.


Source: http://www./13-year-old-pulled-alive-from-turkey-earthquake-rubble-after-five-days/

A cast member on MTV’s “The Real World/Road Rules Challenge: The Ruins” claims male members acted like animals during production, in one case raping her with a toothbrush … this according to a new lawsuit obtained by TMZ.
Tonya Cooley filed the suit against MTV, Bunim/Murray Productions, Kenneth Santucci, Evan Starkman and others … claiming the two guys “took another male participant’s toothbrush and rubbed the toothbrush around plaintiff’s genitals, including rubbing her labia and inserting the toothbrush into plaintiff’s vagina.”

Cooley says it all happened while she was passed out cold … and cameras were rolling

Cooley says producers not only knew about the rape, they even replaced the toothbrush, but never told her what happened.

The suit also claims female cast members were stripped of their bathing suits and that male cast members were encouraged by producers to “inappropriately touch female cast members’ bodies, including in intimate areas.”

Cooley alleges she and other cast members reported incidents of sexual abuse, but show honchos turned a blind eye.

Cooley claims she was later booted from the show after slapping a cast member. She says nothing happened to the men who allegedly raped her.

Cooley is suing for unspecified damages. Calls to MTV have not been returned.

We made several calls to Bunim/Murray for comment, but each time we called … the receptionist hung up on us.

Source:http:///WcGfj

A South Carolina mother who told police her son killed three family members and himself has been charged with murdering all of them to get their life insurance money, police said on Tuesday.



Susan Hendricks, 48, was charged with the murder of her two sons, her ex-husband and her stepmother after being arrested at a motel on Monday night, police added.

She was also charged with possession of a weapon during a violent crime, a handgun she kept in her night stand.

Police were called to a house in Liberty, South Carolina, on Oct. 14, Pickens County Assistant Sheriff Tim Morgan said.

Based on observations at the scene, forensic evidence and interviews with family members, police determined Hendricks’ version of what happened was false, he said.

Family members told police her motive was life insurance money.

Hendricks was the beneficiary of multiple life insurance policies taken out by the victims, a police report said.

Source REUTERS http:///LUeuz

Death By Hanging - Rev King's Appeal Suffers Setback


The appeal by founder of Christian Praying Assembly, Rev. Chukwuemeka Ezeuko (Rev. King), who is challenging the judgment of an Ikeja High Court, which sentenced him to death by hanging for the murder of one Ann, a female member of his church, suffered a setback, Wednesday, due to irregularities in the appeal.

At the hearing in the appeal, yesterday, it was discovered that there are two different appeals by Rev. King, one dated June 23, 2008 and another December 1, 2010 respectively.

The court also noted that the respondent’s (Lagos State Government) brief of argument, responded to the appeal filed on December 1, 2010 without seeking leave of court to do so.

Counsel to Rev. King, told the court that the appellant filed his brief of argument on June 24, 2008 against the judgment of the lower court delivered on January 11, 2007, but, the court was surprised when the Solicitor General, Lagos State Ministry of Justice, Lawal Pedro, told the court that the respondent’s brief of argument was dated April 21, 2011 and filed April 22.

Presiding Justice, Justice Ibrahim Saulawa, noted that the respondent was out of time since the appellant’s brief of argument was filed on June 24, 2008, stressing the need for the respondent to regularise his brief of argument and adjourned the matter till April 4, 2012.

Rev. King’s counsel, had told the court that sometimes in 2008, the appellate court granted leave to the appellant to amend his notice of appeal and file additional grounds within seven days, contending that the lower court on its own,  raised fundamental issue in its judgment and addressed same without input of parties in the suit.

http://allnigeriannewspapers.info/2011/10/death-by-hanging-rev-king%E2%80%99s-appeal-suffers-setback/
Source: http://www./death-by-hanging-rev-king-appeal-suffers-setback/

Talented musician Bankole Wellington aka Banky W. and South African damsel and TV presenter, Dineo Moeketsi have been announced as the host of 2011 edition of Channel O’s Music Video Awards slated for 11-11-11.

Reacting to the selection, Banky W. said, “It is truly a great honour for me to be chosen as this year’s host. Channel O has been one of the greatest platforms for African artists over the years, and the award show is always a spectacular event; the show has a history of raising the bar and setting the standard for events on our continent. I’m so proud to be a part of it. I’m very excited about the opportunity, and I hope and pray that I do a great job as anchor. I plan on working with the team to ensure that this year’s show is the biggest and best celebration of African music that we’ve had till date… Let’s go!! #LagosPartyStateofMind.”

While an elated Dineo also commented

“Of all the peaks during my time at Channel O, I never imagined this would come my way. I am honoured, humbled, pleasantly surprised and ever so grateful to be hosting this year’s Channel O Music Video Awards. I am even more excited to have such a brilliant African artist like Banky W as my co-host. Words cannot begin to describe how thankful I am for Channel O. I’m well beyond excited and I get tiny butterflies just thinking about it.

http://www.

AKURE—FOUR primary school pupils have been apprehended in Akure, the Ondo State capital over the gruesome murder of their 11 year schoolmate Godwill Omokabo.

Godwill was alleged to have been murdered in cold blood by four suspects, aged between 11 and 13 years over an argument on a mobile phone.

The suspects are co tenant of the deceased pupil who attends a private school in Oke Aro area of Akure.

Sources in Akure informed Vanguard that the deceased pupil after he was murdered was thrown in the bush at Adofure farm, some kilometres away from Akure, the state capital.

Godwill was said to have drew the ire of the suspects following his refusal to allow them play with his handset.

His friends according to sources threatened to deal with him and within three days after their threat he was found in the bush with several marks all over his body.

Vanguard gathered that after he was murdered by the suspects, they came back to tell the parents of the deceased various account of how he met his death.

They were said to have told Mr and Mrs Joseph and Patience Omokabo that Godwill fell into the river and was carried away while in another breath, they said he got drowned while they were all swimming.

After 24 hours of search and the corpse of Godwill could not be found the father reported the matter to the Police.

One of the suspects was said to have taken his parent to where they hid the corpse and it was recovered without the knowledge of the deceased’s parents.

When he was later told that the corpse had been recovered, Mr. Omokabo was said to have suspected foul play and raised alarm.

It was gathered that on close examination, it was discovered that bruises were all over the body of the deceased.

Lamenting the death of her son, Mrs Omokabo said three days before the untimely death of his son there was an argument between the suspect and his son over a mobile phone.

It was learnt that the contentious phone was later found in possession of the four suspect’s days after the Godwill was missing.

Contacted, the Police Public Relation Officer, PRO,  of the State Police Command, Adeniran Aremu confirmed the arrest of the four teenage suspects.

Aremu said that the 11 year old Godwill was murdered following an argument over a phone and added that investigations into the gruesome murder of the deceased pupil was continuing

Source: Vanguard Nigeria
Read Latest Gist In Nigeria

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, Tuesday, said it had informed the  family and lawyers of detained ace comedian, Mr. Babatunde Omidina (Baba Suwe), of their readiness to release him to them for an independent scan to bring the matter to a conclusive end.

Confirming the development to Vanguard, Airport Commander of the agency, Mr. Hamza Umar, said the agency made this position known to the family members and his lawyers when they visited their office on Monday.

He also said they were told to take him to any independent scan examination of their choice under the watchful eyes of the agency, assuring that they were prepared to release the actor should the independent scan say otherwise.

However, Vanguard gathered that 72 hours after this assurance was reportedly given,  neither the family nor the lawyers had returned to the agency to inform it of their decision.

Umar said the agency was ready and anxious to collaborate with the family and lawyers to bring the matter to a close.

Baba Suwe, who has been in the custody of NDLEA since October 12, over alleged possession of cocaine, was said to have made a series of excretions but no drug has been found on them.  The NDLEA said the actor will continue to be under their observation.

Baba Suwe was nabbed aboard an Air France aircraft to Paris at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, MMIA, Ikeja, Lagos, about 10p.m. on Wednesday, October 12 when he allegedly tested positive to drug ingestion and had been placed under observation since then.

Baba Suwe had on Monday asked a Federal High Court in Lagos, presided over by Justice Okechukwu Okeke, to vacate an order he gave, which empowered NDLEA to detain him for additional 15 days.

The request formed part of a motion on notice he brought, pursuant to Order 26 Rule 11 of the Federal High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules, 2009. The artiste, while asking for an order of the court discharging or vacating the order issued by Justice Okeke, argued that the application for the order obtained by NDLEA was grossly irregular and constituted an abuse of the processes of the court.

In the motion filed by his counsel, Bamidele Aturu, Baba Suwe also argued that the application for the order obtained by the respondent was contrary to public policy and constituted a wanton violation of his fundamental rights.

Read More Hot Naija News Here

An earthquake in south-eastern Turkey has killed more than 200 people, with hundreds more casualties feared. Rescue teams worked through Sunday night trying to free survivors crying out for help from under the rubble.

The Turkish interior minister, Idris Naim Sahin, said the 7.2 magnitude quake on Sunday killed 100 in the city of Van and 117 in the badly hit town of Ercis, 60 miles further north. The death toll was expected to rise.

Overseeing emergency operations in Ercis, Sahin said 1,090 people were known to have been injured and hundreds were missing.

Rescue efforts struggled to get into full swing following the quake, with electricity cut off as darkness fell on the towns and villages on the barren Anatolian steppe near the border with Iran.

Survivors and emergency service workers searched frantically through broken concrete using hands, shovels and torches or working under floodlights powered by mobile generators.

As dawn broke the scale of the devastation became clearer. At one crumpled four-storey building in Ercis a team of firemen from the largest south-eastern city of Diyarbakir were trying to reach four children believed trapped deep in an apartment block as concerned bystanders looked on.

Nearby, aid teams handed out parcels of bread and food, while people wrapped in blankets huddled around open fires after spending a cold night on the streets.

The prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, said there were an unknown number of people unaccounted for under the collapsed buildings of the stricken towns and he feared the worst for villagers living in outlying rural areas who had still to be reached.

“Because the buildings are made of adobe [mudbrick] they are more vulnerable to quakes. I must say that almost all buildings in such villages are destroyed,” Erdogan told a televised news conference in Van.

“We don’t know how many people are in the ruins of collapsed buildings, it would be wrong to give a number.”

There have been more than 100 aftershocks since the main quake, which lasted for about 25 seconds at 1.40pm local time on Sunday.

In Van, a bustling and ancient city on a lake ringed by snow-capped mountains and with a population of 1 million, cranes shifted rubble off a collapsed six-storey apartment block where bystanders said 70 people were trapped.

There was much more damage in Ercis with 55 buildings flattened, including a student dormitory, in a town of 100,000.

The Red Crescent said about 100 expert personnel had arrived at the earthquake zone to co-ordinate operations. Four thousand tents and 11,000 blankets, stoves and food were being distributed.

A tent city was being set up at the Ercis sports stadium. Access to the region was made more difficult as the earthquake caused the partial collapse of the main road between Van and Ercis, broadcaster CNN Turk reported.

The military said two battalions had been sent to assist the relief operations.

The Dogan news agency reported that 24 people were pulled from the rubble alive in the two hours after midnight.

One nurse told CNN Turk news channel the town’s hospital was so badly damaged that staff were treating the injured in the garden and bodies were being left outside the building.

yea vvguy, God help us all

Members of the Nigerian house of representatives are moving to suggest death penalty (death by hanging) for anyone convicted of kidnapping in the country.

The lawmakers decided this in the Wednesday plenary by passing a bill to forbid kidnapping, hostage-taking and stipulating a punishment for its contravention through second reading according to NEXT.

The bill has not been passed yet.


Source: http://www./reps-propose-death-penalty-for-kidnappers/

The World Should End Tomorrow - Harold Camping

A Christian fundamentalist has said Friday is judgment day, even though this isn’t his first attempt of ‘judging’ when the world will end.

Ah yes, Christian fundamentalists. They take the fun out and put the mental in fundamentalism. According to the 90-year-old preacher Harold Camping, May 21 of this year was to be Judgment Day, as was May 21 1988 and September 6 1994. Basically, flick a calendar, point your finger and that’s Judgment Day. Now it's October 21.

Mr Camping, who runs a Christian broadcast channel, ‘Family Radio’, was reportedly "flabbergasted" when no one was "raptured" on May 21 of this year, although people did die as a result of his claims. However, he says that "God accomplished exactly what he wanted to happen" and that a "spiritual judgement" had occurred in May in order to make way for the "physical destruction" this Friday.

Before the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse roamed into town, Camping recruited ‘dedicated followers’ to his ‘theory’, ‘religion’, fringe group or whatever you’re having, and many of them quit their jobs so they could focus on the task at hand.

According to reports, when the last ‘Apocalypse’ was on its way, Camping told his followers to get rid of their pets as they had no place in Heaven. Thankfully though, neighbours were only too happy to rescue the ‘doomed’ pets.

So, when you wake up Friday morning, will a fiery skeleton riding a fiery horse greet you at the door, only to demand your soul? If Camping’s track record is anything to go by, we can safely say, no.


http://www.joe.ie/news-politics/world-affairs/preacher-announces-the-world-will-end-tomorrow-0016908-1
Read More :  http://www./world-would-end-tomorrow-harold-camping

World will “probably” end October 21, 2011, says radio host and preacher Harold Camping, who has twice wrongly predicted Judgment Day.

Harold Camping
The radio host and preacher predicted the rapture would come on May 21, 2011. It didn’t.

Now Camping says the real day of judgment will be October 21, 2011. “Probably.”

Camping, has admitted that his previous prediction of a May 21 apocalypse was wrong due to an error in calculation. He also previously said the end of the world would come in 1994. When that date came and went, he said he made a mathematical error.

However camping said:

“the end is going to come very, very quietly probably within the next month … by October 21. Probably there will be no pain suffered by anyone because of their rebellion against God,” he said, according to the Post.

“We can become more and more sure that they’ll quietly die and that will be the end of their story.”


Read More : http://www./world-would-end-tomorrow-harold-camping