₦airaland Forum

About 100 million Nigerians live in destitution, the World Bank has said.

The World Bank Country Director for Nigeria, Marie-Francoise Marie-Nelly, said this at the bank’s Country Programme Portfolio Review in Enugu on Tuesday.

She said that the bank’s ongoing commitment to Nigeria stood at $5.34bn. According to the World Bank boss, the number of Nigerians living in destitution makes up 8.33 per cent of the total number of people living in destitution all over the world, which the bank plans to reduce drastically by 2030.

She said, “1.2 billion people live in destitution out of which 100 million are Nigerians. Inequality is rising in many developing nations.

“For this reason, the World Bank’s corporate perspective has shifted more strategically in the past year. The World Bank wants to galvanise international and national support around two goals: to end extreme poverty in a generation and to push for greater equality.

“To end extreme poverty, the World Bank Group’s goal is to decrease the percentage of people living on less than $1.25 a day from 20 per cent today to three per cent by 2030.

“The goal is to promote income growth of the bottom 40 per cent of the population in each country. In Nigeria, 63 per cent of the population live on less than $1.25 a day.”

Marie-Nelly said although the World Bank was the largest overseas development agency that provided assistance to Nigeria, the contribution of the organisation to the country was very small compared to the budgets of the states and the Federal Government.

She said if the World Bank’s small assistance could produce so much result because of effective implementation and monitoring, the revenues accruable to the country could do much more if they were similarly utilised.

Giving a more graphic picture of the World Bank’s credit to Nigeria in relation to revenues accruing to the nation, Marie-Nelly said while the bank’s total commitment to Nigeria amounted to $4.67bn by 2012, the budget of the states and Federal Government amounted to $64.05bn in the same year.

She said the World Bank’s portfolio amounted to $5.34bn as of June 2013, while the budget of the Federal Government alone for 2013 amounted to $31.17bn.

She said the bank had shifted from being Federal Government centric to a more balanced federal and state level support.

She said the annual Country Programme Portfolio Review, which the bank undertakes with various governments, was necessary to assess the progress in achieving the development objectives as well as the quality of implementation of the projects.
http://www.punchng.com/news/100-million-nigerians-live-in-destitution-world-bank-2/

Yes, there is apparently no madness in your family, Mrs Chime .. My Advice is to hold a thanksgiving and draw closer to God(No miracle churches ooo).. Even home bible study is ok..

As for Gov Chime, please try to forgive and put the past behind.. God knows the best.. The God we serve is not a sleeping God, whatever Gov Chime has sowed he will reap..

The media should be avoided completely and totally, and try to make a personal appeal on moral and humane grounds to all legal representatives and institutions involved in this matter(Falana, NHRC et al) to also avoid commenting to the media on this issue any further.

Also try to resolve whatever is left of your marital status with Gov Chime, within your maiden family, blood relations and your in-laws as amicably as possible..

Last of all, you also need a vacation far away from naija.. Pls, it is time to move on with your life..

The well-informed and rational minded people of Nigeria are solidly behind you. If there was a Nigerian woman of the year award, Mrs Chime deserves to be a recepient..

Governor Sullivan Chime’s in-laws, including the mother in-law, Madam Patience Igwe, on Tuesday said there was no history of madness in their family

Madam Igwe told our correspondent on the phone that no member of the family had a history of mental illness.

“My daughter, Clara, is very okay and sound and her husband, the governor of Enugu State, is also doing well. Please leave us alone and don’t call me again on this matter,” she said.

Governor Chime recently disclosed that his wife had mental illness based on which he had restricted her movement to the Government House.

Clara however left the Government House at the weekend, vowing never to return to her husband.

At the Amauda Isuochi village in Umunneochi Local Government Area of Abia State, where Mrs Clara Chime hailed from, a male cousin to the governor’s estranged wife corroborated Madam Igwe’s stand, asking, “Do I look like someone who is mad?”

The cousin, who was spotting a pair of blue jean trousers, refused to disclose his identity and prevented other members of the family from speaking to our correspondent.

“Do the people you are seeing here look like mad people, or have you seen any mad person since you came in?,” he asked our correspondent.

He said, “Please, we don’t have any mad person here and nobody in our family has ever been mad. So, I don’t know where Enugu people got the story that our sister is mad.”

When asked, the security man at the Igwe’s compound, Dauda William, said he was yet to notice any insane person in the family.

“Since I resumed work at the premises over four months ago, the people I have been seeing around are very normal and well,” said William, an indigene of Nasarawa State.
http://www.punchng.com/news/theres-no-madness-in-our-family-chimes-in-laws/

GEJ and cowboy cap. somebody should remind him that this is 21st century

BY NAN

The Campaign for Democracy (CD), an NGO, has urged the police and other security agencies in Anambra to disarm vigilance groups to prevent them from being used by politicians during the Nov.16 governorship polls in the state.

Mr Vincent Ezekwueme, chairman of the group in the state made the appeal on Tuesday while speaking with newsmen in Onitsha.

Ezekwueme said that all efforts must be geared toward ensuring credible, fair, free and generally acceptable election that would meet international standard.

“CD is appealing to the presidency, INEC, security agents and all stakeholders to ensure that all aspirants and political parties adhere strictly to the electoral laws,’’ he said.

The chairman, however, decried the huge amount of money being spent by the candidates in the election.

He advised security agents to be on the alert to checkmate the activities of political party agents that would use money to influence people at the polling booths.

“Anambra electorate and youths should vote wisely during the Nov. 16, governorship election in order to ensure that a man of impeccable integrity will emerge as governor-elect.

“Parents should advise their children against being used as thugs during and after the election’’.

He warned that Anambra people would not accept any attempt to impose a candidate on them; adding, “our people will accept the outcome of the election if it is credible’’.
http://www.punchng.com/news/anambra-cd-urges-police-to-disarm-vigilante-groups/

today Dino is not different from the one in house of reps (2007-2011), or the one during school days- he is vocal; you dare not take such stand if you are not smart or clean. if he is as dirty as you are painting him to be; why are the people he is digging up their filth protecting his dirt? shut him up by showing us his dirt. you cannot fight what sustains you. can president Jonathan even pretend like this young man in the voice against corruption? he CAN’T!

lygn19: O men no be small o dz chick is hottttttttt....
Controversy do u stay in ph?

Nope

mascot87: @Controversy(f), Please are you engaged or married?If non of the two, I will like to marry you, no be joke o.I am already in love with you,quote me pls, say something positive,haaaaaaaaaa,I don dey go crazy ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooöooooooöo,help!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! . if you no give me positive response ,you may not see my moniker on NL again meaning ''I have committed suicide''what??I love you

Lol thanks 4 complement

A pastor, Alasco Sobowale, has been accused of raping a 12-year-old girl (name withheld) in Epe, Lagos State. The pastor was said to have allegedly had carnal knowledge of the girl at their home located at 10, Togodo Street, Temu Town.
The victim’s aunt, Mrs. Ngozi Anjorin, toldPUNCH Metro that the incident occurred on December 15, 2012.
Anjorin said the victim only spoke Igbo Language and had recently arrived Lagos from Imo State.
She said Sobowale, who also speaks Igbo, allegedly lured her niece to the toilet around 9pm and had sex with her.
She said, “My niece was sent to Lagos about two weeks before the incident so I could send her to school because she doesn’t speak English Language. She only speaks Igbo and only I and the pastor, who is our neighbour, speak Igbo.
“On that particular night, my children were in the room watching television but I couldn’t find my niece. I kept on shouting her name but I got no answer. I then proceeded to the toilet which is detached from the building. I knocked on the door of the toilet and the pastor immediately ran out and I saw her inside the toilet.
“When I inquired of her what she was doing inside the toilet with the pastor, she said he lured her into the toilet and covered her mouth with his palm so she wouldn’t scream. She said the pastor brought out his penis and forced it into her anus. She said he also put his penis in her vagina and when she discharged a particular fluid, he used a handkerchief to scoop it.”
Anjorin said Sobowale, who lives with his wife and children in the same compound, fled after the incident.
Anjorin said two days later, she reported the matter to the Epe Police Division and the policemen began to look for him.
It was learnt that two days later, the police were able to arrest him.
Residents told our correspondent that after Sobowale’s arrest, some of his church members accused a six-year-old girl of bewitching the pastor and had her flogged and paraded.
A source, who craved anonymity, said, “Sobowale is not actually the head pastor. His wife is the senior pastor of the church known as Okiki Imole. A few days after the incident, a six-year-old girl was branded a witch and accused of manipulating the pastor to commit the dastardly act.
“The poor girl was beaten up and paraded round the town. They said when the pastor was conducting deliverance for her; her spirit took over his body.”
Anjorin said the alleged rape victim was rushed down to Epe General Hospital where tests were conducted on her.
A copy of the doctor’s report made available to PUNCH Metro, stated that the victim’s “vaginal hymen is no longer intact and bruises were observed in the anal region.”
The report further stated that there was sperm residue in the victim’s private part and it was concluded that she had been sexually assaulted.
A doctor, who spoke to our correspondent on the condition of anonymity, said because Sobowale had not provided his sperm sample, it was impossible to ascertain if it was his own sperm that was found in the victim’s private part.
PUNCH metro learnt that Sobowale was released a few days later and charges against him dropped.
Anjorin however protested the development, adding it was not safe for her niece to live in the same compound with Sobowale.
A neighbour, who craved anonymity, said it was the habit of policemen in the area to cover up such crimes.
 “Whenever a crime of this nature occurs, the police would ask the suspect to offset the victim’s hospital bill and then grant the suspect bail. It is very common in areas like Epe because it is not situated in the metropolis,” he said.
When contacted, the spokesperson for the state police command, Ngozi Braide, confirmed that the girl was raped.
Braide said the police had not taken sides, adding that the pastor was released on bail because courts were not in session.
“The pastor is in charge of a white garment church in the area. He will be charged with sodomy. He was released on bail because courts are not sitting but once courts resume, he will be charged,” she said

•

Raping of under aged, and Sodomy with under aged children. The story of "Men of God" in Nigeria Bishop Chibuike Nwabueze, Chairman of the Communion of Bishops in Rivers State, confesses to raping 15 year old girl

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/07/rape ...
•General Overseer of the Jesus Army of Salvation Ministry Imo: Pastor Chukwunonso Okudiover arrested for allegedly raping 14-year-old boy
http://premiumtimesng.com/news/137477-p ... d-boy.html
•Redeemed Christian Church of God, RCCG pastor, nabbed over alleged rape of 12-yr-old housemaid http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/02/past ... housemaid/
•Pastor, 42, charged with raping 12-year-old girl http://premiumtimesng.com/regional/1155 ... -girl.htmlGeneral Overseer of The Choice Bible Church Mpape:
•Pastor Emmauel Mathew, 50, docked for allegedly raping three primary school pupils in Abuja http://premiumtimesng.com/metro/132040- ... abuja.html
•Deeper Life Bible Church pastor, Eze Fidelis, confesses to defiling small girls http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/07/why- ... or-others/
•General Overseer of Mountain Movers Fire Ministries International Abuja: Pastor Princewill, accused of raping 14-year-old, granted bail http://premiumtimesng.com/news/100138-r ... -bail.html
•Police parade gay Pastor, Philips Ogbeborfor, alleged rape of member http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/07/poli ... of-member/
•

Christ Apostolic Church pastor, Ilesanmi Emmauel, remanded pastor for alleged rape of church member

http://premiumtime.com
•Pastor Atunde of Light of Hope Orphanage Ogun State, accused of raping minors at orphanage http://www.punchng.com/news/pastor-accu ... orphanage/

•Pastor arrested for convincing followers to give him MouthAction because his penis contained holy milk http:///NGyDOhDXR
Below is a typical case that  occurred  in Janaury of 2013.

BY SEGUN OLUGBILE AND KAMARUDEEN OGUNDELE

Indications have emerged that the  Academic Staff Union of Universities may call off the over four-month-old strike on Thursday.

Barring a last-minute change, the National Executive Committee of ASUU will meet on Wednesday night to consider the position of the congresses of the over 50 public universities on the offer made by the Federal government to revamp the institutions.

The  union met with  a Federal Government team led by President Goodluck Jonathan last Tuesday in Abuja.

The  ASUU leadership, after briefing the zonal coordinators  on  the offer, had directed the local branches   to organise  congress meetings between Friday last week and Tuesday (tomorrow).

This is to enable all the lecturers to make input into the action the union would take after its NEC meeting on Thursday.

However, feelers from most universities that had organised their congresses revealed that ASUU  would suspend the strike after the  Thursday NEC meeting.

In  some universities, including the Obafemi Awolowo University and the Lagos State University that have scheduled their congress meetings for Monday (today),  union leaders and lecturers expressed hope that the strike would end this week.

Also, some top officials of the union in some of the nine zones of ASUU said even though they were not happy with the plan by the government to inject N220bn yearly into the public universities for the next five years, they were pleased that a commitment had been obtained by the union.

Though the Ibadan Zonal Coordinator of ASUU, Dr. Nasir Adesola, confirmed that the NEC meeting would hold on Wednesday, he did not say whether the strike would be called off or not.

“Yes, the NEC will hold on Wednesday evening but ASUU has a process which we are going to follow. NEC reserves the right to call off the strike after due consultation with members and this is why congresses are being called in all the chapters of the union. Please, wait till after the congress,” he told one of our correspondents on the telephone.

But another  source said, “Our NEC meeting will hold between Wednesday night and Thursday. Our chapters have started holding meetings to discuss the Federal Government’s offer. This is to allow input from all the lecturers. We have to carry them along to avoid disunity since there are moves by some elements to infiltrate us.”

Another source told one of our correspondents that some members had expressed mixed feelings about the Federal Government’s  new offer based on its refusal to honour  past  agreements.

“The radicals among us are  sceptical about this latest offer. They do  not believe that government will respect the agreement. Their view is  that government only wants  to deceive the union to call off the strike before it will jettison it.”

A top official of the union,  who confirmed the fears,  told one of  our correspondents that although members’ opinions at the zonal congresses were divided over the government’s offer, the majority still decided to give  the government the benefit of the doubt.

He also said that  the majority opinion was that the review of the agreement which was supposed to hold this year should be postponed till next year in the interest of peace.

 The official added, “Members were persuaded because President Goodluck Jonathan personally met with the union. They felt since the President was involved in the negotiation this time around, the government would not say that it was arm-twisted to make the offer.

“This is the problem we are having with the 2009 agreement. By now we should be talking about a review but we are still having troubles with implementation.

“Although feelers across the zones are that we should call off the strike, we are going to put down the government offer in black and white and make it public so that nobody accuses us tomorrow  of  asking for too much.”

Some universities are expected to hold their congresses on Monday (today) to discuss the outcome of the zonal congresses held at nine centres across the country last week.

A source at the meeting  between the government and ASUU   told one of our  correspondents  that the government after a long debate agreed to inject N220bn yearly for the next five years beginning from 2014.

He had said, “The meeting should be the longest that we have ever had on this crisis but I can tell you that both parties were frank all through the discussions. The parties also showed commitment towards ending the crisis. The President in particular showed that he was serious about ending the strike and that was why he offered to release over N1tn to the universities in the next five years.

“The money will be released on a yearly basis at N220bn per annum beginning from 2014. For the outgoing year, the Federal Government will only release N100bn and this has been processed.

“In order to show commitment to this deal, the money will be kept at the Central Bank of Nigeria  and will be released on a quarterly basis to the universities. So, there won’t be any problem about funding the deal.”

The source added that the National Universities Commission and the Trade Union Congress would be joint guarantors of  the new agreement while the Minister of Education would be the implementation officer.

He said  that the  government  also agreed, among other things, to revamp the public universities by ensuring that all the issues that always lead to strike were dealt with once and for all.
http://www.punchng.com/news/ASUU-set-to-suspend-strike-this-week/

BY JOHN AMEH AND OLALEKAN ADETAYO

The fate of the embattled Minister of Aviation, Ms Stella Oduah, may soon be known going by the fact that the administrative committee set up by President Goodluck Jonathan to   investigate  her role in the purchase of two bulletproof BMW cars by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority will on Monday(today) complete its assignment.

Our correspondent learnt that the  Presidential committee, which   has  a former Head of Service of the Federation, Alhaji Isa Bello, as its chaiman, had  been meeting secretly  in the Office of the NSA.

The  panel  has   the  National Security  Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd.) and Air Vice Marshal Dick Iruenebere (retd.) as members.

A similar panel by the House of Representatives,  which on Thursday  submitted its report,  indicted Oduah and the NCAA.

A Presidency source said the committee might submit its report to the President any time this week before he leaves for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting holding in Sri Lanka.

 The source added that the presentation might also be kept away from public glare just like the panel’s meetings.

 He however said a  formal statement containing the President’s position would be made.

 In announcing the establishment of the committee on October 23, 2013, the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, had said members were expected to, among other things, ascertain whether the procurement of the vehicles followed due process,  the purpose of procurement and inquire into any other incidental matter.

 He had said, “President Jonathan will like to assure the general public that nobody, no matter how highly placed, will be shielded or exempted from this inquiry that he has directed and that appropriate action will be taken against any person or persons who may be found guilty of misconduct or misappropriation of public funds either in this respect or in any other respect.”

On its part, the House  had established  some “infractions” against Oduah and the NCAA.

The panel, headed by Mrs. Nkiruka Onyejeocha, had   refused to make a copy available to the media on the grounds of  avoiding a breach of House procedures. This forced journalists to scoop the highlights of the report through other sources.

Onyejeocha   however  claimed on Friday that what the media reported was not the exact reflection of the committee’s recommendations.

For example, the  committee  was said have recommended that Jonathan should sack the minister for exceeding the official limit in approving the purchase of the   bulletproof cars.

It also allegedly recommended that   sanctions  be imposed on the former Acting Director-General of  the NCAA, Nkemakolam Joyce, and the agency’s Director of Finance, Salawu Ozigi.

 Besides, the  panel   reportedly sought the immediate termination of a loan agreement of N643m to finance the purchase of 54 vehicles, (including the armoured vehicles)  between the NCAA and  First Bank Nigeria.

Coscharis Motors Limited    is to be asked to refund the N255m meant for the bulletproof vehicles while the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission should investigate the company for alleged abuse of waivers.

 The report was also said to have noted that while the National Assembly approved only N240m for the NCAA for the purchase of 25 vehicles  this year, the agency went behind the legislature to purchase 54 vehicles at the cost of N634m.

 The National Assembly had rejected the proposal to buy two  bulletproof cars, but the agency bypassed the legislature to buy the vehicles.

The committee described this act as “extra-budgetary spending” and held Oduah and the NCAA accountable.

 However, the report has yet to be considered, adopted or rejected by the House.

 Under the rules of the House, a committee on completion of an assignment, will lay its report before the House.

 The House will later list it for consideration, where members will go through the report clause-by clause.

 The report can either be endorsed or rejected in the course of the consideration.
http://www.punchng.com/news/oduahgate-presidential-panels-deadline-ends-today/

.

God i am sorry

continue.......
What are the challenges you faced  in your effort to address Nigeria’s problems?
The Nigeria Prays started in earnest and we were able to go round the whole states of the federation up to the time there was a change in government when Abacha died and Abdulsalami took over and then started his own transition.  Abacha had had a transition that was to make him the President and he had the support of  all the political parties at the time but the good Lord intervened for the sake of Nigeria.

We prayed to God for Nigeria, for its peace, unity, stability and well-being and not for our own personal selfish way but we prayed to Him to give us a solution that He thinks is in the best interest of Nigeria.
Does it mean you believe that Abacha’s death was God’s solution to the problem Nigeria had then?
I can assure you that we never prayed for the death of the Head of State. In fact, we prayed for God to grant him wisdom to do the right thing for the country.  What he told me was that prayer was good and that he endorsed it and gave us support for it. Then I knew that he could listen to words of advice that one could give him on any issue.  But what the good Lord did was that, at that time, one of the serious political problems we had was Abacha/Abiola, the June 12 crisis. What happened then was that the good Lord took Abacha and paved the way for a return to civil rule and that was to give opportunity for the release of  Abiola. Then Abiola, who was also at the other end of the crisis also passed on and therefore left the path free for a reasonable, genuine restoration and return to a civil rule.

That was achieved through some of the prayers that we did but we did not ask the good Lord for anyone’s demise. Ours is to pray for our leaders so that they can do the right thing for the country. Many other things that happened; the admonition and appeal to the people, were able to change the path of uncertainty to some positive end.  You can see that when you look at the various issues, this is what we have been able to achieve. Our prayer and effort are aimed at getting all Nigerians to continue to love their country, to continue to love one another, to continue to help one another irrespective of your tribe, religion, faith or belief. The Christian community listens and tries to practise the admonition that we give them, contributing therefore to the peace and unity of the country. At the rally we had, we did fervent prayers. Do you think that with that sort of prayer and the way people believe in their country and love their country and want it to stay united and peaceful, do you think anything can happen in 2015?
Do you have regrets fighting for the unity of  Nigeria?

 I can assure you that fighting for Nigeria is stilll what I am doing now through the church, fighting for the progress and unity of Nigeria. I was doing it as a general, then a general politician but now I am doing it in the church.
How can Nigerians bring out the best from their leaders?

Of course, you pray for the leaders.  I was talking to you about Abacha earlier on.  I said for all our leaders, you pray to God to grant them the wisdom, the courage and in fact the spirit to do the right thing for the country and for the people; not to think of themselves but the genuine well-being of the country, listening to any good advice and also making sure that God will give you the sort of wisdom that Solomon asked God for and God granted him to be able to rule his people correctly.
http://www.punchng.com/news/god-took-abacha-abiola-away-to-save-nigeria-gowon/

A former Head of State, Gen. Yakubu Gowon (retd) in this interview with SUCCESS NWOGU says if those that took over from his government had continued with his programme, Nigeria would have been more developed than China, among other issues

Is national conference/dialogue desirable now?

Yes! What is wrong with Nigerians trying to talk about the nation? But I hope it is not being engineered by those who have a set of ideas, who will be doing all the talking and trying to dictate the tempo of the conference? If the national conference or dialogue is done for the good of the country, everyone goes in there to say, ‘yes it is our country and we want our country to be greater and more successful than it is at the moment.’ If there is total love and commitment to the country,  let us try to talk and bring in things we think should be able to help the country to be even better than what it is now and the sort of way we hope it will be in the future.  If that is the approach, God will bless. To the young generation, who are calling for that, I will say they are the ones to do the building.

It is advisable that the outcome of the national dialogue be subjected to a referendum or that it should be submitted to the National Assembly for ratification as President Goodluck Jonathan has said.

Some people are calling for the disintegration of Nigeria, how would you react to this, given the fact that you fought actively for the unity of the country?

That is their view.  Democracy says people should have their views. Let them have their views and I respect their views. But it may appear that they are misguided. Of course, the disintegration or break-up of Nigeria is not the wish and desire of the majority of Nigerians. Most Nigerians love this country and would want the country to remain united. A lot of things and sacrifices have been made to keep Nigeria united.  The civil war was fought to keep Nigerians as one. God has made this country a very beautiful one and has graciously blessed us with incredible and tremendous potentials , both human and material resources.  We would be better off as a united, indivisible and happy country than breaking up the country.  There is no need for that.

Whatever genuine misgivings or agitations of some people can be addressed peacefully, equitably and justly, there is no need for the country to disintegrate.  We should remain one indivisible great country and contribute our own quota to nation-building and make Nigeria realise her lofty dreams and aspirations of greatness and happiness for the residents.

I was reading an article by a columnist in one of the daily national newspapers. The columnist said he was against ‘this morbid desire of the unity of the country.’ So I responded, ‘what a morbid idea from a morbid fellow to say he does not like Nigeria. He is probably one of those who wanted to break away but those who love Nigeria as Nigerians made sure that it did not happen. And he is now hoping that he can now get it through such writing.’  It is unfortunate. However, that is his point of view and he probably has reasons. He may be one of those, who want either a state of his own or a country of his own and not Nigeria.

Probably he does not like Nigeria because he has not got what he wants out of Nigeria but if he is able to get what he wants in Nigeria, he would not call for its disintegration.

Just like I believe that if Ojukwu had the opportunity of being the Head of State instead of me, I can assure you that he would have done everything humanly possible to ensure that Nigeria does not break up so that he could control and enjoy from the great endowment that God has given to Nigeria, both  human and natural resources, which if we are able to harness, as we tried to do during the programme of my administration with reference to the National Development Plan (1975-1980), Nigeria will be a great nation and the residents well taken care of.

Does it mean that if the National Development Plan of your administration had been successfully and completely executed, there would have been tremendous development and transformation of the country?

If that programme was successfully carried through, it would have made a total difference in Nigeria. All the problems of infrastructure that we are having today, is it power, petroleum, fuel, road, and economic development; all these were planned and provided for, for we had a plan which I had already told my Minister for Economic Development at the time: ‘Now that we have completed our third National Development Plan and put on ground how to execute them to the letter, I want you to start thinking and planning for the next development plan.’ I wanted him to ensure that the new national plan should be 100 per cent greater that the very big plan that we were launching. It was accepted world over as one of the most ambitious developmental projections or plan. If it had been carried through, it would have been a different story for Nigeria.

Yes, Malaysia, Indonesia, India are advancing now, probably it is only China that has achieved the sort of growth that Nigeria was being expected to have at that time, the growth of between 12 and 15 per cent for the foreseeable future in 1975.  The Asian Tigers only achieved between eight and 10 per cent in 1975.

You mean if that plan had been carried out, we would have been greater than the Asian Tigers?

That was what it meant. But unfortunately, there was a coup d’état; a change of guard. There was a coup and unfortunately the government that took over from me did not carry through the plan, which if they were able to carry through, they would have been inaugurating one project after the other; employment would not have been any problem for Nigeria. But they abandoned the whole thing and were only adopting one programme here and there, which really did not help Nigeria to grow the way it would have grown.

We wanted the economy to grow in a correct fashion and I can assure that our plan really was aimed at doing that.  And all the problems we had would not have been if they had executed our plan. If they had said, ‘He had done a huge and successful programme, let us show him that we have greater idea and sense than he had’ and probably, they would have done something bigger than what we planned.  But remember I had already said we would start another plan which I wanted to be 100 per cent bigger. The only thing is, ‘would we have been able to have a 100 per cent’ but whatever it is, reality of the time would have made us to get it to a level that was acceptable and practicable and achievable at that time.

What was it that you couldn’t fix as the Head of State that you are striving to fix through your programme, Nigeria Prays?

Nigeria Prays came about in the mid-1990s during the time that Nigeria was having very bad media reports worldwide. The 419 syndrome; you had the CBS 60 minutes programmes  that said that Nigerians were corrupt and criminals, and that Nigerians were financial crooks. Nigeria had it bad politically. Of course, that was the period of National Democratic Coalition versus Abacha. There was the problem of security at that time.  So it was during that time I got an invitation to attend the American prayer breakfast.

During the visit, we met a lot of Nigerians, who were also invited; Nigerians who were in America and were invited to the prayer breakfast. They were delighted seeing us and, of course, they asked questions about the Nigeria they heard about from the foreign press, terrible things that they had heard about Nigeria, giving the impression that Nigeria might not even survive the weekend.

So it made some of us to ask the question: What are these Nigerians talking about? Has something happened in Nigeria within 72 hours that we left Nigeria?  The story of Nigeria was as bad as that, it made Nigerians in the United States feel so bad and worried about their country but we gave them the assurance that the nation was intact and that there was no threat to it.

They asked the question: ‘what can we do to help?’ We discussed the idea of Nigeria Prays; that if we can get Nigerians to pray and to pray fervently, God may hear our prayers as he promised to hear the prayers of his people when he told King Solomon in 2nd Chronicle 7:14; that ‘if my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sins, and will heal their land.’

So if you pray fervently, God may hear your prayers, heal you and heal your land. That was the decision that we took.  It was a decision taken by all of us who discussed that issue in the United States and they later-on made me to be the chairman of the Nigeria Prays.  Although, it is called my vision, I will say it is Nigerian vision. If Nigerians cooperate at anytime, you can be assured that they can achieve the greatness that they want or desire.


How can Nigerians tackle the challenges before the nation?

If we can get Nigerians to pray, and as we pray act correctly,  we will get the intervention we need from God.

When I came back to Nigeria and got people to talk about the Nigeria Prays project, it was accepted that it would be good and we started it on  October 1 after telling the Head of State (General Sani Abacha) that we were going to have this movement and he endorsed it and  blessed and even challenged us to also get the Muslims to join in the prayer.

We agreed then that if we could not have joint prayers like we  do in the military, Muslims and Christians should decide to do it the best way that; the Muslims praying on Fridays during Jumat prayer and then Christians praying during any day of the week. Now it seems that we have adopted Sunday as our day of prayer. But the Muslims will tell you, especially the Emirs will tell you, that it is not only on Fridays that they pray for Nigeria, they say they pray five days, seven days a week, so many weeks in the month and so many months in the year.

The Christians have the injunction to pray without ceasing.  So, it seems that the two religions are really up and about to pray.

Certainly, ours is a very religious country but for the aberration of the Boko Haram sect members, which  is claiming to be Muslims but certainly they  are not the sort of Muslims that we know. This is a new group that is even against formal education, which is certainly very sad. This is because with education, you are able to broaden your mind and understand and be able to achieve understanding of one another and resolving your problem not through religious sentiments but through rational discourse with your colleagues.

Happy married life to them

Biased Yoruba mods @ it again, any fake news about Igbo especially Anambra state move it to the front page.
Whereby news about criminals in SW will be languishing without mercy in crime section

And what is this thread doing on political section?
OAM4J you are one of human being i hate with passion, you are so bias, very tribaslic. You and your Yoruba agenda will always fail.
#spite on your birthday cake

Socrates05: I wonder y some ignoramus peoples are so deficient in knowledge. If some Governors decamp 2 APC is a sign of Another Problem Continues. It is a masses dat vote not Governor. Can everybody in the state sleep together in the same bed, absolutely No. Those socalled G7 Governors are just fighting 4 their selfish interest that is what i believed. GEJ is a simple man compared to OBJ regime, where EFCC has the final detention room 4 rebel Gov. Is not by decamping to APC but ur handiwork will dictate the tune. GEJ will surely win South East, South, divide d West in 2, Pdp will av the most of his vote from the Northerns. Believe me or u leave it.

Don't mind the clowns! They thought people like IBB, Danjuma, Abudisalami, Gowon, Ciroma etc will forgo their personal interest in the name of APC, they forgot that Buhari has his worst enemies even in the north

Amaechi is political irrelevant hence he joined APC.
PH can never fall to APC Muslim Party,
APC can only manage 30% vote in Lagos. So why all this noise?

ibadanfinest: If they eventually capture kano I mean the APC, its more like game over for PDP cos of the population of kano+Lag+ph is more than population of more than 10 states, giving that the south west is apc dominated, the east divided some part of the north for buhari, I don't see any miracle here for pdp

In your political calculation count Lagos out of APC dominated state, remember the population of Yorubas in Lagos is no where near the population of Igbo together with SS. APC will surely win Governorship election in Lagos but presidential is impossible.
As for PH? Its no go area for APC and muslem candidate. Remember we are in Nigeria where ethnicity and religious plays a major role in everything

Rochas is seating on the fence. Without presidential or vice-president ticket he can't stay with APC

The man you can see clearly in the picture claims to be a prophet who delivers people from spiritual bondage...and from what we gathered, he had been having a special deliverance session with the woman in the picture, who happened to be a married woman.

Unfortunately for both of them, the woman's husband who had been suspecting his wife's movements, decided to trail on the wife to where she claimed she was going to see a prophet for a special bathing in a river to cleanse her and help her get pregnant since she had not had baby since she got married....but the husband got there and met the shocker of his life- the prophet as part of his special deliverance, decided to have sex with the woman....maybe as the evil spirit led him...lolz

The world has really gone crazy!!!
Open the link
http://..com/2013/11/prophet-caught-having-sex-with-married.html?m=1

Southwesterns overtaken their rivals in everything

May God never allow those lying against us to rule over us
APC and Ngige is a big disgrace

"A good lasting relationship is one which never holds a grudge and makes good use of every opportunity to make things right. ""
Today I want to share with you
something that is very
important in not just your
relationships but our everyday
lives. It has nothing to do with
gender, age or race; no
preference at all. Three words
that make extra impact than
their actual meaning.
Some of you guys might be
wondering what inspired me to
write about this, but the truth is
something very important did.
About a year ago, I lost my
mum(God bless and rest her
soul) and before I did, we had
this big argument. Then I saw
all the wrongs in my right and
decided to go and apologize. I
went and asked her to forgive
me. She did. Then I travelled to
Port-Harcourt and she died few
days later in an accident. Too
many questions, too many
unsaid words and expressions,
but now my point in this shared
story is: what if I never
apologized and I travelled with
anger and hate in me?
One, I will never have gotten a
chance to right my wrongs.
Two, I will probably never
forgive myself for my actions.
Three, I will never live past the
guilt.
Notice how the word 'never' is
used repeatedly in these
statements. It just shows how
serious it can be. You might just
have one opportunity to make
everything work, but because of
ego and pride you let it all away.
A lot of us let pride and ego take
the best part of our life that we
forget what is and what should
be.
For example there are certain
men that believe that a woman
should always apologize when
there is an argument. This
school of thought should be
corrected because really anyone
could be wrong. It takes the
bigger person to accept the
responsibility and make
amends. There are also other
people who believe that the
benefits of “seniority” include
junior ones apologizing to
senior ones, even when they are
obviously not guilty. All these
examples might seem mere to
you now but most people
actually live by it. “I am older
than that Jane girl so why
should I apologize first? Am I
her mate?” Thoughts like this
only make you a big
shareholder in Regrets Plc. #
teamNOGAINS
I remember my last year in
school, my final week precisely.
I had a stupid funny argument
with my best Friend Cynthia
and because of that she didn't
appear in any of my Ankara Day
pictures. Till today, I look
through my album and just
wish I walked up to her that day
and apologized and took a
picture to make us remember
that day together. The argument
we had was not even worth
taking that moment away! Not
even close. I can't even
remember what we argued
about but every look at that
album takes me back to that
day without her in the pictures.
Sadly, pride took all that away
and that's only because I let it.
Imagine the case of one of my
Friend, whose permission I
have taken before sharing this.
She said she had been keeping
malice with her boyfriend for
about two weeks over
something she couldn't even
remember ,and she had no way
to break their silence. She really
missed him and had a lot of
things she wanted to share. She
wished she did otherwise
because everything that
happened was her fault. She let
the opportunity to make it right
for a whole two weeks pass by.
She was unhappy and
disturbed. She could have saved
herself this much stress by just
simply admitting she was wrong
and owning up to it.
The mistake most people make is that they keep waiting for the other person to apologize first because they think if they
apologize first, it makes them
weak. That's a big
misconception. Rather, the one
who is the first to offer a
handshake of peace is actually
showing a deeper and bigger
level of maturity.
My dear friends and loved ones,
my point in this whole long
story is for you to learn how to
say you are sorry. Show it in
your actions, say it with words,
write it, sing it, look it; just
make the message clear.
Because every extra moment
you spend apart for not saying
how sorry you are is an extra
baggage of regret in the future.
A good lasting relationship is
one which never holds a grudge
and makes good use of every
opportunity to make things
right. When you are ready and
willing to apologize, you do
yourself a favour by first
satisfying your conscience, and
then transferring the guilt and
pressure of your wrong to the
other person or persons
involved. If I can take a bold
step to apologize, it’s up to you
to meet me half way and forgive
me! As hard as it is to own up to
your wrongs, it is easier and
mind-relaxing when you do.
Don't forget every added second
to life is a blessing! Don't waste
it on regrets.

A certain Mrs. Maryrose Ozoemena Nwadike, said to be a younger sister to the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Chris Ngige, in the Anambra State governorship election was said to have been debarred from practicing law in Maryland, the United States for allegedly using her bank account to launder money for one of her elder brothers, presumed to be Chris. Nwadike was consequently debarred after a Maryland Attorney Grievance Commission was said to have found her guilty for using her escrow account to launder vast sums of money for the said brother and for lying to investigators and the judge when questioned about it. In the highlight of the commission’s decision, it was stated that the “Respondent claimed that $349,975 wired into her Attorney Trust Account on August 2005 came from (unspecified) personal injury cases and form attorney’s fees and reimbursed expenses in the Dr Ngige Election Tribunal Case (s) in Nigeria.” The documents of the long trial and investigation, outlined a vast array of infringements and “four year pattern of commingling funds which the Respondent claimed she used in paying for her personal expenses as intentional misappropriation.” A rather shocking part of the revelation was an alleged disbursement of a staggering sum of $349,975 for bringing a homeless American to delay Ngige's stay in office. All this was said to have happened at the time the APC candidate was busy selling himself off as the messiah opposed to looting of the state’s treasury by the godfathers and that he was suffering persecution for his principled stand. In a detailed rendering of the sleaze that Ngige allegedly orchestrated in office through his sister in the US, one of the documents obtained from the courts in Maryland, a copy of which was obtained by THISDAY stated thus: “Respondent produced only copies of deposit slips and customer receipts from 21 March 2003 through 7 June 2006, monthly bank statements from 1 August 2003 through 31 May 2006, and disbursed checks from 25 April 2003 through 22 May 2006 related to the trust account. Respondent never produced any requested billing statements, ledger cards, or accounting of funds that she received, maintained, and disbursed from her trust account during this period. “Respondent claimed to have received several deposits, totaling $110,493, in her attorney trust account slated to be transferred to the Ngige campaign, but she failed to provide an accounting reflecting these deposits. The record shows that, on 29 August 2005, she deposited a $120,000 personal check for which Judge Dugan found she offered again no logical or coherent accounting. “Respondent also transferred $ 50,000 into her attorney trust account in September 2005, funds which she claimed belonged to Ngige. From 2002 to 2006, Respondent disbursed from the account a total of $ 134,312.85 prior to making deposits necessary to fund those disbursements. When asked by Bar Counsel to explain several specific instances of this practice, Respondent replied to each inquiry that each premature disbursement was due to an "administrative glitch." A witness, Anthony Isama, testified that three suspect debits on Respondent's trust account paid to American Express, totaling $7,820, and one check issued from the account to "MBNA," for $ 35,600, were payments for credit card purchases Respondent made for Ngige's wife. Meanwhile, a further $ 50,000 cash withdrawal Respondent made from her account on December 4, 2002 was never explained. In addition, Respondent's refusal even to identify forthrightly Christopher Ngige as her brother was evasive, at best. Respondent stated disingenuously that Ngige merely was "somebody's name." Even though Ngige was not a client of the Respondents, she asserted an attorney-client privilege and refused to explain her relationship to him. When Isama testified that Ngige is Respondent's brother, Judge Dugan asked Respondent why she had engaged in such "subterfuge." Respondent kept mute. However, there are speculations that Ngige might be extradited to the US to answer questions arising from the case.
http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/ngige-s-sister-debarred-in-us-over-alleged-money-laundering/163023/

Hehehehehe 21 view 0 comment
BTW why did this thread instantly move from politics to this place? A kind of hidden it from public vew ryt? I wouldn't work this time

Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola (SAN), Monday reiterated that Nigeria’s Sovereign Wealth initiative was unconstitutional noting that he would receive the Shareholders Certificate of the Fund presented to him by the management of the fund only as an acknowledgement that the State’s fund was being held somewhere.
In his remarks while welcoming officials of the Nigeria Sovereign Wealth Authority led by their Chairman, Mr. Mahey Rasheed, Governor Fashola said it was necessary to put on record that he never supported the initiative.
“I don’t think it accurately sets the record to say that I supported it. Some of my colleagues supported it and for reasons best known to them but I do not support it and I made this very clearly well known when the discussions were on the way”, the Governor said.
According to him, “I must be clear, I do not support it not because I am against savings; I disagree because for me there are fundamental and constitutional issues”. He added that the countries given as examples to support the initiative did not match the Nigerian situation explaining that while those countries are either monarchies or emirates, Nigeria is a democracy.
http://pmnewsnigeria.com/2013/10/28/fashola-why-i-oppose-sovereign-wealth-fund/