₦airaland Forum

honestly,what rally is going on, and here i was thinkn ill get a photo with him one day may his soul r.i.p
2 great and awesome people in a week, dts realli sad
wish we black people will cultivate the habit of regular medical check ups,especially when rich then any virus or desease will be caught in time before it worsens, this is realli sad

When did death become a black thing? Nothing is going on busta, it's just death, a necessary end.

[size=16pt]What can women possibly learn from men?[/size]

[size=14pt]What men can learn from women [/size]

Sunday, August 10, 2008
As modern women enter more and more male-dominated arenas, women are often told to be more like men. But when it comes to having happy, healthy relationships, men can learn a lot from the fairer sex. Here are top three things men can learn from women.



https://odili.net/news/source/2008/aug/10/vanguard/images/4.jpg
•CHIOMA and PRISCA TON, Make a conscious effort to engage yourself in what she’s saying by asking questions or contributing to the conversation.



Pay Attention



Women are looked at as the more sensitive, thoughtful gender. “Women’s intuition” is considered an almost para-normal ability to see things men don’t. Yet, without even tapping into their inner gifts, women have an edge on men when it comes to insight: because they pay attention.


Women are often more interested in personal relationships, so they tend to observe other people more closely and listen more actively. By hearing and remembering interpersonal details, women develop a greater understanding of the people around them.


How many men have heard the same criticism a thousand times: “Why don’t you listen to me?” What their partner really means is, “Why don’t you pay attention to what I’m saying?”


Men need to learn from women that paying attention isn’t a passive process. It’s about being engaged enough to understand what’s being said, remember it and act on it in the future. If you’re confused or disinterested in what your partner is saying, don’t tune out. Make a conscious effort to engage yourself in what she’s saying by asking questions or contributing to the conversation.


Slow Down


Because women are so interested in the details of interpersonal relationships, they often recognize that the complexities of life require a great deal of patience.


Men are notorious for trying to “fix” problems. Women, on the other hand, often deliberately take time to vent about a problem and analyze it from many angles before taking action.


Men are often applauded for their ambition and drive to get things done. But they can learn a lesson from women about how to balance the need for speed with the desire to do things right. Women tend to show more patience with people and situations, and in the end, that can mean they find better, more long-lasting solutions.


When confronted with issues, your first instinct as a man may be the need to take action. When that happens, pay attention and ask yourself, Why do I need an immediate solution? Is there time to do more research, ask more questions and find a better answer?


By becoming more aware of how you react to problems, you will allow yourself more opportunities for thoughtful analysis and planning.


Cry! Laugh! Pout! Smile!


Men are often teased for not being in touch with their “softer side.” The truth is, even men who are very connected with their emotions are often uncomfortable expressing them outwardly. Unfortunately, men know that society frowns upon them showing the same emotions as women — men who are “too” sad, happy or angry are often considered effeminate.

But by not allowing themselves to express emotion, men are just missing out! If men can learn to express their feelings like women, they will be freer to enjoy the rich emotional texture of life.

Next time you’re upset, open up to a good friend. You may be surprised by how good it feels to have someone to lean on.


Ladie Laurel is a relationship coach. You can reach her through classydating@yahoo.comThis e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or 08032585985.
http://odili.net/news/source/2008/aug/10/304.html

Na waah, people are just biting each other in Nigeria these days. No more brotherhood or sisterhood because of money.

[size=14pt]Yoruba Obas a let-down - Osoba [/size]
By Tunde Abatan, Deputy Editor, Sunday

Former Ogun State governor, Olusegun Osoba has said that Yoruba monarchs are a let-down to both their race and the country.




He spoke during the week in response to a recent call by Yoruba monarchs and five governors of the South West for a stop to the criticisms against former President Olusegun Obasanjo.


According to Osoba, the Yoruba traditional rulers lost their respect by unwittingly looking the other way while Obasanjo "misruled" the country and "bastardised" the value system of the Yoruba in particular.


In an exclusive interview with the Sunday Independent, Osoba expressed dismay over the attitude of the Obas saying they never called the former President to order while his eight-year tenure lasted.


Osoba said as traditional rulers and leaders, the Obas are expected to provide insight and guidance for their subjects, adding that in Yoruba land, even before the emergence of modern system of government, there were checks and balances as regards how any Oba uses his position.


He regretted that today's traditional rulers who issued a statement recently in Ibadan, the Oyo state capital in defence of Obasanjo, have lost their respect among the people.


Osoba said as the protector of the Yoruba culture, the monarchs are expected to be above board adding, "I was thoroughly disappointed that our royal fathers would commit themselves into partisan politics and as the custodian and protector of the Yoruba culture, they should know that Yoruba culture does not suffer fools and does not tolerate misdemeanor, perfidy and the destruction of the core values."


He said for them to come out in defence of the negative aspect of the projection of Yoruba culture as done by Obasanjo for eight years is to say the least, "painful."


"By that statement are they saying that if a man is an armed robber we can swim and sink with that armed robber?


"What advice did they give him when he was misruling us for eight years and dragging the Yoruba name in disregard? "During the tenure elongation project when he was asking for life presidency, what advice did they offer him? Is life presidency tenable in Yoruba culture? Even in Yoruba culture, when an Oba falls out with his people and his kingmakers, he knows what to do.


"Obas in those days would go in and commit suicide. What did they do to correct Obasanjo?"


Osoba expressed surprise that the royal fathers could summon courage to come out in the open to "defend somebody who throughout his eight year tenure said he is not a Yoruba man, but a Nigerian."


His words: "Here is a man who created a wrong image of the Yoruba throughout his eight year rule and has always been saying that he is not a Yoruba man, but an Owu man. Somebody who made more enemies than friends during his reign. Are we now to inherit the enemies that Obasanjo made by this behaviour?"


Osoba wondered why the traditional rulers did not call him to order, when he was preaching transparency and honesty but was doing the contrary as reflected in the many revelations of corruption against him today.


Osoba also took a swipe at the traditional rulers for protesting against the tribunal judgement that asked Governor Segun Agagu of Ondo state to leave office saying, "that doesn't speak well of the institution of royal fathers."

http://odili.net/news/source/2008/aug/9/705.html

Whi is the EFCC always headed by northerners? Could it be a ploy by the northern caliphate to evade prosecution from their numerous dubious activities in our national coffers?

Sunday, August 10, 2008 Printer Friendly Version

[size=16pt]Secret plot to castrate EFCC –Financial Times of London [/size]

By EMMANUEL OBE


THE Financial Times of London has revealed a secret plot by some hawks in the political circle to castrate the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.



https://odili.net/news/source/2008/aug/10/punch/images/13.jpg
EFCC Chairman, Mrs. Farida Waziri


In its August 7, 2008 issue, the authoritative publication said part of the plot was to rattle the former chairman of the commission, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, as well as weaken the structure of the EFCC.

Quoting sources within the organisation, the publication asserted that the goal of the group of politicians behind the plot was to make the commission less potent and effective in the task of combating high profile cases of corruption in Nigeria.

Some observers say the wave of changes in the commission has further sent a dangerous signal to the international community on the commitment of President Umaru Yar’adua to the war against corruption.

In the edition under reference, the FT said that such Nigerian politicians were seeking to frustrate attempts to fight high-level corruption by weakening the main anti-graft agency and hounding Ribadu.

He is currently on a study leave at the Nigerian Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies, Kuru near Jos, Plateau State.

But the nation was taken by surprise on Wednesday when the Police Service Commission named Ribadu as one of the top police officers demoted.

He was until the demotion an Assistant Inspector General of Police.

The Financial Times quoted some officials of the commission as saying the hawks were working desperately to derail the anti-graft war, but declined to name the culprits.

The officials, who craved anonymity for fear of reprisals, said that the current leadership of the EFCC had removed dozens of senior investigators from cases against seven former state governors charged last year with looting public funds.

“The view is that of a total takeover of the levers of control by the people who are supposed to be on trial,” said an EFCC official.

Ribadu, who led the EFCC after its establishment in 2003 under former President Olusegun Obasanjo, is regarded at home as the first Nigerian to have struck fear into a political class estimated to have stolen billions of dollars of public funds that accrued mainly from Nigeria’s oil wealth.

Abroad, he is respected for having led an unprecedented campaign to prosecute the theft of government money and for collaborating with foreign police forces to curtail the e-mail scams and fraud for which Nigeria had become infamous.

But the soft-spoken police officer, whose modest lifestyle contrasted with that of many of his targets, also attracted fierce criticism.

A widespread perception that Obasanjo was using him as a tool to persecute political opponents and exclude them from running at the polls cost Ribadu some of his credibility.

The EFCC is one of several institutions, promoted by the former government as the face of a new Nigeria, to have been shaken up since Yar’Adua became president in May, 2007.

Farida Waziri, a career police officer, who was plucked from retirement to take over the EFCC in June, replaced him.

Officials, who worked with Ribadu, until he was removed from his post by the Federal Government, said he had been subjected to increasing public harassment designed to discredit him and his operatives.

But the spokesman of the commission, Mr. Femi Babafemi, rebuffed the claims when the correspondent of the Financial Times contacted him.

He said the new leadership’s decision to charge suspects, including two former state governors, one of whom was arraigned on Tuesday, proved it was still committed to fighting corruption.

“No fewer than five or six big cases have been tackled and are already in court,” Babafemi said.

The PSC on Wednesday demoted Ribadu, along with 139 other officers, on the grounds that their promotion had contravened rules.

The police also last week detained the former Head of the Economic team of the commission, Ibrahim Magu, who led many of the investigations against state governors and is a key witness in money-laundering cases in both Nigeria and the United Kingdom.

Meanwhile, the International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law has condemned the demotion of Ribadu, describing the action as an execution of political vendetta.

The chairman of the Onitsha, Anambra State-based organisation, Mr. Emeka Umeagbalasi, said in a statement on Friday that the action was uncalled for.

He said, “Granted that under the Nigeria Police Service Commission Act of 2001, the reconstituted PSC has powers to sanction, demote, promote, retire and dismiss any senior police officer other than the Inspector-General of Police, the exercise is bereft of public interest and sound moral judgment.

“Besides, demotion connotes administrative punishment for grievous offences. This implies that Mallam Nuhu Ribadu and others are deemed to have committed grievous offences. Our question is: what offences have they committed?

“There is no difference between the recent lopsided promotion exercise in the Nigeria Police Force, where the Federal Character Principle, due process and diligence were despicably discarded, and the purported demotion exercise, which was ill conceived, ethnically and politically motivated.”

He recalled that former President Obasanjo, in order to allegedly cripple the financial base of a harmless political opponent, dismantled the toll gates, and because of another, one of the leading Nigerian banks was liquidated for no justifiable reasons.

“The promotion of Charles Soludo, Ndidi Okereke-Onyiuke and Dorothy Akunyili to professorship by their universities was in appreciation of their excellent performances, and it is obvious that they are not the oldest PhDs in their universities’ departments.

“The main aim of the police is to detect, combat and control crimes and if Nuhu Ribadu has excelled in these areas, he deserved commendation and encouragement in the form of promotion and awards, and not persecution and victimisation.

“All the reasons given by the retired DIG Parry Osayande-led PSC concerning the recent infamous exercise are baseless, unscientific, illogical and unconstitutional. For instance, IGP Michael Okiro surpassed his senior, Ogbonnaya Onovo, to become the IGP, yet his name was not included in the infamous list, coupled with the fact that he became the DIG from the rank of CP.”


http://odili.net/news/source/2008/aug/10/438.html

specially if they could offer the gift of citinzenship

When did citizenship become a gift? It's no more a hotcake to move to America these days, so find something more attractive like your educational background and your record status because felons can also offer citizenship. Nigerian men are not peasants. God's gift indeed.

Dr abubakar olusola saraki is the founder and head of 'northern union' and he is from kwara state

.

Is Olu Saraki Hausa again?

Your efulefu leaders can be ruling Nigeria for all i care but your almajiri cousins and folks will continue to serve the yorubas, clean their nails and polish their shoes.

By the way,
you are the first Hausa man besides Nyarko that can speak english, did you attend primary and secondary school in yoruba land?

You may underestimate the north now but beleive me, if you break away, you will feel it alot. then you'll go and start squabbling with each other over oil, you'll call the non oil producing states in your region parasites, and you'll have problems with them, it is not all south south states or south east states that produce oil abi? something that does not even come as a result of your productivity, it is a naural resource that is deep down in the ground, you cannot grow or farm oil abi? i think its just petty. its a natural God given resource that you saw there and you did not work for. you're saying north is not producing, nobody is producing to full potential in nigeria not even the south south, everybody in nigeria is relying on oil that is produced by euro-american conglomerates, we don't even have the technology to extract the oil for ourselves, niger delta is not "producing" anything, the oil is a "NATURAL

Roflmao. This Gadogado is a mental case.

[b]RIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta DominicRIta Dominic[/b]

I think it's the side effect of an urban legend. I bet you, 90% of AA's that vote democratic do not know why they should do so. They only do it because they supposedly "heard" their people belong to the democratic party and it may take you a millenium to convince them that the republicans actually have done more for them than the democrats. Education is the key. You'll also notice that most black republicans are the educated ones. Same thing that made them believe Africans don't like them without knowing that there is no country like Africa in the first place.

All these people saying the North produces this and that. It doesn't phocking matter. Whatever each part cannot produce, they will buy from the World Market. We definitely don't need the North's meagre production of foodstuff and the divorce will be very easy on the South because we will buy whatever we don't produce from Cameroun, Ghana, Cotonou etc. We will even buy from the North (at the same prices we are buying now). At the end of the day, it is not like the North is subsidizing the food they produce. We still pay the same price as we would if we bought from Cameroun. . . .therefore, to hell with them. Do you think Dangote will stop selling us sugar just because we split from them? His sugar will still have to come and compete for our dollars with Cuban and Latin American sugar. Their wheat is no cheaper than European wheat. If they don't sell to us, who would they sell to? Niger and Chad? lol. We are the no 1 consumer society in West Africa. They need us. On the other hand, they would have to pay the full $130.00/barrell of oil as they would on the World Market. We are the ones subsidizing them, not the other way around. This agricultural argument of theirs is an economic fallacy. If they really were that agriculturally strong, they would have buffered Nigeria from the recent rise in the price of soft goods. Economic divorce would be as easy as cutting off a cancer. Infact, within ten years of fragmentation, our agricultural sector will be stronger than theirs. And the middle-belt people will absolutely refuse to go with the North. Just ask Gideon Orkar.

Actually if we break up, their food price will definitely go up because of taxes. I don't believe the food map above because majority of our staple food in Nigeria comes from up north. Yam, groundnut, sugar, beef, rice,goat, ram,tomato,beans etc. So, i don't know how that map marginalized the agrarian north all of a sudden. Tribalism apart, let the truth be told. I think the south produces only cassava(which they consume by themselves), plantain, palm oil and fish. The map did not even include Ebonyi state that is the largest producer of rice.

TV show to discourage Men who cheat?

Ans: Fastest means of becoming a celebrity.

What is the application procedure please?

Hisss, am I surprised? Shameless ashawo

Continue in your sexual fantasy but don't call on me to pray for you the day magun will catch you.

Hey, DeepZone, when you have time to spare away from your nonsense and get back to it I posted reply to your 8100 query. Contact him and let me know

.

@Moderator Sir kobojunkie,
Can you please disable this thread because Dr GadoGado is spewing uncontrollable hatred and disseminating false information here about the yorubas?

The link you provided is not working. Fix it please so I can see them cos i dont know who they are.

Guys, if you get kicked out in a show, just take it that way and move on. The winners in the American idol contest are not always the best singers in that group. There is an element of luck in such competitions coupled with the fact that you should also have a star quality. Even the hottest movie stars are not always the best in the field, their destiny paved the way for them to become screen gods and goddesses above others.

maybe some people should just limit themselves to wishing for pounded yam, fufu and draw soup. That's easier and very attainable. Since their imagination no pass that level.

Roflmao,

I still don't understand how common wish take turn into a motor park argument? We Nigerians are so bitter that we argue even when our debtor is about to pay us the money we've been arguing on how to get.

Now all OBj's boys are falling like a pack of cards. Fani-Kayode the garrulous idiot, Aborisade, Liyel Imoke, Bode George, RIBADU. I am so delighted. I am waiting for Iyabo and Gbenga.

Please leave Gbenga out of your gossip, he's been doing his own private thing since his life and I dont know how you guys suddenly turn around to dent his image. Bad belle.

Desert people are not the only parasite, Yoruba's are among

@ deepzone
u don't seem to thk straight ,u forget that yorubas represent the think tank of this nation how can u call yorubas parasites,the hub of the nigerian economy is in lagos,i.i and ife were built with cocoa money,with all the oil money thers been no visible development in the niger delta.
the local govt don't function,all they do is collect money and share it.i know this because im serving in bayelsa where no young man is interested in working all he does is wake up in the morning and start drinking beer,and breed kids like rabbits and they want resource control yeah right

Are you alright? Are you confusing me with someone else?

By Gadogado,
Re: To Hell With Your Oil, North Tells South
« #239 on: Today at 12:35:37 AM »
[b]
@dayorx, its always funny when yorubas claim to have some superior intellectual capacity than other nigerians, if you are the most educated and thus by implication the most intellectual then why have you only produced 1 yoruba leader, Obasanjo is the only one and the both times he was president, he was only so because northerners backed him, without northerners, yorubas would not have produced a single yoruba leader, so wheres your education?Huh, the thing is is, you have to look at history to know where you stand, was it not the hausa/fulani danfodio dynasty that conquered yoruba land, they took islam all the way to the heart of yoruba land i:e oyo kingdom and this happened some 2-3 hundered years ago, not much has changed, yorubas have never dreamt of invading the north, but the north invaded them, from illorin all the way to oyo and lagos thus establsihing islam in those areas. Northerners have always been more sophiticated and educated. Today yorubas are more educated (western) but you underestimate northerners but they used education (islamic) to conquer you and remain in power even after independence till today, yar'adua is authentic hausa/fulani. The same islamic education mind you led the arabs to conquer everything from indonesia to spain, romania and those parts of europe, don't underestimate islamic intellectualism. northerners are very educated (islamically). OBJ could have said he was going to hand over to an igbo man but he didnt, he knows his masters, he brought power back to the north. and the fact is, northerners will remain in power till the day nigeria disintergrates, this is the fact and if you want, watch and see. Look at the history!!!!through out history, yorubas have been fighting among themselves which is why the hausa/fulani empire conquered them. It will not stop anytime soon, The north however has always remained united because of the culture.[/b]

Unbelievable. You need help ASAP.

I guess the show is a disgrace to our nation. How can Nigerians love money than their lives? Staying in the jungle alone is not an easy task not to talk of all the stress they go through during the task. I don't see anything hilarious in the show.

What about the fear factor? Is that also a disgrace to the US as a nation?

There are 2 types of wishes - THE GOOD and THE BAD WISH. To me there is just only one - THE GOOD WISH. If my wish is to see Nigeria divided, it doesn't me a bad person or my wish a bad one because that is what I think will do it for me. Only when wishes are against someone else wish are they classified as bad but, to the people making those wishes they are good.

@Topic, Nigeria, in my own opinion has tribalism/racism as her greatest which account(s) for high rate of selfishness and later led to corruption. To stop this my ultimate wish for now is to have new countries of, at least closely related race/tribes, and let Nigeria be a thing of history

o ma se o!

internet is a great help to cheaters and so long as we still have it, they sure will go astray

But they've been cheating even before the advent of the internet.

See his young preety wife. Money is good indeed otherwise that woman wouldn't have talked to that old man in his life time.

[size=14pt]Bode George in EFCC net [/size]
Written by Emma Ujah, Ise-Oluwa Ige & Olasunkanmi Akoni
Friday, August 8, 2008
OPERATIVES of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in the early hours of yesterday, in Abuja, arrested former Chairman of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) and chieftain of the ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olabode George.


https://odili.net/news/source/2008/aug/8/vanguard/images/1.jpg

Chief Bode George and wife



He was picked up in his Abuja home after he was trailed for more than 24 hours without his knowledge.


Sources said he would have been arrested in Lagos but that he went into hiding after he dared the commission over a reported plan to arrest him.


Spokesman for the EFCC, Mr Femi Babafemi, who confirmed the arrest yesterday was economical with information on the reasons for his arrest.


At press time yesterday, Vanguard gathered that operatives of the Commission were taking turns to engage him on various issues on the running of the Ports Authority during his tenure as chairman.


The issues, Vanguard learnt, ranged from un-procedural award of contract during his tenure as chairman of NPA; inflation of contract prices; deliberate splitting of contract sums in order to circumvent extant government rules and grant of 100 % upfront for awarded contracts contrary to rules among other.


The source which said he had already volunteered useful information to the anti-graft agency said he was also questioned over N85 billion fraud in the Ports Authority during his tenure.


A reliable source at the Commission said he would definitely be arraigned before a high court of jurisdiction before the expiration of the time allowed by the constitution for his detention.


“I can confirm to you that if he is not arraigned tomorrow (Friday), he will definitely be arraigned on Monday.


“This is because the case against him is already ripe for trial long before now,” the source added.

Chief George had been away to the US and the UK for some time before he returned, last week.

While he was away, tongues had wagged that he ran away to evade arrest.


But when he arrived the country, last week, he debunked the insinuations making the rounds that he went on exile to evade arrest and possible prosecution.


His words: “Me? Run away? That is rubbish. I’m back now and whoever wrote that article should bring his/her EFCC to come and arrest me. So, there’s no need to clear any air.


Is it a crime for one to be on holidays? So, if you work continuously at the highest echelon of the political party for nine years and you decide to have a break from the day-to-day running of your office, what is wrong with that?


You see, people should stop being mischievous. Bode George is back. I’ve rested enough. My systems are working very well.


"All the checks I didn’t do for many years that nearly resulted to ill-health, I’ve done them now and I feel well. In fact, I feel like an 18-year-old, ready to launch back on the plough. There is no problem at all.


I’m happy to be back and if I’m invited, I’ll go. Am I not a Nigerian? What is there to answer in the last six years that they are asking? How can a part-time chairman of the NPA be responsible for anything there? Whoever is making the wuru wuru there, they know,” he said.


Although Vanguard was not privy to the statement made by Bode George to the commission yesterday, it however learnt that he was queried on a number of allegations contained in a sworn affidavit by an investigation officer with the EFCC, one Bamanga Bello on the outcome of the probe of the former NPA boss.


EFCC case against George


According to Bello in the affidavit deposed to before an Ikeja High Court since last December, he had said:



Sometimes in the year 2005, I was called upon by the Chairman of the Commission, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, to represent him in the Committee set up by the Federal Government to review and verify contracts awarded by the Nigerian Ports Authority (hereinafter referred to as 'NPA') from 2001 to 2003


The name of the committee is Special Committee on Review And Verification of Contracts Awarded by the NPA from 2001 to 2003.


I represented Mallam Nuhu Ribadu during the Committee sittings.

“Chief Olabode George was the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Nigerian Ports Authority during the period under investigation.



The Board of NPA under the chairmanship of Chief Olabode George approved various contracts without due process and in clear violations of extant Government rules and regulations, orders and laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria .


Under the Federal Government Treasury Circulars Ref No: F.15775 dated 27th June 2001 and Ref No. TRY A & B4/2002 dated 5th July 2002, issued by the Federal Ministry of Finance and Office of the Accountant General of the Federation respectively, all contracts above N50 million should be referred to the Federal Executive Council while those between N20 million and N50 million are to be referred to Ministerial Tenders Board, Contracts worth between One Million Naira and N20 million are to be approved by Board of Directors, N1 million contracts by Permanent Secretaries and Contracts worth Seven Hundred Thousand Naira and below are to be approved by Chief Executive of Parastatals.


Contrary to the above circulars and the relevant laws, the Board of Nigeria Ports Authority under the Chairmanship of Chief Olabode George illegally conferred approval limits of N60 million on the Board, N30 million on the executive management, N10 million on the Managing Directors, N2 million on the Executive Directors, N700,000.00 on the General Managers and N500,000.00 on the Ports Managers.


The action of the Board in disregarding the extant government rules and regulations on award of contracts contravenes section 203 of the Criminal Code.


Investigation revealed that the Nigeria Ports Authority during the period under review awarded over 24,252 contracts valued at over N100 billion.


The Board under the Chairmanship of Chief Olabode George during the period under investigation approved various contracts which only the Ministerial Tenders Board or the Federal Executive Council (FEC) had powers to approve and thereby contravened Section 61 of the Criminal Code.11.


During the period under investigation, various contracts which ordinarily should have been referred to the Federal Executive Council (FEC) or the Ministerial Tenders Board for approval were fraudulently split into many units by the Board under the Chairmanship of Chief Olabode George with the intention of circumventing extant government rules and regulations so that the contract amount will fall within the boards approval limits for the purpose of gain making by the Board.


The Act of fraudulent split of contracts is tantamount to abuse of office contrary to Section 104 of the Criminal Code 11.


It was also revealed during the period under investigation that contracts awarded by the Board were generally inflated as can be seen from the Report of the Committee and annexures II.


The Act of inflation of contract prices is tantamount to conspiracy and stealing contrary to sections 516 and 390 of the Criminal Code. This action also contravened Section 22(3) of the ICPC Act 2000.

During the investigation Chief Olabode George was invited, interviewed and interrogated by the Committee.


It was also discovered that Chief Olabode George left office with about four vehicles belonging to Nigeria Ports Authority which prompted the Committee to write to him as a result of which he returned the vehicles to the Nigeria Ports Authority.


Contrary to Government Regulation, the Claimant occupied two properties belonging to the NPA at Ikoyi, Lagos and Maitama, Abuja.


Even after the Claimant had been removed as the Chairman of the NPA he was still occupying the two properties contrary to Government Regulations.


It was also revealed that numerous contracts were awarded in foreign currencies at highly inflated rates for supply of items that were easily obtainable in Nigeria markets. Items such as umbrella, ball pens, fire services equipment etc.


Most of the contracts awarded by the NPA under the leadership of Chief Olabode George were not budgeted for contrary to Section 22(4) of Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission Act (ICPC).


It was observed in the investigation that the Nigeria Ports Authority was operating under serious pressure from top government functionaries, legislators and party leaders for contract awards which was largely responsible for award of spurious contracts based on patronage rather than need


It was also discovered that 100% advance payments were made at the Nigeria Ports Authority London office in contravention of the provisions of the Federal Government circular No: F.15775 of 27 June 2001 which stipulates a maximum 25% for all upfront payments.


Between August 2002 and August 2003, Nigeria Ports Authority made 100% advance payments to 23 contractors at their London Office and some of these contracts were yet to be executed as at the time of the investigation.

Reactions to George's arrest


AC

Reacting to Chief Bode George’s arrest yesterday, Publicity Secretary of AC in Lagos, Mr. Joe Igbokwe said: “I must be sincere with you, the arrest is long overdue, we have all been expecting this for the past two years considering the rot that he (George) left at NPA as the chairman of the board.


“We hope that EFCC would pursue the case to its logical conclusion by not sweeping it under the carpet. Because to arrest is one thing, prosecution is another thing. We in AC strongly welcome the idea to investigate the rot in NPA.”


Keyamo


In his reaction, human rights’ activist and lawyer, Mr Festus Keyamo, said the arrest was long overdue.


“The inability of the EFCC to arrest George in the past few years is one of the things that I crucified Nuhu Ribadu for, and for which I supported his demotion by the Police Service Commission,’’ he said.


Keyamo urged the EFCC to charge the former board chairman to court without delay.


Afenifere


The National Publicity Secretary of Afenifere, Mr Yinka Odumakin, said George should be prosecuted to determine his innocence or otherwise of the alleged crime.


Odumakin commended the EFCC chairman, Mrs Farida Waziri, for the courage in arresting George, saying many Nigerians had been expecting the arrest.


“At a point when the EFCC was making mass arrests of embezzlers in Nigeria, the issue of Bode George and the NPA dampened the people’s spirits as he seemed untouchable,’’ Odumakin added.


Fasehun, OPC leader


However, the Leader of the O’odua Peoples Congress (OPC), Dr Frederick Fasheun, urged Nigerians not to mistake George’s arrest as conviction.


“EFCC should go ahead and prosecute him but until he is proven guilty, we cannot assume that he is,’’ Fasheun advised.

http://odili.net/news/source/2008/aug/8/323.html

[size=14pt]Not much is known about Stephanie Henshaw besides the fact that she is undeniably beautiful and has been trailing Chris long before now. Of late, however, some amazing revelations about her began to spring up and among the gist was that the[b] Calabar-born Stephanie has an Igbo mother and is in her late 30s. She was once married to her late husband who happened to be Pastor Okotie's best friend in school Their marriage was blessed with a son who is now in his 20s but then her husband got hit by a bullet and passed on. This circumstance led to Pastor Okotie stepping into her life in a bid to offer her succour until the day Stephanie suddenly disappeared and one day resurfaced with a new husband. [/b]The story has it that the man was already married and had two sons but Stephanie moved in with the man and his other wife until things fell apart and the centre could no longer hold. Their many differences led to unresolved fights, which brought Pastor Chris into the matter. However, when even the man of God could not resolve the differences, he soon advised divorce and Stephanie quickly heeded the advice.[/size]

@bold, so she was a polygamist?

THe wife looks older than he does

Should that be a reason for that sleazeball to cheat on her especially during her storm?

[b]You accused me of being more negative than you a[/b]re. Simple question, show me how you arrived at such. Simple!!! You chose to attack my person here. I did not attack your person, you did. Is it in stone if you accuse people but unacceptable when your reasoning is questioned?

Isn't that obvious? We've been bickering and biting both our govt and ourselves for the state of things in Nigeria and a thread pops up asking you to make a wish on Nigeria, you and Nuzo started the same complaint again. Shall we continue this infinite complaint and where has it taken us? I mean the arm chair criticism? Be careful of what you say because they may come back to haunt you. If Nigeria has nothing good to offer us now, why can't we pray for a better tomorrow for our children and childrens children? Americans today are enjoying the sacrifice and hard work of their forefathers.