₦airaland Forum

OK na

The outgoing British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Andrew Pocock, has said the problem of Boko Haram insurgency in North-east Nigeria is not something that can be resolved with the use of the army, the police or the security agencies only.
Speaking at a farewell interactive session with members of Kaduna chapter of the Nigeria Union of Journalists Correspondent Chapel in Kaduna on Monday, Mr. Pocock said: “We don’t look at the problem in the Northeast as purely a security problem. It is not something that can be resolved with the use of the army of the police or the security agencies only. It is not going to be solvable.
“There has to be three different things; the first is a properly articulated security efforts. The second is that, there has to be a different kind of politics in the Northeast, where state and Federal Government work together instead of against each other and where there is a much more common and agreed agenda about what needs to be done to correct many years of mis-governance and of poor policy in the North-east.
“The third dimension has to be a developmental and economic uplift agenda. Too many, particularly young people are not only without employment in the North-east but because of the insurgency are without any economic prospect whatsoever. No one can live without hope and indeed if the economic and the developmental aspect of these are not addressed, the opportunities for radicalisation are much greater. So, those three things have to work in tandem, the security instrument, politics and development/economic approach.”
He however stated that with the new government of President Muhammadu Buhari, people are looking to a chance to get out of the security situation in the North-east, adding that, in the overall, there is greater possibility of stability and economic success, economic recovery perhaps than they might have been before the election.
The High Commissioner said although the army had some successes in 2013, those efforts were not followed up and Boko Haram came surging back in 2014 and effectively controlled most of the North-eastern country in Borno State as well as Adamawa and Yobe.
“20, 000 people killed in a conflict is a very serious matter,” he said.
He said in the overall, there is greater possibility of stability and economic success, economic recovery perhaps than they might have been before the election.
“The British government has long been involved in training Nigerian soldiers to fight the very difficult anti-insurgency combat that they are faced with in the North-east,” he said. “We have done this with some success. There is a lot more that we can do. What we need is high level access to the new people that President Buhari is likely to appoint.”

http://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/more-news/186260-why-nigerian-army-cant-defeat-boko-haram-uk-high-commissioner.html?utm_source=&utm_medium=twitter

Donors, where una dey??

admax:
Don't waste your time, the guy has travelled to Europe looking for the ever popular 'Green Pastures' as we speak.

He's past his peak. D pastures no more green in his side

Commissioners of Finance and Accountants General of the 36 states of the federation on Tuesday distanced themselves from claims by the former Minister of Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, that they were part of the decision to withdraw and spend $2bn from Nigeria’s excess crude oil revenue account last December.
Edo State governor, Adams Oshiomhole, and his Kaduna State counterpart, Nasir El Rufai, had, after the National Economic Council (NEC) meeting in Abuja on Tuesday last week, accused Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala of unilaterally approving the withdrawal of about $2.1 bn from the $4.1 bn left in the Excess Crude Account (ECA) last November “without authorization”.
But in a swift reaction, the former Minister had vehemently rejected the accusation, describing allegations linking her to the allegations as “false, malicious and totally without foundation”.
Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala’s reaction, conveyed through a statement by her Media Adviser, Paul Nwabuikwu, said all expenditures from the ECA “were discussed at meetings of the Federation Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC) attended by finance commissioners from the 36 states”.
“It is curious that in their desperation to use the esteemed National Economic Council for political and personal vendetta, the persons behind these allegations acted as if the constitutionally recognized FAAC, a potent expression of Nigeria’s fiscal federalism, does not exist,” she said.
But in a stern reaction on Tuesday in Abuja, members of the FAAC, under the aegis of the Forum of Commissioners of Finance, disowned the former minister, describing her claim as “misleading and far from the fact”.
“It has come to our notice the statement credited to the former Coordinating Minister of the Economy and Honorable Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, that the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) approved the withdrawal from Excess Crude (Foreign) Account the sum of Two Billion U.S. Dollar ($2,000,000,000.00),” the commissioner said.
“This statement is far from the fact and is misleading,” the statement said.
The FAAC meeting for November 2014 ended in confusion when the then Minister of State for Finance, Bashir Yuguda, could not explain how the balance in the ECA had dropped from $4.1 bn at the end of October to $3.1 bn.
Prior to the October FAAC meeting, Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala had told reporters that the balance of the ECA stood at $4.11bn, while the country’s external reserves rose from $36.6bn in June to $39.48billion as at October 16.
Regardless, the then Chairman of the Forum of State Commissioners of Finance and former Ebonyi State Commissioner of Finance, Timothy Odaah, had denied knowledge of any decision to withdraw from the account, insisting that none of its members was aware of the withdrawal.
“No state knew how the $1 bn difference reported in the Excess Crude Account balance, between October and November, came about,” Mr. Odaah told reporters then. “The discrepancy has been noted for discussion at the next FAAC meeting. It calls to question how transparent the management of the excess crude revenues has been.”
Till the end of his tenure, Mr. Odaah, who later claimed reconciliation was ongoing with the Finance Minister, did not reveal his findings.
However, several months later, Mr. Oshiomhole stirred the controversy afresh last week with the allegation that the former minister was economical with the truth about the country’s finances.
Mr. Oshiomhole had lambasted Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala over her claims that Nigerians knew what the three tiers of government usually collect through the State Finance Commissioners who usually attend the monthly FAAC meetings.
The power to take money from the ECA, Mr. Oshiomhole argued, is vested in the NEC, an institution created by the constitution, and not State Finance Commissioners, who are not known by the constitution.
In disowning Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala, the Commissioners’ Forum pointed out that the law setting up FAAC, which predates the ECA, “cannot approve withdrawal and has not done so in the past.”
If anything, the Commissioners said, records of FAAC meetings show that members have always queried the activities on the ECA, and therefore did not decide any withdrawal.
Although the Commissioners said they observed the withdrawal of $2bn from the ECA in December 2014, the then Minister of State Finance and Chairman of FAAC, Mr. Yuguda, had explained during plenary that approval came from former President Goodluck Jonathan.
The withdrawals were to help pay subsidy claims to oil marketers, who had threaten to stop importing petroleum products.
“FAAC did not and could not have approved, nor took the decision to withdraw the sum of Two Billion U.S. Dollar ($2,000,000,000.00) from the Excess Crude Account,” the Commissioners said.

http://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/headlines/186229-faac-disowns-okonjo-iweala-denies-approving-withdrawal-of-2bn-excess-crude-funds.html?utm_source=&utm_medium=twitter

Ajibo111:
THE MAIN problem facing Nigeria today is security instability.
EVER Since boko haram sect group started their war with
From my own opinion, i am giving out this list below
as the best cities in Nigeria, “WHY” because they
low crime rate, no religious crisis, no triber crisis,
average security, low unemployment rate, great
employment chances, a place you can retire to, a
place you can train and bring up your children,
friendly people, a place where english is generally
spoken and lastly well organize,


1.Cross river state “calabar

Calabar is the capital city of cross river, the city
was the former capital city of Nigeria until it was
move to abuja, calabar still remain a place for all,
peaceful people, most of them are Christian, but
also have regards for other religion, calabar is a
home for tourism, with some of their yearly festival
you will love it.



2.River state: port Harcourt

Port Harcourt is the capital city or river state, the
city is the 5th most populated city in Nigeria, and it
has the largest economics in Nigeria, mainly
because of crude oil there, and other many
factories, seaport and other industries. But be
careful


3.Imo: owerri

Owerri is this list because of it’s beauty and
religious violence free



4.Abuja: fct

Nigeria capital city, it’s like paradise, job
opportunity is at average level, industries and
factories are its major source.



5.EDO state: benin city

The city of hope and peace, its know for it’s
friendly, you can never be lost, generally speaking
of english language by both old and young, its one of
the safest city, under a speed development of roads
and infrastructures by the government of the state,
low crime rate, no triber fight,the people have
regards for all religions,with a lot beautiful sexy girls
all round the busy nigh life area of the city, weekend
parties, nightclub, opportunities is at average, i
really love the ways of the city.



There are other many beautiful cities Nigeria i didn’t
include them because of high crime rate, place like:


Abia: rituals

Onitsha: robberies.

Warri: kidnapping, violence, pocket picking.

Bayelsa: kidnapping

Kaduna: bombing.

Lagos: violence of all kind, stealing,
lkillings,prostitution, bribe, pocket picking, rap,
rituals, human sacrifices for money, and every kind
of those guys living there are really trying. Over
population

Kanu: bombing of churches and public places.

Port harcort: kidnapping.

Maduguri: religious fight, bombing by islamic boko
harams sets. ,many lives has been wasted
feel free to add yours!!!

OP, r u from Sierra Leone?? Cos ur use of English z extremely bad. Secondly, u listed pH as one of d best cities to live in and also listed pH as one of d worst cities to live in. U so confused!!

Cc: Lalasticlala

A 34-year-old graduate of the University of Benin, Enero Ukonga, had just returned home after completing his Masters in Business Administration ,MBA, course in Turkey and was making an attempt to prepare for his PHD in the United States.While he was in his Opebi, Lagos family home,one Osaretin Enabulele, accompanied by 4 others identified as Elisha Jonah, Kazeem Ibrahim, Charles Timinnemi, a Medical student in Romania who was on holiday and the fourth identified simply as Fred visited him.

The lead man, Enabulele , an importer who resides in Benin city, Edo state, was said to have told Uknonga’s father, a retired Customs officer,who is a clearing and forwarding agent, on the phone, that he was bringing the original copy of the bill of laden of a 1 by 40 feet container, to facilitate its clearance from the Apapa Port in Lagos.

Enabulele was said to have requested Ukonga to follow him to the car to get the document for his father who was then in Benin city .
But apprehension reportedly set in after Ukonga’s friend(names withheld) reportedly waited in vain for his return. Curiously, he stepped out of the house to look for him but did not see him and didn’t see any of the visitors either.
However, as he searched for Ukonga, he reportedly stood still with his mouth open in shock, on seeing Ukonga’s pair of slippers in a disarrayed manner. Sensing trouble, he reportedly put a call to Ukonga’s phone only to discover it was switched off. Thereafter, he contacted his father who was in Benin city, to inform him of the ugly development before reporting the matter at the area ‘F’ division.
The police reportedly swung into action but their effort proved abortive. It was gathered that the case was transferred from area ‘’F ‘to the Special Anti Robbery Squad , SARS for further investigation. It was gathered that effort to reach the main suspect , Enabulele failed . Operatives were said to have travelled to the suspect’s home at 4, Ehigie street, off Aiaohan, Dumex road, Benin city, where his girlfriend and his brother were arrested but later released.
Preliminary investigation by operatives of SARS revealed that the main suspect had bolted to Ghana, following claims by some of his friends that he called them with a foreign number informing that he was in Ghana. But when the number was dialled, he reportedly did not pick his call. Investigation at SARS, lingered for six months without any headway.
Determined to unearth the mystery surrounding his son’s whereabouts, Mr Benjamin further lodged a complaint with the Department of Security Service ,DSS. This action paid off, as one of the men who reportedly visited that fateful day was arrested in January 2015, six months after.
He is Elisha Jonah. Jonah as gathered, was arrested mid January, through Enero Ukuoga’s stolen Black Berry phone. The phone was said to have been traced to a user in Ikeja, Lagos. By the time the user was arrested, he told the DSS operatives that he bought it from a friend. At the end , it was discovered that five persons had used the phone, with the seller traced to Jonah .
Jonah’s confessional statement reportedly led to the arrest of one Kasim Ibrahim, popularly called big daddy, on March 17, 2015.
During interrogation, the duo gave a starling disclosure of the whereabouts of the missing Ukonga . They revealed that he was dead and had been buried in a shallow grave at Abesan’s estate, Iyana Ipaja area of Lagos, close to Kazeem’s house.
When the cat was let out of the bag, Mr Ukuoga reportedly lost balance and slumped on one of the seats in the office of the DSS. By the time he came back, he reportedly gave a blank stare at the suspects , apparently trying to fathom their claim. When he managed to say a word, he reportedly started by asking amid tears “what on earth could have warranted such cruel act on an innocent person?
At this point, the DSS reportedly transferred the case to the Force Criminal Investigation Department headquarters annex in Alagbon, where operatives at the Homicide section reportedly led the suspects to the shallow grave in a bush at Iyana Ipaja, from where the body of Ukonga was exhumed.


To say that members of the family was devastated at the bizarre occurrence is to put it mildly, as words could not express the family’s mood .
Though the discovery plunged the family into a season of sorrow but it brought an end to the long search for their assumed missing son.
Asked what went wrong between Mr Benjamin Ukonga and the importer, Enabulele, who is still at large, the bereaved father explained, trying hard not to betray his emotion:
“ Enabulele was introduced to me by a family friend. Later, he contacted me in Benin, saying he had a one by 40 feet container to clear. We settled for N1.5 but he paid N1 million and we started processing the clearance. We paid the Customs duty and other necessary duties , remaining the shipping company which required the original bill of laden of the owner of the container.But to my surprise, he called, requesting for the refund of his money which was not possible because the job was 95% concluded.Later, he called to say he had the bill of laden and I told him to take it to my manager in Lagos. But because that day was a Saturday, my Manager asked him to drop the document at my house in Opebi. But we later discovered he had a sinister motive,following the adoption of my son. My son was never into clearing and forwarding. I was told he even suggested they waited till Monday to hand the document to my manager”.
On her part, Mrs Ukonga cried uncontrollable as she spoke with reporters. She started by saying that all the while her son was declared missing, she kept hoping he would walk in someday. But the recent revelation according to her has left her shattered.
She said:
“This is an act of wickedness in the highest order. My son was an innocent and obedient person. He was never a troublesome fellow. We never believed Osaretin Enabulele could be this callous! Ah! This is so aching ….”, she paused to blow her nose. Through out the period we were searching for him, I concluded they could have drugged him and abandoned him far away and that he could have strayed in the process”, she paused again. But this time around, she broke down in tears at the mere thought that she would never leave to see her son again.
But when the suspects were interrogated by operatives at Alagbon, they denied any knowledge of Ukonga’s death.
According to Kazeem:
“ We did not know how he died. On that day, Osareti Onabulele called Charles that he had a business deal in Ikeja and needed some help. Charles contacted Elisha who thereafter, contacted me. We went there, parked a Toyota Camry car owned by one of us, Elisha, who is Medical student in Romania , in front of the building. By the time Enero was bought out of his house into the car, Elisha was attending to an injury I sustained on the leg. When we got into the car, we discovered that he(Ukonga) was gasping”.
Asked how the body was buried in the shallow grave, the suspects alleged that Enabulele instructed them to bury him there, in order to avoid arrest.
As at Thursday, the whereabouts of Osareti Enabulele, the alleged mastermind, was still unknown. He was subsequently declared wanted. A gazette bulletin from the Force CID read:
 “A warrant of arrest has been obtained from Magistrate Court, in Lagos state for his arrest. He is wanted for the offence of conspiracy and murder on the 19th July, 2014 at number 10, Ajanaku street off Salvation road, Opebi Lagos. “Method used in committing the offence is that the suspect with four others went to the above mentioned address, kidnapped the deceased , one Enero Ukonga and on their way to their destination, the deceased died on the road inside the vehicle” .
Part of the investigation as gathered, included a DNA test on the body , with a view to ascertaining whether it is that of Ukonga. The outcome of the result according to the Police would form their next line of investigation. The Police as gathered, have also written the shipping company not to release the container said to have been sent from Italy by one Kate Uwa, , until investigation is concluded.
The, FCIID, Public Relations Officer, Mr. Friday Achibong, who confirmed the incident, said Enabulele and others; Fred and Charles at large, are still been searched for.

http://www.trendyglitzy.com/2015/07/the-tragic-story-of-enero-graduate-who.html?m=1

The crisis rocking Nigeria’s ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, since the election of National Assembly leaders took a new turn on Saturday as the spokesperson of the Kwara State chapter of the party asked its Lagos chapter to caution its spokesperson.
In a statement on Saturday, Sulyman Buhari, the Publicity Secretary of the Kwara APC, asked the Lagos APC to “re-orientate” Mr. Igbokwe “on his responsibilities in order to halt further embarrassment that his divisive commentary magnets to Lagos APC.”
According to Mr. Buhari, “this caution is unavoidable to arrest the dangerous trend whereby a spokesman continues to cause damage to the image of the same party he was elected to protect and promote.”
Mr. Igbokwe, who is the Publicity Secretary of the Lagos APC, had condemned the election of Bukola Saraki as Senate President and Yakubu Dogara as House of Representatives Speaker, describing the actions of both men as “treacherous” and asking the APC to sanction them.
Mr. Saraki, a former governor of Kwara, is the leader of the APC in the state where he has firm control of its machinery while Mr. Igboke’s statement is believed to be a reflection of the views of Bola Tinubu, a Lagos-based national leader of the APC and one of its most influential members.
The APC crises erupted since the July 9 election of Messrs. Saraki and Dogara against the interests of the party which had supported Ahmad Lawan and Femi Gbajabiamila for Senate President and Speaker respectively. Messrs. Lawan and Gbajabiamila defeated Messrs. Saraki and Dogara in straw polls organised by the party among its elected lawmakers. But the eventual senate leaders teamed up with lawmakers elected on the platform of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to secure their positions, a move which angered many APC leaders.
Although the APC initially rejected the elections of the National Assembly leaders, it later changed its position.
The crisis worsened when Messrs Saraki and Dogara rejected persons nominated by the APC to emerge Senate and House majority leaders as well as other leadership positions reserved for the majority party.
The crisis has since split the party into two factions: those aligned with the new senate president and speaker; and those aligned with the leadership of the party.
To resolve the crisis, the APC on Friday held its first National Executive Council, NEC, meeting since it became Nigeria’s ruling party on May 29. At the meeting, boycotted by Mr. Tinubu and Bisi Akande, the party’s pioneer national chairman and ally of Mr. Tinubu, President Muhammadu Buhari appealed to members to accept the superiority of the party.
“Let the system work,” the president told attendees. “I appeal to you to accept the superiority of the party. I cannot confine myself in Sambisa forest and refuse to participate in the meeting because I respect the superiority of the party.”
Although the NEC agreed on Friday that all parties sheath their sword while the problem is resolved, the Kwara APC spokesman’s statement on Saturday shows the crisis is far from over.
Although the Kwara APC spokesman stated that “what is expected of all APC members is to support the reconciliation efforts of Mr. President and desist from any activity or making comments that tend to ignite more confusion and crises,” he attacked Mr. Igbokwe’s loyalty and commitment to the party, stating that his activities suggest he “is a mole in the APC and/or doing the bidding of some elements outside the APC in order to destabilise the APC.”
“I wish to state without equivocation that no matter what Mr. Igbokwe says or ‎his concerted efforts to twist history, he is not and can never be more APC than the Senate President, Bukola Saraki and Honourable Speaker, Yakubu Dogara,” the Kwara APC official said.

http://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/headlines/186099-apc-crisis-kwara-lagos-chapters-clash-over-saraki.html

A bomb explosion suspected to be from a male suicide bomber has killed six persons including the bomber.
The blast occurred at a local branch of Redeemed Christian Church of God along Bauchi road in Potiskum Town, Yobe State.
A resident of the town who is also one of the officials working with the aid agencies informed PREMIUM TIMES that the bomb went off at a time worshipers were observing the Sunday service.
The resident said “six persons died” from the blast.
The Police have also confirmed that six people died from the explosion.
The Police Public Relations Officer in Yobe, Toyin Gbadegesin, told the News Agency of Nigeria in Damaturu that the dead included the suicide bomber.
“A male suicide bomber detonated a bomb at Redeemed Church at Jigawa area of Potiskum, killing five on the spot,” Mr. Gbadegesin said. “A female member of the church who sustained injuries also died while receiving treatment in the hospital.”
He said the injured are receiving treatment at various health facilities in the area.
Potiskum last suffered a twin suicide attack on June 15, in which 10 people were killed and several others injured.

http://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/headlines/186098-breaking-bomb-explosion-at-redeemed-church-kills-6.html

At least 30 people have been reported dead following fresh attacks by gunmen in Birnin-Magaji local government area of Zamfara, the News Agency of Nigeria reports.
The Chairman of the council, Muhammad Gusami, said on Sunday that the attacks took place in Kokeya and Chigama villages in the area.
Mr. Gusami said the gunmen invaded Kokeya village with motorcycles and killed two persons, set some houses ablaze and carted away animals mostly cows.
He said that the “unfortunate incident” had been reported to the Divisional Police Officer of Birnin-Magaji as well as soldiers on surveillance of the zone.
According to him, while this is going on, the attackers returned the next day and invaded the neighbouring village of Chigama.
“The gunmen, however, killed more than 30 persons whose bodies were still being recovered from the bush,’’ he said.
The chairman said the corpses have been taken to Birnin-magaji General Hospital.
He said the Chigama attack took place shortly after three police trucks just left the area when they noticed that peace had returned to the area. He added that the armed bandits also set several houses on fire on their second attack on Chigama village.
The News Agency of Nigeria did not state when the attacks occurred.
Ibrahim Sani, a witness, said that the gunmen who invaded Kokeya came while the villagers were closing from their prayers.
“The attackers shot sporadically in the air which prompted the people of Chigama to intervene.
“That may have provoked the gunmen to come back so as to punish Chigama people for trying to prevent the attack the previous day.
“While three persons were killed from Kokeya and Chigama on the first day in Kokeya, more than 50 were killed on the second day in Chigama while several houses were burnt,” Mr. Sani said.
The Police Public Relations Officer, Sanusi Amiru, who confirmed the attack, said that the police and army have moved to the area and normalcy had been restored.
(NAN)

http://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/headlines/186097-gunmen-storm-zamfara-communities-kill-30.html?utm_source=&utm_medium=twitter

This thread seff

A national Leader of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Bola Tinubu, and the party’s immediate past interim National Chairman, Bisi Akande, boycotted a meeting of the National Executive Committee, NEC of the party which held on Friday due to lack of proper communication from the party’s leadership, PREMIUM TIMES understands.
Both leaders were conspicoulsy absent at Friday’s meeting. The APC spokesperson, Lai Mohammed, did not exactly explain why they were not present.
Mr. Mohammed had, while responding to inquiries on the absence of the two leaders, said that Messrs. Tinubu and Akande were not members of NEC and that it was the prerogative of the party leaders to invite those who were not NEC members to the meeting.
President Muhammadu Buhari had, while making his comments at the opening session of the NEC, paid encomiums on Mr. Akande as the first chairman of the party and how he worked with “dexterity” to put the party on a strong pedestal, which gave it success.
Mr. Buhari thanked Mr. Akande on behalf of all APC members and said, “it’s a pity he is not here with us”.
PREMIUM TIMES gathered Mr. Tinubu actually made plans to attend the meeting and, indeed, was in Abuja for that purpose.
“ Asiwaju called Papa Akande on Thursday and asked him if he was attended the NEC meeting and Akande asked him if he received any invitation himself, to which Tinubu said no.
“Papa said why should you go to a meeting you have not been invited?” a source close to the two leaders told PREMIUM TIMES.
The decision by the two leaders to stay away from Friday’s meting was the clearest indidcation yet that they were not happy with recent events within the APC.
It has been widely reported that the former Lagos Governor was strongly supporting the candidature of Messrs. Ahmed Lawan and Femi Gbajabiamila to emerge as Senate President and Speaker of the House of Representatives respectively.
Mr. Akande, a longstanding political ally of Mr. Tinubu, recently wrote an open letter in which he said that Messrs. Saraki and Yakubu Dogara who defied the party to emerge as Senate president Speaker of the House respectively were sponsored by some oil barons and “some elements in the north”.
Our source informed us Saturday that although Mr. Akande eventually received his invitation to the NEC meeting “around 9pm on Thursday, it was too late in the day for him to attend”.
He also said Mr. Akande did not get back to Mr. Tinubu to let him know that he had received his invitation late.
Indications that Mr. Tinubu was invited for the meeting was that a seat was reserved for him with a name tag in front, which remained empty throughout the duration of the meeting.
Messrs. Tinubu and Akande could not be reached for comments for this report.

http://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/186076-why-tinubu-akande-boycotted-apc-nec-meeting.html?utm_source=&utm_medium=twitter

stan241:
That's what these guys that support Mikel don't seem to understand, Mikel to me is way overrated that is even if he is rated, Essien, Matic, Ramires, have all at one point or another benched him and under different managers too, if its champions league heck even Malouda has won it before, and as per the Nations cup shey Ahmed Musa and Ideye sef don win am

U seem to grab my point. After 9yrs in Chelsea, he failed to grab a starting spot. N someone z here placing him in most top 5 Nigeria's great. SMH

kenex4ever:
so because chicharito does not start for man U. or Madrid then he is not good?
Or because higuain could not start for Madrid he is not good?
If na so y Moses when una say him better pass mikel no fit make ordinary chelsea bench?
.
There r many great players dat came to chelsea but could not make it eg ballack, chevchenkho, deco, caudrado (don't mind my spellings) etc, but mikel has been there and has played under each of those managers albeit mostly as substitute.

Bro, all M trying to outlay to u z dat Mikel z just being over-rated. After 9 yrs in d Chelsea team, he can't hold down a starting spot

kenex4ever:
enyeama can never b ahead of mikel for anything.
.
B4 enyeama can make d list then any of these would have made it: d bull, amuneke, sunday Olise, finidi George, tijani b, t balogun, siasia, peter ruffai, etc.
.
Why mikel stands out is because he is d most decorated of all. Dat should mean something to u. Enyeama is good but cannot make Chelsea team at any time. On a very good day, if mikel is 100% fit like dat u20 final and ucl semi final against fcb, he makes d likes of messi motionless
.

U wish Under Mikel, Chelsea has witnessed many managers n he couldn't nail down a starting spot in any of dem

On Saturday, 4 October, 2013, Bauchi, capital of Bauchi State, was experiencing an unusually cold weather. At the Old GRA, a suburb of the city, Ismaila Gambo, a 21-year-old with a neatly trimmed beard got up at dawn and headed to a nearby mosque for his morning prayers. He wore a grey sweatshirt atop a pair of jeans and boots.
Ismaila’s dressing suggested that he was off to some high-energy work. But he was actually headed for Maiduguri, capital of Borno State where he believed he was to carry out a self-appointed divine assignment.
Upstairs, in a bedroom in the Gambos’ home, a duplex, his 17–year-old sister, Khadija, said her own prayers. She was dressed in a long gown and wore a headscarf as she waited for her brother to return.
Khadija wore a niqabi, a veil worn by a Muslim woman so that only the eyes are visible. Soon, if all went according to plan, Khadija would be married to a jihadi, a fighter for the cause of Islam. What would her husband be like? She hoped he would be handsome and bearded like Ismaila, her brother.
When the men returned from the mosque just before 6 a.m., Khadija waited until she heard her father go back to bed. Then, before her parents woke up, she stuffed some pillows under the covers to make it seem like she was the one in bed and mentally reviewed her checklist: – clothes for five days, boots, warm socks, a toothbrush, a hairbrush, her niqabi, hijab, and Qur’an.
She grabbed her suitcase, walked downstairs, slipped through the door with her brother and they sped off in one of their father’s many cars.
For the Gambo children, they were embarking on a journey to fulfill destiny. Both had been radicalised by the extremist ideology of Boko Haram and were making a trip to be part of the movement they believed in. But fate had other plans for them.
The two Gambo siblings – this website agreed to change their names for security reasons – had been plotting their journey for over a year. They had been in touch via the telephone and internet with others who had become convinced that the Boko Haram ideology represents the way to salvation.
Ismaila is an Engineering graduate of the Abubakar Tafawa Belewa University, Bauchi. His sister, was a second year French undergraduate of the University of Jos, before they embarked on their journey.
But Ismaila and his sister did not fulfill the mission to join the insurgents. They were caught because he mixed up the phone number of his contact — a lecturer at the University of Maiduguri– which was given to him by a Boko Haram member. The contact was to have provided them with accommodation in GRA, Maiduguri.
“I made a mistake with the numbers they (Boko Haram) had given me in Bauchi, and by twist of fate it was another University of Maiduguri lecturer’s number.”
“The lecturer played along, and while we were waiting, the house was raided,” Ismaila recalled, without regret.
He and his sister are among many that wanted to join Boko Haram or successfully joined, but were caught and are now cooling their heels at a detention camp in Maiduguri, capital of Borno State and the heart of the insurgency.
The icirnigeria.org was given a brief, exclusive access to the detention facility in Maiduguri, one of the many such places where the children of mostly rich and powerful people who have supported, sponsored or were working for Boko Haram are being kept.
The story of these “rich kids” provides a glimpse into how some of the terrorist activities of the Boko Haram group have been financed. Apparently, part of the insurgency group’s past success can be attributed to the contributions these children made to their “cause”.
Ismaila told the icirnigeria.org that there were many of them who were successfully recruited from very influential homes to work for Boko Haram. Many of them consider claims that the insurgency was poverty-driven laughable.
Adegboyega Sam, an army major and one of the officers at the camp, said when Ismaila and his sister were arrested, they had almost an equivalent of N3 million in various currencies, several banks’ ATM cards, four smartphones and three laptops.
“There are many of them here, children of influential Nigerians, some we have been keeping for more than three to four years. We only await instructions from above; ours is to follow orders,” he said.
Confusion
In spite of several hours of interrogation, investigators who have handled the case of these young Nigerians are still a bit confused about how they got conscripted to work for Boko Haram. There are still too many questions unanswered. Why did they leave everything dear to them – family, privileged upbringing and life – without looking back to become terrorists?
The services that Ismaila intended to offer Boko Haram are unclear, even to him. According to a rough transcript of his confessional statement, he told security operatives that he wanted to play a “public-service role” — delivering food, or, perhaps, providing intelligence for the sect; maybe “a combat role”, he said.
Ismaila said he had never held a gun, let alone fire one. As he claimed, his desire was to help Muslims. He wanted to die fighting a holy war.
When asked if he was willing to be used on a suicide mission, Ismaila said: “Yes, if it pleases the Almighty Allah.”
“I did not just run with my sister. An Islamic State had been established, and it is thus obligatory for every able-bodied male and female to fight to keep it. I wanted the comfort of a new khalifah (caliphate),” he said.
Investigations show that there are many like Ismaila who have come to believe in the Boko Haram ideology and have provided support in terms of intelligence, logistic support, food, transportation and so on. Others have directly provided funds to oil the wheel of the deadly insurgency campaign waged by Boko Haram against the Nigerian state and its people.
Musa Awal
Another inmate of the detention facility, Musa Awal, 18, was restless as he spoke to our reporter.
“This nation is openly against Islam and Muslims, especially since Jonathan became President and the evil of this country makes me sick,” he said angrily.
Musa is the third son of a wealthy family from Borno State. His family came into wealth during the regime of the late General Sani Abacha. He told our reporter boldly that not only is education harmful, but “living in this land is haram [sinful]”.
But when reminded that he had attended some of the best schools in Nigeria, he kept mute, looking bemused.
When Musa was caught, he begged that his parents should not be called. He told interrogators that if he confessed, his parents would be killed.
According to a security source, this suggests that he must have worked with a group of people – the possibility of a cell could not be overruled.
Another source at the Directorate of Behavioural Analysis which is part of the office of the National Security Office, NSA, revealed that they had been tracking finance and supplies to Boko Haram for long and it was no surprise that many influential families had set up some sort of fund which they released in the shape of “protection monies” to Boko Haram.
“Some of them watch helplessly as their kids become radicalized and when we nab them, some even prefer that their wards are left in detention out of fear,” said the source.
The source disclosed that one way that Boko Haram finances its operations is through collection of protection money which it obtains from willing sources or through blackmail and coercion of residents of territories it controls.
For example, rich people like Ismaila and Musa, who sympathise with Boko Haram fighters, funnel monies to the insurgents ostensibly for protection but in reality as financial support to prosecute their activities.
The source said that is why, curiously, in spite of the numerous attacks on Maiduguri, places like the old and new GRA where wealthy and influential people stay, have never been targeted.
“Go to both the new GRA and the old one, none of them has been attacked all these years that the insurgency has lasted,” he stated.
The Parents
When our reporter visited Musa’s parents, it was obvious that they were regular people, although wealthy.
His mom expressed shock that he had become radicalised and joined a terrorist group. She said that the only time her son was violent was when he was aged about eight. That was when he got angry and broke the television. She also said they ensured that their kids never had unsupervised internet access and encouraged them to watch cartoons.
“We wanted to preserve their innocence, but maybe with all the affluence we failed,” she said with a sigh.
The story is no different from the Gambos whose children first attended religious schools before heading to the upscale Hillcrest School in Jos, Plateau State, after which they spent a year in a preparatory college in the United Kingdom. After that, back home in Bauchi, a private Islamic teacher came home to give them Islamic knowledge in what they considered a conducive environment.
But the story of radicalised rich kids like Ismaila and Musa cannot be strange or new to those who know about Farouk Abdulmutallab, who at 23, attempted to bomb a US-bound plane on a Christmas Day in 2009.
The youngest of the 16 children of Umaru Mutallab, a wealthy businessman and banker from Kastsina State, Farouk, now popularly known as the “underwear bomber”, hid explosives in his underwear which failed to detonate on a flight from Amsterdam to Detroit, Michigan.
Among other charges, he was arraigned for the attempted murder of 289 people and was in February 2012, sentenced to four life terms and a 50 year jail term.
There is also the story of Ibrahim Uwais, the son of a former Chief Justice of Nigeria, who allegedly left with his two wives and children to join the ISIS.
The 41-year-old devout Muslim, who was perceived to have hated Boko Haram, its ideology and killing of innocent people, left his father, Muhammed Uwais, and other family members shocked.
Kunle Nwosu, a psychologist with the NSA office’s Counter-Terrorism Department, works on a de-radicalization programme started recently for “rich misdirected boys”, as he called them.
He said in many cases, most of their parents are nice, regular people and the kids seem well adjusted. They are obedient, well-mannered, got good grades in school and are volunteers in mosques. Religion plays a central role in their lives and they make efforts to pray five times daily.
“To be honest with you, you can’t imagine their kids being Boko Haram,” Nwosu stated.
Aliyu Ibrahim, an Islamic scholar in one of Maiduguri’s many Islamiyya (Islamic schools), explained why many kids from wealthy homes are Boko Haram supporters. “We have a lot of experience with these influential children. Many of these kids are Boko Haram fans. Something just goes wrong. It probably begins from drugs, stealing, waywardness and then sympathy for Boko Haram,” he said.
Big Problem
“If you read many of their statements, there is a similarity to them as if they’d been copied from a script. For example you keep seeing the phrase “I simply cannot sit here and let my brothers and sisters get killed by infidels; I am ready to die and so forth,” noted Mr. Nwosu.
Mr. Nwosu observed that most of the boys and girls in the facility were arrested before the coming of the Islamic State, IS, which has launched a terrorist campaign in the Arab world. He believes that many such youths who are open to extremist indoctrination might have since joined ISIS and that Nigeria may already have a large army of radicalized youths that could make the country a huge tinderbox.
But if nothing can be immediately done about Nigerian youths that might be flocking to join ISIS, certainly, back home, the state can take action against those who have been detained for links to Boko Haram. Or so it seems.
Some wondered why such potentially dangerous youths would be kept in detention for years, some as many as four years, without being brought to trial. But it is not as cut and dry as it appears, it seems. Even our security source at the camp balked when asked why the detainees had not been charged. He did not provide an answer.
However, another security source, who is also a lawyer, who does not want to be named, said there is no legal obstacle preventing the military or security agencies from charging them to court, reasoning that there are a plethora of charges that can be brought against them.
“Basically you have something like knowingly attempting to provide material support and resources to a terrorist organization in the form of personnel — namely, himself, monies and so on,” he observed.
Even then, he added that ”a wide range of activities is criminalized under the Terror Act, including supplying weapons, money, personnel or training to providing things like humanitarian relief, conflict-resolution training and other expert advice or assistance”.
It is not known precisely how federal authorities arrived at its targets and under what laws some of these semi-juvenile detention facilities are run. In all, it was discovered that there are four facilities – one in Borno and Plateau states and two in Abuja – all catering to some 1,000 individuals aged between 15 and 30.
The National Security Adviser’s Office would not speak officially. The Department for State Security too said it was not aware of the existence of these facilities.
Similarly, the military appeared unwilling or unable to offer any information. The publication of this report was held up for several weeks in order to get the defence spokesman, Chris Olukolade, a Major General, to speak on the detention camps but it was difficult getting him until last week.
When confronted with our findings last week, Mr. Olukolade stated that he was not aware of any detention camp where young Boko Haram financiers or supporters were being held,
He however, promised to find out and react appropriately later. Until the time of going to press, Mr. Olukolade did not provide any information on the matter.
The icirnigeria.org, however, learnt that investigation of many young people at various stages of radicalization was ongoing. Also, agents were gathering intelligence and setting traps for unsuspecting targets like Ismaila.

This report was first published by the International Centre for Investigative Reporting. We have their permission to republish.

http://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/headlines/186067-investigation-how-children-from-rich-nigerian-families-help-finance-boko-haram.html

Yekini didn't score up to 46 goals for d National team

Modified:
I'd go for Enyeama in 4th position ahead of Mikel

Hmm

God, pls protect her

Luedave:
[size=18pt]LOVE DIS GUY, MORE THAN D DRY ASS OP OF DIS THREAD[/size]

R u wat I think u re?

Love, Beauty, Popularity

Ok

A Federal High Court in Lagos has discharged and acquitted a former aviation minister, Femi Fani-Kayode, of corruption charges.
In her judgment, the judge​, Rita Ofili-Ajumogobia,​ said the prosecution’s case was “feeble” and failed to provide “copious evidence” linking Mr. Fani-Kayode to money laundering.
Mr. Fani-Kayode, whose trial began in 2008 before Justice Ramat Mohammed, was arraigned by the E
​conomic and Financial Crimes Commission, E​FCC​,​ for allegedly laundering about N100 million while he was minister of culture and tourism and subsequently, aviation minister.
The allegedly laundered sum was, however, reduced to N2.1million on Nov
​ember 17, 2014 after the court dismissed 38 of the 40-count charge levelled against Mr. Fani-Kayode for want of proof. ​T​he EFCC prosecutor, ​Festus Keyamo, while urging the court to uphold the remaining two counts and to accordingly convict Mr. Fani-Kayode, said the former minister failed to exonerate himself of the allegations.
Mr. Keyamo pointed out that the object of the charge was that Mr. Fani-Kayode transacted in cash sums above N500,000, which was the threshold stipulated by the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act.
Mr. Keyamo had argued that Mr. Fani-Kayode admitted making such transactions in his confessional statement of Dec. 22, 2008 made to the EFCC.
Mr. Keyamo had argued that the prosecution had discharged its duty once it established that Mr. Fani-Kayode transacted in large sums above the Money Laundering threshold, adding that it was left for Mr. Fani-Kayode to explain the source of the money.
“Once you cannot explain the source of the large sum of money found on you, you are guilty of money laundering. If the prosecution must show where the money is coming from, then the whole essence of the money laundering law is defeated.
“It is not in all cases that the burden of proof lies on the prosecution; the burden at this point shifts to the accused person,” Mr. Keyamo argued.
But Mr. Fani-Kayode’s lawyer, Ifedayo Adedipe (SAN), in his summary argument, maintained that Mr. Fani-Kayode made no confession to the EFCC, adding that the anti-graft agency failed to show that Mr. Fani-Kayode actually accepted a cash sum of N1million as alleged.
Mr. Adedipe said the EFCC also failed to show to the court the person who handed the cash sum to the accused person.
He said for the case of the prosecution to succeed, it had to be proven beyond reasonable doubts.

http://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/185898-breaking-court-clears-fani-kayode-of-corruption-charges.html

tsdarkside:
thank you...my engilishi is not the best...

It's understandable. It's a borrowed language

Nigerians n their last minute reactions to certain things